bff forever

Do you remember your first ever best friend for life? Remember when you wrote each others names in ink on your pencil cases and did word puzzles together and sold lemonade on the streets for 5 cents a pop and watched the smurfs whilst eating Dixie cups and hand clapped Miss Mary Mac in the school yard and begged to have sleepovers together so you could have an excuse to stay up past 8pm and solemnly swore you would be BFF forever and ever and ever to infinity and beyond?

caring is sharing

Chloe Sevigny borrowed my shoes for the weekend, i told her it was fine so long as she promised to return them as good as new

eat my short shorts

Rule of thumb suggests less is more. However sometimes I believe you should throw caution to the wind...and with that notion I am going to say shorts over shorts is a rule I am willing to abide by. Care to join?

listen to le musique

the sound of music im hearing right now is the new 'Jbag Hot Pop' remix of Ladyhawke's My Delirium

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLjeiv0y98s

stay-up with me

In light of recent trends that see us exposing our lingerie as a fashion statement (cue a peek of lace bra under our oversized men’s American Apparel t-shirt or lace crop top) we are now seeing the rise of stay-ups as acceptable outerwear. When you can pull off something your grandmother has worn for years (hers hidden under plaid dresses and petticoats) why wouldn’t you? Just remember the only accessory needed is an infinitely long set of legs.…I’m out.

if i were but a mere male

I would be sporting these items come summer...

le simple life

There is something about les françaises that differentiates them from city folk the world over. Don’t worry I didn’t just come to this realization over the weekend as I sat in un petite bar overlooking the well-dressed set spilling onto le Boulevard St-Michel. I have known this for quite some time. But with each visit I come to realize more and more that the phrase “effortless chic” should be made copyright to Parisienne’s only.

They keep it understated, nothing is ever overdone, they use block colors, they avoid patterns, they wear sky high heels as they walk Le Jardin de Tuileries …all the while their baguettes are gracefully placed under one arm, their Burberry Prorsum leather totes slung carefully over the other. Despite their reputation there is no fuss to the French, all in all they keep it simple.

The word simple in French is spelt ‘simple’. No different to the English composition yet how is that they get is oh-so right every time and we seem to just miss the mark? C'est un mystère

word of the wise

Time you enjoy wasting, was not wasted

- John Lennon -

invitation lost in mail

Clearly my invitation to the Proenza Schouler and Friends Celebrate the Duo’s Collection With a Magazine got lost in the mail. I send my sincerest apologies to Chloe Sevigny, Jen Brill, Daniela Borges and co. How were they to know the carefully crafted invitation never made it to my mail box? Not to worry though as my hectic schedule (which includes lying atop our tiled floors, sucking on ice and kiwi fruit to evade the Roman heat) would just not have allowed a quick flight to New York.

Now excuse me while I run down to wait for the postman.

Just a notion

If there was no such thing as rock n’ roll would the world of fashion be a different place?

not over until the waif lady sings

Kate Moss to front The Kills?

No no no. Say it isn’t so. Kate Moss I love thee. You’re style is an inspiration to us all, you are a woman who single handedly has made us all see something in Pete Doherty that we may never have seen before (or is that still just me?). For this reason I hope it is rumor rather than fact that you have your fashionably gum-booted heels dug deep into the ground and hell bent on auditioning as a replacement for Allison Mosshart (the former Kills front woman has left to concentrate on new super group The Deadweather). Current beau and Kills member, Jamie Hince is said to be dead against the idea but Moss is adamant that she wants her voice out there in a bid to pursue her ever present "musical aspirations" (dating rock stars on high speed rotation isn't enough to satisfy her musical aspirations?).

Quick someone get Sir Phillip Green on the line offering her a new line to design for Topshop. Better yet get Naomi Campbell on the phone to teach her the art of writing a widely panned novel that only sells copies to your mother or those you threaten abuse via mobile phone throwing.

