Random Thoughts - Sasha Face

photos courtesy style.com

I love Sasha Pivovarova and all the interesting facial expressions she makes on the runway.



EDIT: Speaking of Sasha, some of you may know that she is also an artist. She was recently enlisted by Chanel to create an illustration for a show in Moscow (below).

photo courtesy stylelist.com

The Russian model says that she was "inspired by the joy of seeing fairytale characters coming to life in one of the main theaters of Moscow, the city where I was born."

I've seen some of Sasha's work before and I quite like it. However, all her subjects seem to bear an uncanny resemblance to herself and it makes me wonder if this is a drawing style she purposely developed or if the extent of her drawing ability is self-portraits.

What do you think of Sasha's illustration for Chanel?

Random Thoughts - Always in Vogue

Over the span of three years or so, I’ve collected tons of magazines and, like many people, Vogue is one of my absolute favourites.

The editorial spreads are always stunning and creative and the articles are compelling. However, if there's one thing you can never miss on a Vogue, it's the cover.

Even before the issues hit the newsstands, people are often anxious to see who the next cover star is going to be, whether it be a celebrity or a supermodel.

For the month of June, Sarah Jessica Parker and Agyness Deyn grace the covers of the US Vogue and the British Vogue, respectively.

photos courtesy http://whenyourebored.wordpress.com and vogue.co.uk

While photographs of beautiful people on the cover is what we've become accustomed to, it hasn't always been this way.

Vogue magazine was founded in 1892 by Arthur Baldwin Turnure and began its days as a weekly social journal for the high society crowd; fashion was not the original focus.

It was not until 1909 when Conde Nast bought the magazine that things began to change. Within a few years, he transformed Vogue into a high-end women's fashion magazine. He hired some of the best illustrators to create beautiful, captivating covers for the magazine to suit the times.

Here are some of the early Vogue covers that I found stunning.

photos courtesy www.tylerlee.net

Which do you prefer, the photographs or the illustrations? I appreciate them both as they bring completely different aesthetics to the cover but while the illustrations are gorgeous, I think the photographs are more suited to our time.



To see more vintage Vogue covers, click here.

To read an article on the June US Vogue photo shoot and also see behind-the-scenes footage, click here.

To get a sneak peek at the contents of the June British Vogue, click here.

Random Thoughts - Style from a childhood past

It's so much fun to look at photos of myself when I was younger.

I thoroughly enjoyed dressing up (much like now) and being in pictures (not so much). I grew up during the horrible fashion era that was the 90s, so it's hilarious to see the kinds of things I thought were cool back then.

I remember one of my favourite things to do was wear my hair in cornrows and put a ton of beads on the end. I would only be able to do this during the summer vacation as this style was not allowed during school time. I waited patiently for this time to arrive and when it did, I worked the hell out of those beads!

I know many mothers like their children to be as fashionable as possible but my mother let me wear what I wanted. That probably contributed to my constant inexplicable happiness and carefree demeanour in photographs. This unadulterated innocence only lasts for so long and being trendy shouldn't be something a child has to worry about.

Below are some of the "stylish" looks I sported as a kid.

The Activewear Ensemble

I don't mean to brag, but I did a masterful job of mixing clashing colours and prints here. Ah, well at least they both have boats on them. That has to count for something.


The Cocktail Dress

I felt like a Disney Princess in this one with the large puff sleeves. Look at those high ruffle socks!


The Summery Frock

Note the clashing orange, dark green and pink combination with matching socks and hair beads.


Classic jeans and tee

Check out the rips in the front of these hot baggy, faded jeans and the pom poms down the side.

As awful as some of these outfits were however, there is a lot that can be learnt from my younger self. Children have a sense of adventure and a fearlessness that many adults can only long for. That free spirited attitude is what I aim to recapture whenever I get dressed.

I don't wish to look like a fashion victim but I often throw on whatever I think looks good in the morning and, if need be, assess my outfits after I get dressed but never before.

I think spending too much time planning outfits can leave you looking a little too contrived and uninspired and I don't think that's not how any true lover of fashion wishes to look.

Random Thoughts - Fashion through the years

I found this really cool video a while back and being as absent minded as I am, I forgot to bookmark it. Now many unsuccessful searches later, through the power of Youtube, I have been reunited with it. It's a great theatre production on how fashion has changed throughout the years. It was taken from a 1986 documentary but this excerpt is only like four minutes.

I am fascinated with clothing from decades past, my favourites being the 20s till the 40s. I love the independence and confidence the women had during these times, despite all they had going against them. They defined the clothing they wore, not the other way around.

The only downside to this video is that it's in French, so I really have no idea what they're saying but that doesn't really take away from it. If anyone can speak French, I would appreciate it if you can help me out if they've said anything interesting.

Enjoy!

Random Thoughts - Celebrity Fashion Lines

Nicole Richie, Hilary Duff, Katie Holmes, Lauren Conrad, Paris Hilton. These are only a few in the many names on the Celebrity Fashion Line list, surely with more to come. It seems to be the new fad in Hollywood along with sex tapes (not really that new) and adopting children from foreign countries.

I keep asking myself however, what makes them qualified to design clothing? How much of the design process are they really involved in? The style that they are praised for; is their personal style or is it simply the work of a talented stylist?

There are the select few that seem to be serious about what they are doing such as Gwen Stefani and more recently, Nicky Hilton. However, in my opinion, most seem to want to do it simply because they can. There are many truly talented fashion designers in the world that unfortunately will never get the chance to experience it because they do not have the money and connections to do so. These are the people who live and breathe fashion every day and who should be the ones gracing the runways with their awe inspiring designs.

The more of these celeb lines that come out, the less the fashion industry will be taken seriously. Fashion will no longer be viewed as an art but simply as another means for the already rich and famous to get more rich and famous. I, for one, would not like to see this happen to one of the most expressive art forms in history.

You've read my thoughts on this matter. Do you agree/disagree?