Strong eyebrows. Once again. Quite recently I posted this editorial shot of Bambi Northwood-Blyth who is famous for her “statement eyebrows” (I also believe to have read the expression “power brow” somewhere). And if there is any other model worth mentioning when it comes to this special feature, it must be Cara Delevingne.
Image: Burberry Prorsum fall 2012
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Phillip Lim mentioned “girlfriends of bikers” as the inspiration of his 2013 fall collection. Leather pieces? Check! Sweatshirts? Check! Denim and patches? Check! So yes, the resulting looks are definitely bringing a biker attitude across. Now, I’m not a fan of every single piece in this collection, but what I do like is the layering (big surprise!) and the colour combinations in the pictures above.
Click on “Read More” and see the looks in their entirety…
Images: 3.1 Phillip Lim [style.com]
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Fall 2013. Yes, this is what we are getting a taste of on the runway right now. New York fashion week has been officially kicked off by now, people! Nemo visiting or not, everyone is bundling up and venturing outside in order to get a sneak peek of the wardrobe items we will all swoon about next winter. And it is not such a big of surprise to me that I’m actually quite in the mood for some browsing and discovering. Don’t understand me wrong: I don’t hope for an especially long winter which extends endlessly into the future. It’s not like I can’t get enough of it. Quite to the contrary, like everybody else I am quite fed up with this season. But I do think that it could help to look at some winter prettiness in the form of flawless and stunning looks. Also looking forward to Tim Blanks covering the fashion shows on style.com, Cathy Horyn’s writing reviews on her blog On the Runway and Garance Doré releasing new episodes of Pardon my French. Yes, that is me trying to do some positive thinking here…are you joining the club?
Images: Garance Doré
Read MoreSo here we go…first a few words about the harsh reality. The current coat situation comes in my case in the form of a parka really. I bought it three years ago when I was in the mood for some change. And I’m glad to report that I still like it very much — not only because it keeps me warm, but also because the colour (a warm grey) and the cut is just right. Now, I was in the mood for change because the two predecessors were classic coats. One of them is still hanging in my closet, the other one unfortunately doesn’t. The reason is quite simple: a garment made out of wool is quite challenged when facing numerous snowy winters in a row.
When buying a winter coat, I always tend to invest a little bit more in order to end up with a quality garment. First of all because it surely will keep you warmer than the bargain option. Second because you will have a piece that you love for more than one season. The consequence of this kind of thinking is that you certainly don’t buy two or three coats at a time and maybe not even one per year. You end up wearing one coat day in day, simply because you don’t have other options to choose from. That in turn means that the garment will be faster outworn than it would be if there was some rotation in question.
Starting to built a little collection of coats makes a lot of sense then. But that does only make sense when we have developed a sense for our personal style. Otherwise you can’t really speak about a collection, much rather about a little gathering of memories in your closet maybe. In the last post I settled on the magic number of three as the perfect starting point. Those three should differ largely one from the other, I think, so they are real options. That way you are really in for some change when switching between them. Three different colours, three different cuts.
The beauty of a blog is that we are able to splurge on an unrealistically high level. For me, this is reason enough to share a few favourites which a girl can only dream about and invite you for a little mind game. Which coat would you go for when looking at every singly row in order to have a perfect little starter collection on your hands? Although I’m very probably going to spend my money on alternatives, I consider this an exercise in order to be more clear about the choices to make in the future. That should be justification enough.
(1) The row: fessing coat (2) Vanessa Bruno: double-crepe wool coat (3) Chloé: double breasted coat
(1) Paule Ka: stretch cotton cocoon coat (2) Stella McCartney: Daphne wool coat (3) Isabel Marant: david double-breasted coat
(1) Étoile Isabel Marant: Xavier bouclé wool and alpaca-blend coat (2) Stella McCartney: iconic Bryce wool coat
Running a bit late with the sequel due to an impromptu dinner invitation and a House of Cards marathon (if you haven’t already heard about it, here is the trailer; now don’t blame me if you spend the weekend glued to your television screen). Hope you guys have a lovely Saturday and see ya tomorrow!
