What is Elegance?

One of the reference books I keep in my pile of bedtime reading is A Guide to Elegance by French style guru Madame Genevieve Antoine Dariaux. Originally published in the 1960s this book is an absolute classic on style, what to wear – and not to wear! It richly deserves Harper Collins’ re-publication in the 21 century (http://tinyurl.com/y2ur2yx). Madame Dariaux sets out her bon mots, practical ideas from Accessories to Zippers in succinct style: colour combinations, the female figure, sex and personality. In the Foreword she poses the question ‘What is Elegance?’ in relation to personal adornment and fashion. The word elegance comes from the Latin eligere which means to select. Mme Dariaux suggests that elegance is a sort of harmony resembling beauty, the difference being that beauty is a gift of nature whilst elegance is the result of art.” So Madame Dariaux’ mission in life – and Eleganza’s – is to aid women in the art of being well-dressed and elegant.