Jean Paul Gaultier`s Hommage to (70s &) 80s Pop Icons; Boy George, Grace Jones & David Bowie (Part 2/2)

Boy George Left: Jean Paul Gaultier S/S 13 runway, right: backstage at Jean Paul Gaultier S/S 13

Culture Club - Do You Really Want To Hurt Me, 1982

Jean Paul Gaultier S/S 13 runway

Grace Jones Left: Grace Jones 'Nightclubbing' cover 1981, right: Jean Paul Gaultier S/S 13 runway

Jean Paul Gaultier S/S 13 runway

David Bowie aka. Ziggy Stardust 1972 - 1973 Jean Paul Gaultier S/S 13 runway

David Bowie - The Story of Ziggy Stardust (Documentary)

Picture Credits 
Gaultier runway: Patrice Stable p/o Jean Paul Gaultier. 
Gaultier backstage: Rainer Torrado p/o Jean Paul Gaultier. 
Pop star pictures: YouTube screenshots

How do you like Gaultier`s hommage? Which of these Pop Icons influenced your style?

Jean Paul Gaultier`s Hommage to 80s Pop Icons; Madonna, Michael Jackson & Annie Lennox (Part 1/2)

Jean Paul Gaultier dedicates a big part of his spring/summer 2013 collection to 1980s Pop Icons, who wrote fashion history themselves, being style icons to a whole generation back then.

Madonna Jean Paul Gaultier S/S 13 Runway   Gaultier references Madonnas hairstyle, the hair-band / hair-bow, her birth-mark above the lip, make-up as well as her rosary / crucifixes and wearing different earrings on each ear.
Top: backstage at Jean Paul Gaultier S/S 13, bottom: Madonna in 'Desperately Seeking Susan' 1985 (left) and 'Holiday' video 1983 (right)   Madonna`s song 'Into the Groove'  was part of the soundtrack to the 1985 movie 'Desperately Seeking Susan' in which she played the leading role, too.
Jean Paul Gaultier S/S 13 Runway
    The 25-year-old Madonna wears an all-black look with lycra capri-leggings and cut-off fishnet-top dancing in her 'Holiday' video in 1983
Michael Jackson Left: Michael Jackson in 'Thriller' video 1982, right: Jean Paul Gaultier S/S 13 Runway   Gaultier references Michael Jacksons iconic hat, lock, famous jackets, white socks and single glove.
Left: Jean Paul Gaultier S/S 13 Runway, right: Michael Jackson performing in Motown, 1983
    Michael Jackson wore his iconic glitter jacket and single glove when he first introduced his famous Moonwalk in 1983   Annie Lennox Jean Paul Gaultier S/S 13 Runway   Annie Lennox` masculine, strict & powerful style was a fascination & attraction to men and inspiration to women throughout the 80s.   'Sweet Dreams' was an international success and number one Charts Hit in the USA, Canada and France in 1983.  
Top: Annie Lennox in Sweet Dreams Video 1983, bottom: backstage at Jean Paul Gaultier S/S 13
Picture Credits
Gaultier runway: Patrice Stable p/o Jean Paul Gaultier. 
Gaultier backstage: Rainer Torrado p/o Jean Paul Gaultier. 
Pop star pictures: YouTube screenshots

Creating this post was like traveling back in time for me - I`m a child of the 80s and these were the pop stars of my childhood. I ADORED Madonna back then! I loved how cool, sassy & daring she was and (like every other girl my age) I loved the way she danced. Her style became that influencial and iconic because it was 100% wearable and easy to copy for every girl (age 10-30); it was cheap, easy & fun to cut off your leggings & shirts and mix all off your jewellery. Plus one didn`t need to be skinny to pull off the look, since it covered all "problem zones". Madonna`s early 80s style WAS A LOOK TO HAVE FUN IN! I loved it back then and I still love it today!

How do you like Gaultier`s hommage? Which of these Pop Icons influenced your style?

The (Illustrated) History of Chloe, Part 2/2: 2002 - 2012

Phoebe Philo designed for Chloe from 2002 - 2006. When Stella McCartney left the House to found her own, her assistant and friend, Phoebe, succeeded her. With Phoebe’s arrival, Chloé started to work leather, to the delight of its customers who rushed to get bags and shoes. With her, a complete, sensual, rigorous wardrobe was born, faithful to the spirit of the brand and yet perfectly original. She offered a new way of looking at fashion, adding a twist of British cool to this very Parisian fashion house.

