Winter drawings

xx

Anna

Anna Mouglalis, who, as you know, is not only a successful French actress, but also a model for Chanel and Karl Lagerfeld's muse, makes me think of two things. New Year celebration and, quite surprisingly, consumerism. Her beauty, which is of baroque kind (large dark yellow eyes and dramatic make-up), makes me think of stars and champagne and the clock that chimes at midnight. Whereas her style brings up the comparison with pathetic pre-New Year crowds I saw yesterday in the shopping mall. Women trying on colourful silk dresses to make December the 31st the greatest night of the year. I might have turned too pessimistic but I think it won't help. There's nothing you can buy to turn into a beautiful princess overnight. At first, I couldn't make out what exactly put me off. Now I know. It is that it was all about trying to impress. Plus, it was overdressing, which is unpleasant aesthetically.
These photos of Anna are my inspiration for the upcoming New Year celebrations. Hope they'll inspire you just as much.
xx

P.S. Did you know Anna Mouglalis speaks 5 languages and reads philosophy books? Makes me feel empty-headed. Beauty is certainly not only about clothes & make-up (banal, I know).

Elegance is refusal

The girl I'd like to tell you about might be called 'potentially stylish'. Agnia Ditkovskite, born in Lithuania, is a successful actress. She claims her favourite style is minimalism. Though sometimes her outfits are too eclectic, she looks genuinely beautiful when wearing subtle and sophisticated minimalistic pieces.

Seduction, etc.

I'd like to share a bit taken from a very inspiring article by Ellen Wallace. It concerns an ever-present issue of 'what's so peculiar about French nonchalant style'. However, it is not French style I'd like to focus on.
"French women do not dress for men. "We don’t dress to be sexy. Of course we do dress to seduce — that’s different from trying to ‘catch’ a man by wearing flamboyant clothes. The basic attitude is different. A French woman never feels she’s offering herself. There’s never a sense of surrender, but an attitude of ‘I belong to me’."
It's nothing new, of course. It is just that it made me think of all these poor girls parading the streets in extreme miniskirts, really tight dresses, higher-than-the-sky heels,with their overdone faces giving out the effort put into them in the morning right away. Don't you sympathize with them? At least, I do. Such severe sufferings to attract a man's glance in the street!
Don't get me wrong. I'm far from being a feminist, and I do like seductive clothes. But don't you think there is something utterly tempting about this "I belong to me" attitude. Self-confidence and self-respect come first. A woman should rather try to seduce herself. Well, it does imply a certain level of stylistic skills and a developed self-identity. So, it is not only "seduce yourself first", but it is also "be hard to seduce"!
P.S. Remember Carole Bouquet in "This Obscure Object of Desire"? She looked discreet, but very seductive (seductive enough to make a man obsessed with her, almost insane).
xx

5 Things I'd Never Do (Though I'd Like To)

1. Cut my hair really short.

I do love short hairstyle. It's boyish, it's provocative, it's sexy. But only if nature granted you with certain kind of appearance. The point is you have to be really slim, high cheekbones are required, and your face should be perfectly oval. I have always had some vague dreams about acquiring an extreme but charming hairstyle, but I invariably stick to the long straight look my hair has now (by the way, the only one approved by my boyfriend).




2. Wear skinny jeans on a daily basis.

In fact, any jeans (skinny jeans just seem more sensible to me - I want the shape of my legs to be seen and admired). Well, I adore the plain white t-shirt + blue jeans look on photographs, but I'm afraid it wouldn't work on me. Or haven't I just found the proper tee and the proper jeans?

3. Wear thick wool socks over tights.

Hélas! No way I could do it.


4. Buy only basics.

I'm trying hard. So it's not because I don't like the idea I'd never do it, it's because I'm not sure I will ever be able to limit my wardrobe to simple-and-elegant clothes. It's quite hard to find real basics. What shops suggest you is the result of some weird fantasy applied to a piece of cloth. And being extremely picky leads you nowhere.
Plus, combining basics is the easiest way. And we want challenge, don't we?



