Elegance Requires Ingenuity in a Down Economy

“These days, an ingenious woman is an elegant woman.”  This fashion edict, published in the 1943 October issue of Marie Claire, is the Parisian equivalent of the Brit’s “Keep Calm, Carry On.”

Women in Paris never give up on elegance during challenging times — be it 2009 or 1940. This is the inspiration behind a new exhibit held at the Mémorial du Marechal Leclerc de Hauteclocque et de la Libération de Paris – Musée Jean Moulin — twin museums dedicated to the history of the French Resistance and of the liberation of Paris. Some 300 fashion accessories and objects dating back to World War II are on display at this exhibition which pays tribute to fashion ingenuity against a backdrop of poverty and restrictions between 1940 and 1944. The exhibition showcases items ranging from the homespun to the high-end designer. Hand-crocheted hats sit next to a minimalist Hermès clutch made of panama straw, reflecting the lack of luxury materials like leather and silk during the war years.

I need a client that will send me to Paris. Anyone? The exhibition runs until November 15.

From our friends at Season Five