abbey lee

vintage aalto

How lovely are these worn, warm brown, vintage aalto chairs.

the sky is full of geometric colour

flaws in gravity

perfect

I thought that i had done my last post of DVN Fall 09, but I've been staring at his clothes all day and cant get this outfit off my mind.

heartless

For Luella's Summer 2010 runway she showcased a beautifully tailored dress, closely resembling the dress worn in John Currin's "Heartless". My preference would be to wear Currin's version - sophisticated, elegant and tough.

"Heartless" 1994

flat, loose, hair-up and comfortable

Basically sums up my favourite looks.

yyy

ankle length skirts from old y's collections

Nudie Rudy

If Rudy was real, she would wear monochromatic nude tones, short in length but long in the arm, with natural makeup and nailpolish to compliment her beautiful dark features.

this obsessed

Im still obsessed with Francis' colours.

things im in to

Natural things: colour, wood, wool

(isabel marant)

Vegetation and furnishing my new flat

Longsleeve Crew Necks and Comfortable Pants

Oatmeal/brown with black

New Stella Lingerie

Projex Music

(playing in the background)

Image by Nacho Gil

one colour

Home is where the heart is

These beautiful photos are from the home of Kat Heyes - British Illustrator and Photographer. I love the lightness and cosiness of her home - especially the sheepskins on the each of the armchairs.

white, wood, concrete

i want you

Simple, classic and beautiful - im in love with the YSL Lizard Grey Suede 'Easy' bag.

gr(a)y+gr(e)y

i love this woman's look. Grey jumpsuit, woollen grey peacoat and grey satchel... and the tinge of her hair compliments it all perfectly.

does anyone know who she is? shes standing with stefano pilati so im thinking she works at ysl.

UPDATE: Thank you so much Amel for sending out the YSL Manifesto and lookbook. I love them.

colour me beautiful

Study after Vélázquez's Portrait of Pope Innocent X, 1953

Not sure of the name, ???

 Study for Portrait II, Painted in 1956

Man with Dog, 1953

Study of Gerard Schurmann

I hate wearing black on black outfits all the time.

But black, navy and grey are the only colours i can find in my wardrobe.

 I want a change. 

Simple classic cuts in beautiful solid shades. 

Dries knows what I mean.

Inspired by the work of Sir Francis Bacon, DVN's Fall 2009 collection has taken the beautiful shades found in his paintings - shrimp pink, beige, ocher, orange, and mauve—and deployed them in a way that gave life to pieces that might have seemed boring in other hands.

if dreams were free

"Dreams are free"? - This cliche always gets to me. I know to dream is free, but are my dreams really free?

Well, if they were I would have a wardrobe full of pieces from Junya Watanabe's Spring 2008 collection. Floral, pink, blue, patterned, I would have it all.

Make that two blue dresses please. 

Jacob K

Jacob K is a Danish-born, London-based freelance fashion stylist. After moving to london, Jacob worked for Peter Jensen then went on to assist stylists, eventually styling independently for various international magazines and photographer Tim Walker. 

city designed by nature

"Are we going to continue copying the skyline of Western cities created over a hundred years of industrial civilisation? "

This was the rhetorical question asked by the 11 young architectural practices who took part in the masterplanning of Huaxi city, centre of Guiyang, in South Western China. The participating practices which included the likes of MAD, Mass Studies and Sou Fujimoto Architects, rebelled against our ideological high-rise past, creating more fluid, naturalistic forms, which enable users of the city to explore and make their own experiences. The forms use irregular geometry - curves, circles, drapes/folds- which are fitting with the beautiful Huaxi City landscape. 

"The natural and the artificial are fused together, revealing an image of a future architecture. The ecological method here is not just focused on saving energy; rather, the goal is to create a new, balanced urban atmosphere which can evoke the feeling of exploring the natural environment. The city is no longer determined by the leftover logic of the industrial revolution (speed, profit, efficiency) but instead follows the ‘fragile rules’ of nature."

Draped Lace facade

"This collaborative experiment thus provides an alternative, responsive model for the development of the urban centre: a man-made symbiosis, in harmony with nature, in which people are free to develop their own independent urban experience."

