I think this collection is Stefano Pilati’s most Saint Laurent moment.  It mixes a sort of French subversion with French chic with the modern, wearable approach Yves  himself would take.  In this collection, Pilati juxtaposed monastic elements with sheer fabrics and a feminine yet architectural fit.  He used some vivid colors against a mostly black palette and accessorized with long gold chain necklaces bearing huge medallions of women’s silhouettes and YSL logos.

There’s a wave of modesty in fashion now: long sleeves on evening looks, dropping hemlines, oversized volumes.  Maybe this collection parodies this trend by relating it to religious observance, or maybe this trend allows fashion to go into religious themes without resorting to the usual sex and drug references.

Photos via style.com and NY Mag

I love this new single from Familjen.  It’s driven by a Motown-esque kit, has a bass line that would work in a New Order track, and alternates between a surfy Brit pop guitar and nearly organic keys.  The melody is second to all that instrumentation, and it, too, is catchy.  “När planeterna stannat” means “when the planets stop.”  No idea where they’re going with that because my Swedish listening skills suck.  I need this album because I don’t know yet what goes with this single.  Also, I bet the album will be at least good.  It’s coming out in April or May.

Stockholm-based Familjen is Johan Karlsson’s project – he’s the sole writer and performer of the studio material.  For live shows, he performs with Andreas Tilliander. Familjen is released cooperatively by the labels Hybris and Adrian Recordings.

Familjen – “När planeterna stannat”

Get “När planeterna stannat” at Clicktrack

Visit Familjen at its new site or on MySpace

I was photographed for a book whose proceeds will benefit Red Cross efforts in Haiti.  Photographer Scott Nathan shot some celebrities in attendance, and we (omg, what?) also wrote messages for the book.  I was proud to participate but was not prepared with anything that meaningful to write.  I did, however, have orange lipstick on, which is at least as inspiring as a written expression of hope.

Here I am getting touched up by a stylist from Juan Florentino:

Lights, gray seamless, action:

I learned about the P.S. I Love You Foundation, which organizes educational outreach programs for at-risk kids.  Looks like a really great organization that makes it easy to get involved.  They work with schools, sure, but they also put on pizza & ice cream socials and surf lessons at the beach.

The company that makes soap for Fresh presented its private label soaps, under the La Belle Vie brand.  They’re made in France and smell amazing:

They’re also a lot cheaper than Fresh.  I still love Fresh, though, no use talking me out of that habit, at least till I find out who makes their brown sugar scrubs.

Pure Heat brought its hair styling tools made from 50% recycled materials.  That line seems great for white people with hair that just needs drying, the hair that responds well to Kiehl’s grooming creme and tips you see in fashion magazines.  My Mediterranean hair demands full force, full heat pro blow drying that only the Elchim 2001 can deliver.  I’m excited to try their brushes, though; I was told they can hold up to my blow dryer without melting.

On the way out, I was asked to pose with a car.  I hope the pics ended up tasteful.  The car was pretty big.  I was standing by the tire, not the hood, so I think it’s all right.  I don’t know that it’s appropriate to do product shots for objects I am/am not endorsing.  One might be better than the other, not sure which.  I was not promoting the car but was okay with the event the car company supported.  Should probably draw this line ‘with a bolder stroke’ or else I risk diluting my JPGs’ resonance.

There were a few lines that sold pure pigments and mixing solutions.  It’s sometimes impossible to find a color you want in an existing product, so mixing the color gives you so much freedom and oh the fun.  You can get solutions that mix with pigments to create lip gloss, foundation, and various textures of eye makeup and blush.  If they had chemicals for nail polish, I’d be mixing new colors and breathing toxic fumes right now.

Cult favorite Embryolisse was the sole skin care range there:

The primer category seems hot now.  Primer is basically a rich moisturizer people put up with when not sleeping only because it’s marketed as a product that makes foundation look better.  The reality is closer to something about skin looking better moisturized rather than primer having a proprietary way to  enhance foundation.  I like that Embryolisse simply sells its rich moisturizer as rich moisturizer.  They leave it up to makeup artists to apply it as so-called primer.  The Lait-Crème Concentré has a nice texture and no scent.  It comes in a very European metal tube and makes you feel like you made a breakthrough at a foreign pharmacy.  You can actually get it at a few stores in the US (link).

Top editors from LA, the LA Times Magazine, gave a talk about how their publication deals with celebrities in fashion stories.  I much prefer models in fashion stories – it’s a model’s job to execute the photographer’s vision at its purest.  Celebs do fashion stories to promote their products or themselves, and being part of a high end creative mission isn’t really on their agendas.  As a result, you get fashion stories that are sadly compromised because wardrobe choices are too red carpet, makeup is more pretty than striking, and poses don’t have the grace or expression that models typically pull off.

