BOOK REVIEW: How to Be Parisian Wherever You Are * Love, Style and Bad Habits.

Impeccably chic in Paris. Photo © Radu Razvan Gheorghe.

I believe I may be the only American woman to have read every book there is on how to be more Parisian. From my childhood fascination with my mother’s French Creole roots (my grandmother’s maiden name is Golette), to weekly tutorials with my Haitian babysitter, completing French language studies in high school and traveling on several occasions to the City of Lights—my intrigue with French culture, Parisian culture in particular—has been lifelong. So, bien sûr, when I came across the book, “How to Be Parisian Wherever You Are: Love, Style, and Bad Habits,” by Anne Berest, Audrey Diwan, Caroline de Maigret and Sophie Mas. I had to have it.
My first thought, dear blog reader … oh, those naughty French girls...

John Hazard Forbes on Old Money America.

The once exclusive gates of a Breakers mansion, Newport, Rhode Island.
Photo by Ritu Jethani. 

One of my favorite little books is by Mayflower descendant, Ivy League graduate, art expert and appraiser, John Hazard Forbes. Titled: Old Money America, Aristocracy in the Age of Obama, it "explores the attitudes and behaviors of long-standing, wealthy (American) families.” Their likes, dislikes, and utter abhorrence’s, are a source of considerable education and sometimes affable humor. Great lessons—especially for those that mistake the flamboyance, ostentation and gaudiness of many of our newly affluent—for those possessing class or what used to be called “good breeding.”

What NOT to Wear to the BRONX ZOO.

Photo by Javiindy.

If you have children and you live in New York (or are visiting), you can’t miss the Bronx Zoo. You must see and experience the Butterfly Garden and then scratch “ride on the back of a camel” off of your bucket list. However, be forewarned, the one thing that may frighten you more than any lion, tiger or cheetah—is the attire of 99% of the other zoo patrons. Luckily, it is summer, so wearing sunglasses will mask the fright and horror in your eyes. I must be honest dear reader, I have never seen so many horribly dressed people in my lifetime, as I have in one day. Brooke Astor would turn over in her grave.

Paul Fussell on the Tell-Tale Signs of Class.

Photo by Andrejs Pidjass (Nejron).

 

"At the bottom, people tend to believe that class is defined by the amount of money you have. In the middle, people grant that money has something to do with it, but think education and the kind of work you do almost equally important. Nearer the top, people perceive that taste, values, ideas, style, and behavior are indispensable criteria of class, regardless of money or occupation or education." —Paul Fussell
 
In 1983, the departed literary writer, cultural historian and scholar, published his book, Class, A Guide Through the American Status System. As New York Times writer, Bruce Weber described it: "Mr. Fussell brought an erudition, a gift for readable prose, a willingness to offend and, as many critics noted, a whiff of snobbery to subjects like class, clothing, the dumbing down of American culture and the literature of travel." He was unapologetic in his views and commentary, and completed a well-dissected analysis of the social classes within American society. What tell-tale signs differentiate us along this ladder, from top to bottom? Here are a few of my favorite excerpts from this groundbreaking (and rather humorous) book. It is a little dated, but much still rings true, denoting that most features of class defy time and generation.

INTERVIEW: Dana Thomas. New York Times Best-Selling Author & International Fashion Reporter Reveals How Luxury Lost Its Luster.

Dana wearing a Philip Treacy hat. Photo by Hervé d’Halluin.

 

"The story of luxury goods today is really about globalization, capitalization, class and culture. Dana Thomas has a feel for all of this and more and has written a fascinating book. A luxury product about luxury." —Fareed Zakaria, Newsweek

Brand-name luxury today is beyond what it ever was—from light-hearted desire to dire necessity. I remember in the late 1980s/early 1990s when stories of a few inner-city kids, many who subsisted on government aid, were being robbed (or robbing others in their peer group) of their expensive brand-name tennis shoes. You had to pack heat when wearing your Jordan's. This was also the time when wearing head-to-toe logoed Gucci warm-up suits (often knock-offs) with a matching fanny pack was the player’s choice. Looking poor—even though economically disadvantaged—made one an outcast and even the butt of jokes. This is a cultural anomaly whose roots are deep and growing in prevalence, in considerable part by its superstar advertisers (Sean “P. Diddy” Combs, Jennifer Lopez, Beyoncé, Lil Wayne, etc.). If you want to be admired and envied, you’ve gotta look like you can make it rain, or at least appear rained on, and that means luxury brands.

Ladies SPRING/SUMMER Wardrobe Essentials: WHAT TO WEAR in Greenwich, CT to Île de Ré.