Camera bag by Phoebe Philo (S/S 2004)

In 2003, Chloé released its Camera Bag in a totally rock & roll spirit, pioneering the ongoing trend for chain bags. It did not go unnoticed, with its wide double chain strap, oversized buckles, multizippers and black or red full-grained calfskin. On the runway where it first appeared, the girls in leather jackets and printed mousseline minidresses, flounced little skirts or sweater dresses with drawstring hoods, clutched it up against themselves.

Jean & Paddington bag by Phoebe Philo (S/S 2004)

For the summer of 2004, the Chloé silhouette is clearly under the influence of the 70s. After the “low-rise” fad, these jeans elongate the thigh, shape the small of the back and highlight the waist. With her long legs, the Chloé woman exudes a tonic chic. The golden buttons on the little patch pockets echo those found on the double braided waist. In the ad campaign shot by Terry Richardson, we only see the top of the pants. Because that’s exactly where it’s happening. For the spring of 2005, Chloé released a bag that was destined to become as famous as the London district, Paddington. Women love its oversized proportions, its XXL jewellery and its “luggage” spirit made for the (city) traveller. Present, distinctive, almost virile, the big padlock is not a cheap “charm”: it is the signature of this bag which is clearly made to age well and the term “vintage”, fits it like a glove even when it is brand new.

Python boots & Python Silverado bag by Phoebe Philo (F/W 2004)

Chloé’s it-bags also include the Silverado, a hit in the autumn of 2004 with its oversized snap flaps, rectangular base, solid handles and leather lacing of ethnic inspiration. Sure of its success, the brand offered it not only in luxurious leathers, but also in an incredible python, heralding the wave of precious skins in fashion accessories. In the ad campaign by Inez Van Lamsweerde & Vinoodh Matadin a silk paisley print scarf is tied to it, floating in the wind. Girls in striped ponchos run through the Luxembourg Gardens laughing. There is rhythm, style and vivacity. They are wearing knee-high boots in soft, comfortable python, with 10cm wooden heels and a small lace tie at the ankle. Worn with slim jeans tucked inside, these boots, like the Silverado bag, are the incarnation of bohemian luxury.

Blouse & wedges by Phoebe Philo (S/S 2006)

Phoebe offered this virginal A-line blouse for the summer of 2006. Its remarkable ornamental openwork on the bib and the collar evokes innocence and transparency. Ample volumes, a sharp cut, ultra clean cotton and linen, delicate rickrack ribbons and covered buttons. In front of Inez Van Lamsweerde & Vinoodh Matadin’s lense, Christy Turlington is the perfect incarnation of “Chloé” romanticism: a gentle presence and timeless beauty. When they first appeared in the press in early 2006, the “wedges” imagined by Phoebe Philo cranked up the brand’s fashion tension. Every girl wants them. Raw materials applied to luxury – a natural wooden platform, clog-style, with grained leather and metal links, deliberately aged – triggered a shockwave. The wedge sandals lengthen the leg and create an organic chic style that goes perfectly with Philo’s summer wardrobe.

Hannah MacGibbon designed for Chloe from 2008 to 2011. After working with Valentino Garavani in Rome, she came to Chloé in 2001 where she worked with Phoebe Philo before taking over the position of creative director for three years. Demure, beige, ultrachic, the Chloé woman as seen by Hannah MacGibbon goes for a confident 70s aesthetic. Yes, we now talk about “women” rather than “girls”. More mature and hieratic, she takes on another side of femininity à la Charlotte Rampling, Dominique Sanda or Lauren Hutton — wide capes, nude tones, jeans and chambray shirts revisited, belted high-waist pants — But her wardrobe also displays the real freshness and sophisticated grace of a dancer’s light pleats, moulded leather corsets, a bodysuit under a straight skirt for an impeccable silhouette and exceptional fabrics in a range of deep, dense colours or, on the contrary, subtle as skin.

Cape & short by Hannah MacGibbon (F/W 2009)

Chloé kicked off the beige trend that took over the 2009-2010 autumn‑winter catwalks. Hannah MacGibbon applies this warm camel to a large wraparound cape in wool broadcloth trimmed with leather. In the sketch, the design appears to be constructed with origamilike precision. Well balanced, with full volumes, density and (false) simplicity, her cape left an unforgettable impression, especially when worn with high-waist shorts, raised on the thigh with large pockets to nestle ones hands. There is a hint of the masculine-feminine spirit from Chloé’s beginnings, but also the elegance of the seventies that suits the brand so well and the bourgeois cool she masters so well.

