July 29, 2017 |
“My first memory,” says Caroline de Maigret, “is being in the south of France, in my grandfather’s house in Sablet, Provence. I’m posing for a photo and they put my cousin on my knees and he took a shit. I could have lied and said something much more glamorous.” Yes, she could, but then there’s something about the way de Maigret, the original ambassador of Parisian glamour, says things that makes even this story sound like the most glamorous thing that one could have happen to them.
Natalie Dembinska: How would you define yourself?
Caroline De Maigret: “Demanding, anxious. I’m a person who tries to do the best she can and who is continuously working on that. And I try to be an activist – I always stand up when I believe in things and I want to change things. And I think that I am a generous and good friend.”
ND: What are you working on at the moment?
CM: “Lots of things. A web music show where I’m going to do music interviews, which is really exciting. I have my music label – I have a band called FFF and I’m releasing their EP next month. And I have my website that I have in partnership with Chanel. That just started so I’m working hard on that to make it happen. It’s called CdMdiary.”
ND: How did you get your start in fashion?
CM: “It was really to be financially independent from my parents, so it’s nothing glamorous really. I had never opened a magazine before. When I made it to the first fashion shoot, people were looking at me saying, ‘Please move.’ I was awkward because I didn’t know you were supposed to do anything. And I got the chance of working with amazing people like Mario Testino and Peter Lindbergh. They coached me and it became something very interesting. I was suddenly surrounded by super-talented people who had so many things to teach me. Super-fun and glamorous and rock’n’roll. All the things I didn’t know as a young student. It was a different life that was so appealing – I was like, ‘OK, I’m staying here.’”
ND: What first drew you to music?
CM: “It’s interesting because it’s the same thing as fashion, in a way. When I was a teenager, music was my only escape from my family, whom I love, but they are very strict and very classic. So I had this very strong bond with music, which was my thing. I was listening to a lot of punk and hard rock.”
ND: How do you decide on which project is right for you?
CM: “For music when I choose a band, I’m not a musician, so when I like a band and I want to work with them, it’s because I have goose bumps. It’s the same for work – I feel thrilled and I just go for it. Just instinct, I guess. And the right people! There are some people and I’m like, ‘Whatever we’re going to do together, let’s do it, I just want to work with you.’ Because I always work with teams – I mean, even my book How to be Parisian was with four friends.”
ND: How did you and Johanna meet? Do you have a favourite memory of her?
CM: “Johanna for me was this girl in the club who was always full of life and she has a big smile and blonde hair and she always had this very crazy way of dressing. For England, it would be normal but for Paris it was really off, and this blonde girl dancing like crazy on the dance floor – she was really a magnet for every party and people. There was always this fun, exciting, rock’n’roll vibe and I have to say that I was always very attracted to that girl, she’s so much fun. A very positive vibe.”
Photographer Wendelin Spiess
Taken from 10 People To Meet in the latest issue of 10 Magazine, ANGELS PLEASURE FLUID, on newsstands now.
