“And, Joey, if you ever want to know about the japonicas and the daisy fields it will be alright that you have forgotten because I will be able to tell you about how it felt to be feeling that way you cannot quite remember – that will be for the time when something happens years from now that reminds you of now.”
I’ve been reading Save Me The Waltz by Zelda Fitzgerald on and off lately. It’s mainly a bunch of oddly connected scenes that somehow end up telling a story but it’s also really beautiful. Better yet, it serves as a companion to F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Tender Is The Night, as they’re both autobiographical novels centered on the time the Fitzgeralds were in Europe.
Today I finally watched Valentino: The Last Emperor and as expected it was just great. The film follows the designer around for about a year while creating two couture collections as well as covering the selling of the company and his legendary 45 anniversary retrospective celebration. It also focuses in the relationship between Valentino and Giancarlo Giammetti.
Personally I’m not a fan of italian fashion, but Valentino was an exception. Trained in 1950s Paris, his concept of elegance always stood apart from the classic italian fashion sense. All in all it’s a highly moving film that ends with Valentino retiring, and with him the figure of the old-times couturier dies a bit more. We won’t see any more couture from this atelier but we can be sure there will be lots of Valentino branded fragances, bags and shoes.
My favourite bit was seeing the chaos of the sewing ateliers and head seamstress compared to the imperturbable atmosphere of those portrayed in Signé Chanel. That and the pugs, of course.
I’ve been away on a little holidays in Paris and what do I find in the latest episode of Project Runway? Tommy Hilfiger describing a trenchcoat made of newspapers as “I think it’s Coco Chanel meets Yves Saint Laurent, meets Givenchy in the 60s and 70s”.
Oh yes, it’s just three iconic designers during two decades put into a paper coat made in one day. If he’s not embarrassed of his awful jerseys he should be at least of saying such a barbarity.
I recently got to know the scribble project, which is a fun way to procrastinate. Join in! Here’s my very first one, but I’m sure I shall be making more soon. Sorry about my handwriting, that’s about as good as it gets…
Tomorrow is the Catalan national day, and tonight the awful Artur Mas is coming to the park in front of my house (my neighbourhood is full of catalan-right-wing-grannies). So I am fleeing in a while as my bedroom balcony faces the park.
I think I died and went to fashion advertising heaven.
Jason Schwartzman, Band of Outsiders and Polaroid. What else can be said except that I am in love…
Some of these remind me so much of Rushmore too, which is one of my favourite films
Now that my computer problems are reaching an end, so it is summer; although in Barcelona summer traditionally ends with La Mercé at the end of september.
If I were to choose a style icon for this summer I’d say mine has been Susan Dey in her Partridge Family years.
I’ve never been particularly fond of the 1970s fashion, but I’ve been so into it this years as to end up buying a pair of vintage leather huarache sandals. I’ve been playing dress up as an american-suburb-kid-in-a-70s-summer.
Remember I said I might have a job? Well, I don’t. It was a job offer for designing for a massive sportswear company I shall not name, but after a whole month undergoing selection interivews and tests they didn’t take me. Ah! the woes of the recent graduate…
Anyway my dream job would be Madame Jacqueline’s or Madame Cécile’s:
Many things are going on and keeping me away from this blog. First and foremost my dear desktop VAIO broke down and it’s about to be sent to Germany for repairs. I’ve also had minor surgery and now have a stitched seam on my back.
I’m also in an emotional pit due to lack of gigs, because in that sense Barcelona sucks. I was forced to miss Indietracks as well so I listen to Pocketbooks instead and lay around in the hot weather.
I also might have found a nice job, fingers crossed… Sorry for being such a boring blogger lately, sigh.
Seems I’ve been absent for longer than I intended, but I’m still alive and… kicking?
I am currently back in Barcelona (or Badalona to be precise). Trying to sort all my stuff out, and making my bedroom apt to living in it again.
This is where I live, isn’t it a drastic change from Whitechapel?
It seems to me you’ve been showing the same collection for Dior HC for nearly 4 seasons now, it’s boring.
There’s more to life than saturated magenta silk, you know. The silhouettes/styling look painfully outdated too.
A girl’s ramblings on anything from fashion to tailoring, music, tea or how to get your welt pockets to have perfectly square corners…
