stylish films: alfie

One of the most stylish films from recent years I think is the Alfie remake starring Jude Law and Sienna Miller. Not the best movie overall perhaps, but I think the art direction and costumes and makeup really worked together on a much higher level than most films. A lot of it has a very modern take on a 60s feel, with the hairdos, high go-go boots and the makeup especially of Sienna's character. I also love Susan Sarandon's character who I think is inspirational in her own way: a good example of a woman in her 50s who still has it. She walks around confidently in Chanel and big dark sunglasses, and has Jude Law wrapped around her little finger and drinking absinthe at home in a silk kimono (how perfect for lounging around!). What's not to like about all that?

"In France, being romantic is just enjoying life and going crazy and being a fool and not being afraid of being ridiculous. It's not typically romantic, it's more like enjoying my time."

melvil poupaud in Bust magazine

so glad the gossip's coming back

I love the outfits that Blake Lively and Leighton Meester wore to this event at the Paley Center, Blake's blazer by Smythe is a great, but different version of the blazer with piping that we've seen everywhere from J.Crew to Rag&Bone and beyond (the designer of the original version is escaping me for some reason!), with a more nautical than preppy feel to it. Leighton is great as usual in a short dress in one of the season's best colors, and I love the peep toe shoes they're all wearing -- especially hers in brown and white. Taylor I could generally take or leave, both in her clothing and her always overdone makeup; sure she's 14 but they're all working with stylists so what's the difference? Blake and Leighton kept it simple and chic, and look so much better -- and more youthful, despite being older.

Photo Just Jared.

calvin klein resort

One of the things I like most about resort collections is that Calvin Klein (by Francisco Costa), like many designers, really takes advantage of the opportunity to try something new and stray from their normal pattern. If you look quickly through his Spring and Fall collections for 2008, they are almost entirely nude beige colors and blackish greys, respectively. So his really strong use of color and shape in the resort 2008 is really refreshing: the graphic ideas he comes up with are really inspiring in a way that can be applied to any kind of art or design. A lot of the silhouettes and color combinations could probably also be achieved with simple pieces you already own. And in the above outfit, I love the simple but unique cut of the collar and sleeves, which come up to little v's, even though the outfit as a whole is as simple as can be.


I find the shapes and proportion in this bathing suit really interesting, even though I don't know if I would actually wear it (think of the tan lines!), it's definitely a new take on the red and white lifeguard-outfit theme. The same is true for this dress with has zig-zagging vertical color blocks -- and who thought a red dress could work with coral shoes?! And I love that Francisco Costa can apply these style elements to loose, casual dresses just as easily.


The black stripes on the sides of this dress create a really nice slimming illusion, and I image it looks even more interesting when you are walking, with those lines swaying back and forth. This bright contrast in high-waisted shorts and a looser, tucked in shirt is very on-trend for this season, and I'm sure could be re-created by just about anyone with their own basics. Subtle cut-outs at the waist make this all-white look very original, complete with white leather shoes which believe me, are hard to fit this seamlessly into an outfit!

This color-blocked dress is one of my favorite pieces because of the way it contrasts the neutral off-white with such a bright pink. And because it is looser with an empire waist, this style of dress is much more wearable for the average woman than most of his dresses, which cling to every curve tightly. I think I could seriously look at this dress all day.




A very similar --much cheaper-- style is available from American Apparel, $32, and in a variety of color combinations; this is the closest to the Calvin Klein dress though.
I would really say that American Apparel owes a lot of its design and appeal to Calvin Klein, though of course it's a totally different level!

Other American Apparel dresses bear resemblances to ones from the resort collection such as these, for $26 and $35:

And this for $32:

parisian street style

I went to Paris for the first time last Easter, and as cliché as it is to say, you really do notice a difference in the level of style everywhere you go on the street. If I lived there I would either feel inspired all the time, or inadequate myself all the time (or probably both!). Anyway what I love about this outfit are the simple, utilitarian in design Repetto shoes mixed with a very sophisticated outfit, especially the caramel-colored Chanel bag. One of my main impressions when I was there was that Parisian women have a way of making sophisticated, elegant outfits always look relaxed and casual, whether they're wearing flats or heels. Even if they were wearing skirts and stilettos to pick up groceries, they found a way to look completely comfortable. I guess you avoid ever feeling over- or under-dressed that way!

