Video: Behind the Scenes – Carey Mulligan for Elle UK Jan 2011
31/01/2011 § Leave a Comment
Elle UK gives us a behind the scenes look at the Jan 2011 cover shoot with actor Carey Mulligan. How adorable is her admission that she’s horrible at fashion? How adorable is her hair? If only I was brave enough to chop mine off.
The finished product:
Quite Continental Wants: Burberry Leather-buckle Cotton Trench
28/01/2011 § Leave a Comment
Now, perhaps I should re-title this, and replace the “Wants” with “Fantasizes About,” because unlike the last few items I posted about, this trench has a good chance of never gracing my wardrobe simply because it might be a bridge too far for my charge card to cross. Might. So let us just set aside the troublesome price and focus on the simplified beauty of this classic coat.
My current trench is bone-colored and has all of the bells and whistles — the epaulets, the metal closures at the neck, etc. — and I adore it. It’s traveled with me all over. It’s provenance is Banana Republic, which hilariously tends to flabbergast the ladies who lunch in TriBeCa when they ask me where I’ve gotten it from. I picked it up, on sale, in the middle of summer on a trip home to Los Angeles. (Sidenote: Los Angeles is a great place to pick up winter items or raincoats on sale) I love my trench coat because it will always be an enduring classic. It will never need tailoring, will never look dated, and will be with me for years — as long as I treat it right.
I love this Burberry coat because it is a gorgeously pared-down interpretation of their classic trench. Most of the extraneous details are removed and you are able to concentrate on the beauty of the basic shape of the coat, with it’s nipped-in waist, streamlined sleeves and no belt to fuss with. But — but! — the rugged detail of the leather straps and buckles at the neck? J’adore!
Available at Net-A-Porter.
Faerie Queens
28/01/2011 § Leave a Comment
I loved the makeup at the Valentino show, probably my second favorite to Dior. The soft dewiness had the girls looking very faerie-like — even with the oddly bleached eyebrows.
Images via Vogue Paris
Elegance: Valentino Haute Couture S/S 2011
28/01/2011 § Leave a Comment
Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli presented an etheral and quietly luxurious collection for Valentino. Displaying an uncanny sense of weightlessness and timeless elegance, Valentino is assured to yet again be a major player on the red carpets and high society events this year. In a sea of muted colors, my favorite is probably the red dress…but you know I have such a thing for red, these days!
Some favorites from the show:
Images via Vogue Paris
Riding the High-Speed French Rails with Christian Lacroix
27/01/2011 § Leave a Comment
I have always regarded travelling by train in Europe a most genteel and classy way to see the Continent. (Sidenote: The experience of riding trains in America simply pales in comparison. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy riding the Acela along the eastern seaboard, but you have to admit it just isn’t the same.) In my mind’s eye, I look exactly like Audrey when I alight on the platform of a luxurious train, complete with dramatic steam clouds and polite, gloved porters with exotic accents…
Alas, I will let you know that reality isn’t quite that glamourous. Obviously, here I refer to the level of style and luxuriousness of said train, and not myself. I am the epitome of a perfectly pulled-together picture of a globetrotter: someone who never loses her train tickets, never gets lost, never misses her stop, all accomplished while wearing beautiful clothes with nary a travelling wrinkle to be found. All right, all right, ma chère, perhaps I embellish the truth. But only very slightly!
With the exception of a small number of high-end rail excursions, train travel has lost some of its more refined qualities over the years, most likely owing to the advent of air travel and the obvious need to provide a cost-effective method of transportation to the largest segment of the population. Train travel today is cheap, effective and utilitarian — but it’s lost the style of yesteryear.
Thank goodness that France’s national railway company, the SCNF, recognized this dilemma a few years ago. They teamed up with French designer Christian Lacroix to entirely re-do the interiors for their high speed TGV trains. Brought to my attention by the travel site Been-Seen, Lacroix has designed a series of modern spaces that are streamlined and colorful. While not a recreation of the luxury train cars of old, these interiors hearken back to an era when more care was taken in designing the passenger areas of methods of transportation. Parfait for my next trip! J’adore!
Images via Been-Seen.
Hop over to Been-Seen to see more images.
Iconoclast: Jean Paul Gaultier Haute Couture S/S 2011
26/01/2011 § Leave a Comment
Gaultier brings moody edge to Paris haute couture week with his punk cancan themed collection. Choosing to end the show with male model Andrej Pejic in a wedding gown (above), Gaultier achieved the ultimate in androgyny. Audacious and sexy, Gaultier achieves the kind of high drama we love him for.
Some of my favorite looks below:
Images via Vogue Paris
Baroque: Givenchy Haute Couture S/S 2011
26/01/2011 § Leave a Comment
Riccardo Tisci’s collection for Givenchy embodies all that haute couture is meant to be! Drawing on inspiration from the Far East — and perhaps the future — Tisci’s creations are intricate, diaphanous creations from another world. They are amazing for their originality as well as for the craftsmanship that went into creating them; one gown is rumored to have taken more than 4000 hours to complete! While some designers showed practical looks that were more down to earth and wearable, Tisci kept Givenchy in the stratosphere and I love him for it!
The entire collection follows below:
Happy Birthday to Paul Newman
26/01/2011 § Leave a Comment
26 January 1925 – 26 September 2008
Images via fuckyeahpaulnewman
If you’ve ever visited my tumblr, you already know I have quite a thing for Paul Newman. I get my daily dose from fuckyeahpaulnewman. Profane name, but hours of entertainment. You won’t be disappointed. (Sidenote: If your thing is Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward, there’s even a tumblr for that as well, called — what else? — fuckyeahpaulandjoanne. Those tumblr site names. Go figure.)
