merci!

Just to reiterate: I AM SO EXCITED ABOUT LANVIN FOR H&M. I've been stalking pictures of the collection all day, and the line really is living up to all the hype. It combines everything I love about Lanvin (like vibrant jewel tones, interesting silhouettes, a sense of humor and potential for creative wearability) into one neat, under $200 package. Thanks Alber.

The only thing I'm concerned about is that black waistband...I really really really hope it's not too cheesy in person.

i want lanvin not flowers!

This is it, kids. The one we've all been waiting for.

SEE THE LATEST VIDEO ABOUT THE H&M DESIGNER COLLABORATION.

And it's completely amazing.
The clothes are gorgeous (obviously a rehashing of the last few seasons, especially the S/S 2009 show, but a good rehashing!) and I will be buying 1. the shoes 2. the sunglasses 3. the chartreuse dress 4. everything else, most likely.
I also adore the video...it reminds me of the Eloise stories a little bit if Eloise was on fabulous pills and hung around with supermodels.

can i call you my love?

Lanvin Resort 2011:





Everything I love about Lanvin is included in this collection: gorgeous colors, incredible fabrics, pleating, ridiculously decadent jewelry, volume, movement, and a little sense of humor. Alber never, ever disappoints.

food for thought.

No matter how hard others may try to convince me, I believe that good design is art, whether it is manifested in a painting, the choreography of a ballet, the architecture of a building, the orchestration of music, or a collection of clothes by a fashion designer. The added bonus of clothes, however, is that you get to wear them! With the exception of the Van Gogh shoes, when do we ever get to carry art with us throughout the day, imbibing it with bits and pieces of our life and absorbing its intoxicatingly beautiful spirit in return? This is the reason fashion is so interesting and important to me. I love good design, and my favorite way to express this love is through my style of dress. Unfortunately, this can lead to those who are unfamiliar with me to cast aspersions on my intelligence, priorities, and dreams for the future. But I suppose that is the price one has to pay in our highly cynical and judgmental society. I just try to do the best with what I've been given, and be the best self I can possibly be.

My interest in the fashion community does often prompt people to ask me who my favorite designer is. Whenever I am asked this question, I invariably name Alber Elbaz. There are so many talented people out there, it is hard for me to choose just one. But I truly, truly love Alber. I love that he doesn't take fashion super seriously - while I love to look at the impeccably-groomed glamazons that stalk moodily around Paris in their 6-inch heels, smoking and waiting to be photographed by Scott Schuman, I could never dream of becoming one of them - and I love his beautiful aesthetic sense. I love his ability to design serious clothes that retain a secret playfulness. And I love Alber! I mean, look at him:

I would dress like that if I could...bow ties are the best! I also think it's hilarious that he grew so tired of people pronouncing his name as "Albert" that he legally removed the "t" from the end.
And it's hard not to adore a man that has the ability to create things like this:





He truly embodies what I find most attractive about fashion: the power to create who you want to be, have fun, express yourself, and never look back. I believe these are values that are universally agreed upon as positive entities to uphold. Why is it, then, that when they are applied to fashion, they come under attack? Materialism and shallow meretriciousness are inapplicable to people who are truly stylish; as long as they look and feel fabulous, the enlightened and self-actualized (and therefore, most worthy of admiration) do not care whether their clothes came from Karl Lagerfeld's atelier or the $2 bin at their favorite thrift store. And in regard to the high prices of the haute fashion industry: yes, designer clothes are expensive. Yes, the people who create them are (in most cases) highly paid. But no body blinked an eye when artist Damien Hirst put a dead calf in a tank of formaldehyde and sold it for over 15 million dollars as "sculpture". There is a double standard, and fashion always comes out with the short end of the stick. What I'm trying so hard to articulate is this: fashion design is art, art deserves respect, and people should think twice before dismissing the stylish as shallow bimbos with little to contribute to society. Just think about it. And thank you for listening!

affairs to remember

I love pre-fall! Viewing the collections is so much fun when they're staged in a controlled environment that accurately reflects the designer's vision, versus the less perfect, variable-ridden surroundings of a fashion show. I found a lot of them to be sort of lackluster this time around, though...Tuleh, a label I have always liked purely because their name is adorable, featured some of the ugliest clothes I have seen in a while. They surpassed "youthful" and carried on straight into sloppy, infantilizing, and awkward. Lots of others just showed boring, hashed-out looks that are being ripped off at Forever21 as we speak. But a few labels did manage to pull out the best sort of pre-fall...wearable, but pretty enough to top wishlists and empty wallets.

Lanvin never disappoints. I love the way Alber (obviously, we are on a first-name basis) oscillated between "severe Russian nun with a jewelry and tassel fetish"...
...and "top to toe batty-but-chic leopard print lady". Personally, I would dress like either one in a hearbeat.

Everyone's all atwitter about this Proenza collection, which is TOTALLY valid...it's pretty much perfect. I mean, who doesn't love a good jumper?

togglecoatandgiantshortsgetonmybody

Lazaro and Jack (also my bffs) do the best blues...judging from collections past, that is a leather skirt. sign me UP. Also, I don't think I'll ever be over the socks-scrunched-over-sexy-shoes thing.

LV was sort of...cartoonish? I really do love this dress though, and although those boots are pretty dubious I LOVE the kneesocks.

Missoni was sort of exactly like the last two collections, but less subtle. But who doesn't want to dress like this?
Perfect coats, knit bows, BEAUTIFUL shoes, and those amazing leggingtights.

And finally, Thakoon...I have a giant soft spot for Thakoon,everything he designs is just whimsical enough to make me fall head over heels. I adore the fringe motif and petal-shaped skirts that keep appearing, and who doesn't love a good nautical stripe?
This is the sort of monochrome I could actually stand a chance at pulling off.
So pretty! And it's nice to remember in the depths of January that spring is not so far off...

osaka loop line

What's inspiring me this week:






photos from Garance Dore, Lanvin backstage (via vi.sualize), Irving Penn for Vogue, and luxirare.