haute details

Chanel - Haute Couture Fall Winter 2010 2011 - Focus on Acessories/Details via pret-a-piers

4th of july stripes

These photos were taken on the 4th of July. It was so much fun.I loved the little hat I got recently from NW3. The pearl detail on the hat is tres, tres chic! Stripes again! Navy blue. Voila! Independence Day!

(Knit top from Whistles, Tube dress just seen from Topshop, Shoes and hat from NW3)

a nod to mr owens

I was having a moment here. The outfit was some what sculptural/minimal. Black. Layered. No frills. Mr Owens immediately sprung to mind. Instant inspiration or vice versa?

(Strapless tube dress and sheer panel assymetric top from Topshop)

kittens and jugs of oil make a happy oddity

Todd Selby is known for photographing the homes of the rich and stylish, but as of late, he’s turned his lens on a fair number of work spaces, too—his newly published series of artist Tom Sachs’ studio, in particular, is worth a look. Sachs is the provocateur famous for erecting Hello Kitty statues in New York and building his own self-styled space station (complete with Tyvek spacesuits) in L.A., so no surprise he’s got all manner of oddity hanging around his lair. There’s the custom, T. Sachs-embroidered NASA outfit he works in, chairs made of police partitions, and a tape measure labeled “Stanley Kubrick,” but most curious of all, we’d have to say, is the enormous jug of “Prada oil.” (For all we know, 2008 was a good vintage.) Have a look, and if you know any potential uses for Prada oil, please do let me know!

all around the world in chausland

Come next January, the first ever Rendezvous collection Bruno Frisoni has designed for Roger Vivier will wend its way around eight cities—including Hong Kong and Milan—all across the world.

There are straw shoes adorned with a rose—woven by a milliner—in a shade that looks like wheat kissed by the sun. Or tea-stained silk mesh pumps embroidered with flowers constructed out of beads (pretty) and wooden petals (pretty surprising). “These techniques would be too fragile for the regular Vivier collections,” he says, “but they’re just right for this one.” Both styles rest on a heel that Frisoni calls Nouvelle Vague (New Wave)—which it is, in more ways than one; it’s a different shape for the house, and a different shape for heels, a sensual, languid curve that elevates the feet 110 millimeters or so above the ground.

This sounds like a total fairytale fantasy. Dorothy will be happy to click her shoes.

Everywhere I go, I’m seeing mini bags. It always makes me wonder what you can actually fit in them—a lipstick and some keys? But here’s something you can: Chole's new folding Dionée sunglasses, which bend down into a tiny little package and fit in their adorable egg-shaped case. (They’re the first foldable sunglasses the label has made, and their compact size makes them perfect for traveling, too.) Ever since I first laid eyes on them, I’ve been obsessed. I love the utility of the foldable shape, but even more than that, I love the round, retro style. It will go perfectly with my long summer dresses and work equally well in early fall, when I change my daily uniform to high-waisted pants and button-downs.

beautiful art of backpacking

The new stewards of Valentino, Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli, have got their red-carpet bona fides in order, so for Resort, they’ve extended the line deeper into daywear. The accessories, no surprise, are going in the same direction. (Chiuri and Piccioli, after all, began their careers at Valentino in the accessories department.) Yes, you can still find the most embellished evening bags, the satin pumps, and Chantilly lace pieces, but what really caught my eye were the more casual pieces, like these nylon backpacks. They’re done in the same soft floral prints used for many of the ready-to-wear pieces, and finished (of course!) with the Valentino bow. Adorable—if maybe a little too glamorous for a picnic in the park.

lady of the manor?

You heard it hear: Madonna will star in Dolce & Gabbana’s ad campaign again this season, inspired by the classic Italian film Mamma Roma. Stefano Gabbana says it showcases “a more human and approachable side” of the star. Like, uh, the one above? Very endearing....non?

scrumptious taste of summer

Doesn't that look super, enticingly delicious? Made of sliced white bread, layered in a deep bowl with fruit and fruit juice. The story goes that Summer pudding was most popular from the late 19th to the early 20th Century. However, there is no clear record of its origin. This photo was taken at Scott's, one of my favourite restaurants. Not surprisingly, I had to try it out and it didn't disappoint! Having this pudding made me think of the guys at For The Love of Life. The online magazine is filled with information on where to eat, how to make (my favourite article being a big fan of oeufs of course - Eggs!) and what to drink etc. You must all check it out besides oggling at the mouth-watering photos. And what made me think of them when eating the pudding? Well, apparently, they haven't yet checked out the restaurant. So guys, anytime you want to go, count me in!

my favourite things this very moment

This happens to be my favourite scarf and cropped top at the moment. Only a thrift from ol' H&M. Goes with just about everything at the moment!... And great for layering. Crazy about it. Live in it! Breath with it!
(Scarf & cropped T-shirt from H&M, Dress worn under top from Whistles, bracelets by FE)

red wall, bare wall, great wall......

(Dress from Whistles, Sandals from Primark, Bracelets by FE)

a million hooves unshod

(Dress from Emporio Armani,Bag from Hobbs, Facinator from Lisa Berman)

my thoughts are dancing flowers and joyful singing birds

(Dress from Whistles, sandals from Primark)

conversations with shoe

'Are these Jimmy Choo?', a porter at a well-known hotel asked me recently. Tsssk, tssk.... I wish. But no. They're plain old Top Shop which when I bought them, looked to me like Lanvins. One can dream, as some peeps might say.

So the shoe,or the flats, or my foil-looking worn out Lanvin-esque ballet pumps, that look like Jimmy Choo: do they have a story to tell? Well, yes they do. These pumps have been on an adventure or two. I love them to bits and have had many fond memories wearing them. They are well travelled to far-flung places like Hong Kong and Paris just to name a few. Along the way they have also captured my peeps attention and passers-by who happen to look at my feet (?!). Now, come to think of it, I should have bought 2!

So Mr Green/ Ms Top Shop Creative Director, if there is one thing to ressurect this coming season, these would be a good choice, at least for me... and my peeps!

Have a good week everyone! Bisous! XO

souk to souk

So in awe of the holiday destination from the latest SATC2 installment, I chanced across this gem. This is the Royal Mansour. The riads—from one to four bedrooms—are arguably some of the most handsome accommodations in Morocco with their silk-paneled walls, muraled ceilings, tiled fireplaces, and roof terraces sporting bedouin tents and private plunge pools. Some riads even have their own elevators. Each riad also comes with a butler—and to assure the ultimate in discrete service, the staff never enters via the front door but rather by a network of secret underground passageways that connect to the back entrance.

The public rooms are equally impressive from the library, which has a retractable wooden ceiling that allows guests to observe the heavens with an on-site telescope, to the elegant French and Moroccan restaurants (steered by Michelin three-star chef Yannick Alléno, recently of the Meurice in Paris), which share a glamorous pavilion highlighted by Brazilian blue onyx and marble floors and silver-plated dining tables. Making sure that everything runs smoothly, the Royal Mansour has a staff of 450, giving it one of the highest staff-to-guest ratios in the world. The price of all this luxury, while not a king’s ransom, comes close, with one-bedroom riads starting at €1,500 and the four-bedroom mini-palace going for as much as €30,000!! I would kill to be a king for a day!