Please Miss Moss I plead with thee, save our ears and continue to bless our eyes with your heroin chic style, your carefully accessorized rock star boyfriends and your so-short-no-one-else-could-pull-these-shorts-off-but-you-shorts.

tour de vintage

Paris looms large on Friday and un petite excitement is rising within. I am there on official Tour de France business, to see the final stage as the riders merge onto the Champs Elysee...or so I keep telling myself. Truth be told I wouldn't have a clue who might win the race or better still who is wearing a yellow, blue, green or red jersey? The only jersey I really care about is that of a material kind, in perhaps a navy dress?

Real reason for le voyage to Paris? One word. Vintage. I was lucky enough to have been in Paris two months ago and spent a pretty penny gliding a little too effortlessly in and around the beautiful kitsch stores that litter Rue du Rivoli. My eyes happily danced from one vintage store rack to another, from old worn boots scuffed to within an inch of perfection, to beautifully carved treasure chests piled high with silk scarves and studded belts. My heart melts at the thought. Vintage Paris Bar on Rue de la Verrerie was an absolutment favourite of mine. It is a converted French bar (with the bar and taps still in tact) which now houses vintage pieces from Chanel to Yves Saint Laurent, crushed velvet Jackets in deep mahogany's and royal blues, sequined bags and art deco costume jewellery aplenty that hang from the bars' overlay.

So whilst the whole of Paris celebrates the winner of Le Tour de France, I shall be celebrating my own little victory amongst a pile of woven scarves, floral shorts and an exhausted credit card.

Beam me up, Bulgari

I have just been to see the Bulgari exhibition at Rome's Palazzo delle Esposizioni. Extravagant jewels have never been my thing (I’m usually less bling more bangles)…until now. The exhibition is a journey through the ages of the House of Bulgari. On display are over 500 jewels and exquisite images of those movie stars and models who have been lucky enough to wear a Serpenti cuff or a diamond and emerald encrusted brooch in their lifetime.

Then there is the room dedicated entirely to the truly breathtaking pieces, which have adorned Ms Elizabeth Taylor through the years (all of which are on loan from the lady herself). I now understand why Tim Burton was once quoted as saying "The only word Elizabeth knows in Italian is Bulgari". Add the word "Vorrei" in front of Bulgari and I believe you have yourself all the Italian a girl will ever need to know.

I have a confession...

....I have a crush on Skin, former lead singer of Skunk Anansie. I was lucky enough to witness her greatness on Saturday night at Spazio, Rome. Her DJ set would have to be the only thing that could possibly entice me (me who has an innate fear for all things public transport) to catch three non air-conditioned buses to a "club" set up on what effectively is by day just a patch of grass positioned somewhere on the outskirts of Rome. Her performance, a near three hour set has left me on what can only be described as a non-chemically induced crazy high ever since. She was THAT good. Girl can play, girl can dress and girl can sing. She ticks all my boxes…did someone say jump the fence?

just a notion

When someone in a motorcyle gang has to relieve themselves, do they all stop?

Misty water coloured failure

Is it just me or does something about this ensemble scream Barbara Streisand?

May I just preface what I am about to say with the fact that Streisand usually looks fabulously decked-out given her age, but let's be honest here the lady does have quite a soft spot for anything 'off the shoulder'. Leona on the other hand, should know better, after all she isn't going on 60 plus. Or is she? Everyone lies about their age in Hollywood so I suppose it wouldn't suprise anyone if Leona really was just a 70 year old with an amazing plastic surgeon. Or perhaps her and Streisand shared a dressing room and they got their outfits mixed up? Perhaps Streisand is on the red carpet at this exact moment in a figure hugging black dress, one that would've looked a treat on young Lewis. Or maybe (sigh/gasp/sigh) Lewis just got it wrong? Hey we all make mistakes.

Dear Leona, it's one thing to be inspired by icons musically but another to be inspired by them in the fashion stakes, particularly when one is light years older than the other.

A word from the wise

Most women set out to try to change a man, and when they have changed him they do not like him

- Marlene Dietrich -

Hello I love you; won't you tell me your name

C