The Return of the Native

... and here's another post about jewelry! I must confess I'm a bit obsessed with jewelry at the best of times. My love of adornment began at a very young age, like most girls I imagine, and was greatly catalyzed by my beautiful and brilliant Grandmother, Onnie Millar, who made her own jewelry. My Grandmother favored large and colorful jewelry often made from wood, ceramic, shells and glass; she loved natural and organic objects. She fashioned beautiful sculptures of people from stone and made pendants of painted portraits on sea shells and wood. Her preference for the natural always reminded me of the spirit of Native art;  where found objects were turned into figurative and literal representations of man, nature and the earth.

There is a definite trend of Native inspired jewelry proposed by many designers for Fall 2012... and I love it.
Am I convinced of the practicality of some of these pieces? No, but that doesn't matter. The point of fashion is to express artistic visions and what is practical for some may not be for others. I enjoy these European adaptations of Native adornment - I would love to see someone wear one of these pieces with a tank top or poking from beneath a suit!

Akong, Fall 2012

Dannijo, Fall 2012

Aurelie Biderman, Fall 2012

Akong, Fall 2012

Pamela Love, Fall 2012

Pamela Love, Fall 2012

Lulu Frost Fall 2012

photos from style.com

Mary Katrantzou (... I heart you)

Speaking of gorgeous statement jewelry, I thought I'd share some samples from Greek designer Mary Karantzou's first collection made for Fall 2008 while graduating at Central St. Martin's. There are so many things I love about Katrantzou's work: her predilection towards bold, bright colors, geometric shapes and patterns, and of course its all about those prints, prints, prints! Her prints are perfectly drafted to caress every curve of the body. The technical prowess to achieve such mastery is simply astounding. 

She is steadfast in her aesthetic, which affords all fashionstas the ability to immediately identify a Karantzou from the rest of the pack. Her love of shift dresses and peplums combined with her fantastic prints and elementary color sense creates a  perfect marriage of contrast between minimalism and kitsch. If you took away the prints, I feel her work would resemble Calvin Klein or Gianfranco Ferre. If you took away the silhouettes, I'm left to compare her work to Versace, Pucci or Jean Charles de Castlebajac.

In her first collection, Karantzou utilized in her prints trompe l'oeil variations of massive statement necklaces. What's not to love?

Mary Katrantzou Fall 2008

photos from StyleGuru

Heaven Tanudiredja

Why have I not heard of Heaven Tanudiredja until now??  I am completely enthralled and inspired with this designer's gorgeous jewelry! The Balinese born designer studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts and since has worked for Christian Dior and now Dries Van Noten where he is part of the creative team and is supported in his own line Heaven Tanudiredja . Learning of his work with Van Noten, I silently nodded in affirmation of the seamless aesthetic exchanged between the designers, as if it were the most logical and obvious thing ever. It all just seems to make perfect sense!

I am compelled by Tanudiredja's work for his brilliant fusion of materials such as plastic, metal, glass, his lively mix of colors and for the juxtaposition of the  aggressive, almost militant spirit (many of his pieces look like beautifully beaded and jeweled armor) with the feminine tradition of adornment. I am always personally attracted to jewelry that is chunky, bizarre and that manages to capture various tribal semblances and/or sci-fi/futuristic qualities. Lucky for me, these sort of desires seem to be trendy in fashion design right now and I'm finding more and more designers to placate my fantasies. More posts to come!

Ralph Lauren Fall 2012

I was so excited to see what the designers in New York had in mind for us for Fall 2012. I've yet to see all of my New York favorites (Rodarte, Donna Karan, Oscar de la Renta ...) but so far it seems that Fall '12 has become an extension of of the Spring collections. I see many of the same silhouettes (sloped shoulders, pencil skirts) and color trends (orange, anyone?) this time around as were presented last Fall for the Spring collections.

Case and point: Ralph Lauren. It feels like Ralph picked up where he left off with his beautiful Great Gatsby-esque vision for Spring, but this time the ingenue has matured and has asserted herself with the masculine suits and textures of the late nineteenth century. Ralph has presented similar decadent deco beaded dresses and blouses, bowler hates, fur accessories and satin dresses as he did for Spring, with a few twists, of course.

For Fall, Mr. Lauren has offered a strong and elegant woman who lounges in muted plaid wool suits in tight and loose fits replete with luxurious rich velvets, fitted vests and black and gold evening wear that is sure to be at the top of any starlets' wish list for the upcoming red carpet season. The show took a modern edge with his leather looks: pleated leather skirts, impeccably cut jackets and body-con dresses with leather sleeves.

