Long Live McQueen

I have just heard the news.  I cannot believe it.  I am in shock.  

We can be thankful that we have many seasons of his impeccable tailoring and innovative creations to enjoy and pour over forever now.

We shall never see his genius again.  He was incomparable.  Is this the end of fashion?

Hx

A Scarf for all Seasons

Recently a friend asked me for some fashion advice.  She is planning a winter holiday to Europe and wanted to know what type of scarf she should look for.  I love hearing travel plans because I get to live vicariously through my single friend's lives!  Winter in Europe is nothing like winter here in Australia or New Zealand.  For most of the winter here, it is wet and windy and the snow fields... well, lets just say that I'm sure our slopes are the main reason why snow makers were invented.  Europe is a real winter wonderland with powder snow and there is always enough snow on the ground to make your own snowman. 

A very funky Alexander McQueen silk skull scarf (try saying that 3 times very quickly!)

Hands down, the scarf is my favourite accessory.  I love to knit myself a new scarf every winter because it gives me an excuse to lounge in front of the fire for hours and also the sense of achievement I feel when I finish my scarf is like no other (that's because I am unable to follow a pattern and knitting in straight lines is the best I can do!) 

 Freha gets it right.

I want to tell you a little story about an experience I had with wearing a scarf.  Some years ago, I was on my way to a job interview and I had tied a silk scarf around my neck to zjusz up my outfit.  But I wasn't happy with the way I had tied the scarf, and instead of listening to my instincts and taking the scarf off, I went ahead and wore it anyway.  I felt so uncomfortable during the interview, that I still believe I did not get the job because my confidence was so shaken - all because I didn't know how to tie my scarf.  I vowed to myself that I would learn how to tie scarves properly.  I promise you, if your scarf is tied properly, you will feel more confident which as we all know enhances our natural beauty - what more could a girl ask for?

 

Sometimes it is good to look at how other people are wearing their scarves - this helps to get ideas on different ways to tie yours.

I took this attitude with me when buying a ubiquitous sarong in Ubud when hubby and I were on our honeymoon.  I made a point of having the store owner show me how to wear and tie my sarong in the local fashion.  I remember so well the knowing looks I received from the local women because I was wearing their national dress in the correct fashion, it made me feel distinctive.

By doing justice to the sarong I didn't look like your typical tourist.  Wouldn't we all like to feel the same when strolling down the street? (Or the Champs Èlysèe for that matter.)

The weather doesn't have to be cool to necessitate the wearing of a scarf either, because light weight fabrics like cotton, silk, and linen mean that a scarf is an accessory that can be worn all year round.

Even in the height of summer, a scarf can be a feature of your ensemble.

The Pashmina is a scarf that has become a considerable addition to every woman's wardrobe over the past decade.  If you own only one scarf, make it a Pashmina. 

Jessica Alba is a huge fan of the Pashmina and of scarves in general - she wears them well.

I think it is important, if you can, to have various types of scarves in your wardrobe.  Silk, Pashmina, fine wool, chunky wool knit, crocheted knit, and in as many different lengths and finishes; skinny, long, short, square, rectangular, embellished with sequins... etc. etc.

Celebs use their Pashmina to keep warm and to keep the Paparazzi at bay (or maybe Jen simply forgot to brush her teeth?)

Fashion trends come and go, but rarely has one appealed to such a wide audience - age plays no part and you don't have to be a size zero either to wear your favourite scarf. 

 Giselle and Jennifer and their Pashmina. 

If you want to add a little excitement to your ensemble or to change the look of a favourite outfit, a scarf could be just what you need. It just has that knack of adding a little something extra.  Which brings me to how scarves are being worn besides around your neck.

Chic Cameron.

For Autumn/Winter, Dolce & Gabbana, Paul Smith and Jean Paul Gaultier have all sent models down the runway wearing headscarves in manner of Her Majesty.  I want to officially caution you here though, because I think that one would have to be very confident to carry this look off.  I feel that this is not a look for most of us ladies.

 
But, if you want to give this trend a go, take my advice and let your scarf be the only element that embellishes what should be a simple and plain outfit.  Take your inspiration from the only other headscarf queens (also the only others who could successfully carry this look off in my opinion) - Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly. 

Give your headscarf a bohemian edge a la Nicole Richie.  These days she is probably the only one of us that is successful in championing the headscarf.

Diane Kruger and her favourite scarf - dressed up and dressed down.

When it comes to silk scarves, there is no finer than the legendary French label Hermès.  I suggest downloading the Hermès handbook entitled “Playtime With Your Scarf” from their website.  It illustrates the many wonderful ways to tie your scarf in easy-to-follow instructions.

 An example from the Hermès handbook, "Playtime With Your Scarf".

We have now seen why scarves are such a versatile accessory because you can wear it around your neck, tied, knotted or draped.  But have you tried tying one around your hips, or through your belt loops in lieu of a belt for a little added colour?

