Elizabeth Taylor RIP

15 Saturday Oct 2011

Posted by Angie in R.I.P., stuff to see, Women

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Butterfiled 8, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Elia Kazan, Elizabeth Taylor, George Stevens, Giant, James Dean, Krupp diamond, Montgomery Clift, Pacific Design Center, Paul Newman, Richard Brooks, Suddenly Last Summer, Tennessee Williams

If you’re in LA, you can view her memorabilia, which includes gorgeous one-of-a-kind gowns, and her eye-popping jewelry collection, at the Pacific Design Center through Oct. 16th. Items will go on auction in New York in December.

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-liz-auction-20111003,0,1683302.story

Elizabeth Taylor necklace earrings bracelet

Goddess. She glows, even in black and white.

Wow! It’s like an infinity mirror. 33 carat Krupp diamond.

Her couture gowns and jewelry were bought and paid for. Not like today’s here-today-gone-tomorrow starlets. SNAP! She passed away on March 23, 2011, at 79, but her memory and image live on.

These are legends, not movie stars. James Dean and Elizabeth Taylor on the set of “Giant,” directed by George Stevens in 1956.

Here are some of her most memorable looks.

“Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,” directed by Richard Brooks, 1958, explores the rocky marriage of Brick, Paul Newman, and Maggie, Elizabeth Taylor.

Elizabeth Taylor Paul Newman Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

With Paul Newman in this now famous slip.

Was there ever a more gorgeous screen couple?

Elizabeth Taylor white dress Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

Not that she needs help with figure flattering cuts, but this silhouette is so stunning on her, emphasizing her natural and ample bosom and tiny waist.

“Suddenly, Last Summer,” the creepy, Southern Gothic-like mystery, has the wonderfully patrician Katherine Hepburn breathing life into Tennessee Williams’s words, flitting around like a ghost haunting her home and haunted by the death of her son, Sebastian. Her sea turtle monologue rivals Natalie Woods’s, “I’m a good girl Mama!” monologue, from “Splendor in the Grass” for best crazy lady monologue. Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz in 1959, Liz does a great crazy lady, too.

Elizabeth Taylor Suddenly Las Summer black dress

This could’ve been plucked from Victoria Beckham’s collection. Still very modern and flattering.

Elizabeth Taylor Suddenly Las Summer white swimsuit Montgomery Clift

This daring white, keyhole, one piece became an iconic swimsuit.

Elizabeth Taylor Suddenly Las Summer white swimsuit

Here it is in color. mptvimages.com

In “Butterfield 8,” she plays Gloria Wandrous, a sometimes actress/call girl trying to go legit, directed by Daniel Mann, 1960. What’s striking about her performance is her vulnerability layered with world weariness and optimism.

Another memorable slip. She was petite but perfectly proportioned.

Elizabeth Taylor Butterfield 8 black dress pearls

As Gloria she was the lust object looking for love, dignity, and respect in all the wrong places.

That’s just a taste. She has so many! RIP Elizabeth.

Les Journees Particulieres

12 Wednesday Oct 2011

Posted by Angie in stuff to do

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Fashion atelier vacations, Les Journees Particulieres

If you’re galavanting around Europe this fall, LVMH will open 25 of their ateliers in France, Italy, Spain and England to the public. Yes, we peons will be allowed inside the workshops of Louis Vuitton, Hubert de Givenchy’s Paris mansion, and tons of others too fantastic to believe. Pucci!, the Fendi palazzo! My god. Some are probably already sold out for their limited runs, but they’ll still be lots to see if you’re up for it. I, of course will be here, watching movies and driving my little guy to preschool. Have fun!

Ahh, if only, one had the time, $$ and trustworthy babysitters.

http://www.lesjourneesparticulieres.fr/accueil.php

Jane Eyre, 2011

11 Tuesday Oct 2011

Posted by Angie in 1850's, Men, Women

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Adriano Goldman, Amelia Clarkson, Cary Fukunaga, collars, Costume Designer, cuffs, Dario Marianelli, gloves, Helmut Lang, Holliday Grainger, Jamie Bell, Jane Eyre, mens coat, Mia Wasikowska, shoes, sleeves, Tamzin Merchant

This version of “Jane Eyre”, Directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga, Director of Photography, Adriano Goldman, Costume Designer, Michael O’Connor, and Music by Dario Marianelli, seduces you in a cold, windy, embrace. Beautifully shot, paired with evocative music, plus so many clothing details, I could hardly keep up.