5. Wear oversized (men's) clothes.

As a normal girl of 18, I love men's clothes. I do sometimes steal things from my boyfriend's wardrobe. And I keep feeling guilty every time I do it, thinking 'Girl, it's no good to wear men's pullover with those...hm...feminine hips of yours'.
What a shame!

xx

Wishful Thinking

Les enfants de Marx et de Coca-Cola

There are two things that have formed the notion of the 60s/70 s in my mind - Jean-Luc Godard's film Masculin, féminin and Hilary Mantel's novel An Experiment in Love. This was, I reckon, the era of the young with everything mixed up: love, politics, wide use of contraception, fear of prejudice, mini-skirts, expectations.
I first watched the film completely unaware of what La Nouvelle Vague was about. So I have a pure impression of it, merely what I felt right after I've watched it. Do you remember the opening scene? Paul (Jean-Pierre Léaud) sitting in the café, watching Madeleine (Chantal Goya). And Madeleine is fascinating! Immediately I fell in love with this plain white sweater of hers that represents to me youthfulness and fragility. This film, I remember it felt like what my life is going to be: complex, nice-looking, with me staying half-indifferent to both the brilliant and the frightful things that happen. And sexually involved.
The novel is about a young girl who moves to London to study law, and faces the complications of her new life. It's all about girls, but it's not girlish, in a bad sense. No silly romance, only quiet observations. And lots of details. Everything tells a story - the collar of your coat, the rings you wear, the way you unbutton your blouse and the way you sip your coffee. That's precisely the kind of prose I like. Full of material things, not abstract. It never fails to inspire me.

P.S. As a title I used a quotation from the film (which is actually an intertitle between chapters): "This film could be called The Children of Marx and Coca-Cola".
xx

Winter plans

Cats, Women And Other Wild Things

Feminine = feline. To me, it's completely true. Lots of people talk of women resembling cats and the miraculous spiritual alliance between the two. I'm not sure about that, but the pieces of clothes that happen to have certain feline features always look very sexy and give you sublime grace. Quant à moi, I am in the habit of using cat eye makeup and wearing leopard print. And I also recently bought Mango cat eye sunglasses (like in the 50s). A friend of mine has the same, only mine are black and hers are leopard.
The idea of transforming a female's sex appeal into the animal form was used by Maison Michel in the beatuful collection of black lace headbands. They have cat ears there, too.
And do you like these fascinating illustrated cats from Chelsea Magazine?

Some funny news for you in the end: a recent report says a parasite living on cats can infect their female owners and make them sexy, desirable, fun-loving and unfaithful. Pretty flattering anyway, non?
xx

These Boots Are Made For Walking

I love...

...le tricolore. I just love French national flag. It is symbolic, it provokes certain images, it has vertical stripes! My favourite colours are blue, cream and burgundy, that is, variations of bleu, blanc, rouge. Look, isn't it just sublime?



...coffee. All shapes and tastes. I'm not very keen on take-away coffee (I love walking with a coffee cup in hand, it's just that the coffee might not be of high quality). My greatest addiction is coffee with chocolate and mint.



...Jarvis Cocker speaking French. Haha, it's superb. When there are my two great passions - Jarvis Cocker and the French language - brought together, I just lay back and enjoy the moment!

(to be continued...)

Autumnal Mood ('I love Paris in the Rain')

Such a beautifully surprising day it's been today! In the morning it rained awfully, it was a complete déluge! The sky stayed darkish and gray till the afternoon; then the things changed dramatically (much to my delight). The day is always ok as long as it's full of coffee and sunlight. Alors, later on we got to the nearby park to take photos among the sublimely golden fallen leaves and the smooth light (it was luck to find such surroundings). The photos are, of course, amateurish (they are made by the young man on the 4th photo), but you don't have to be a professional to see how beautiful autumn is.
P.S. The line 'I love Paris in the Rain' is from a song called 'Ne Me Quitte Pas' by Regina Spektor. I kept singing it to myself all day long.
xx

Le léopard

Happy Birthday, Jarvis!

