Friday, October 30, 2009

YSL Parisienne Party

Last night I got to go to a whole half an hour of the YSL Parisienne party. Due to a PR nightmare at the door we ended up waiting outside for nearly the whole party. Pretty disappointing as I'd been looking forward to it all month and all my friends, who had arrived on time (I'd waited for some latecomers) got in immediately. Despite nearly having a panic attack it was pretty neat once I got in. It was at the Angel Orensanz Center, a former synagogue in the Lower East Side, a perfect setting for a decadent masquerade ball. Everyone really made an effort to dress up and it was great. Its so rare that people do these days.

Photo courtesy of High Snobette

Here are some photos of my friends, all a wee bit tipsy since they'd been in since 9. Oh well, they got the hangovers and I didn't!

YSL parisienne party

YSL parisienne party

YSL parisienne party

I am going to be a crow for halloween, basically I have a lot of feather action happening and a leather mask. What are you going to be?

Friday, October 23, 2009

Links à la Mode

I recently joined the Independent Fashion Bloggers community and was flattered to be featured in this weeks Links à la Mode! For those of you new here, thanks for coming. I don't always write about fashion but hopefully you will be entertained regardless!


Links à la Mode : October 22nd



  • A Typical Atypical – Make me a… 1940’s wartime woman

  • Awakened Aesthetic – Men need sexy shoes too! Awakened Aesthetic searches for the best men’s dress shoes…and all of them are vegan.

  • Bobbins and Bombshells – Sharin Foo of The Raveonettes. A modern Hitchcock Blonde with a guitar.

  • Fashion in my eyes – Revlon fantasy eyelashes review and giveaway

  • Fashion is My Crush – DIY Embellished Vest: make your own hardware strewn vest with some beads, studs & chains.

  • Fasshonaburu – Alyssa & Vyque go to the local Shecky’s Girl’s Night Out

  • ferOHHHsh – Blatant Designer Knockoffs- Not just in the back of vans anymore.

  • Further Ado – Investment dressing – is it a real investment, or another women’s magazine catch-phrase used to encourage us to buy, buy, buy?

  • Idiosyncratic Style – Q & A with amazing photographer Dana Brushette

  • kaKofonie Of si(gh)lenS – Emily Howse A look at an up-and-coming fashion graduate with a taste for ethical production, architectural inspired pieces, and plenty of ruffles.

  • Little Miss Makeup – Brown is the new gray! Learn how to do a smoky eye for daytime.

  • Oranges and Apples – The Capsule Wardrobe Challenge: Roundup and Reflections

  • Prom Mafia – 80s Done Right: How to Rock the 80s Fashion Trend

  • Retro Chick – Win an organic cotton jumper, worth £70 from Urban Buzz

  • slsvgg Fashion – Lily Allen’s jewellery line has finally been released in Selfridges

  • Style Amor – Need Costume inspiration with a bad ass fashionable twist?

  • Style Symmetry – Three Ways to Wear a Plaid Blazer This Season!

  • Styletastic – A roundup of SS2010 runway shoes – what will we all be wanting to wear on our feet next summer? (Or not as the case may be)

  • The Coveted – Behind the Scenes at Christian Francis Roth

  • The New Wave – DIY Halloween inspiration from the S/S 2010 runway shows

  • The Working Wardrobe – Something to Remember: Your Work Attire Not Only Represents You, It Represents Your Workplace. Think Before You Dress.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Halloween Inspiration from the S/S 2010 Runway shows

It's nearly my favorite holiday, Halloween! In the past few years I've tried to steer away from the stereotypical "sexy ______" or "slutty ________" costumes in favor of costumes that are a little more creative, and hopefully, more in the "spooky" Halloween spirit. What I do love about Halloween is that its an excuse to wear just about ANYTHING and get away with it. I have a lot of stuff in my apartment that I would love to wear every day but would get me nothing but weird looks and comments (especially my hats from the 30's!). So I usually take the opportunity to go ALL OUT and over the top. In a way, this is a lot like what designers do on the runway, its their one opportunity to present their creative vision, though much of the time its not looks that their customers will ever wear top-to-toe. In that spirit, let's get creative and take a look at some of the runway shows for inspiration for Halloween costumes this year (most images courtesy of nymag.com).

