Vinyl resting place

They say the only way to listen to music is by vinyl, I'd always been a cd and mp3 kind of girl but now that has changed and I have seen the light.

I love vinyl shopping and finding hidden gems, the musty lingering smell that seems to be a pre-requisite transports me to an era of musical revolutions, style and studio 64.

{image 1 from flickr the remaining images are from sleeveface.com}

Martinis and other crazy stories

"Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, martini in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out"

This is a great moto to live your life by, enjoy yourself and make sure you have hundreds of fantastic stories to tell.

p.s the picture above is of Charlotte Gainsbourgh who seems to embody this point.

Everything that glitters.

Hope you all have a great weekend. This picture should make you feel better about any awful weather that may be heading your way. England has been predicted Arctic storms, think that may be an excuse to hibernate at home this weekend encased in big knitted sweaters and mug of hot chocolate topped with marshmallows and cream.

This little piggy went to Prada

Wouldn't it be great to have all your favourite nursery rhymes revamped to represent your sex and the city life, well your fairy godmother has made your wish come true. From Amy Allen comes this linen bound, funny, politically incorrect , laugh out loud nursery book with a twist. To top it off the covers are adorned with beautiful water colour illustrations by Eun-kyung Kang.

This is the perfect ante dote to winter blues.

Because you guys are so fabulous, below are a few rhymes that should make you laugh and feel great to be a girl.

"This little piggy went to Prada,
This little piggy went to Cannes,
This little piggy dined at Nobu,
And this little piggy, Hakkasan.
And this little piggy went 'Wee wee wee wee!'
All the way home because she had a fat bottom

(to the tune of Frère Jacques)
"Louis Vuitton, Louis Vuitton,
Mulberry, Mulberry?
Nappy bag dilemma – Lulu, Kate or Anya?
Shopping spree, buy all three."

"There was a young woman who lived in her Choos,
Though she once had a house in a smart Chelsea Mews.
So much on Jimmy,
The house had to go,
And with it, her Amex and husband in tow!"

"Pussycat, pussycat, where have you been?
I've been to London to see McQueen,
Pussycat, pussycat, what did you there?
I bought the collection and kissed lots of air."

"Twinkle, twinkle, diamond ring,
In a blue box tied with string.
Tiffany's new princess cut,
Twice the size of baby's butt.
Twinkle twinkle, show your spark,
Can't change nappies in the dark."

Simplicity

Sometimes all you need are fresh cut flowers to add a touch of glamour to your life.

Heres talking to you kid.

Katharine Hepburn , was best known for her roles in which she played strong, stylish, sophisticated women she has been called the greatest actress to have graced the big screen and also holds the accolade for being an innovative satorialist, but I think her biggest accomplishment was the way she lived her life, she is a great role model. I've listed a few of her memorable quotes which I hope inspire you.

• I never realized until lately that women were supposed to be the inferior sex.

• Life is to be lived. If you have to support yourself, you had bloody well better find some way that is going to be interesting. And you don't do that by sitting around wondering about yourself.

• If you give an audience a chance they will do half your acting for you.

• Acting is the most minor of gifts and not a very high-class way to earn a living.. After all, Shirley Temple could do it at the age of four.

• When I started out, I didn't have any desire to be an actress or to learn how to act. I just wanted to be famous.

• Everyone thought I was bold and fearless and even arrogant, but inside I was always quaking.

• If you always do what interests you, at least one person is pleased.

• If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun.

• Without discipline, there's no life at all.

• Enemies are so stimulating.

• Loved people are loving people.

• Love has nothing to do with what you are expecting to get — only what you are expecting to give — which is everything. What you will receive in return varies. But it really has no connection with what you give. You give because you love and cannot help giving.

• Sometimes I wonder if men and women really suit each other. Perhaps they should live next door and just visit now and then.

• Marriage is a series of desperate arguments people feel passionately about.

• If you want to sacrifice the admiration of many men for the criticism of one, go ahead, get married.

• Plain women know more about men than beautiful women do.

• If you’re given a choice between money and sex appeal, take the money. As you get older, the money will become your sex appeal.

• I have many regrets, and I'm sure everyone does. The stupid things you do, you regret if you have any sense, and if you don't regret them, maybe you're stupid.

• It'd be a terrific innovation if you could get your mind to stretch a little further than the next wisecrack.

• Life can be wildly tragic at times, and I've had my share. But whatever happens to you, you have to keep a slightly comic attitude. In the final analysis, you have got to not forget to laugh.

• If you survive long enough, you're revered - rather like an old building.

• There are no laurels in life ... just new challenges.

• Life's what's important. Walking, houses, family. Birth and pain and joy. Acting's just waiting for a custard pie. That's all.

• It’s life isn’t it? You plow ahead and make a hit. And you plow on and someone passes you. Then someone passes them. Time levels.

• Life is hard. After all, it kills you.

• I don't think that work ever really destroyed anybody. I thik that lack of work destroys them a hell of a lot more.

• I never lose sight of the fact that just being is fun.

