Prittii Blog

Lana Del Rey: What's all the Hype?

2012-02-14T05:37:00.001-08:00

One of the biggest novelties in the fashion, music and entertainment industry is the singer Lana Del Rey. Her album reached second position in the Billbord chart (losing only for Adele), she covered the British Vogue, her song "Video Games" has been the most blogged and so far it has more than 24 million views in youtube. Critics have been filling the internet with the biggest controversy since Lady Gaga!

Now the big question... Why did she get such attention?

Hype no 1: "Lana Del Rey is a manufactured artist"

Lana Del Rey was born named Elizabeth Grant, a New Yorker from a wealthy family, which suddenly decided to change her name and title herself "gangsta Nancy Sinatra". One of her quotes about that "I spend eight years writing gorgeous songs and someone in a meeting says 'gangsta Nancy Sinatra' and that's that. It's Brutal."

Fact 1: at first Del Rey decided to lie to the media and say she grew up poor. She said to the Interview magazine "I'm sorry, but I was living in a trailer park for a few years. I didn't even have enough money to buy Cocoa Puffs". Then later she admitted she belongs to a higher than average family, but she insists her parents never financially pushed her musical success.

Fact 2: Lana affirms that David Lynch is one main influence for her so popular video "Video Games".

Fact 3: Her appearance in the program "Saturday Night Live" was very disappointing, as the singer clearly couldn't reach the low or high notes.

Let's face all the facts now, which bring us to one conclusion: Elizabeth Grant was transformed by the record label into Lana Del Rey, the new (gangsta) Nancy Sinatra: vintage style and a lippy beauty + an obscure and romantic music + big names as influence = the perfect formula to please all fashionistas and hipsters out there.

Hype no 2: Lana Del Rey is the coolest new artist

People are not forced to blog about someone. In this exact moment I am spending my time writing about Lana Del Rey because I want to. If her video was the most blogged last year, it's because she has been pleasing a big slice the bloggers out there.

Lana's style is something completely different from everything else in the music business lately. It's a gap of fresh air for the fans of vintage style that were tired of Amy Winehouse inspired artists.

Manufactured or not, who this days don't have an influence from the record label in what has to be said and what is done? Does anyone believe that Adele and Katie Perry decided by themselves to wear 50's hair and black eyeliner?

There are rumors saying that Lana had a plastic surgery to get such big lips. We all know that every beautiful female artist ends up getting a little bitchness from the media. Lana could not scape from that... even more because she is suppose to please a public that values music first, and normally appreciate artists that have no such appeal on their looks.

In the end, if you like her or not, Lana Del Rey is the pop artist of the moment. So pick your position and get used to where you stand, because it looks like Del Rey's hype won't fade away so soon.

The 10 Most Elegant Cities

2012-02-09T04:35:00.000-08:00

Where should you go if you look for elegance and sophistication? Where you breath class and see the most elegant people? Does elegance only exist in rich places?

Personally, being rich does not mean being elegant. This list will be about places that inspire elegance in many different forms. Surely the theme is subjective, so what could be elegant for me, might be not as elegant for you, so I choose 10 cities that stand out in at least one item in this subject. The same cities might have it's dirty sides, but no one could disagree about where it's elegance belongs.

Mumbai

If you judge by the western point of view, you might disagree about adding this city into the 10 most elegant in the world. But this is the Southern Asian style, with princess and princes dreams, mesmerizing weddings, gold costumes and magic fairy tales.

Mumbai is the city of Bollywood movies, where their stars live and belong. Being a star in India, means being worshiped like royalty. Aishawarya Rae is almost a queen in her home country.

In daily life women wear those majestic saaris, glamurous make up, hand tattoos, and in their weddings they do it all again, but even more impressive - shawls, gold, bright stones and lively Bollywood dance.

Indian culture is so rich and unaffected by globalization. Let's hope this country will develop very soon and make all this Bollywood fantasy part of every Indian person's life.

Stockholm

Going from Indian dreamy and shiny elegance, into real and discrete Swedish elegance, Stockholm has the most outstanding Scandinavian charm. I must say it is one of the most beautiful cities I have ever seen.

Old buildings, swans on the river crossing the city, charming stores, huge monuments and the polite and fashionable Swedish people that have an impeccable discrete look. It is necessary to take a boat to go from one place to another which, for me, adds even more intensity to the elegance and unique feeling of the city.

During Christmas time it should be one of the most interesting places to visit. A huge Christmas tree stands in the middle of the city, Santas are sold all over the markets and small gadget stores, the whole city is pure light... the night comes early, and the Christmas lamps are early on.

If you look for Scandinavian and Christmas elegance, plan your next trip to Stockholm and your wishes will surely be fulfilled.

Prague

If you look for mysterious elegance, this is your place. Prague has many bridges, old monuments and Gothic churches. The night could look like a scene from a film noir or even an old vampire horror. During the day it's old colors fade out the sinister side and bring a typical Eastern European charm. Between all beautiful capitals such as Warsaw, Moscow and Budapest, Prague is the outstanding one in elegance.

Walk along the river, visit one of the coffee shops hidden between small streets, see historical architectures in the center of the city, are a few of the things you can do to explore Prague's mysterious appeal.

Vienna

Vienna must be the place in Europe where I saw the highest amount of well dressed people by square meter (although I know during the summer it is not the same). Wondering around the city and you may see all this stylish young and old people walking near those monuments of extreme beauty.

Vienna has the typical mainland Europe classic appeal. There you can get great chocolate, wine and coffee, appreciate an opera musical in their famous Opera Hall that has been visited by many celebrities and pop icons, such as Paris Hilton and Dita Von Teese.

Vienna well represents the aristocratic charm of the german speaking cities, and pleases really well those who appreciate this quality.

Madrid

Beautiful Madrid has the most important fashion scene in Spain, therefore the best dressed Spanish.

Full of monarchic monuments, It is the home of the Spanish Royal family. It has also been considered by the Monocale magazine the 10th most livable city in the world and it has the 3rd highest GDP in the European Union.

All this splendor and economic success is reflected on it's streets and elegance of it's habitants. Madrid is the royal and posh side of the Mediterranean Europe. It attracts fashion victims, students and fans of southern European culture and history.

Madrid is really something, as it beats Barcelona in our list - which is another outstanding elegant city.

Buenos Aires

The South American elegance in it's best is definitely found in Buenos Aires. The European architecture and traditions match the beautiful tango dancing in the squares of the Argentinean city, which offers great food, wine and a sensual Latin charm.

Such as Mumbai, Venice or Paris, Buenos Aires is also elegant because of it's culture and it's people. Tango is the music of seduction and elegance, and you can see the beauty of this dance in any tango bar in the squares of Buenos Aires, where the Argentinean proudly exhibit their abilities.

Full of European architecture, you might feel as if you were in Spain or Portugal. Try the unique taste of an Argentinean steak with an Argentinean red wine, and find yourself back in South America.

Montreal

The Canadian city used to be a French colony, and it kept much of the charm the French like to add to their belongs. Nowadays Montreal is the jewelry of North America, with a contrast of architectures blending all into a romantic atmosphere.

Considered by UNESCO a City of Design (together with Buenos Aires and Berlin), Montreal is famous for it's diversity. Also considered Canada's cultural capital by the Monocle magazine.

So if you are in North America, and you want to have a break from the "ready to wear" and you look for something more "pret a porter", find Montreal and you will be pleased.

London

The most eccentric, intriguing and exciting elegance should be found in London. A place where street fashion can be fashionistas dreams coming true. Oxford Street, Regent Street, Canarby Street, Bond Street, Harvey Nichols, Harrolds, Topshop, all those places reflect the fashion crazyness that is London.

The historical architecture is a mask which hides a city that is hungry for the new. Music, art, ideas... a lot of what happens in the world today starts in London and I believe the most vanguardist people in the world live over there.

It has also it's dirty sides, but even the dirty side of London has it's elegance; as Benjamin Disraeli said "London is a modern Babylon".

Venice

Definitely one of the most beautiful and romantic places in the world, It's elegance relies exactly there: fantasy and romance.

Known for it's old architecture, the streets of water, the boats, it's carnival; all together creates the feeling of being in another world: a beautiful magical world.

I love Venice and I think most people that have been there feel the same about this wonderful place. I could have chosen also Milan to fill up the gap of elegance in our list, that belonged to one of the most artistic countries in the world, but I choose Venice for it's unique type of charm. Elegance is also attractiveness, and definitely this city seduces every person (and couples!) that steps in it's land.

Paris

Think about a city that you knew from the beginning you would find in the list; I'm sure you thought Paris straight away! Would anyone disagree about that?

Paris is the city of love, art, beauty, sensuality... it's one place where elegance is most valued than anywhere else. The language, the food, clothing designers, the art, history, everything in France bring our mind into the same direction.

I mentioned before that London has the most vanguardist people in the world. The most elegant definitely live in Paris.

Visiting a Flea Market

2012-01-22T08:09:00.000-08:00

Who doesn't have a pile of old stuff that you don't know what to do with it? Those old things that meant a lot and used to make us happy, but now are just responsible for taking space and accumulating dust?

They can be a big hassle! Because surely before just trashing old books, toys, vinyls, old gadgets, we should consider the fact those things could make many other people happy.

In fact, this is the reason why people make a stand in a flea market... beside making a little bit of extra cash.

Here are a few interesting things I found in the flea market in Essen (Germany) during last summer:

It was really hard to find something I would fancy to take home. But that's just me! Some people might find attractive the look of old and used stuff, and for this people, the prices in flea markets will also be a great deal. Most stuff in flea markets cost almost as much as free!

Some stands have really eye filling stuff, and for this reason, even if you are one of those that don't fall so much for the second hand charms, can still be great fun to walk around your near by flea market.

Hong Kong: Futuristic and Fun

2012-01-03T07:18:00.000-08:00

During last year, I had the pleasure to visit one of the most futuristic places in the world: Hong Kong.

Hong Kong is China, but it isn't really. It's kind of complicated... By what I understood, the city was ruled by the British, then it didn't belong to China, and after they became independent, they stayed independent for a while, but now it's again part of China... but still independent. I told you it's complicated!

Anyway, in Hong Kong they don't speak Mandarin like in the rest of China; they speak Cantonese. Cantonese accent sound so sweet!

This is me visiting the "big Buddha". My expression is like I have an oyster in my mouth. I am so sorry to post a picture of me with such expression, but as I was traveling alone, I don't have any other better picture of me in Hong Kong.

Here you can see a better picture of the "big Buddha". It's really a giant! It's possible to go inside of it if you arrive early enough... which wasn't my case!

Another fun thing to do in Hong Kong is shopping... Everything is so cheap and different! It's a whole new world of huge stores, small cute street shops with dolly clothes, hundreds of options in electronics, games, gadgets, funny t-shirts, jewelry (real and fake), cosmetics, etc.

I stayed in Wan Chai, which is a very commercial area, so I had a lot of time to walk around the shops.

I must say, the fashion in Hong Kong and China in general is quite unique. Girls wear ruffle skirts, shiny tops with cute pictures of bears, cats, dogs printed on it, animal shaped shoes or bright colored high heels. For the Chinese, to dress like a doll is "in"... As the Japanese say "kawaii".

Food can also be a strange experience in Hong Kong. If you want, you can buy fresh fish out of the fishbowl like in this picture underneath. Not only fish, but also any other sea creature, such as crab, octopus, sea snake and so on... Yes! They eat snakes! (For me it's the end! I am really closed minded towards food... lol)

Beside the sea food, the birds also suffer some death exposure in Hong Kong.

This is the way small restaurants attract the costumers... Although it looks bad, these places normally have really good and fresh food. I tried and it was fine (very cheap too).

Hong Kong is in the South of China and it's in the sea side, so it's really hot! 30 °C is a normal temperature over there! You can cross the sea by boat any time of the day you wish. It's a refreshing experience.

Not this boat... the boat I was sitting when I took this picture. hehe!

I had some other cool moments in Hong Kong like a dinner on the top floor of skyscraper - amazing night view of the city (thanks to some Canadians I met around the Buddha area), also some crazy party on a Monday night (thanks to a British guy I met just wondering around)... I still don't know how I managed to do so much in 3 days, but I think it's just Hong Kong... 24 hours cosmopolitan and futuristic experience.

After a Few Months Off... Back on track!

2011-12-30T16:07:00.000-08:00

It's been a long while since my last post here... Around 4 months! The main reason for my sudden disappearance: I went to work in China for 3 months and blogger is blocked over there for some political reason.

In this picture on the right, I was sightseeing in one of Shanghai's most interesting attraction: the Jing'an Buddhist temple.

I am very sorry for all those months without any new fun or fashion news, but I come back with a bag full of novelties and exciting stuff to show you!

This blog had this month it's record of views, which made me even more excited about start writing again. It's almost 100 thousand views this year!

I am preparing a few changes that should make it more unique and interesting. It will be more personal; I will show you also a bit of what I do, my friends, life and where I go, rather than only my points of views about random stuff. This way you can feel more intimate with the blog and understand where my opinions come from.

So be ready for the next post... It's going to be about my time in the amazing Hong Kong.

For now, I wish you a great new year's eve party... and see you again in 2012!

Buiding Up a White Goth Look

2011-08-08T00:45:00.000-07:00

As we know, white is the new black during 2011's fall. Even if you want to explore a more mysterious and obscure style.

It all started to look clear when I saw the Ellen Von Unwerth editorial called "Trust Me" in the Tush magazine: White is a trend, lace is a trend, wedding, supernatural, pale skin... white goth is the way to go!

Just recently a new edition of the Love magazine has been released with the theme "supernatural". Featuring actresses Chloe Moretz, Heilee Steinfeld, Elle Fanning and supermodel Lara Stone with tears on their face, pale look, white clothes; a really ghost-like style. One more inspirational place to the white-goth look.

If you opt for embracing this trend, you can play around with romantic items such as laces, pearls, flowers on the hair, mixing with ecclesiastical elements like crucifixes and rosaries, and add some black belts and fetish items to make the look more sexy and dramatic.

You can fit the style to any occasion: party or daily routines. It just depends on how you put the items together. For evening you can be adventurous like the pictures above, and for daytime you can take a basic white dress, a black belt on the waist, a crucifix on the neck and some dark wood brown platform gladiator sandals, for example.

The white goth look can be matched with a very dramatic make up, or a pale and basic.

I wouldn't recommend such theatrical make up as the picture on the left, but this look can be adapted to an stylish evening outfit.

So those are my tips on how to build up a white winter goth look. Be creative and use it as inspiration, to get an even more interesting result.

Vogue's September Issue: The Rock n' Roll Freja

2011-08-05T01:57:00.000-07:00

You know those supermodels everybody can recognize by the first name? Naomi, Claudia, Sasha, Twiggy... Freja Beha Erichsen became one of them.

She is the rock n' roll supermodel, the icon of style: and what a unique style!

She also leads the androgyny trend. While other supermodels are all adept of a trendy girly look, Freja is the one with the tattoo's, messy hair (sometimes reminds me of Jim Morrison), leather jacket and trainers.

Lately I've been so in love with Freja's style, look and personality that I even had a lesbian dream about her (I can't believe I'm writing that! lol)... and I just found out I'm not the only one fascinated by her; She is the Vogue's favorite girl, the cover of the most important issue of the year: the September Issue.

This is one more step in her flawless career. She has covered already so many Vogues, nothing more expected than covering it's most important issue.

I already spoke about the supermodel another two times in my blog. First in the Androgyny post, and second in my gossip post about her romance with Arizona Muse.

