American Dior

"With the introduction of the New Look, Dior quickly became American fashion’s ultimate agent provocateur, playing on the country’s appetite for newness and for French savoir-faire," according to a new book debuting this week from Assouline.



"Christian Dior lived the American dream. From the first time he set foot in New York, the legendary designer had a special relationship with the United States, and he may even be more important in America than in France."



"In one gesture, he had given women a whole new shape. Dior’s long, voluminous skirts were more extravagant and feminine than anything seen in fashion for decades."



Compared to the upcoming Taschen tomes, this one is a relative bargain at $70.

*

American Dior
By Kate Betts
Hardcover, Jacket / 11.5 x 14.5"

Taylor Swift? Is that you??

Tis the season for transformation ...Taylor dons a frothy little Chanel dress in this photo by Raymond Meier for the NYT's T Magazine. The sunglasses are sharp! More {here}. ...

Mod Cool: Aline Weber

Tom Ford cast the Brazilian runway beauty in his debut film, A Single Man.  She looks so chic in her black pencil pants (styled by Madonna's costume designer, Arianne Phillips.) But I'm most loving her hair!

A few more of her photos:

From Italian Vogue:

(Polaroids of models are always interesting...)

Zooey Deschanel? Is that you?

I almost didn't recognize her with the blonde hair. Then I saw who took the photo: the goddess of transformation, Ellen Von Unwerth.

But what do you make of this photo?...(i feel like i'm alone on my blog today. where is everyone?)

Girls Who Wear Glasses...

I've been trying to decide for a few months now what sort of glasses I should get. Perhaps something bold, Anna Karina style...

But should they be round or square or oblong or heart shaped? Like these....

Or perhaps like these?...

I have a new life, so I decided to do something unexpected:  Big,  gold, and bold -- to match the new streaks in my hair.  With glasses from here.  In addition to being beautiful these glasses, hopefully, will finally help me see things clearly!

Hope you're having a lovely Wednesday...I can't believe the week is almost over!

(Photos from We Heart It, with credits on my page.)

Amazing Auction of Audrey Dresses

Some 35 dresses, gowns, memorabilia and other treasures will be sold on December 8 at a London Sotheby's auction -- the largest public sale ever of clothing that belonged to the beloved actress. Here's a sneak peak:

This photo by Richard Avedon.

The little black Chantilly lace Givenchy dress Ms. Hepburn wore in "How to Steal a Million."

A wonderful black mod coat.

Her gorgeous white gown from "Love in the Afternoon."

The Fontana Sisters gown she planned to wear to wed Lord James Hanson. (The wedding never happened, and the dress was carefully stored by one of the actress' friends.)
Could you image getting married in her gown?! Wow!

A few more photos (taken by Reuters at the NYC auction premier over the weekend):

The sale is expected to raise tens of thousands of dollars. Half of the proceeds will go to UNICEF, a charity the actress strongly supported.

Oh, I would love to be in London for this sale! I know I always ask you this every time I write about Audrey Hepburn. But I love to hear your answers: What is it about the actress that appeals to an entirely new generation of women?


One last thing: I've watched this clip so many times. I think it's one of life's treasures.

Death of a Supermodel

South Korean supermodel Daul Kim -- who was a regular on catwalks in New York, Milan and Paris -- was found dead after an apparent suicide last week at her luxury flat in Paris.  According to the Daily Telegraph of London, her death was discovered after she left a series of messages on her now closed Blogspot blog -- I Like to Fork Myself -- saying she was lonely and depressed.

So sad. What a beautiful girl she was.  Do you think the fashion industry puts too much pressure on its young models? I've been thinking a lot lately about Gemma Ward, who announced last week that she was taking a break from modeling. The press has been relentless recently in posting unflattering pictures of Gemma,  who gained weight following the death of her boyfriend, actor Heath Ledger. The girl is gorgeous, no matter how much she weighs.

I guess this is a dark subject for a Sunday evening. But it was on my mind, so I thought I would post it.

(Photo above via Lost and Found)

Girl in the Red Skirt

I love these photos -- this girl with her red skirt and red flats....On a street in Barcelona, perhaps? Posted on flickr by Alvertigo.

Karl's World

These cheeky illustrations by aleXsandro Palombo depict Karl Lagerfeld in all his fabulosity jetting around Paris.

I found them to be quite amusing.

Let's see if we can create a short story about them.

I'll start:

Karl was in agony because he was forced to take the metro because all of the cab drivers in Paris were abducted by aliens.

Now, you!

From the Gourmet Traveller:
Karl is bemused that it takes three poorly dressed workmen to do one man's work, poorly. Sneering, he mutters, 'The background poster is not even hung correctly. Who hired these simpletons?' ... (who wants to write the next part?)

