Rose Coloured Glasses

This is a collection of my favourite vintage/ultra feminine items. I thought it would be nice to use my creative brain and put together a little photo shoot. These are things I've collected over the years and have managed to not be thrown out (I'm quite vicious when it comes to clutter, most things get chucked within six months).

The sort of "holey" scarf gets me a lot of compliments and I like it for it's more modern vibe. The pink shawl is much more traditional, but the pink hues in it are really beautiful. 

The black and pink book was given to me by my mum for my birthday and it's called 'Audrey 100', a compilation of 100 of her sons favourite photographs of her. This also happens to be my inspiration for one of my earlier posts on Audrey Hepburn. The book above it is my go to for anything I want to know about 20th century fashion. After my trip to England and the Victoria and Albert Museum clothing collection I have been hooked on the history of fashion. This book is very well written an very insightful.

I've accumulated these three purses over the years and their some of my favourites. It's too bad, but I've never been able to find an outfit that goes with the green and pink purse, although I'd really like to be able to use it one day. I remember my uncle joking that the pink purse looked sort of like a fish, all scaly with the little pink plastic pieces. I think the pink purse is pretty interesting looking, although fish isn't immediately what comes to mind. I actually have a necklace and bracelet that match, now those are interesting looking.

New York Mentality

Taken by me on my BB
(not the best quality ever)

I took this picture last summer when I went to New York for Thanksgiving and I don't want to boast, but... I LOVE this picture! I think it captures the absolute essence of New York style. The architecture in the background has the classic New York fire escape with brick facade and of course there is the all important yellow taxi.  The particular intersection is found in the heart of Soho, one of my favourite areas in all New York. I had been to New York about four times previously but the only time I was in Soho I was too small to remember. It wasn't perhaps the Soho I had been dreaming about, I was thinking more of large scale Queen West (for anyone who is familiar with Toronto). There weren't quite as many independent boutiques as I was hoping for as it has been some what taken over by the high end big name stores such as Ralph Lauren and Chanel. The architecture in the area was really amazing though. These are some more photos I took on my phone while in Soho.

Soho NY

Something I find particularly funny are the 'Don't Honk' signs posted everywhere. The ironic thing was the man driving in front of us creating a new top ten pop song with his car horn.

Soho NY

Soho NY

I found Central Park a great place to people watch because it was so calming to just sit an look at the world go by. It also gave me a feel for a completely different kind of New York.

Central Park NY

For months now I've been trying to understand what makes New York fashion tick, how can that essential style be defined? During my musing I started to think of all the most iconic American fashion designers and what I came up with was one big mix. Naming off the big labels I came up with Calvin Klein, Diane Von Furstenburg, Donna Karan, Tommy Hilfiger, Ralph Lauren, Oscar de la Renta, Tom Ford, Marc Jacobs and I am sure the list goes on. The thing that really struck me was the jumble of ethnicities and backgrounds these people came from. There are very few 'all American' designers out there, and for those who were born in America they are generally second generation immigrants coming from families very much linked with their homeland.

Oscar de le Renta
Ready to Wear

Oscar de la Renta is known to dress the impossibly upperclass Manhattan society in his simple, chic designs. As much as he is considered an American based designer his roots were laid in the far off countries of the Dominican Republic and Spain, where he worked with Balenciaga in his youth. He then proceeded to work in Paris with some of the top fashion couturiers of the time. All of this is evident in his collections. de la Renta moved to NY because he new where the future of fashion lay and he wanted to get that jump start.

Even the most American of American designers doesn't fit exactly what I'm looking for. Ralph Lauren, although being praised with giving Americans a look of their very own, still doesn't provide that new world definition needed. Many of his clothes play off of british design and sensibility, and lest we forget the very british polo player who has become the signature of this otherwise American designer. In addition to all that, Lauren is still too classic feeling without enough of that New York punch that really drives the city.






My conclusion is that in order to put one's finger on the pulse of New York one must consider these three different elements:


1. The true Americano- Because many of the "American" fashion designers of today are immigrants or children of immigrants they often bring a foreign flare to their clothes.


