Lessons from Madame Chic: 20 Stylish Secrets I Learned While Living in Paris

This is a delightful little book. It truly evokes the style of living in Paris. It is sufficiently practical to enable the reader to bring a little bit of Paris into their lives. Well written, heart warming and a real pleasure to read.

This book is quick and easy to read. Each chapter has a page of bulleted learning points at the end. Most of the advice is common sense and, knowing French families as I do, is pretty accurate about the French middle class attitude to life. I enjoyed this book, although there is quite a bit of blatant product placement in it, plus several plugs for the author's own website and column. I'd recommend it as a good holiday book, a fun and inspirational read.

Lovely book thoroughly enjoyed it. Very inspiring in fact ! Every girl should read it. I recommend this one to my 2 daughters in fact I simply must make sure that they will read it too. It is written in a simple and unpretentious way, and although I knew most of the advise it gives it is a pleasure to read and inspires you to be a bit like Madame C herself. It is a great insight into French culture.

I really enjoyed this book...so interesting.....a big contrast with some uses today.

I was intrigued by the table of contents in the free sample and really looked forward to reading this book, but it left me a little disappointed for the price. Most of it was sound advice, but in my humble opinion, a lot of it did not go past common sense, and a small number of the lessons went beyond practicing the real art of living and into rather frivolous territory. For example, in terms of decorating your living space, you were advised to prioritise aesthetics over comfort because it encouraged you to live more formally with better posture. (But what a pity it is if you can't fully relax in your own home!) In another lesson, the author went into great detail about her personal skincare routine which sounds torturously precise, product-laden and over-the-top. The anecdotes are quite entertaining but I am a little incredulous that Madame Chic, elegant and well-mannered as she was, would be so uncouth as to constantly stop the writer in her tracks and tell her in a passive-aggressive way what was wrong with her clothes/taste/general sloppy American-ness. Fair dues, I'm sure some creative liberty had to be taken in the depiction of events, but I find it hard to envision such a lack of class in an elegant lady, even if she was never rude outright. (Ironic because later on there was specifically a bit on manners with an example of biting your tongue in a difficult situation!) And of course in each situation the writer felt deeply ashamed and vowed to improve her lot immediately. It got a little too Pygmalion for me. All in all, a decent read, but for the price I think you can get better elsewhere. For tips on how to live like a French woman I recommend "Two Lipsticks and a Lover" or anything by Mirelle Guliano. As for practicing the art of living, I find that "Miss Minimalist" gives much simpler, easier advice on how to enjoy and appreciate life without all the frou frou.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, the reviews were somewhat mixed, and now I've finished it I'm really pleased I went ahead and purchased it! A lot of the advice is available elsewhere and also common sense, but what I liked about this author was that she described her experiences with joy and an aliveness that can only be found in someone who is living by what she writes! I've decided to start adapting my own lifestyle to one that Jennifer describes. Admittedly I want to start with everything right away, but she does caution the reader to take small steady steps and this is my own plan. I particularly love the concept of the small capsule wardrobe, and have already started planning this from some of the other books I've purchased on just this topic. The slight difference I have is that I'll be making all my garments, including my lingerie, and feel excited to try new luxury fabrics for myself and now don't feel too overwhelmed by my project...I only have 10 garments to make! I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to simplify and start to enjoying what life has to offer...I'm also considering pre-ordering her next book too!

This is based upon the experience of the author's stay with a family in Paris. The author is American and so the cultural gap is wider than for English readers. I love all things French, and my favourite is still Helena Frith Powell's 'Two Lipsticks and a Lover'. That said, I still enjoyed the fact the lovely combination of personal anecdotes and experiences with the general principles of the approach of Parisian women. There are lots of generic tips but I would have preferred more specifics - eg where to go to get that sparkling underwear etc. However, I am still glad that I have got it on my kindle.

Cute little book that gives great tips in separate chapters about how to become more elegant and take better care of yourself. To pay more attention to what you eat and enjoy your meals more instead of stuffing everything in your mouth running from one place to another. Even though not all French people have the know how to make living an art form, she is lucky to stay with a family that DOES know all about elegance and savoir vivre. arrived on time and in good shape, well packaged, all that for a sweet price!

Os relatos da passagem da estada em Paris são muito bem escritos, me diverti bastante e adorei saber que sou um pouco "francesa", acredito muito no conceito fomentado no livro e creio que talvez ajude algumas pessoas a reavaliarem o próprio comportamento, bem como o consumo. Claro que existem coisas impossíveis e impensáveis para nossa cultura no Brasil, quer sejam por razões estruturais e/ou culturais - já que nos espelhamos em uma sociedade extremamente consumista (EUA). Mas sim, o livro vai te passar uma mensagem legal, leve e diversa. Recomendo a leitura.

This book was featured in an article in Victoria Magazine. In general I'm not interested in self-help books, but in reading the sample it seemed interesting. I found the book an enjoyable read with good reminders, as long as not taken to the extreme. No need to go to a 10-item warddrobe or to wear cashmere on a daily basis, but don't overload your closet with clothing you will never wear or outfits which aren't flattering. And, yes, American's have become sloppy, something I noticed when visiting Target right after reading her chapters on style, but there are valid reasons for not wearing same clothes around the house, doing yardwork, cleaning, etc. Overall the book is a reminder to eat better with fewer snacks, try to look good even when home, excercise, etc.

Je n'ai pas encore lu le livre, mais bien qu'il soit arrivé dans les délais indiqué l'état laisse à désirer. Voilà qui gâche un peu le plaisir de parcourir le livre... Je compléterai mon commentaire sur le contenu plus tard.

和訳本を読んで内容にとても共感したので原作も読んでみたくなりました。 先に和訳を読んでいることもあり、スラスラ読めました。わかりやすくてきれいな英文で 最初から英語で読みたい方におすすめです。

Refreshing read on how to lead a life, filled with many real life instances so that it can be applied to anyone..