Image: David Sims
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A coat is a coat is…a coat…is a…coat. That is not my attempt of reaching a philosophical break-through ladies and gentleman. That is in fact the tune which sets in by mid January. Every single year.
On the first chilly day I reach with a smile for my winter coat. “Long time no see, my friend” is exactly what is crossing my mind when I do that. And then, for quite some while actually, I enjoy his company. By December we have become, once again, inseparable. BFFs really (sorry about that…couldn’t resist). Every single outing, every winter stroll is done in mutual company. Bliss.
Too much of a good thing can be wonderful stated Mae West. Unfortunately that does not cover everything in life. Once the new year has really kicked off (or the realisation of it kicked in), I start to get a little bit bored. It is just a question of time and the “little” will be replaced gradually by “really”. Hello Winter Sales! Yes, they become by that time nothing short of irresistible.
Long story short. Here is the thing with winter coats: I do think that we all should have about three different versions in our closet. At least. Take or give. But three would be realistically a good number to take us through the cold months, right? Not only to keep us nice and warm, but also to provide some change when days seem practically melt seamlessly into each other. It is nice to have options. Especially when the weather really starts to do nothing but annoy us, when we are starting to get impatient and wait for the first signs of spring.
Now the question is: which three winter coats would make the cut? And how does the harsh reality look like? More about that tomorrow…
Image: afterDRK
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Lately I can’t help but think that there is a certain something about (slightly) tousled hair…
Image: Unknown
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Love the mix of casual and formal wear in this picture…
Image: Amy Troost (originally not black and white)
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A few years ago the sole mention of the word “nail art” would have brought up nothing more than a cringe from anybody really. A flood of unwanted images would have inundated our minds like acrylic nails, neon light and rhinestones. Who would have thought that things could change so dramatically in a blink of an eye?
Well maybe not exactly as fast as that. But fast enough to let us wondering mouth agape about its current popularity or dare-I-say hype. I think that it is possible to pinpoint the moment for this new kind of passion with the appearance of two particular nail polishes in fall 2009: Chanel’s Jade and Essie’s Mint Candy Apple. At that time Alexa Chung adorned her nails with the minty colour when making a TV appearance and that was pretty much enough to send a trend on its way (by the way you might remember that the exact same thing happened simultaneously with the YSL arty oval ring). After this, nothing stayed the same. Well, how could it have?
By now every cosmetic brand, whether high end or high street, is doing their best to come up with unseen shades each new season. At the same time they cultivate a love for the classics since a Chanel Rouge Noir has no less potential than the iconic N°5. Limited editions are rounding up the portfolio and are de rigeur today. Nothing sends more of a go-get-them-signal than the fear of impending disappearance from the market.
After seeing gold, glitter, neon and crackling finishes, you might have thought that you have seen it all, that “someone should draw the line here”. Well, things can always be pushed a little bit further and I guess that the joy of flirting with the abyss is to see how far you can go before things get nasty. Right now, we are not facing nail polish talk anymore, we see some serious stuff happening on those nails: all kind of shapes and symbols and whatnot. ”Nail art” is pretty much everywhere. They say it has nothing to do with the above mentioned word and its tackiness. And it’s true. Whaaaaaat?
Yes, this is coming from someone who whould have never believed that her name and “nail art” should be ever brought up in a sentence. Ever. But let me say this. As with anything in life, in fashion and in beauty, there are different degrees to anything. You can go crazy on that hair cut and choose a neon undercut. You could opt for a hello kitty nail thing, but you could also go with a nude base and a burgundy tip. A perfect reason to go a little bit overboard with one’s keep-it-simple-attitude…
Image: Donna Karan fall 2012 [Vogue Uk]
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Images: (1) and (3) unknown (2) Prada (4) Doug Inglish (5) Matteo Montanari (6) Nicole Franzen (7) Gail Albert Halaban (8) Iwan Baan (9) Stylesightings (10) Conor Cronin (11) Monocle
