The extremely cool French designer Simon Porte Jacquemus toned down the wacky design elements of his namesake label to create a faintingly chic collection inspired by, and devoted to, his mother, who died when he was young.
“I was looking at a photograph of my mother walking through the port one summer,” he explained. “She had a scarf around her head, and these ceramic earrings—and a pareo tied around her. She was always smiling and happy. People still stop me in the village and say, ‘Your mother? She was so beautiful!’ ”
He also summarized the essence of his mother, with whom he grew up near Marseilles: “She was shy, and she was sexy. It will always be about her, I don’t care! That’s me.”
Shy, sexy, beautiful, happy: these are traits which I personally, and probably you too, aspire to on a regular basis, and they’re translated here through unfussy, carefree French chic. If you can’t afford St. Tropez, you can at least front like you’re as relaxed as if you were there.
The sideways tilted, statement vacation hat, the sexy club dresses that double as cover-ups, the tiny purses because where you’re going there’s no cell service and all you need is some zinc oxide, a lipstick and a tampon with no applicator. One long beaded earring and one studded one? Yeah, baby, it’s the big easy! Here’s a scarf to secretly keep yourself from sweating into your hair while publicly looking like Sofia Loren.
Excess is 2016. Simplicity is now.
My mom does not dress like this, but if I ever become someone’s mom, I will start dressing like this after my billionaire child’s father moves us all to the Seychelles. A honorable tribute to a very chic woman.