I don't want to spoil more possibilities of posting about Freja, so that's all for today.

Magazine Review: Tush

2011-08-01T02:07:00.001-07:00

Last week I was browsing through magazines in a store, when I bumped into "Tush". It's a German fashion magazine... and for this reason I thought one, two, three times before buying it, as I had a few disappointments with German fashion magazines before. This one looked specially temptating because it's main act was a range of editorials by one of my favorite photographers: Ellen Von Unwerth. I ended up buying it for this reason.

What a great surprise I had. This edition of Tush is absolutely delightful. The Ellen Von Unwerth editorials are great and creative, but also the other material in the magazine is world class.

Unfortunately I still cannot read fluent German, but from what I could see, "Tush" shows a great deal of trends, designers, a bit of fashion illustration, there was a two pages material about Jesse J (so some music too!) and everything done in a sexy and elegant way.

I've done a few shots of Tush to show you:

There you see a bit of the Ellen Von Unwerth fest.

Tush was created in 2005 and releases 4 editions every year. This one I own is the number 24 and it should be coming out the 25 very shortly.

For people that like high ending fashion, artistic and sensual fashion photography, I highly recommend.

The only one down spot: there is no English edition. I think the magazine has international standards, so they should put some effort in adding English text in the end, such as the French Numero magazine does, and this way they could reach a wider public.

Starbucks Coffee: Options, Cues and Trends

2011-07-30T01:10:00.000-07:00

You know something: I hate to wake up early! I really do! I guess most of us don't really like to get our dreams interrupted by the disturbing alarm clock. I try my best to stay in bed as long as possible, and many times I have no time to have breakfast at home.

During this week I had to work in a Fashion House in Dusseldorf near the airport. So I decided to take my coffee there, as Airports always have lots of options for coffee. I really do need options, because I have a mild allergy to milk, so I always try to find somewhere where they sell latte with soy milk.

Now we reached the two points I want to speak about: first, the airport was full of coffee shops, but as I browsed I found out that only Starbucks had coffee with soy milk. Second, although all the other coffee shops had similar price to Starbucks and also the nice sofas and friendly environment, they were all almost empty, while people cued up in Starbucks and shared the only uncomfortable sits that were left (instead of going to the other shop and taking the empty sofas).

So, for the lack of soy milk everywhere else, I had no option, beside being one more in the Starbucks cue!

In the meanwhile I wondered if soy milk is the new thing, or what other reason why people would not go to the other places and would instead prefer taking the cue and hard sits. So I started to watch what people ordered, and I heard: normal expresso, cafe latte, cappuccino... only drinks they could easily choose in another store!

I was shocked! I wished so much I could just take my cafe latte in another place and sit in one of their comfortable sofas, and these people were choosing the cue and hard sits for no reason! Or there is a hidden reason?

Yes! This reason is called: It's Super Trendy!

Starbucks is one of those places that makes people feel special. "Come on! The women from Sex and the City drink Starbucks coffee! Milley Cyrus does, Justin Bieber, Paris Hilton... If I drink Starbucks, I am also more special!"

Most people need this type of thing in their life to feel special, or more "in". I think this kind of insecurity takes people out of the "cool" list straight away.

Having self assurance and personality is really something! So I would say, the people that went to the other coffee shops were the cool ones, as they don't need any label to make themselves feel any better.

Let's look at the positive side of this major trend, it opened the door for the comfy coffee shop generation!

The other day, walking around a small town here in Germany, I found this lovely coffee, tea and cake place fully decorated with dancing frogs.

Such sweet place!

Although they did not have soy milk! =/

Mulberry is the New "It" Bag

2011-07-24T09:14:00.000-07:00

Louis Vuitton should take care, because Mulberry is taking over the luxury bags and leather goods industry. The brand is in the market for 40 years and just recently have been evaluated as worth £1 billion!

The designer Alexa Chung is pointed as one of the responsibles for such success. The Mulberry "Alexa" bags are the "it" item of the moment, worn by Kate Moss, Mischa Barton and Keira Knightly.

One of the reasons why Mulberry earned some extra popularity between the high society (that can afford them): their extremely luxurious bags are not as often faked as other brands such as Prada, Gucci, Burberry and Louis Vuitton.

Winter will White Out

2011-07-19T05:30:00.001-07:00

A few days ago I was talking to a friend about trends and I asked what she thinks is the new thing, she answered: "I think you should talk about the color white, because white is the new black. People think black is an attitude, but white is also an attitude".

What she didn't know that I had to find out, is that the color white is not only a cool attitude, but also the biggest trend this winter!

Although black still has it's space, the elegance of the white shades are taking more space in fashion every day. Check out some of the collections for Autumn/Winter 2011:

Alexander McQueen

Calvin Klein

Hermès

Yves Saint Laurent

As you see, all collections not only explore white and tones of pearl and ice, but also spreads the color through the whole look (including shoes!), which used to be a fashion don't for years!

But why so many designers are adepts of a white passion so suddenly?

White represents purity, light and peace. Being a rebel, against religion and the good manners is part of the past. Nowadays many people want to think clean and exhibit on their clothing a lot of this feeling of purity.

Although all this purity matters, I'm equivocating if I say that white only stands for purity!

White can also be really sexy and glamorous. Because of it's different nuances such as off-white, pearl and vanilla, it can be explored in many different ways. As you see in this picture on the right, Ashley Smith's white looks much more sultry than pure.

So whatever way you want to wear white this winter, feel free to do so! From head to toe or not, or whatever shade you like best, it's time to explore white and it's elegance.

Obs.: Fashion illustration on the left by Tanya Ling.

We ♥ Japan!

2011-07-17T03:09:00.000-07:00

There are too many things about Japan that makes it one of the most fascinating countries in the world. The history, the food, the culture, the people, the fashion: being in Japan is almost like being in another unique and amazing planet.

This country is also known for it's strong power to re-build itself from scratch; Because of it's location it has been constantly victim of earthquakes and tsunamis; For it's strong economy it has been involved in many destructive war conflicts.

Today I want to show my sympathy to this beautiful country that I admire so much: A little bit of Japan that fit's into the Prittii blog.

This is the newest Armani couture collection showed in Paris a few weeks ago:

Armani's homage to Japan became such elegant collection! This is my favorite fall couture 2012 show so far.

Talking about real Japanese fashion, one of Japan's most famous designers is Kenzo. This is his latest fall ready to wear collection:

His perfume "flower" by Kenzo is a worldwide bestseller.

Changing from most famous designer, to young up and coming, I introduce you to Akira Isogawa:

He lives in Australia and is one of the most popular designers in the Australian fashion scene.

Japan does not only have great designers, they also rock with the coolest fashion magazines such as the Numero Tokyo, which means moments of joy to any fashionista: full of world class editorials shot by some of the most famous photographers in fashion, featuring the hottest top models of the moment and filled up with cutting edge fashion and pure elegance.

Beside designers and high fashion collection, the Japanese street style is a major fashion force all over the world. Their unique and extremely eccentric clothing has been admired and influence for international pop icons such as Gwen Stefani and Lady Gaga.

The urban tribes in Japan like Gothic Lolita, Ganguro girl, Kogal, Otaku and Harajuku, are unique and fun.

Here are some of the make up trends based in the Japanese style:

From left to right: Geisha, Ganguro, Gothic Lolita and Harajuku.

The Geisha look is the traditional one with the kimono, pale skin and well drawn Asian style eyeliner. The Ganguro girls are some crazy ones! They take a very dark tan and light their eyes and lips with pale pink make up. The Gothic Lolita has a tipical goth pale skin and dark eyeshadow, followed by heart shaped lipstick. The most popular is by far the Harajuku girls. This look can have a lot of variation: pale skin and focus on the round dolly blusher is what counts most.

Another icon of the Japanese fashion trend is the supermodel Tao Okamoto. She is one of the most popular Asian supermodels at the moment and an example of cool street style.

Everyone can have a different view of the whole world that is Japan. The fashion illustrator Margarite Sauvage made one of her illustrations based on the japanese Hentai-Manga (picture on the right). A little spicy Japanese Geisha, because in the end Japan is not only famous for it's hard-working people, but also for it's sexual eccentricity.

When we put together everything I said so far about Japan, its fashion and its culture, we don't get even one small percentage of all Japan has to offer. There are much more I would like to talk about! I am a big fan of Japanese food: The wide variety of Sushis and the delicious Kobe beef. The history, the martial arts and the religion are other major points to be explored.

As I normally talk about the pretty things, maybe the whole story about Japan would not fit here, but the point I want to reach is: as you probably know, Japan is going through a new recovering time, and it would be really great if you could help.

You can volunteer or make a small donation. Any help is highly appreciated.

I'm sure soon all this tragical moments will be part of the past, and the Japanese will show the world once more how strong and united nation they are.

Supermodels in Love: Arizona + Freja

2011-07-14T02:05:00.000-07:00

I really don't like gossip blogs, but these news are more like a fashion trend, than anything else.

Freja Beha Erichsen has been an assumed lesbian since a while. I even mentioned how she is leading the Androgyny trend because of her sexual revelation. In the past she openly dated the stunning supermodel Catherine McNeil.

By what everybody is saying, Freja is now dating the supermodel and mum Arizona Muse. Those two girls have been the most requested fashion couple lately. They shot the Italian Vogue cover together in January and the Numero cover in March.

Everybody must agree: Freja has a pretty good taste in women!

Is Berlin Really the Green Fashion Capital?

2011-07-12T00:14:00.000-07:00

Berlin is a major influential city in Europe and the world, but in the fashion scene it has been forgotten for a long time.

Just recently, with the new green statement in the Berlin Fashion Week, it seems that times are changing. As the whole world now concern about environment and sustainability, Berlin is becoming the green fashion capital. The question is: Is the title real or just marketing?

The funny part is, as I research about environmental friendly fashion labels, I find that London is still far ahead in the amount of designers using of the ethical trend - not only green, but also fair trade, anti-consumerism and recycling labels. The most well known names in this scene are Stella McCartney and Vivienne Westwood.

Beside those two huge fashion names that have been carrying the green/ethic statement, there are countless other brands in the UK such as Ada Zanditon, Junky Styling, Josy Flo, Christopher Raeburn, Komodo, Stuart Brown and the North Circular.

As you can see, Berlin might be building up the reputation of "Green Fashion capital", but it's not really owning it. Most of the German brands runway shows were not green friendly.

The main reason why Berlin fashion week has been ignored in the Fashion world, is the lack of major designers in it's shows, and also Germany's basic, conservative and over-commercial fashion, is not exciting for any real fashion fan.

The green label can be used as an attractive feature, but it should never be a way of going through with the lack of creativity.

What would be working perfectly for Berlin Fashion Week, is really becoming the Ethic Fashion center and attracting all designers that are into the subject, such as Stella McCartney and Peter Ingwersen.

To finish the post, I want to put my point into the whole "green" subject.

I cannot say I am into the Stella McCartney basic eco-friendly designs. I am more into the Vivienne Westwood creative anti-consumerism vow. I am anti-fur, although I am not anti-leather. I am pro saving the planet, but I am not into extremist puritanism. So what I would say is: I will love green labels, once they stop using "green" to justify lack of creativity. My favorite green designer at the moment is Ada Zanditon, because I believe she fits into the creative green crowd (as you can see in the picture bellow).

Same goes to Berlin Fashion Week. Although London has much more green-friendly designers, it's fashion week is not called "the green fashion week", because it doesn't need that to get popularity.

Go green, but not boring.

Summer, Ice Cream, Couture... Delicious!

2011-07-08T02:55:00.000-07:00

We are right in the middle of summer. What a beautiful time! The sun, the holidays, the sea, nature in it's beautiful moments... Everything is inspiring and fun!

In summer we like colorful, creamy and delicious ice creams. They remind us of the season as much as they are part of it.

Sometimes we can even get carried away by those delightful gourmets and end up forgetting the money to pay for them, like the sweet couple Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez done a few days ago (and had to have their ice cream paid by a fan). Or unconsciously add them into your artistic work... that might be what happened in the last Dior Couture show.

This is the first Dior collection since they dismissed the talented designer Galliano. His replacement at the moment is his ex-assistant, the sweet Bill Gaytten... and Bill did it! He added a lot of himself to Dior: the collection is looking Gaytten!

With a little bit of 80's touch, and a cherry on top of the cream, we can taste those delicious blueberry, lime and peach ice-cakes.

What about those rainbow ice creams? Those ones on the cone, with colorful sparkles? They make so many little people happy in the summer!

Some of us are not so into the fruits, and much more into the milky ice creams... those Ben and Jerry Caramel Chew Chew dresses... I mean ice creams: yummy!

And that's how life and fashion goes on: without Galliano, but with a lot of fun! I mean, kind of without Galliano... he seems to always be there somehow, like in recent Kate Moss wedding and her amazing dress designed by our talented "anti-Semitic" alcoholic designer.

Even our Monsieur Qui has a thing for ice creams, as you can see by his illustration on the left.

So that's my tasty view on the last ice creams happening in our beautiful summer. Don't waste your time, go grab yours... but don't forget to not get carried away by them!

Celebrities Set the Colorful Hair Trend

2011-07-06T11:28:00.000-07:00

You probably saw Lady Gaga's new hair trend: she's been shocking around in blue hair. I bet you are going to think: why shock? that's so cool! Rihanna has pinkish red, Gwen Stefani has orange, what's wrong with blue?

Sure! Blue hair is nothing new... but what about blue armpit hair?

That's Lady Gaga's new fashion statement! I think is more a troll than a trend. Although the "attitude" of our queen of queer might influence others to go blue in other more traditional parts, such as Gwen Stefani little boy that has been seen with a blue mohican lately.

Let's look at some celebrity colorful hairs in 2011:

Rihanna's hair color is really cool, although reminds me a lot the McDonalds clown hair color.

It looks like Britney cut off some pieces of her old pink wig she was wearing in her naked head times, and used as hair extension for her new look: not bad though.

But Gwen... OMG! She's looking like an evil Thundercat Pucca... but a super hot one of course! The most original style by far.

What you probably did not notice is that all these hair styles are consequence of the fanciful goth trend leaded by Gaga, and it can become a major fashion like everything connected to this trend.

Now you tell me: but Jeffree Star has pink hair for so long and nobody is copying his hair! And I tell you: the point is that Jefree is a punk-alternative icon like many, and only punk-alternative people follow what they do. But when those mainstream stars are also going for colorful furry heads, it can happen a big fruit-salad hair fever in the society.

I have only one thing to say about it: Amen!

Everything that makes fashion more different, adventurous, fun and unique, have all my support.

Sure the young ones will follow this trend. The ideal should be open a big campaign to make the old fashion ladies to be part of the fruit salad.

- Anna Wintor wearing blue hair in the winter!

- Roitfeld wears hair orange pastel!

- Rachel Zoe matching pink armpit hair with the nail polish on her toe!

Actually, better not!

The Girl Who Was Meant to Be: Natalia Vodianova

2011-07-06T03:19:00.001-07:00

Who sees the glamorous supermodel on the red carpet today, can't picture the beginning of her career and everything she has done to reach such success.

Natalia was discovered by a scouting agent while she worked in the market selling fruits with her mum. She has two half sisters, one of them suffers from cerebral palsy.

Before continue I must make one observation: Russia must be one of the few places in the world it's possible to find such stunning woman selling fruits in the market!

The modeling agency told Natalia she would need to speak English to succeed in the modeling business, and she learned the language in 3 months. At the age of 17 she moved to Paris and signed with Viva models. Since then her career has been only success.

