Going Away!

I'm going away! For a month exactly, so posting is going to be very sporadic. In the spirit of my departure, here is Jessica Stam by a boat. I'm not leaving on a boat, but you get the general idea.

Kelly in Japan

So Kelly Mittendorf is the new kooky girl, and usually kooky girls are immensely annoying, but luckily they usually only last one or two seasons. But Kelly Mittendorf is totally different. Sure she may have the strange, almost ugly face of a kooky girl, but if her latest editorial in Vogue Japan is anything to go by, she is way more versatile than your average oddity.

Check out her facials! Like, not her face (which is weird), but her expressions. There is variety there but she doesn't look awkward, and she's rocking some pretty awesome poses and they don't look awkward either. It's like she's been been practising in front of a mirror, and I respect a girl who swots up. But of course there's that element that can't be taught and I think she got it. 

Also, as an aside, Vogue Japan editorials are usually pretty amazing. The creative direction (not even starting to look at styling) is that much different from Vogue Japan's Western counterparts, and they do things with colour and composition that put other editorials to shame. And you can see its effectiveness here! Most of these clothes have been done to death, but now they look new again.

Just a Great Cover

Nothing really today, just this great i-D cover. I know you shouldn't judge a book by a cover, but magazines are about images so I will always buy a magazine with mediocre content if it has a good cover, and will hesitate to buy a magazine with great content if it has a truly awful cover.

These colours are amazing! The quality is so 80s! Jourdan Dunn is resplendent!

photo from Fashion Gone Rogue

Girl Crush

I have an unashamed girl crush on Emma Stone. I get genuinely excited whenever she makes a red carpet appearance and can look a those creepy sets of paparazzi photos of her for hours. She dresses so well! And sure I know I know, any movie star has a stylist but still, she has to choose a good stylist and approve her clothes right? Right?
She is also v. funny and talented and stuff, and she doesn't bullshit around being ambitious (falsely modest and "I just fell into this" actresses are the worst), so that's like girl power! I think. I am totally projecting but please allow me to do this. She has one of those crazy Taylor Swift cat-eye faces but she is still sexy too I want to be you Emma or can I be your best friend please. 



Oh boy let's look at Emma Stone in pretty clothes

And let's look at Emma Stone channeling Ferris Bueller

And let's just look at her face

So excited for Spiderman guys!

Harmony Korine/Proenza Schouler

Even though I love him to bits, have always loved him to bits and will always love him to bits, Harmony Korine is way too hip to have ever not been involved in fashion. It's always kind of cute when directors come together with labels, and often everyone ends up looking a little bit silly - the director going too commercial and lightweight and the designers coming across as a bit earnest.
But Korine never took himself too seriously (actually did he? I'm not so sure now), and his work is always random and all over the place so I think his stuff for Proenza Schouler works.

These are the stills for his 'film' for their AW'10 collection Act da Fool

And here is the video!




Korine apparently took inspiration from this Christopher Wool photo:

In interviews about it Hernandez and McCollough said they were expecting Korine to do something in New York and with skaters (before hiring him hadn't they seen anything of his after Kids?). And in other random thoughts about it, I don't know how I feel about the 'da' in the title, it's probably Korine trying to be ridiculous (or absurdist if you wanted to use a fancier word) but it sure works as ignition for youtube comment arguments.

But this is all old news! Now Korine and Proenza Schouler have a fancy new 'film' called Snowballs. I liked the old man! He really drove the narrative I thought, when it was just the two injuns there didn't seem to be much drive, much purpose.

And I don't know if this was an intentional decision, but it's interesting how the two models are white, and playing dress ups in Native American clothes - is it a comment on cultural appropriation? Is it making their 'navajo' printed clothes acceptable? Am I reading too much into this? (Probably)

Things That Were Disappointing

I'm getting the feeling that there's been a little too much... positivity around here lately. One wants to be careful with how much positiveness one dishes out, before you know it you could be happy about everything all the time and where is the fun in that? So here are the things of the SS'12 shows that were disappointing.

Rodarte

Please don't misunderstand me on this one. Rodarte wasn't bad, it was just disappointing. For an average designer, an average collection is good! But for amazing designers, an average collection is a huge disappointment. So that goes for every collection I talk about here - I just expected so much more.
In my post about Proenza Schouler I talked about how the collection was good because they interpreted their inspiration subtly and ingeniously. Here Rodarte, IMO, took their inspiration way too literally. Starry Night and Vase with Twelve Sunflowers printed on fifties prom dresses? Really? They could have done so much more with Van Gogh. I guess they did try to abstract things and just look at Van Gogh colours, but I think they just outright failed to find the right colours. And what did Nicole Phelps say? Something about gift stores and Starry Night mousepads. Mmmm verging a little too much on kitsch in a bad way.

One free pass, Rodarte, you have until AW'12...

Meadham Kirchoff

I was disappointed because it was too literal too? I guess that's a strange thing to say because Meadham Kirchoff's genius is taking more abstract ideas and making them literal. Maybe girlishness wasn't abstract enough this time around. Or you know what, maybe I JUST DIDN'T LIKE THE WAY IT LOOKED (you can see my Art History study and analytical skills are serving me well here)
I have to admit I like it a little bit more the more I look at it, but I still dub it a disappointment.

Marni

Ugh go away bright colour. You and your simplicity have no place at Marni.

Lanvin/Yves Saint Laurent

What is wrong with everyone?? Can't they see this is all really ugly?? WHAT THE HELL PEOPLE

Ok I've calmed down a bit. The problem with Lanvin is that all the models looked uncomfortable, and I would hazard a guess that the proportions in those clothes would make a normal person's body look terrible - they look terrible enough on the models. I know fashion isn't about always about beauty, but Lanvin has a responsibility in making women look good!
And Yves Saint Laurent could have been good, I wouldn't know because I just can't see past the colour combinations.

Totally hilarious anecdote: I was watching The September Issue with my mum, and when Stefano Pilati
comes on and Anna Wintour asks how he is and he's all "ehhh not that great actually, no?" (you don't do that outside of France man, outside of France you are "good thank you" at all times), my mum was all "I do not like this man he's whiny and a sycophant". So now whenever I see an Yves Saint Laurent collection all I can think is "a whiny sycophant created this" - kills it a little bit.

Hey but do you like how this post is not really that negative. It's actually kind of nice "I have too much faith in you designers"

photos from vogue.com