February 17, 2011

Proenza Schouler + Rodarte Fall 2011 RTW


To New Mexico you say? You don't have to tell me twice.
What a great place for fashion inspiration this time around.

Proenza Schouler 2011 Fall Collection

Proenza Schouler Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear Proenza Schouler Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear
Proenza Schouler Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear Proenza Schouler Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear
Proenza Schouler Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear Proenza Schouler Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear
Proenza Schouler Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear Proenza Schouler Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear
Proenza Schouler Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear Proenza Schouler Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear

I love this collection. I love the colour schemes they worked with, the patterns they used & how they were able to change them in just the right ways to make them better suited for pants or sweaters. I love how the heels in certain outfits look like glowing chords around the ankles & how each pair stands out to say something. Everything is very geometric. I especially love the necklace on Chloe Memisevic in picture 5. It reminds me of Mexico but more specifically "Dia De Los Muertos" -Day of the dead, but I have no idea why it reminds me off that but I'll go with it.

next up is

Rodarte 2011 Fall Collection RTW

Rodarte Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear Rodarte Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear
Rodarte Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear Rodarte Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear
Rodarte Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear Rodarte Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear
Rodarte Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear Rodarte Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear
Rodarte Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear Rodarte Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear

I love this as well. Another completely inspired collection. I love when the inspiration behind the collection is really obvious or they hint at what gave them the edge to create something so elaborate and beautiful. At this point, it is clear they spent some time in the plains of the U.S.-Kansas & Nebraska, but it reminds me of something else too. Everything is very crisp even if it has a flow, if that makes any sense at all. They make the woman figure more appealing as well with the cuts they chose like in (3,4,6,8). I think these outfits remind me of if they did an "American Gothic" repaint in 2011 and featured a scene of people. I'm just amped on how strong these clothes are, but the colours and patterns are so dainty and flowy. What a beautiful contrast.

I love how these designers were inspired by things they saw here in America. It gives me a little more faith that every body isn't scurrying abroad to find hints at where to sew their next seam. I also really admire when they can make so much with one group of colours. I like when the same colours are used throughout but transformed to make the piece give off a different effect. Both artists did that here. I'm always grouping colours in my head (actually I'll group ribbon that we have at work) and say something like "These colours would make a perfect spring collection for Lacoste." I know, that's extremely lame, but hey! Let's roll with the punches here...


-Tessa


ps: Why yes, "The King of Limbs" is all mine now and I sat and listened to it four times in a row yesterday (aren't all Radiohead albums best broken in this way?) There is so much more to say, but review is coming!



Florence & Thom align again!

What a cute little hiatus.
Thank god Valentine's Day is over.
As a cookie decorator, this holiday seems endless.

It's kind of like:
Me: "Hey Valentine's day, here is my soul"
Valentines day: ::runs off with soul::
Me: "Oh, you didn't have to eat the WHOLE thing..."

Now to choose a direction to take this;

I guess I can talk about my overwhelming excitement for two things happening musically;
First off, while listening to XRT on Monday they announced that Florence + The Machine would be back in Chicago and that tickets go on sale this Saturday. I loved her the first time I saw her last April and I was feet away from the stage. The show last year was at the House of Blues, which is a great little venue and good for the first time an artists makes their landing in Chicago. This time she'll be playing at the Aragon Ballroom (one of my favourite venues)


which is significantly bigger...

Don't you worry, there is definitely an ellipsis for a reason. I should probably mention that a vacation is booked for the date she will be here, June 18, but I will purchase a ticket just in case said vacation stays planned for a short time. However, I'm nervous that her new album will drop before she comes here and she will be performing that. I might be wrong* but I think that will be the event. Bigger venue? Aw man. This means-how do you put this without sounding extremely snobby? Well, guess you can't-you get the shitty fans. The 12 year olds that didn't hear her before she was all over every pop station, but she isn't exclusive to the Kiss FM crowd, which is good. It would just be a different kind of show than the last one. Which is fine, but I love a more exclusive crowd. With Florence, it won't matter though. She will be great no matter who her audience is. I love those first shows that artists do in that city, which is why I regret big time missing out on Lissie when she was at Lincoln Hall a few weeks ago. I love being there for support the first time around and making my rounds every time they appear on a Chicago bill.