Nowadays Natalia is considered an example of elegance and always gets attention for her amazing dresses, frequently designed by Valentino. She is also a successful wife and mother, which manages her career and three children very well.

Beside the personal life and modeling career, she is a philanthropist creator of the "Naked Heart Foundation" that raises money to create safe and inspirational environment for Russian children in urban areas to be able to play.

Only one girl can do so much! She definitely deserved the shine!

The Most Famous Paintings

2011-07-04T03:05:00.000-07:00

Even if you are not into art, it's impossible not to know the most famous pieces of the most famous artists in the world. They are harmonically integrated into our daily life. You maybe even saw one of them hanging on the wall of one of your friends (a copy of course).

This is my countdown to the 10 most famous paintings ever done.

10. Edvard Munch - The Scream (1893)
National Gallery / Oslo

Why is it so famous? It's one of the most important titles of the expressionism movement, because it shows what it was about: expressing feelings rather than physical reality.

Where did you see it? The painting is frequently on TV, cartoons and films. The main character of the film "Scream", the killer "Ghostface", wears a mask based on the painting.

9. Henry Matisse - The Dance (1909)
Museum of Modern Art / New York City

Why is it so famous? The painting is recognized as a key point of Matisse's career and in the development of modern painting.

Where did you see it? It has countless parody imitations and has been inspiration for many illustrations and logos including the Rio 2016 Olympic games. The logo has been accused of plagiarism by the Telluride Foundation (which has a similar logo), although the similarity just exists because of the font of inspiration.

8. Claude Monet - Bridge Over a Pond of Water (1899)
Metropolitan Museum of Art / New York City

Why is it so famous? This is one of the most popular works of one of the most acclaimed artists of the 20th century. Claude Monet was the head of the impressionist movement. His work, which first was considered poor and dull, became one of the most successful art movements to ever exist.

Where did you see it? Every time you see something about Monet, you also see this bridge; and the real one that inspired the artist, today is even touristic attraction in Paris.

7. Andy Warhol - Turquoise Marilyn (1964)
Private Collection

Why is it so famous? It is simply the most popular piece of all Marilyn portraits made by the most influential artist in the 20th century: Andy Warhol. It was bought in a private auction by a New Yorker billionaire for more than US$ 80m.

Where did you see it? T-shirts, copy prints, bags, etc. This painting is a fashion must have. It's sold as a print and can be seen all around the world stamped in many shapes and colors.

6. Pablo Picasso - Les Demoiselles d'Avignon (1907)
Museum of Modern Art / New York City

Why is it so famous? This painting is considered by the American weekly magazine "Newsweek" as the most influential piece of work of the 20th century. It shows 5 prostitutes in Barcelona with a non-conventional (at that time) not feminine shape. It's the start of a new perspective for Picasso's work.

Where did you see it? It's frequently mentioned together with "Guernica" as the most important pieces by Picasso. Also in the movie "Titanic" a scene where Rose shows some of her collection of art pieces to her lover Jack and he recognizes Les Demoiselles d'Avignon exclaiming: "Picasso!".

5. Vincent Van Gogh - Café Terrace at Night (1888)
Kröller-Müller Museum / Otterlo

Why is it so famous? One of the most popular paintings of the artist also considered one of his best works, which shows his fabulous way of using the colors together with his unique style of painting.

Where did you see it? Another famous copy-print you can see hang in trendy bars, t-shirts, people's houses, and so on. The bar painted by the artist today is called "Cafe Van Gogh" and is a touristic attraction in Arles, France.

4. Salvador Dali - The Persistence of Memory (1931)
Museum of Modern Art / New York City

Why is it so famous? The main reason is the "most": the most iconic surrealist painting, is also the most acclaimed work of Salvador Dali, which is most important artist of the surrealism movement.

Where did you see it before? The painting is extremely popular in all the world, and it's even possible to purchase the "Dali clock" which is a melting clock based in the Persistence of Memory. It is also frequently mentioned in popular culture, including, for example, in the cartoon series "The Simpsons".

3. Sandro Botticelli - The Birth of Venus (1486)
Uffizi Gallery / Florence

Why is it so famous? The oldest famous painting in this list, is considered one of the most important paintings of the early Renaissance, with strong influence in Greek mythology.

Where did you see it? If you never saw this painting, you probably lived in a cave, or in a desert island all your life, or you are not a citizen of planet Earth. It has millions of interpretations and parodies and it has been mentioned countless times in cartoons, films, magazines, games, etc. Just recently, in one of the scenes of the music video "Judas", the singer Lady Gaga pays a tribute to the painting posing like Venus.

2. Michelangelo - The Creation of Adam (1511)
Sistine Chapel / Vatican City

Why is it so famous? It's the most famous and popular image printed on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

Where did you see it? This is another image that is almost impossible not knowing. The image can be seen or mentioned in countless films and TV programs, like Ben-Hur, Simpsons, Family Guy, 2001: a Space Odyssey, etc. It also has been used in a parody version by the "Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster" and made as inspiration for a Nokia advertisement.

1. Leonardo Da Vinci - Mona Lisa (1503–1519)
Museum Du Louvre / Paris

Why is it so famous? The most mysterious painting of all time, is also the most famous. It success lies in the amount of different interpretations and the secret behind Leonardo Da Vinci's most famous art piece. Until now nobody knows if Mona Lisa is going to cry, or if she is ready to smile.

Where did you see it? Everywhere! One of the reasons for such success of "The Da Vinci Code" is definitely to play with such icon of history and popular culture. You just have to see people ignoring many other important art pieces to pile up together to see the Mona Lisa in the Du Louvre museum and you can understand why it's the number one.

Vogue Italia Goes Plus Size

2011-07-01T00:44:00.000-07:00

Everybody that admires fashion for everything that is good in this industry; the elegance, the beautiful photography, the super creative clothing designers, and so on; definitely likes best from all fashion Bibles (the Vogues), it's Italian version. Main reason: the best fashion photography and the most groundbreaking issues.

First they released a Black Issue to make the whole world talk about the racism in fashion and how brands should also opt for black models in their advertisements and runway.

This year, in their June issue, they choose 3 plus size models for the cover. The magazine editor in chief, the brilliant Franca Sozzani explains why: "women are not proud of their bodies because the aesthetical code that is around us is skinny and young. That’s why I created the makeover edition. And that’s why I did this one now. Every woman has something beautiful, it depends how you feel. Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, Sophia Loren, today would be considered curvy girls. We have to change our mentalities".

In my opinion fashion will never become the place for plus size women because of the runway shows, which skinny models hang the clothes much better. Although it could have some changes: some models should be chosen for runway and different ones for editorials. That would help to show some more diversity of body shapes.

(pictures by Steven Meisel)

The Art of Cute and Fun

2011-06-30T00:37:00.000-07:00

Cuteness it's taking over the world. At least when we talk about art. For the first time ever, art is being appreciated not only for weirdness, abstractness, originality, historical value or oldness; but also for it's sweetness.

The artists I'll show you ahead are the masters of cute. You might appreciate or not, they are still rocking the contemporary art.

Jeff Koons

If you didn't know Jeff Koons, you are possible not a person into art. I know that because basically it's impossible to appreciate art and frequently visit museums and never hear about the extravagant artist.

Born in New York city, Jeff Koons is one of the highest paid artists in the world right now and holds the record of highest auction price for a work by a living artist. His paintings and sculptures are commercially friendly and has been converted into ships, BMW's and garden dogs made of flowers.

So much success does not make everybody happy. Some critics affirm that his work is worthless and fruit of only self-promotion.

In the end, nothing takes away the fact that he is one of the most successful, controversial and talked about artists of nowadays. You can like it or not, but not ignore it.

Romero Britto

In the same steps as Koons, Brazilian born artist Romero Britto makes some sweet and commercially successful art pieces that, although it has been acclaimed by many important pop idols such as Gisele Bundchen and Michael Jackson, has been frequently harshly criticized by art specialist.

His art already became propaganda for BMW, Apple, Pepsi, the Swiss Bank, Disney and the list goes on. He also made the logo for the program of saving victims of the Katrina Hurricane and the Haiti Earthquake.

Unfortunately just recently one of his sculptures in Miami (where he lives at the moment) have been vandalized with the words "not art". Many artists in the world have not been understood by art critics of their time.

Romero Britto's art is unique for it's intention to bring a beautiful and magic moment into people's everyday life.

Takashi Murakami

Japanese artist Takashi Murakami have no creative bounds. His work is frequently compared to Andy Warhol's for bringing the low art into the high art. He transforms cartoons, manga, sexual fetishism and videogame into pieces of unique sculptures and paintings. His latest exhibition happening right now at the Gagosian Gallery in London has been a buzz for it's implied criticism to Japanese society and also for it's free samples of his Big Box PKo2.

Murakami's work was reported by the Artnews magazine in 2003 as one of the most desired pieces of contemporary art. His art, likewise to the artists mentioned before, also became commercial products such as Louis Vuitton limited edition bags. He also created the design on the cover of Kanye's West album Graduation.

Murakami's art can be many times also misunderstood and has been called brash and bizarre by the traditional art critics. That does not seem to affect the artist that replied "When someone scores a goal, someone is going to be unhappy".

From the artists I mentioned today, Murakami is my favorite.

What about you? Are you ready to the neo pop and art of cute? ;)

Vintage Lovers Want Animal Print

2011-06-28T00:49:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time wearing animal prints was the tackiest thing a woman could do. I'm talking about the 90's: long time gone! Since vintage is the coolest thing at the moment, animal prints started taking over again.

The picture on the right is one of the Italian designer Roberto Cavalli's ads. The man is simply the king of animal print. It's almost like his trademark. What Cavalli does that should become inspiration to everybody else, it's explore the prints in as many ways as possible.

Wearing an animal print dress was the sexiest thing in the 80's. Nowadays it's possible to use the trend without involving any sexyness, just cool and funky style as Kate Moss, who is a declared fan of animal print, always does.

One very good example of how to use animal print in a extremely elegant way, is the Alexander McQueen Resort collection 2012 by Sarah Burton. This collection was one of the most critically acclaimed of the season.

I just know one thing: those would look great in my wardrobe! Love it!

There you see how animal print does not need to be sexy, provocative like in the 80's. The fun part of vintage is recycling old trends in a new way. That's the way to go!

Certainly if you still want to put on the femme fatale style wearing animal print: it still can be cool! As you can see on the right Jessica Alba is looking smoking sexy in the last month Italian Vogue editorial.

It's all about good taste, personality and experimenting!

I also like animal prints in many ways, but mostly the McQueen resort collection is a main inspiration for me in the style.

That's what you have to do: find your own perfect way.

The Masters of Shoes

2011-06-23T09:18:00.000-07:00

Every woman loves shoes. That is nothing new for any of us! What is hot and new at the moment is the list of shoes designers I will write about today.

They are on feet of celebrities, socialites, fashion editorials, magazines: they are a must have for shoe lovers! You probably saw already some of their pairs while watching the Academy Awards, or reading your monthly glossy magazine.

If you don't know who are the biggest masters on the art of making shoes from our generation, read on and you will find out.

Manolo Blahnik

The Spanish designer started designing shoes in the 70's, but since Sex and the City his creations became a pop sensation.

He never had any type of fashion training, but he sketches his designs and carves them in wood and sculpts the heels. He is the one who decides how his campaigns are going to look like. How could he accomplish all of that? He jokes that he does not need training, because he has the best taste in the world.

A few celebrities that wear Manolo Blahnik: Victoria Beckham, Naomi Campbell, Kate Moss, Madonna and Kylie Minogue.

About his love for his work, he says: "Shoes help transform a woman".

Brian Atwood

The American designer is a celebrity favorite. His creations have been worn by Megan Fox, Victoria Beckham, Anna Paquin, Kristen Stewart, Emma Watson, Kate Hudson and the list goes far on.

While Blahnik became famous because of the Sex and the City series, Atwoods pairs were the must have in the homonymous film. His creations are colorful, fun and sexy.

About his passion for shoes he says to stylemag.net: "Well, they tell me a lot about a woman. The relationship between a woman and her shoes is almost magical: Just think about Cinderella. The shoe changed her life! But they also have an influence in the real world, they change your outlook, the way you walk. Shoes lift your spirits".

Gianmarco Lorenzi

In the picture on the left you can see Gianni Renzi and one of his creations. He is one of the designers of the Italian luxury shoe brand Gianmarco Lorenzi.

The name is a fusion between the names Gianni, Marco and Lorenzo Renzi, three brothers that transformed their parents business into a worldwide chain worn by many celebrities including Eva Longoria, Mariah Carey and Beyonce.

In the shoes business the Gianmarco Lorenzi are known for being the sexy ones, so if you are looking for sexy heels, this is your brand! They are really high, colorful, bright and some could even be suitable as striptease shoes.

About the shoes business Gianni Renzi says: "To create the shoes properly, we have to start with comfort. It’s not true that just because a shoe is high-heeled, it is uncomfortable. Our goal is to create shoes that have high heels but are comfortable to wear".

Rupert Sanderson

The British designer is the favorite of the British celebrities: Cheryl Cole and Kate Moss are fans, and Lily Allen even got married wearing one of his pairs.

Rupert Sanderson has been obsessed for shoes since his teenager times. He studied at the Cordwainers College and honed his skills working with the designer Sergio Rossi.

About the women that wear his shoes, he says: "Confident and clever, she is someone who has the confidence to shop outside the usual brand because in her daily life she makes decisions based on her own independence of mind. A woman of some substance who relishes the sex appeal of a great shoe."

Jimmy Choo

From all designers that are going to be mentioned today, Malaysian born Jimmy Choo, is the one with the most honored career. His shoes have been worn by most celebrities I can think of, including Princess Diana.

Born in a family of shoe makers, Jimmy Choo made his first pair when he was only 11 years old. He could never know how someday his shoes would become his legacy supported by important fashion magazines like Vogue (which once posted a 8 pages article about the designer) and important personalities such as First Lady Michelle Obama. For those and more reasons he received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Malasian International Fashion week in 2006.

Right now Jimmy Choo is the tourism ambassador for Malasya, and who designs the shoes for the brand is the also brilliant Tamara Mellon.

When asked who he would like to design shoes for, he said: I met Beyonce, I went to see her at a concert. She danced well, she dressed well and had very good manners. I would like to design something for Beyonce."

Roger Vivier

Roger Vivier was a French shoe designer very famous for inventing the stiletto heels. He passed away in 1998 and his brand had a down time, until Bruno Frisoni (picture) assumed the position of creative director in 2004 and gave a new life to the Roger Vivier's legacy.

Frisoni is Parisian born and son of Italian parents. He does shoes since the 80's and already has designed for Lacroix, Yves Saint Laurent and Lanvin. In 1999 he launched his own line, which is still available for sell in his website.

Bruno Frisoni often criticizes the shoe costumers from nowadays for often opting for basic designs. He says he is not the minimalist type, much more the fan of ornaments and unique designs. In his words: "I'm not into pure design as the technical aspect of the shoe is not that interesting to me. I like the decorum better, the structure doesn't count but the intention is essential".

Stuart Weitzman

The American designer is also one of the most respected in business and has his own celebrity fans. Just recently J.Lo and Rihanna have been performing with his boots (which are being sold now for 10000 dollars), and Jennifer Garner was present on the tv program "Fox & Friends" with one of his pairs.

Weitzman's shoes are known for the unique details. Also for being a red carpet favorite. He used to make a special one million dollars bejeweled shoe to a nominated actress in every Academy Award event. Nowadays he does not offer such kindness.

