Lessons from Madame Chic: 20 Stylish Secrets I Learned While Living in Paris

by Jennifer L. Scott

crème caramel,

insouciant attitude

pâte sucrée

By practicing the best for you and your family on a daily basis, you train your mind and palate to have a healthy attitude toward food and mealtime, and you send the message that you and your family are special enough to receive all the joy that food brings to the table. Le Petit Déjeuner Breakfast (or le petit déjeuner) in France is a very important ritual. Growing up in California, I knew that breakfast was certainly important, but it never held much ritualistic value. I would usually scarf down a bowl of Cheerios or a piece of toast and call it a morning. Things, I would discover, were very different in Paris. Monsieur Chic would get up very early every morning to go to work (long before I would get up). He would rise for breakfast at 5:45 a.m. and be out the door by 6:30. Madame Chic would rise before him and have his breakfast prepared by the time

point of the ten-item wardrobe is to free yourself from a jam-packed closet full of ill-fitting, underused, or poor-quality clothing. Your ultimate goal is to create a wardrobe that you love, in which every item of clothing speaks to who you are, and to create a space for your clothes to breathe—by eliminating clutter.

Wardrobe Assessment Questions Do I still like this? In many instances I was holding on to something because I had paid a lot of money for it—not because I actually liked it. Do I ever wear this? I had many clothes that I simply did not wear. Some I hadn’t worn in over two years! I knew I never would wear them again, but for some reason I couldn’t let go. Does it still fit and flatter me? People gain or lose weight, have babies, and get older—bodies change! It is important not to be in denial about your current body shape. Dress yourself for your current body—not the body you used to have or wish you had. Does this article of clothing still reflect who I am? This is a very powerful question, and in most instances my answer was a resounding no. I was holding on to blouses and skirts that I had purchased in my early twenties. (I even found a few baby doll dresses—yikes!) A lot has changed since then. I am a wife and mother. My tastes are more refined and sophisticated. Those clothes were not right for the new me. I realize you might not be ready to purge everything the first time around. That is okay. After you weed out the items you know you no longer want, I suggest storing clothes that are not in the chosen ten in space-saving bags or a container in another room or in your garage. Just keep them out of your sight. You might find you go an entire year without thinking about them at all, in which case you know you could probably do without them. Customizing Your Ten-Item War...

a drastically different ten-item wardrobe than a stay-at-home mom in Atlanta. Think about what your day usually consists of. Board meetings? PTA meetings? Working from home? Riding your bike? Also take into consideration the season (snow, perpetual rain, warm sunshine?) and of course your style and personality (fashion forward, classic minimalism, bohemian?). My ten-item wardrobe has been tailored to fit my particular life situation: I am a mother with two small children, but I still like to look pulled together, so the majority of my wardrobe is casual sportswear with a slight dressed-up edge. I live in Southern California, which has a temperate climate even in the winter. I mainly spend my days taking care of the home and children, going to playdates, writing, and going on walks. My choices for the ten-item wardrobe reflect my lifestyle. Here are some examples of ten-item wardrobes. Every item in this selection of clothing can be mixed and matched, thus creating many sartorial possibilities—a must for any capsule wardrobe. Sample Ten-Item Wardrobe for Spring/Summer sea-green silk top tan sheer blouse navy and white striped sailor tee beige crewneck sweater sea-foam button-down tie cardigan lightweight pleated black trousers tailored black high-waisted shorts sea-green A-line skirt tan khaki pencil skirt white and/or dark blue jeans Sample Ten-Item Wardrobe for Fall/Winter 3 cashmere sweaters in beige, cream, and black 3 silk blouses 1 button-down white shirt tailored dar...

“You must pay very close attention to what enhances your beauty and what detracts from it. It is a must for every woman.”

We should only wear clothes because we love them, they look good on us, and they speak to who we are as people. No exceptions.