What first caught my eye in these two outfits were the scarfs incorporating grey-blues, gold and black which work amazingly well with both their blonde hair and the black, white, and navy they are wearing: a great study in subtle color combinations. Somehow frenchwomen seem to work the color navy unlike anyone else. I have a vague color theory based on weather and climates, but I'll spare you! Suffice to say the different textures in the navy on the right are subtle and flawless at the same time. And the shoes! I've also just noticed -- is that a gold spoon hanging down from her neck? I have no idea but it's sort of precious if it is.

Again the subtle tonalities really make this outfit for me, from her hair into the skirt and the bag contrasting with the black. The proportion of the skirt is very "now," as they say, as well, and looks like it might have been a longer skirt tied up into a high waist with a satin sash. The fact that each element has simple and clean lines makes this outfit not too fussy, which is always important and easy to forget when you start getting enthusiastic about mixing things. It reminds me of something Coco Chanel once said, which is to put your outfit together and then take one thing off before leaving the house. It's better not to over-do it.

I normally don't like Nina Garcia (and of course she isn't Parisian) but I do like this outfit because even though it is all black she put in little surprises throughout in the silhouette and details: from the shape of the front of her Louboutins, to the flare and wide collar in the jacket, to the extra-high shoulders and extra-long sleeves covering half her hand. It all creates a nice balance without being boring.

Pictures from Elle at Paris Fashion Week

nude and red

I love everything about this picture, from the styling of the hair and make-up, to the grainy, washed-out quality, to the mix of nude colors and bright blood red bow. The swimsuit could double as a cute summer top, if you don't mind everyone you see doing a double take to see if you're wearing anything at all.
Clothing, Bottega Veneta; Photo, Taku for BlackBook

how could this smile not light up your entire day?

Love Kate Bosworth.
Pictures like this make me start to wish I were blonde...

Christopher Bailey on being English

"I sometimes describe it as this disheveled elegance. I love the fact that there is something quite traditional, quite stoic ... along with this real art side to it, along with this real almost rebellious side."

the new classics

I love these pictures that were in Harper's Bazaar a few months ago, not just for the clothes -- one of my favorite styles is classic equestrian, mixed with a little bit of nautical, which Gucci often gets really well -- but also because of the beautiful setting. Horse country with those wide fields and black wooden fences is one of the most perfect things to me, it reminds me of home I guess.

Pictures by Nathaniel Goldberg in Harper's Bazaar 2007.

natalie portman in elle

ELLE: How have people responded to your own independence and ambition? Has that been uncomplicated for you?

NP: It's definitely complicated. I bury it a lot, which is a very common woman thing to do. They say women often preface their statements with “This might sound stupid, but…” It sort of tempers what you are going to say. It takes the edge off so you can still be seen as ladylike. I think I have a lot of that in me. I'm very nonconfrontational; I'm definitely a pleaser.

ELLE: Your recent film, The Other Boleyn Girl, strikes me as a classic cautionary tale about female ambition. Your character, the notorious Anne, is punished with rape, humiliation, exile, and ultimately execution for being cunning and opportunistic. Her “golden sister” Mary [played by Scarlett Johansson] wants nothing more than a simple country life and is content to accept whatever fate her father, husband, uncle, and king devise for her—and she gets to live happily ever after.
NATALIE PORTMAN: That's so interesting, because I really saw it as a cautionary tale about capitalism. All of the characters who subscribe to these values of rising up and gaining power and who will step on anyone to get there are punished. Anne is certainly the most forward about it, but she is following her family's values. She wants to impress her father even though he betrays her, whereas Mary thinks there's something sick about this world and removes herself from it. I think it's very different to be ambitious and to be ruthlessly ambitious, which Anne certainly is in the movie. In reality, an argument can be made that Anne Boleyn was witch-hunted because she had so much power.