paris, fashion and what to wear...

Monday morning and my mind is on Paris.

I have to leave my country sensibilities behind and gear myself up for a few urban days in the city of light. Did I say 'gear'? I mean 'gear' in the fashion sense. Country life, summer time and relaxed Provencal living doesn't give me much call to frock up and stay in touch with the latest looks from the runway. Life on the farm is an easy one to accessorise....cool and light in summer....comfy and cosy in winter. The biggest style statement I have made this summer is to match my market espadrilles with my caftan cover ups. There is a freedom in leaving behind the need to be a la mode but there is also an excitement in thinking about the season ahead and figuring out what's what and what's not.

Did I mention that I am a fashion junkie....nearly as much as I am an interiors and home-wares groupie. Fashion was my first great love and to this day I have an undying devotion and respect for her. As I have grown older my choices have streamlined but my appreciation and dedication to what's 'in' have never diminished. Pouring over magazines and online sites, looking at trends and figuring out what could possibly work for an 'older' and 'rounder' me is my idea of heaven..... I find that the energy, the originality and the creativity of this mad world are addictive and stimulating.

So I am in the mood for shoes, for boots, for coats and suits, for jeans and jackets, for dresses and skirts....I can't wait to pound those Parisian pavements and see what's happening.... the pieces that are being worn and how they are put together....Is hair long, short, curly or straight? Are heels high, boots low and Converse still the go. My curiosity will be piqued, my pulses racing and no doubt my eyes out on stalks...For me, three months away from the city seems like an eternity...

Today I am happily ensconcing myself in the latest editions of Vogue (French, Italian and US - all national publications will be devoured and studied with absolute concentration) and squeezing in a little online reconnaissance.....here and here......xv

Prada image...taken from the study material above

xv