A Year of Pretty - December 28, 2014

We are almost at the end of another year. Which means I am almost at the end of my A Year of Pretty for 2014. I think after 2014 is through, I am going to go back to posting under some of the headings I have used in the past - "Delicate and Pretty", "A Little Bit of Lovely", "Shoes and More Shoes".

While it has been fun to bring a daily dose of something pretty, it has also been a bit of a time grabber. Not so much in the actual posting each day, but in the researching and finding background information, chasing broken links down a dark rabbit hole to try and credit original sources; and of course.....hours spent scrolling through Pinterest and other such sites.

(For those that want to admire a whole bunch of Pretty at one time, I invite you to a collection called "oh. .  pretty!" that I have curated, both for your enjoyment and my inspiration).

There has not been any snow so far this December in Vancouver. Well, up on the mountains, yes. But not in the city itself. So for today's Pretty Post I thought I would bring the snow to you by way of this STUNNINGLY GORGEOUS suit ensemble from the Chanel Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2014 / 2015 collection. I have watched (a number of times) the videos on how these pieces are hand crafted and painstakingly put together. Utterly amazing.

It would take me years...YEARS ! to complete a garment such as this. So I can understand the astronomical price tag that this jacket and pants would go for. If I had to hazard a guess, I would put this at being no less than $35,000.00. Yes, thirty five thousand dollars.

Okay, so back to the garment itself. The detailing is smart. The play between the expanse of white in the jacket and the cording effect of the beading is beautiful. The beading not only acts as a decorative detail, but serves to contour the lines of the body. Essentially, it is a tuxedo jacket with a mandarin collar that morphs into a long tunic. I'm noticing now that in one of the pictures (above), it is worn with leggings, in another (right) the model's leg is visible. In a show, these two looks would be presented one after the other. Which means the jacket combo was made twice?


No, but wait! It's a tuxedo jacket with biker shorts! Now that I have watched the video of the fashion show again, the model is clearly wearing a tuxedo-jacket-cum-tunic over a pair of long biker shorts. Only Chanel could make biker shorts this glamourous. Here is a screen shot from the youtube video (left).

But my train has left the tracks. Back to this Winter Wonderland look. The beading reminds me of Christmas tinsel and holly berries, with all the twiggy bits poking up out of the snow.

So while beaded biker shorts may not be your kind of thing (and honestly, for me I would do without them and wear plain leggings, either in the same warm winter white or in red to match the red "berries" with a cable knit pattern and red patent leather stilettos), this tunic would definitely be a show stopper at any company Christmas party or New Year's Eve gathering. But heaven forbid Carl the Clumsy from Accounting doesn't bump into you with his glass of red wine, or your Uncle Leon drop his plate of Swedish meatballs on your lap as he leans over to kiss you hello.

If you are interested in watching the whole production, the youtube video is here:

A Year of Pretty - February 27, 2014

These dresses.....like soft chiffon ice cream.
I want to live in these dresses.
These dresses......to run along the shore with toes in the sand.
The dreams that will come true in these dresses.

A Year of Pretty - February 21, 2014

Tomorrow night is the first of two shows I am presenting with a Great Gatsby theme. Both shows will be for charity, and I am looking forward to both as a way to not only highlight my designs, but as an opportunity to learn what works and what doesn't work during a live show. When I presented my graduation collection, I wasn't able to be backstage, so I had no say in how the models were dressed. This time I will have that chance and as such, will be able to style the ladies as I wish.

I am lucky to have a fairly good collection of costume jewellery from which I can select pieces that will compliment each look. I also have a number of shoes in different sizes that will work for the looks for these shows. Every year in early September when wedding season is over, shoe stores start offering amazing deals on all their strappy, sparkly summer heels. Last year I picked up six pairs of the same shoe in gold and silver in a variety of sizes from 8.5 to 10 for 50% off the last ticketed price - $15.00 each pair. It may seem strange to spend money on shoes that don't even fit me (I'm a size 8.5), but it ensures that I have shoes that I know will work for the models; not only for this show, but for for other shows in the future. Choosing shoes with classic profiles and in neutral tones (silver, gold, beige and black) means that the shoes are pretty much going to go with any look.

I adore the look of these shoes here. I like the attention to detail, and how the art deco feel is continued on through the punch work of the pale pink instep. Having not one but two adjustable straps is also handy. Unfortunately these will not be my show, but they embody the feel of the 1920's art deco period, if higher heels had been in fashion at that time. Most heel heights were only between 1.5 and 2.5 inches during the 1920's, whereas today's average height for runway starts at 4.5 inches.

So enjoy these darling shoes and I will be back tomorrow with a review of the show. Fingers crossed.

A Year of Pretty - February 05, 2014

Today's Pretty Post is a backstage look at Chanel's Spring 2014 collection. Really, I don't have a whole lot else to say . . . . the photo says it all.

(the original source for this photo is kinda obscure . . and kinda not. The link on Pinterest was broken, but a little digging around brought me to a holding tank for images for the look book for Chanel's SS2014 collection. In Italian. Where the credit is given to FotografÍa: Cortesía de Chanel / Olivier Saillant. Which is more than the Pinterest post gave credit for)

Make Your Own Occasions

Today is Monday. I’m going to wear a dress.