Pearl drops

Pearls are going to be a hit for spring/summer 09, get ahead of the crowd by investing in pearl jewellery. One of my favourites is the necklace below by Kathrine Wardropper in her signature coiled design.
One of my treasured pieces of jewellery are my pearl studs, they define elegance and style and as Coco Chanel said " every girl should be two things: classy and fabulous". That is exactly how I feel when I accessorise with these gemstones and my luminous, multi stranded faux pearl necklace. Adorned over a t-shirt or black dress it steals the show.

Red is all you need

If you ever feel as though the last thing you want to do in the morning is make an effort, as your eyes are half closed and as you stare in the mirror you convince yourself that nobody is really going to notice if you haven't washed your hair and the outfit you have on is the same one you wore the other day............. well your wrong.

Remember that saying "there are no ugly women, just lazy ones". Therefore, everyone make an effort, not only will it make you feel better but you only live once so make the most out of it.

If you need a bit of inspiration, just look at the above picture of French MP Rachida Dati who at 43 gave birth three weeks ago and was fired yesterday from her job as a minister in the French government. Instead of slumming around in her pjs devouring anything resembling chocolate she has made sure she looks hot in scourging red dress and lipstick.

David Downton

DAVID DOWNTON INTERVIEWED BY TONY GLENVILLE - He is one of my favourite illustrators, he did the M&S illustrations for their bags among other things. Would love to have a self-portrait drawn by him, pouting lips and contoured body with a smidgen of whimsical ........... a girl can dream!

How did you become a fashion illustrator? I am not really sure. I didn't set out to become one. It happened very gradually. I spent about 15 years as a freelance illustrator taking on whatever came in - and enjoying it too. Sometimes, because of my style of drawing I was asked to produce fashion images- but I think during that time I covered almost every subject matter. From children's books to a sex manual. My first job was a cover for Which Computer magazine in the early 80's.

Were you interested in fashion? Not particularly - but I loved the work of the great fashion illustrators, Gruau, Antonio and Eric and always appreciated them as artists.
What drew you to illustration in the first place? I was always drawing. As a child, my idea of a treat was a big sheet of white paper. I didn't realise, until much later, that you could make a living from drawing.

What triggered your move into fashion illustration - was there something specific? Absolutely. In 1996 I was sent to draw at the Paris haute couture shows for a magazine. Like most illustrators I sit listening to Radio 4 with an angle poise for company, so I was very excited to get out of the studio - and a paid trip to Paris sounded good to me.

What was your reaction to that first trip to couture? It blew me away! I was totally unprepared for it. Couture really is a parallel universe - I've heard it described as the kingdom of indulgence, which is true, but it is also extremely inspiring for an artist or illustrator; the worlds most beautiful women, designers working without constraint - the sheer theatricality of it all - there is a lot to draw!

What makes an interesting fashion subject? I think the most important thing is the sense of the body in the clothes. After that, proportion, colour, a detail. Anything can catch the eye - but what is interesting in fashion terms isn't necessarily what makes a good drawing and vice versa.

Lets talk about your work methods. How do you arrive at the elimination of detail? For me this is the hardest and the most interesting thing. In order to leave something out, first you have to put it in, or at least understand how every thing works. I do dozens of drawings on to layout paper taking the best from each one as I go. When the drawing looks right I start to eliminate, to de-construct if you like. I keep working until it looks spontaneous.

What methods do you use to apply colour? It depends on the result I want to achieve and what is most appropriate to the subject. I use watercolour or gouache for small scale pieces. If I need flat saturated colour I use cut paper collage and then apply line using an acetate overlay.

What about the pure line drawing? I use black Indian ink on acetate or paper.
So how do you draw on location, say at the Paris shows? I don't actually draw during the catwalk shows anymore, I find it impossible. I take photographs or I just watch - I draw whenever there is a chance that the model will stay still, backstage or at fittings sometimes even in the car between shows. When I first started I thought it was my responsibility to draw the clothes as they came down the catwalk. The first show I ever saw was Versace couture, I just about managed to draw Kate Moss' arm before she disappeared!

What for you makes a successful fashion illustration? Fluidity, mastery of the medium - capturing a sense of the moment, layout and use of space and most important of all, strong drawing. You can't be too good at drawing.

Which fashion illustrators do you admire? Gruau for his graphic genius, Vertes for his humour, Bouché for his lightness of touch and Eric for his draughtsmanship.

What about the illustrators of today? That's harder but there are probably half a dozen strong, individual fashion illustrators in the world today who have anything like the panache of those I have mentioned, not many.

What is your attitude to the computer? Well, I have one, I think its probably a necessary evil, but nothing can compare with that first flash of black ink on white paper.

What prompted you to start painting portraits? Again it wasn't planned. I met Marie Helvin when she came to an exhibition of mine in London. I asked if I could draw her and was delighted when she agreed. The drawing turned out well and I began to plan a book of drawings of the world's most amazing women.

Are you still planning a book? Absolutely, I've just given up worrying about when it will be finished.

So would you call yourself a portrait painter? No! Absolutely not. Lucien Freud, Graham Sutherland and Jenny Saville are portrait painters.

