le cheap chic

Generally, kitsch defines an inferior copy of an original style (thing?). We all know the popular "adibas" sweaters and also the eye-killer "harrison" jacket. Anyway, kitsch is defined by low quality. Also, low quality products are generally...cheap. Many people tend to associate these two concepts, but not all cheap things are low quality. However, an interesting fact is how attitude can change a cheap look - how attitude converts low quality into cool. Well, can it be? Some may say kitsch does not exist anymore, at least in fashion. One can sport a kitschy outfit on purpose. And some of them manage to look quite..original? I can't really say. But I still got a problem with cheap looks. And I'll make a list of every thing that crosses my mind and fits my personal definition of cheap:
- glued soles (instead of sewed ones).
- shoes and accesories that leave glitter on your hands.
- aluminium earrings that hurt your ears
- too short and too tight "plastic" tops
- dirty white laquer purses
- overdried hair. for me, it looks cheap.
- pants that leave nothing to imagination- those pants 2 sizes smaller.
...
If you have more examples, go ahead and complete the list.


Photos:
http://www.hel-looks.com/
http://www.urbnstyle.blogspot.com/

Avedon's kills

Every photo taken by Richard Avedon, one of the most influential fashion and portrait photographers of the late 20th century, captures soul drops from the subject. I don't see very often, in fashion pictorials, images that can be felt, heard, tasted and touched. His pictures recall a simphony of senses, and every person captured in them seems to be naked; their well-kept secrets are revealed and they find themselves in a brutal reality. Sadness, poverty and dignity in dispair, grace and humiliation, all felt simultaneously when watching a single picture.
Marylin Monroe, Ronald Reagan, Tony Blair, Audrey Hepburn, Samuel Beckett and ordinary people were left bleeding after a blitz of a camera took the hidden part of them and put it on a white, wide, revealing background.

Photos:
http://www.richardavedon.info/biography/index.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/14/fashion/14AVEDON.html?_r=1
http://www.10planet.net/vb/showthread.php?t=6531

Flashlights

This fall brings on catwalks dashing textures, velvet, embroideries, fur, massive accesories, croc skin, and metallic leather. All incrusted with expensive crystals and bold sequins. It's all about Luxury, sitting in the front row. Or maybe it's just an attempt to revive authenticity. Designers forgot about ordinary materials and bet on the things that last in time, things that are valued generation after another. And maybe in a recession time we all need to hang on to something relevant through its value.
My season's picks:
Alexander Wang's fringed dress and witch-hat. The dress for its versatility and punkish look and the hat for its remarkable shape - it really reminds me of the wicked witch from The Wizzard of Oz.
BCBG Max Azria's luscious leggins. Slippery and decadent.
Balmain kept it's last season flavor and pleased my heart with crystal incrusted party dresses. So flashy you won't need shoes.
Givenchy's embroided dress and feathered sandals. The embroided dress because it's a mix between a rock&roll design and the long lasting ornamental needlework. The sandals because they can put on a burlesque show on their own.
Westwood's drapped dress. Just because it covers the body in a fluid cocoon and follows it's shape.
Stella McCartney see-through dress. because it's the epitome of distinctive elegance. And because it's dangerously sexy.


Photos: www.style.com

Vaho bags

How would you like a hand-made bag made out of advertising PVC canvases? They definitely stand out, having such a beautiful story: all Vaho Works products are made of trash, which means they are uber-necessary right now, eco-friendly and socially conscious. Stained, ripped, abandoned banners and other advertising materials turn into statement-accesories under the arms of imprisoned Spanish men.
So, Vaho Works got what it takes to take the world apart: the promise that everything used can be recycled into something better. And it's not just about the canvases, it's also about the soul recycling - giving a chance to people who dance on the edge of the society.

Photo: http://www.doobybrain.com/

On acid

(Levi's, Balmain, Corina Vladescu, Topshop, J Brand, Topshop).

The 80s brought acid washed jeans, high waist goodies, enormous shoulders and daring make-up. Also, neon colors, big hair do's, women power and Michael Jackson.
I'd choose the acid washed jeans. They hit the catwalk at Balmain's spring collection 2009 and the streets also.
I'd wear a pair of skinny acid washed with a white shirt and laced sandals at a small, chic terrace with a giant muffin on my plate. Another option would be sporting them with a loose cardigan and a statement t-shirt, at a friend's house watching The Breakfest Club. And I wouldn't forget my comfy Chuck's.
All i need to do is bleach my skinny pink jeans; wouldn't wear them otherwise.
I like being on acid!

"She's got a smile that it seems to me
Reminds me of childhood memories
Where everything
Was as fresh as the bright blue sky
Now and then when I see her face
She takes me away to that special place
And if I'd stare too long
I'd probably break down and cry"

Sweet child o'mine, Guns N'Roses


Photos:
www.polyvore.com
www.topshop.com
www.marieclaire.com
www.style.com

The future's grey

Nicola Morgan is an award winning fashion designer who uses a special method for cutting the garments and joining fabrics together, without the need of sewing. There are one-piece clothes with futuristic, metalic details, all reminding me of Huxley's Brave New World. I'm not digging this "useful-rigid-architectural clothing" trend. Even though it's cool because it's a direction marked by fast-forward newness and countless possibilities.


Photos:
http://www.nicola-morgan.co.uk/

Amsterdam trip

I amsterdam by monicastyletrip featuring Chanel jewelry

( Miss Selfridge coat and blouse, Levi's jeans, Adidas Superstars, H&M hoodie)



If you search for a place where you can slow down, enjoy Van Gogh's paintings or just wander narrow streets while admiring ginger-bread houses, Amsterdam is the perfect choice. To do list:
- pack clothes that keep you warm. you never know when smoke turns to clouds.
- eat a giant pancake, filled with delicious black berry jam.
- stroll along the channels and then stop for a quick bite - french fries covered in mayonnaise.
- do the Kalverstraat shopping. And stop at all three H&Ms.
- visit Van Gogh's Museum and Madame Tussauds, after you get high legally. or you can get high afterwards and visit Artis, Amsterdam's zoo.
Make sure you spice your wardrobe up with a little help from the local vintage boutiques'. Also don't forget your umbrella or a coloured raincoat.
Last, but not least, enjoy the full cherry of the trip by socializing in the Red District neighbourhood. Play Virus Syndicate and float on green air.
Brain damage: 100%

Photos:
http://www.hm.com/nl/#/start/
http://www.thisnext.com/item/888C63DC/FCD2C1E9/Straight-501-Boyfriend-Cut
http://nicekicks.com/
http://www.missselfridge.com/