Clare Waight Keller became the current designer of Chloe in june 2011. Eagerly awaited, Clare Waight Keller’s first fashion show for Chloé took place in October 2011 in Paris. It was a hard-hitting trial run, since her 2012 spring-summer collection went to Chloé’s very soul – fluid and feminine, “but boyish”, she said, all expressed in long, white and powder pink pleated dresses, eyelet embroidery, belts on the hips of wide pants, immaculate whites softened with ivory, sandy mousselines, button less jackets, an abundance of silks, linen… Chic, nervous, natural, referenced, based on a fabulous technique using sunray pleats, embroidered flowers, slits, hemstitches and transparency.

Illustrations © Chloe

What is your favourite iconic Chloe piece?

The (Illustrated) History of Chloe, Part 1/2: 1952 - 2001

Gaby Aghion   

Born in Alexandria, Egypt, in 1921, Gaby moved to Paris after the war and invented the luxury ready-to-wear concept with the creation of Chloé in 1952.
Gaby Aghion, a young political science graduate with jet-black hair, dark eyes and an elegant face, did not feel comfortable in the restrictive and full-skirted wardrobe of the 50s. She lived an aristocratic lifestyle when she came to Paris, organising her weeks between appointments with her hairdresser, fittings, shows, dinners, etc. Each social outing was accompanied by a different outfit. But her thirst for greater emancipation quickly outweighed this “Couture” period as she turned the page without hesitation to offer women a new approach to fashion. The young Gaby chose the fabrics, drew six models and had them made by the head seamstress at the atelier Lelong, and then decided to offer them herself to the fashion boutiques which were then just starting to carry ready-to-wear clothes. It was a success and today she is still the first to express her surprise at her own audacity. She set up her workshop in a maid’s room above her large flat. Once she came up with the name Chloé, the idea of “nicely sewn, accessible” dresses took hold.
In 1953, Gaby Aghion joined forces with Jacques Lenoir – he ran the business side and she ran the creative side. The duo put on the first Chloé show in 1956 at a breakfast at the Café de Flore, the epicentre of young intellectual Parisians that she mingled with. For 32 years, collection after collection, this duo developed one of the most remarkable names in international luxury ready-to-wear. 

  Blouse en crêpe de soie & robe embrun by Gaby Aghion (F/W 1960)  

The collar, buttoned placket and silk satin cuffs give a subtle matte versus shiny contrast. This blouse is a continuous thread running throughout the history of Chloé. Here, it is softly beige, as in the 60s, nearly liquid, assertive in its masculine-feminine style. For the autumn of 1960, Gaby Aghion wanted a classic day dress that was feminine and comfortable. She thought of a boiled wool jersey like a knit, but this was hard to work with. At the time, her assistant was Maxime de La Falaise, Loulou’s mother. “Maxime suggested a supple jersey, like a man’s pullover. We drew the dress: a shirt dress that was easy to wear yet elegant, timeless like an Hermès garment. Then I realised that I couldn’t line the cuffs and the collar with the jersey, it was too thick and I wanted the collar to stand up and the cuffs to be neat. Maxime went to Chez Max on the Champs-Elysées and came back with twill fabric for ties. We lined the collar and cuffs with it. Put a satin tie at the waist. It was adorable, quite ravishing. Embrun was born. It was very avant-garde to design a dress like that, almost like a t-shirt. Women would fight over it. It had plenty of charm with its twill cravat facing. A masculine detail on a feminine garment… I have always mixed everything together. I do it because I’m carefree. This dress was tremendously successful because it says ‘I am carefree.’”, explains Gaby.

Robe galaxie by Karl Lagerfeld (S/S 1978)  

Karl Lagerfeld designed for Chloe from 1965 to 1984 and from 1992 to 1996. 