Balenciaga has sent scarves down the runway over the past few seasons. 

Try wearing a large scarf around your shoulders as a shawl.  I love to carry a light weight scarf with me on warm evenings when I go out just in case the weather turns cool and when it invariably does, I wrap the scarf over my shoulders like a shrug and tie it behind my back between the shoulder blades. 
 

Dolce and Gabbana and Paul Smith following in the footsteps of Hermès.

So Deb, my lovely friend, I hope I have given you some ideas for scarf shopping.  I also hope you will be daring and look for more than one style - we wouldn't wear just one style of shoe or own just one handbag would we?  Variety is the spice of life, my love!


Ciao for now,
Hx

P.S. Happy 4th Birthday to my baby, Annabel Jade!  Mummy loves you so much - you are my little accessories queen! xxxx

Sources: Hermès, Google, Garance Dorè.

Style Influence: Jennifer Connelly

A jeans and a T-shirt girl at heart, unlike many of today's leading ladies, it is easy to admire Jennifer Connelly.  She has a simple and elegant style, regardless of the high-end price tags she reserves for the red carpet.  Her hair is always simple, her makeup is no-fuss and to her, heels are something that are for events only,  "...high heels aren’t practical for the way I spend my day."

Jennifer could never be accused of being too mainstream and this is reflected in her choice of roles and in her choice of red carpet fashions.
"I try to stay focused on my life and do try not to be brought into the Hollywood fantasy."

Jennifer was born in 1970 in the Catskill Mountains New York, but grew up in Brooklyn Heights.  After a family friend recommended that she model, Jennifer began appearing in magazines and television commercials before landing her first screen role in Once Upon A Time in America (1984).  It was her role in Jim Henson's Labyrinth (1986) that first drew her to my attention.   I spent a lot of time pretending to be her character Sarah, acting out the role in my backyard.  I was 13 and a little obsessed I think.

Inventing the Abbotts (1997), with then lovers Liv Tyler and Joaquin Phoenix, was also a favourite of mine, but it was playing a heroin addict in Darren Aronofsky's Requiem for a Dream (2000) that Connelly finally established herself as a serious dramatic actress. 

"I began working when I hadn't yet come into my own, when I was this walking puppet. Some of the movies I did. . . I look back and cringe. For better or for worse, I feel responsible now. In Requiem for a Dream, I'm a heroin addict, and I thought it was being made for a reason--it wasn't about shock value. It has something to say about hunger and a void." 

In Ron Howard's A Beautiful Mind (2001), Connelly played the role of Alicia Nash, the long-suffering wife of brilliant but schizophrenic mathematician John Forbes Nash (played by Russell Crowe), which earned her an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

"It was a huge honor... and it was for a film which I had a wonderful time making. Winning an award for it was like icing on the cake for such a lovely experience." - Jennifer Connelly

Jennifer says that most of her clothes come from events she has attended, wardrobes from films, items people have given her.  That’s not to say she doesn't have an appreciation for nice clothing.
 "I fantasize about how I would dress if I actually took the time to go shopping. But I’d rather spend those two hours doing yoga or hanging out with my kids."

I always love Jennifer's red carpet choices.  She does work with a stylist for big events like premieres and sometimes works directly with the designers. She is daring with her selection of statement pieces from her favourite Balenciaga, to Lanvin and Rochas, Alexander McQueen and Givenchy - making the clothes her own, rather than looking like a clothes horse.  On dressing for the red carpet she has said; "I used to find it really uncomfortable. I’d get very uptight about it. I don’t really anymore. I think that’s about getting older. Or being more comfortable in my own skin. It’s horrible, feeling self-conscious, but it’s become easier just being with Paul at things; we find a way to make it fun." Elle magazine, November 2007.

She is self-deprecating and I would guess an extremely low-maintenance person because she once trekked through Tibet for three weeks and she seems much more at home hanging out at the park with her kids and jogging around her Brooklyn neighbourhood. 

I really admire her laid-back attitude toward dressing.  In an interview with Glamour magazine in 2005, Connelly said that growing up "I just wasn’t very girly. I didn’t even wear lip gloss until I was in my twenties!"  Boy I know what she means because I have to remind myself to re-apply my lipgloss throughout the day.  At my own wedding I remember making only one trip to the bathroom to check my hair and make-up!

When she is not working, promoting a film or attending a premiere, Jennifer can be found wearing jeans and a t-shirt (my favourite look of all time) and hanging out with husband Paul Bettany and her sons Kai and Stellan in her Brooklyn neighbourhood.  She likes to run (which would account for her slip of a figure and gorgeous legs)  and having recently discovered the joys of running myself, it is another thing that I have enjoyed learning about her.  

I just wish that I had the Balenciaga and Givenchy gowns to choose from when I had a red carpet affair to attend to...

If I ever had one to attend that is.




Images from Google, Glamour, Jennifer Connelly Center.