Le quatorze juillet—aka Bastille Day—celebrates the beginning of the French Revolution . . . and French style of course. We already introduced you to Parisian cool girl (and Lancome’s newest face) Caroline de Maigret last week, but our list of inspirational French fashionistas is not complete without the following. Their underlying style musts: black, layers and bed-head.
Emmanuelle Alt
As the Editor-in-Chief of Vogue Paris, Emmanuelle Alt knows a thing or two about French style, and hers is easily emulated. Alt can be spotted at various international fashion weeks in her signature look—sharp-shouldered blazers, menswear shirting, the skinniest of black jeans and towering pumps.
Isabel Marant
A childhood friend of Emmanuelle Alt, Isabel Marant is a trend-maker. You can thank her for the popularity of the wedge sneaker, the elfan boot and this summer’s ugly sandal. Her style is unstuffy, casual and totally French. Steal her look with teeny tiny cut-off shorts, broderie anglaise separates and a make-up-less face.
Clémence Poésy
Most Americans known Poésy as Harry Potter’s live-action Fleur Delacour, but to fashion peeps, she’s the new French style icon. With perfectly disheveled dirty blonde locks and a waifish frame, her uniform of fit-and-flare mini skirts, trenchcoats and newsboy hats are the definition of gamine.
Lou Doillon
With the bangs and the teeth and the pout, Lou Doillon is a spitting image of her mother, Jane Birkin. But her je ne sais quoi comes from her father, director Jacques Doillon. As today’s French style icon with an edge, Doillon can be spotted sauntering around Paris in slouchy boots, a motorcycle jacket and a wide-brimmed hat.
Julia Restoin-Roitfeld
Model, art director, blogger and daughter of French fashion editor Carine Roitfeld (France’s answer to Anna Wintour), Julia Restoin-Roitfeld is the sexiest fashion icon on our list. An avid athlete, Restoin-Roitfeld shows off her bod in lace Givenchy and Saint Laurent animal prints.
