Glossy hair, perfectly pressed trench coats and unassuming – yet oh-so-elegant – leather bags and shoes. Tailored pants, pristine white sneakers, manicured nails and eyebrows. Not a tracksuit, hoodie or athleisure outfit in sight.

Welcome to Denmark on a Sunday morning. Or any morning, really. Having recently returned from living there for seven months, I can confirm that our far-flung Nordic friends do, in fact, dress a million times better than us Aussies – no matter the weather, event or circumstance.

Australians leave a lot to be desired when it comes to fashion.Credit: Luis Ascui

As someone who has always been obsessed with clothes – something I share with my very stylish Polish mother – moving to a country where people treat clothing as more than just something to cover a naked body was a surreal experience.

But it wasn’t just Denmark. In Milan, locals donned fabulous bling, Chanel gumboots, polished loafers and leopard print. Bordeaux was a sea of floaty, floral dresses, dainty gold sandals and artfully crushed linens. Barcelona, home to Zara, Massimo Dutti and some of the most beautiful espadrilles I have ever encountered, was the motherland of off-duty street style.

For seven months, I lived in........

© Brisbane Times