The 10 Commandments Of French Style

Ah, the Frenchwoman: the subject of some 12 million articles, books, blog posts, and forum threads (source: Google search) devoted to analysing why she’s so chic. Well, here’s one more. Our take is to get a real sense of her style not from icons, influencers, models, or ambassadors of French brands, but from four real Frenchwomen who work and live here, and aren’t necessarily Parisians (or friends of Karl Lagerfeld). And we can finally put a finger – no, 10 fingers – on the je ne sais quoi quality so synonymous with French chic.

- Rachel Tan

1 It’s about being  elegant and chic. It’s never about the latest look/ item/trend or  designer brand.

Cherifa Ben Slamia: “We have a saying in France: ‘She would be dressed up in nothing’ – just a white shirt and jeans. These items wouldn’t be from famous brands, but there is something about [the stylish woman’s] look that makes a difference to the white shirt and jeans. The French grow up with a sense of style and elegance. Our mums would say: ‘Whatever you do, put on a little bit of lipstick, a little bit of perfume – the little things that will make you elegant and chic.’

“Even when the Frenchwoman does boho, it’s in an elegant way. My look is ‘bobo’ (short for bourgeois boheme), which is a more elegant version of hippy, and very Parisian.”

2 Know what really suits your body and age, because not everything you like will look good on you.

Cherifa: “You have to know and understand your body to be able to know what really suits you, because not everything in the shop, and not every trend, will look good on you. Before you buy anything, see if it fits your size and shape; that it’s not too big or small; and has little details that will make the difference. That’s what we mean by having elegance.

“It’s not an elusive ability – unlike taste – that you are born with, or not born with.

It’s something you can work on.

“People [in Singapore] do very short shorts. We wouldn’t wear them, because for us, it’s not elegant. I am 42, so I wear shorts that cover half the length of my thighs. In my opinion, short shorts are not something that I can wear now.”