I read somewhere that French women are shocked at the size of American women’s closets; they simply cannot believe how many items of clothing their Techwear Style American counterparts possess and do not believe that it is possible to dress well with so many garments to choose from. Now, it is not only American women who have a lot of clothing, I too, am guilty of this crime in the eyes of the sartorially economical French woman. And not only do I have a lot of clothes, I have a lot of duplicates of the same thing, and in the same colour too! When I open my closet, it is so full that I can’t see the wood for the trees and it compels me to go out and buy something to wear. So yes, I think that French women have a point. After all, France is one of the fashion capitals of the world so they must know what they are talking about.

French women believe in buying a few, good quality garments rather than a slew of cheaper ones. They eschew instant gratification in favour of building their wardrobes slowly, piece by piece over a number of seasons, and when they buy a garment, it is usually a timeless classic free of any trendiness that might date it quickly. Timeless classics that you might find in a French woman’s wardrobe are the trench coat, a pair of denim jeans, ballet flats, a crisp white shirt, a little black dress, a skirt, a short cardi in a luxurious fabric like cashmere, and some tees in a few basic colours. Together, these garments create a capsule wardrobe on which all potential outfits are based, and they are most certainly, with the exception of the tees, in duplicate, let alone triplicate! A woman can only wear one top, skirt or pair of pants at a time, right? Absolutely.