Spring ad campaigns are now upon us as we begin this most auspicious year.
Also beginning this year: decadently beautiful news that Christian Dior signed Mila Kunis as the new face of the house, to appear in deliciously glossy and fabulous ad spreads in the coming months. Miss Dior handbags never looked so elegantly salacious.
Unless, of course, it's Marion Cotillard having a sexy mental breakdown. Hurling around Lady Dior handbags, that is.
Two months ago, I was trying to park my car in San Francisco, which if you know anything about driving in the City is a feat in and of itself. It began with me frustratingly circling around the blocks near my apartment for a while until I found a pretty decent spot close by. I started to parallel park, but since I was in a hurry to meet up with some friends, I did a pretty bad job of doing it. Next thing I hear is a snap, so I stop and run out to see what happened. Turns out I had backed my car into the bushes on the sidewalk and broke my antenna in the process. My radio hasn't worked and I've been listening to nothing but Beyoncé's 4 in my car ever since.
I truly love Beyoncé as a musician and performer. In my opinion, she's the whole, talented, beautiful package. In fact, I think you'd be hard-pressed to name a handful of other current artists who can actually sing and dance like any true pop artist should. I think she's going to be in it for the long run.
And I truly love her most recent album, 4. It hasn't done as well as her last couple in terms of mainstream popularity, but this is by far her most brilliant one. You can tell that there is a lot her own personal experiences and feelings written into the songs, and she sounds so magnificent singing them.
Which is why I want to share it with you! By way of her music videos. She's actually released a lot of them, in her label's attempt to promote 4 as an important, commercially successful record.
You're welcome.
P.S. If you only have time for two, watch "Countdown" and and "Love On Top".
And it's just as fabulous as I remembered it. Except this time it's all about retro car prints and flower-power-esque patterns. I think I even see a squid on that brown, leather skirt.
I can dig that.
Prada Spring 2012 Ready-to-Wear
Do you not absolutely love Miuccia's sense of humor? I mean, there're flying cars!
Ugh, I don't even know where to begin to express my love of obsession with this brand. With the house. Hell, with Frida Giannini. Everything about Gucci screams luxury. Pure, ostentatious, indisputable luxury.
Case in point: Gucci Spring 2012. The aesthetic is so refined and evolved. As if Tom Ford were still there in spirit. Channeling the 20's/80's.
Gucci Spring 2012 Ready-to-Wear
I'm loving the metallic plating and piping details.
Put your trust in Christopher Bailey to class up LFW with a street savvy and stylishly urban Burberry Prorsum Spring collection. This just makes you want Burberry.
I love the slightly obnoxious patterns (pentagons on a trench coat!) and how delightfully shaggy everything is. Especially the guys, though baggy, oversized jackets don't quite remind me of Spring. But then again, I live in San Francisco.
Burberry Prorsum Spring 2012 Ready-to-Wear
I'm going to come right out and say it: the pattern on the button up reminds me of micelles.
I've heard of color blocking, but Mary Katrantzou's trompe l'oeil floral pattern blocking is looking quite marvelous. I'm also now wondering why every skirt ever doesn't have an attached train.
Mary Katrantzou Spring 2012 Ready-to-Wear
Who knew that I would fall in love with paisley and fringe. At the same time. Other than Matthew Williamson.
I guess mermaid silhouettes are in for Spring 2012. That is, if you're in the market for a gown.
I feel compelled to include some of my favorite Zac Posen dresses from his Spring collection - I suspect they might show up a couple of times on upcoming red carpets.
But anyways, enjoy the pomp and vibrancy of the many cocktail dresses and voluminous gowns! My favorite is the strapless, sky blue gown with the lifted, ruffled hemline.
Please, please, please browse through this collection. I promise you will not regret the decision. As always, Proenza Schouler is inspired, visually stunning, and cutting edge. Obviously I'm no designer (and no expert fashion critic, as I've said before), but I find it thoroughly exhilarating to see a bounty of raffia skirts and dresses, as well as eel skin! Who would ever imagine? Besides, of course, Jack and Lazaro.
The leaf patterns and colors are getting me itching and raring to go for Spring 2012.
Sometimes I surprise myself with how eccentric my taste can be.
Which is the one word I would start with describing Prabal Gurung's Spring 2012 collection. There's something so very symbiotic about his symmetrical, psychedelic purple patterns (I'm seriously into the first look!) At the same time, though, everything looks so devious and offbeat, e.g. his torso cutouts and furry tulle skirts and gowns.
Perhaps furry tulle speaks to an off-kilter alter ego I didn't know I had.
As adorable as Jason Wu is, the man has some serious potential. It's as if his riveting design ideas and artfully built pieces come to him with no effort at all. Case in point: his very edgy (and electrically colored) yet soft and classic (and borderline sporty) Spring 2012 collection.
It's on the shorter end as collections go, so you should have plenty of time to go through all his looks! It builds so nicely, from his very light and breezy springtime pieces, up to the voluminously ruffled evening gowns of his last few looks. Really, it's quite satisfying.
