Do you ever look back on a period in your life and get a little shock at how far you’ve come? Perhaps a thought like ’Wow. I would never have imagined that I would end up here’ runs through your mind. Or maybe you just wake up one day and realise you’ve been on a […]
The Distant Francophile Blog
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Well, spring has almost sprung in Melbourne town. And the somewhat warmer weather has inspired me to conduct a wardrobe cleanse. Personally, I love cleaning and organising my wardrobe. However, from working with women I know that so many of you cannot think of anything worse. You see, clothes can build emotional ties. Which, in turn, […]
If I could use just two words to describe French girl hair, they would be chic and healthy. Whether the hair is long or short, dark or light, it always looks shiny and well cared for. And – when it comes to this well cared for result – I’ve come to the conclusion that while […]
French girl dresses are definitely a thing. Sit for just two seconds on any Parisian terrace when the weather is just a touch warmer and you will see examples of them everywhere. And you don’t have to take my word for it. Who What Wear recently featured The Cool Dresses French Girls Always Wear. So […]
Megan Dalla-Camina, the fabulous Australian author, coach and speaker, regularly references the concept of ‘following breadcrumbs’. The idea is that you pay attention to the things that spike your curiosity and simply see where they lead you. Megan suggests that utilising this strategy is one way to find your life’s purpose. I’ve found […]
It has been such a long time since I’ve pulled together a French inspiration post like this one. I used to write them quite regularly and can’t quite remember why I stopped. I’m thinking that it probably had something to do with the amount of time I kept losing in the name of ‘internet research’… […]
I was chatting with a colleague at work the other day about the pressure on her 14 year old daughter to not only fit in, but also to own what is currently considered ‘the best’. Being a teenager has always been kind of tough. And I vaguely remember this kind of peer pressure from […]
“Ha. Style. It’s just too hard. I gave up on all that a long time ago.” I was chatting with someone the other day who shared exactly these words. She went on to express the fact that in her mind, style is frivolous and inconsequential. As a Style CoachTM, I obviously take a different view, […]
Want to know the biggest lesson I’ve learned since becoming a Style CoachTM? I have to tell you that I’ve learned so much since deciding to dive into all things style related. I’ve learned about shapes and colours, accessories and style personalities. But the biggest lesson? It can be condensed down to just six words. […]
One of the many and varied reasons that I originally established Distant Francophile was to share some of the many beautiful photos of France that Scott had taken on our travels. I promise I’m not exaggerating when I tell you that we already had thousands of shots when I started DF. I thought that they […]
As I promised I would be, I’m continuing to ponder the stack of questions I’ve received recently from Distant Francophile readers. One query that I realised I’d better answer in a hurry was around the success – or otherwise – of my most recent vacation packing efforts. I was also asked to share the […]
I’m just going to come right out and say it. When it comes to foundational style principles, I feel like the importance of clothing fit has become more than a little under-rated. Discussions around trends and designers seem to dominate the style landscape. (And to my mind, these factors fall more into the category of […]
I know. I must have written it a gazillion times. But I really do get super excited when I receive questions from Distant Francophile readers. I can’t tell you how important it is to me to create content here that is, first and foremost, useful, If I can also provide a little bit of entertainment […]
Thanks to a brilliant recommendation from frugal first class.travel, not so long ago we enjoyed High Tea at the Ritz Paris Hotel. Visiting the Ritz Paris has long been on my must do list, and the experience was well worth the wait. Of course, the elegant afternoon tea was everything you’d expect it to be. […]
Earlier this year, I clocked up 27 years in a corporate environment. My day job is not something that I write about regularly here on Distant Francophile. It’s just not all that relevant. But, deep down, I’m actually quite proud to have spent almost three decades with one organisation. An organisation that, until quite recently, […]
When it comes to visiting France, do you consider yourself an independent traveller? If you happen to be reading this, there’s a strong chance you do. It’s also likely that you enjoy making your own bookings and plans, as well as doing your own trip research. And I’m almost certain your research often involves scouring […]
Thank you so much for being a part of the Distant Francophile community. I just wanted to let you know that I’ve updated the Distant Francophile Privacy Policy in line with the EU’s Data Protection Regulation. You can find the updated Privacy Policy here. I adore sharing my love of all things related to style […]
It happens every single time I visit France. I am absolutely inspired to lift my style game. It is as simple as that. It starts as a little niggle soon after I arrive. And by the time I head for home it is a full blown commitment. I return to Melbourne just wanting to look […]
I honestly didn’t expect to be writing this post. Following our last few visits, I’ve reported back on what they are wearing in Paris. This time around, I’d already decided that such a post would most likely be a little boring. I was genuinely thinking that it was very unlikely that anything would have changed […]
I love perfume. No, I’m going to go a step further. I adore perfume. So much so that I’ve often thought that if I wasn’t committed to blogging about all things French and style related, I could easily have a site dedicated to beautiful fragrances and the sparkling bottles that house them. That said, you […]