First lady knocked into fifth place in ranking of Parisian chic

Published on Thursday 15 October 2009 22:07

SHE may be adored as a style icon by the rest of the world, but French first lady Carla Bruni has made only fifth place in a poll for the title of Paris's most stylish woman.

Former model Ines de la Fressange took the top spot with 29.5 per cent of high-brow newspaper Le Figaro readers saying she represented the "ultimate chic, classiness, and unflappable elegance" of the Parisian woman.

The 52-year-old is considerably older than Ms Bruni, the French president Nicolas Sarkozy's 41-year-old wife.

The Italian born Ms Bruni, a former supermodel, took just 8.6 per cent of the votes.

Emma de Caunes, the daughter of former Eurotrash presenter Antoine de Caunes, came second with 15 per cent.

She was followed by Chiara Mastroianni, daughter of Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni, on 13 per cent and French actress Valerie Lemercier on 10.5 per cent.

It is the second time this year that Ms Bruni has failed to impress the French public in a popularity poll.

In February, the First Lady came eighth in a Reader's Digest survey to find the best representative of Gallic womanhood.

Glamorous former justice minister – and single mother – Rachida Dati came first, followed by Bond girl actress Sophie Marceau, 42, TV journalist Claire Chazal, 52, and veteran politician Simone Veil, aged 81.