The Journal  ·  Fashion & Beauty

French fashion and beauty, without the mythology

The “effortless” look takes effort. It is just spent in different places.

Most of what is written about French women is selling something. These pieces look at what is observably different: a smaller wardrobe worn more often, a pharmacy that does the work of a beauty counter, and a strong preference for results nobody can point to.

Where there are numbers, they are in the article with their date. Where there are none, the article says so.

Why do Americans wear pajamas in public?

Not laziness. The suburbs removed the audience that used to police the boundary.

Why do Parisian women dress up to buy bread?

Not vanity. Half of Paris walks everywhere. Nine in ten American errands happen in a car.

Do French women get Botox?

“French women just don’t tell.” Six words, more replies than the reel got. What the data actually says.

Why do women cut their hair after having a baby?

Four months after our third boy I cut it into a layered bob and did not tell my French husband.

What is Biafine, and why is everyone using it wrong?

In France it lives next to the burn dressings. In America it went viral as a glow cream.

What to actually buy in a French pharmacy

What French people actually buy there, and what the viral lists get wrong.

Is European sunscreen better than American sunscreen?

He brings it back in his suitcase. I thought this was a personality trait.

What My Father Taught Me About Dressing

The comments have questions about his clothes. The answers belong to his father. By Sacha - the shirt stays tucked.

Why Do French Men Dress So Well? It Started at Seven

A father in fashion, one rule about belts, and a boy who grew up thinking loafers are casual. The comments finally get their answer.

A clothes rail with two handbags, sneakers and hat boxes

While you are here

Is Your Closet French or American?

Leggings or a full outfit to buy bread? Forty tops or eight good things? Eight this-or-that questions.

Take the quiz

Not on the list?

Ask my French husband.

A short ruling in a few seconds. Written by AI from our Journal, in his voice.

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