11/3/20: The Fashion Olympics: Milan Fashion Week s/s2021: Silver Medal- Moschino by Jeremy Scott
PART 1: MOSCHINO- Some Background & History
10/5/20 Tom Ford Spring 2021
It’s no secret that I’m a big Tom Ford fan. That started back in the nineties when he headed up Gucci & gave it his signature sexy swagger. The fashion world, Celebrities & customers ate it up, & Gucci went from being a dusty heritage brand to hot hot hot.
Although Tom departed Gucci in 2005, he was far from done. I immediately bought into his new Tom Ford brand by purchasing a gorgeous shimmery nude lipstick packaged in a thick gold case. And so began the Tom Ford brand with a capsule collection w/ Aerin Lauder & the mighty Estée Lauder cosmetics house. Signature TF fragrances & sunglasses followed as did menswear & finally womenswear in 2008. The TF brand’s distinct DNA is evident in all the products: insouciant wealthy sexy men & women enjoying the best life has to offer. The TF edge comes from a slight tarnish in the beautiful gilded image hinting of a little too much self-indulgence which saves it from boring perfection. …
9/5/20
THE ORIGINS & EVOLUTION OF THE PLAYBOY BUNNY COSTUME & NON-STARTER COPYCATS
Ten years ago, my husband & I went to visit his family in the Netherlands in February. We took a day trip to Amsterdam to visit friends & to do some shopping. The weather was so cold & raw that we dove into a cafe just a flew blocks from the Amsterdam Centraal train station. Rather than a creamy cappuccino, I sipped on the worst glass of wine I’d ever had in my life. …
8/30/20
Francois NARS: Makeup Artist, Photographer & Author- X-Ray
It’s no secret that Francois Nars is a makeup legend & the genius behind the NARS Cosmetics line. Less widely known is that he is an equally talented photographer & author of 2 gorgeous coffee table photography books: X-Ray (1999), Makeup Your Mind : Express Yourself 2011). Both are beautiful & stylized & all-Francois (makeup & photography). The latter is an instructional manual along the lines of the late Kevin Aucoin’s books, The Art of Makeup(1994),Making Faces (1997), & Face Forward (2000).
Like Kevin’s books, Makeup Your Mind is an amazing how-to for makeup artists at all levels. While I admire makeup artistry, it is Francois’s ability to capture compelling images of subjects in the arts that has me spellbound. The subjects in X-Ray range from supermodels Stephanie Seymour & Karen Elson, to socialites such as Comtesse Jacqueline de Ribes, to entertainers Grace Jones & Eartha Kitt. …
Bruce Weber, Cape Cod, Golden Retrievers & the Perfect Beach Summer
Fashion & celebrity photographer, Bruce Weber, has always had a place in my heart for the irresistible tableaus in which it’s always a sunny summer day somewhere on a beautiful lake in the Midwest or on a Cape Cod beach. Insert self, & you’re having an unforgettably good time spending the day with gorgeous jock demigods, carelessly beautiful girl-women, & always, always, a pack of smiling Golden Retrievers.
While I’ve never been much of an Abercrombie & Fitch Fan, as a lover of Bruce’s work, I didn’t mind the visits during my daughters’ middle school years to the A&F mall store in our local Simon Mall. …
8/11/20
Tracing-Back Goth Fashion: “Morticia Adams” of “The Addams Family” to Jewellery Designer, Loree Rodkin
The wildly popular “Addams Family” series, about a wealthy family of monsters had a two-year run (1964–1966), & a total of 64 episodes. It made a significant dent in American culture because it was so different than any other TV offerings of the time & presented a welcome escape from the terrible evening news about the war raging in Vietnam (1955–1975)& spanned three presidencies before President Richard Nixon finally ended the USA’s involvement on April 30, 1975.
Goth remained a subculture, albeit a powerful one that had legs. British Singer-songwriter, Siouxsie Sioux & her bandSiouxsie & the Banshees (1977–1996) influenced teens & twenty-somethings to work the dark smoky eye makeup & all-black dress. The intentionally scary look as seen in cult classic, ‘Rocky Horror Picture Show’, was a smash hit at college campuses in the eighties, & Gaines a cult following in the USA. …
Spotlight on the Remarkable Tatiana Sorokko
7/27/20
Fashion Icon: Carolina Herrera — the Back Story
This Venezuelan beauty began her career as a woman who was exceptionally well-dressed, making the prestigious International Best-Dressed List in 1972 & the Hall of Fame in 1980.
As Carolina was also an active participant in the seventies & eighties social scene, she consequently had many many occasions to dress-up & knows what women want to wear on a special night out. One special night, made for a great story. That night, at Studio 54 in the late seventies, Carolina & artist Andy Warhol made an epic trade- her diamond Van Cleef & Aarpels minaudiere (mini clutch bag) for a Warhol portrait. …
A Look at a Fashion Icon: The White Button-Down Shirt
The white button- down has become a staple of Royalty since Beau Brummell (1778–1840) introduced his new look to British society. “Beau”, whose birth name was actually George Bryan Brummell, is widely regarded as “the Father of Dandyism.” He was a gentleman. with limited finances but possessed charisma & an amazing eye for style. He recreated how noblemen dressed, steering them away from blousy shirts, pantaloons & expensive ornamentation, which was the prevailing style of the time.
One of Beau’s biggest contributions was to introduce the white button down shirt & exceptionally well-fitting bespoke suit as the style alternative to men’s fashion. His style & charm gained him entree to the young King George IV & his inner circle. The shirt went-on to become a menswear classic, embraced by stylish men such as Fiat billionaire Gianni Agnelli, actors Michael Caine, & Paul Neumann & generations of G-men & corporate office workers. My late father-in-law worked for over 30 years at GM in computers & wore a white shirt to work every day. …
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