Michelle (and Barack) Obama in London (Part II)

From crisp white to exquisite black.

After the queen hosted the state dinner at Buckingham Palace, the Obama's reciprocated by inviting her and Prince Philip to the Winfield House at the U.S. embassy. MO is in Ralph Lauren. A tad on the simple side. Or maybe I should call it being a pragmatic first lady. But the necklace and bracelet by Tom Binns are wicked gorgeous and intricate.

"Somewhere, Oscar de la Renta, is sitting in a dark room, hugging his second bottle of scotch." -Jack and Jill Politics

How much do you love them?

I also found this little gem of a photo. So silly!

My First Album

I'm kind of sick of Lady Gaga. She's overrated now, but I still love her.

That's beside the point though. I was watching "Lady Gaga: Inside the Outside" on MTV yesterday, and one of the questions she was asked was about the first album she bought (it was Green Day's Dookie.)

Naturally, I tried to remember what mine was. Looking back, it makes a lot of sense...

I'm a little surprised I still remember all the words to "Fantasy" and "Always Be My Baby."

The Best Restaurant in the World. Literally.

After I go to Cannes, I'm heading to Copenhagen to eat at Noma, named by S. Pellegrino this year (among other years) as the Best Restaurant in the World on their annual list in Britain's Restaurant Magazine.

Top Chef should invite Rene Redzepi to their next masters season!

Source: sochictravels

Michelle (and Barack) Obama in London

I love Michelle Obama. She's so elegant and personable, and honestly, she can do no wrong. So with a bit of irony (considering all the bad press she received from wearing Alexander McQueen to the China state dinner in January), she wore Tom Ford to the state dinner at Buckingham Palace today.

How adorable is the queen?

I'm still a little Anglo-nostalgic after the royal wedding last month too. Which is why I also love this photo:

The duchess has quite the watch tan line after her royal honeymoon, I see.

I just think this photo is hilariously cute:

BO and David Cameron playing ping pong v some academy students.

Source: CNN and the LA Times.

Black and White. Like Reading Music.

When I saw this video:

I loved it. It's black, white and sassy. Well, Dragonette is.

But then it reminded me of this video:

Which I completely adore. 80% of that is due to Jake Gyllenhaal's cameo.

And then I tried to think of another music video with this same black & white aesthetic. The only other one that I absolutely love is this:

She's so fearless.

That pretty much describes most of what I listen to. Just throw in some top 40's, and you've basically got my iPod.

Cannes 2011 and Versace

And so the couture at Cannes continues.

It's pretty clear that Donatella's style is very provocative and alluring. As a result, I always have really strong reactions, good and bad, when I see one of her looks. In these cases, all good. Fan Bing Bing undeniably stole the carpet(s), with an ombre purple chiffon gown, and once again with a salmon silk organza gown. Cheers to the Chinese actress!

This is all Atelier Versace, by the way.

Fan Bing Bing

At the The Artist premiere.

At the Wu Xia premiere.

Angelina Jolie

At the Tree of Life premiere (obviously.)

Elizabeth Banks

At the amFAR Cinema Against AIDS Gala.

I'll admit, Elizabeth Banks' dress was a bit questionable to begin with. But the more I look at it, the more I enjoy how cheeky it is.

Cannes 2011 and Armani

One day, when I'm a grown up, I'll find my way to the Cannes Film Festival. But for now, I'll have to settle on seeing everyone else there, including the red carpet starlets in all their couture glory.

Signore Giorgio's creations made a few different appearances throughout, which raises the question: will there ever be an Armani Privé that I don't like?

Zoe Saldana

At the Tree of Life premiere. (Btw, does Brad Pitt = Oscar?)

Aishwarya Rai

At the Sleeping Beauty premiere.

Karolina Kurkova

At the opening ceremony and Midnight in Paris premiere.


Kate Beckinsale

At the amFAR Cinema Against AIDS Gala.

Ahh, brings me back to Anne Hathaway at the Golden Globes.

Source: Getty Images

But Paris After Midnight is Magic

This is true!

The most beloved city in the world (in my mind, at least) as portrayed through the directorial eyes of Woody Allen in Midnight in Paris. If Vicky Cristina Barcelona was any indication of his European proclivity, Paris will look nothing short of magical. Can't wait to see it!

P.S. Michael Sheen's accent is impeccable.

And of course, for completeness' sake: Rachel McAdams in Maxime Simoens at the Cannes premiere. Perfection.

Source: FilmMagic

The House of Balenciaga

After going to the Balenciaga and Spain exhibit and taking in all his genius work, I remembered that I actually love what Nicolas Ghesquière does too. Except that I think he takes a slightly different approach to dressmaking, with a tendency to play with more innovative shapes and silhouettes. But I very much like his edgy and kind of rock-heavy aesthetic.

Fall 2010 (my favorite collection, the season of  beautifully chunky heels)

Spring 2008

Fall 2011 (I don't love it, but I should include it. You know, to be timely and relevant...)

Beautiful work, no?

Source: New York Magazine

Balenciaga and Spain

What a tremendous opportunity I had to visit this exhibit (curated by Vogue's European editor-at-large, Hamish Bowles) at San Francisco's de Young Museum. How wonderfully perfect for me that such an astonishing exhibit should compose itself right in my neck of the woods (the museum is actually in the middle of a forested park.)

I realize that these photos do the pieces no justice. All the more reason for you to see the exhibit in person!

Round!

As silly (and pod-like) as this looks, it's actually a very cleverly crafted dress. The top 
"bubble" comes off to reveal a sleeveless gown. Pure genius. And my favorite piece.

Glam!

Speaking of clever and useful, the skirt on this dress unties to become quite the lovely cloak. 
You know, to keep your bare shoulders warm during those chilly Spanish nights.

Dance!

This was one of the first pieces I saw, and I absolutely fell in love. 
You really have to see the detail of the embellishment in person.

Truly a visionary of fashion and master of dressmaking, Cristobal Balenciaga. Obviously the distinction of the house has a great history to it.

Thanks are in order for Leeching Tran for the inspiration.

Savagely Spectacular Beauty

I so desperately want need to see the Met's new Alexander McQueen exhibit. Just seeing this interview about the retrospective of his work makes me a little misty-eyed. Imagine if I were at the exhibit - I might actually cry. A little.

L'Amour Fou

This looks like a fascinating documentary. It would be so interesting, if he was still alive, to see this passion Yves had about his art and the dynamic with his partner.

V Magazine Loves Gaga

But who doesn't? I guess that's kind of a loaded question.

I don't think the music she's been putting out for her latest album (Born This Way) is particularly inspired, but I still absolutely love and respect her personal sense of style and confidence. Also, I kind of love and hate how pretentious she's become, as is evidenced by this article she wrote.

(If you didn't figure it out, Gaga is on the cover the V Magazine, the Asian Issue, this summer.)

Aesthetic (noun)

1: a branch of philosophy dealing with the nature of beauty, art, and taste and with the creation and appreciation of beauty

2: a particular theory or conception of beauty or art : a particular taste for or approach to what is pleasing to the senses and especially sight

I think this definition (from Merriam-Webster) pretty much sums up what I want to accomplish with this blog.

Welcome to everything I love about fashion, music, film, culture, and what have you.