I love reading these fashion threads - it helps me on my quest to be somewhat fashionable. I am an engineer, so basically fashion isn't in my DNA, so I have to try harder than the average person - LOL. I also have a hard time shopping (I am short and curvy, so finding a good fit is difficult) so when I buy clothing, I like to buy quality clothing that I can wear for awhile and not be "so last season" LOL.

BTW - I think the skinny jeans look is so cute, but I hope it fades away quickly because I do not have the shape to pull it off!!!

J-Correa - I'm so with you on the skinny jeans. Not happening on my frame without the aid of a 3/4-length coat.

I wish I'd taken more pictures of the fashion in Brugge. It was so much more feminine... bit more like this: http://www.giovane.net/en/collection.html. More skirts, tights, great 3/4-length cinch-waisted coats with glamorous scarves.

Thin honey!
Rossi and Caruso are in my neighborhood :-) but I have not shopped there yet. Sad to say, my shopping sprees have been mostly about furniture, fabric, appliances...I know, I sound like a boring housewife ~
But I do intend to make up for it once we have moved into our new home...especially since I have gotten even thinner, why I could be Scarlett Thin-Gorjus!

No-see you at Cafe Biela ((L))

I don't like Biela. It is too "Old Guard" for my taste. Do you ever see Robert Duvall at Biela with his glamorous wife?????????

Excuse me, but I am the only Thingorjus at Fodor's. If anyone even tries to take my sn, they will be shot.

Thingorjus

I laughed when I opened my mailbox today. The new jcrew catalogue theme is "J'adore Paris." Check out their Web site. It has a video of their photo shoot in Paris.

Do the fashions look "Parisian" to those in the know?

Nicegirl, I couldn't find any flickr pics under sewyerown. I'd love to see your fashion pics.

lauraallais,

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7573004@N06/

LOL, you are right..there is only <b>1</b> ThinGorjus and that is you, John :)

No, I never have seen Robert Duval here ... we used to see him in NYC all the time though..often at our favorite sushi place on Columbus.
I will keep watching for him though..right now, all I see is the &quot;Larry King &quot; of BsAs and various tv personalities with an over-abundance of collegen in their lips ((K))
Cafe de le Paix is closed..we only have Biela ~

Ciao !

Holy Lanvin, that top is absolutely hideous. It looks like one of those faux-Tiffany lamps that hang over the booths at TGI Friday.

Oh, and those shoes! Definitely not Louboutin. More like Herman Munster.

Thingorjus

What top?

lauraallais - the real people in the J. Crew &quot;behind the fashion shoot&quot; video look like Parisians. Otherwise no, I haven't seen fashions like that anywhere here (even in the high-end designer shops).

Somewhere between what Muji and Nafnaf sell is what seems to be in stores. And kerouac was right on the colors... lots of grey, white and black with one color thrown in (usually purple or jewel tones).

As for people, anyone 30s and younger are wearing skinny jeans or flouncy skirts with 3/4-length leggings, print or smock tops, short jackets, scarves (scarves, scarves, scarves!) and either ballet flats, stylish sneakers or tres cool leather boots (both mid-calf and ankle-length). No Veronika Lake hair yet... just lots of shorter cuts and long hair up in loose ponytails.

Women of a certain age seem to be more all over the map, though I've seen a lot of feminine sandals, full skirts and sweater sets for some reason.

And tourists are wearing earth tones, baggy pants, waterproof jackets around their waists, T-shirts with slogans on them, sunglasses and large backpacks. :-)

Lauraallais, I assume Marginal is referring to a recent project of mine (http://www.flickr.com/photos/7573004@N06/1263625752/). As she has not submitted her own thin, gorgeous, and well-clad self for critique, I am not the least bit concerned. I love my personal style and since I sew a lot of my clothes there is nobody in the world who can imitate it.

Oh, sorry about that nicegirl. I thought it was a reference on something from the jcrew site - was a bit confused. I think that's great that you have an individual style. I'm afraid I fall much more into the dreaded :) anntaylorbananarepublic style for work.

Thanks for the feedback on jcrew, slangevar. I love your sucinct description on what people are wearing.

I just got my weekend email from dailycandy and see that Gap now also has a &quot;euro&quot; collection. Go to the Gap web site, women, eropean collection. How does that collection stand up? There is a lot of grey and black...

&lt;&lt;Anyhow, I wear about about a 10/11 in U.S. sizes (42/43 European). Will I be able to find stylish shoes in France at that size? If so, which shops carry them?&gt;&gt;

I think you'll have a hard time finding 42s and the chances of finding 43s are slim to none. I wear 42-43, depending upon the manufacturer, and the only shoes I could find in France were Mephisto sandals in 42, no closed shoes at all. I've bought Arche shoes online at Zappos, but styles are very limited in 42-43. I have better luck with Sesto Meucci (made in Florence) on Zappos and you might find ballet flats there.

I thought your experience in Italy was really funny. The perception that it's only Americans who wear &quot;sneakers/trainers&quot; is false. I was in Italy a few years ago and again a few weeks ago and saw many Italians wearing them. I went to a Geoxx store and saw loads of great sneaker styles, but alas, nothing to fit my size 42/43 feet.

So, I think you should get your shoes here before you go and spend your shopping time on clothes and accessories when you get to Paris.

Have a wonderful time.

*succinct

Here is a place for women having trouble finding the proper size: www.genereuse.fr

I browsed though a Gap store the other day and the clothes are so cheaply made it is shocking. They have gone downhill in my opinion.

Hmm... couldn't find the Euro Gap site, but I was in a Gap in the Forum des Halles the other day and it was pretty generic. Seems like you could go there for the pants and maybe a sweater, but you'd want the scarf, top and maybe the jacket from elsewhere.

I know it sounds weird, but America's Forever 21 has some pieces that look VERY familiar over here.

Also, I paid close attention to fashions all day and I noticed two things: 1) the number of skirts dramatically increased at night (full knee-length skirts with tights, flats and either layered tops with a low belt or a jacket with the infamous scarf), and 2) many of the locals seemed to have one signature piece that made their outfit. Usually it was a purse with interesting colors or patterns, but sometimes it was jewelry or an interesting top.

This is just a hunch, but given the the Tokyo exhibit at the Bon Marche, I would think Japanese (i.e. if you can find them, look for pieces with Japanese fabrics -http://www.delectablemountain.com/pages/cottons.htm). A scarf and or bag would be particularly cool.

Quick fashion update: I'm starting to see these shoes pop up everywhere in everyone's &quot;nouvelle&quot; collections, as well as on French women and Japanese tourists (with above-the-knee socks or tights): http://www.stevemadden.com/item_image.asp?id=13436

Unfortunately I haven't found them any cheaper than they are at Steve Madden's, but I haven't given up.

slangevar, I was just looking at a website that has the shoes and socks you mention. I think it's a cute look. Scroll down to the fifth picture.

http://www.dans-paris.blogspot.com/