24 Modern French Muses
γιατί η Γαλλική φινέτσα είναι αδιαπραγμάτευτη
Clemence Poesy
"I've often been told that I'm a bit strange. I hear that pretty regularly, but it is not how I see myself. I feel like I'm extremely normal. I do have a bizarre face that's a bit out of proportion. I guess that's why some people see me as strange," Poesy — who has starred in campaigns for Chloe and G-Star — has said.
At left, Poesy at the Valentino Fall 2012 couture show in Paris in July 2012.
Cecile Cassel
"I've found consistency over time. However, my style remains open to offers," Cassel — who appeared on the final episode of Sex and the City — describes of her aesthetic.
At left, the actress at the Chanel 2012 Resort show in Versailles in May 2012.
Vanessa Paradis
"I don't think that much about fashion. I suppose I like putting together outfits without too much thought and seeing what the outcome is," Vanessa Paradis has said. "About designers, it has to be Karl Lagerfeld. I met him at a show in 2003 and have stayed friends since. What I love about him, apart from being the fantastic designer, is he smells gorgeous all the time!"
At left, Paradis outside the Chanel Spring 2012 couture show in Paris in January 2012.
Elisa Sednaoui
"I like things that are very minimal, and I never wear too many accessories," Sednaoui — who was born in Italy but grew up in Paris (she's part French) — says. Her godfather is Christian Louboutin.
At left, the model-actress-director at the Chanel Fall 2012 show in Paris in March 2012.
Ana Girardot
"I like clothes that are not too precious; they need to have durability," the 24-year-old actress says of her style. "I'm really bad at describing my look, but I like when I feel really comfortable in my clothes and confident."
At left, Girardot at the Chloe Fall 2012 show in Paris in March 2012.
Constance Jablonski
"I'm not so dressed up in my regular life. I like flat shoes, in general, because I'm tall enough," Jablonkski — who hails from a small town near Lille — has said. "I like clothes for my age: jeans, leggings, and comfortable stuff. Isabel Marant is one of my favorites. I like Rag & Bone, YSL, IRO, Sandro, Vanessa Bruno. We have nice smaller brands in France."
At left, Jablonski at the 2012 CFDA afterparty in New York in June 2012.
Marion Cotillard
"Marion is beautiful, very talented, and thinks good like a rebel," says David Lynch, who directed the actress in a campaign for Dior.
At left, the actress in Spring 2012 Dior at Cannes in May 2012.
Virginie Mouzat
"First and foremost, she is a beautiful woman who exudes intelligence and self-assurance. Her style has always been chic and sexy, but not attention-seeking," Amanda Brooks has said of the Le Figaro fashion director's understated style. "Virginie's style is a perfect balance of trends and basics, masculine and feminine, minimal and decorative. You get the feeling that she wears her clothes for years, not just for one season."
At left, Mouzat in New York in 2011.
Emmanuelle Alt
"I don't look after myself. I don't do yoga, Pilates, those things," the Paris Vogue editor in chief has said. "Makeup? I just black my eyes and that's it. My hair? I get it cut on set; I never go to a hairdresser. I'm not sure I'm French."
At left, Alt in the Place Vendome in Paris in September 2011.
Lou Doillon
"I'm very lucky that I come from a very, very beautiful family. Everyone was so beautiful, stylish, and serious in our house when I was growing up," explains Doillon, who is the daughter of Jane Birkin. "I shop at flea markets and don't choose clothes based on labels. For ready-to-wear, I do like Ann Demeulemeester, Maison Martin Margiela, and Tsumori Chisato and Christian Lacroix, Jean Paul Gaultier, and John Galliano for haute couture."
At left, Doillon at an event during Spring 2012 Paris Fashion Week in October 2011.
Caroline de Maigret
"I don't like to shop, and if I do, I go for a beautiful piece that I'm going to carry around for years," the model and music producer says. "A suit definitely suits me better than a dress, a pair of jeans than a skirt. No hairdo and very light makeup; it just doesn't fit my androgynous features."
At left, de Maigret at the Burberry boutique opening in Paris in December 2011.
Virginie Ledoyen
"I'm not Cindy Crawford or Claudia Schiffer. I'm pretty normal-looking," the actress — who appears in this Summer's Farewell, My Queen — has said. "I think I can mingle well with girls of my own age. It just means that I'm accessible."
At left, Ledoyen in Ferragamo at the Ferragamo Resort 2013 show in Paris in June 2012.