Today, the 19th of September, a great artist was born. Jarvis Cocker, a brilliant songwriter and former Pulp frontman, turns 47 this day. Best wishes, Jarv! I hope a birthday cake and a bottle of wine are already waiting for you. Have a good day (and night)!

xx

Enfant Terrible

I am so fond of the blue denim shorts + black tights combination that as soon as I got the appropriate shorts, I simply couldn't resist the temptation. Here on the photo is that crazy outfit I was wearing today (quite a shock to my mum). I was not that bad, after all (only too ... eclectic?). It's just that as soon as I got home I made a ve-e-ery serious decision. Basic things. There is a call for sophistication! Pale pastel colours or deep and vibrant ones (I adore deep blue and burgundy). And grey! So I thought: 'A bit more moderation, mademoiselle' and headed for elegant and simple vêtement.
Here is my latest inspiration in terms of a sophisticated outfit:



And another CBW look which I like so much for its simplicity.

two last pics - garancedore.fr, thefashionspot.com

xx

J'adore CBW

CBW is Camille Bidault-Waddington, the greatest stylist ever. I think she is adorable. Her style is unique. So spontaneous, free, and strange. Her own wardrobe looks a bit like 70's toujours, but it is en fait more complicated. I like the way she describes her personal style: "I used to be more eclectic, but now I'm too old. I liked to dress like a spinster, with an A-line skirt and a little shirt. Now I just look like a spinster, so that doesn't work. I am a typical French girl, I guess - feminine clothes and messy hair. I used to think I wasn't very French; then I moved to London".



A very Jarvis-like look:







pics - thefashionspot.com

xx

Bonne matinée!

Sunday in My Garden

This week I spent the whole weekend in my garden. I love autumn. It gets a bit cold and rainy in September, but the trees are still green and the river is fascinatingly gray. And the rowan tree is awesome. Its berries turned deep orange,and it means it's time to head for some warm clothes and a cup of hot chocolate.

xx

My Birds

Among the diversity of animal jewellery birds are my choice. I simply adore them. I even have a small collection of accessories birds.



Swallows are sublimely beautiful. This necklace is a particular favourite of mine.



Bird in a cage is always cool. I fell in love with this necklace the very moment I saw it in the shop. It's fun to wear it.



The little wooden owl is a present. A friend of mine brought it to me from Spain.

À bientôt!

xx

Gee damn!, or the Philosophy of Holly

I've been recently rewatching 'Breakfast at Tiffany' (it was the 4th time, I believe). I prefer the novel, to tell you the truth, but the film certainly has something irresistible about it (either Audrey Hepburn as Holly or some other je ne sais quoi). Every time I watch it (or read it) I wonder what makes Holly Golightly's story so exciting. Isn't it utterly true that all of us secretly long to adopt that très fou lifestyle of hers? It's not about being a 'lost soul', it's about not caring about things too much, not getting used to your own life. And there's more to it: I love when people follow their passion. I don't mean one should go where the wind may take them. There's always an amount of crazy dreams one would never think of fulfilling. To take up flower design and become a flower girl, for instance. Imagine your own little shop full of exotic flowers, floral decorations, lovely bouquets and a smiling flower girl surrounded by all this beauty. Isn't it enough to make one happy? This is an illusion anyway but how divinely nice it would be to live up to your own desires, n'est-ce pas?
P.S. Bonus: the film's most lovely moment.
xx

Lolita, or the Second Life of Dolores Haze

At last I have got round to reading the English (mind: original!) version of Vladimir Nabokov's novel Lolita. I do not feel like going into the style details (verbal textures, etc.). What fascinates me is the truly revolutionary character type Nabokov created. Lolita as New American vs. Old Continental culture symbol. Lolita holding her Coke. Lo the Comic Strip Fan. Both naïve and deceitful.
Sort of reincarnation of D. Haze is to be found in monsieur Gainsbourg's album Histoire de Melody Nelson. Bien sûr, Serge Gainsbourg was more into writing about his inner Humbert Humbert rather than turning Lolita into Melody Nelson. Still, the album is all about the sophisticated pervert aesthetics, which makes the glorious nymphet girl an influential image.

These pics are my Lolita fantasy.