About his style and creations he said to NYreport: "There have been seasons when I’ve been too commercial, and there have been seasons when I’ve been too fashion oriented. But my customers bring us back in place by asking, 'Where are those moccasins?' or 'Where are the basics?' So I’m able to react to them".

Sergio Rossi

The Italian fashion designer specialized in shoes created his label in the 1950's. Nowadays the also Italian shoe designer Francesco Russo (picture) assumes the company as creative director keeping up the quality and great design that fascinate many celebrities such as Beyonce, Victoria Beckham and Cameron Diaz.

He is in the luxury market for a while. Yves Saint Laurent and Miu Miu are two of the companies he worked for before taking his position at Sergio Rossi in the end of 2008.

His shoes are very unique and elegant. The twisting heels look like a drown line and are one of the most intriguing pairs; and although you could become very suspicious about how safe you would be in one of them, the designer guarantees the shoes are very comfortable: “Today people want to make a statement and be spectacular with their shoes, but if you can’t walk in them properly, you just won’t pull it off".

Christian Louboutin

The picture in the beggining of this post has a super-high stiletto which is the dream of many women in the world at this moment. The reason for this dream is the fact that the shoe is designed by the French designer which is the most requested by celebrities, socialites and all women in the world since he made the stiletto pumps the must have item of every shoe lover. He made shoes become collector's item, and the main focus of many women's outfits.

Christian Louboutin is the man that brought back the killer heels. His super high courts with red sole are the biggest shoe trend at the moment. Every celebrity you could imagine has one of his pairs. Madonna, Lady Gaga (left picture: wearing Louboutin white boots), Victoria Beckham, Beyonce, Oprah, Liv Tyler and even Tom Cruise's little girl, Suri Cruise.

Did you already get the feeling of how crazy everyone is at the moment for a pair of Louboutins?

Christian Louboutin is another self-tought designer who left school really early and learned the technique of designing shoes working for Chanel and Yves Saint Laurent.

Although Louboutin shoes look fabulous, they have a reputation of being really uncomfortable. A journalist from the British newspaper "The Guardian" asked him in an interview if being comfortable is an important fact for shoes, he said: "It is important because a woman doesn't look good if she's not comfortable. But I wouldn't take it as a compliment if someone looked at one of my shoes and said, 'Oh, that looks like a comfortable shoe'." Then she asked if there is such thing as "too high heels" and Louboutin joked: "There is a heel that is too high to walk in, certainly. But who cares? You don't have to walk in high heels."

His latest controversial creation are the 20 cms heels based on ballet shoes; Possible following the Black Swan hype. He says: "Isn't the classical dancing ballet slipper the ultimate heel? The heel which makes dancers closer than any other women to the sky, closer to heaven."

Very inspiring, but I want to meet a wonder woman that can walk in them!

Bonus Designer:

Nicholas Kirkwood

He is the most talked about up and coming designer at the moment. He studied at the Central Saint Martins and already designed shoes for Chloe, but his most appreciated creation was his black pumps for Rodarte. The same shoe has been worn by Kelly Rowland, Rihanna, Dasha Zhukova and Kim Kardashian.

Beside the success with the celebs, Kirkwood is also collecting prizes. He won the Swarovski Emerging Talent Award at the British Fashion Awards, the AltaRoma Vogue Italia Who's Next, and his latest assignment is with the London based label Peter Pilotto, which is really exciting for his fan base that look forward to be able to purchase more of his creations.

With such shaky start, we should see much more stuff coming from the outstanding designer.

As everybody before answered what they do, Kirk makes a difference and says what should not be done in question of shoes: "There are definitely shoes I’d like to never, ever see again. Any kind of sport shoe with a heel, for instance. I mean, ew. And I’m pretty much over the five-inch-high platform and girls tripping all over the place. Granted, I’ve been responsible for some of that."

So this is my list of the most requested shoe designers of our time.

I must make sure I don't forget to mention other very important names in shoe making, which I decided to leave out of this post, but that doesn't make them any less important in the shoe business, like Giuseppe Zanotti, Jonathan Kelsey, Pierre Hardy, Gil Carvalho, Gina, Rene Caovilla and Patrick Cox.

Also another great up and coming: Charlotte Olympia; she was not between my list, but I finish the post with one of her designs.

Jean-Paul Gaultier Exhibition, Career and Legacy

2011-06-22T05:14:00.000-07:00

Mr. Gaultier is celebrating his 35 years of a honorable fashion designer career, and for that reason his provocative, innovative and eye-catching pieces are being exhibited in the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. The Elle Magazine from Montreal created a full editorial with model Coco Rocha by photographer Nelson Simoneau, in homage to his career and exhibition.

Gaultier is one of the most successful and respected designers of the 20th century. His work became a pop controversy, frequently getting harsh critics, but mostly stunned fans.

He is also known for getting along with women in the pop scene, such as Madonna and now Dita Von Teese. His Madonna cone bra is one of his most famous creations. Another pop artist that have been frequently wearing Gaultier's creations is the as much eccentric Lady Gaga.

Gaultier's work has been a trip into a world of wonders. He is one of the few haute couture designers at the moment, and could easily be considered the most important for his unique legacy and iconic pieces.

What's your Team: Sleek or Big?

2011-06-20T11:27:00.000-07:00

The trends for hair have been very much divided lately in fashion. In magazine editorials it prevalence the big voluminous and glamorous hair styles, and in fashion shows the sleek and chic.

The illustration above was made by Finnish artist Laura Laine. She is very famous for those skinny girls with the long flying hairs.

So what hair team you play in?

Voluminous and Glamorous

If you like hair with volume, you know the hard work it is to keep it looking good. The volume hair trend is very specific and it doesn't mean messy; not only wash and blow dry. The hair has to be patiently made to look elegant and bouncy.

In fashion editorials you can see a vast variation of voluminous hair. A lot of pin up style, wild big hair and long curls. It's much more adventurous and artistic. Also it shows more the technique of the hair stylist.

In contrast with magazines, fashion shows lately avoid the volume and keep it sleek, but Diesel decided to keep it wild-chic in their Spring 2011 runway show.

As you see, the hair does not disturb the focus on the outfits and it totally complements the look.

While sleek and straight hair looks smart, voluminous hair looks sexy. It has a very big variation of styles.

To all the positive sides, there are also the negative side of choosing volume: the hard work! If you are doing your big hair on your own, it might become a mission impossible, and take hours to get a good result. Also if you often uses blow dryers, hair curlers and hair spray, your hair will get weak and full of split ends really fast, so it's really important to use hair mask every week and cut the ends off once in a while.

Sleek and Chic

The runway favorites is also the favorite of most women in the world since the 90's. It's easier and faster to style and always looks smart and nit.

The hair-straighteners are almost a must in every woman's beauty accessories.

I remember when I saw one for the first time: it was big, chunky, the iron plate was made of metal and it was taking forever to heat up. Nowadays there are many different ones, much more slim and easier to carry, the plate can be made of ceramic which doesn't damage the hair as much, beside the fast heating iron of two, or even one minute.

In runways straight hair is definitely the favorite, because they are discrete and elegant, and don't take the attention away from the clothes, as you can see in the Bluemarine Spring 2011 show.

As the Bluemarine collection was so discrete and feminine, the straight hair was the perfect combination.

The negative point of the straight hair is the damage the iron straighteners can cause. It's important to hydrate the hair very often if you use straighteners frequently.

Now it's your turn to choose, sleek or big? My suggestion is: both! Everybody can do with some variation. ;)

Get the Feeling: A la Parisienne

2011-06-15T02:32:00.000-07:00

Paris is the capital of love in the world. There is a feeling about this city that is special and unique. The architecture, the food, the people; everything is inspiring romance!

The 2012 Resort collection by Louis Vuitton is all about the Parisian feeling: romance, elegance and "Vavavoom".
It's chic and fun. Love it!

To get more of the romantic Paris inspiration, let's talk more about a few inspiring Parisians.

One of the most important icons of the Parisian fashion, is the pin up, actress and model Brigitte Bardot.

During the end of the 50's till the 70's Brigitte used to be one of the most popular women in the world, with her sensual beauty and adventurous spirit.

Until now her beauty is so appreciated in fashion, that now and then some model that looks like her get the spotlight. For example, Claudia Schiffer in the 90's, and now Lara Stone.

Another interesting thing about Paris, it's that it's the land of fashion illustrators. The Numero, which is a french magazine, is famous for specially caring about pretty artistic and fashionible illustrations.

We spoke some months ago about Margarite Sauvage's sweet and sexy illustrations.

This time I'd like to show you a bit of René Gruau, Monsieur Qui and Sophie Griotto.

Those three illustrators are sharp talents: each one has their own style. René Gruau does cabaret style, very french images. Monsieur Qui does very artistic fashion images, also lifestyle and fun cartoons. Sophie Griotto is very feminine and explores girl lifestyle and high fashion playing with colors and shapes.

Another subject that can be explored about the Parisian feeling is the Hollywood films that explore the city and it's wonders, such as Breakfast at Tiffany's and Moulin Rouge.

Breakfast at Tiffany's is a fairy tale about a girl who has to chose between a rich man and a glamorous life, or a beautiful guy that has not so much money, but a lot of real love to give her. It's romantic and elegant: famous for Audrey Hepburn performance and her Hubert Givenchy outfit.

Moulin Rouge is a musical famous for it's beautiful burlesque performances; also it's heartbreaking story. Nicole Kidman is Satine, a cabaret dancer that falls in love and wants to move on to a new life.

Breakfast at Tiffany's would be quite Sophie Griotto style and Moulin Rouge more like René Gruau.

So I hope you didn't get an overdose of Paris with this post, and instead a huge inspiration for your life and wardrobe. Paris is the beautiful city of light... inspirational at it's most!

Baby Artist and Her Expensive Paintings

2011-06-14T02:35:00.000-07:00

When I was a child I used to draw houses, people giving hands, the sun with some fluffy clouds around it and everything that was part of my fancy reality. Not every child would do the same!

The 4 years old artist Aelita Andre, paints beautiful modern art pictures and her paintings are sold for over 20 thousand dollars.

A lot of people might feel that is unfair such young girl get so much money for a painting, and these people can get even more discontent, because right now her art is being exhibited in a gallery in New York and getting a lot of attention from the press.

Her family sent an application to the gallery without mentioning the girls age, what surprise the organizers had when they saw that all the artwork they so much appreciated were made by a 4 years old girl.

Some people seem to think it's a joke to pay so much for paintings made by such little girl without any knowledge about art, and some other people think she is the new Picasso.

I'm posting some of her paintings ahead and you can make your own mind about that.

I must say I really like her paintings. I always thought the artist with a lack of knowledge about art can bring up the most original art peaces. The freshness of her young mind makes her paintings more unique and special.

The director of the Agora Art Gallery Angela Di Bello, where the baby girl is exhibiting her paintings, says that Aelita understands of composition, colors and texture, and that she already developed her style which is consistent.

What we certainly can affirm is that maybe this is all a hype, which will end together with Aelita's imagination and talent, or we are watching the start of one of the most important artists of the 21st century. Time will show us.

Fashion Rule Broken: the Mix of Silver + Gold Jewelry

2011-06-12T03:32:00.000-07:00

You probably heard someone saying before that gold and silver jewelry should not ever be mixed. This fashion rule was steady for many years.

As we live in a generation that loves breaking fashion rules, this one of course is already gone for a while. It's actually elegant and trendy to mix different tones of metal together.

Of course that's something that should be done with good taste. It's nice mixing together different tones of gold, or old gold with old silver, shiny gold with shiny silver, but not so much in between.

Layering together silver and gold bracelets and necklaces work really good. In the picture on the left, it was mixed gold in one arm, silver in the other. It works really good because they both are made of shiny metal and have a similar structure. It wouldn't work as good mixing hard chunky bracelets in one arm, with some small and fragile ring bracelets in the other.

It's also common finding jewelry that come already from the store mixing both metals. Here are some examples:

From left to right: Les Gens du Sud, Frederica Salvatore Franchi and Missoni necklaces found at yoox.com.

From left to right: Maiden-Art bracelet, Pilgrin pendant and Vionnet bracelet found at yoox.com.

Leaving behind the old fashion rule allow us to get much more creative about the way we combine our jewelry. Beside being fun and adventurous, also makes your look much more funky and fashionable.

Punk-Pop Controversy: The Art of Banksy

2011-06-10T01:36:00.000-07:00

You probably already know the controversial British street artist, Banksy. He does punk art, that became pop through the years. His graffiti became even tourist attraction in London.

If you don't know about this iconic artist of our generation, read on my little resume about him.

He started painting graffiti on the walls of London as an act of criticism to government and society. His provocative images created extra attention first of all for his "anarchist" themes. Also for printing those themes in public walls, which was considered also an act of anarchism.

For the irony of his criticizes, his graffiti was appreciated by so many people that it was not allowed to be washed off. Along with his specific and unique style, which makes it easy for people people to recognize his paintings.

Although Banksy at first only had an artistic anti-capitalist ideal and never even publicly showed his face to promote himself, his work became a huge trademark that sells books, posters, touristic tours, t-shirts, and the list goes on.

Banksy's success as an artist did not change his ideology. His art is in exhibition at the MOCA (Museum of Contemporary Art) in LA until the 8th of August, and the artist offered a generous donation to the organizers, to make sure there would be a free admission day. He affirmed that people should not pay to see street art.

His attitude, which seems really genuine, earned him some extra promotion and the exhibition has been an extreme success.

If you did not know his work, and want to see more of it, visit his official website: http://www.banksy.co.uk/

Icon of Style: Victoria Beckham

2011-06-09T03:43:00.000-07:00

She used to be known as "Posh Spice". Now you just have to mention the word "Posh" and most people will know you are talking about Victoria Beckham.

She is one of the major icons of elegance and style of our generation. What she wears and where she goes instantaneously become popular and a trend. What many people don't know is that Mrs Beckham never choose the "icon of style" title, it just happened.

"I'm not really posh, I just like nice clothes and nice restaurants, and that's how I started to be called posh", she said during an interview with comedian Ali G (Sasha Baron Cohen) in 2006.

A few of V. Beckham most copied styles are her hair and basic dresses. She frequently changes her hairstyle to very adventurous and unique cuts and colors:

Her hair always ends up becoming her trademark: the Victoria Beckham haircut.

The outfits she wears in big events, are often copied by high street brands and become best-sellers.

Her looks are frequently basic and elegant: impeccable!

Another interesting episode of the "V-Becks fever" was the big fuzz about her outfit during the British royal wedding.

Beside the first page news on the wedding, frequently you could also find the Beckham couple and Victoria's elegant, but contradictory outfit. Her navy dress and platform shoes were reason for a big debate about what should people wear in weddings.

Together with so much glamor and fame, the most prolific Spice Girl also earned many haters. First of all for being related to anorexia and always exhibit a very skinny figure and also for her elitism and extreme passion for expensive things.

Although her elitist image can be the first thing a lot of people see, behind the perfect styling, there is a dedicated wife, a loving mother of three (pregnant of her fourth child) and a philanthropist.

Certainly this scene above does not change people's mind about the "good mother and loving wife" side of Mrs. Beckham; but she is certainly not the horrible picture some people seem to paint.

Loved or hated, she is still the only one person that hold the title of "Posh"... and her name the synonymous of style.

