rip lee alexander mcqueen

although i'm a day late on here, i followed the horrific news all day on twitter yesterday and could not get alexander mcqueen out of my head. by now you all know that he committed suicide yesterday morning, that his 3pm McQ presentation was canceled, and that the fashion industry is reeling from the shock of losing such a prolific, masterful, imaginative designer. it's easy to forget that icons are indeed human beings first. the fact that mcqueen was unable to reconcile his personal demons amidst a world and industry who so highly revered him, alongside a career so marked by success, is a devastating reminder that no one has it all.  you never know what's going on behind the closed doors of an individual's personal life. 

he will be deeply and sorrowfully missed. that we will never again see one of his spectacular collections or groundbreaking shows is a travesty. his life and career ended far too soon, and the void his absence leaves in the fashion world is profound.

rip alexander mcqueen - march 17, 1969 - february 11, 2010

image source: style.com, grazia daily, getty 

shoot 'em up, karl

karl lagerfeld. with a gun.

thank you harper's bazaar for the best thing to hit american fashion magazines since this.

it's that time again...

it's that time of the year when i grow insanely jealous of new york, paris, london, milan, tokyo, hong kong, and, for the first time, berlin. the ysl manifesto will be released to 2000 gloriously lucky individuals (if you're one of those, and you don't want it...you can certainly send it my way). the pixillated strawberry tote accompanies the gorgeous manifesto campaign photos of natalia vodianova.

perhaps i get too excited about the little things, but i think it's charming. when i finally receive my ysl manifesto, it will be quite a special day for me, yessiree.

image source: style.com, ysl.com

urban identities

although i don't necessarily love the first look, i'm really struck by designer anke loh's "urban identities" concept of shooting a look as it exists in an urban environment. it reminds me so much of the beginning scene of the film, "closer," during which natalie portman is walking in slow motion through a heavy crowd. there's something so poignant about this image - a beautiful woman existing amongst a crowd, without really standing out, encased in her own thoughts and experience.

image source: anke loh

frenchy fabulousness + garment racks

charlotte gainsbourg is floating her melodic french vocals our way with a new album, "IRM." i love her music, her, and her bedroom full of garment racks (someday my bedroom will be filled with garment racks. then, perhaps, i'll actually know what i own.). these photos are from an interview she did with flaunt magazine.

what a gorgeous, lovely creature.

image source: refinery29

silent

brandon and i sat down in the studio last weekend with a bottle of champagne and went through our favorite blogs and sharing our all-time favorite editorials, and she shared with me this steven meisel tribute to ysl, "silent," which was in vogue italia aug 2008.  considering my obsession with ysl, i was a little embarrassed that i'd never seen it.  shot exquisitely, it's a beautiful homage to one of fashion's most magnificent individuals.  

a little bit of narcissism on a saturday morning

black hair, pale skin, red lips. just a few of my favorite things. 

vogue italia cover - feb 2010. 

jaeger

i love lara stone, because i think she's fabulous and terribly seductive. and so what if i think it's sexy when sexy people chain smoke?

but what initially caught my eye is the watch she's wearing in this campaign. it's magnificent, and i want it. i don't wear watches to tell me the time. in fact, i hadn't worn a watch in years until my mom bought me a gold, glittery, oversized hunk of wrist love for my birthday. but i still haven't set it, and that was almost four months ago. c'est la vie. it's pretty.

and those heels...mmm, i love those heels.

image source: fashion gone rogue

style me fancy, elle greece

i love the styling for for this elle greece shoot. there's so much going on, visually, and each of the looks feel different in their own right. those over-the-knee boots are too gorgeous for words - i want both the maroon and the camel. and if i was a bathing suit kind of lady, you bet your sweet ass i'd be prancing around my house in my bikini and leg sheaths all day long.

image source: fashion gone rogue

twentythirtyforty's night shift

i love this editorial, "the night shift," from twentythirtyforty.net. the colors are so gorgeously saturated, and i loooooove the mod-esque sunshine and shadow shifts. they always do fabulous work, and are such brilliant stylists. and, all of the clothes are sold on the site! looooves it.

givenchy

i adore this collection - it's absolutely gorgeous. tisci really embraced texture and volume (which, if you've ever seen my hair - two things i adore), and every look embraces its own idea of elegance. from ballgown to tux to separates to neon sequins, he really covered the gamut in a collection that was only 22 pieces (next to chanel's 65). for a couture collection, i think smaller is better. then each look has a chance to be truly spectacular and memorable.

i really wish more designers would do couture. such sensational pieces are produced within couture collections.

image source: style.com

ga, ga, ooh, la la

i mean, if this didn't solidify my love for her, nothing could. only lady gaga could pull off a custom armani prive dress modeled after an orbiting space craft.

and those shoes...the SHOES. they look like custom nina ricci's, but don't quote me. regardless, they're about as amazing and jacked up as a shoe could possibly get.

image source: the vulture (the cut's brother blog)

grammys 2010