Paris Fashion Week SS 2013...Elisa

Stylist/Fashion Consultant Elisa Nalin, Tuileries, Paris, September 2012.

The combination of the leopard print and red heels is, in my opinion, simply wonderful. I read a quote last night in The Emperor of Scent (a book by Chandler Burr) in relation to what defines chic. And I immediately thought of Elisa - someone who I think is utterly chic with fabulous personal style...... In a discussion of what is "proper" chic "He laughed, thought about it, said "um" and "oh God". "Chic is, first, when you don't have to prove you have money, either because you have a lot and it doesn't matter or because you don't have any and it doesn't matter. Chic is not aspirational." He sighed, despondent. "Chic is the most impossible thing to define. Luxury is a humourless thing, largely, and when humour happens in luxury it happens involuntarily. Chic is all about humour. Which means chic is about intelligence. And there has to be oddness - most luxury is conformist, and chic cannot be. Chic must be polite and not incommode others, but within that it can be as weird as it wants". (pages 449, 450). *

Recreate Elisa's look (kind of):

Animal print coat: Collette by Collette Dinnigan leopard print coat, Tucker Pod faux fur coat, Joseph animal print coat, Joseph Man Leopard coat with leather trim, By Malene Birger Scarlettes leopard print coat, Topshop leopard print coat or ASOS leopard print coat

Red heels: Maison Martin Margiela patent leather heels, Valentino studded red leather pumps, Jimmy Choo Trust glitter pumps or Giuseppe Zanotti patent leather sandals

Embellished clutch: Matthew Williamson bead-embellished clutch,  Topshop beaded clutch, or ASOS beaded clutch

*p.s. If you are interested in perfume, this is a great book. Although I will admit to skimming the heavily scientific parts: my brain glazed over the chemistry bits :)