Anne Leibovitz and Marc Newson TASCHEN Project

Before we dive into London Fashion Week beautiful mess, I think it is more than necessary to see what’s going on in the other side of fashion world. Well, the only one that I can think of right now is Anne Leibovitz’s new Taschen book. A book filled with her (again) extraordinary works selected and curated carefully, including some of her iconic works (John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Scarlet Johansson, Richard Nixon etc.)

A must buy for fashion photographer wannabe or/and fashion students.

Not only we can study Leibovitz changing style from the days she reported for Rolling Stones into one of the most dramatic fashion photographers for Vogue, we also get a chance to admire Marc Newson’s special tripod for the book. Even though I have to admit, some people may find the tripod not as luxurious as the book.

Anyway, you can buy Anne Leibovitz Taschen book around US$ 2500 or US$ 5000 dollars for Art Edition. Hmm, a gigantic investment for the brain or another rich people luxuries? I think you already know the answer.

Images taken from Selectism

Pose Lena Pose!

Posing for a big fashion magazine and don’t know how to do it properly? No need to worry dah-ling! Hamish Bowles and Lena Dunham are ready to teach you the ‘Vogue Cover Girl Dance’, right from the top! 

Image taken from Vogue.com. Edited by Gimme Good Style.

Project Olivier Green

First week of school and I am ready to kill someone. Uh, more than one actually… but that’s another story. I just want to make a confession here: I spent my entire precious holiday by watching Project Runway. Online. On my bed. My laziness level just went up a million percents. The drama, the designs, the challenges, the adrenaline rushes (adrenaline?) really kicked out my ‘more diligent’ side to the end of the earth.

I couldn’t help, but frowned a bit though when my favorite designer got kicked out of the runway. Such a shame. And I had a lot of favorites. Like Olivier Green from Season 9. His simplicity, structural, neat, near-architectural designs really interest me. Maybe he wasn’t as good as Anya, who could make magic in the last minutes, but he has something… intriguing about him.

With the help of internet, I managed to sneak some of his Autumn 2013 collection pictures (not really out-of-trend!) The collection is definitely well-made. I can see the proportions of the clothes fit the models well and look almost sporty-classic-rebel-chic (back to my intense adjective use).

The coats and black dress, those two have potentials to be ‘investment’ pieces. I am just not sure about the major use of space-print (kinda remind me of Christopher Kane space prints) (with grimmer color) crossed with black colors from different materials (the leather looks promising though). His designs are not in the same level with other Vogue-designers, but he has the high fashion quality. I am sure of it. It’s a shame he is nowhere to be found after Project Runway.

Huff, keep fighting Olivier!

Sorcha O’Raghallaigh

Christmas! As a smart fashion blogger, I would like to make you think before giving you guys ideas. It’s how I roll you know. Oh okay, I want you to think because I need to fill this big empty void between ‘post’ and ‘publish’ button.

Now, I am going to ask you a very general question. What makes Christmas? No, not Santa Claus. Not reindeer. Not mistletoes. They’re just decorations. The tradition starts right after Jesus Christ was born into the world (I’ll leave the rest of the story to Mr. Dan Brown) (love his new Inferno book, by the way). Christ was born, but who gave birth to the Lord of All Things? It’s the Virgin Mary. 

I strongly believe that Virgin Mary is the most underrated woman in fashion world. Think about it, Mrs. Obama gets a lot of attention even though she just the First Lady of United States (no offense). Come on guys, Virgin Mary is the First Lady of Heaven. People should give her more attentions in modern pop culture. Maybe I am talking a bit too Christianity here. Anyway, what I am trying to do is giving praise to Sorcha O’Raghallaigh. A very talented designer that takes inspirations from religious aspects, which is very rare because religion is a very sensitive inspiration, second only to Indian culture. 

Her new collection is unsurprisingly inspired by Virgin Mary, resulting in whimsical dresses with long complicated veils, glittery crowns (so big that it looks like an actual crown) and halo-like head accessories. I don’t think normal people would like to wear these kind of dresses to casual Christmas Party (shame on you!) But I believe fashion lovers would die for one of these pieces of art (Trivia: I always mention clothes/dresses that I respect or adore as ‘pieces of art’. They deserve those titles) (And I don’t know why I am telling you this). 

