Christian Lacroix and the Tale of Sleeping Beauty

Christian Lacroix has certainly been broadening his horizons as of late.  Since his namesake label shuttered in 2009, he's designed railway uniforms, served as art director for an exhibit about Middle Eastern fashion, created a capsule collection for Desigual, and, my personal favorite, made a collage of what he thinks Kate Middleton should wear on her wedding day.  The couturier's latest project is a collaboration with author, Camilla Morton, on a fashion fairy tale called, "Christian Lacroix and the Tale of Sleeping Beauty."  Lacroix provided all of the illustrations for the story, which are made from hand sketches and computer graphics.  This is totally the bedtime story that I will read to my children, should I ever have any in the very far-off future.

Jack Reece Irvin

I probably spent too much time on this tumblr earlier...  The only thing that would have made it better is if the quote in the first picture had referenced Prada fur.

No Horseplay

For every fashion-loving grown up(ish) woman out there who ever wanted a pony as a girl, I give you Moooi's Horse Lamp:

 So trendy...

This thoroughbred stands at 16 hands (about 7 feet) high, the size of a real horse and costs well over 3,000 euros. Nbd though; a real horse costs way more than that and those live ones eventually die anyway. Lamps are forever.

(Images from Moooi via You Might Like This)

PS, I know it's Couture week, but unlike multi-tasking pro Jax, I tend to malfunction when presented with real homework. You may not see a whole lot of me while I'm getting back into the swing of things, but I'll try.

Black Swan, Black Swan, Black Swan...

Alternate Post Title: How Sick Of Me Is It That I Want To Become A Ballerina After Seeing This Movie? (Thanks Mulleavy Sisters)

I finally had the pleasure of going to see Black Swan with Jax tonight, as it finally made its way to Nashville after about two weeks of me cursing my non-proximity to a major metropolitan area. After spending the entire car ride home trying to create a summary of just how phenomenal and powerful this movie is (the acting, the camera work, the editting, etc.), I've decided that my simple words can do it no justice. It was psychological and forceful that I don't even think any words exist for it. All I know is that it may well be the best movie I'll ever see.

On that note, I do believe I have adequate words to describe the fantastic job that the Rodarte girls did on the film's costumes. While the tutus and stage outfits were phenomenal, it was the practice gear that really excited Jax and I. I've always thought that ballet clothing was really neat - lots of great, innovative layering - but the Mulleavy sisters take what is naturally cool-looking and make it look perfect. Never in my life have I longed this greatly for ballet clothing. Some of the highlight aspects in my mind were the great leg warmers usually worn only on one leg (and one arm warmer that was a clear nod to Rodarte's signature open-weave knit), a few long sleeved shrugs that seemed impractical but added a lot of depth to the outfits, and, most notably, the woven straps at the back of every leotard or top.

The pieces were incredible, and I speak for Jax and myself when I say that it would be out of this world if the Mulleavy sisters considered releasing some of the pieces for sale. While I'm not a dancer, I would definitely invest in some Rodarte dance wear at the drop of a hat.

Kate Mulleavy's sketches of the White and Black Swans

Katie

(Images from Rag Pony and Who Is Scout?)

Killer Heels

JAX

 

1.  Tom Ford's new stilettos, via

2.  Original creations by Lauren Tennenbaum of (in)decorous taste

3.  Chanel's lightbulb heels, via

4.  Dsquared spinal heels, source unknown

5.  Vivienne Westwood 10-inch Anglomania heels, via

6.  Tove Jansson's chain shoes, via

7.  The infamous Chanel gun shoes, source unknown

Monsieur Ford

KATIE

I cannot wait to invest in the December 2010 issue of French Vogue edited by Tom Ford, and I use the word invest heavily. I've never really been crazy for the guy, but with his recently released super secret collection, personalized issue of French Vogue, and rumored collaboration with H&M, Tom Ford is on top of the world right now, and it's hard resist jumping on the bandwagon for much longer.

To all my non-fashion friends out there, I'm not dropping twenty bucks on just a magazine, I'm investing in a piece of art.