He left Patou in 1965, where he had spent one year. When he came to Chloé, the designer first worked under the direction of Gaby Aghion, with Maxime de la Falaise, Michèle Rosier and Graziella Fontana, before being appointed the brand’s exclusive designer on the 1st January 1975. Under his direction, Chloé became one of the most iconic brands of the 70s. Each of his collections was a happening. Only Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche and Sonia Rykiel could compare with him… Buyers from Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman and Saks Fifth Avenue visited the boutique in the 7th arrondissement of Paris. Anonymous customers shared long skirts and sheer blouses with Grace Kelly, Lauren Bacall, Brigitte Bardot, Anouk Aimée, Stéphane Audran, Paloma Picasso and Jane Birkin, to name but a few. For the first time, a designer became as famous as the brand for which he worked. Creating the Galaxy dress, Karl attached two fine black braces to a long dress painted with a colourful leaf motif. The impressive amounts of silk georgette cut on the bias makes the Galaxy dress dance on the body. Enveloping the bust in a wraparound effect, it is just fastened under one arm, revealing the upper thigh as the wearer walks. The hanky hem plunges lightly down the back and strokes the heel. At the time, it was designed as an evening dress. In 2013, it can be adapted to all situations, with or without a belt, with heels or flats. 

Pochette éventail by Karl Lagerfeld (F/W 1979)   

The glamorous chic of this evening clutch in black suede goatskin embroidered with a silver fan comes to life in the 1979 photograph by Albert Watson. Worn like a matador’s headdress by a model with polished nails and lipstick, with all the stunning, serious beauty of flamenco. 

Robe violon by Karl Lagerfeld (S/S 1983)  

This dress embodies the 80s. From the back it has a trompe l’oeil effect: it appears as a black and gold ensemble made up of a bolero jacket with a slit between the shoulder blades and a straight skirt on the hips. The violin motif, embroidered with pearls and gold thread, follows the natural curves of a woman’s body. Karl Lagerfeld enjoys this kind of mimicry, placing rhinestones along the strings and making the final adjustments on the bejewelled stand-up collar. It’s sexy, fun and edgy.

 
Top ananas by Stella McCartney (S/S 2001)   

Stella McCartney designed for Chloe from 1997-2001.
A breath of fresh air, youth and glamour came to the Chloé fashion house with Stella’s arrival. While the young woman was inspired by her own mother, Linda, who wore Chloé, the brand also took on a vintage, sexy rock & roll tone. The evanescence of young women with long hair, softness without sentimentality in retro lingerie, the strong-willed attitude of women who know what they want, low-rise pants for a body with newfound beauty and style, printed t-shirts that sold like hotcakes. The Chloé wardrobe mixes all kinds of influences and genres. In a sort of virtuous circle, the vital energies of the street inspire this kind of luxury, which is then copied by girls everywhere.

Illustrations © Chloe

S/S 12 Trend: 1920s

The “Roaring Twenties” marked the return to normality afer World War I, jazz music blossomed, womanhood was redefined by the flappers and Art Deco was at its peak. Spring/Summer 2012 sees the return of this era to fashion.


Left (top to bottom): Barbara Stanwyck, illustration of Chanel collection F/W 1925/1926, daytime looks illustration & Joan Crawford. Right side (top to bottom): necklace & earrings: Etro, clutch: Salvatore Ferragamo, runway: Etro, bottom row: runway: Ralph Lauren, shoes & clutch: Etro

Women were not only liberated from the corset, for the first time, women's legs were seen with hemlines rising to the knee and dresses becoming more fitted. Around 1925 skirts ended just below the knee. Ralph Lauren and Giles use this length this season


Left: Ralph Lauren, right: Giles.

while John Galliano and Etro rather reference it.


Left: John Galliano, right: Etro.

Low-waisted dresses with fullness at the hemline allowed women to literally kick up their heels in the new dances like the Charleston.


Left: Roberto Cavalli, right: Etro.

Fashion was heavily influenced by art movements such as surrealism or cubism. Art slowly transformed from the curvilinear abstractions of art nouveau to the more mechanized and geometric shapes of art deco.


Etro

Todays image of 1920s fashion is strongly influenced by the Flapper`s style, which largely emerged as a result of French fashions and its pioneer Coco Chanel. The rapid spread of jazz, and the popularization of dancing contributed to the dispersal of the new style. Flapper dresses were straight and loose, leaving the arms bare. The style made girls look young and rather boyish with short hair (like bobs), flattened breasts, and straight waists-lines.


Left: Etro, right: Roberto Cavalli.

“The Golden 20s” are a well-known term, which describes the economic boom following World War I and the severe economic downturns that took place between 1919–1923. It was a time of economic prosperity and new riches, that required celebrating and glamorous looks. Feathers and silk were very popular, as they are again today.