Ice/Stone Age

I was cleaning up my computer when i came across these photos of Rick Owens Apartment in Paris that I was suppose to upload last year. His style (fashion, design and personal style) remind me so much of the Ice and Stone Age - rigid geometry, fur and hair, and wood. I would love to see what his dream car would look like. 

dreamy videos and stella exclusives

This dreamy photoshoot with Lily Donaldson inspired me (a few weeks ago) to start playing around with light, filters and video. The result, this twinkling, glittery short film below. 

NB: Press pause on the 'mixpod' before playing it to hear the background music

Glitter. 2009

Music by Au Revoir Simone

I would have loved to use more movement and person/s in the film, but no one was with me at the time. Anyway, today I came across the short films made for Stella McCartneys Exclusive Net-a-porter range. They are along the same lines as what i was thinking - filters, subtle movements, femininity. 

I'm in love. 

My favourite is 'Magnolia Tree'.

Magnolia Tree. Stella McCartney

Here are a few of the exclusive pieces from Stella McCartney/Net-a-porter range:

Click here to check out the rest of the range.

SHAPE = FORM = FASHION

For one month, between June 6 and July 6, the city of Arnhem in The Netherlands will hold their third Arnhem Mode Biennale. This year the theme of the event is SHAPE, which along with form and structure, is currently setting the tone in the fashion industry. 

Jil Sander ss08

"This year more than 80 fashion labels are participating, including Lanvin, Raf Simons, Hussein Chalayan, Jil Sander, Rick Owens, Martin Margiela and Viktor & Rolf.

 

Some 150 garments in Arnhem will make it apparent what the aspect of SHAPE signifies and why ‘form’ is so topical in fashion."

A full list of participants can be found here.

The event will consist of exhibitions, lectures and workshops. 

I would love to go over for this. It sounds amazing.

chloe in chloe

the perfect outfit: chloe sevigny in head to toe chloe s/s 09 at their LA kick off party.

also check out the detailing of the backdrop -  subtle scalloping at the join between the walls and the floor.

andy hillman

Behind every beautiful girl is a beautiful mother. 

Behind every amazing Tim Walker shoot is Andy Hillman. 

Andy Hillman graduated from the Arts Institute Bournemouth in 1999 with a first class honours degree in 3 ~Dimensional Design. After working for the prestigious Thomas Heatherwick Studio, Andy went on to assist the Set Designer / Art Director Shona Heath for four years before establishing his own studio in North London in December 2005. He has since produced sets, props, costumes and art directed for various clients. These include publications such as Vogue Italia, American Vogue, British Vogue, Vogue Nippon, Casa Vogue and L'uomo Vogue, American Vanity Fair, Another Magazine, Dazed and Confused, Lula, Citizen K andWonderland. He has also collaborated on projects and sets for clients including Givenchy, Rimmel, Paul Smith, Sony, Kate Spade, We Are Replay, Selfridges and Liberty's.

Andy seems to have worked on all of the wonderfully whimsical sets in Tim Walker's photography and also is the creative mind behind a lot of the DSM shop windows. 

I wish I could work for him!

ps. thanks lauren (from like a little bird) for inspiring me to look at Tim's work again. I would never have found out about andy hillman if i hadnt got to your site today! xx

summer lovers

Chloé Scalloped Bikini

Zimmermann Animal Print Bikini

Zimmermann Floral Bikini

Zimmermann Floral Silk Dress

Chloé Roman Sandals

Scalloped patterns + prints and florals + school-girl classics = Summer Lover

style-conscious architects

Here is a fascinating article I came across today on the Guardian Uk website. It discusses the fashion choices of well-known modern day architects and how their style can be described in a similar way to their architecture. I have added in examples of their work to show the similarities.

"The relationship between fashion and architecture is not a particularly oblique one. Both are based on structure, shape and prettying up basic necessities - clothes and shelter. The relationship between fashion and architects is less discussed. Yet even a glance at your garden-variety modern architect proves this is a group who are just as style-conscious as fashion designers. Hadley Freeman dissects their fashion choices.

