We all have a vision of what we think an oh-so-stylish Parisian looks like – striped tops, berets and an over-sized handbag with a baguette poking out, carelessly placed in the basket on the front of a bicycle come to mind. On my first trip to Paris, I was devastated that I had to wear a pair of white running shoes, convinced that all of the stylish Parisians would snicker at me. Some of them did, although most of them didn’t notice, much like they didn’t notice when I changed into the platforms I had sneakily packed in my suitcase. Parisian women are people, just like people in any city, and they have varying degrees of interest in fashion – although none of them wear sweatpants out of the house. The images that we conjure when we think of their style reduce them to an idea; we consider them as a collective, rather than as the unique individuals they are, which is unfair and also greatly underestimates their inherent human complexity. Every single one of us is different, and there is no Paris uniform any more than there is a New York uniform. (On this trip, I did a beret count – including my own, I saw exactly three in ten days.) But Paris is a fashion capital, a city that many of us dream of long before we experience it and that means it’s worth making every moment you spend there count. Wearing a beret and a striped shirt while carrying a baguette in a tote bag (on or off a bicycle) may be a bit cliche, and isn’t necessarily representative of a style that is distinctly Parisian, but if it makes you happy, that’s what matters.