The Invasion of the Owl Necklaces

2011-06-08T01:02:00.002-07:00

While online shopping a few days ago, I found myself interested in a beautiful Owl necklace for sale in Topshop. I thought it looks vintage, it's different, it's interesting... what surprise I had when I found out that the same necklace was sold on Ebay for much cheaper and how many different styles they had. Just after I tried to look on Google to check more prices and styles, and then I realized the crazy huge trend Owl necklaces became.

I found hundreds of different styles of Owl necklaces in every shape, size, color you can ever imagine. Cheap, expensive, silver, gold, old gold, crystal; and every single store seem to have their own Owl necklace model.

I tried to find the necklace in Vogue, or in fashion shows, and all I found was lots of blogs strictly dedicated to the trend, like "The Girl with the Owl Necklace".

It seems this is one of those natural epidemics that happen for a random reason. High street stores started selling the items, getting really successful with the sells, and getting more and more different styles and colors into their stores.

These three are high class Owl Necklaces. The first is a 10k white gold and diamond, the second is a 24k rose gold by Domeniqueelucas. The third is made of black onyx and sterling silver.

There are many others out there in many different shapes and colors.

The most popular Owl necklace is the one in the beginning of that post. You can get that one everywhere.

I still want to get my own Owl necklace. With so many options, it's hard not to find one to like.

Listen to The Naked and the Famous

2011-06-07T01:39:00.000-07:00

I know I post mostly about visual stuff in my blog, but this time I have something different to share.

During this weekend I had the opportunity to watch the German festival "Rock am Ring". I was really excited about watching Coldplay, The Kooks and Hurts... I had no idea what the other bands were about!

As I had nothing to do after my boyfriend played, I went to check out what was happening at the mainstage, and for my surprise I heard this unknown must beautiful and captivating music I could ever expect. I loved it straight away!

Later at home I found that "The Naked and the Famous" is a promising New Zealander band that released their first album last year and has been earning awards and fans all over the world since then.

Their style is highly 80's influenced, kind of hipster new rave (remind of MGMT), feel good music, with female and male vocals.

Yesterday they released the amazing new single "A girl like you"... check it out!

The video is a bit "too cool for school", but it is worth watching because of the song. Lovely!

Painter Mark Demsteader Paints Emma Watson

2011-06-04T00:44:00.001-07:00

Actress Emma Watson had the birthday present any girl would be pleased to have. She has been invited by one of her favorite painters to be his model and inspiration for a few of his works.

Miss Watson has affirmed her appreciation of Mark Demsteader's art a few times and asked one of his paintings as 21st birthday present. Now she has 34 paintings of herself by him!

Nothing more flattering to a woman, than having her image immortalized by a real talented artist!

The artist did a really great job illustrating Emma's classic beauty.

Mark Demsteader is one of Britain's most popular figurative painter. He won a few prizes during his career including The Lyceum Prize and The Sidney Andrews Scholarship. I am posting a few of his paintings that you can understand why Emma Watson is such a big fan of the artist.

Mark has his unique and elegant way to illustrate the feminine shapes.

The collection of Emma's paintings will be in exhibition at the London's Panter & Hall Gallery this month (June). Mr. Demsteader will offer 10% of the paintings sells to charity.

About working with the actress, he said: "The idea behind them is to make a collection to celebrate Emma's birthday. I wanted to capture a moment in time, and by making each piece a quick snapshot, I hope to capture Emma as she reaches 21, in some way I hope these works celebrate Emma in what she has achieved already, and in all the many possibilities to come.”

Make up Trend: Colorful Lips

2011-06-02T01:47:00.000-07:00

The most requested make up for the Fall fashion shows 2011 is the basic eyes and strong lips.

For the eyes, no eye shadow and the famous Pat McGrath spider lashes. Also not so strong lashes, just a fine eyeline and no eyeshadow. No blusher too... but a very strong color on the lips. Pat even said it's ok to wear this look for daytime, but with less mascara.

Above from left to right you see there make up from the Ralf Lauren, Diane Von Furstenberg and Miu Miu Fall Ready-to-Wear shows.

There you see some other examples of colors that could be used in this trend.

It's a very basic trend and anyone can try.

Riding Bikes and High Heels

2011-05-30T02:36:00.000-07:00

It seems that riding bikes and wearing high heels are not two distinct actions anymore.

Fashionistas seem to want to keep their style even during their bike ride. Also women that ride to work or to important events want to keep on their high class look. It's about not having to sacrifice their elegance because of the desire to go green and care about our beloved planet.

In my opinion, bike riding never had anything to do with wearing trainers. Maybe people wanted to relate the ride to sports, but once you are riding uniquely for transportation, why not wear the most suitable shoes for your destination?

Here you can see a few trendy bike riders that will keep the heels on during the ride:

You can see in this picture three different circumstances where heels and bikes go together. First, the girl totally care about style. She so care about style that she matched her heels with her bike. Very trendy girl. Second girl is a stylish cosmopolitan that might be going to a bar, or visiting friends, and decided to keep her heels on as it matches better with her outfit. Third is a girl possibly going to work, and wouldn't want to have to carry some stinky trainers in her bag all day, so she decided to go practical and ride on heels.

Ahead you'll see that some celebrities also are not willing to miss out on style, because they want to go green:

Socialite Olivia Palermo, supermodel Agyness Deyn and actress Kelly Brook are green friendly and elegant people at the same time.

Bike riding is fun, eco-friendly and also can be a style choice. Riding bikes with heels should grow as a trend. If people start relating riding bike with looking great, definitely a lot of us will choose the green choice more often.

To finalize the post, I leave my tip for riding bikes with style: check out the Burberry heels, they are amazing!

Creative Interior Design: Martyn Lawrence-Bullard

2011-05-26T01:05:00.000-07:00

My curiosity about beauty and design goes much further than just clothes and pictures. Lately I have been researching a lot about interior design, and I was fortunate to find out about the very talented and requested interior designer Martyn Lawrence-Bullard.

He is based in Los Angeles, but designs homes, stores and interiors in general in many different places in the world.

His client list include the singers Cher and Elton John, and the Jimmy Choo CEO Tamara Mellon.

Although most people would not have the U$ 500.000 budget the designer normally needs for putting his ideas into reality, we still can watch some of his work and get some inspiration for our own interior design.

I really like the mix of patterns and the harmonic contrasts between colors.

If you also like it, and want to see more of his work, check the official website: http://www.martynlawrencebullard.com/ .

Top Photographers: Mert and Marcus

2011-05-22T09:57:00.000-07:00

The most requested fashion photographers right now are the duo Mert Alas from Istanbul and Marcus Piggott from Wales.

They were assistants of the photographer Guy Bourdin, and highly influenced by his work.

Mert and Marcus have been shooting covers for the most important fashion magazines lately and the biggest fashion campaigns. They frequently have their work published in the Vogue Paris and the Love magazine.

Here you can see a few of the magazine covers by Mert and Marcus:

Between those: Vogue Paris, Japan, British and Turkish, the Love magazine, Interview and the Pop magazine.

They frequently shoot campaigns for Calvin Klein, and also Gucci, Dior, Tom Ford, Givenchy, Loewe, Miu Miu, Iceberg, Armani Jeans, Roberto Cavalli, Longchamp, Stela McCartney, between others.

Here are some examples of their fabulous work:

There you can see how the photographers frequently deliver stunning creative pictures. Their work express very well the perfectionism and glamor of the actual fashion.

Mert Alas revealed the duo's philosophy of work to the Times magazine: "The secret of a strong campaign is a great image and a great character. You have to communicate an essence without words, without touch, without sound or smell".

Ricardo Tisci: the Man in Fashion

2011-05-18T09:04:00.000-07:00

He was graduated in the prestigious Central St Martin in 1999 and by 2005 Ricardo Tisci was already one of the most important designers of actual times, chosen to be the creative director of the French maison Givenchy.

Frequently acclaimed for his designs, Tisci also has been called many times one of the most important fashion icons of nowadays. His work is innovative, provocative, seductive and unequally cool.

That's probably what lead the directors of the maison Christian Dior to consider Tisci to assume the position of the dismissed designer John Galliano.

It must be said, Tisci's position hasn't been officially announced by Dior, but every single fashion soul out there is already into this information, and betting their head in the fact that it's already official.

I must say I'm loving it! I love Tisci's work... he adds freshness in fashion. He seduces, he mesmerizes and then he shocks; and seduce everybody back again.

Dior will definitely go through some essential changes with the designer as it's head. Tisci likes to keep his friends in the business. He chose the transexual model Lea T to star in his fall fashion show, explaining that she is an old friend and part of the Givenchy family. I wonder how a conservative maison as Dior would take such decision.

One of the latest brilliant realizations by Tisci in Givenchy, was the Fall 2010 ad with Victoria's Secret supermodel Adriana Lima. The elegant and intense ad made Adriana look like never before. Cool and unexpected!

Definitely more cool and unexpected has to come when Tisci rises as major trend setter with his Dior headmaster crown.

Another Short Film by Lagerfeld

2011-05-14T14:36:00.000-07:00

For those who like the glitz, glams and etcs of fashion, the new short film by Karl Lagerfeld "the Tale of a Fairy" is definitely a must. You can find the video in the Chanel official website.

If you are not the big fashion fan, try the preview and decide if it's something you would enjoy:

I love Lagerfeld, Chanel and I like a lot the model Freja Beha, but the film is a bit "over" to my fussy taste... end I mean Lady Gaga type of over!

Actually, Lagerfeld would be better off directing the next Lady Gaga music video... It would make total sense!

Models that Should Rock 2011

2011-05-11T01:38:00.000-07:00

As I am an assiduous fashion magazine and blogs reader, I get exposed to many up and coming models, as well as supermodels. Lately 3 girls took my attention because of their unique and stunning faces.

These girls are very young and they already rock runaway shows and huge campaigns. I think a even brighter future expects them.

So these are my favorite faces for 2011:

Emily DiDonato

The 20 years old American beauty is one of fashion's favorite faces right now. She is one of Maybelline's spokeswoman, the face for Giorgio Armani's perfume "Aqua di Gioia" and also one of the Victoria's Secret angels.

She is frequently compared to supermodel Doutzen Kroes and with actress Megan Fox. Although such comparison does not change the fact Emily has a really unique stunning face that managed to get into a millionaire career within a few months of her start.

We should see much more from her!

Lisalla Montenegro

The 22 years old Brazilian bombshell is also one of the most requested faces of the moment, since she belongs to the Maybelline very well selected team of beauties.

In her very few years of career she already featured the American, Brazilian and Chinese Vogue, the cover of the Mexican Elle and a few other of the finest fashion magazines.

Her unique beauty should be rocking much more the fashion industry during 2011.

Leticia Zuloaga

The Spanish beauty is only 18 years old and just started her career, but she already has been chosen to be one of the Victoria's Secret angels.

She is frequently compared to supermodels Daria Werbowy and Catherine McNeil.

She featured the American V Magazine, which choose the most important Spanish models right now.

With such shaky start, a great fashion future expects Leticia.

To close my predictions of the next faces that should be rocking fashion, I wanna show the not professional pictures of those three girls.

When the non-professional pictures are even better than the professional ones that you can see how good a model really is.

So there it goes, and feel welcome to make your own judgment!

Photographers that will Never be Gone

2011-05-07T03:09:00.000-07:00

Artists have the power of live forever through their creations.

Today, I want to do a tribute to specially talented fashion photographers that although they are not between us anymore, their art is still inspiring and alive.

Guy Bourdin

He was the master behind Mert & Marcus, which beside being his apprentices are also highly influenced by the French photographer.

Bourdin passed away in 1991, and the last 20 years fashion has been living without him, it hasn't missed enough homages. The photographer is frequently mentioned as influence by prestigious photographers such as Nick Knight and Jean-Baptiste Mondino.

Bourdin has been stated countless times as the best fashion photographer ever. Overstated or not, his provocative pictures are still inspiration for many photographers nowadays.

Horst P. Horst

The german photographer is known for his black and white feminine pictures. His photography was constantly published by the Vogue magazine.

Horst had a classic view of beauty and liked exploring feminine shapes.

He died in 1999 at the age of 93. His corset picture is still constantly used by DKNY.

Helmut Newton

If a photographers reputation was judged by the amount of tribute imitations, Helmut Newton would be the best photographer in history.

The pictures on the left were Newton's and on the right, tribute pictures made by other photographers to the cover of the Love Magazine. Those are two of many. He has been called the most popular and the most copied photographer of the 20th century.

Newton is highly acclaimed by his black and white portraits and provocative pictures.

Because of those provocative pictures, he earned the nickname of "The King of Kink" . In Newton's case it was a really positive, because he had his unique way to transform fetish and kink into fascinating pictures.

Newton died in a car accident in 2004, leaving behind his wife from his 55 years marriage. His ashes were buried in Berlin next to Marlene Dietrich.

Richard Avedon

American photographer Richard Avedon was best known for his black and white portraits of famous personalities.

His pictures are known for often being minimalist and sofisticated.

He is considered the most important American fashion photographer, and many times the most influential photographer of all time. He worked as part of the Vogue magazine staff from 1966 to 1990. He featured also many of America's finest magazines.

Avedon passed away in 2004 at the age of 81.

"If a day goes by without my doing something related to photography, it's as though I've neglected something essential to my existence, as though I had forgotten to wake up." Richard Avedon (May 15, 1923 – October 1, 2004)

Royal Wedding Dresses

2011-05-01T14:03:00.000-07:00

People love weddings, and even more royal weddings. The faire tale dream of prince and princess getting married and living happily ever after make the hearts of all romantic human beings melt.

The wedding of the british royal couple last Friday was news all over the world. Prince Williams finally got married to his sweetheart, Kate Middleton.

My agent woke me up at 10 am asking me if I was watching it. As I knew it would be an event for socialites to show off their crazy hats and smart outfits, I decided to check it out.

Even though I am not a fan of royals, I am a big fan of princess Grace Kelly, because she was a very talented actress and played movies I really like such as "Rear Window" and "To Catch a Thief". She was also a really elegant and good hearted person.

Anyway, getting back to the royal wedding dress subject, can you see any similarity between Kate Middleton's dress and Grace Kelly's?

Kate's dress was obviously inspired by Grace Kelly's dress, but in my opinion the inspiration ended up bromidic and dull.

I know a lot of people will disagree, because the dress does look great! It was designed by Sarah Burton for the maison Alexander McQueen.

Although the dress is looking good, as it was inspired by Grace's dress, it should be looking even better and exciting, but instead it's looking like a worse version of the original. Sarah Burton probably wanted to keep it basic (which does not reflect the spirit of Alexander McQueen in his maison at all), but it ended up too simple and obvious.

By what I read, most people liked it. Considering the fact that a lot of fashion journalists would not risk their heads criticizing a dress made by such important designer (which is supported by Anna Wintour!), maybe I was not the only one that felt this way about it, but nobody else had the guts to let it out.

Kate Moss Nude in Vogue Brazil Cover

2011-04-30T06:01:00.000-07:00

Vogue Brasil has it's 36th anniversary in May, and for the special occasion Kate Moss and Mario Testino teamed up again for a very controversial editorial and cover.

I did not see the editorial yet, but my opinion about the cover so far is not very positive.

I am not a fan of Vogue Brasil to get started; they often choose some not so good models as their cover, they try to push up people that are not worthy and they continuously publish cheap looking editorials.

Yes, Kate is a fashion icon, but it doesn't mean that she will always look great and elegant. Depending on the styling, posing, light and location, even a shoot with Kate Moss can look bad!