These are from the last time I saw her.
That setlist right by her feet is now in my top drawer.

I actually pulled those images from a previous post that summed up a bit more about that concert and also included a quick review of the Atoms for Peace concert that I saw the night before I saw Florence. It's odd because the other news I'm extremely excited about is the release of Radiohead's new album, "The King of Limbs". I couldn't *fucking* believe it when Frank E. Lee announced that it was going to drop this Saturday. When the words escaped from his mouth I actually cheered and took a lap around the store and exclaimed to customers the good news! Pre-sale is already available online HERE. I'm sure it's 10 tracks of pure splendor.


I love this cover.

It looks like Saturday is going to be a big day.

You know, I have to make a side note and just say how happy I am for Florence. I am so happy that people recognize her as a musical force now. Every time I see her perform on anything I almost alway cry because I'm either (a) so proud of her (b) because she does so well and it's probably always (c) all of the above. Her Saturday Night Live performance was amazing and so was her Grammy performance. I would love more than anything to see her 30312491324 more times, but settling for once more wouldn't be too bad either.

Performance on SNL: HERE
Performance at the Grammy's: HERE

**I might be wrong = a Radiohead song. Hardy Har Har!

February 8, 2011

Good finds at Goodwill.

Sheer luck.
I decided yesterday was going to be the day that I made a little trip to Goodwill. Normally I like to give myself a good hour or two in these stores so I can really explore, create outfits, etc. Yesterday I was pressed for time, but realised if I didn't do it then, I wouldn't have another chance till next week. So I snatched the opportunity, went in with 20 minutes to spare, and ended up finding exactly what I wanted in less than 10. I seem to have remarkable luck when it comes to sauntering into stores like this and finding the goods;








I was definitely on the prowl for sweaters. I love them and have no other choice but to wear them every day being that my body cannot handle the cold. I love the good mix of where they came from too. The shoes were my best snag. I went in looking for shoes just like this. A beat up, yet in pretty wear-able condition pair of combat-ish looking boots. Score.

February 6, 2011

Prada stole my Starburst wrappers--& THANK GOD!


Faaaantastic. I was excited when I read about THIS. Elise Øverland is combining fashion and ice and using the Ice Theatre of New York to do so. This perfect inception is being choreographed by Johnny Wier, who is apparently a long time client of said designer. I'm anxious to see it played out.


And then there are these...


These awesome, awesome shoes.

I love these shoes. Unfortunately, with my current means, I lack the ability to ever own a pair, but these are so fun; flirty, a little bit of tack, a ton of colour, and they totally remind me of those chains I used to make out of Starburst wrappers...right?!


How perfect. I remember sitting on the sidewalk outside a friends house eating starbursts and making these chains for hours. It definitely provokes my desire for endless bags of sour starbursts, conversations with no limits, and hot pavement under my legs. It's beautiful when shoes make you nostalgic.


For now it is winter and this was my outfit from Friday.

The sweater vest is my moms & the striped sweater under it is Old Navy.
The stickers on my phone ARE from the most recent issue of POP.
Exhilarating!


This is what happens when winter wallops!









Such a well forecasted storm with such fantastic results. I loved being snowed in.
Ah, here's to Chicago Snowstorms! On that note; WXRT posted the remake of Aliotta Haynes Jeramiah's LSD (Lake Shore Drive), but it's the snowed in version (see below!) What's funny is that I always used to hear this song on the radio and I loved it, and then I found out my mom used to date the lead singer, Mitch. Unfortunately, no one I know has ever heard of this song, but I think that's an outrage! Especially if you're from Chicago! So go ahead, grab some Starbursts, and groove out!




-Tessa


February 1, 2011

"Your North Face doesn't match your Uggs!"


Ah, Perfect. What would have been a 10am-6pm work day resulted in cancellation.
When you're work closes because it snows too much, you're living in the right place, whether you know it or not. However, I remember the time in my life where a snow day didn't mean a monetary loss like it does now. I am certainly not complaining, but you do have to factor it in. While stuck indoors after attempting to help shovel the driveway, I find myself feverishly craving Portillo's, an establishment I hardly doubt is open in such conditions. You better believe I'll call later to find out.

outside my house this morning.
20'' drifts!

