Sunday, April 27, 2014

INSPIRATION Calvin Klein FW 1996||97... Céline FW 2014||15

Since I'm totally in love with the last Céline collection and in a very particular way with the knitwear pieces [right]... I continue to see references everywhere. Céline's minimal style recalls for sure the nineties and similarities can be found in some Calvin Klein looks, like in this 1996 advertisement featuring the supermodels Amber Valetta and Kate Moss [left].


Thursday, April 24, 2014

INSPIRATION Marchesa Luisa Casati in Paul Poiret 1920… Louis Vuitton SS||2014

Marc Jacobs' final collection for Louis Vuitton SS||2014, inspired by the early 20th century jet set culture, had a very strong 1920s showgirl leitmotif. One of the iconic moments of the show was when model Edie Campbell made her runway circuit in handcuffs and chains, as photographed here in one of the catwalk settings: the black fountain [left]. How could this not recall another iconic image from the twenties: Marchesa Luisa Casati posing for a picture wearing a fountain dress designed by couturier Paul Poiret [right]. The Italian heiress, celebrity and femme fatale was the most scandalous woman of her day and the the marchesa’s famous eccentricities dominated and delighted European society for nearly three decades.



Monday, April 21, 2014

INSPIRATION Valentino SS||2014… Mary Katrantzou FW 2014||15

I just loved the FW 2014||15 collection of Mary Katrantzou in which she has, in a perceptible need to change and grow, transformed her amazing sense for prints into a even more amazing sense for trimmings [all rights]. An amazing chaos of raw material that was put in a symmetric discipline by breathtaking geometric embroidery-encrusted mirror images. Nevertheless Katrantzou entered a new phase in her creative path, with a very new look, the outfits she proposed by made me think about Valentino SS||2014 [all lefts].




Friday, April 18, 2014

THANK YOU ZARA!... Simone Rocha SS||2013 and Zara SS||2014

It is obvious to everybody who shops within the fast fashion market that its fashion collections are following the seasonal trend proposals created by RTW designers. But that it is actually not the only source. Sometimes fast fashion retailers may wait one or more seasons to make sure a specific trend can really work not only for the early adopters but also for the mainstream target. This might have been the reason for Zara's delay [right] on last summer's 'perforation trend" beautifully performed by Simone Rocha [left].


Thursday, April 17, 2014

INTO THE FASHION for Samsung Luxury Avenue

During the annual furniture fair 'Salone Del Mobile" in Milan, Samsung presented in three distinguished events their new premium 'Samsung Luxury Avenue" products such as the Food Showcase fridge, the Crystal Blue washing machine and the air-conditioning system AF9000. One of the events, the sensorial experience, took place in the day SPA of the enchanting Four Season Hotel. Joining me was a fine selection of fashion, food and lifestyle bloggers who have been invited for various beauty treatments and a professional perfume consultancy with the creation of a personalized fragrance for each one of us. Oh what a delight! But not only, in this occasion the Italian fashion photographer Oskar Cecere and his team awaited us at the SPA to document our beautification day that included infinite fun, laughter and many guilty pleasures that came in shapes of Champagne and pastry.

Find out more about the Samsung Luxury Avenue participants and their blogs: Taste of Runway by Anna Marconi, Gipsy In The Kitchen by Alice Agnelli, The Atelier by Patricia Manfield and Giotto Calendoli, Factory Style by Valentina Siragusa, Little Snob Thing by Alessandra Airò and Chiara Maci.



Tuesday, April 15, 2014

INSPIRATION Pierre Balmain 1950... Jil Sander SS||2012

Do you recall the mid-century inspired couture trilogy collections of Raf Simons for Jil Sander [the collections with which in my opinion Raf was auditioning for the creative direction at Christian Dior]? I remembered it just know again, while stumbling over this 50ties editorial of l'Officiel, featuring a beautiful Pierre Balmain ensemble with an all-over Paisley pattern [left]. A similar result in retro elegance and allure, in addition to the similar pattern choice, could be found in the Jil Sander SS||2012 collection [right].



Sunday, April 13, 2014

INSPIRATION Balenciaga FW 2009||10... Givenchy FW 2014||15

Sometimes I do not need to go too far back in time to find similarities in designer's ideas... and also, sometimes it is not the garments and styles in themselves that show the strongest resemblance but the concept behind a collection. This was the case while comparing Nicolas Ghesquière's Balenciaga FW 2009||10 [all lefts] to Riccardo Tisci's FW 2014||15 Givenchy collection [all rights]. Feminine chic is not a look we normally associate with his collections for Givenchy, which have previously favoured the darker side of gothic with brooding colour palettes and quasi-religious iconography. The ruffles and chiffons, pussy-bow blouses and delectable furs he showed, brought a new mood into play, full of French 'je ne sais quoi" and chic sex appeal with a mix of sharp tailoring and softer, sophisticated looks with retro-ladylike roots. When you read the Sarah Mower review on StyleDotCom you will find many resemblances to what Ghesquière was trying to do five years ago.

Sunday, April 6, 2014

INSPIRATION Yves Saint Laurent 1965… Emilia Wickstead FW 2014||15

The gray floral pattern of this wonderful robe-manteau from the FW 2014||15 collection of British designer Emilia Wickstead [right], ... known for dressing members of the royal family and other aristocrats, might have been inspired by a Yves Saint Laurent dress from 1965 [left, here photographed by William Klein for Vogue UK].