Some/most magazines give celeb PR a priority over fashion, and the talk made it clear that LA is definitely not in that predicament.  The editorial board decides the cover, and newsstand sales don’t factor in because the magazine comes with the Sunday paper.  The editors + photographers + stylists have a clear vision for each fashion story and then match a celeb to it if it can work out.  It’s the most palatable approach to the celeb photo story I’ve heard crystallized.  Plus they’re putting out an image of LA that aims for the rigors of Vogue Paris, not The Hills.  I’m into it.

It’s about time I see some evidence of lookalikes roaming around, because one in 10 people I meet claims to know someone who “looks exactly” like me, and she “sounds like you, too.”  That sentiment was really hard to take when I was growing up since I’ve considered myself very opinionated and specific – how can anyone duplicate that?  And what for?  But I’ve come to realize that I’m also a thin, pale blond, and we do all look alike.

When they came out, the Vuitton canvas pieces were innovative for their light weight and use of a plain material in a luxurious finish.  Now it’s a little sad to see the monogram as a symbol of complacent status rather than mischievous iconoclasm.  The Samal piece points out how the monogram line evolved in relation to the consumer market.  The luxury is still in the leather and hardware, and the innovation is restored once the tired monogram is somehow eliminated.  I also like the play on the idea of packing itself; the extra diagonal leather straps look like packing tape.

The cage concept reminds me of Jean Paul Gaultier’s work.  In the 1980s, he translated suiting into the language of corset boning, creating pieces that look like cages.  His fall 2008 couture show features several looks that extend this concept.

Dzmitry Samal via DesignBoom
Gaultier photos via NY Mag

A cliché that did turn out to be true: people ask you who you’re wearing all the time.  It makes sense since they’re reporting about clothes, but it’s still weird for me to name labels.

Also weird: a crowd of photographers shooting me.  One came, and then there was a group of them, click click click flash flash.  Some girl looked at me like, “WTF are you,” and I was all, “I dunno, k?”  I felt like a freshman.

Sarah and Dahlia of Chic are so smart + positive, and they have a great eye.  Check out Chic Intuition if you havn’t yet!

Thousands of women in Israel are held against their will in the prostitution industry. Don’t be an accomplice.

The visual reminds me of the Chanel SS2010 tattoo transfers, as presented on the runway in September:

I was kinda cringe-waiting for someone to say that Chanel is turning girls into slaves for fashion, but so far writers have shown better judgment.  The Chanel transfers will be available for about $75 on the label’s site and in department store cosmetics counters starting March 1st.

I’ll post photos from my trip to NY during fashion week as soon as I sort out my external drive mess.  It was really fun!

Credits
Advertising Agency: Mccann Erickson, Tel Aviv, Israel
VP creatives: Tal Raviv, Eldad Weinberger
Creative Director: Sigal Abudi
Art Director: Dana Moshkowitz
Copywriter: Ami Alush
Photographer / Graphic Designer: Yan Fedoroff
Published: December 2009

Ad via Ads of the World

Name the Pet’s “American Boys” could very well be an inverted Swedish version of From’s “American Girl,” but I’m too close to the subject to judge.  Hanna Brandén is a much more accessible singer than I am, and our aesthetics are quite different as well.  I love high end fashion, innit.  So yeah, this song has been popular on the Swedish radio station I stream.  RMX below.  It’s my Valentine’s present to Annie and Robyn fans.  Observing holidays is a popular blog past time.  The other track is for Prexy Day and reminds me of Hot Chip’s “Ready for the Floor.”

Name the Pet – “American Boys (I Always Wanted a Pony Remix)”

Name the Pet ft. The Sound of Arrows – Falling

Get more Name the Pet mp3s at iTunes

Hanna is based in Stockholm, was previously half of CAT5, and has collaborated with The Sound of Arrows.  Visit Name the Pet on MySpace or Last.fm

Remix via Tracasseur

His family issued this statement:

“On behalf of Lee McQueen’s family, Alexander McQueen today announces the tragic news that Lee McQueen, the founder and designer of the Alexander McQueen brand, has been found dead at his home. At this stage it is inappropriate to comment on this tragic news beyond saying that we are devastated and are sharing a sense of shock and grief with Lee’s family. Lee’s family has asked for privacy in order to come to terms with this terrible news and we hope the media will respect this.”

Read reactions from fashion figures & see images from his collections at WWD.

McQueen photo via Kin Ho, store photo via @cutblog