Marie-Therese Norris may have grown up in a community, Upper Darby, that’s as American as apple pie. However, with a French father and French-American mother, she was a product of a bilingual and bicultural household.

Using her European background and passion for fashion, Norris, an Upper Darby graduate, started her own business as a consultant, bringing the lessons she learned from many visits across the pond to France.

Her blog, The French Touch, has tips for women over 60 who want to look amazing without trying to be half their age.

“No matter what corner of the world we call home, women are constantly searching for ways in which to look and feel our best,” said Norris. “Today, at the touch of a keystroke, we have an amazing amount of information available to us. Fashion and style blogs have become our go-to sources for much of it.”

Her mother, an opera singer, modeled Lily Dachet hats in Norris’s youth, and it sparked her appetite for fashion.

“She was my first fashion and style icon and a brilliant seamstress,” Norris said. “She could look at a design, recreate it, and tweak it to make it her own.

“You take your cues from fashion, and from there you develop your individual sense of style. Style endures and is within the reach of any woman’s pocketbook. Style is about how you put yourself together, how you mix patterns and colors, and how you add your own twist to a simple classic outfit.”

As a fashion consultant, Norris believes she provides what the rest in her business do not: a comprehensive evaluation of the whole woman, top to bottom and sometimes inside and out.

“I provide a very personal service which can be emotional for some of my clients,” she said. “Women often seek out my services during a time of transition or emotional upheaval in their lives, be it death, divorce, or new career.”

Read more about Norris on Delaware County News Network here or log on to Norris’s Web site at FrenchTouchImage.com to read her tips for looking young again.

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Top photo credit: Cherry Blossom and Eiffel Tower in Paris at Spring via photopin (license)