French Woman

There is definitely a mysterious beauty in French Women. An author and columnist, Helena Frith Powell, who is actually British, tells the story about the lifestyle of French Women, particularly when it comes to beauty and appearance. This particular story tells the story about French Women in general on the national scale, where it happens all the time. The author lives near a small town in southern France with a population of less than 10,000, where there are 19 hairdressers, five beauticians and four lingerie shops. This definitely implies a great deal about the priorities of French women. So take some time and read the article, and discover a lot about the inside lives and secrets of French women. Remember, this is the story told by the writer Helena Frith Powell through the deep research she has done.

When I first made an appointment at one of the 19 hairdressers, I told my French friend Anne that I was going to get my hair dyed. "Ssshh," she said, looking anxiously around the cafe to make sure nobody had heard me. "You can't tell anybody that. C'est pas normale." French women are extremely secretive when it comes to sharing their style and beauty secrets with others, particularly foreigners. Looking good and ageing well are an essential part of daily life for a French woman, but they are a part that women don't want to share with anybody else. "I like a nice car," Anne told me, "but I don't want to know how it works, or how its bodywork is kept in tiptop condition. It's the same for women: we should look great, but why do we have to share it with the rest of the world.?"

Anne, a French woman, goes to the salon twice a week to get her hair done (I found out because I asked the hairstylist - obviously, there was no point in asking Anne). Whenever I see her in town, she says she is on her way to a meeting, but I would bet that the meeting is to have her eyebrows plucked or some of her nonexistent cellulite massaged. Since I moved to this small town six years ago, I have been impressed by how good French women look. Okay, not all of them, but in my village, we do have the slippers-and-pinafore brigade (it's not a good look) - but the vast majority are groomed from their heads all the way down to their toenails. Just looking at the lotions and potions on sale makes you realize there is more to this French seduction game. The chemists sell more creams than medicines; creams to make your thighs thinner, creams to make your breasts firmer, creams to make your face smoother, and the list goes on and on, for every body part.

While I was researching for my book on French women, one lady did confess that looking good can be a full-time job. "By the time you've got down to your toes, it's time to start at the top again," she said. It's a lengthy, and costly, process. "Sometimes, it all becomes a bit too much, but it's not part of our genetic make-up to just let ourselves go."

Part of the reason it takes so much time to look good is the French philosophy that even if the devil is in the detail, so is much of the pleasure. The French Women start in the places they hope will be seen last. French women even follow fashion when it comes to what my children politely call "your parts". Right now, the fashion is for cropped hair in those "parts". Anne is as likely to share her secrets as she is to do the school run with a chipped nail. But maybe because I'm not French, and therefore not seen as competition (what possible threat could an English woman possibly pose to French Woman?), I have managed to collect some top beauty tips that are guaranteed to make you more seductive and sexy than ever before from other French women.

When it comes to breast, my friend Nicole says the way to keep breasts pert is to douse them in cold water every morning. "Put a flannel in some ice-cold water, then wring it out and hold it on your breasts," she says. "It is much more effective than any cream for keeping them firm."

When it comes to butt and thighs, French women are deep believers and users of cellulite creams. In fact, French women swear by anything that keeps them trim and slim, but doesn't involve exercise. According to Brigitte Papin, the health and beauty editor of Madame Figaro, one in three supplements sold in French chemists are slimming aids. When I told Papin I didn't quite believer in anti-cellulite creams, she said I was "so British". That's a typical response from a French woman. So I tried them. I tried Clarins Total Body Lift (£30; 0800 036 3558) during the day and L'Oréal Body Expertise PerfectSlim gel (£10.99) at night. After three months, I'm still doubtful, but if it gives me thighs anywhere near as smooth as hers, I'll keep using it.

A French woman will give her body a yearly service by checking into a spa. Edith Cresson, the former prime minister, prefers a thalassotherapy spa on the Brittany coast, where she goes every year for eight days "to unwind and look after myself". Cresson says she has four beauty treatments a day and comes out dazzling. This approach is clearly popular in France, as there are 13 thalassotherapy spas in Brittany alone.

When it comes to hands and feet, a French woman will admit "My top tip for seductive hands and feet is to rub cream into them as often as you can. There's nothing more unsexy than flaky feet," says Manon, a Parisian friend who swears by the Body Shop's Peppermint Cooling Foot Lotion (£7). "Once a month, I cover my hands and feet in cream and then wrap them in clingfilm for the whole night." I have yet to try her tip (maybe it's the clingfilm that's putting me off), but I have tried the Metrospa hand and foot facial at Richard Ward's salon in London (020 7730 1222), where your extremities are treated to microdermabrasion (normally reserved for the face) before a pedicure or manicure. This process removes the top layer of skin, making your hands and feet soft enough to caress or be caressed. Body moisture is another tip for all-over-smooth seductive skin from Nicole, who suggests to put on body moisturiser after your shower or bath without completely drying your skin first. This method locks in moisture much more effectively.

When it comes to a French woman's face, there are several great options. Sylvie Tellier, a former Miss France who now runs the Miss France competition, uses Biafine as a face mask. This cream is traditionally used for minor burns and rashes, and every French mother has it in her medicine cabinet. "I love it," she says. "It makes my skin glow and is really hydrating." A tip from another French woman, Laurence, the mother of a friend, is to sleep in a moisturising mask the night prior to a big date. Be sure to exfoliate beforehand, so it becomes very effective. Laurence also says that her mother used to drink a lot of camomile tea to reduce the muscular tension that causes dark circles under the eyes.

Makeup plays a big role in the beauty of French Women. Yves Saint Laurent said: "The most beautiful make-up on a woman is passion, but cosmetics are easier to buy." French women don't believe in overdoing the cosmetics: seduction is all about being naturally sexy. A French woman is big on what is known as a "le no make-up look". According to Marie-Pierre Lannelongue, the fashion editor of French Elle, English women take the opposite approach of being showy. "It's like, 'Look at me, I've made such an effort.' You would never get a French woman doing that, being ostentatious and flamboyant with her makeup. For a French woman, less is more." If you want to be seductively made up à la française, go easy on the blusher, use a good base such as Chanel Teint Innocence (£21; 020 7493 3836), a little mascara and some lip gloss. Of course, your lip gloss goes with you everywhere. A French woman always thinks about looking sexy, even if she is just doing mundane tasks like walking the dog or taking the trash out. When I met Ségolène Royal, who may possibly become the first female president of France this month, she had three things with her: a notepad, a pen - and lip gloss. The most alluring gloss I have tried is the volumising LipFusion XL Micro-Injected Lip Plump.

Coco Chanel was once asked where you should spray scent. Her response? "Wherever you want to be kissed." The same could well apply to a French woman's entire beauty regime. A true French woman takes care of every part of her body and face so that she's ready to seduce anybody from her husband to the a local politician or star football player. And what man wouldn't want such a sexy seductive French woman. It's a dream woman.