CÉLINE
Trust, I know this post will not win any awards for originality but nevertheless I felt the awesomeness of Céline's summer collection needed to be addressed. It was an explosion of colour and bold graphics. The long lined white wife-beaters with black painterly swirls surely make for the easiest DIY ever and one that even I might not be able to mess up. I wonder what this collection will do to all the girls that have embraced minimalism so whole heartedly with Philo as their leader. The bold primary colours were grounded by sturdy blacks and whites so at least that might ease the pain of the transition?
The reserved aesthetic that I normally associate with the Céline woman was thrown out the window. I normally picture her as being a bit of a free will with a penchant for the creative fields but now I see her as more joyful and comedic. It's like she literally crawled out of a cheery abstract painting.
To conclude, I'd just like to explicitly state that this is, by far, my favourite spring/summer '14 collection. And, I don't even care that I'm officially a massive cliche.
Photos via Céline
Oversized coats
I found this coat in a cupboard at my husband's parent's house in Sweden. It's too big. The shoulder seams droop too far down, when buttoned the shape is bulbous and awkward plus the sleeves are a bit too short. Nevertheless, to me it has a certain charm.
There's a cupboard at my in-law's house in Sweden that is full of strange treasures. It's where I found this killer hat and jacket combo for example. Somehow every time I visit it seems to be stocked full of new vintage gems.
This past trip I was rummaging through it when I came across an oversized tweed coat. My eyes widened and I yanked it out with greed. I ran to the room next door and flung it on over my snowflake flannel pajamas and did a little twirl in front o f the mirror. 'What do you think?' I eagerly asked my husband. His response? 'You look homeless.'
Undefeated, I went out to the kitchen to ask my mother-in-law if I could borrow it. 'Keep it,' she said, 'I got it for 6 pounds at a second hand shop and it's too big for me.' Exactly why I love it - it's too big. The shoulder seams droop too far down, when buttoned the shape is bulbous and awkward plus the sleeves are a bit too short. Nevertheless, to me it has certain charm.
Wearing: vintage coat, & Other Stories hat, 7 for all Mankind jeans, Celine bag and Vans.
A LOOK INSIDE: VOGUE COLLECTIONS...
Holla chicas.
Whenever someone I know is coming back to Zurich from London I bestow upon them the monumental task of bringing me back bucket loads of magazines. English magazines are so overpriced here that I never buy them - so I relish the opportunity to get anyone I know to act as my donkey for them. This time my husband brought me back Vogue Collections. Have you seen it before? It's incredible. It's separated into the five categories: Paris, Milan, New York, London and accessories. Inside are just pages and pages full of looks from each fashion capital's shows. There isn't much text, just a little description of each show and there are also hardly any advertisements. Perfect for drooling over and an excellent alternative to browsing style.com. It comes in at a hefty 25quid but totally worth it if you want to have a tangible reminder of how drool-worthy all of last season's shows were.
POUNDING THE PAVEMENT WITH LAST SEASON...
Vintage lace-ups versus second-hand Celine wedges.
Daniella found her shoes at a shop in Canada and Charlie got her yummy Celine wedges on eBay. It goes to show that sometimes it's best to avoid regular shops altogether. The autumn/winter collections are starting to hit stores and it's really easy to get super excited about all the brand new pieces that are in. But, just because something is new it doesn't mean it's good. I'm headed to Sweden tonight an I can't wait to go to the Acne Archive store. I'm desperate to get my hands on some discounted Acne. Weeeee!! Wish me luck. I hope I find something good.
KEEP IT LIGHT, KEEP IT FROTHY...
Keeping it light n' frothy with some photos I took today in Zurich with my new iPhone (#bootydance). Don't even get me started on how great it is. My life. has been transformed.. The case I'm getting is going to be the best part. But shhh, I'm keeping it a secret for now.
I'm not normally into doing interviews but when I received an e-mail from Karolina in Poland asking if I'd answer a few short questions I couldn't resist. I love that we have so much in common and that she clearly gets what my blog is about. Check out the interview below:
A mini-interview with yours truly
- You said starting a blog was kind of distraction for you - was the decision really spontaneous? Can you point out one particular moment when it was set: OK, I'm about to start a blog? I actually remember the exact moment when the idea came to me. I was sitting in the backyard of my sister's house in St Louis with my family and randomly blurted out, 'I'm going to start a blog.' It was sort of a joke and we all laughed about it. It was August 2009, the summer after I finished my undergraduate degree.
