Get Some Head & Shoulders, Bitch.

A shot from a few weeks ago with my friend Danny Krug, and his Yashika T4

I have a question. How do you overcome the staggering flakiness of our generation? In a personal capacity, its the height of rudeness in my opinion. People don't show up for plans, or text you at the proposed hour to tell you they're going to be three hours late, or bail the day of, or simply fall off the face of the earth. It sends out the message that they think your time is ok to waste, and that you're not important enough to merit a two second phone call to confirm or cancel plans.

In a professional setting, I have to wonder how much any of these kids really want what they're working (or not working) for. Do they not understand the power of a network or a good reputation? I'm confused. They talk and talk and talk, they want to do shoots, they want to set up fabulous projects on location here and there, and then the time comes and they pretend like they don't know what you're talking about. Or maybe they really don't - they were pretty smashed at the party the night before.

I have one friend working towards an artistic profession who is on the ball - professional, timely, honest about his schedule limitations, and willing to sign a contract. Everyone else - and I mean everyone - is so flakey it makes my skin crawl. setting up a project, even on a small scale, is so fraught with etiquette peril that I almost don't want to bother.

Except that this is my career too and I want to have as much experience under my belt as possible. And while I hope that the best in the biz are as professional as my friend, I know that most artistic types can't answer a phone call or show up to a shoot on time for love nor money. And I need to learn how to deal with that, what the best ways are to navigate through that and still end up with a photo and an experience. I just don't know how to do it.

Kiss Me, Kate

So...I have a small thing I would like to point out. To whit - Kate Spade rocks. My socks, your socks, your grandma's socks. They just rock.

They also rock for a very specific reason - aside from their fun bright pops of colour and nifty takes on 60's classics and their stationary (my God, their stationary!) they have a little sumpin' sumpin' extra on their website called "Behind the Curtain" which has a section called "Things We Love".

This little crumpet never fails to give me pause - the section is replete with inspirations found by patrons of Kate Spade and Kate Spade staffers. Everything from the polar bears at Coney Island to the strange and wonderful Art-o-Mat (seriously, go check it out, I'm totally going to find one) and is presented in a delightful mood board kind of way. Music, interesting articles, artists, projects, moleskines, websites, products, and generally delightful ideas jostle for space and make me giddy with excitement.

There are also sections every couple of inspirations where you can click and contribute an inspiration of your own, thereby spreading the love, so to speak.

In short, Kate Spade makes me happy, and you should make the electronic journey so that you may be happy as well. Its well worth the trip, but pack a toothbrush because you may be extending your stay when you see how awesome it is.

Bisous!

Bangin' Bags

Photo source: Style.com

Some of my favorite bags from A/W 2009 RTW - Fendi and Prada. 

The Fendi bags ( 1 - 3 ) are a mix of, from what I can see, at least five different materials - wood slats, crocodile skin or leather, metal, precious stone, and cloth. They're pretty amazing...the construction is so well thought out that it sort of reminds me of those secret compartment boxes...where you have to push all the pieces around to find and open a hidden compartment. Every panel on these bags fits together like a puzzle. 

They're interesting if you think about them, almost like bags made of found materials or scraps...which is what fashion is for most people right now, certainly for me. It looks like they were reconstructed out of bits and pieces of past season Fendi bags. There are signatures peeking out everywhere - crocodile skin, large stones - but these are a new take. Updated colours in an inspired bid for recycling. 

And then there's Prada - classic, as always. I've been thinking about traveling allot recently - I think I want to work for a little while and then use the money I make to take a world tour. Now, since I'm nothing if not impractical, my tour will not be of the backpacking variety. I am no backpacker. I am high maintenance in some ways. I've decided on a small suitcase, but that's the only concession I'm making to long-term travel. The small suitcase will be Longchamp (Le Pliage) and I will still need a carry on. Voila! Prada's Cervo tote - big enough to hold all my on -flight necessities and chic enough to satisfy my style requirements. 

Of course, its retailing for upwards of $1500 so I'll be in search of a cheaper alternative.

But it has to be red, and it has to be BIG. 

Brown paper packages tied up with string...

Just quickly a few of my favorite things, which, of course, mostly have to do with fashion :)

1. Rayban Aviators! 2. Paris... 3. Motorcycle boots to go with my girly dresses 4. Masks! 5. Audrey Hepburn everything 6. Red Lipstick 7. My Camera 8. Pretty Lingerie 9. Books! 10. Beautiful Heels!

& Fortune

Is it worth it?

Batty for Banhart and Dotty for Dukoff...Oh Yeah, I Said It

All photos care of LA Times, copyright Lauren Dukoff

I saw these photos in the LA Times this morning and I went nuts. They're amazing, and that's coming from someone who was never a big fan of Devendra Banhart. It's not that I didn't like his music, it was just that it didn't really move me in either direction. But that was before I new about how stylish he was. Eeeevvvverrything's different now. 

These photos remind me of the Avedon portraits of Andy Warhol's Factory Family, in a way. They represent a group of artists creating a world for themselves, a community. With as much style as possible. I love the way these photos look, as if from another time, and I love the clothes, and the ideas, and the crazy people. I love that they've all known each other for years. Dukoff, the photographer, went to high school with Devendra.

I don't know. It's hard to explain. But don't these pictures speak for themselves?

PS: Go check out Banhart's website - I just did and it's so much fun! (Just to give you an idea, there is a Devendra Banhart interactive paper doll.)