Posted by Lisi at The Beauty File blog

Photos via Fabric Magazine

Costume Designer Extraordinaire: Colleen Atwood

I'm interviewing Colleen Atwood this morning for a story on film costume design. Atwood, who has won two Academy awards for her creations, is quite amazing -- designing for such movies as Sweeney Todd, Memoirs of a Geisha and Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events.

I was doing a little internet research about her and found this Threadbanger video, complete with tips on how to do your own costumes. I thought you might like to see it:



Have a wonderful Friday! See you a little later!

The most fabulous party dress...

The flickr caption on this photo (of a very stylish Isaac Mizrahi dress) made me laugh: If it were pink, it would be the world's most perfect dress. (Posted here!)

I wish I had this dress -- in any color. One of my dear friends invited me to attend a black-tie awards ceremony tonight in Beverly Hills. And I have nothing to wear, really...Sometimes I think men have it so easy: They can always wear a tux!

Will let you know how it goes...

End of an Era

The death of Irving Penn marks the end of the era of seminal midcentury fashion photographers, according to a fantastic Los Angeles Times story by Emili Vesilind in today's Image section.



Emili writes:  "Penn, along with Richard Avedon, who died in 2004, practically invented modern fashion photography -- a place where art meets commerce -- in the mid-20th century."



The influence of both photographers -- and a group of mavericks who followed -- figures prominently on the pages of fashion magazines and books to this day.
{More details here in Emili's story}

{Also, an LAT slideshow of Penn photos here}

I hope you're having a lovely Sunday.  I'm reading the Sunday papers and sipping chai tea. Very relaxing.

Next, I have to do the laundry. Sigh. Another laundry crisis...
xo

(Photo credits: top and bottom photos by Avedon, middle photo by Penn.)

Dreamy Plaid

{here}

{here}

{here}

{here}

{here}

{here}

...
What pattern are you?!

I mean it. I think every person's personality looks like a kind of pattern. I always feel I am a "plaid" ! or maybe a "floral" one.  I am a pattern lover indeed. I think the patterns you choose for clothing can easily express how you are feeling at the moment.

So you tell me my lovelies!

How do you feel right now? Isn't it striped? Or maybe polka dots?! Or...?!

:)

Click {here} for more plaid photos at one of my Flickr galleries! 

Have a nice day!
Shokoofeh,

xo

Tousled

Hello everyone. How was your Sunday? We're back from San Diego. The beach was so warm and lovely. (I want to move there and learn how to surf. Hah!) Returning home I found the new Anthropologie catalogue in the mailbox. I try to refrain from doing too many Anthropologie posts because I could write about that store every week. (And I don't want to scare off what few male readers I have.) But here it is: I love this girl's hair....

It's the perfect tousled up-do...Since I usually look like I just rolled out of bed, I'm always seeking ways to add a glimmer of sophistication to my natural rumpledness...The headband is beyond...

...pretty...

I hope your Monday goes well. I'm very excited to announce that our beloved Shokoofeh will be guest blogging here this week from her home city of Tehran! Also, be sure to check out her beautiful blog, A New Simple Something.

xo

Sofia Coppola & Louis Vuitton

I was going through some of my old files and found these photos of Sofia Coppola's 2008 ad campaign for the bags and shoes she designed for
Louis Vuitton.

The bags seemed typical LV to me. But the ads were fantastic, so Sofia.

Especially love the Polaroids. (Ok, love the red shoes too...)

What if Sofia did a personal style book with nothing but Polaroids? Could you imagine it? She could take photos of her closet, and her office and all her interesting friends....
I shouldn't be thinking about these things at midnight because it just wakes me up and now it will be 3 a.m. before I get to bed.

O well. Happy Tuesday everyone!

One more!

Pink sunglasses and iPhone.
xo

The Temperley Zoetrope

This amazing zoetrope, created to showcase Temperley London's Spring 2010 collection, is like a giant windup music box. It's enchanting, with animated film loops and vintage stills. All set to jazz.

Have a look. What do you think?

what I wore today

Hello lovelies! Becka here, I'm so excited to be back here sharing a bit of daily inspiration with you all this week. Thank you for having me, Tina! I wanted to show you all this fantastic flickr group I have recently come across, 'What I Wore Today'. I already love browsing through blogs and photo pools like Wardrobe Remix to see what people are wearing. I love that its real people wearing their own unique style. While this group isn't technically real people, I think it may now be my favourite. You see, this group is drawings only. Yep, everyone who posts in the group whips up a wee sketch of what they've worn that day to show off to us all. Not only are there so many fantastic drawings, but most come with the best little descriptions of what is being worn and why. Love!

Here are a few of my favourites...Photo credits from top: carolyn alexander, gemma correll, tinysketchbook, lizzy stewart, hellojenuine, neithlocay, alma rosa, Sarah McNeil (aka one of my favourite, favourite artists).

Aren't they lovely? All those red cheeks are just too good.