Lately it seems that she has been shooting very frequently naked or in over provocative style. Those are some pics of her editorial in the Vogue Italy December 2010:

In my opinion, what separates those pictures of Kate and the pictures of some random porn star, is her fame. We all know fashion can be really sexy and provocative, but it also requires good taste and elegance to stay "fashion".

In the end, this is just my opinion! Maybe the editorial will look great! Let's hope so!

The Style is Rockabilly

2011-04-28T06:20:00.000-07:00

Some of the biggest lovers of the vintage trend are the followers of the Rockabilly style.

They basically embrace the vintage look of the old Pin Up girls and adapt it to a contemporary tattooed rock look. It's really eye-catching!

If you are a fan of the style, today you will love my post! I am going to put together some of the fashion magazines editorials dedicated to the Rockabilly trend.

To get started, I have a few looks that you can use as inspiration for hair, make up and accessories:

Big cat-eye sunglasses and glasses are a must in this trend. Hair bows, leather hats and headbands are also options. The make up has to be impeccable: perfect high eyebrows, rouge cheekbones, opaque lipstick perfectly drawn lips.

For the next step, we'll use as inspiration for clothing and tattoos, an editorial made by the Italian vogue in 2007. They showed the season's patterns trend attached to rockabilly girls!

You can probably recognize that those Vogue models are not really tattooed. They used of body paint to resemble the style of tattoos the rockabilly girls are into, which mostly match their vintage look with colorful vintage tattoos and some mixed patterns in between.

The platform heels are a must! Some corsets or corset belts are also very good to accentuate the waist as the old pin up girls used to do.

The vintage hair and make up style is so popular right now that many celebrities are using it. A few names are Christina Aguilera, Katy Perry and sometimes even Lady Gaga.

J.Lo also embraced the trend, but in a more day-time friendly and slightly hipster look:

Although some celebrities have been getting inspiration in vintage style to create their looks, the rockabilly style is more an underground trend that went mainstream.

The rockabilly girls like to get inspiration from underground vintage and fetish models like Dita Von Teese, Masuimi Max and Bernie Dexter. Although Dita Von Teese is a very popular mainstream celebrity now, she started in the underground scene that inspired the whole Pin Up girl trend.

You might have noticed, rockabilly has been a very strong trend for 10 years now. As trends come and go, I wonder how long more this one is going to stay. It's elegant and fun, so it should be long lasting!

The Muse: Lara Stone

2011-04-21T03:48:00.000-07:00

In the end of the 90's Gisele Bundchen has conquered the highest position in the modelling industry: the status of celebrity supermodel. Although it was declared by magazines and expertise that it was going to be the last time a model would reach the status of celebrity and icon as often happened during the 90's. They said it would get started a time where the celebrities of film and music industry would take over fashion magazines. They were wrong!

Time went by and a few models reached the status of celebrity model, but none really reached the title of a fashion icon. Then suddenly happened Lara Stone.

Her face looks like a mix between Madonna, Brigitte Bardot and Kate Moss, matching beautifully with a slim-but-curvy body. She is topping the chart of models.com since 2010 and she is also in their list of "Sexiest models" in position number 10.

She is a French Vogue favorite, featuring the magazine cover 4 times since 2006 - that's the same as Giselle during her whole career!

Everything happened really fast to Lara.

Lara Stone is a 27 years old Dutch beauty that started her career at 13 years old when discovered by an agent from Elite Models. Although her success started to happen in 2006 when she signed with IMG models. Since then she has done campaigns for major brands as Prada and Dolce & Gabanna, and she is the official face of Calvin Klein (replacing Christy Turlignton).

Accomplishing all this success so quickly you could not think Lara Stone is less than a supermodel, but many others have conquered the same type of success during this decade, so what separates Lara from the others?

She was cover of practically all major fashion magazines in the World, and all of them mention Lara as the muse of nowadays fashion generation. Her look is inspiring, unique and adored. She is the only one top model lately that reached mainstream and the post of celebrity, but still kept the fashion icon image.

Right now, Lara Stone is definitely my favorite supermodel. Her look has all together so many qualities that are too many to put together, almost countless: she can be elegant, sexy, sweet, childish, evil, naughty, fun, and so on. She can reach any type of look with great style and attitude. Beside the fact she is not another skinny supermodel, her body has perfect proportions.

Hopefully Lara opened the opportunity to some more interesting and beautiful models reach space in the media. I agree with Karl Lagerfeld in some point: Supermodels are more glamorous than celebrities.

What Women Want: Style Cars

2011-04-20T03:57:00.000-07:00

The World of Cars is a World that separates women and men. Although there are exceptions, in general men tend to go for fast cars, with strong engine, chunky or slick. Women normally go for stylish cars, smaller and comfortable.

As I am a woman, I cannot understand so much what people accomplish having a huge car in a big city. It is harder to park, it's harder to fit into places, easier to crash, spends much more gas, makes your day more stressful having to deal with the big thing. While smaller cars are more practical, and even though they can be less powerful, what is the point of such power if in most places you are not allowed to use it?

So for those people that do not care as much for the huge cars, and think practical and style, I choose four new models that have everything we want.

Mini Cooper

In my recent trip to Hamburg I saw so many models of the Mini Cooper as never before. It is totally understandable! Hamburg is a city full of fashion, art and people that enjoy that, but with a very huge parking problem. So the Mini Cooper is one of the ideal choices for those cosmopolitan people, that look for a great stylish car, but don't have much time to search for parking spots.

I would say any model of the Mini is suitable for men, but for women, the Cooper, Convertible and S models are nice, but not as much the "Clubman": it's bigger and it looks more like what an elderly man would like (I think that's why such name!).

Peogeot 207

This new model convertible version of the Peogeot 207 is looking so fancy! I particularly like the white color and white sits. It looks very clean and nit. It could be great in red too, but then no white sits, please!

Peogeot 207 might not be as unique as the Mini, but it has it's own charm. It has always been considered a perfect women's car for it's style and feminine design.

While the Mini goes for a vintage style, the Peogeot is more modern and elegant.

Smart Roadster

This one I saw in that movie "Knight and Day" with Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz. It was love at first sight! The Smart Roadster is a slick, sports, fast version of the traditional Smart. This one is for people that want a practical, small, beautiful and stylish car, almost as fast a sports car.

It has only two sits, so you cannot carry your friends around. Although unless you have children, two sits should not be a problem!

Beside being stylish and fast, it is also environmental friendly as all the other Smarts.

Mercedez SLK

This one is not just a car women would like... It's car anyone would love! Who wouldn't want this charming, smart and elegant Mercedez SLK?

It is the most expensive from my list. Definitely as suitable as the others to a young and single woman living in a big city. The big difference this time is that a lot of males would be very jealous too!

The Mercedez SLK is unissex. It's charm and elegance will affect any person that looks for a small, smart and fast car.

So, those are the four new car models I think would totally fit into any garage of any cosmopolitan woman... and also men!

Next time I post some vintage cars. They also can have a lot of style!

Vampires: Ready to get Bitten?

2011-04-16T08:34:00.000-07:00

If you did not get bitten by the vampire wave yet, get ready!

They are on cinema, tv, books, magazines... like a flu in the winter, they are everywhere!

Vampires are suppose to be powerful and seductive creatures, capable to love you and kill you, give you pleasure and pain; It's the same when you watch a vampire film or read a vampire book: you might get a beautiful love story, or a gory horror.

So, to get started, there are vampires to every taste and every type of public... and they are always ready to take our hearts!

What girl wouldn't want to have a romantic hunk like Edward from Twilight as their boyfriend? And what boy wouldn't want having a hot Selene of Underworld as their girlfriend?

If you are not such big fan of a sweet guy like Edward or a good girl like Selene, what about a bad guy like Damon and a psycho girl like Katherine from Vampire Diaries?

Although maybe you want to be like Lara Stone on the picture above (shot by Steven Klein), you want to be the one on control... you want the Vamp!

As it was never proven the existence of our beloved (or hatred) creature, I cannot help you to find one to volunteer to turn you into a bloodsucker. So sorry you will probably never have their power to pull up a car with one hand, or run as fast as "The Flash" (does anyone remember him?). Buuuuuut... I can help you at least to look as good and seductive as a real Vamp should look.

Here are some make up tips, to get the Vamp's mysterious and sexy look:

As you see, Vamps like to put a lot of darkness on their eyes. Maybe to represent their damned souls... but most possible because it looks so damn good!

Smokey eyes, perfect eyebrows, maybe some blusher to get slimmer cheekbones, and lipstick of choice: red for a femme fatale Vamp (like The Queen in True Blood), or pale lips for a more mysterious Vamp (like Selene in Underworld) and purple for a more goth vampire (like the ones in the Van Helsing film).

For clothing you can get some inspiration from the movies. I always recommend sexy! Without sexyness, you will fail as vampire and you'll never get food! So learn with Lara... as you can see by the next picture, she is definitely a successful vamp.

The Biker Jacket Trend Still rocks

2011-04-13T12:18:00.000-07:00

In 2009, Jean-Paul Gaultier's Fall collection was one of the most talked about during the whole season. It was all about bikers. The trend had it's biggest moment then, but it looks like it won't go down so soon. (The picture on the left is from a 2009 Issue of the Numero magazine)

Still now it's really common to see biker jackets in fashion magazines. Not only in a rock n' roll style, but it also can be matched with dresses and casual clothes. Biker jackets can make a basic outfit look more fashionable.

As you can see in the picture above, right now the trend is pushing itself a bit more to the colorful patterns. It's interesting and more experimental than the basic black. Although black biker jackets still have their own charm. Lady Gaga looks cool with her black one in the American Vogue (picture on the right).

As I said before, in 2009 the trend was a bit more rock n' roll, but right now you can mix and match with different styles, and it's going to look better than ever.

So for those who do not want to look like a metal head, you will not have to as long as you are creative and experimental.

Also for those that don't care what people will think about, even better! Do it like Lady Gaga and you'll rock this trend.

Tips for Getting the Hottest Look for a Night Out

2011-04-11T10:09:00.000-07:00

I remembered the many times I spent hours deciding a look for an evening event or party. There is nothing more frustrating to a girl than not finding the right outfit to rock her night. So I am putting here together some tips for you to get the sexiest and most elegant look, without spending too much time thinking about it.

Tip No. 1:

Think and Feel Sexy

The most important thing if you want to have a great night out, looking gorgeous and sexy, plus getting the attention of that guy you have been fancying, you have to feel sexy! There is no outfit that will make a girl that is feeling ugly and sad become the center of attention.

So put on that song you love, dance and sing to your mirror while you dress up... literally, feel the sexy you coming out! Prepare one of those baths with oils and after indulge yourself with body creams. Keep repeating to yourself: I am super hot and I'll rock tonight! Then you'll later see how everybody else will feel exactly the same about you.

Tip No. 2:

Dressed to Kill

Once you get into that sexy, happy and confident mood we talked about, it comes the next step: finding the right outfit. It has to be something elegant and sexy... and most of all: you have to feel comfortable in it.

You don't have to choose the basic black all the time. We love variation and if you are feeling provocative you can even choose a red, like Sasha in this pic on the right.

The best tip is not really the color of your outfit, but where you drag the attention to. Stop, look in the mirror, and see what is the most attractive part of your body. Do you have beautiful boobs? A nice tummy? Beautiful legs?

Then the best thing to do is drag the attention to that point and I will show you how.

Boobie Trap
If you, like Doutzen Kroes, is one of those girls that can rock a dress like that, please do! Beautiful breasts do not really mean big breasts, but some volume is definitely necessary to create this type of look. The help of silicone bras are also accepted.

As boobs are something really sexy by itself, I recommend the boobie girls to do it like Doutzen (Flare Sept. 2010) and keep the dress tight, but long. Or cover your legs with a jeans or leggings. This way you will look sexy, but not cheap, or like an attention seeker bimbo.

Tummy Bunny
If you have a tiny and sexy waist, there is no reason why you should hide it!

You should take care with the type of outfit to the type of occasion. If you are going to a casual party, a Britney Spears style of jeans and cropped top is fine, but for an evening event or an A-Class club you need to be a bit more discrete. Something like Karlie Kloss wears on the left (Numero Mag 112) is really sexy and elegant.

A Pair of Legs

If you have some beautiful long and slim legs like Maryna Linchuk (Vogue Deutsch Oct 2006), then is time to let them get some fresh air.

If you wear a long dress with a cut, it's possible to match the with a bit of cleavage or waist, but if you are wearing a short dress, I think it is much sexier if you keep the top part of your body a bit more covered up. It is always important to run away from the old and boring bimbo look. Legs are sexy, let them take the whole attention.

Sexy is Back

If you are not into showing any of the other three I said before, you can also get a very sexy look with an open back dress. It is the most femme fatale and mysterious of all looks. It is working best if it is matched with a total discrete front side.

As you see, Anja Rubik (Numero Mag June 2008) is wearing a more classic dress, but you can also make a funky look matching an open back top with a jeans or with a leather skirt.

P.S.: As I said before, you have to put the attention to one part of your body. You might think you have great boobs, tummy, legs and back, but if you go out showing everything, you will be more ready to a beach than to a party. So let's keep it simple and sexy!

Tip No. 3:

Make Up and Hair

For make up and hair there are this 4 looks that never fail (if matched with the right outfit): Barbie, Femme Fatale, Smokie Eyes and Grunge.

Sasha has the Barbie-like make up. It is basically dark nude eyes with big fake eyelashes and a pink lipstick. It can look really good with an open back dress, but it can look not so good with a cleavage outfit.

Rosie is the Femme Fatale. All you have to do for that is draw the attention to the lips with a red lipstick. The eyes should be nude; the lashes can be long, but not too much. The hair in 50's style is totally fitting to the look. It is time to some hairspray activity!

Lara Stone has the Smokie Eyes. Draw all the attention to the eyes is the trick in this look. A very dark cat style eyeshadow with long black eyelashes and nude lipstick is what you need for that. The lips can be also glossy, but never colored. It looks good with most hair styles.

Heidi Mount is an elegant Grunge. To get the look use some eyeshadow in brown, grey or black tones, but not too dark; not too long lashes too. To complete the look, a bit of light brown blusher and dark brown lipstick. The hair is messy, but glamourous.

Tip No. 4:

Sexy Attitude

You are not Megan Fox, but nothing stops you from being able to put on such sexy look. Be confident, dance, smile and being up to speak to whoever you want, and able to flirt that guy you like, is what is going to make your night unforgettable. If you think that Megan was born with the capacity of making sexy faces and you didn't, you are just wrong. Everyone can be sexy when you are feeling good with yourself.

What can really cut off your charm is: getting too drunk, behaving too sexual, taking drugs and being arrogant. Those are things you should avoid.

You might think you need a little bit of drink to rock the party, and that is totally fine. Just try to control yourself, because nobody likes being around an inconvenient drunk.

You also can like a guy very much, but do not throw yourself on him, or offer yourself to sleep with him when you first meet him. The impression he will get is that you are an "easy" girl, and you do that to every guy you meet. That is a total turn off to most serious men in this World.

Drugs can make you feel more confident, or make you enjoy yourself more, but once you take them a lot of people will look you with different eyes. People that take drugs look like they have problems and are not really happy with themselves. Drugs can also make you say things you don't mean, and make you addicted, sick and feel totally destroyed the day after.

Arrogant people are hated and avoided. You can be a special person and be really successful in something, but you don't need to feel better than everybody else because of that. Arrogance is also rude. It is impossible to reach elegance if you are arrogant.

