cups of tea

Something is a little off this week and I can't quite put my finger on it. I had a really good weekend too so I'm not sure what the deal is...maybe Mercury is still in retrograde? It's starting to get darker earlier too - but I usually look forward to that. Whatever the case, I find when things are off the best remedy is a big cozy sweater, a stack of reading material (or my macbook) and a warm cup of something - in this case tea...

from deviantART: aksinia, Laauraa, miraisi, rhea_23, pinkparis 1233, orbatid,

aimeelikestotakepics, kapricka84,liv_colour,fridayreflections &  flickr

On the upside, it finally appears to be getting a bit cooler here and  (fingers crossed) I may be able to wear fall outfits soon! For now I'll trick myself into thinking it's really fall, drink my cups of tea and wear my over-sized sweaters with the air-conditioner going!

PS: Look at these adorable teacups on etsy teaspoons and petals
And these origami bird-shaped tea bags! so cute!

a single man - - written & directed by Tom Ford

Yep, that Tom Ford...



It's like a gucci ad come to life! comes out in the next month or so.

legs of a different color

I saw these photos by Jimmy Backius earlier this week on little love lost and I fell in love. I don't normally like to repost things but these are beyond gorgeous...

I'm dying to find out a) who styled these b) where they were originally published...anyone know??


Have a great week end!

I don't always love lily allen but I love this video and it's a great little song too.

Rise of the British Empire (or: London FW ss10)

I'm pretty much an Anglophile, I even lived there a one point, so it's no surprise that I love so many UK designers. But my love for the Brits aside, there are some really exciting things coming out of London these days and I would argue that in the past decade or so (fashion-wise) it has gained the competitive edge needed to be in the same league as, say, a New York, Milan or Paris.  Here are a few of my favorites...

Burberry returned home to the runways of London (rather than Milan) for the 25th anniversary of London Fashion Week which was a fairly big to-do clothing aside. But I really loved the collection - I'm such a fan this draped tulle business! Obviously Burberry wouldn't Burberry without their beloved trench coat but I thought Christopher Bailey did a beautiful job reinventing that iconic piece this time around.

Christopher Kane...I can honestly say (vintage clothing aside) I have rarely seen anything interesting done with gingham but he managed to make it work here with out making the models look like they were sporting table cloths or off to a picnic.

Luella...in a word, cute. In another couple of words, totally wearable (for me anyway). I love bows, I love dresses, I love adorable yet sexy footwear. sign me up! **update***nylon has posted some cool shots of the show here.

*honorable mentions* check out these (slightly) lesser known designers of London FW:

Duro Olowu (fabulously loud prints)
Mark Fast (form-fitted cobweb knit dresses - a la suzie bubble)
Loise Gray (more prints and deconstructed dresses)

*all runway shots from: style.com

on pianos and tall buildings

Oops...yet another Tuesday post but don't get to used to it, I think it's just a coincidence!

Speaking of coincidence... I had the cover version of the Tears for Fears song "Mad World" in my head all day long (it was in the film Donnie Darko for those of you who saw it) so after watching this lovely video directly below (via English Muse)...

Hauschka - Morgenrot from Jeff Desom on Vimeo.

...I then searched YouTube to find a clip of Mad World (because hearing the song in question is the only surefire way to get it out of one's head) and I guess I had never seen the video for the song (directed by: Michel Gondry) but it's a cool little video...




What struck me, though, was the reappearance of an upright piano at the very end of the Mad World video. These two very unrelated bits of imagery seemed to want to be posted together - what can I say, sometimes I'm merely a messenger for the muses :)

indian summer

I came across dylan sada's work on deviantART a while back and these photos seemed to fit my wistful end of summer mood so I thought I would share them with you...

happy monday...

*all images from deviantart

NYC fashion week picks part 2

Ok everyone, take a collective deep breath...there are just a few more collections that I thought as a whole were worth commenting on and then I need to take a serious catwalk-break for at least a few days - I'm a little overwhelmed!

OSCAR DE LA RENTA: 

 sigh...I will never tired of heidi braids...it's official. The braids along with the red hat / blue dress combo early on basically won me over.  I never fancied myself an Oscar girl but I have always said he has a way with dresses.  I think it was these beautiful details that really jumped out at me here...

(and did you notice...more of that orange I mentioned earlier this week)

PROENZA SCHOULER:

I haven't been that impressed with the past few seasons of Proenza, truth be told, but I am always surprised and intrigued by the color schemes they choose - I mean that in the best way possible. I love the embellished dresses and the electric blues on black. The yellow day-glow is interesting but I don't see it showing up in my closet at any point in the near future.

Of course there were a few pieces here and there that I liked from other collections but many of you lovely people have already covered them! I did come across Naeem Khan's presentation which I thought was gorgeous - I don't know much else about her though...

how about you all - what were your favorites??? I'd love to know!

Julian Casablancas (of the Strokes) - - 11th dimension 

all runway shots from: style.com

NYC fashion week picks part 1

I don't think I'll ever get used to the fact that in fashion just when we are all about to slip into our thick tights, knits & coats here were are talking about spring already! That being said, spring is looking quite colorful and I'm pretty excited about that.

Cobalt blues are popping up everywhere! Especially in the marc by marc jacobs collection! um, hello gorgeous!