The perfect topic to write about pranced perfectly into my life the other day and was perpetuated by a male. How refreshing! It's only refreshing because it applies to what girls are wearing today. He works in a movie theatre and stated ;

"All the girls look the same. It's only Ugg boots, North Face jackets, and different shades of jeans. A pack of 8 girls will walk in and they will all look exactly alike. Why do they want to dress the same...I don't get it."

Perfect observation. He forgot to mention the PiNK sweatpants that adorn the legs of so many high school girls today--& to each their own. Hearing that Uggs (I own two pairs and I actually love these things), North Face Fleece Jackets, and pricey falsely labeled coloured pants still make the way into the lives of every girl when she hits the age of 16, is just plain amusing to me. Fortunately, the sweatpants, jacket, and Abercrombie/Hollister everything stayed out of my life, but it is almost reassuring to see that this is still an ongoing trend.

We live in a world that projects news stories through so many different mediums and they all reach their targets effectively. Stories move SO fast which is able to stir up so many different responses and opinions in such a short period of time. While it is extremely convenient to get "hot off the press" news via twitter/facebook/blogs/news widgets it makes us move so fast that we lose sight of so much detail embedded within those stories because of the speed of the new focuses rolling in. Of course, having a twitter allows news publications to get smaller, maybe less focused on stories out to the mainstream. It almost gives you a reason to put every little thing out there--and why not?

Because of this, we have influences coming from endless amounts of places. Not only are there the same mediums that provoked tastes & trends in the 50's and 60's, but now there is the added faster means of communication and retrieval of information that comes from those mentioned earlier. Trends already move at lightning speed and as it would seem to me logically, people would be moving at the same pace.

I hate to go here, I really do; I remember when I was in high school. Freshman year; 2002. We didn't have Facebook or Twitter (THANK GOD). We didn't have android phones and we probably all still had our very first email addresses from 7th grade that went something like SugrNSpice0791. Of course, we knew how to work the internet, some better than others, we had access to magazines of any topic, and reality TV began to really take off. We had different sources of influence, but not as many, I feel. I could be wrong, but I feel like so many of us were the same--conventional suburban high schoolers. Although I hate to lump myself into that category, because I don't feel I dressed like anyone else, but that's because Vogue was my bible.

When I heard that girls in high school now are still dressing like the girls when I was in high school (given, only years apart), it gave me this sense of reassurance that maybe things aren't moving as fast as I think. It made me think of times in the 50's, when the girls looked the same; same hair, same high-waisted skirt, same jewelery, but they had a reason! They were limited in terms of access to various sources of trends. They all idolized the same people and had the same aspirations. Now, I feel like people have the potential to do anything; we have so many ways to retrieve information, so many influences, so many choices, and we have the power to get our word in some way that might be effective. I just think it is hilarious that people have such a huge range of style to choose from, yet so many girls dress exactly like each other. Why is that? "Trendy" doesn't mean better.

Of course, I know this UggBoot/NorthFace/Pink Sweatpants wearing trend cannot be thrust upon everyone. I know that there will ALWAYS be people in your high school that completely go against trend, they bow down to Good Will, and use fashion as an art form-or as a way to spark an idea or use it as a way to communicate. So while, this is not like the 50's and girls today hold much more individuality and aspirations, these packs of 8 girls clad in Abercrombie & Ugg boots make me feel like times aren't changing too fast--even though they have all the means to be. Of course, I think we can agree, the trends of the 50's were much more favourable.


















Ha, you just have to laugh and be ready to plant your face in your palm in years to come.
I have to also respect the fact that people probably hate what I wear.
If I wear a huge headband, I assume that people think it looks stupid, but I don't care, because I dig it. I love wearing strange things. I also wear funky ass leggings & tights all the time. Of course though, I wear them with long shirts or short dresses or something appropriate. I know it is a trend that people cannot stand, but I love it. So I can understand that these girls dress for comfortability and not fashion and that's cool too--as long as you don't think you're making a statement.


-Tessa