Foxy Lady

The girls at Wildfox consistently produce the kind of fun, flirty promotional videos that make you want to be the girls in them – everyone’s laughing and usually jumping on beds in comfy socks and the signature lounge-worthy knitwear. This season, the theme is Vive La France and the result is a glorious lovechild of Marie Antoinette and Risky Business. Teen queens in pearls and underwear cavort through a palace having what appears to be the most fashionable sleepover ever. Designers Kimberley Gordon and Emily Faulstich, who styled and storyboarded the short themselves, created quite a comprehensive display of their collection using different parts of the grounds; they even replicated that tables of sweets from the Sophia Coppola movie that always make me drool. The clothes are delicate but slightly mussed – there are ribbon-topped socks and tulle tutus, but these are paired with slouchy tanks printed with dripping, Goosebumps lettering. They have their Riviera moment, lounging poolside in sequined tanks and rakish cat-eye sunglasses, and stroll through the garden in a tailored blazers and floral print pants. There’s even a brief Moulin Rouge moment (handlebar moustaches?) that left me coveting military-syle jackets and button downs.

The dancey Devendra Bandhart soundtrack leaves the whole piece feeling like the little sister to Sophia Coppola’s original Marie Antoinette film, but there’s absolutely nothing bad about that. Beautifully styled and professionally executed, this is one of the better collection videos I’ve seen; it was entertaining but also displayed the breadth of their collection well.

I want some BOY

Boy by Band of Outsiders that is! nyucknyucknyuck...
Seriously though, so many things to love about the SS11 shots they just put out. Kirsten Dunst is perfect for Polaroids, plus she's weilding a Blow Pop - girl after my own heart. It was incredibly difficult to choose just a few favs; I gravitate to the borrowed-from-the-boys aesthetic and this collection has my current obsessions as well: slightly prep, and army green. I love the rumpled grunge of a cargo-style ensemble, a la photo 2, and the plain piped tee in photo 3 harkens back to my tennis days. Photo 1 is just the cutest thing ever, especially those metallic oxfords and the tails topcoat.
Now I'm yearning for round John Lennon glasses too... help.

sk8r grl

Spring Ads are out in full swing and being a surftown girl I can't help but notice the decidedly Dogtown-ZBoys tendencies in the latest batch of SS11 shoots. Obviously, 70s is experiencing a revival - please, that's only been beaten into our brains by every analysis this side of September - but now we're starting to actually see it commercially materialize and, frankly, I'm really feeling the lazy daze vibe. I'm still a fan of leather and army green cargo parkas, but I could totally go for some marigold sundresses and a nice vibrant wedge, perhaps a cherry-print ruffle bikini? I was raised on skateboards and sandy beaches - these ads look more like my hometown on a July day than something 'latest' - but I'm loving it, especially as I've grown so utterly sick of every spring collection featuring florals. Springtime, birds chirping, pastel flowers. Yes. We get it. Give me something new. True, the inspiration is probably actually from So-Cal but I'll take what I can get, yeah?
Below, a collage with my favorite ads and some 70s Cali girls and boys.

Marc Jacobs SS11; 70s Pierre Cardin dresses; Georg Jensen SS111; girl, Huntington Beach
skater, Huntington Beach; Gidget; flikr photo
Celine SS11; flikr photo; Bally SS11; flikr photo; Jil Sander SS11; unknown

and while we're at it, a nice dose of the original surf rock... under all this snow, we need some wishful thinking

so it begins: ss11 lookbooks

It's January, so that means it's time for Spring lookbooks to start appearing (naturally...). While the runways were all about neon-infused 70s-meets-30s, I'm still wavering more towards the classic Americana. Where last spring was tough, hard, with studs and raw edged denim, this spring is yielding both a softer palette and shape. It's the Ralph Lauren influence rather than the Balmain.
Below, a few of my favs that have surfaced. Madewell, of course, was pared-down sportswear excellence. It was hard to chose a favorite among the spectacular loose blazers, high rolled shorts, and button downs (top pieces 1, 2, and 3 of my wardrobe) in honeyed khaki and navy. Recent import ASOS was wonderful too - tons of colorful stripes and flowing maxi dresses that cause me to lament my shortness.

Wildfox Couture White Label

ASOS

Madewell

Topshop

My one departure: I'm terribly in love with Prada's vibrant swirls and stripes. Since I definitely do not have the funds to get my hands on the real deal, I'll be searching for a diffusion. And definitely some round sunglasses.

follow-up: Tom Ford SS11 video

As previously mentioned, Tom Ford has been slowly throwing tidbits of publicity for his womenswear collection like little treats to an obedient (and attention starved?) fanbase. The pictures of the tight-lipped show surfaced a month ago and now at long last we can see them breathe; the video, set to also-model Karen Elson's 'Pretty Babies', flashes between the recognizable struts of the modeling world's giants and backstage preparations, with flickers of Ford's own smiling handsome face as he emceed the show. Ford claims to have shied away from his 90s uber-sex vibe, but the video proves otherwise for the fashion obsessed, who are always hungry; brief enough to whet the palette but just short enough that we're right back where we started - eyes wide, hearts racing, begging for more.

Prada, mi amada

Prada just released their ad campaign for SS'11 and it's everything you'd hope for (read: movement making). No doubt this will create a trend for boas and striped sunhats in the same way they brought back A-line skirts and the 60s fem silhouette. And again with the hair! The bouffant of AW'10 is now the finger wave of SS'10. Can my hair do this? Will I make it? yes and yes.
Miuccia never fails to deliver. Enjoy.