It’s a wrap! I’m Paris bound. Here are my last shots from Milan’s stylish streets.
THE GIRL: Giovanna is a contributing fashion editor at W magazine and a freelance stylist.
SPOTTED: Via Senato prior to the Moschino show.
HER STYLE: Rocker chic.
WHY WE LOVE IT! She’s ready for any grand entrance wearing this Junya Watanabe leather statement coat and Sergio Rossi embellished booties.
For more fab coats. Click here!
Today I popped into Christian Louboutin’s Paris showroom to politely—and professionally—ogle the shoes that collectors will be coveting this fall. Fringe, tartans, spikes, studs and sparkles, even leopard spots and embroidered computer circuitry, are the wildly variable—but delightfully cohesive—embellishments in Christian Louboutin’s fall/winter collection. Oh, not to mention the faux shearling gold bootie that covers one of his signature mile-high pumps. They’re months away from inducing a credit-card crunch, but there’s always the Capsule Collection to tempt you. It makes its exclusive debut at Holt Renfrew on March 15. The 20 pieces were chosen by Louboutin to celebrate his brand’s 20th anniversary. I was drawn to the Pensée, which is affectionately known as “the shoe that inspired the red sole” because of its whimsical specchio flower. It was reportedly inspired by one of Andy Warhol’s daisy paintings, but it reminded me of the first pair of shoes I ever coveted (actually begged for). They were black patent flats with a white and black flower. Now, I’m coveting this new grown-up 120 mm heel version! Above is Louboutin’s illustrated take on his latest creation, plus his Bow Bow Bow below, which was inspired by a childhood memory of a butterfly landing on his sister’s foot.
For more info on where to buy: http://ca.christianlouboutin.com/
Image courtesy of Getty Images.
Red carpet trend alert! The days of overly styled and fussy Oscar hair are over. I lost count of the number of actresses at the Academy Awards on Sunday wearing relaxed, Grecian-style looks (Bérénice Bejo, Melissa McCarthy, Kate Mara), natural styles (Go, Viola!) and soft, touchable waves that wouldn’t look out of place on a Malibu boardwalk (Maya Rudolph, Milla Jovovich, Jessica Chastain).
One of my favourite funny ladies, Kristen Wiig, wore her hair in a super-relaxed style, which I thought was nicely juxtaposed with her formal gown. Hairstylist Mark Townsend—who gave me a killer blowout last year in Toronto—was responsible for the look. He says it was inspired by the silhouette and colour of Wiig’s J Mendel dress. “We wanted Kristen’s hair to be full with voluminous waves and have an edgy and sexy texture,” he said. Read the rest of this entry
The frequent-flying fashion set are jetting to Paris for another nine days of air kissing and style gazing. They ended Milan’s week on a high style note. Here are a few of my favourites.
THE GIRL: Elisa is a stylist at Cha Cha agency and a shoe designer in Paris.
SPOTTED: Via Bergognone before the Emporio Armani show.
HER STYLE: Retro chic.
WHY WE LOVE IT! The art deco inspired printed Mila Schon coat and statement necklace set off the retro mood paired with Dries Van Noten silk pants and a vintage handbag.
Don’t miss my final picks from Milan. Click here.
I like to think of vintage shopping as a treasure hunt, digging through piles of wacky ‘70s sitcom-style clothes in search of a time-honoured classic that I’ll love and wear forever. I’ve found my fair share of gems — a Burberry trench for $20, a Chloé skirt for $6, and a Fendi purse for $2 (and yes, it was real!) — but not all my trips are so successful. Most of the time I walk out of my local thrift store empty-handed. Some words of encouragement? When it comes to vintage shopping, you need to be persistent. The more you look, the more amazing finds you’ll come across—whether they come bearing a designer label or not. And, for fashion fans, the hunt is well worth it. The fabric quality, precise tailoring and delicate beading found in haute vintage finds offers a luxe alternative to contemporary mass-market pieces.
I caught up with Julie Yoo, owner of I Miss You Vintage in Toronto’s west end, for her top five tips on how to effortlessly incorporate vintage pieces into your wardrobe.
1. Start with accessories or jewellery. For the vintage novice, the easiest way to begin experimenting is to introduce a fantastic vintage necklace or clutch into your wardrobe.
2. Look for interesting textures, materials, or colours. Take advantage of the rich and colourful array of fabrics and materials that vintage clothing offers to accent your wardrobe.
3. Be prepared to do minor alterations. Minor modifications such as shortening a hemline, changing the buttons on a jacket, or adding a fur collar to a coat can transform an OK piece into a standout one.
4. Don’t overdo it. Instead of dressing head-to-toe in an era-specific outfit, choose one statement vintage piece and incorporate it into your contemporary closet. Use vintage to complement your own personal style.
5. Fall in love with vintage. Choose that gorgeous vintage LBD because it’s more special than any mass-produced version could be. The compliments you’ll receive will confirm it.
The weather is seriously beautiful here in Milan—and the street fashions are too. The Emporio Armani and Dolce Gabbana shows attracted the city’s most stylish denizens, who put on almost as good of a show!
THE GIRL: Celina is a student in Milan.
SPOTTED: Viale Piave during the Dolce Gabbana show.
HER STYLE: Girly weekend wear.