The main takeaway is COLLARS. So many delicate, artful collars, I couldn’t see anything else. I don’t know if they were lace, embroidered linen or cotton voile, but just that they were exquisite. You could use these for a light, prim, detail in a spring collection featuring linen and cotton shifts. You don’t need any jewelry with collars like these.

Don’t you love her little bow brooch?

I love this shot because she’s talking about being trapped and not only is she framed in a window, but the window panes act as a prison cell.

Another great collar.

And another.

Here are some great collar and cuff combos. Why don’t people make a nice, lacy or embroidered cuff anymore? It’s perfect for winter, wear it under your fave solid wool/cashmere sweater. It adds a splash of femininity to something otherwise unisex.

OMG how fun is this cuff? Double layered and belled! And the collar is such a whimsical shape.

Jane Eyre 2011 Mia Wasikowska and Judi Dench

I love the little tie at the collar.

The sleeve details, tight, pleated, layered in contrast to the full skirts give you a sense of how restrained all the women in this period are.

A closer look at the sleeve.

The layered sleeves make me want to make fitted wool blazers or pea coats.

Jane Eyre 2011 scalloped sleeve Tamzin Merchant

How cute is this sleeve detail on her shoulder? Imagine it being on a felted wool pea coat? The vertical, hanging necklace is hard to see, and seems a little out of place, it’s almost like a noose around her neck, but I like it.

Jane Eyre 2011 Amelia Clarkson school uniform

Young Jane’s school uni made me think of Helmut Lang in the mid 90’s. Imagine it in black over a white shirt. So cool.

Jane Eyre 2011 Amelia Clarkson school uniform back

The back.

Jane’s shoes are the last vestige of her privileged upbringing. Crafty oxfords, please someone make these.

Jane Eyre 2011 Mia Wasikowska mesh gloves

Grey, mesh, fingerless gloves?! Gimme!

As for the the men, Mr. Rochester is a dandy when the mood suits him, but St. John, played by a grown up Jamie Bell, is always dressed in stark black and white. I love the contrast of the soft, white, thin cravat with the bulky, black and stiff vest, coat and overcoat.

This stiff, almost waxed overcoat serves as a type of emotional armor.

Check out the nice, wide collar from the back. If it were a waxed cotton, it would be selling out in an All Saints shop

All in all, this version surprised me by how stunning it was visually and aurally. Mr. Rochester always stuns me… Hello? Sexual harassment! But it is a classic tome, sure to be remade again, and again, but probably won’t look as cool. Tremendous job, Michael O’Connor.

http://focusfeatures.com/jane_eyre

Jane Eyre poster. From IMDB.

Breathless

10 Monday Oct 2011

Posted by Angie in 1960's, Hair and Makeup, Women

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1960's Paris, AN AMERICAN IN PARIS, Breathless, French New Wave, gamine, Jean Seberg, Jean-Luc Godard, pixie cut

Whatever you might think of his films, Jean-Luc Godard is a towering and inescapable influence on everything from films, photography, even (maybe subconsciously) to rap music. I may be bored waiting for the plots to start, may not be that interested in the political or satirical points he’s trying to make, but I sooo appreciate his utter originality and convention-busting mentality.

“Breathless,” 1960, left old-style filmmaking in its wake. Radical jump cuts and hand-held camera work only became mainstream in the MTV 80’s age of music videos.

Jean Seberg Breathless New York Hearld Tribune shirt

Why doesn’t someone makes these t-shirts so we can buy them??? You could even do a lightweight cashmere or wool. The ultra cool gamine Jean Seberg.

Wearing her boyfriend’s hat. She could be going to Coachella, modern, timeless.

Effortlessly chic. Love the vertically knit tank. mptvimages.com

Without the hat, so cute! Just remember smoking kills. But does look cool in black and white. I’m not gonna lie. mptvimages.com

Maybe Goddard called it Breathless because she’s so beautiful.

Jean Seberg Breathless gloves sunglasses dress

This striped dress is perfect for spring. Why did women stop wearing gloves?

With a sweater thrown over it. Notice the sweater is a fuller cut, not tight.

“Breathless,” is also a play on, “An American in Paris.” But instead of a squeaky-clean American trying not to get caught in a questionable social situation, this American girl knows what’s up, and isn’t fazed in the least by getting into a questionable social situation.