Solly

Will be in Paris for 10 days. Not intending to eat at any 3 or 4 star restaurants. Are a jacket and tie a necessity or merely dressy casual clothes?

Hiho

I believe that you are asking this in conjunction of the recent retirement announcement of YSL. Perhaps in homage to him....you shou wear some of his circa 1975 line of Russian peasant wear. If you only have access to ready-to-wear, I think a tunic would be most appropriate.

L

Just look in your closet ... you'll see a pants suit or two, possibly a trench coat, a man's style shirt and possibly a see-through blouse or so. If you're a woman in business or the professions, just take a look at your entire professional wardrobe - you'll see the YSL influence on every hanger. Lets give the man his due. He's hardly just another designer - ciao, L

Peasant

A well-dressed troll is still a troll.

solly

As indeed is one who gives a one line useless reply to a question asked in good faith.

Christina

I like hiho, I think his answers are always good for a laugh and are lighthearted, not mean-- just don't take them so seriously, but they crack me up sometimes. I never liked YSL anyway, he designed a lot of anti-female stuff from Mars, well, they all do. Anyway, Solly -- it depends where you do intend to eat. Dressy casual would be find unless you intend to eat in nice restaurants, even a 1-2 star would call for a jacket and tie IMO. I don't like sloppy dressers, though. You will perhaps be served in a one-star restaurant without a tie (and I think it isn't the jacket and tie so much as the general style and cut of the rest of your clothes, you know, lots of Italian men dress very stylishly without a tie, as well as Californians), such as Jules Verne at lunch, but you may be out-of-place. If you stick to cafes and brasseries, etc, you'll be fine.

John G

Solly, if you are going to a formal restuarant, wear formal clothes. For a casual restaurant, wear casual clothes. Also, dress however you feel comfortable. If you go to a restaurant that has a dress code, go somewhere else. There are thousands of restaurants in Paris.<BR><BR>As for Yves St. Laurent, he was one of the most influential and important designers of the last 100 years. He is right up there with Balenciaga, Poiret, Chanel, Fortuny, Mary Quant, and Dior. And I don't think his designs were outlandish, Christina, my darling. You have to remember YSL designed haute couture, meant for the very rich. Yes, his clothes were dramatic, but that is because they were meant to be worn by society women to balls, cocktail parties, resorts, etc.. But, because of his great influence, these designs trickled down to lesser designers and clothing manufacturers, and influenced what women could wear to work or the supermarket. You should thank him for that, Christina. Ciao, John G. Love you, mean it.

c

A turtle neck and a sports coat will get you in most restuarants in Paris..a tie is for the serious good places, in some ways the Parisians are more formal than Americans but they save the tie and jacket for serious dressy occasions..which makes travel packing so easy!And if it is black, all the better!