military fashion in paris

although fashion was the thrust of my studies in europe, any well-positioned fashion connoisseur knows that fashion takes it inspiration from every facet of culture, and that in any and every event, the more you experience and engage, the more you references you have to draw from.

so, you can imagine my delight in finding these incredible, balmain-esque military uniforms at the musee de l'armee in les invalides, which is an army museum that was originally built as a hospital for wounded soliders. i remember that that day i was having a blah morning, had gotten lost at one point, and then couldn't find a place to get a cappuccino for the life of me. i had no idea i'd be finding inspiration at such an unexpected locale.

paris prep

i love books. ever since i was little they've been one of my very favorite things to spend money on, so it makes sense that as i get ready to spend 3 weeks in paris, i would go on a book-buying spree.* in my head, i've these romantic notions of journaling in cafes, and experiencing the culture and history of fashion and art in paris that i've been reading about in my prized tomes. how this cerebrally-motivated romanticism plays out remains to be seen. in the meantime, i sure love looking through them.

*special thanks to my friend doug, for loaning me his bleach-kissed guide to europe.

images: amazon.com

!!!

storefront windows of chanel in paris. less than two weeks and i'll be meeting these hay-stacked designs in person. true romance.

images: maison chaplin

shopper love

recently i've not really been in the mood to shop (i know), but there are certain sartorial necessities that have been on my "acquire before paris" list, including some new flats. and then i saw these, with which i fell instantly in love:

but then i saw these, and it was kind of hard to choose which one:

so, i just got them both. merci, paris!

Yves Saint Laurent au Petit Palais

i. cannot. wait.

parisian sass

in paris, i'll be sitting by fountains all day in fabulous clothes enjoying visual splendor and cigarettes, right?

right.

image: fashion gone rogue

ysl tuesday

i just thought i'd post this in homage to my cheeky declaration of "ysl tuesdays" a couple weeks ago.

warhol and yves - oh, to have run with yves' crowd in the 1970s.

coca-hell yeah

get ouuuuuut. coco rocha and baptiste giabiconi are adorable, but let's talk about the real issue here: which is karl lagerfeld branding coca-cola light with his silhouette. you best be believing that i'm going to come home from paris with a collection of these gems, because - aside from the omission of ysl - that little bottle encompasses the entirety of my livelihood.

coca-cola light, by karl lagerfeld. done and done.

images: design scene

ysl retrospective at le petit palais

this exhibition will be at le petit palais while i'm in paris! could the fates have possibly been more aligned? i'm almost more elated about this than the entirety of my trip to paris (i mean, not really, but let's be honest - kind of)! the website in and of itself is a visual spectacular. seriously. a 55-page slideshow filled with amazing images, as well as a vast array of information on the exhibition and ysl's career. check it, lovies. i'll send you photos on the flipside.

images: yslretrospective.com

also, check out this tres fabuloso times online article all about yves and the advent of his new biography.

j'adore paris

i'm in such a street style mode right now. with all of the images revolving from fashion week street style, i had to jump on the bandwagon with some of my faves. these lovely women were all rocking their fierce personal style in paris - tres fab, tres chic. their ingenuity is inspiring me to NOT wear the same thing every damn day of my life.

images: refinery29

mcqueen's final collection

a mystifying, gorgeous, expertly detailed and crafted final collection from alexander mcqueen. an even greater testament to the artist we've lost. his couture embellishments are exquisite, and i adore his continuation of the other worldly/reptilian inspiration.

rip alexander mcqueen.

images: style.com

ys(i)l(ove you)

oh my goodness! i can't even believe how long it's been since i've posted. life has been turned upside down and around and around and it's fitting that i make this announcement when i post the ysl fall collection (my sweet, dear stefano...how i love his insousciance), but...

i'm going to paris to study fashion!!!

i'm going for the month of june, and i'm so ecstatic and over the moon and all sorts of other things, that i really just can't even articulate it. so, my faithful, adoring readers - for those of who you who've let the jetset lives of which i've always dreamed, i beseech you to comment, email, tweet your very favorite parisian hotspots. my dear kate, as a "you're going!! thank GOD we're finally getting you on this damn trip!" gift, gave me a french journal in which she's already documented and listed the addresses for her favorite places in paris. i'm not going for a couple months, so we really want to add to that and have a lovely little travel book all compiled and ready to go for when i leave. i would love to have a "sassafras" section with reader suggestions, too, so please share!

now on to ysl: i love the playfulness that stefano brings to ysl, especially with that gold lady necklace he dripped over everything. i loved when he used it as the waist rosary (technical term?) on the nun's habit look the most. always chic, there's an edge to this collection - with the use of plastic, and the gloves, the structured shoulders, that modernizes the classic ysl look in a way that i really appreciate. we all know my bias, but when i look at current ysl - especially fall - i can feel the energy and thought that pilati puts into his designs, and into maintaining ysl's vision. i think this collection is so fun, and i like it way more than last year's fall collection. i reaaaally want those to-die-for green glasses. j'adore!

images: style.com