If you are still questioning what kind of occasions except Christmas to wear these ‘pieces of art’, I am going to give you one more clue: It has something to do with Jack O’Lantern, pumpkin cookies, candies, and Horror Movie Marathon (my favorite: The Shining followed by Friday the 13th or Supernatural Season 1). 

Images taken from Style Bubble.

Duchess Winslet

Kate Winslet is surely not a Duchess of whatever-place, but she sure has whatever it needs to be one.

After receiving her CBE award from The Queen for her dedication in theater and movie industries, the gorgeous Kate went straight to Mario Testino’s studio and posed here and there for Vogue US November 2013 cover.

Pff, such daily jobs!

Boh-ring, you may say.

Anyway, Kate’s cover is a little bit… full, which is great because I am sick of skinny ladies. Oh, please! Eat more meat and proteins!

Not only showing off her delicious body (okay okay, sexy is somehow more appropriate, but I couldn’t help it! Delicious… a bit porn-typo?), she also talks about her life, new movie, family, blah-blah-blah.

I am sure the issue is great as usual. The only problem is: I can’t find it anywhere! I’ve been looking for it online in Jakarta’s famous (and certified) online bookstores, and at some magazine counters, but they already sell December Issue (Jessica Chastain, we will talk about her later. Such gorgeous hair!)

Call it my first official MAGAZINE DISASTER!!

Image taken from Vogue.com. Edited by Gimme Good Style

Check the full size image on my Tumblr: Dead Photo Society

Charlize’s Power

Charlize Theron photographed by Kurt Iswarienko for Variety Magazine October Issue.

Charlize is definitely not the first celebrity who is featured on the cover of high fashion magazine (the first one must be Gwyneth for Vogue US), but I think there is something quite special about her photo shoot.

There is no glamorous setting (old shack is also considered glamorous. Remember that’s magazine’s idea of an old shack, not us), no expensive concepts, no unnecessary addition.

Just the one and only, Charlize Theron, a bit greyish background, some crews, and Charlize’s woman power. The concept is straight to the point and really bold, but I can’t agree more.

Charlize never looked so beautiful before (even with just a little makeups. Almost almost natural.)

Oh, I should praise the photo editor (or God) for making her looks so young. Extremely young.

Okay okay, one more question: Is she an immortal?? 

Images taken from Fashiontography. Edited by Gimme Good Style.

Mean Streets

We are remembering the good old times when Karlie Kloss and Joan Smalls were two best friends (okay, maybe they are still best friends. Who knows?!?!?) and appeared in editorials together frequently.

Like so frequent until one of the world’s best photographer,Nick Knight, and UK must-have fashion bible, Vogue UK, also wanted to give these bad girls spaces in the magazine’s March 2011 issue.

And the editorial is called… Mean Streets.

Poetic, isn’t it?

Images taken from Fashiontography

Sandra Bullock For Vogue

Have you guys watched ‘GRAVITY’ yet? Well, it’s quite silly to ask because I am sure you already have (or at least heard someone telling their friends out loud ‘the movie is AWESOME you guys have to watch it!!!!!’ Um, that’s me actually).

Well, I have this strange feeling, like a voice telling me that Sandra Bullock (playing as the main character; an astronaut loses her way back to Earth after her space shuttle gets hit by flying space debrises. ALONE in SPACE. How’s that make you feel?!) is going to get an Oscar nomination for that.

I am not sure why….

Maybe because the fact that she spent hours of training in real spacesuit while trying to keep her natural ‘I am scared to death, I am alone in space!’ expression….

And Vogue US chose her as the main cover for October 2013 issue?

Read the full interview here. One more thing that I have to say… well, okay, two more things: First, she is very humble for A-list celebrities standard. Second, she is beautiful, but don’t you think she is prettier with long hair? No? Okay then….

Image taken from Vogue US. Edited by Gimme Good Style

When The Class Begins….

When my friend asked me why I bought the super heavy fashion magazine in the first place (with more advertisements and useless glossy photos than normal, readable articles)(ah, and they were talking about Vogue. WHAAAAA….?!) rather than saving those pennies for more formal lesson in university, my answer was pretty simple: the magazine taught my instinct better than any formal academies can do.