So those are my 4 tips for you to get that hot look you are searching for. Follow them carefully and I guarantee you will be satisfied with the result of your night out! One last thing, my fifth and last tip: do not forget the high heels!

Inspiring Fashion: David Bowie

2011-04-09T07:46:00.000-07:00

Glam Rock idol David Bowie is very famous for his 70's unique and androgynous style. At that time there was no Marilyn Manson or Lady Gaga to shock people with their crazy looks, so Bowie was the only one taking the whole fashion attention.

His influence in fashion was so much that still now, from time to time, designers build collections with base on Bowie's eccentricity, fashion magazines do special editorials dedicated to him, or celebrities point him as their fashion inspiration and icon (Our "Gaga" is one of them!).

It is totally understandable that people get inspired by David Bowie. He never goes out of fashion: it always sounds cool for a celebrity to mention Bowie as an influence. He is one of the biggest fashion icons ever and will always be a reference of unique and groundbreaking style to all kinds of medias.

Even though a lot of entertainers try to be cool and original as David Bowie, that's something most of them do not concretize. Everything Bowie created seem so natural to him; it looks like "coolness" is his natural gift.

Anyway, as we can see, the Bowie trend last forever. ;)

Britney Spears Did it Again

2011-04-07T04:05:00.000-07:00

It has been a long time since I am not a fan of Britney Spears anymore. I am one of those people that liked better when she was still the most popular virgin in the World. Not because of her virginity, but because she used to hold back her crazy side a bit more, and I am definitely not a fan of the media "show-off" personalities.

However, she seems to be keeping most of her old fans, or being really capable to gain new ones. Her new album "Femme Fatale" released March 29th is really successful. Some people have been calling it a "come back", some others have been saying she has never left.

She broke her own record being the only one female to have 6 number 1 album debuts. Beside that, since January she has done Elle cover (with her two sons), V Magazine cover (shot by Mario Testino) and this month she is cover of the "Out" magazine.

What mostly makes me happy about Britney's actual success, is to know that it is possible for an artist to get over a bad time. As the King of Pop Michael Jackson never managed to conquest his so expected come back, before Britney finally did it, I thought it was impossible.

It seems that the entertainment industry is not really as bad as I thought. It can be long lasting to artists that are willing to make an effort to do likable stuff, instead of just relying on their old success.

Cool Stuff: Nico Magazine

2011-04-06T02:47:00.000-07:00

Nico is a bi-annual fashion, art and design magazine from Luxemburg. It has beautiful fashion editorials, a lot of interesting interviews and great illustrations.

This one with the pink cover is the last publication. The illustration is made by Finnish illustrator Kustaa Saksi.

It is published in French and English and it can be purchased in the website: http://www.nicomagazine.com (it costs 10 €).

People that enjoy reading Lula, Qvest and Love should also love reading Nico.

Androgyny Strikes Again

2011-04-03T06:30:00.000-07:00

Fashion keeps going back and forth with the Androgyny trend. Last seasons have been really feminine and curvy. Lara Stone has been ruling the main magazines and catwalks. Although some time ago, Agyness Deyn was taking the title of "Icon" (vide I-d magazine) and of "coolest" supermodel of the new generation. Lara is the curvy and feminine beauty; Agyness the androgyny cool girl.

I remember I saw Agyness once in the London underground wearing white skinny pants, walking her white small dog. She (same as Lara Stone) is not as skinny as other supermodels of these days.

Now, back to the subject of this post, a few designers seem to be tired of too much feminine beauty, curves and colors. During fall-winter 2011 shows of Chanel and Dolce & Gabbana, the main trend was back to"boy-girl" style:

Chanel

Dolce & Gabbana

Those shows are looking great, and together with the Androgyny issue of the Love Magazine (with Justin Bieber on the cover) and the edition before with models Kate Moss and Lea T kissing, we should definitely see some more of Androgyny going on in fashion.

This trend is nothing new, and although it has been explored countless times before, after an explosion of femininity, it always feel great a bit of Androgyny.

So let's see what else we will get from the trend in the next shows. For now we have a lot of black straight cut pants, white shirts, short hairs, hats and flat boots. Agyness still did not strike back, because Freja Beha Erichsen seems to be leading the Androgyny trend this time; maybe because recently she admitted to be homossexual (fashion loves sexual revelations).

Nostalgia: Supermodels Era

2011-04-02T09:53:00.000-07:00

I know we love the new supermodels with their Alien look, sometimes child-like face, and very skinny body, but they are definitely not fascinating and inspiring as the supermodels that used to rule the catwalks in the 90's.

During the last years, it is possible to see in fashion shows that models were chosen to fade away, while the clothes stand out. Some of them have been in almost every Paris-Milan-NY show, although they are never talked about as the 90's supermodel. As examples: Kasia Struss, Abbey Lee Kershaw, Magdalena Frackowiak and Edita Vilkeviciute; general people never heard of these girls, and they are suppose to be the supermodels of nowadays.

While fashion magazines, designers and supermodels were part of the fascination of a general public, nowadays celebrities from the music and film industries are ruling the trends (yes! they create more trends than Vogue) and becoming covers of fashion magazines.

Designers and fashion editors seem not to understand exactly what is happening, because the runway shows are not even half as artistic and provocative as the 90's and 80's, but their popularity keep going down. The answer is simple: fashion has no icons which women identify themselves. General women do not want to look like extremely skinny models with an alien face. They want to look healthy, beautiful and seductive as Cindy Crowford and Christy Turligton. While fashion is not offering those faces, the film and music industry is full of those commercial beauties.

Let's remember a few of those icons we used to love:

Christy Turlington
The American supermodel is right now 42 years old and has around 25 years of career. During 20 years she was the face of Calvin Klein, and during her whole career she has done fashion shows for countless designers and millionaire campaigns for Chanel and Maybelline.

Turligton's beautiful smile and elegant face has been cover of almost every fashion magazine in the World, and such unique beauty is never enough for the fashion industry. Just recently she featured the new Louis Vuitton campaign.

Turligton height is 1.78 cms and has the measurements of 84-58-91. Such perfect body is considered too big for the nowadays fashion standards.

Cindy Crawford
Between the supermodels she will always be remembered for her sexy mole above the lips and for her great gym looking body. Cindy Crawford was never the runway girl, she was mostly the face on magazine covers and the hot model all men would fancy for her perfect body and sensual face. A chocolate tv commercial which Crawford licked the chocolate off her lips, were a sensation during the 90's.

She has done campaigns for Versace and she was the face of Revlon, between many others. She also has done a few films.

Crowford's height is 1.75 cms, which is short for a nowadays model. Her unique and commercial beauty is what always kept her in the spotlight.

Claudia Schiffer
The 1.80 tall, blond, perfect body was an international sensation. Not only for her modelling career, but also her casual actress moments and her relationship with the pop magician David Coperfield.

Her career started when she was spotted by a scouter in a dance club. Just after finishing her studies, she flew to Paris where she has done her first magazine cover for Elle. Soon after she was chosen by Karl Lagerfeld to be the new face of Chanel. The designer called Claudia Schiffer "the new [Brigitte] Bardot".

By now Claudia Schiffer has done more than 500 magazine covers, including Vanity Fair, Rolling Stones, Vogue, Tank and People, and owns a fortune estimated in 50 million dollars. She is 40 years old, lives in London with her husband and has 3 children.

Naomi Campbell
The British supermodel must be the one with the longest career in history. It is around 25 years that Naomi rocks catwalks and campaigns all over the World, and what is mostly exceptional is that opposing to the other supermodels of her era, she never had a down time.

Being a black model, she opened many doors to other models and has done much more advertisements than most white models could ever dream. She was the first black model to feature Vogue Paris and the European version of the Time magazine.

Beside being a model, Naomi also appeared in music videos, has done charity, films, and beside the few scandals, her career has been full of success. By now she has done more than 500 magazine covers, countless runway shows for almost every brand possible and hundreds of fashion campaigns.

Linda Evangelista
The Canadian supermodel is famous for her beautiful and captivating smile. She featured more than 600 magazines during her career and has done countless assignments with many companies. Her last one is for L'Oreal in 2007.

Evangelista is born from Italian parents that immigrated to Canada. She moved to NY at the age of 17 and signed her contract with Elite Model Management. Her famous quotation "We don't wake up for less than $10,000 a day" for the Vogue magazine was constantly repeated as the main quotation of the supermodel era.

Nowadays she is 45 years old and often mentioned as one of the most important supermodels and the best smile.

Linda Evangelista, Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington and Cindy Crowford featured the very famous video of George Michael "Freedom". I'm posting it here to finish the post and we also remember those great days of the supermodel era.

George Michael - Freedom! '90 (Official Music Video). Watch more top selected videos about: George Michael

There is a new model that is being very frequently talked about as the new supermodel with the 90's standard: Lara Stone. Maybe she is the start of the new supermodel generation?

Rihanna: Fashion Icon and Trend Setter

2011-04-01T06:12:00.000-07:00

I do not know what Anna Wintour has been drinking lately, but I want some of that!

What used to be the most conservative and obvious Vogue is becoming day after day more interesting and courageous. First Lady Gaga, and now Rihanna.

As Emmanuelle Alt started her career as French Vogue editor in Chief, that should be the main subject for April, but Anna Wintour took over chosing Rihanna for the American Vogue cover.

It's not the first time Rihanna rocks a cover of Vogue. She was the cover of the Italian edition in September of 2009 shot by Steven Klein.

Her American cover shot by Annie Leibowitz marks her official rise as a fashion icon of this decade. Her rebel, sexy and outstanding look has been inspiring the teens and used as reference by the trend seekers of Fashion.

It has been a few years since Rihanna have been followed by celebrity magazines to show her funky outfits and use it as trend examples.

I must say that most of what the pop-diva wear is definitely a no-go in my wardrobe. Probably because her style is for another type of public. That does not change the fact that she is a trend setter. That's exactly what some fashion people have to realize.

Rihanna's new hairstyle seem to fit pretty good into the Fancyful-Goth stuff going on as I said in an older post. Coincidentally she has been shot by Annie Leibowitz for the American Vogue, and as Leibowitz also seems to follow the trend, I am not the only one that sees the similarity.

Well, it seems that I am already drinking the same stuff as Anna Wintour. Oh-oh!

Gisele Cover of First Emmanuelle Alt's Vogue

2011-03-31T08:16:00.000-07:00

This Vogue is a very important one. Not because Gisele is its cover (she has been 4 times before), but because it's is stating the start of Emmanuelle Alt's career in the magazine. This is the first Paris Vogue by the new editor in chief.

It seems that Mrs Alt is not a very risky person. Gisele is more than easy choice for a Vogue cover, although it has been 10 years since Corine Roitfeld ruled the magazine and only 3 covers with the supermodel has been published since then. It is a very low number to compare with Gisele's importance in the industry.

The problem we face now is that, even though Carine Roitfeld was a bit of a difficult (annoying, center of attention wannabe and bitchy - couldn't find another word, sorry!) person, she was a very good editor in chief, and her other 3 Gisele's cover were all much more inspiring than this new one.

So I would suggest to Emmanuelle Alt to be a bit more courageous next time and not so obvious. Paris Vogue is too important to have such 90's American cover.

It seems that the American Vogue is getting more interesting (Rihanna and Lady Gaga on cover are totally unexpected and fun), and French Vogue becoming the more obvious one... Times change!

A Vogue Favorite: Liya Kebede

2011-03-30T05:43:00.000-07:00

Supermodel Liya Kebede is one of those stars that have a very long lasting shine. The Ethiopian beauty was spotted by a film director and introduced to a french modelling agency. Viva model agency waited while Liya finished her studies, and just after brought her to the fashion business, which she has been rocking since then.

Her career started when she was 22, with an exclusive contract for Gucci's 2000 Fall-Winter campaign. It has been 11 years since then and right now she is 33 and more than never in spotlight.

During her decade of career, Liya never had a down time. She has been cover for the American, French, Japanese, Spanish and Italian Vogue, Numero, V Magazine, Elle, between others, she has done campaign for Yves Saint Laurent, Dolce & Gabbana, Esteer Lauder and Emanuel Ungaro between many others. Not to mention the countless runway shows.

As the title of this post says, Liya Kebede is one of Vogue's favorite supermodels. In 2002 the French Vogue made a whole issue dedicated to the model, and she also featured the cover of American Vogue 3 times, including the cover with Anna Wintour chosen to be "Vogue's favorite models". She, together with Naomi Campbell, is one of the few black models to feature the Japanese Vogue.

Beside being a supermodel of success, Liya is also a philanthropist. She created the Liya Kebede foundation to reduce maternal, newborn and child mortality in Ethiopia and in the World. She is also the WHO Goodwill Ambassador for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health.

We must agree that Liya is not only a stunning beauty and an elegant figure, she is also a great human being. That is something that should be valued. It would make a lot of difference if more supermodels would also use their fame for a good cause.

Liya also has a clothing brand for women and children called "Lemlem" (it means 'to bloom' in Amharic). She founded the line to help preserve the art of traditional weaving in Ethiopia and to offer work opportunities to local artisans.

Liya Kebede is a beautiful supermodel, intelligent, good-willed and a successful business woman. She definitely deserves to shine.

Spring-Summer Long Dresses

2011-03-27T18:38:00.000-07:00

During spring-summer it's common to see women wearing short skirts, spring jackets, knee length dresses, sandals, shorts, hotpants and in 2011 you will also see a lot of beautiful long dresses, as you can see in the British brand "Monsoon" advertisement above with model Lily Donaldson (shot by Camila Akrans).

They are light, elegant and wearable for a wide range of circumstances. It can be for an afternoon lunch with friends, walking on the beach, going shopping, but also for evening events and parties. To reach the style you search for, all you have to do is mix up accessories and different shoes with the dress of your choice.

The most common style for this summer is going to be the long and colorful dresses for daytime. They are a great option for any occasion and a great option for women that are not into showing too much skin in those very hot summer days.

A good example of this trend is shown by Anna Sui Spring 2011 Ready to Wear collection. Flower long dresses, hippie chic and a great mix of accessories are great examples of how to use the trend:

Marc Jacobs beautiful spring collection also counted on many long colorful dresses, but more towards the elegant and classic, which is very suitable for evening parties:

Although Lanvin also explored very classy and modern dresses for evening, it was kept basic colors and linear shapes:

This trend has much more to grow during the next years. People that always thought long dresses are the conservative choice, it is time to change your mind. They can be really funky and sexy if you know how to mix the right accessories, shoes and shapes.

Those who are still into the old romantic and soft long dresses can stay happy because although they are not as eye-catching, they are still appreciated for it's elegant and charm.

So, as I said before, long summer dresses can be used in such wide range of styles, they almost cannot fail. So for those who still do not have a few options of long summer dresses in your wardrobe, it is time to think about shopping for a few and see how you feel about it. It is hard to not like it.

Lady Gaga: The Icon of the Fanciful-Goth Style

2011-03-04T12:45:00.000-08:00

The American Vogue magazine asked their readers to choose the best dressed person of the year; and for their surprise, Lady Gaga was the chosen one. As consequence, the unusual fashion muse is the cover of the American Vogue of this month.

I mentioned "surprise", because for a magazine that normally despise fashion adventurers like Björk and her eccentric outfit for the Academy Award in 2001, it would not be expected to have readers that would appreciate Gaga and her Björk alike sense of innovative and controversial style.

Beside the American Vogue, Lady Gaga also has shot cover for the Vanity Fair, Elle, V Magazine, Vogue Hommo Tokyo, between others; and an editorial for the french Vogue (bellow).