-Katie

(Image from The Huffington Post)

PS,

I know, I'm lame. I never update. I'm working on it. Promise.

Alexander McQueen

KATIE

Dear Sarah Burton,

Thank you so much for willingly continuing with the legacy left behind by the late, great McQueen. I think that I speak for most fashion lovers when I say that we all worried about the content of your McQueen shows from the day it was announced that you would become the main designer for the house. Not because you have a lack of talent--that, you have proven to be more than sufficient. It was simply because, when such a great artist has left our presence, we're forced to ask ourselves if their art could ever be imitated in the truest form or, even more of an impossibility, whether or not it could continue down its planned path. As far as what McQueen would have planned for this collection, we'll never be able to know, but I have a feeling that it would have been something strikingly similar to this.

No one expects you to be McQueen, Ms. Burton, and no one expects to ever see work the lights of his again. All that said, you're doing an incredibly fantastic job filling the empty, armadillo shoes he left behind.

 

 

 

-Katie

Juarez

JAX

I am generally a fan of just about everything Rodarte does (aside from consistently pricing their pieces at four-digit numbers).  There is no doubt in my mind that the Mulleavy sisters will be ones to watch in fashion for years to come.  However, they have recently come under fire for one little aspect of their collaborative collection with MAC cosmetics.  The theme of the line is factory towns along the border of Texas and Mexico, and most of the products looks and names call to mind this imagery quite nicely, such as "Sleepless," a light gray taupe lipstick, and "Bordertown," a frosted black eyeshadow with multi-colored veining.  However, the name of a certain light pink nail polish has brought quite a bit of attention to the brand.  They have given it the name "Juarez," which is actually a city in Mexico that has had its fair share of controversy.  It is known as a crime-ridden place where young women often disappear when going to or from their factory jobs, and are raped and murdered with seldom a police response.  The town has even been called "a serial killers' playground" by TruTV, and Jennifer Lopez starred in a movie addressing the very issue.

All images via HintMag

It is my opinion that whether the naming of this polish was purposeful or not, it was done in poor taste.  Laura and Kate Mulleavy themselves stated that their actual inspiration for their makeup came about from a roadtrip through Texas, so they obviously never have encountered the city of Juarez and did not ever obtain actual visual ideas from it.  The case must be that they either named the nail pigment by carelessly choosing a random Mexican border town, or that they knew of the area's problems and meant to invoke some sort of feelings and get some press off of the fact that they chose such a place.  I think that associating something of beauty and glamour with a city laden with such terror is not the most politically correct choice.  Let's just say that I'm not naming my new line of bejeweled platform stiletto shoes "Baghdad."

However, upon discussing this subject with Katie yesterday, my mind was opened to an entirely different insight to the situation.  I was surprised when she took the exact opposite viewpoint than me (usually we have kind of similar tastes and ideas; great minds...).  Her thoughts were that it's really a matter of artistic integrity.  When it comes to art, the artist is supposed to create whatever he or she feels. It doesn't matter if the Mulleavy sisters have been to the town of Juarez or know its political history or not, if that shade of light pink is the nail color they imagine the women of that town to have, it is just that they name the polish accordingly.  You can't call art right or wrong, politically correct or incorrect, in poor taste or not.  You simply have to accept it as it is, and it doesn't mean that you have to buy it, or even like it.

So there are our two opposing views.  I was just reflecting on how it's nice to have an intelligent conversation every once and a while and gain new insight on matters, so I thought I'd share.  To quote Aristotle, "It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it."

jax likes...colors

duro olowu spring 2010

exactly the clothing i would wear if i was an art curator in new york or something.  amazing detailing.  click on each image to enlarge.

jax likes...kelsey brookes

after fellow blogger rumi featured a piece from kelsey brookes's most recent show i decided to look into his work.  he's apparently a former scientist and is now based in san diego, and his most recent show was called "bigger, brighter, bolder" in la jolla, ca.  for more information and works you can visit his website here or his blog here.