Lou Doillon, at Saint Laurent, Talks About Designer Anthony Vaccarello, Dating, and Wearing T-Shirts Without a Bra
Photo: Getty Images
Well, that was fun.
After months of anticipation regarding Anthony Vaccarello’s debut at Saint Laurent, the fashion pack finally got to cash in tonight in Paris. The venue in the boho-luxe Saint Germaine ‘hood was a former convent—a cute private joke considering the many sheer-top-no-bra looks flaunted by smoldering models like Anja Rubik and Freja Beha. (More evidence that the grown-ups-wearing-grown-up-clothes trend continues.)
There was a giant crane boasting the YSL logo in neon. There was a bejeweled single nipple situation on Binx Walton that looked half Tom Ford, half Lil’ Kim. And then in the front row, the Holy Trinity of Parisian It Girls: Jane Birkin and her daughters, actress Charlotte Gainsbourg and model-slash-musician Lou Doillon.
The current face of J. Brand Jeans talked to us about YSL’s evolving identity, how to wear a blazer with curves, and when to leave your bra at home.
(French girls—they’re just nothing like us!)
You’re French style royalty, and Anthony Vaccarello is kind of the new kid. How did you meet?
It was a friend-of-friend thing. One of my best friends works in fashion. She basically discovered Anthony when he was 20! So she roped me into his first campaign, when he was like 23 years old. So Anthony Vaccarello is like my baby. And it’s insane to see all this talent getting recognized. I couldn’t be more proud.
Why is he the best fit for YSL right now?
Believe it or not, his similarity to Yves Saint Laurent, the designer, was the first thing I noticed with him. The first things he ever put on my body were these four jackets he’d done by hand. They were insane. He already had a signature line. You could be standing ten feet away and you could tell if someone was wearing an Anthony jacket or not. And you know, that’s what Saint Laurent always had. You could look at my mother in a photograph and it could be blurry or far away, whatever. But if she was wearing YSL, you knew.
Do you think American women will ever get over the obsession with “French girl style”?
Maybe, but first I think you guys need to let go a bit. Don’t be so self-conscious. That’s hard, I’m not denying it. It’s very hard. But it’s kind of like being jealous, right? Whether you’re jealous or not, if a man is going to cheat on you, he will. And with clothes it’s the same thing.
Your clothes are going to cheat on you?
No! [Laughing.] You might as well have fun when you’ve got the clothes on and then just forget about it. And I think that’s where French girls sometimes have “It.” We forget to look at ourselves. Otherwise, we’d all just be freaked out all the time. Who has the energy?
We also think French women know more about dating.
We might. Who knows?
What should we wear on a promising first date?
I would say jeans and a t-shirt. That way, he sees that it can only get better than that. And if he’s not willing to take you in jeans and a t-shirt, then don’t give him [she gestures to her plunging Saint Laurent neckline] this!
T-shirt bra or lace bra under the t-shirt?
Oh, nothing. This is what I mean by letting go a little bit. Forget the bra altogether. Let him see what’s going on.
What about women with bigger breasts?
Even better!
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