this image is not available
Hellin Kay

Photo: Isabella Sfez

Few fashion tropes are as sexy as the French schoolgirl. Or the French maid. Or the naughty librarian. (Remove glasses, shake out bun, loosen the top buttons of one's shirt and—voilà!—from straight-laced to siren in three easy steps.)

Designer Laura Sfez pays sartorial homage to these iconic looks —and more—in her recently relaunched collection, L'Ecole des Femmes ("The School of Women"). There are black, Peter Pan-collared minidresses, a grown-up take on the classic crossing guard's uniform, a ruffle-sleeved babydoll dress that's more Chloë Sevigny than Courtney Love, a silk charmeuse sailor top, and a form fitting, tulip-hem trench that begs to be worn atop lingerie—and nothing else.

this image is not available
Hellin Kay

Photo: Isabella Sfez

Many of the looks are styled with lace, thigh-high stockings or over-the-knee socks, black satin chokers, flat loafers, and girlish hair bows to terrific naughty-meets-nice effect. The models' dangling cigarettes tacitly convey both adolescent rebellion and a decidedly adult post-coital mood.

"I never went to college and am a proud graduate of the school-of-life-thriving," says the 34-year-old Los Angeles-based Parisian, who dabbled in screenwriting, graphic design, and retail before turning to fashion design. Her business model is equally unorthodox: Rather than conforming to the fashion industry's fall/spring/resort calendar lockstep, Sfez releases five new pieces each month. The line retails from $69-$399 online at L'Ecole des Femmes e-shop.

this image is not available
Hellin Kay

Photo: Dave Tada

Related: Iconic French Women Throughout History

"Anything that I have ever taken any interest in, I have taught myself and studied obsessively on my own," she adds. "Art is the most blurry and subjective thing in the world. You can be taught an art form, but not how to make excellent art itself. I find that freedom gives birth to beauty naturally. I have been unlearning what society has taught me."

Though her collection skews heavily to the short and tight, Sfez's schoolgirl/secret agent/movie icon heroine never shows too much skin. (If her skirt is short, the neckline's high, and vice versa.) The same cannot be said of the designer herself, whose Instagram, Tumblr, and Facebook feeds are full of semi-nude selfies showcasing her in-your-face, albeit winking, sexuality. (According to her website, the name L'Ecole des Femmes refers to the "army of female roles donned by women throughout the many eras of fashion. These often transport women back to familiar roles perhaps perceived once as degrading, but now all the more empowering as an affirmation of femininity and elegance.") No wonder girls like Langley Hemingway Fox, Charlotte Kemp Muhl, Riley Keogh, and Alexa Chung are fans.

this image is not available
Hellin Kay

Photo: Isabella Sfez

"The approach is personal and real, as opposed to corporate," Sfez says of her social media strategy, where she boasts nearly 50,000 followers across various platforms. "Brands seldom have soul. I want every branch of my media to have a soul, and to be connecting with people on a more personal level than the average business would. People spend a lot of time on social media, as do I, and I think it is important to connect as we isolate ourselves more and more in these mediums."

Overall, there's a winning vampy, campy vibe to Sfez's work that seeks to elevate the wearer above feminine fashion clichés. The women pictured on the L'Ecole des Femmes' site may be wearing costume-y clothes that were originally intended to draw the male gaze, but their frank, take-no-prisoners expressions and bold, unapologetic sensuality refute the belief that you can't have your cake and eat it, too.

this image is not available
Hellin Kay

Photo: Laura Sfez

"I often don't like photos of women by men," Sfez says about the photos she, herself, shoots for her website. "I feel like the men want to objectify and have sex with their models vicariously through their lenses. I do not. Whenever I shoot myself and a model, it is in the effort to feel empowered through beauty…I am simply removing men from the whole equation. They are completely irrelevant. I want to make women happy, and if their men enjoy it too, they have good taste."

One such man is skateboard legend Tony Hawk, who was a regular customer of the designer's now-shuttered L.A. boutique, where he purchased every L'ecole des Femmes piece ever made for his wife, Catherine Goodman. This fall, Sfez is launching a men's capsule collection of tops and sweaters under the name L'ecole des Hommes. Hawk will model the debut t-shirt, dubbed "Badasse"—a term that aptly describes the garment's creator, as well.

Related: How to Dress Like a French It Girl