Name: Iris Brosch
Occupation: Photographer
What she’s wearing: “My coat is John Galliano. The hat is vintage and I found the boots and bag at small boutiques in Paris.”
-Tamu McPherson, All the Pretty Birds
Worth checking out: An unknown family’s photos
Perhaps it’s because I’ve been working on my family tree with my parents over the past six months or maybe it’s a by-product of my vintage obsession, but I was totally moved by a recent Sartorialist post that a friend just emailed me featuring old images of an unidentified family. I don’t really have too much to say about the blog entry other than that I think it’s really beautiful and unexpected and worth taking a look at. See all of the images here.
Categorised as: fashion
Andre’s world (meet the new intern!) – The future looks red
My red lips have a power beyond words. When I put on the perfect, crimson, creme-based color, I instantly get a kick of extra confidence. It never fails to make me feel amazing and when you consider how trying 2009 was, that is saying a lot. But maybe it’s just me. So I asked a few friends to make sure I’m not living in a bubble. They all agreed that a red lip gives off a certain confidence and sex appeal. We’re clearly not the only ones who feel this way. During the Great Depression, the Lipstick Effect, as I like to call it, gave a boost to women on tight budgets who looked at it as a small luxury. My favorite shade at the moment is M.A.C. Ruby Woo and I suggest you try it too. It’s one of those versatile reds that work with virtually every skin tone. I’ll definitely be rocking it throughout 2010. Happy New Year!
-Andre J, who you probably recognize from this
Categorised as: fashion
London: Kinds of blue
Name: Hanna Vibrmanova
Occupation: Vice President of Advancement at University of Prague
What she’s wearing: “I’m wearing Roberto Musso from head to toe. And the bag is a very, very old vintage real crocodile satchel.”
Her least favorite trend: “I don’t like the big ’80’s style shoulders and tight trousers. The ’80’s are gone. I don’t think it was a good period for fashion, so why go back to that?”
Categorised as: fashion
Random: What a fox
With awards season right around the corner, the movie geek in me has been catching up on all the films that are raking in the nominations. Among my favorites so far, is Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr. Fox. I love his insane attention to detail, from his obsession with Futura typeface in Royal Tenenbaums (which my graphic design wiz boyfriend recently broke down for me) to his whimsical costume treatments. How many magazine editorial spreads and Halloween get-ups have we seen that reference Margot Tanenbaum’s full-length fur or her brother Richie’s trademark headband? How visually striking and cool were Team Steve Zissou’s fluorescent orange tuques? And don’t get me started on the safari animal graphics on the Marc Jacobs-designed suitcases in The Darjeeling Limited. The standout wardrobe ideas in the stop-motion animated Fox is the suit and the autumnal color palette, which includes burgundy, burnt orange and mustard. I read in the New Yorker that Anderson designed the costumes and then had his tailor produce the samples, which might explain why certain parts of Mr. Fox’s wardrobe looked like they might have come straight from the director’s closet. The little clay separates might not be the stuff of future Halloween costumes, but they made a memorable statement nonetheless.
Categorised as: fashion
Scratch that, IN with the old…
I’ve decided that 2010 will be the year of vintage, or at least it will be in my closet anyway. For the past few months, I’ve been spending the wee hours of the night trolling the Internet for vintage clothing. It started when I logged onto eBay in search of old Yves Saint Laurent. Somehow, a random listing for the prettiest, most delicate, Victorian lace vintage wedding dress got mixed in with the YSL search results. I personally wouldn’t wear the dress for my ceremony, but I’d totally rock it to a summer party. It wasn’t my size, though. 
A vintage dress that was once listed on TheFrock.com, but is sadly no longer available.
So then I began Googling vintage wedding dresses and happened upon an amazing site called TheFrock.com, which has a slamming bridal section that includes decades old Lanvin, Christian Dior, de la Renta, and Balmain. The prices are about as expensive as you’d expect them to be. Still, they make a cheaper and, at times, cooler alternative to the traditional bridal route for those of you who are engaged and looking for a dress.
The London-based operation The Vintage Wedding Dress Company, founded by stylist Charlie Brear, also has a sharply edited collection of vintage bridal dresses that spans the Victorian period on through to the 1970s and can be tricked out and customized to fit the bride’s individual style. (If you care about these things, Kate Moss is a fan and has worn quite a few VWDC dresses to parties.) Definitely worth checking out. The brand also has an in-house line of contemporary wedding dresses called Decades that has a vintage feel to it and won’t break the bank.
It’s just a shame that the range isn’t currently available in the States (though I heard, during a recent visit to their studio, that a few U.S. stores may stock up on the Decades collection soon). America sorely needs more contemporary bridal options for fashion-conscious women who don’t necessarily want to wear Vera Wang, Monique Lhuillier or J.Crew. And the bridal world in general seems majorly out of touch with the times. The dresses are either a major investment (Vera) or major steal (J.Crew, which is surprisingly good) with not much in-between. And don’t get me started on the meringues. How about more mid-priced options in edgier silhouettes please? Does Phillip Lim need to launch a wedding collection, hmmm?
But back to my original point about my New Year’s vintage non-resolution. I’ve decided to try updating my wardrobe with more vintage than ready-to-wear (with the exception of shoes.) This is mainly an act of rebellion against the lightning fast trendiness of the past few years. (It’s pointy shoulders! No, it’s studs! Wait, it’s sequins! And leather! Hold up, it’s pointy shoulders AND studs AND sequins AND leather!) It’s also because I’ve spent the past year reading designer biographies and am wanting to get closer to the original source of inspiration. And last, most of the pieces in my wardrobe that I love and cherish the most are vintage. So there you have it.
Categorised as: fashion
Happy New Year! (Out with the old…)
“I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.”
– Douglas Adams2009 was a crazy, moody, tumultuous year that I’m happy to see end. But I’m also psyched to see the arrival of 2010 simply because that means I can stop frantically trying to check off the umpteen remaining line items on my 2009 to-do list. I thought I was the only one trying to cram several months’ worth of projects into a single week until I read my friend Mitzi’s blog and realized that other people do it too. What is it with us and yearly lists? I’m not a New Year’s Resolutions girl but I am a journal keeper, and therefore have a tendency to constantly write my goals down on paper. I love a good list and the feeling I get from looking back on one and seeing all of the little lines crossed through each item. But this year I totally played myself. So I’m rethinking The List, which is just another name for resolutions anyway. Because I refuse to spend another week between Christmas and New Year’s Eve like an undergrad student cramming for final exams. Not cute.
Categorised as: fashion