 

 



You should NEVER do super high fashion or couture on the beach! It screams, "I am newly affluent and desperate to fit in!" I remember reading an article about what one beautiful old money Hampton's veteran said about a Russian girl that showed up with a friend in head-to-toe Hermès at a beach picnic, "She looked ridiculous and didn't fit in at all." Also, the last time my husband and I were on vacation in Nosara, Costa Rica, a couple arrived to the beach-front hotel we were staying at looking like cast members from the set of Dynasty. Quelle Horreur!

STYLE FAUX PAS: Nine Simple Mistakes that UN-CHIC Your Look.



 False eyelashes, too much eye shadow = un-chic.

Everyone wants to look expensive and well put together (or they should!) and pourquoi? There is authority, respect, beauty and poise in looking inimitable; having the appearance of a class act. We remember the class acts, they emit something nostalgic in us; a yearning perhaps for more formal and traditional times where being a “lady” and a “gentleman” really meant something. There was mystery and fantasy and allure. 

INTERVIEW: Princess Ivana Pignatelli. Royal Beauty, Best-Selling Author & the New Face of Majestic Motherhood.

 

Princess Ivana Pignatelli is the internationally celebrated beauty behind the “Modern Princess” brand and author of The Modern Princess: A Simple Guide to Pregnancy & Baby's First Year. Along with other royal mothers—Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece, and Princess Letizia of Asturias—she has embraced a more cosmopolitan and hands-on approach to majestic motherhood. The tech-savvy businesswoman, whose fairy-tale wedding to an Italian prince—Prince Adriano Pignatelli Aragona Cortes—placed her among the who’s who of the global elite, is now the chic girl’s guide to pregnancy and child rearing. UPG turns to this Modern Princess for some much needed maternal advice. 

INTERVIEW: Siddharth Kasliwal. Gem Palace Scion and India's Most Eligible Bachelor.

If the handsome face, big brown eyes, or perfectly tousled mane doesn’t melt you, then being led by the hand—by private appointment of course—into a legendary palace of rare and precious gems will. Emily Jerome, of Latest Revival, flawlessly describes Siddharth Kasliwal’s splendid inheritance, “The Gem Palace in Jaipur, India is like a mythical setting for a James Bond heist. Uncut rubies cascade from cheesecloth bags, as if a dime a dozen. Sapphires, diamonds, emeralds—the size of golf balls—flood the show tables, begging to glisten on a body part. Antique rings open to reveal wells once filled with poison. Diamonds encrusted into glittering turtles form a clutch purse.” What girl’s heart wouldn’t skip a beat?

Overdoing SEXY: 5 Reasons Why Showing More Gets You a Whole Lot Less.

"There is an expression in France; avoir du chien. It means to be sexy, attractive and brainy. To seduce a man you need to be able to make him laugh, entertain him and keep him interested. And it's not enough to just wear garters ..."
- Helena Frith Powell, All You Need to Be Impossibly French

I was recently in Los Angeles a few weeks ago (my home town), and happened to pop into Boulmiche. The same Beverly Hills boutique where the famous scene from the 1990s movie, Pretty Woman, was shot. You know the scene. Vivian (Julia Roberts) walks into the elegant little store dressed in street-walker attire, tons of cash in hand, and asks the price of a dress. The two pretty blond sales women, doing their best impression of conservative rich-lady 80s chic, simply respond, "I don't think we have anything here for you. You're obviously in the wrong place."

INTERVIEW: India Hicks. The Noble Bahamian on a Life Less Ordinary and a Legacy of Design.

India Wearing Jewelry From Her Collection

If ever there was a silhouette that revealed its noble lineage, it is that of India Amanda Caroline Hicks, granddaughter of Lord Louis Mountbatten, India’s last viceroy; second cousin and goddaughter of Prince Charles; and counted as one in the distinguished line of succession to the British throne. In 1947, her mother, Lady Pamela, was a bridesmaid to then-Princess Elizabeth, when the now-Queen married Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (Lady Pamela’s first cousin). She was also the Queen’s Lady-in-Waiting. India, of course, will always be fondly ingrained in our memories as the pretty young bridesmaid standing intimately alongside a shy Lady Diana Spencer. 

INTERVIEW: Lulu deKwiatkowski. Celebrated Fabric Designer, Artist, Author, Wife & Mother; and Still a Bright Young Thing.



The Artist and Her Newest Protégé.

 

Speaking with Alexandra “Lulu” deKwiatkowski is a bit like falling into a huge, down feather bed full of colorful, handcrafted throw pillows. The woman, whose mantra is “Always look on the bright side,” is unknowingly describing herself. She is the bright side; she lives the bright side, she paints and constructs on the brightest, most multihued side. It is no wonder that her brand, LULU DK, exudes the same sunlit warmth that is authentically and organically, Lulu.