Left: Ralph Lauren, right: Etro, shoes: Etro, box clutch: Salvatore Ferragamo.

The 2012 take on 1920s fashion also adds our current trends pastel colours and clutch bags to the look.


Dress, clutch & pink shoes: Etro, mint shoes: Ralph Lauren.

Picture credits: Runway & accessory pictures are property of the respective brands. 1920s b/w pictures: carbonated.

How do you like this season`s return to 1920s fashion? Which elements do you like best and which will you wear yourself?

Retrospective: Style icon Marlene Dietrich & Dior`s D`Trick collection

MARLENE DIETRICH (1901 - 1992)

When Marlene Dietrich died at age 90, the headline of her New York Times obituary decreed her a "Symbol of Glamour."

"Dietrich artfully projected cool sophistication, self-mockery, and infinite experience," said the article. "Her sexuality was audacious, her wit was insolent and her manner was ageless. With a world-weary charm and a diaphanous gown showing off her celebrated legs, she was the quintessential cabaret entertainer of Weimar-era Germany."

Dietrich's infamous role as Lola-Lola in iconic German film The Blue Angel (1930) made her an international star. Yet she shed none of her risqué sexiness as she became a household name: rather, she brought it along with her, and helped pioneer Victor-Victoria chic, often donning tails and a top hat in her films and on stage.

"She has sex but no positive gender," critic Kenneth Tynan once wrote. "Her masculinity appeals to women and her sexuality to men."

Her height was Height was 5ft 6 and her measurements were 35-24-33.

"Glamour is what I sell, it's my stock in trade."

"I dress for the image. Not for myself, not for the public, not for fashion, not for men."

"Don't ever follow the latest trend, because in a short time you will look ridiculous, don't follow it blindly into every dark alley. Always remember that you are not a model or a manniquin for which the fashion is created."

"Elegance is rarely found today. Woman are not brought up to know about it and therefore lack even the desire to acquire it."



In his summer 2004 collection John Galliano revived her glamour in his Dior D`Trick collection, adding even more sex-appeal through chiffon & lingerie and more edge through leather & tattoos. The result was an luxurious, uber-glamorous collection that was loved by today`s style icons like Gwen Stefani, who wore complete D`trick looks in her "It`s my life" video.

Runway video


Sources: 1 2 3 4

Marlene may be gone but her heritage remains forever.
LONG LIVE GLAMOUR!

Fashion history: The 80s/90s Yuppie

Yuppie was a 1980s acronym for 'Young Upwardly Mobile Professional Person'. The word was coined by the advertising industry to capture the essence of a particular type of work hard, play hard, ambitious minded city career person.

The hectic lifestyle of a yuppie meant that after long hours of work, rare free time was spent in a self indulgent way frittering away the cash earned on anything, from expensive perfume, to a bottle of fine champagne. Conspicuous wastage was part of the attitude. The term applies to men whose ages range from about 21 to early 40s.

Yuppie-style is always matching and usually upscale. They like to flaunt their good taste. Even if the young professionals are in debt to their ears, they work hard to maintain the image of success. For day they sported wide shouldered jackets and for weekends they wore a Barbour to effect a country aesthetic to assume the appearance of a more advantaged lifestyle.

The ultimate yuppie fashion film is American Psycho. The short clips will give you a more in-depth view of...

...the grooming and vanity



...the importance of conformity and status-symbols



How to dress like a Yuppie

1. Wear business suits. In your free time wear clothes that are considered casual, these are usually khakis and polo shirts. Make sure you see someone else wearing the outfit before - yuppies are conformists.

2. Spend money on an expensive watch and make sure that your sleeves are always rolled up enough for people to see it.

3. Look for outfits in neutral colours like grey, beige and olive. Yuppies do not like to stand out with bold colors. They may end up making an unintentional statement.

4. You should have neat straight hair that doesn't need too much hair product.

5. Carry a sweater with you by draping it over your shoulders and tying the arms loosely around the front. This should look very casual as if you put it there without a lot of though. And the sweater should never fall off or hang crooked.Sources: 1 2 3

I LOOOOOVE the look but what strikes me most is the aspiration to conformity. From today`s perspective its pathetic but it still has more class and effort than today`s fetish for "individuality" - that everybody expresses with THE SAME H&M "vintage" blazer...

What do you think? Love it? Hate it? Secretly attracted to it? ;)