London Olympic Aquatic Center

Here we see Zaha Hadid proving that her aesthetic inclinations with regards to buildings are echoed in her wardrobe. In this photo, Hadid is standing next to a sculpture she made for the Serpentine Gallery in 2007. It’s a bit of a chicken-and-egg question: which came first, the dress or the artwork?

Bauhaus School of Design

Le Corbusier and Walter Gropius established the look that has become Modern Architect Chic. Here we see the I-don’t-work-in-a-proper- office jackets and the I’m-a-bit-artistic bow ties that originated with this duo. Gropius’s bow tie is a little floppier than one would expect from the founder of Bauhaus (right), but Le Corbusier’s pulled-together look is surely what one would expect of a man who used to design whole cities for a giggle.

Richard Rogers’ look rocks. The laid-back holiday style might seem at first a surprising diversion from standard Modern Architect Chic. But those of us in the know see a man who dresses like his buildings. I once bumped into Rogers in the Pompidou Centre, which is a plain structure encased in primary coloured detailings. Rogers wore a white suit with a bright yellow jacket: he was the human embodiment of his work.

London Metropolian University

Golly, do you reckon this chap gives much thought to his look? It’s just so insouciant - if I’m right in thinking insouciant is French for ‘more obsessively cultivated than a bonsai tree’. From the tips of his spiky hair to the heels of his trademark cowboy boots, Daniel Libeskind’s outfit couldn’t scream MODERN ARCHITECT any louder if it stood in the street and bellowed through a megaphone.

If ever anyone wanted to prove that architects are more style-conscious than fashion designers, here’s the evidence: Future Systems’ Amanda Levete (left) competely outshining Stella McCartney. Where McCartney has gone for her usual all-black tailoring, Levete goes for a more interesting look that echoes her work. Note the precision with which she draws her black cuffs over the sleeves of her white coat. That schtick ain’t accidental, you know."


While this may seem funny and slightly coincidental, I truly believe that it is essential to be style-conscious (know what looks good and what doesnt) if you want to be a successful architect. In fashion, an ugly outfit or collection is easily forgotten, as the cycle of a fashion is relatively fast, ranging from one day to six months. However, architecture is more permanent, if an ugly building is erected, it is going to contribute to the appearance of a streetscape, suburb or city for years.

Read the full article of the Guardian article here.

"ilove" list

Once again, I am dreaming of the opposite season (spring/summer) - cuteness, patterning, femininity and gorgeous shoes. 

From top left: Marni white dress, Marc Jacobs Sunglasses,  Tsumori Chisato Scrunchie Headband, Marc Jacobs Love Clutch, Maison Martin Margiela Heeled Sandals, Marni Striped Shorts and Lanvin Leopard Print Ballet Slippers. 

Next Friday DIY, a cute Tsumori Chisato inspired headband. 

P.S. My YSL Tribute Sandals are still available and waiting patiently for their new mummy. Check them out here. 

Junya Watanabe: Menswear SS09

This season Junya Watanabe has paired up with three classic English menswear labels, Barracuta, Brooks Brothers and Tricker shoes, to recreate their traditional mens garments.

Barracuta jackets have been reinvented, now with patterned linings that become jackets when reversed. Shirts by Brooks Brothers now have the perfect cut of a Junya Shirt and the classic Tricker brogue now resembles a fun mystical CDG shoe. 

Yohji Yamamoto SS09 Runway Look

They say architects love Yohji Yamamoto. Maybe its because its a twist on a classic professional attire or because of his experimentation with scale and proportion. I just love it because it is so incredibly comfortable to wear and looks clean, smart and casual. To get the look from the SS09 runway, look for items with long lines. Pant and skirts should stop at the ankles, while shirts, cardigans and coats should stop at the thigh. Be sure to contrast the long lines with a shorter vest or tuck in your top (shown above). Team with some casual canvas sneakers (which you can find everywhere at the moment) and scarf and you'll look like you should be on the streets of New York or Tokyo.