- Reading your blog and a short "about" paragraph I can see some similarity between us: I often search for distractions (during a degree in political theory also), I love beautiful things and I love to write. Starting a blog, however, is one of the things that are put in the "maybe later" drawer. Can you convince me in very few words that this idea is really worthy accomplishing? A blog gives you the platform to express yourself in whatever way you want - you don't need to be held back or restrained by anything. It will change you. The freedom that comes with blogging is what makes it worth accomplishing.
- Has your personal style changed since you are a well known blogger? No. To be honest I've never felt like I have a strong sense of personal style. Some people have a very distinct and memorable style. I don't think I have that. I just wear what I like and it's always pretty low key. My personal style is always evolving. Working with PR agencies and designers means that now I have access to products I never thought I'd even see in real life. There are temptations that come along with that and I always try to ask my-self before walking out the door... do I really like this? It's easy to get sucked into the feeling that you should follow the big trends or wear certain things but I try to avoid that.
- Are you really The Style Crusader? What, in style and fashion, are you fighting for? I love this question. The 'crusade' has changed and developed. There was a fighting element even in the first post I did which was titled 'Mission Statement'. As I say in that post from August 2009, I can't help but scrutinize the world around me. That's definitely still true today. Now, I think the 'crusade' is really just for authenticity and quality. Whether that's in the way you put together an outfit, a magazine's content, or the behavior of a major brand.
If you have any other burning questions for me (from what underwear I like to which philosophical doctrine I most adhere to) ask in the comments below. I hate answering the same question more than once, so we can use this as a gathering ground of enquiries. Good plan?
CAMERA TALK...
Love the idea of wearing a mixture of neutral shades with stark brights and bold colour. It's like the whole colour blocking trend decided to grow up and get a bit more sophisticated. Hedvig and Sandra both have such an effortless sense of style... I'm plotting a grand scheme to invade both their wardrobes and steal everything. Anybody want in on it?
Hedvig and Sandra outside the Topshop venue on Day 3 of LFW.
p.s. super excited to reveal that I've just started contributing to We Heart. You can find all my posts here - hope you like it.
FOGGED UP AND FROZEN...
It's really cold. Like minus 15 degrees celsius in the middle of the day cold. I'm from California. I don't know how to deal with this kind of weather. There are two options: embrace hermit mode and refuse to leave the house or channel my inner yeti. The second option involves Ugg boots and a scarf wrapped around my face so many times that I can't see or breathe. Neither are good. But, this week I have enjoyed running around my flat in shorts and a tank top, giggling at people outside slipping around on the ice.
Today I branched out and decided to venture onto my roof to take some photos. Only, after two minutes my lens had fogged up and was starting to form little ice crystals. Hence photo three. Blurry washed out nothingness, I learnt, is what my camera gives me in minus 15 degree weather.
Wearing: Jigsaw coat, Jaeger cashmere sweater (stolen from my husband), 7 for all Mankind skinny jeans, Converse and Celine bag.
Thank you Freddy for taking these. xx
A bright future
So, before I go and pop a hernia on this delightfully sunny Monday morning I thought I'd best pour out my thoughts on the Celine AW 11 collection that landed in Paris yesterday. As I'm sure you already know, Ms Philo has been rocking the fashion world with her notoriously cool and achingly minimal creations: read tonal milky colour combinations, silky draped fabrics that billow in the most flattering of ways, block colours in shades that will make you pee yourself, and oversized gloriously soft handbags in the most non-discript of shapes... but with the all important perfectly clean 'Celine' etched in (because otherwise it might as well be from Zara). More than an obnoxiously loud 70s revival or a banana print, what Celine sends down the runway quietly influences what real women will be wearing for the season to come. Which is why I nearly popped a vein when I saw her AW11 collection on Style.com this morning...
Taking the whole seventies revival a wee bit too literally, one might argue, came this tripartite wooden cabinet creation. Literally including everything but the kitchen sink... because surely even those weren't wood effect back then? While I might be to young to remember when this trend rocked the kasbah the first time around I think I'll pass go on this one, because if it's too heinous for my cupboards it doesn't belong on my body*.
Ah, if anyone can single handedly bring back the white roll neck... This, for me, is Celine at its best. An austere, no fuss, sleek approach to dressing. Celine manages to continuously reinvent simplicity and minimalism in a way that looks decidedly familiar yet new. If this collection is anything to go by, come September we'll all need a pair of slit ankle trousers with a vertical half stripe, pops of red, pointy tan booties, and a grown out fringe that we can sweep to the side. Well, at least the last one won't put a dent the size of China in our bank accounts.
* how fickle is it that the 70s wooden cabinet print is already starting to grow on me? but not head to toe... well, I say that now...
All images from Style.com. View the entire Celine AW11 collection here.