Of course, formal academies can teach me a lot of things, from sewing tons of fabric into one Alexander McQueen-looked-alike Couture gown or how to make a good presentation at fashion weeks or even make me meet important fashion people like Parsons does for their good fresh graduates, but then there is this one crucial thing they can’t teach. Not even in Parsons.

It’s the eyes for fashion. 

You can know how to sew, you can learn how to sketch and you can also meet thousands of people, but the eyes that can lead you to your true success. Grace Coddington is famed for her artistic, almost poetic editorials, and she doesn’t learn how to combine Jimmy Choo heels and Stella McCartney dress from school. For God sake, she even started her fashion editor career after she stopped modeling! Yes, different people need different medias to train their fashion instincts.

Some people choose to go ahead and try many many clothes and styles to feel the sensations and what comfort each style provides (this is what I call a personal fashion people OR chameleon-like girls/boys and they are just awesome!) Some choose to linger on the street like pointless person (no expression, blank stares, like possessed horror actors/actresses (wait, maybe those horror documentary guys mistaken an inspiration-looking-people for old, false, folklore horror legends? Now, I just give you the exact reason for ‘based on true story’, go tell this piece of truth to Hollywood)), no specific destination, but actually looking for inspirations from the buildings and whatever they like on the street.

Mine is simple. It only requires a cup of cold drinks, air conditioned room, laptops and a magazine. A Vogue Magazine (yeah, and maybe Harper’s Bazaar, when run out of budgets.) I love flipping down all those beautiful pages and articles, learning everything from how the model pose, the expression, guessing what they are wearing and how the stylists work (and cursing down their ideas because I CAN ALSO DO THAT, IF I HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO THINK!!!)(pathetic fashion-designer-stylist-journalist-wannabe’s scream.)

I once saw this Chanel advertisements and thought to myself, maybe this coat (white with black outline and gold buttons in Joan Smalls perfect body) can be a little shorter with more buttons and layered with something blah blah blah blah and the next thing I know is I am writing down a whole new combination, sketching a new look and googling for perfect locations for my imaginary photo shoots (a bit obsessive, but, hey! Everyone can dream a little for the sake of future, right?)

When I told my fashion-conscious friend about this strange phenomenon, she said she does the same thing whenever she was browsing on Instagram, it helped her to create this feeling when she can enter other people’s point of views and poof! Know what the right thing to draw and illustrate the perfect outfits for her imaginary clients (and she sketch wayyy better than me!)

I think it’s rather silly to think you can learn everything about fashion in class or just go ahead and work for some fancy designers, even though these steps -I will say it again- very crucial to help us live the life of fashion. You need that passion to explore more. To learn from anything the world provides. Just remember, fashion class doesn’t begin when you are seventeen or twenty something. When you know and love fashion for the first time, I think it’s when your class begins (in that case, mine begin when I was fifteen years old in my old junior high room class with a bunch of friends and their local, fashion magazine. Ah, and Sasha Pivovarova’s old photo shoot,) It is now up to you to either attend it everyday like a geek (euh!)(okay, that’s me) or just skip the class and look for a better major.

P.S: And yeah this is one of my many cheesy posts. Hehe, I think it’s because Fashion Weeks are almost here. Yeay yeay yeay!!!!

Taken from The Sartorialist (street style) and RCFA (Jennifer Lawrence in Vogue September Issue)

Maison Martin Margiela ‘Artisanal’ Backstage

Maison Martin Margiela show is famed for the heavy decorations and bizarre masks. Honestly, Maison’s style looks a bit too much for me, not wearable on the street, and definitely not pocket-friendly. More like pocket-kill-me-softly. But it would be a mistake to say Maison’s Haute Couture style is a fraud. Nope, it is not.

Maison might not know how to create a ‘casual’ look for evening cocktail party, but they definitely knows how to make you the Queen of the Show, if you are strong enough to wear their clothes.

To make you understand more about the beauty of their collection last season, titled Artisanal, let’s go back to the backstage where beautiful people run here and there, models stand firmly and practice their walks, beauty photographers busily finding the right angle with so many people around them and bloggers chat happily waiting for the magic to unfold. And it always is.

Click here to see more dazzling backstage photos of Maison Martin Margiela show.