2. Uptown vs Downtown- Soho and Manhattan might be on the same island but their intrinsic style and vibe are different. Different designers cater to different neighborhoods. 


3. Fashion aficionados- The truly fashion conscious, in the sense of following trends, are more likely to choose something along the lines of Prada, Gucci, or Dolce&Gabbana. In the more arty areas of NY upcoming fashion designers might be more worn. 
(The über stylish blogger from Atlantic-Pacific epitomizes what I'm going for)


In the end I think what makes New York, New York is it's love of high end and exclusivity paired with the muscle go-go-go sensibility New York is known for world wide. Street fashion often plays of big chain stores such as Aeropostle or the slightly more upscale H&M hit with some crazy pair of boots. 


I'd be interested in how any of you interpret New York fashion and what you associate with American style. 

An Unlikely Find

This is my idea of the perfect everyday sundress. The fabric is light and airy, the colours are bright and cheery, and the cut is indicative of a summer dress. I went to Toronto on Friday because I had finished my exams and because I had been wearing practically nothing but my uniform the whole year I was in need of a lot of clothes. I started in Yorkville and ended up going to Queen West where I found this and one other sun dress. Before we went I told my mum I wanted to look at some of the vintage stores on Queen as that had been on my mind for quite some time. My mum isn't big on the second hand, "grimy" stores but finally conceded. I didn't realize exactly what I had gotten myself into. 

Queen St. West
http://www.realestatebrothers.ca

While walking down Queen my mum stops in front of this dusty, nameless shop filled with books and some not so nice art. In the corner there was a single rack of dresses, and before I knew it my mum had pushed me through the door. Needless to say she was getting her own back. The weird surprise was that I was actually able to find two dresses that I really liked and were really practical. The story of this odd shop doesn't stop here though. I needed to try the dresses on in order to see if they fit. There was no dressing room so I had to put them over my existing dress. The best part, however, comes when I ask if there is a mirror I could use. The man proceeds in going to the back of the store to pull out a dusty old mirror from a bag, which he then starts to wash in his sink. There was apparently no rag so I just had to look at myself in the wet glass. Finally he said he would give them to me for 20$ each and I paid him in cash right there with no receipt and no bag in which to put the dress. It was an interesting experience that I laugh about when I think of it. 

What do you think of this dress for $20?

Look Out For These Guys ;)

http://www.amazon.com/Cartoons-The-Yorker-Day-Day/dp/1449403832

This is the cover of the New Yorker cartoon calendar I gave my dad for Christmas. It makes me laugh every time.

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Inspiration

This is a rose from one of the bushes in my garden. They have the most amazing colour, and I only wish my camera was better quality so I could really capture its true beauty.

http://www.augusta-auction.com/

Roses are so flamboyant and the particular colour of the roses above, especially when seen in real life, is so attention grabbing/hogging that I thought immediately of a Christian Lacroix gown. His creations are crazy, colourful and charismatic. They are also ostentatious. The above party dress I found on an auction site for a pretty 2185$ price tag. Although Christian Lacroix isn't a personal favourite of mine I do think he's done some pretty daring things and should be admired for them. Fashion critics must love Lacroix as he can routinely and ruthlessly criticized for creating unwearable garments. What these critics never seem to understand is the elevation of fashion beyond a t-shirt and jeans, beyond a ready to wear designer label, to the world of haute couture, which, without a doubt, was Lacroix's most creative and awe inspiring outlet.

*By the way, I found this blog today and I really liked it. The whole feel is really playful and the writer has really nice personal style. It’s called 

The World Looks Red

Quote #4

I wear my sort of clothes to save me the trouble of deciding which clothes to wear.
-Katharine Hepburn

Jean Harlow
http://xfinity.comcast.net/

Not only was she an actress but a female warrior of the first division. Her's was the fight of character and she wasn't prepared to loose any ground once she had claimed it. The 30's was an era of the most exquisite movie glamour ever known. When people talk of old hollywood they are most likely eluding to women in long clinging gowns and red lips with perfect hair. The 30's also dawned the birth of the first 'blonde bombshells', Jean Harlow being the first. Katharine Hepburn is of the same vintage, however, when one looks at the image to the right it might be hard to tell. Hepburn was a character and had the mind and will power of a stubborn man. Surrounded by some of the most glamourous stars of 20th century she refused to conform and instead wore pants constantly, on and off set. Few women would have dared make such a move, especially one in such a public position. None of this would sway Katharine however, and she commented many times how she never owned a dress besides those used in movies. 