In itself, this is not an earth shattering concept. But let me explain a bit about how it comes about.

The other night, I was having a deeply philosophical conversation (okay, a “three glasses of wine in” conversation) with my dear friend A. I was remarking on the number of Pinterest posts of dresses, shoes, jewelry etc. that posters had commented “Beautiful. Wish I had somewhere to wear this”, or “I’d never have an occasion to wear this.”

Two years ago my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer; both breasts. At the same time, she was on the very top of the kidney transplant waiting list (one is not supposed to know they are at the top, but the nurses who care for my mom? . . . . well, she’s a favourite of theirs). Transplants are not given to people with cancer because the anti-rejection drugs taken after the transplant will speed up the production of cancerous cells if cancerous cells are indeed in the person’s body. So this new diagnosis after already waiting eight years for a kidney was an extremely harsh blow. My mom would have to be taken off the transplant list, fight the cancer, win against cancer and then go back onto the transplant list.

My mother; a fortitude of strength, made an instantaneous decision. Double mastectomy.  She said “I’m in my 60’s. I’m not having any more kids. My husband loves me . . . what do I need them for? I just need to get on with it, with living.”

Out came the breasts. She started chemotherapy. Her hair started to come out. We shaved her head. We cried. We bought beautiful scarves and dressed them up with brooches. My mother can rock a turban like nobody’s business.

And we started using the good china. For breakfast.  For meatloaf on a Tuesday night. For any occasion we felt like it. Because we had come face to face with the reality that life can quickly change directions on you and that there could come a day when we would no longer have occasions to celebrate.

So we MADE the occasions. And this is life. It’s not entirely about the occasions that are presented to you. Often it is about the occasions you create for yourself.

Today, my mom is a Silver Fox. She has a beautiful head of silver hair. We have 14 more months of testing to make sure she is cancer-cell-free. Then she goes back to the top of the wait list. In the meantime, we enjoy life.

Today, on a Monday, I’m going to wear a dress. I’m going to do my hair and make-up and then get on the skytrain and go to work. I will undoubtedly be the most elegantly dressed person riding public transit. But it doesn’t matter. It’s not important that people wonder why I’m dressed up. Let them wonder. Let them think I have some special occasion that I’m off to. 

The truth is I’m off to the most important occasion in life: life itself.

A Year of Pretty - January 23, 2014

I can't believe it's already only three months until my birthday. My big birthday. The big four-zero. Yikes!

Onto something more positive. Today's Pretty Post is the GORGEOUS Chanel dress, found via Pinterest, linked back to walkingthruafog. And there it ends.

This is stunning. This is glamorous. This is Chanel.

This reminds me of some lace I have that I will be using on my Great Gatsby Challenge, due in . . .a month. Yikes again!

While my design will be no where near this elaborate, it's still nice to think I haven't got it ALL wrong.

(the shoes are pretty awesome too)

Anyhow, enjoy today's post and wish me luck as I continue with designing (which right now is really just a bunch of ideas with editing and a good dose of compromises).

A Year of Pretty - January 22, 2014

Another great colour collection inspiration.

A Year of Pretty - January 14, 2014

I should be designing today. But I'm getting over this cold. My second cold in a month's time. I caught my first one about a week or so before Christmas. I was finally getting back to my usual self by New Year's Day. Then round two came along and now I am heading into the final stages of this one.

It's hard to be creative when you aren't feeling well. The problem is I have scads of ideas running through my brain . . .especially late at night when I am trying to fall asleep. (Never TRY to fall asleep. It does not work. The harder you try, the more futile the result). But setting those ideas in motion and actually getting them down on paper is the difficult part right now because of this head cold. I usually end up walking away to go blow my nose.

Case in point. It's currently 2:10am and I am nowhere near being ready to fall asleep.

I'm also up against a deadline. First fittings for the Great Gatsby themed fashion show are on January 22nd. That's in eight days. I'm only one pattern into my designs and haven't cut the muslin for it yet. Am I worried? Not really, because I'm pretty used to pulling a rabbit out of a hat in the eleventh hour while behind the 8 ball, so to speak. Should I be worried? Probably.

But it will all work out. I have faith. Just not enough sleep.

So. Today's Pretty Post, designed to inspire me to be more creative and actually get stuff done is this AMAZINGLY GORGEOUS beaded dress. The designer is Anna Sui for BHLDN. Photo source is a flickr post by Herkkupeppu. On the BHLDN website, the Aiguille Gown dress is still available in a number of different sizes, and shows some styling options such as jewelry and head pieces. There are several studio shots of the dress, as well as "real weddings" photos of the dress on different body types, which I think is pretty great because we all know that how a dress looks on an industry model and how it looks on the average female frame can be quite different.

I like how the rows of sequins above and below the waist form a chevron pattern, and how the waistband reflects this chevron design in its center. Very art deco. The button detail down the front is interesting, though I'm not certain they are functioning buttons. The silver chain and necklace also mimic the sequin patterns and provide a great contrast to the softness of the garment.

It's Great Gatsby, but with a modern silhouette.