Time for some sartorial fashion inspiration.
The latest W Magazine is the perfect answer. This month the issue has three collectible high impact covers shot by Mert Alas & Marcus Piggott. Iconic supermodels Lara Stone, Kate Moss and Natalia Vodianova are the cover girls dressed in ever so chic Eastern-inspired fashion. For more on the issue go here.
Instagram photo: @lenaperminova
It's hard not to notice Elena Perminova's chic style. Couture Week just wrapped up in Paris and I am still obsessed with these shots of her in Giambattista Valli, Burberry and Ulyana Sergeenko. From Perminova's glam Instas to Tommy Ton's street chic images on Style.com, her style is inspiration du jour. The Russian model cum style icon always seems to strike the perfect balance with eye popping colors, of-the-moment trends and haute couture. Check her style on Instagram @lenaperminova
#VeryVeryChic
photo: Tommy Ton/Style.com
Instagram photo: @lenaperminova
photo: Tommy Ton/Style.com
Instagram photo: @lenaperminova
Timeless and chic with a touch of Helmut Newton edge.
One of my all time favorites.
Earlier this week I was honored to be invited to watch a screening of "Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel" and cover the event for Apparel News. The screening was the opening event for the Costume Council at LACMA's year long schedule of unique fashion programming. And I felt I really must share! It's one of those life changing inspiring moments when you get to watch the life and career of a fashion legend unfold before your eyes on the big screen. Directed and produced by Lisa Immordino Vreeland (the wife of Diana's grandson Alexander), the documentary is incredibly detailed and candid. It includes live interviews with Vreeland (whose words are to be devoured and savored!) - as well as the who's who of the fashion set. Richard Avedon, Manolo Blahnik, Angelica Huston are just a few poeple who shared their thoughts on the former Fashion Editor of Harper's Bazaar and Editor of Vogue magazine. Truly, she is the original and the "empress of fashion." As a fashion editor and creative director, I am incredibly inspired by the film which portrays Vreeland's very chic life and the vision that she had. After all, it isn't every day you get to watch the woman who literally created the idea of fashion editorial and the intersection of lifestyle, celebrity and fashion as we know it today! Who else could discover Twiggy and Lauren Bacall, feature Barbra Streisand and Mick Jagger and be a special consultant to Jackie O?
I found myself later comparing the film to "The September Issue," which I saw at the Sundance Film Festival when it debuted. Both are inspiring, but in different ways. While "The September Issue" gives a look at the careers and lives of Anna Wintour and Grace Coddington and Vogue's powerful role in the fashion world today. This documentary, gives a look into Vreeland's career and how she literally changed the face of fashion during her reign from 1937 to the early '70s. Her final legacy was to create the notion of "fashion as high art." As special consultant to the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, she revitalized the department and created dramatic fashion exhibitions, which paved the way for exhibitions as we know them today. Think "Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty."
"Diand Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel" debuted at the Venice International Film Festival and the Telluride Film Festival and will soon be released to the public on September 21. Watch the trailer for a sneak peek. And for more about the documentary and a Q&A with the director, check the Apparel News blog. Get inspired. Enjoy!!
XOXO
photos courtesy of DianaVreeland.com
"In order to be irreplaceable, one must always be different,"
- Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel
A day to celebrate and remember the life of an icon.
Joyeux Anniversaire Mademoiselle Chanel!
XOXO
RIP Anna Piaggi, you will be missed.
I didn't meet you, but at least I was lucky enough to capture you on film.
Chanel Spring '11 runway show, Paris, October, 2010
1931 - 07 August 2012
Your style will live forever.
Wishing you a Happy Memorial Day!
Hope you're lounging poolside or enjoying the day at the beach. Retro bikinis and cocktail in hand. Let Jayne Mansfield be your style inspiration.....
XOXO
Stunning.
Karolina Kurkova is a pillar of golden beauty in this chic gold sequin gown by Rachel Zoe. Who said stylists can't be designers? From what I've read the gown was custom made for Kurkova and that's the kind of eye needed to create a look so perfectly suited for the woman and the occasion. Put this one in the Met Gala history books as iconic.
10 Diet Cokes, 20 newspapers and 7 hours sleep. I've often wondered what Karl Lagerfeld's day must be like! Just how does a creative genius manage his day? We don't seem to have much in common it seems except for the occasional Diet Coke, being late to dinner and refined felines (mine is Dharma and his, Choupette!) But two homes and a closet of Dior I find aspirational - not to mention some private time for creativity! With the Chanel legacy to continue and Paris as his canvas, Lagerfeld's daily routine unfolds on the pages of Harper's Bazaar. Here are a few of my favorite excerpts as told to Kristina O'Neill. For the full story, click, click, click the link below.
8:00 A.M. I sleep seven hours. If I go to bed at two, I wake up at nine. If I go to bed at midnight, I wake up at seven. I don't wake up before—the house can fall apart, but I sleep for seven hours......
...I do most of my reading in the morning. I have a special canopy for that, near the window, where I can see the Louvre and the Seine. I only read, look at books, and sketch. And daydream—daydreaming's important too.
11:00 A.M. I have my hair done because I hate to have hair in my face when I sketch. My hair is not really white; it's kind of grayish, and I don't like the color. So I make it totally white with Klorane dry shampoo. That is the best thing to do because my hair is always clean.
