LOVE HER STYLE...//

In less than 24 hours, I will be on an airplane headed for Ireland where the fashion and word "style" are, well, different than they are in other parts of the world.  I will do my best to capture some examples of traditional Irish style as well as they way young women are modernizing themselves and appropriating both American and European looks - I should definitely take my fashion magic wand!  
Before I leave, I want to post something about a young woman I am fascinated by and mildly envious of.  Her name is Gaia Repossi and she is the great-granddaughter of Gian Pietro Repossi of Repossi fine jewelry (repossi.com).  She is Italian (check envy box), creates beautiful jewelry (check box again), gets to work with the likes of Alexander Wang and Joseph Altuzarra (check), and her wardrobe is the definition of chic (she wears Celine from head to toe for christ's sake!).  All of this adds up to impeccable style and a lifestyle consumed in creative expression and let's face it, fabulousness (is that a word?). 
I particularly love the collaborations she is doing with Alexander Wang and her "Ere", "Neree", and "Maure" collections.  I just love what jewelry is all about lately...it is bold, beautiful armor that somehow blends into your body and doesn't overpower.  

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images from repossi.com

COMING OUT OF THE CLOSET PART 1//

It's been a while since I posted anything - between vacation and staying busy helping some lost fashion soles, I just haven't had time.  Over the past week, I have been working with some great young women who need help finding specific items and revamping their wardrobes and overall look.  There are a few key points I have taken away from these consultations that I think speak to general problems that people face when shopping and getting dressed.  The most obvious is the curse of the UNIFORM.  The more I talk to women, the more I realize that they want a new look and to change things up, but life is so busy that it is easier to just stick to habitual dressing (wearing the same outfit for every occasion even if you know it doesn't look great or make you feel great).  Most young women have similar lifestyles - they work, have a group of friends and a partner, possibly a family of their own, that they spend most of their time with, and they enjoy being social (going out to eat, movies, theater, concerts, parties).  The uniform becomes divided between work wear and social wear (think boring cuffed black trousers, a cotton/lycra oxford shirt, sweater, and a comfortable shoe for work and a medium wash boot cut jean with a blouse and a heel or a cotton dress for fun). Instead of seeing shopping as a way to develop their personality or as a means of finding a unique, authentic style, most women shop to fit the uniform (what should I be wearing?? as opposed to how do I want to feel and what impression do I want to make?).  This creates problems and leaves these fun, attractive, strong women dressing like boring, reserved, matronly older women (or sometimes preteens!) instead of the powerful, intelligent, fun women they are.  My approach to help correct this problem is to make sure every closet has a list of essentials that can create a variety of different looks.  The trick is then to take these essentials and add your personality - are you feminine?  edgy?  sophisticated?  bohemian?  classic?  androgynous?  Everything from the items you pick to the accessories to the shoes to the attitude you have creates a look.  If you wear a "uniform" it is hard to be unique and hard to develop a style that is true to your personality and lifestyle.  

 Notice the simplicity of these outfits.  All of the pieces shown here are basic and should be in everyone's wardrobe - white jeans, striped tops, chambray oxford shit, tailored skirt, neutral trousers and sweater...the problem is most people, because they are stuck in a rut, don't think about buying a striped top instead of a black top, they don't think about tucking things in, adding bold accessories, or mixing neutrals.  There is nothing crazy or "fashiony" about these outfits...they are just easy basics put together with some thought and a touch of detail.

 These images are from the J Crew Fall 2010 lookbook - J Crew is really going through a great reinvention...and these are examples of classic pieces jazzed up a bit.  The look is feminine and fun and unexpected but not complicated.  Of course none of us necessarily look like this lovely model nor do we have stylists perfecting every detail of our look, but if you look at the foundation of these outfits, you'll see how simple and classic they are - a great leather jacket with a striped cardigan just peeking out; a dress paired with a plaid slouchy blazer; leather jacket, oxford shirt, and tweed trousers.  The key to these looks is layering and texture.  Again, these are essential pieces all women should have in their closet - depending on your personality and intended look, something like this is easy to put together. 

 Here are real women wearing real clothes that they put on themselves!  Imagine that!  I love these looks because, once again, they show how looking great and expressing your personality is NOT about being high fashion or trendy.  There is nothing fussy about any of these outfits; all of them are about combining staple pieces in a certain way.  The top photo is simple - neutral blouse, tailored short, sandals, and a few accessories. It is the ease of the outfit as a whole, the way she tucks in the blouse and uses a belt, and the way everything is relaxed that makes this chic.  Same goes for the dress - basic, feminine floral pattern and it's all about the belt.  A waist belt is very useful and here it is perfection!  The other two photos are all about the draping - the distressed jeans mixed with a black blazer would be ok but not as great without the scarf (or the shoes!) And to the right, the sweater wrap is chic and balances out the leggings perfectly.  All of these women are dressed differently, but you can tell what kind of attitude they have by looking at their style.  And they have style because they put small twists on basics and really inhabit their clothes.

images from Elle and Sartorialist

FOR THE EYES//

Tomorrow I am leaving for a much needed vacation in the California desert to celebrate my best buddy's upcoming nuptials.  Although I will be the odd man out (pregnant in a bikini that fit me years ago and not drinking casually all day in the sun), I will certainly love soaking in all that sun, round belly and all.  As I was procrastinating packing for the trip, I started looking through some archives of French Vogue...as usual, I was inspired by so many images.  Some are just beautiful to look at, some take me to a fantasy world I long to inhabit, some reek of "cool", but all speak to why I love fashion - the mood created and the power of the image (regardless of it's authenticity or achievability) are easy to get lost in.  See for yourself...