I love the over-grown bows atop the models' heads but they are pretty reminiscent of Marc's bunny ears creation for Louis Vuitton last season (albeit a tad more wearable), non?

and on a slightly more feminine & elegant note...

PS: Ok, ladies (and lads)...What do we all think about Rodarte's collection? I am a huge fan but I can't help but being a little let down by some of what I saw. Body Paint aside (because that was awesome) it seemed a little too similar to the last time around but with less exciting colors/textures. I still love you, Mulleavy sisters, so not to worry!

sorry if this is runway overload - such is fashion week. But here is a tune by imogen heap to calm your nerves...

*all runway shots from: style.com

runway trends: spring 2010

Surprise, Tuesday post! I've been patiently checking out style.com everyday or so waiting for my favorite designer's shows to post (still waiting for many of my favs, actually...) Meanwhile here are a few trends I've noticed...

orange you glad...

I have to admit, orange is not my favorite color to wear... still it is undeniable that the designers have latched on to this idea of bright orange for spring.

more shoulders...

The strong shoulder trend from fall 09 seems to be lingering but it's a tad more feminine/ softer this time around. I like funky shoulders so I definitely approve.


louder prints...

Thus far on the NYFW catwalk the liberty-esque floral prints that littered the past two seasons have been ignored in lieu of a batch of louder more playful prints.

more ny fashion week to come!

sick in september

I'm sort of bedridden at the moment - we're thinking food poisoning since the boy is feeling sick too but I did manage to pop out and see September issue on Saturday beforehand so all was not lost.  It was such fun for me to watch. I definitely recommend it to anyone who adores fashion and has ever bought an issue of US Vogue.

Back for real Wednesday but in the meantime, here's a little clip of Grace Coddington- creative director/stylist  (who in my opinion  steals the show from M. Wintour for most of the film)

artist spotlight: klaus haapaniemi

I know that next week will likely be fashion-filled, what with NYC Fashion Week and all, so I thought I would do an art related post today rather than the usual Monday slot.

Klaus Haapaniemi is a finish artists/designer who has done work for numerous labels like Diesel, Levis, Marimekko, Dolce & Gabbana, Cacharel. I love these peacock prints in particular...

more at...http://www.klaush.com/

happy weekend everyone!

pink noise

I have a minor obsession with seeing all the diverse places people call "home" whether it be where they live or where they work. Ok, to be honest, the obsession may go slightly beyond minor.

I am the type of person who doesn't mind moving but, that said, wherever I do go I need to be in a creative, warm and safe space to do my best.  I even tried making my dorm room in college into something more inviting and inspired.  My point here is I love interior decor and so visits to sites like the Selby are increasingly frequent.

I came across this cool (albeit pink) room belonging to French Model/Designer, Ines de la Fressange and I thought it was worth sharing...

photos: the selby

I'm thinking the boy in my house isn't going to let me have a pink room so I'll just have to live vicariously for now!

PS: I'm not usually into instrumental guitar but Kaki King plays her guitar like no one I've ever witnessed...

kaki king -- playing with pink noise

PPS: Thanks to Vain & Vapid for the heads-up that LULA #9 comes out today! see the cover here

rabbit heart

will you be cracking out the rabbit ears for Fall??

ps: happy labor day

ziggy stardust

I must be channeling Bowie this week because when I started to put these items together Ziggy definitely popped into my mind!

Although I do adore softer daytime looks, there are few things I love more than getting glammed up to go out. Watching all of these new fall items pop up everywhere (namely sequins, brocade, leather, studs, over-sized faux fur, velvet) makes me so excited and slightly fearful for my debit card! Here are a few glamtastic things that I wouldn't mind having in my closet.

(fur & trophy jackets, bags & playsuit - topshop / all shoes - urban 

leggings & earrings - xxi /unicorn ring - etsy / stack ring - mywaredrobe)

and to celebrate the long weekend...I've called on Ziggy himself

Have a good one!

for whom the (wedding) bells toll (aka: dream dress)

I am not one of those girls who planned my dream wedding when I was little but I almost died when I saw this amazing dress. I thought, "that is what I would want to wear"...

ashes to ashes

 You may recall a few weeks ago I said that I was going (to try hard) to post a few more "personal style" related things here and there so I figured I would do another reckless daughter wardrobe post today, thus keeping my promise.

You may not be aware that Southern California is hellishly hot at the moment (and literally on fire in many parts) and with the impending apocalypse goes the practicality of layering of any kind.  I've been doing my best to stay cool, drink my iced lattes and look on from the shade as bits of ash and debris fall atop my freshly washed car. Thanks to this lovely vintage discovery it's not all that hard to do it semi-stylishly...

vintage 1940 playsuit: Q's daydream

The other thing about these fires is the weird light (and I am sure terrible air quality) that goes with it. I've been trying to take pictures outside for a few days (these ones are from the weekend) and the lighting has been a complete pain in the neck. I even ended up inside for a few of them. My apologies if these are a little hard to see in detail.

shorts: h&m, t-shirt: ?, shoes: marais usa

I would like to add, I found these shoes months before they landed in Urban Outfitters, thank you very much! I hate when that happens!

and speaking of ash...

bowie / ashes to ashes