Katharine Hepburn is perhaps not the most beautiful woman in the conventional sense of the word but it was her character that made her shine. Cary Grant once said:


"She was this slip of a women and I never liked skinny women. But she had this thing, this air you might call it, the most totally magnetic woman I`d ever seen, and probably ever seen since. You had to look at her, you had to listen to her, there was no escaping her."   

This is so accurate in so many ways. I can imagine Hepburn being one of those personalities, that when she walks in the door you simply can't ignore her. Even on screen she had an aura about her that pierced through the screen. 

On the set of the 'Philadelphia Story'

The quote I chose above has a half truth in it. While Katharine Hepburn might not have been a fashionista, it would be untrue to say that she didn't put a conscious effort into the clothes she wore. In order to wear pants on constant and regular basis, was to make a decision and stick to it faithfully. One can imagine the criticism and she endured in her public and private life. The most important aspect of fashion is personal expression, and Hepburn used her clothes as a silent way of speaking her mind, without ever opening her mouth.


Katharine Hepburn was a fashion icon, plain and simple. Whether she wanted to be remembered through her clothing or not is irrelevant. Her personal style was an extension of her personality, defiant and nonconformist. 

One of the oddest outfits I've ever seen
'The Philadelphia Story'

Just as a little aside, this is a very peculiar outfit worn by Hepburn in The Philadelphia Story. I just can't make it out. She sort of looks like an organ grinders monkey ;)

Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant
Bringing Up Baby

One of my favourite comedies of all time, Bringing Up baby shows Hepburn's great sense of humour and complete insanity. Just looking at her hairdo above shows her less than perfect character in the movie. The dress is great because it brings this flouncy, frivolity that one doesn't often see with Hepburn. This movie is very much different than the other films she did, because she is the dependent woman chasing the man. The style in this movie, therefore, does not show her in suits but flowy gowns.

Katharine Hepburn in a suit

Typical of her nonchalant style, this suit epitomizes her above quote.

'Woman Of The Year'

'Woman of the Year' was another one of those movies where Hepburn played the powerful, self confident, independent woman who kept scaring away the men. She inevitably had to wear pencil skirt suits to complete the character. 

I can't help but think there is something Chanelesque about Hepburn in this picture. I think it's a combination of the pearls the black dress and the hair.

It's Been A While...

Sorry it's been a while, but in my defense finals start tomorrow and I'm more than a little stressed. 

This is how my outfit was threatening to turn out

I will say one quick thing now however. It was school spirit day and I was feeling really tired and simply not motivated to try to make a proper outfit with the designated colour palette (orange & black), so I decided the night before I would just wear my house shirt with the school sweatshirt, easy fix. I woke up today and put on my predetermined outfit, ...... um........., that was my reaction at best. I looked lazy, which I was being, and sloppy. I decided it was ridiculous to make myself feel even more tired and stresses than I already was by wearing clothes that induced these emotions. I quickly threw together a pair of skinny jeans, a white short sleeved blouse, a black Chanel inspired cropped sweater, and to finish it off I turned an orange scarf into a belt. The result was something I would actually wear on any regular day even if orange and black weren't mandatory. I felt great all day because I felt polished and put together. The moral of the story I decided is that, if you are at your house and you want to have a lazy day fine, wear the clothes that match your goals. If however you wish to go out into the world and accomplish something your self presentation matters, not only for the way others perceive you, but the way you perceive yourself. The moral might not be earth shatteringly deep, but I think it's something to be kept in mind when deciding what you want to achieve in one's day and how one wants to feel about it.

And this is how it ended up...thankfully

I will hopefully post an image of my outfit soon, once I get into the swing of exams.