 all images from French Vogue

REMEMBERING MJ//

Yesterday was the 1st anniversary of Michael Jackson's death.  I'm not one of those people who gets all emotional over the death of celebrities (we don't really know them after all) but I have to say MJ's death is still really sad.  The fact that I will never forget the day I got the "Thriller" album and then had a "Thriller" themed birthday party (I had the red jacket and a glove) and wanted to marry him when I was about 7 is testament to his power as one of the most charming and talented artists of my lifetime.  Michael always looked cool too.  He was always sparkling and making bold statements.  There is no doubt that the fashion world and MJ had a symbiotic relationship - since about Spring 2009, fashion has had an 80's revival period (which I secretly love) which has made strong silhouettes (think big shoulders and skinny legs) stick.  Starting last spring, designers like Balmain looked to MJ's sparkle, bold shoulders, leather, and military inspired jackets to create their collections. Fall 2010 saw some of these trends as well. Although these looks have just about run their course, they have been influential and are just as cool as they were when Michael introduced us to them...miss you MJ!  xoxo

 Looks from Balmain and Chanel

INTERSECTIONS - FASHION & ART//

I have always been fascinated by the intersection of fashion and art.  No matter what field you practice, what passions you have, or what your interests are, it cannot be denied that at some point, all things converge and influence each other (economics and architecture, religion and literature, technology and medicine, fashion and EVERYTHING!). This is the first of what will be many posts on the specific relationship between art (photography, painting, sculpture, architecture, etc.) and fashion.  Thinking about these things isn't only great fun, but informs trends and the overarching definition of STYLE.  

The first artist I thought of while pondering this idea was Cindy Sherman.  Her images speak directly to fashion, in my opinion, as they distort traditional images of women through the use of "costumes".  One could think of fashion as a costume - a constructed image projected to the world whose function is twofold - to mask and reveal certain parts of the self.  We then simultaneously become self and other, a predicament which is nothing if not unreliable.  Cindy Sherman certainly comments very loudly about the instability of "image".  Fashion allows us to play with this unreliability and construct various personalities.
While researching the Fall 2010 runway, one trend in particular made me think of Sherman's images - the retro, ladylike, peplum cuts that harken to the hysterical housewife of the 1950s.  Looking at fall 2010 fashion as Sherman's photography side by side, the irony there is clear.  Women of 2010 are no longer forced to wear the "perfect lady" costume, complete with coiffed hair and subservient demeanor.  Because this is no longer a reality, fashion can appropriate it as fantasy, just as Sherman reveals the hysteria behind the costume, liberating women and bringing together reality and fantasy.

Looks from Celine, Prada, Marc Jacobs, Prabal Gurung, Dries Van Noten
images from style.com
 

 Cindy Sherman has made a point of defying categorization as a mere photographer. Since the 1970s, she has pushed the boundaries of the medium by inserting herself as her own model in order to explore the complexities of female subjectivity in a postmodern age.  Her Film Stills seem to reference the work of cinema’s elite (e.g. Hitchcock and Godard), and yet they also retain a certain ambiguity that insists the viewer consider aesthetics over narrative. The (non)magic of these images lies in an arrested experience that is at once distinct and anonymous – we are left with a picture, a seemingly interrupted instant, that reminds us of the vicissitudes of advertizing and entertainment as the artist re-presents herself 'honestly' through repetition and disguise; these methodically constructed scenes not only ask us to question everyday masquerades through their apparent snap shot approach, but also criticize what has been a patriarchal and canonical culture industry. Her later works in color often accomplish this more directly by making clear reference to Old 'Master' paintings as well as to the fashion industry. These almost grotesque assemblages highlight what have been the underlying ramifications of women’s portraiture throughout history; her poses and props, disquieting in their mimicry, are experimented with and explored in order to blur the lines between theatre, painting, and photography. Fundamentally, by turning the lens on herself, Sherman captures the question of what it means to be looking – the gaze of the viewer becomes politically charged.

Essay by my dear friend and art expert Dr. Wood Roberdeau

images from: emmanichells.files.wordpress.com

blog.danpontingstudio.com

www.cvm.qc.ca 

www.famozz.com

HELLO, LOVERS...//

photos by E. O'Mahony
 
Shoes are understandably the most fun thing to shop for.  Shoes will always fit, always make an outfit memorable, and can really transform your attitude.  These are some of the shoes that I rotate regularly - having a hot boot like these Isabel Marant camo beauties, a bootie like Alexander Wang's "Beatle" version, a sexy wedge like the leopard ones by Alexander Wang, a sandal bootie in a neutral like this dove gray LD Tuttle, and a classic menswear inspired oxford from the great Dries Van Noten is a must.  In these, I can be simultaneously comfortable, chic, and sexy...love it!

PORCELAIN JEWELRY & CELINE//

Since I am currently obsessed with jewelry, I have been looking around and have found something truly exquisite - porcelain jewelry by Uncommon Matters out of Paris.  Just look at these pieces - they are delicate and represent purity, femininity, and strength.  Soo beautiful...enjoy!

www.uncommonmatters.com

On another note, let's look at Celine's resort 2010 collection...drool...clean lines, muted colors, tailored, feminine - yummy!  I really can't get enough of Phoebe Philo. She knows how to make women look strong and feminine and chic.  

photos from www.style.com
www.celine.com