WHY WE LOVE IT! She’s sporting an Uptown Sunday dog walking- style in her Zara sequin jacket, Seven jeans and Sergio Rossi sandals.
The next look gives new meaning to flower power. Click here.
Bottega Veneta and Jil Sander were on everyone’s fashion agenda on Saturday. The streetstyle competition was fierce bringing out A-lister style mavens such as Anna Dello Russo.
THE GIRL: Anna Dello Russo is a contributing fashion editor for Vogue Japan and a freelance stylist.
SPOTTED: Via Ercole Marelli before Bottega Veneta show.
HER STYLE: Minimalist with a soft feminine silhouette.
WHY WE LOVE IT! As an ode to Raf Simons’ last show for Jil Sander, Russo chose one of his dresses.
Who was competing with Anna for the best streetstyle look? Click here.
Milan Fashion Week kicked off with Gucci‘s highly anticipated catwalk show on Thursday. The fashion pack jetsetted to Italy for a little Dolce Vita. The weather was perfect for the style mavens to wear their spring best! Here are some of my favorites so far:
THE GIRL: Leaf is a freelance stylist.
SPOTTED: Via Senato before the Moschino show.
HER STYLE: Haute biker chic.
WHY WE LOVE IT! (What’s not to love!) The flower-printed Stella McCartney top and flirty Proenza Schouler skirt get their biker edge with the Balenciaga leather jacket and Giuseppe Zanotti boots. The Lulu Guinness kitty handbag adds the perfect touch of whimsy.
Want more Milan fashion streetstyle magic? Click here.
Courtesy of Universal Studios
I sat down for a special screening of Wanderlust this week, and I won’t lie, it would have been nearly impossible for any flick (Judd Apatow or otherwise) to live up to the insane fact that I’ve been talking about this movie for at least 10 months now.
Seriously.
We’d been circling around Wanderlust ever since ELLE Canada had the pleasure of shooting one of the movie’s stars, the gorgeous Malin Akerman for our August 2011 cover. It was supposed to be perfect timing since the film, which centers around her, Jennifer Aniston and Paul Rudd’s characters kicking it in a hippie commune, was going to be released shortly thereafter…
But here’s an industry tidbit, folks: sometimes movies don’t come out when they’re supposed to. Sometimes, like in the case of Wanderlust, they come out about six months after they’re supposed to.
Why?
Well, often, the answer is simple: because they suck, and studios get embroiled in elaborate strategies to rescue the stinkers through editing and reshoots.
The sad answer?
It normally makes them worse.
So sitting down to watch the long awaited Wanderlust, my expectations were sitting about as low as the Titanic (ship, not blockbuster).
But it was funny and charming! And the film (which is unofficially known as that movie that hooked Justin Theroux up with Ms. Aniston) boasts an uncomfortably long and totally amazing scene in which Paul Rudd talks dirty to himself in a mirror. This kind of squeamish brilliance doesn’t happen every day, people. That two minutes alone is worth the $60 a movie date costs these days (because you can’t go to the theatre and not get a $6 Coke Zero the size of a garbage can).
Luckily, the hilarious and annoyingly leggy Akerman, who plays the commune’s resident free-lover, had as good a time shooting Wanderlust as I did watching it. As she told me: “We were all shooting two hours north of Atlanta in a little town called Clarksville, we were living in little log cabins. It was as if we were out there camping! We were shooting at was this beautiful old house built in the 1800s. We’d hang out every night, we’d hang out on the weekends. We became a real family.”
I’m just glad we’re now finally all able to join the Wanderlust family.
Is this not one of the prettiest hair styles you’ve seen in a while? It is in my books. As soon as I saw this picture of an update on the classic French braid, I instantly thought about how many times I could wear it in the summer. Weddings, the office, beach days, summer cocktails on a patio … and thank goodness I’ve decided to grow my hair out longer so I can actually try this hair style out! It’s the braid trend we’ve seen over the past few seasons (remember Alexander Wang’s messy side braid from spring 2010?) with a sweet and sexy spin thanks to this Valentino knockout originally created by Redken Creative Consultant Guido Palau.
Currently loving this pretty take on the French braid at Valentino. Image courtesy of ImaxTree.com
Our tips on how to recreate this pretty braid yourself come courtesy of celebrity stylist Susana Hong who is also a spokesperson for TRESemmé. If you’re not an expert braider (like me), you might need a bit of assistance until you get the hang of it.
“I love it because once you’ve achieved it, it’s pretty low maintenance,” explains Hong.
The look works best on long, straight hair with very few layers. “If you do have curly hair, just blow dry straight but do not use a flat iron because that will flatten the cuticles too much making the hair harder to grip for the braid,” recommends Hong. And nix the flat iron, since it can make hair difficult to work with. “Hair with heavy shorter layers might prove difficult to style for this particular do. Though it can be done, it will take more product and hand strength to ensure the layered ends stay put in the braid,” says Hong.
Short hair tip: “You can use extensions, but the traditional ones that are clipped in most likely won’t work. You can use ‘braid’ hair – hair that is not attached to any sort of weave, it’s just loose hair. You would add that at the start of your braid, but it’s pretty advanced stuff for the average gal. But the best thing about this look is that it doesn’t have to be perfect,” says Hong.
To get the step-by-step on this hair style … Read the rest of this entry
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