I suppose the future here is Spring 2012. But Carly Cushnie and Michelle Ochs' idea of this upcoming Spring style is the future. Or futuristic, I should say.
Admire below the acute edges and cutouts of the necklines, the stark whites and jet blacks (and the electric pinks and luminous yellows!), all in juxtaposition with the feminine and classic silhouettes.
With the neon, fluorescent picket fence behind the runway, it makes me ponder: this is what real housewives of the future will look like.
Lancôme recently came out with a commercial for its fragrance, Trésor Midnight Rose. It stars the always magnificent Emma Watson, looking completely alluring with her pixie haircut and black fedora.
Then I got to reminiscing about other fragrance commercials. Can I just say that I find Keira Knightley equally as alluring in this one for Chanel Coco Mademoiselle:
A very different vibe (but equally sassy), wouldn't you say, what with all that sultry Joss Stone playing in the background. When all's said and done, though, Audrey Tautou for Chanel No. 5 is easily my winner. Seriously, she is like a Chanel suit; she'll never go out of style.
I live for this sort of pretension. Or maybe I should call it artistic expression of perspective.
At any rate, here's some background: Marina and the Diamonds recently released two new music videos for her upcoming album, Electra Heart. They're part of a series, which she is using as a platform to introduce the character of Electra Heart who is "the antithesis of everything that I stand for" according to Marina.
To continue quoting from her Popjustice interview: "[The] point of introducing her and building a whole concept around her is that she stands for the corrupt side of American ideology, and basically that's the corruption of yourself. My worst fear - that's anyone's worst fear - is losing myself and becoming a vacuous person. And that happens a lot when you're very ambitious."
For the record, I'm genuinely impressed when musicians come up with these aggrandizing concepts.
When asked about her inspiration for the premise of this series: "I want to explore the side [of America] that's all about loss and failure. That image, that illusion we have of America really fascinates me."
I smell another Gaga act developing. No, I kid. I really do love Marina and the Diamonds.
I cannot think of a single TV show that has inspired me as much as Mad Men has to completely turnover my wardrobe, shoes, and accessories.
Some facts:
I had the urge to polish my shoes after finishing an episode last night
I desperately want to replenish my collection of shirts with french cuffs
I desperately want a collection of cuff links
Fedoras give me the slightest tendency to swoon (onto a fainting chair - watch the "Seven Twenty Three" episode)
I aspire to one day have a wet bar in my office (though I suppose that wouldn't be a good idea in a hospital)
Which is why this is so exciting:
Now look at these things! All-of-which-I-want:
Who needs three-piece suits when you have fabulous sweater vests and cardigans?
Office chic has never looked so good. Also, I'm resolved to start wearing bow ties to work now.
I can't even begin to imagine what I'd do if my boss dressed like this.
I realize now that I've included all the men's looks that were previewed. But I love them all! In fact, I feel incredibly compelled to buy a mac jacket and numerous sweater vests.
Get yourself to the nearest (participating) Banana Republic August 11th.
And lastly, take a minute to admire how dapper these gentlemen look:
Honestly, I feel a little obsolete posting this, seeing as Fall 2011 is basically here (at least according to the calendar fashion magazines go by.) It seems the rest of the blogosphere has pretty much been there, posted this.
But lucky for you, I don't care about being redundant! At least when it comes to things as magical as Prada.
I was walking down Grant Avenue last weekend, shopping downtown, when I saw this from across the street, in the Prada window display (but 50 times larger, and consequently 500 times more fabulous):
There is just too much cool, youthful angst going on in this one photo. Of course the accompanying video (shot by Steven Meisel) shows an equal amount of nonchalance over wearing green, snakeskin Prada boots and furry swimming caps. As well as an inordinate amount of time focused on fastening oversized buttons.
Just when I think she's getting seriously overexposed, and her music becoming highly overrated (I'll bet you five bucks that The Edge of Glory is pushing you over the edge at this point), she does something as seemingly fabulous as this:
Non, Gaga, vousêtes gentille. For working on what appears to be a hopefully galvanizing TV interview special. Obviously I'll be tuning in.
FYI, it's airing Monday, September 12 at 8 p.m. on the CW.
And for me too! To celebrate the recent purchase of my Gucci wallet (a belated birthday gift from me, myself and I), I thought it would be nice for everyone to have a little bit of Gucci in their lives.
As luck would have it, the house unveiled their Fall 2011 ad campaign this past weekend. With the sensual Joan Smalls and Abbey Lee Kershaw, it's wonderfully vibrant and heavily saturated with bold colors. And as StyleCaster so cleverly observed, it's leaning towards a Tom Ford-esque aesthetic, with the "glossy red lips and lush furs," and that overall seventies vibe. Not to mention it's just plain sexy.
I'm not going to lie, this makes me love my new Gucci a little bit more.
The last of my Fall 2011 couture posts, I promise.
Isn't it all so beautiful? The whole collection is only 11 looks, but I imagined more because they're so intricately embellished and provocative with the tulle cutouts. I think this should be at the top of everyone's mind when thinking about great representations of couture - dressmaking and high fashion design at its best.