No matter what decade or inspiration Mr. Lauren chooses to revisit, the result is always a representation of  classic American luxury wear.

Photos below from syle.com

Ralph Lauren Spring 2012

It seems like Ralph Lauren took a trip down memory lane to the 20's by way of the 80's in his Spring 2012 collection. His styling for the Great Gatsby in 1974 reintroduced the elegance of the roaring decade to the general public - think Mia Farrow with her cropped hair peeking from underneath her decadent sun hats bouncing above her flowing, diaphanous dresses and Robert Redford looking every bit like Gary Cooper.

His Spring 2012 collection returned to the iconic fashion staples of the 20's such as boxy, calf length dresses and the high waisted, straight legged pants paired with cropped tuxedo jackets, luxurious satins, feathers and delicate bead work recalling art deco motifs... but this time re-imagined in the Nagel-esque pastel hued daze of the 80's.

photos of the Ralph Lauren Spring 2012 collection below from style.com

The floral prints and Lauren's legendary polo shirts took me straight to the 80s. Ralph Lauren always knows how to create timelessly elegant pieces for the all American dream. Playful yet practical basics for the day and classically elegant gowns for evening. Lauren's take on the 20's was 180 degrees away from what Frida Giannini proposed in her 20's inspired 2012 Gucci collection with her slick black, white and gold emblems; her version feels more aggressive, perhaps more masculine than the pastel confections that sauntered down Lauren's runway. Two different takes on an inspiring era!

Spring 2012: a Reverie Part II - RODARTE

I'm always excited to see what the Mulleavy sisters are up to. Whether it be their use of exoskeletal elements, punk attitude or beautifully crafted laces and knits, I find their vision unique and inspiring.

The Rodarte color palette for Spring 2012 consists of sublimely faded yellows and blues. As the sisters were inspired last season by the film "Days of Heaven", evinced by their subtle corn-husked hued lace delicacies - they expanded on this color scheme with prints and color stories of Vincent van Gogh paintings. 

Rodarte Spring 2012 -   photos from collection at StyleBistro.com

The tailoring in this Spring's collection felt so feminine and mature to me. The sense of proportion and refinery seen here reminds me of the timeless elegance personified by Oscar de la Renta! And if there's anyone in fashion worth emulating, it's gotta be Oscar.

As always, looking forward to what the Mulleavys propose for next Fall!

Spring 2012: a Reverie Part I (GUCCI)

After viewing bits and pieces of the upcoming Spring 2012 collections a couple of weeks ago including many of the standard powerhouses of Milan, Paris, New York and London (several I've seen a few times over), I felt an overwhelming delight in observing an unabridged celebration of femininity.

To me, many of these collections embraced glories of the past while claiming an effervescent modernity by layering past and present emblems of beauty. The references to the past somehow did not feel overtly camp or like an exact mirror to the past, yet the recognition of the dedication to history was undeniable.

One of my favorites of the season (as always) and perhaps the best to help articulate what I'm rambling on about was seen at Gucci. Those decadent flapper dresses were absolutely 'flapper' and simultaneously so GUCCI. What I found remarkably clever about these flapper dresses was how brilliantly Frida Giannini referenced this iconic silhouette of the 1920's with the geometric spirit  from one of Tom Ford's collection for the brand in Fall 2000. Mr. Ford's 2000 collection featured his ongoing love affair with the 70's, and in this case personified with a palette of gold and copper lycras accented with black geometric patterns. Looking at the geometry in Giannini's flappers of 2012 I also can't help but recognize Gucci's own iconic tri-stripe logo embellished most often on its accessories.

Gucci Lycra Shirt for sale on  Kat's Luxury and runway photo from http://www.missladyfinger.com/

More from GUCCI Fall 2000  courtesy of Style.com:

photos below: StyleBistro.com

The heraldry to the past in Gucci 2012  took a rebellious turned chic silhouette of almost 100 years ago and  reintroduced it as chic yet rebellious once more. As the flappers discarded their corsets and padded bustles and chopped off their Rapunzel-esque hair they embraced the straight and loose fit of the flapper dress; they purposefully abandoned the beauty ideals of generations (tight fitting, long dresses with padding and boning to accentuate the physical symbols of female beauty and sexuality).

They claimed a new identity and spirit for future generations of women.

This spirit was captured masterfully by Giannini in this collection - absolutely LOVED this collection!

I'll try to share some more of my thoughts on the Spring '12 collections in the coming days ...

til then!