Mireille Guiliano tells you what French women know that Aussies don't in French Women Don't Get Facelifts

FRENCH people are better than you. Just ask them. Thankfully, a French woman has written a new guide about how to be beautiful. Like, French beautiful.

Mireille Guiliano, author of French Women Don't Get Face...

IT SOUNDS a little smug, but Mireille Guiliano insists French women don't get fat. And they don't get facelifts either.

Guiliano turned that first assertion into a cash cow.

Her debut guide to living a la francaise, titled 'French Women Don't Get Fat', sold more than three million copies worldwide and landed on the New York Times bestseller list.

And now she's made a how-to out of that second pearl of wisdom. The follow-up, called 'French Women Don't Get Facelifts', will be in bookstores soon.

And while some of her advice comes in the form of costly night creams and the sort of beauty therapies that have year-long waiting lists, other mantras will suit average Joe or Joanne.

Washing and moisturising your face, for example, must be part of your daily ritual. No exceptions.

"There are these little rituals that don't take much time or effort," she told the Huffington Post. "But they do matter if you accumulate the mistakes."

Here's more of her advice:

Be confident. Looking young starts with feeling young.

Audrey Tautou is the very image of French beauty.

The most valuable commodity in your grooming regimen can't be found in a department store. It's attitude.

Guiliano says French women are aware of their enduring allure, whereas other cultures think women in their 40s are old. This difference is what helps French women look and feel young for longer.

"There's a lot of flirtation and seduction that goes on in a very complex way that wouldn't happen here," she says, referring to the United States. "My husband says, 'You should keep going to Paris. It will keep you young forever.' Maybe not forever, but it certainly boosts your morale."

Try not to fixate on ageing

Quintessentially French, Carla Bruni.

Outside France, women are too quick to turn to surgery or quick fixes to stop the ageing process.

How come? They're under extreme pressure that French women just don't feel.

In France, staying young isn't a topic of conversation. Women just age, and they do it gradually and naturally.

"I don't want to pass judgment, because everybody does what they want to do," she says. "But to a French person, [surgery] would be a last resort. There are lots of things you can do before that."

Embrace what makes you beautiful at your age

French Vogue editor-in-chief Carine Roitfeld is ageless at 59.

You need to be comfortable in your own skin, Guiliano spouts as her most vital piece of advice.

"I think every woman is beautiful," she says.

"So you have to find what is it in you that makes you beautiful and play on that, as opposed to try to be trendy or want to remain young and dress like your daughter."

Do you agree with Guiliano? Comment below or continue le conversation on Twitter @newscomauHQ

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