FIRST LADIES OF FRENCH FASHION
Sure, the official meeting was between Rihanna and French President Emmanuel Macron (she tweeted him in June appealing for him to contribute to her Clara Lion education charity), but it was the parley with the first lady on the steps of the Élysée Palace that garnered the media attention for the cause. Rihanna did Balenciaga on Dior with a Sergio Rossi chaser, and Brigitte Macron did Louis Vuitton.
And while neither take was by any means classic, each was a power suit in its own way. Rihanna documented the action on her Insta Stories with a post captioned, “I heart Madame First Lady #girlpower.”
Both ladies are arch-disruptors who express themselves through fashion. They know the power of the $170 billion French fashion industry, and they’re not afraid to use it.
PARISIAN PEDIS AT PRINTEMPS’ NEW BEAUTY EMPORIUM
Watch on FN
Rihanna illustrated the aforementioned Insta Stories with a manicure emoji. She was herself rocking a French — obviously. Which brings us to another Parisian institution. Printemps has just opened a 33,333-square-foot, three-floor beauty emporium.
Street level features a Louboutin Beauty exclusive zone the size of your average shoe shop, while the first floor is primarily dedicated to scent — not least a Guerlain boutique with fragrance on tap in the parfum equivalent of Enomatic wine dispensers.
Downstairs houses a hair salon, under-the-radar brands, Nuxe spa, detox café and Gloss Up beauty bar. Baby of makeup artist Olivia Keusters, it’s got a photo-friendly black and white tiled floor, and the pedi stations resemble a zen garden. Buy Essie, Nails Inc., Nailberry and CND plus hip Japanese product line Kobako, and note the Eiffel Tour nail art — done in Asian-style calligraphy.