Yohji Yamamoto Haute Zombie
hautezombie

Yohji sent a parade of zombies down the runway for S/S 2010, and these looks are some great inspiration for zombie costumes for Halloween. All you need for this look is the hair and makeup, and then some slick, tailored clothes to hack up a bit (might wanna try the thrift store and find some nice tailored menswear instead of hacking up anything too expensive!). Tada, Haute Zombie!

Alexander McQueen Futuristic Alien/Sea Creature
alexmacqueenalien

By far one of the weirder shows this season (we'd expect nothing less), McQueen's theatric show is great inspiration for a futuristic, alien-inspired costume. Metallic fabrics, tin foil, cellophane, and wire should help you create a look inspired by this show. The wire should also help in making one of these hairstyles!

Anne Demeulemeester Bondage Gimp
anndemeulemeestergimp


S&M looks are always popular for Halloween (just ask my friend Lou who works in a latex shop, they get very busy this time of year!), but you can totally do it with some style a la Ms. Demeulemeester. Belts, chains, zips, leather, latex... just make it look scary not skanky, please!

Comme Des Garcons Scary Clown
cdgclowns

Nothing is scarier than a clown, right? With the right wig and a mix of bright colors, clown make-up, and a creepy smile, you'll be scaring all the fashionistas on your block.

Gareth Pugh Swamp Thing
garethpughswampthing

You HAVE to look at these close up to appreciate the make up but this show was super creepy! These looks at the end screamed "swamp thing" to me. You're gonna need to do some crazy shredding to get this look, and many yards of jersey.

Givenchy Goth Conehead
givenchygothcone

I always end up seeing some coneheads on Halloween, I'm not quite sure why, such an old movie and not particularly scary but I guess its an easy costume to do. But how about let's spook it up a little bit and be Givenchy Goth Coneheads? Mostly the same, except goth-er. That's more like it!

Marc Jacobs Ghost/Ice Princess
marcjacobsicequeen

You don't need to be in black to be scary, as Marc Jacobs showed us this spring. These eerie looks were inspired by Kabuki girls, but I think they kinda look like ice princesses or ghosts! You don't need to hide under a sheet to be a ghost, just a flowy chiffon white or ice blue dress and some white face make up. YES!

Charlie Le Mindu Cousin It
charlieleminducoustinit

Addams Family members are always popular on Halloween, and make a great group costume. Coustin It, the overly hairy member of the Addams extended family, is a relatively easy costume to do, but why not take it to the next level a la Charlie Le Mindu and rock those hair extensions EVERYWHERE?

Giles Deacon Spider-Woman
gilesdeaconspider

Finally, if you're not going to do a full-on costume, why not just embrace some Halloween-inspired prints? Spiders, bats, ghosts, witches, any of these motifs done in a creative way is a good effort.

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Annick Rosenfield photoshoot

I did a quick photoshoot on Friday with my friend Annick who recently finished her MFA at the School of Visual Arts. The first half of the shoot was to build her portfolio in hopes of getting some work with a men's magazine. Now I'm not really a men's magazine type nor had I ever done anything like this before but given the opportunity to do some more nice shoots with Lady Jane Lingerie I couldn't refuse. Beware, the following is a little NSFW!

me in lady jane lingerie

I just think this is such a pretty shot I don't even care if I'm in my bra.

The other photos were the first in a series that she is hoping to submit to W magazine on the theme of excess... and who better to represent excess than me in all my vintage clothes.

annick rosenfield photoshoot

annick rosenfield photoshoot

annick rosenfield photoshoot

We may do an elaboration on these photos later, can't wait. Thanks Annick! Go check out her website her work is lovely.

Friday, October 2, 2009

Vintage dress twins!

I know one of the appeals of shopping vintage, to many people, is that your item is potentially one of a kind, but you know what I really love? Finding dress twins! I've done this several times (usually at the Manhattan Vintage Clothing show) but never got to document it until now. About a year ago I picked up this little cotton embroidered dress (from the early 60's I'd say) from the Brooklyn Flea for $40:

Then, this summer while at Beyond Retro off Brick Lane in London, I spotted its twin!


Twinnie here was selling for a ridiculous £60, but such is the way things go in London. Not like I really needed another one but it would have been nice to reunite them. So, go visit my twin dress the next time you are at Beyond Retro, if you're ever there. Does anyone have a similar story?