Confectionate ↓ next post
Pink hearts.
Mountains of red gift boxes at the supermarkets.
Chocolates.
Chick flick suggestions for the special day.
And yes, lingerie.
So you know what you gotta do – head out to that lingerie store and buy something alluring and ultra-feminine, with lots of lace. That’s the expectation. The expectation is colored in pink. But before you head out and hunt for the expected, stop for a second. We have just the right thing for you, and it involves more surprise. It has a happy smell of tangerines and magnetism of Guerlain’s new coral lip gloss. Can you guess what it is?
Check It ↓ next post
Checkers have been on my mind. One of the best memories I have from childhood is playing checkers with my grandpa. He would take a break from garden work, and we would begin the game. This picture I found on a random Dutch Blog made me smile and remember my own games. (What was I doing on a Dutch picture album blog? Hang on for the story!)
My other encounters were with the checkers’ closest fashion cousins — plaid, gingham, tartan — you name it! There is Burberry, of course. There is also Christopher Kane. Christopher Kane does complex checks like no other: the dresses from Spring 2010 are ephemeral and the mismatched gingham patterns are infectious.
Rodarte’s checks are to Kane’s as is Lynch’s “Inland Empire” to “Cinderella”. Here is Rodarte’s twisted check interpretation.
This brings me back to the Dutch blog. Now the truth will be revealed. I was so inspired by Kane & Rodarte, that I got curious if there are any bras that carry the same spirit of playfulness and can satisfy my checkers fashion craving. So I started the search.
Of course, some random stuff came up (like the kids playing checkers) and other stuff I wish didn’t come up (the image of the Santa Claus Checkered Boxers will never be erased from my mind – don’t ask). Oh yes, back to bras. To sum up, there was one and then there was THE ONE.
Contradict ↓ next post
As you may have already guessed from Spring 2010 Runways,Fashion’s got a recession of its own — to a beautifully safe game. As I see it, it’s got three tricks under its belt.
Trick #1: Fire the real visionary (like Olivier Theyskens), and hire the one that will consistently produce adorable salable frocks. Fail-proof novelty? No longer an oxymoron.
Trick #2: Take the stuff the streets are made of and lift it up onto the Runway. Erin Wasson’s latest collection was a parade of denim cut-offs, booties, and leather. Groundbreaking… 3 years ago!
These tricks guarantee that we’ll be able to swallow Fashion’s new offerings without choking.
Ready for Trick #3?
Ah, you already know it. You are hyper-aware that Contrast is the game to play these days. A delicate lace dress paired with a military jacket? Check. Sequins on Converses? Check. Gap khakis with scary, towering Alaia heels? Absolutely. A crisp white shirt worn with a severe black bra underneath? Yep! - we went as far as that (on this very website!)
The trick works because you get to shop your mom’s closet for that incongruent 80’s blazer AND buy Balmain’s 2K pants to go with it. Style-clashing is IT. The more clashing, the more raging.
Here is the upshot. Once the rage turns into the recipe, it gets melancholic. As much as I love contrasts (and recipes), the clashing game is verging on the annoying. Unpredictable style combinations are now just as predictable as wearing florals in the spring.
So I found myself in a funny state. I don’t want to let go of contradictions, but I need a new game to play. How do I break the ground? It hit me — I should contradict my own self.
Here is the truth.
Snag It ↓ next post
Thigh-high boots aren’t the only thing that earned their pass from the strip into the land of high fashion this year. Ripped tights tagged along. So, if you are one of those people who managed to dodge the Teen Rebellion Phase without some snagged nylons, now is your chance to mimic it — and with the sartorial flare this time around.
Speaking of fleeting nylon lives, some bras I’ve seen seem beyond fragile.
My fear?
The Fifth Element ↓ next post
There’s Ilya’s way to do bondage, and there is Marlies Dekkers.’ The Dutch line does not subtract from bras. It complicates them. The result? Their bras are high-concept as they stand, and make all “cup, lace, clasp, price tag” lingerie concoctions seem like yesterday’s news. Enter the future of the lingerie.
Speaking of the future, remember Milla’s bandage (bondage?) outfit in The Fifth Element? It forecasted to us Leeloo’s angelic, ethereal perfection, even before she did all her world-saving.
But, imagine what would have happened if the plan went wrong. What if the angel that the scientists were reconstructing turned out to be fallen? It’s easy: Milla’s darker doppelganger would wear nothing else, but this:
States of Bondage ↓ next post
Until a few days ago, I thought that bondage-style lingerie is only fit for… you know… porn and Paris Hilton. As it turns out, I was wrong. Evidently, there is a way to transform the highly suspect lingerie piece into a high-class, high-fashion, edgy style. You don’t believe? Consider this.
To begin, reflect on one or two not-so-subtle leather tools by Ilya Fleet.
Sure — as is, we are back in the land of cheap pay-per-view thrills.
Enter totally genius styling in German Vogue.
Voilà! You’ve got…
A Cause Des Garçons ↓ next post
After watching Yelle’s psychedelic A Cause Des Garçons video and dancing our ears off, we are feeling very purple, very Pucci.
A bra fix?
Unbare Back ↓ next post
The queen of low-end lingerie lines, Vanity Fair, has a curious ad in Elle that says,
“Your bra should never reveal itself, even under your most revealing clothes.”
A more arbitrary slogan seems hardly possible. We had a few comparable ideas, like: “Never wear a purple bra!” Or, “Always match your bra with your socks!” But even they began to seem reasonable after a while. (Maybe Vanity Fair will pay us and use them in their future Elle ads.)
So, we send Vanity Fair for its dogmatism and fashion-illiteracy to the Bra Purgatory.
As we transition back to the open-minded world of luxury lingerie, let’s take up the new slogan:
“Let your bra reveal itself, even under your most revealing clothes.”
As usual, not anything goes: fashion has rules even for new trends. You’ll need: a) aplomb, b) a couple of styling tricks, and c) an existing trend that’s picking up speed. Aplomb is up to you. We’ve got the rest.
Neon Lights
Neon lights
Shimmering neon lights
And at the fall of night
This city’s made of light
As you listen and dissolve in U2’s cover of Krafwerk’s “Neon Lights", add to the experience:
Who is responsible for this creation?
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