I have mentioned before in this blog that Lady Gaga's style is an unquestionable trend during this decade. Many other artists of nowadays express the same kind of feeling in their creations. Can you see some similarities between movies made by Tim Burton, the photography of Mille Aldridge and Annie Leibowitz (bellow), the illustrations of Antoine Helbert and the style of the TV series "Pushing Daises"?

It is all about a dream World of perfection, but somehow sad and sometimes weird. It has a lot of the elements of a faire tale together with a few goth elements. As nobody ever created a name for it (at least I haven't heard it yet), I will call it "fanciful-goth" art.

The readers of Vogue were smart and they did not only choose a greatly dressed person; they opted for Lady Gaga because she is the visionary representative of a time. It can seem really exaggerated, but if you try to think of a person that could represent all this fanciful-goth generation, I guess many of us would think of Lady Gaga.

Her very expected new album is suppose to be released in the end of the month. We will wait and see if she can reach the high success of "The Fame" and "The Fame Monster". Only one thing is certain, the new album can be successful or not, the status Lady Gaga has reached in fashion by now is already indestructible. Nothing can change that Lady Gaga is an icon of nows generation.

The Dirty Side of Fashion

2011-02-26T06:08:00.000-08:00

I have the habit of talking about things making it seem that I think in the fashion industry is where elegance is born. My mistake!

Fashion is an industry of beauty and seduction, but also an industry of scandals, disrespect and disregard. Those three words are far from elegance. I am posting about some of the bad side of the fashion industry, to make sure people understand that even though I always talk about fashion, I am not a fashion victim.

Here are some of the things you should think about before falling in love with fashion:

Racism and Elitism
It is not far ago, precisely in 2008, the biggest magazine in fashion put out their first issue with only black models on the editorials and cover. That happened after an union of the Italian Vogue editor Franca Sozzani and the photographer Steven Meisel. They felt they should do something about this white supremacy in fashion. Meisel stated: "I’ve asked my advertising clients so many times, 'Can we use a black girl?’ They say no. Advertisers say black models don’t sell". Their attitude against racism was great! Few months later, this editorial on the left was printed in the Italian Vogue: Where did they put all their anti-racism ideal?

Every single fashion show, together with the animal activists, there are people protesting against racism in fashion. Beside the discrimination of black people, there are the discrimination of every other look of human, as in fashion shows, white girls (mostly blond) are basically unanimous choice.

It was said by the British newspaper "the guardian" that fashion never been so racist since the 60's. I think this is the worst moment of fashion in many other cases. By the end of the post, you will understand my point of view of why that is.

The fashion business is also very elitist. You will barely see items by high street brands in a fashion editorial. You also will never see an ordinary working person mentioned in a Vogue magazine.

Supporting Animal Cruelty
The animal activists try hard to make the fashion industry stop putting up a fur trend. Many celebrities turned their backs to fur, many documentaries have been made about how cruel the fur industry is, but the biggest fashion names will not change their passion for the poor animal's dead skin.

This picture you see on the left was published by the French Vogue. You can see it is a satire about animal activists trying to stop the "Cruella De Vil's" of fashion. It is a big sign of what they think: "even when you try to stop us, we are looking great".

Hundreds of animals die tortured everyday, for then those ladies can exhibit their fur on their backs, or simple to show off what they believe to be elegant and high class. Sadly, this is the reality. Madonna, for example, is often seen wearing fur and said she enjoys going hunting birds at the weekend. Materialism and arrogance is above any idealism of respect towards nature for the fashion business.

Anorexia
The biggest supermodels right now are around 180 tall (5'11") and have hips around 88 cms (33"). Now it comes my question: how could a really healthy woman 180 tall have only 88 centimeters around her hips? Supermodels live on a really poor diet to keep their body as skinny as possible.

Anorexia is a term that used to be unknown in the past, and right now is in most people's vocabularies; thanks to the fashion industry. Few models died trying to reach the bodies with the measurements of Anna Selezneva, Freja Beha Erichsen, Anja Rubik and Natasha Poly (pic on the left). Those models already have a really small body build, and for some women it would be impossible to reach their measurements.

The embodied Brazilian models from the end of the nineties are out of the way. Right now on every fashion show girls with the most skinny body are the ones that rule the catwalks.

Drugs Glamorizing
Do you know who is Bertrand Hennet? He is the owner of "Elite Models". The agency used to be one of the most important in the market, but today it is almost nothing. This guy has been arrested for buying and transporting cocaine in 2009. This is not what destroyed the agency. I tell you about it later on.

What about the cocaine scandal with top model Kate Moss? Yes, one of the biggest top models ever is a cocaine-head. What you do not know is that she was a "victim" of the press. Inside the fashion industry, not only Kate is snorting the white powder. Just after the suicidal death of the designer Alexander McQueen, his "ex-husband" George Forsyth gave an interview to the press which reveled the designer's sad life inside the fashion business, where everyone snorts cocaine, including himself, Naomi Campbell, Sadie Frost; and nobody is a real friend. He says “At some bashes waiters would bring round silver salvers with lines of cocaine on for the guests to sniff. That whole scene was awash with coke.”

The irony of all of that is that Kate Moss scandal just made her having another rise up. That's just a proof: fashion likes drugs.

Sexual Harassment and Pedophilia
I am totally disgusted when I see this picture on the left side of this topic. Some people might think it looks cool, but who has been through a sexual harassment knows how it hurts. This is a picture of the photographer sexually abusing a model. His name? Terry Richardson. He is one of most requested photographers in fashion, and very known for sexually harassing the models during the shoots; many times underage girls.

In any other industry, sexual harassment and pedophilia are reasons for the destruction of a person, but not in the infamous fashion industry. Terry Richardson is still doing campaigns for H&M and magazine covers for Rolling Stones, Vogue and Bazar.

Remember the boss of Elite, Bertrand Hennet? He was not the only one arrested before. The founder of Elite, John Casablanca, 60 years old, was accused by a model of making her pregnant at the age of 15 and arranging an abortion without her consent.

So why all of that sickness and no morality in fashion? Every hell has it's devil... and fashion's devil is Anna Wintour.

No need much explanation. Everyone watched "the Devil wears Prada", and for those who still don't know, the character Miranda Prisley is based on the editor of the American Vogue magazine: Anna Wintour.

Anna Wintour has some merits for her position. She definitely did a lot of good things in the fashion industry. She is the person that pushed John Galliano to assume the maison Dior, for example. She can really recognize a talent.

Although, from this whole list of dirtiness in the fashion World, she is the supporter and spreader of a few of them.

Anna Wintour is always seen in her fur coat, calling women size 40 "fat" and mistreating people that work for her in the magazine. On the Vogue editorials, she does not accept to have ordinary working people mentioned. She destroyed the grunge fashion in the beginning of the 90's, telling designers they would not appear on the Vogue if they did not change their style. Every season Vogue puts their favorite top models; from a list of around 10, many times you do not see even one black model, and when you do, only one (very skinny of course). Absolutely never an Asian, Indian, Arabic, etc.

Terry Richardson was accused of sexual harassment and pedophilia, but that did not affect the fact he is still one of Anna Wintour's favorite photographers, and is always having his editorials posted in the magazine.

These are some of the many things that make me think Anna Wintour is making the fashion business sad and dirty.

I understand she is probably a Nihilist and does not believe in morality and goodness. She probably does not believe in nature and that the other creatures of the planet also deserve respect; or in an equal human society. She probably believes women really have to sleep their way to the top, and that is why its fine for photographers to sexually harass them. Well, she is probably self-centered, manipulative and will do everything to get what she wants, and believes this is what brought her where she is, and that everybody should be like her.

So for everybody that loves the healthy side of fashion: the beauty, the talents, the elegance; but hates the sick and dirty side of it, I guess we will have to wait until Anna Wintour's kingdom is over, to be really able to enjoy fashion again; then is not going to be embarrassing to be a fashion victim.

Ballet and Black Swan: A Deserved Hype

2011-02-24T15:57:00.000-08:00

Hypes come and go every year. I remember the big hype surrounding the premier of the Tim Burton version of Alice in Wonderland. Unfortunately the film did not fill up the critics expectation. That's exactly the opposite that happened to Darren Aronofsky "Black Swan".

Darren says he spent 10 years trying to make Black Swan to happen. He knew it would be very successful, but movie studios would not believe his idea. Fox films finally decided to invest in it, which was a very smart decision: Darren was right, Black Swan is acclaimed by public and critic.

What makes me very happy about this hype, is that Black Swan is not a very easy film to swallow. It is dark, psychotic, kind of scary some moments, it has a homosexual scene and not a happy ending.

The fact that people are enjoying this type of movie, shows how the public opinion is getting more open minded and selective. American companies, used to invest in easy, obvious and cliche films, are getting a "slap on the face" and having to learn that cinema is becoming more complex, because its public is getting more mature.

Black Swan was so highly accepted, that had it's influence even in the fashion industry. A few designers made collections with small trends towards the film. Lagerfeld used some feathers on the clothes of Chanel's couture, and Jean-Paul Gaultier put a ballerina to end his spring-couture show.

Another consequence of the success of the film, is people's interest in ballet.
Ballet is the most technique type of dance. It is such beautiful form of art: It happens with a strong struggle and discipline from the ballerines.

Beside the beauty of the presentation, the film shows the strong competition between the dancers, and the sad short life of their career.

Darren Aronofsky just entered my list of respected directors (he was a long time banned out of it because of the over-dramatic "Requiem for a Dream").

Another person that definitely has to be talked about is the actress Natalie Portman. Her performance is near perfect. She was always for me a very talented actress, but in this film she gave her best.

Let's put together: a great and inventive director, a spectacular main actress performance, a unique story about what comes behind the classic ballet, a great and stunning support actress (Mila Kunis); I have to say Black Swan is not only the hype: it's also a masterpiece!

Not Surprisenly the Best Again: John Galliano

2011-02-23T07:39:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I wonder if I love or if I hate Galliano. He is so creative that makes us feel like we all should give up on our creativity, because we will never reach his magnificence.

Maybe I feel like that because my taste and what Galliano's does, definitely flow together.

One proof is the women he approves to represent the Maison Christian Dior are some of my favorite public personalities.

No surprise actress Monica Bellucci and supermodel Maryna Linchuk are two of those faces. What made me most of all surprised by the similarity between our tastes, is that Natalie Portman was announced the new face of Dior, and for me she is just one of the best actresses ever: an icon of elegance, talent and beauty.

Natalie is having her moment now because of the so successful film "Black Swan" and her indication to Oscar. It is obvious one of the major couture brands would invite such beautiful and talented actress to represent them, but why it had to be the brand of my favorite designer? Another coincidence of tastes.

The second proof is that It seems that in every fashion week, Dior exhibits the best Galliano could ever design. In my point of view, Dior always does the best shows every season. Every single time he puts on a new magnificent demonstration of beauty; this Spring Couture could not get any better for me:

The whole atmosphere of the show was mesmerizing, making the older fashionistas remember those brilliant Dior times, when fashion was more classy and innovative.

Such fashion show is like a day dream; actually, like a dream coming to reality. The mix of colors make the dresses have an effect similar to the virtual 3D. The light effects follow harmonically with the colors of the dresses. The shapes are feminine, but not obvious. Make up and hair with the elegance of old times, but with the plastic technique of nowadays. In general, perfect!

And in the end, comes Galliano: eccentric and brilliant as always. Do I love or hate him? What do you suggest?

Is it going to happen an Ancient Egyptian Trend?

2011-02-22T04:24:00.000-08:00

The whole World turned the eyes to Egypt during the last weeks. We all watched on the news: after long protests, the people managed to remove a militarist government, and from then on Egyptians will have democracy.

From all of that, what is mostly concerned to this blog (which is mostly a fashion blog, not so political) is: will all this events be influence to a new ancient Egypt trend?

It is hard to say. The Egyptians from now, have nothing to do with the ancient Egyptians; still I believe they take the old culture as their most precious belongings. Egyptian moments in fashion always come and go anyway; some good, some not so good. Every few years the Egyptian trend strikes again.

When Liz Taylor beautifully played the roll of Cleopatra on cinema, her clothes, hair and make up became a major trend, which is actually still a major example for people that want to dress up in fancy dress parties.

It must be said, the ancient Egyptian culture is fascinating! They were probably the first to invent elegance and royalty. While Pharaohs in Egypt were sitting on a throne totally dressed in gold, with a posture of a God, and Egyptians already had some knowledge in maths, physics, chemistry and astronomy; people were still hunting and living a nomad life everywhere else.

One of the designers that used the ancient Egyptian culture as a trend once is Galliano. On the Spring Couture show for Dior in 2004 he was highly acclaimed for his stunningly innovative collection.

Alexander McQueen did not have the same luck. In 2007 his Fall collection slightly towards a Egyptian trend had very bad feedback from the critics. We have to agree that McQueen was much better than this:

Talking about nowadays, there is always a bit of the trend here and there. People love the gold and the seductive make up of the ancient Egypt fashion. It seems that also on cinemas it is going to be a big Egyptian moment again: Angelina Jolie will be the new Cleopatra soon.

If the trend really happens, get ready the heavy make up... very glamorous! Here are some examples based on the shows of Dior and McQueen I mentioned before:

The hairs and shoes can also become really exotic:

So now we just have to wait and see what happens. Also about the new Egyptian democracy. Somehow to bring back this fashion could be a way for the World to show how happy we are for them.

Monica Bellucci: Beauty and Elegance

2011-02-21T10:00:00.000-08:00

We all know Monica Bellucci has one of the most beautiful faces of cinema's history. We also know she has a very voluptuous body, which makes her a very sexy woman. Those are two of her qualities people notice in general.

Not the fashionistas!

Monica Bellucci is the face of the Maison Dior, and there is a reason for that: her natural elegance.

Certain qualities money cannot buy, and elegance is one of them. There are so many celebrities earning millions for a film, spending in big houses, boats, very expensive clothes, best hairdressers, best restaurants, and nothing makes them stand out in the crowd for being classy.

Think, for example, of Paris Hilton. She was born rich, always had luxury and spent time with high class people. Those days she is an icon of low life. Always in parties, dancing "sexy" to get attention, dressing as a barbie doll, gets involved in sex scandals, walks around Bambi jumping, and the list goes on. So that is one of my main proofs that money do not bring elegance, and will never do.

The Italian beauty Monica Bellucci, is always seen in the most exclusive events, walking around discretely, and sharing only a quiet smile with the press. For people who possess real talent and personality, there is no need to try hard to get attention.

She is not the only one that shines around for having the quality to seduce the crowd with discretion; other actresses as Natalie Portman, Charlize Theron, Keira Knightley and Kate Beckinsale also have this ability. Although, there is something else that makes Monica stand out even between such honorable list. Beside those actresses being much younger than Monica, they are all not as "sensual".

Above a photoshoot by Ellen Von Unwerth.

Sensuality in general has for most people to be really soft to stay elegant. Monica Bellucci is one of the few really sexy women that still keep on the elegance. So who else a luxury brand like Dior, that wants to present themselves with sensuality and elegance; who else could they choose?

Maybe Angelina? But she is a bit too tough. Nicole Kidman? Too much face lift. Catherine Zeta Jones? Not a bad idea! Maybe in old times Ava Gardner or Rita Hayworth... but for these days, Mrs Bellucci is the best choice.

She is 46 years old and just gave birth, but shot for the British Tatler magazine of this month looking as great as always!

Please Monica, share with us your secret for such long lasting beauty?!