I was about 15 when my Mum bought me my first copy of French Vogue. We were on holiday in Paris and to be honest, before then I’d had no interest in fashion at all. But once I got that magazine and started noticing the French women around me, i was hooked!

I always notice that a lot of French women keep it simple. Slim jeans and sleek sweaters or a stylish sheath dress. They somehow seem to get away with bare skin and a slick of lip gloss and look extremely glamorous! I am desperate to recreate this seemingly effortless look (although i’m sure there is a lot of hard work put in that we don’t know about!). Carla Bruni is a perfect example of how to keep it simple. Just look at the photos below:

As you can see, French women always have the perfect accessories. Great shoes and bags is what elevates their look from basic to beautiful. I am very conscious when I go out, that I like to have a statement bag, but I let myself down when it comes to shoes. I have very narrow, long feet so I find it very difficult to buy shoes – it’s not an enjoyable experience for me!

I always think  that getting dressed is hard work, but really, I suppose I make it hard because I give myself  too many options. French women have very small wardrobes, and they wear the same pieces — the same outfits, even — over and over. French women look into their wardrobe and say, “That looked great on Tuesday — I think I’ll wear it again.” So I should find what works and continue to wear that style. No reason to keep reinventing my style.

I’m going to spend this Summer trying to take a more relaxed approach to “styling” myself. Just follow the basics: simple, sleek with matching accessories.