*NB: Again, the photos have been cropped to fit the post, which is very irritating and I can't figure out how to fix it other than tedious resizing in photoshop before hand, which I don't have time for. Just click on 'em. If anyone can tell me how to make them stop cropping, please let me know!

Dreamboat

Source: The Sartorialist

Augh. He's so beautiful. LOOK at him! Bah...there is no God. I should be back in Italy right now.

Bon Voyage, et Bon Chance

I love to travel. Driving to the bookstore, road trips, 13 hour flights - I love getting somewhere new and exiting. 

Well, I don't actually love the traveling part - I love the new places part. And the accessories. 

Because people, who doesn't love a good old-fashioned solid, dependable, lovely suitcase? 

They're aesthetically pleasing and practical!

(I'm really exited about this point because usually I only ever find things that match the 'aesthetically pleasing' point. Which doesn't bother me at all, but still, its nice to have both sometimes)

Suitcases fascinate me. I couldn't really tell you why, something about the orderliness of fitting a life into a small space, finding a spot for each and every item. (Another thing I love are pockets - which are plentiful on suitcases) I love older ones, with their hard cases and satin linings, and new ones with beautiful patterns or supple leather... small vanity cases, hat boxes, steamer trunks (God I love steamer trunks) but not duffel bags. Sorry, but those things are just...giant lumpy cloth slugs. Ew.

Here are some of my favorites I've found sprinkled around the internet. Some are being used for their original purpose, some have been given new lives. Some are ancient, some are brand spankin' new. Some have a story, some haven't started theirs yet. All of them are wonderful :)

*NB: Some of the photos, even at their smallest, are cut off when the post is published. Please click on them for a full image, its worth it for all of them!

1. Suitcase vanity mirror via weheartit * My absolute FAVORITE of all of these - I wish I knew how she did this!!!  2. Photo via Elen Usdin 3. Pink suitcase via Miss Kris 4. Solar powered entertainment trunk by Louis Vuitton 5. Vintage numbered suitcases via Yimmy's Yayo  6. Vintage Samsonite vanity case  7. Limited Edition Goyard steamer trunk showcasing Visionaire Magazine 8. Steamer Trunk - inspired coffee table by Sundance, via CasaSugar 9. Snapshot of a stack of Goyard Trunks, viaBlog Sorbeta  10, 11, &  12. Paper Source suitcases  13.  Skeleton Collection by Alexander McQueen for Samsonite

P.S. {Pink Secret}

I was listening to music while I wrote the Pink Post, and thought it would be nice to add a soundtrack to my favorite pink things (can you tell I really like this topic?) 

The idea is that you choose a song, hit play, and scroll down to my first (below this one) post of the day titled Prettier than Pink.

So here are a couple of songs to listen to while perusing my list- enjoy!

Prettier than Pink

Good morning!

 

So, I read an article on Plum Sykes in the July issue of Vogue UK, and while I'm not really a big fan of her work per se, I like her style. Even if it's completely different from mine. Especially. 

The article was nothing. I lied actually. I didn't even read it. What caught my attention was the spread on some of Sykes' favorite things. She is famously obsessed with all things pink, which I find fascinating - I mean, this woman has designed her entire life completely around the colour pink. Her poor husband ;) 

Anyway, I loved so many of the items chosen (I even bought a few, like the pink moleskine volant notebooks) that I wanted to try to make a list of my own favorite pink things. I'm really more of a red girl, but pink gives me this feeling of being ultra-feminine which I adore - something like living in a cross between Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day and Breakfast at Tiffany's. Which really isn't much of a cross at all, its more of an extra layer of femme... but I'm digressing.

Alors, without further ado, here are ten of my favorite things in that delectable tint of rosé:

From top:

1. Illustration of Louis Vuitton f/w 2009 collection by Tanya Ling 2. Photo from French blogger The Cherry Blossom Girl's bedroom series 3. Vintage dress tags from PapierValise.com 4. The cover of 77 Love Sonnets by Garrison Keillor *I've been collecting pink books lately, and in addition to the beautiful cover of this collection, the works themselves are lovely... 5. Nars nail varnish in Schiap Shocking Pink *So named after Coco Chanel's equally talented rival, Elsa Schiaparelli; pioneer of surrealist fashion 6. The Glamourai's exquisite Marie Antoinette necklace *unfortunately, sold out, but I believe orders can still be placed for the next batch ** Go check out The Glamourai's blog, totally amazing! This girl has more style in her pinky finger than I do in my entire body. 7. Beautiful fashion illustration by Bill Donovan - 'Anett' left a link to his profile for me in a comment on my post "You Take My Breath Away". I would love to know if she has a blog of her own - sadly, her profile is private and inaccessible. Thank you all the same, they're a treasure! 8. Love Poems by Pablo Neruda, Nobel Laureate. * This is now one of my favorite books I own - aside from being lovely (admittedly, my original motive for purchasing it) it is also powerfully moving. The original spanish is printed on the left pages, with an English translation printed on the right. His poetry takes my breath away, literally. 9. Cadillac El Dorado Beach Cruiser * I would ride it in a big floppy straw hat, my hair down, in a completely impractical white cotton and lace sundress and sandals...with a wicker basket maybe? 10. Peonies! These are some of my favorite flowers, and I think pink suits them very well, don't you? Incidentally, I took this photo from a food blog that I read, called Cannelle et Vanille which I LOVE its amazing...it's by a chef and food photographer, and in addition to being visually stunning, she gives the full recipes for everything she posts. I love this woman, she makes me happy.