Artaminatul

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Happy Margarita Day!

Monday, February 21, 2011

My top catwalk looks for Spring 2011

When it comes to style I call myself a “passive fashionista.” I don’t live by fashion, I’m not obsessed with it, I don’t spend hours chasing the best deals on designer clothes online (frankly cannot be bothered), I try to only buy things I would actually wear and not just admire in the mirror from time to time, and I don’t feel comfortable spending lots of money on clothes, sticking to economical brands with good quality and cool up-to-date designs.

But I do pay a lot of attention to what I wear and feel a strong need for a fashion infusion every now and then. So having flapped through catwalk photos of spring/summer 2011 collections, I picked out the looks that pleased me most, hence - producing my very first post as occasional FASHION BLOGGER.

1) Balmain: punk rock

Who knows what forced Balmain to swap its usual dressy glamour for "dirty punk" but I'm loving it regardless. It stands closer to my everyday style than all other spring/summer collections I saw.

Another reason for me to love this latest Balmain look is that it would be so easy for me to follow: my studded black leather jacket from Zara still looks good as new, while a t-shirt full of holes and pins will become my next do-it-yourself creative project.

2) D&G: summer romantics

When summer hits the city, the more playful, girly side of my personality often comes out and that's when the style tips from spring/summer D&G collection will come in handy. From stylish vacationer to urban summer chic - there are plenty of sources for inspiration here.

3) Julien MacDonald: lace & macramé

Dresses and tops of macramé and lace is my latest style infatuation. They are just so light and sexy - as if you forgot to change and walked out on the street in your nighty (but no quite).

4) Paul Smith: casual elegance

When I feel a bit more like a lady (it does happen sometimes after all) I opt for casual elegance -the kind that Paul Smith offers for the upcoming spring/summer season.

5) Marc by Marc Jacobs: colourful stripes

Marc Jacobs continues to entertain with the most youthful of his three fashion lines. My season's favourite of his is the sunny multicoloured striped dress. I simply love stripes (can't get enough of them really) and this colourful version of them would be perfect for spring/summer.

6) Elie Tahari: total denim

Naturally I could't bypass this season's big passion for denim - already my favourite fabric for pants (jeans is essentially the only type of pants I wear), shorts and skirts. But to take full advantage of the current all-over denim trend, I'm thinking of getting a loose denim shirt to wear as jacket (at least).

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Stop the blondes, go redheads!

With this post I'm officially starting a campaign to stop the gorgeous Hollywood redheads from joining the army of Hollywood blondes, which is so big already, it could be enough to populate a small country! That's not to say there aren't plenty of women who look swell blonde, but at least half of those who persist in bleaching their hair would have looked way better as brunettes or redheads!

What got me really started on the case was adorable rising star Emma Stone, whose smart and quirky character in teen comedy "Easy A" was surely one the best female performances seen this year. She's a great-looking ginger and yet, she's playing a "blonde" Gwen Stacy in new "Spider-Man" reboot hence showing off this newly dull color on ever red carpet. She's still very pretty, but so much less intersting! And why did they have to make her character blonde?? Just because Kirsten Dunst's Mary Jane was redhead?

Genuine redheads are a minority, in Hollywood including, and I vouch for them to try their best and stick to it all times! Nothing wrong with being different specially in showbiz! I know it's tough out there and to the get the part you may sometimes have to change colors (which is certainly less damaging and health-threatening than losing 10 kilos or putting on extra 20), but do believe the more redheads would stand their ground, the more producers/directors would dare to put redheads as leads in movies as omnipresent blondes!

Compare for yourself:

Emma Stone

Before

After

Evan Rachel Wood

Before

After

Nicole Kidman

Before

After

Lindsay Lohan*

Before

After

Laura Prepon

Before

After

I believe (hope) I've proven my point...

*It may not be entirely fair to include Lindsay on this list, since she certainly suffers from a lot more than just hair color change (I'm talking appearance-wise only here) - I believe it's called Heidi Montag Syndrome, but then she still makes such a good example!

Monday, February 14, 2011

Loving the 1920s with "Boardwalk Empire"

"Boardwalk Empire" is probably the best new TV-show I've seen lately - and, mind you, I pick all my shows carefully and only watch the top-grade stuff. But Martin Scorsese as producer and Steve Buscemi as the leading man certainly make a perfect combination - especially for the gangster-themed show. Speaking of gangster, I'm not the biggest fan of the genre, but it's just so cool and stylish, and ... it's the twenties!

The 1920s is my most favorite fashion era ever, and judging by the enormous success of the "Empire" (it's just the first season and it already snubbed a Golden Globe), season 2 is on the way, which may well mean that the 20s will come back into fashion!

In fact, I'm not that old-fashioned - and twenties style is quite conservative, but it's just so gorgeous! From underwear to those crazy headpieces... And while dresses are long, conceal all the curves and humps, they are still incredibly sexy.

Women suddenly liberated (though still relatively) after ages of male oppression, free to enjoy nightlife, dancing and drinking on par with men. And the style celebrates their new-found freedom. So I say let's indulge in twenties with the girls of the "Boardwalk Empire"!

Kelly McDonald as Margaret Schroeder - mother/widow of a drunken gambler/suffragette-turned-Nucky Thompson's (Buscemi) main woman and show's leading lady

Paz de la Huerta as Lucy Danziger, Nucky's lover for first half of the season and proper twenties slut

Fashion photo-shoot for Empire's top four gals: Gretchen Mol, Alexa Palladino and of course Kelly McDonald and Paz de la Huerta

Let's get trending

Once I read this article in some women's magazine - about those guys who compile "lookbooks" - style guides that reflect current and up-and-coming fashion trends that clothing designers later buy (for lots of cash) and use when working on new collections.

Basically those guys act as "fashion oracles" predicting what would be in vogue a few seasons ahead. Only they do so not through divine illumination or anything of the sort, but meticulous analysis of everything happening around us.

Music, movies, TV, art, political and economical developments etc. are all elements that mould and create today's fashion and lifestyle. Myself, I was never bold enough to be a trendsetter. I rather look at what's on offer and pick out what I like. But I'm also a writer, with passion to reflect on and analyse trends and lifestyles, and highlight things that define them most - at least for me.

And I want to make this blog about all those fascinating, beautiful, exciting, inspiring, infectious, entertaining, heart-warming and just plain fun things. And it starts now.