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)

A Year of Pretty - January 30, 2014

It's a cold day in January.

So today's Pretty Post is this gorgeous gown by Svetla nad Sazavou born designer Blanka Matragi. An award winning designer, she hand dyes all her fabrics, so each garment is unique.

The colours on this dress are just fantastic. Rusts and coppers and steel blues and greys. The floral detailing provides a unique contrast to the silky flow of the gown. The fur trim really helps set the tone of this dress: old world Russian elegance.

The model's hair and make-up also compliment this gown. I could just imagine her name is Tatiana or Katarina or something equally as fabulously Russian Empire.

This dress would look great on a Hollywood red carpet . . .if ever there were exceedingly cold weather in Hollywood. So dramatic . . so mysterious . . ."Who is that regal-looking woman in her silks and furs?" Now that I think of it, this would have been perfect on Keira Knightley for the premier of Anna Karenina

Enjoy your day and stay warm out there.

A Year of Pretty - January 20, 2014

Today's Pretty Post is this chair with distressed finish and interestingly . . . castor wheels on the front legs. It looks like it might be quite heavy, so this would make sense. Simply lift up the back and push the chair along on its wheels until you have it moved to where you want it. the front legs would need to be chopped down a bit so that the chair still remained level and not tilted backwards.

Also liking the brooch pins added to the cushions. Clever little detail. I like clever little details.

Not sure whether the gauze is a throw or a evening gown draped on the chair from the night before. Let's go with evening gown . . .makes this photo seem more romantic and a bit mysterious.

Because really, as a throw the material wouldn't keep anyone warm. But as a stunning dress it's sure to light some fires within.

Enjoy your Monday and seek beauty all around you.

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.