Charlotte Gainsbourg
"I don't follow fashion. I don't like fashion shows," says Gainsbourg. "I would love to watch fashion shows without being seen."
At left, Gainsbourg outside the Fall 2012 Balenciaga show in Paris in March 2012.
Carine Roitfeld
"I was never conscious that I was becoming an icon, or I'm not an icon," Roitfeld has said. "I have a specific look: black eyes, hair in my face, high heels."
Roitfeld outside the Valentino Fall 2012 couture show in Paris in July 2012.
Eva Green
"I like a high neck. And I like naked backs. It seems very sexy," the actress — who recently starred along Johnny Depp in Dark Shadows — has said of her notoriously dramatic aesthetic. "Red carpets are about being a bit theatrical — having fun rather than being too safe. You have to be brave. Fashion is fun."
At left, the actress at Cannes in April 2011.
Ines de la Fressange
"Beware of good taste," de la Fressange advises in her book Parisian Chic: A Style Guide. "Who knew that black and navy were made for each other? No one — until Yves Saint Laurent gave us permission to boldly go where no one had gone before. You love orange dresses with yellow shoes? Go for it!"
At left, de la Fressange at the Calvin Klein Women in Film event in Cannes in May 2012.
Audrey Tautou
"I am not modern at all," Tautou has said. "I don't like the Parisian show business; it's not my cup of tea. And my style . . . I am not girlie-girlie."
At left, Tautou in Prada at the Winners' Dinner at Cannes in May 2012.
Josephine de la Baume
"You have to look like you've made no effort even if you really have," the singer says. "French girls don't wash their hair as much and they don't wear much makeup. Everything is very discreet, except for nonchalant touches — say a bag or a pair of shoes."
At left, Josephine de la Baume at the Fall 2012 Lacoste show in New York in February 2012.
Julia Restoin Roitfeld
"We have very different styles," Restoin Roitfeld says when comparing herself to her famous mother. "I'm a bit classic and very feminine; she's more daring than I am."
At left, Restoin Roitfeld at a party in London in September 2011.
Mademoiselle Agnes
"I don't like the idea to have one style — I'm not monomaniacal at all," the fashion journalist and television personality says. "But I like the idea to be 'du style.' I'm a Parisian, and we love to smoke, to have natural hair and makeup. Even if I try to go into red lipsticks sometimes, I like looking effortless. I like to mix: if I'm wearing a jogging [outfit] because I'm lazy someday, I choose a beautiful bag."
At left, Mademoiselle Agnes at the Spring 2012 Etam collection launch in Paris in January 2012.
Carla Bruni
"I'm not at all the androgynous type. When I was young, I admired Jane Birkin and Audrey Hepburn. They are always the icons of us flat-breasted girls, because they are so sexy, even without breasts. When I was 15 years old, I wished I had a Brigitte Bardot body, but at the same time there was something elegant about Audrey Hepburn that Bardot never had. . . . There is something more lasting in being thin and elegant. I admire elegance over ultraflashiness," Bruni says of her style. "It must be an embarrassment for the wives of other heads of state to see this beautiful creature who can wear anything," Karl Lagerfeld has said about the former model.
At left, Bruni with husband Nicolas Sarkozy in India in December 2010.
The Courtin-Clarins Girls
"Here's how to keep them straight," writer Andrew O'Hagan explains. "Claire has the beautiful alien look, with long legs and translucent skin. Virginie is the classic French girl with an open, sweet face and strong eyebrows and blond tresses that she likes to stroke. Jenna is the rock-and-roll one: smoky eyes and a natural sense of wanting to make way for the talents of others. Prisca is classic '40s: dark hair, green eyes, and skin that looks like it's had skin-care products patted onto it since she was the merest baby." From left to right: Claire Courtin-Clarins, Prisca Courtin-Clarins, Jenna Courtin-Clarins, and Virginie Courtin-Clarins at the Met Gala in New York in May 2012.
Camille Miceli
"Camille is exuberant, vivacious, and sexy," Marc Jacobs has said of the former Louis Vuitton publicist, who is now the director of accessories at Dior. "When we first met, her energy and enthusiasm won my heart."
At left, Miceli at a dinner hosted by Carine Roitfeld in Paris in October 2011.
Laetitia Casta
"You need experience to know who you are," Casta says. "That's what makes you feel beautiful. I feel much better now than when I was 20, because I'm more myself."
At left, Casta at the Chanel Fall 2012 couture show in Paris in July 2012.
Pics and info here
