From her favourite feminist text to the toner she can't live without, AnOther collaborates with Semaine to present a 360 degree-look at the model and Chanel muse
In a bid to “aid the quest for a perfectly curated existence”, each week Semaine focuses on an impeccably stylish tastemaker, and provides the ultimate online platform from which to shop their lives. This week, Chanel muse and music producer Caroline de Maigret is in the spotlight. Here, we present five of her favourite things.
For De Maigret, style is not simply the clothes on one’s back, “it also comes from everything that feeds oneself”. Style is a way of life, she explains, “the movies you watch, the books you read, the way you behave. I couldn’t imagine talking about style without talking about all the rest.” From an all-natural hairdresser to French alt-rock, here are our top picks from her curated life.
1. Her Style
In the spirit of cross-pollination, De Maigret explains her dress sense as having followed the music she listened to growing up. “I had a gothic phase, and then grunge with the rise of Nirvana. I listened to punk music very loud and went to Elysée Montmartre all the time for Alice In Chains or Fugazi gigs. I wore check shirts and too-large ripped jeans. Now, I’m also a mix of all those musical experiences.” Masculine-cut jeans, loafers and blazers form the mainstay of the ex-model’s self-described “androgynous Parisian chic.”
2. Her Beauty Regime
Even after a party, if De Maigret goes home drunk she’ll always take off her make-up. “My skin is 80% of my make-up,” she explains. Cue the Shigeta Awakening Moisture Lotion – a toner to apply before serum or moisturiser that emolliates the skin, priming it for efficient hydration. “It’s this notion of taking time on oneself that holds the key to elegant living,” she says. “Elegance is about taking the time to listen and understand someone. Even an elegant gesture is a gesture that takes its time. When you see a woman who gently puts her hand on her neck for example, or gets inside a car… It’s often when you take the time, after which we all run, that a certain elegance is born.”
3. Her Playlist
“Music was my very first escape. When you’re a teenager, it’s the part of you that only belongs to you.” Thus an almost lifelong obsession with music was born – not only changing her taste in fashion but in life partners too, as De Maigret met Yarol, her partner of 13 years and father to son Anton, at a gig. “I wanted to create a record company and I went to a concert he was playing in. It was really weird because it was everything I loved: a mix of old soul, delta blues and speed hard rock. So, first I fell in love with his music. We created Bonus Tracks Records, and three months later, I was in love with him.” Joining Lou Doillon and Burning Peacocks on De Maigret’s playlist are the soft, summery tones of Papooz’ debut album, Green Juice. Only a true Parisian would get her vitamins in via French alt rock.
4. Her Must-Read Book
De Maigret studied literature at La Sorbonne, but it was life on-set with photographers like Meisel and Testino that she considers her true education. “They all told me amazing stories and I took notes every time I was on a shoot. They told me about books or movies, and when I came home, I read and watched them. Being next to them made me want to reach their level of knowledge, I wanted them to be proud of me. It was very rich, and that was the education I chose for myself.” Charting the treatment of women throughout history, Simone de Beauvoir’s 1949 text, The Second Sex, brings a dash of existential feminist philosophy to the Semaine reading list.
5. Her Favourite Place
Having authored the wildly popular How to be Parisian, de Maigret’s encyclopedic knowledge of chic Parisian watering holes knows no bounds. Set in an old stable of Napoleon III’s – a historical monument complete with original stonework – the salon of organic hair colourist Stephane Pous tops De Maigret’s list of hot spots.
For the full story, head to Semaine.