Does your approach for the portraits differ from the fashion work? The aims are the same, simplicity, a fluid line, the illusion of effortlessness, of course there is the added dimension of having to capture a likeness.

Is that important to you? Do you find it difficult to achieve? It is very important and strangely I don't find it difficult. It is more a knack than anything else. Some great artists don't have the knack some mediocre ones do...

You have worked with some very famous women - why do you think they agree to sit for you?You'd better ask them!

And why women by the way? The illustrators I mentioned earlier Gruau, Bouché and Antonio always drew the most beautiful women of the era. Also, I like women, it's a great job.

Tell me something about the sittings themselves They normally take about two hours and usually I go to the sitters' house or a hotel suite. I drew Anna Piagggi between couture shows in Paris while they were taking the chairs away around us. Marisa Berenson was drawn on a boiling hot October day in New York on a roof terrace. You have to be flexible.

Are you trying to say something new about your famous sitters? No, I draw what I see - I wouldn't presume to know someone after two hours. I am dealing with the public person not trying to expose the person behind it or get at some inner truth - but the best drawings are true collaborations.

So, you do a complete drawing in two hours? No, I complete the work at home in my studio - a safe environment - and I never let the sitter see what I am doing, I don't have the confidence. I have to have time to evaluate it myself first.

Who would you like to have drawn? Staying with women, from the 20th century - I'd say Sylvaana Mangano, Lee Miller, Audrey Hepburn, Josephine Baker, Ava Gardner, Edith Sitwell… it's a long list.

How do you escape from the world of style? By not living in it. I escape to it from time to time which is great also. I have two children who couldn't care less about who I am drawing - which probably helps

J'adore.............

These fashion illustrations by David Downton from fashionillustrationagency.com are exquisite, you can find an abundance of quality illustrations on his website, definitely worth a visit. He has also, done a few celebrity portraits.

W Magazine

Does it seem as though every time you look through a magazine Kate Moss's face stares back at you and as far back as you can remember she has been the model around. Well this year marks Kate' 20th year of modeling!!! and the pictures below from the Hammam editorial styled by Alex White it is evident why she is super model. The movement and posture make the pictures feel alive.
They would look great blown up and printed on to canvas, and hung in a sitting room.

All I want is a................

Tuxedo mini.

I want this dress but alas it can't be purchased, it's from makimaki vintage ebay store and was sold many months ago.

The detailing is so perfect with the 3/4 length sleeves and ruffled bib with tiny bow.

Power dressing

I have recently re-watched Annie Hall, for what would be the 10th time, and one of the many reasons I'm drawn to the film is Diane Keaton's characters way of constructing her wardrobe. She borrowed heavily from men's wardrobes, as wore baggy trousers, blazers, vests, ties, oversize shirts and floppy hats. Every decade this androgyny look repeats itself on the catwalks to the high street, in various incarnations.

To create the look costume designer Ruth Morley worked with Ralph Lauren to create the preppy masculine look. Recently brogue shoes have resurfaced and they look great with a pair of skinny jeans, over sized t-shirt and waistcoat, which appears to be the 21st century girls take on Annie Hall. I need to start wearing my baggy trousers which I purchased a few seasons back and have rarely come out to play as I live in dresses. But having been re inspired by Annie Hall and Yohiji Yamamoto's recent collection I might start playing being a boy.

Editorial

Sometimes all you need is a camera

Black and White

This picture from the Satorialist has all the charm of a Parisian cafe. Black and white pictures always seem to be more sexy and this one has a Gaelic nonchalance feel about it. With the tousled hair and cigarette hanging loosely from her fingers. Makes me want to jump on the eurostar and walk aimlessly around Paris in my heels and short dresses.

Swarovski Crystallized

I've never been a big ring wearer, however, that may change as the pieces at swarovski-crystallized.com are exquisite. If you want statement jewellery that looks expensive then you should take out your credit card and let your fingers do the talking. The site also, allows you to create your own accessories with the online customisable collections.

First Lady

The sparkling pale gold dress and matching coat worn by Michelle on Inauguration day has to be one of the worst outfits I've seen her wear. The outfit itself isn't terrible and would look great on someone in their sixties. But when you're still in your forties and actually have figure, you can be more adventurous and sexy. At least she was a bit daring with her shoes, the green looks great against the yellow dress.

The outfit was designed by Isabel Toledo, who probably wanted to go for something classy and elegance, but the all over sparkle makes it look a bit fussy for the day.

I did however, like the outfit she wore in the evening, which was designed by Jason Wu. The ivory floor length dress emphasised her great figure and height.

Peek a boo

Currently I wear a pair of tights all the time, as my staple outfit is a dress and living in England means that you can't leave the house without something warm encasing your legs.

I have a varied collection, ranging from neon colours to ribbed. I think the pair on the left are uber cute and rather risque. Just need to find a pair now, you can find pictures of these and other decadent pieces at the link below. http://community.livejournal.com/foto_decadent/1148576.html#cutid1

Back is the new Black

Yohji Yamamoto's Spring 2009 collection.

I love the structure of some of the trousers, would look great incorporated into my wardrobe.