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From the Paris Tourist Office in May 2007
Learning the French art of living.
Paris has any
number of courses and workshops to initiate you into the rules of the French
art de vivre and ways to be a perfect guest or host in France.
There are courses
in French gallantry, etiquette and the finer points of Parisian chic, not to
mention workshops on aspects of French style, such as make up and perfume,
by leading fashion professionals. French sophistication is definitely “à la
mode” and Paris is, of course, its temple.
French etiquette: Do’s and don'ts
How does one become the perfect Parisian guest or host? While the basics of
good behavior are dictated by common sense and are more or less the same all
over the world, the rules of etiquette – the do’s and don'ts in a particular
social situation, the way you are expected to behave depending on your place
in the pecking order, male-female relations etc. – are a lot trickier.
Fortunately, many organizations in Paris offer workshops on typical French
values and traditions to help you to navigate social situations with ease.
Etiquette is the result of cultural and historical evolution, which produces
traditions and rules of decorum. Workshops
on French etiquette such as those offered by
La Belle
École and
ComeToParis provide an insight into current decorum
rules and teach you how to correctly introduce yourself, express yourself,
thank people etc. La Belle École also organises
a workshop on masculine good breeding, or the subtle art of French
gallantry, to transform any man into the
perfect modern gentleman at ease in any situation.
Entertain in style once you’ve taken a table design workshop (La Belle École
and ComeToParis), which teaches you
to set up your interior to suit the theme of the meal or the personalities
of your guests. ComeToParis also offers
a “French entertaining” workshop on request: stylists and decorators help
you to choose the best way to decorate
your apartment to suit the French idea of good taste. Finally, the floral
art workshops organised by La Belle École
and ComeToParis teach you all about flower arrangement: the next time you
send a “thank-you” bouquet it’ll be
one you’ve made yourself, worthy of the finest Paris florist!
LA BELLE ÉCOLE
7 rue Scheffer, Paris 16th
01 47 04 50 20
COMETOPARIS
17 rue des Martyrs, Paris 9th
01 48 74 05 10 //
Fax +33 (0)1 48 74
42 72
Make-up, clothes and perfume: Getting it right
Clothes, make up and perfume are the key elements of French elegance.
Fashion-conscious women everywhere in the world know about Parisian chic, a
concept that is, however, hard to imitate. Several courses offer insights
into mastering the art of Parisian chic, which is elegant and trendy but
never excessive.
La Mode
Le Club organizes a seminar on “Elegance and good breeding” to steer
you clear of fashion blunders.
La Belle
École’s “Fashionable, but not a fashion victim” workshop takes you on a
focused and personalized shopping spree to get you up to speed with the
latest fashion trends and show you how to turn them tastefully to your
advantage. An experienced designer will share all her fashion tips and fill
up your address book with names of good places to shop.
And, after your
personalized “makeover” workshop at ComeToParis, don’t be surprised when
people start saying: “That dress looks great on you,” and not “That’s a
great dress.”
Putting on make up
in a way that looks as if you’re not wearing any: now there’s an art by
itself. La Belle École offers introductory courses with well-known make-up
artists to learn how to make the most of your features.
At La Mode Le
Club, make-up artists from the movie industry reveal the secrets of pro
touch-ups while ComeToParis offers a one-on-one meeting with a television
and fashion industry make-up artist who offers personalized advice and
indispensable make up tips.
Then there’s
perfume, the third element of French elegance: a magical and complex world
that it is fascinating to explore in the company of specialists. Fashion
designer
Thierry Mugler organizes a number of workshops with themes such as
“A passion for perfume”, “Perfume-making: behind the scenes” and “The
secrets of perfume”.
These courses by
the haute couture designer and perfumer explain how our sense of smell
works, the basics of
the perfumer’s art, the different olfactory families and how to blend them
harmoniously. And you can even create
a fragrance to take home with you: how very exclusive!
LA MODE LE CLUB
111 avenue Victor-Hugo, Paris 16th
01 45 05 17 29
THIERRY MUGLER’S PERFUME
WORKSHOPS
49 avenue de l’Opéra, Paris 2nd
Tel +33 (0)1 53 05 25 87 // www.ateliersparfums.com
Mastering evening etiquette
If you know how to taste wine, pair wine and food and dance the waltz or the
tango without stepping on your partner’s feet, you’re ready to tackle any
Parisian dinner party – or throw one of your own.
There are rules to
be learned about tasting and appreciating a wine, champagne or liqueur and
then being able to talk intelligently about it at a formal French dinner.
Many organizations
offer tasting courses and workshops to this very end: “Wine and champagne”
and “Cigars and spirits” at La Belle École, “Pairing food and wine” and “The
art of tasting” at the
École du
vin and introductory or themed courses at
Le Vin Le
Club and the Union des oenologues de France. The École des femmes du
vin even offers courses exclusively for women.
Mastering a few
tango or paso doble steps is another way to shine at a soirée.
Since 1930, the
team at the “Georges
et Rosy” dance school have shared their passion for ballroom dancing
by giving classes in dances for couples such as cha-cha-cha and the Viennese
waltz, as well as rock and polka dancing (they also offer intensive
courses).
At
Dancenter, you can join a course at your level at any time of year.
Georges et Rosy also offer a “wedding special”
course, personalised to suit the needs of the happy couple, who learn to
dance the waltz and pick up the finer points of dance etiquette (how and
when to ask for a dance etc.).
ÉCOLE DU VIN DE PARIS
25 rue de la Félicité, Paris 17th
01 43 41 33 94
LE VIN LE CLUB
91 rue du Faubourg-Saint-Honoré, Paris 8th
01 76 69 18 70
UNION DES
OENOLOGUES DE FRANCE
21-23 rue Croulebarbe, Paris 13th
01 58 52 20 20
L’ÉCOLE DES FEMMES DU VIN
(VÉRONIQUE DHUIT)
100 rue de Charonne, Paris 11th
01 43 72 47 22
GEORGES ET
ROSY
20 rue de Varenne, Paris 7th
01 45 48 66 76
DANCENTER
6 impasse de Lévis, Paris 17th
01 43 80 90 23
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May 2008