4:00 P.M...... On my way to the Chanel studio, I like to look around, I like to look at Paris. I never get tired of Paris. A lot of people are on the phone all the time; they don't see anything anymore. It's true. I like to watch. I go from here to Galignani, my favorite bookshop, and then to Chanel, and then to Colette, and sometimes to the Dior men's shop. I don't go to too many shops.
9:00 P.M. Dinner depends on the day. I don't go out that much because I'm always late, and I'm so busy and so pleased with what I'm doing that I'm not really ready for a social evening. That's over—the people I was going out with are dead or don't exist anymore.....
....To unwind, it depends on how tired I am. Sometimes I read a little bit. Lately, I play with my cat, Choupette. The cat always stays home, and when I leave, the maid takes care of her. The cat is like a very refined object; she doesn't go into the street, and she doesn't go to other places. She is a spoiled princess.
Read more: My List: Karl Lagerfeld in 24 Hours - Harper's BAZAAR
Gwyneth Paltrow in Tom Ford, photos courtesy of Style.com
Gwyneth's cape, Rooney's bangs and Angelina's leg, it's hard not to get caught up in Oscar fashionmania! Who made the biggest statement on the red carpet? I loved many of the dresses including Oscar winner Meryl Streep who was stunning in Lanvin and Emma Stone in brilliant red Giambattista Valli. And then there's J-Lo who was uber-sexy in Zuhair Murad. But the ladies in white, Gwyneth Paltrow in Tom Ford and Rooney Mara in Givenchy get my vote for their uber chic looks on the red carpet.
Meryl Streep
Emma Stone
There's no question Lady Gaga has a flair for the dramatic. And her January feature in Vanity Fair is simply exquisite. Shot by Annie Leibowitz, it captures Gaga in her avant garde fashion element. Hats have been all the rage this year - think the Royal wedding - but this beautiful red ensemble by Atelier Versace outdoes them all. The intro to the feature here and don't miss the slideshow of her evolving style. Vanity Fair has compiled 49 of her most memorable looks over the past decade or more.
1958 "Blowing a Kiss" photo of actress/model Barbara Mullen by photographer, Lillian Bassman
An exhibition that focuses on the social rituals of cocktail hour? Highballs and high art.
Count me in.
The upcoming exhibition "Cocktail Culture" at the Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach is one of the first exhibitions to explore the cocktail hour as an art form - and an American phenomenon. The exhibiton debuts on Dec. 15 - just in time for the holiday party season. I wish I were in West Palm Beach to see this exhibition which features more than 150 objets d' art. But I will just have to visualize (and hope that others capture and blog) all of the chic fashion and art on display. "Cocktail Culture" will feature everything from clothing and accessories to decorative arts, illustrations and photography from the 1920s to the present. And it relates it to modern culture by highlighting iconic moments on the big screen such as the Audrey Hepburn's party du jour on 'Breakfast at Tiffanys,' and the cocktail hour as popularized by 'Sex and the City' and most recently 'Mad Men.' Recall my Chic Style Tips Q&A with Janie Bryant? With clothing by legendary designers such as Cristobal Balenciaga, Alexander McQueen, Jeanne Lanvin, Yves Saint Laurent, Tiffany & Co. Norman Norell, Valentino, Elsa Schiaparelli, Christian Dior and Van Cleef & Arpel it will most certainly be a fashionable affair. Think Tiffany’s sterling silver cocktail sets and cigarette cases. And cocktail hour fashion that ranges from 1920's sequin flapper dresses to ethnic chic caftans and hostess pajamas of the '70s, Christian Lacroix’s '80s pouf skirts and minimalist looks of the early '90s. For more info, SunSentinel.com has a great indepth article or check the museum's site Norton.org
“Cocktail Culture”
Norton Museum of Art
West Palm Beach, Florida
Dec. 15, 2011 - March 11, 2012
1925-30 Tiffany's cosmetic set with cigarette case
1964 fashion illustration by Fred Greenhill for Saks Fifth Avenue
1925-28 sterling silver cocktail set by Erik Magnussen for Gorham Manufacturing Company
1961 fashion illustration by Larry Salk titled "Summer Cocktail Party with English Butler."
Hedi Slimane x California
Hedi Slimane has an almost cult-like following in the fashion world. The renowned photographer and former designer for Dior Homme is one of the most influential designers in menswear design (think shrunken silhouettes and androgynous models). And his raw, black-and-white imagery is now iconic. "Calfornia Song" opened at the Museum Contemporary of Art on Friday night and marks the first West Coast solo museum exhibition of Slimane's work. And LA’s art and fashion set turned out in full force to celebrate. Celebs including Kirsten Dunst and Tilda Swinton made an appearance to fête the landmark occasion. The exhibition spans his “California period” which began in July 2007 and traces his exploration of urban youth culture and creative communities including music, art and fashion. Think tattoos, surfers and rock stars. I first blogged about the Hedi Slimane Diary after being inspired by his fashion photography and shortly after about "Hedi Slimane's Cali" following his trip to the Coachella Music Festival in 2009. It was exciting to see his California imagery transformed into an exhibition. His work is viewed in a two-part layout at the MOCA Pacific Design Center. Black-and-white print photos are featured on the ground level and a towering multi-projection installation rotates photos in a repetitive sequence on the second floor. Indie rock band No Age performed live at the opening event. The museum debut adds to Slimane’s growing list of publications and exhibitions which include “Berlin Project” (1999-2002) and “The London Years” (2003-2007).
“Hedi Slimane: California Song”
Nov. 12 - Jan. 22
MOCA Pacific Design Center
