Graffiti, Full of Grace

My longest lasting love affair has been with the city of New York. I've been a peripheral city girl my whole life. Some of my favorite childhood memories are of the heart-racingly exciting moments of emergence from the tunnels that funnel Jerseyans into the belly of the big apple beast. Besides for people watching, street art hunting was and is my favorite New York activity.

Mui Mui's SS '09 show presented some graffiti graced dresses, pleated and column-shaped with spray painted markings.

The dresses made me think of that uniquely New York combination of urban grime and glittery glamour that feeds my schizo aesthetic sense perfectly. One of my favorite street artists that shares that same poetic grit is Swoon. She's a Brooklyn-based artist that posts life-sized wheatpaste prints all over the city. Her pieces are usually giant lithographs carved from wood or linoleum blocks that are rolled with ink, overlayed with paper, and walked on to produce enormous prints. Once put up in public spaces the pieces are open to interaction, evolving and morphing into collaborative works, added to by any passerby bearing paint.

Take a walk through The Village, Chelsea, Soho, or the subway system and you'll see Swoon's work. She's incredibly prolific.

In these videos from an artist's talk she gave at the MoMA, Swoon presents her pieces, and lets you peek in on her process.



Want to learn more? Check out Streetsy.com and Woostercollective.com for a comprehensive guide to the wonderful world of New York street art.

Images: Mui Mui: Marcio Madeira for Style.com, Swoon shots: Streetsy.com

Let's Wrap It Up: Shoulder to Shoulder

Stop stuffing your bras and start stuffing your shoulders! Seriously, the shapely shoulder is taking over. In the 80's it was a power thing. Women suited up in their version of sports gear to get through the battlefield of the new work world. The shoulders of now are a bit more refined and even softer, but still symbolically aggressive. Here's a sampling:


Balenciaga's beautiful round-shouldered jackets.


Balmain's padded rocker chic.


See Maison Martin Margiela's shoulders? Right there beneath the giant Afro puffs?

Need some bulk? Here's where to pick up some perfect padding. Happy stuffing!

Images: Style.com

Let's Wrap It Up: Hip to Be Square

It's time to square your edges, people. According to the runways, boxes are your new best friends. Love them, treat them well and they'll reward you with hip points. Here's some of Spring's four cornered offerings:

Dries van Noten gives the grid a go.



Yves Saint Laurent's square conditioned coat and boots.


Francisco Costa's cubist collection for Calvin Klein.


Squares are super DIY friendly. Head on over to the office supply store, grab yourself a straightedge and start lining things up.

Images: Style.com

Let's Wrap It Up: Heads Up!

Hate your hips? Well don't! Easier said than done? Then, keep the focus on your upper half with a bold Spring '09 trend.

Heed the designers' calls and tease your hair into tornadoes of curls and mussiness. I know it doesn't seem practical, but I also know that somewhere inside of you there's a woman who's always envied Marge Simpson. Grab a can of Aqua Net and get to work!

*Ed Note: I fear it would be socially irresponsible for me not to point out the heavy sarcasm in this above post*

Images: Fendi (l) and Comme des Garcons (r), both Style.com

Let's Wrap It Up: Get Waisted!

Fashion Month has made its transition into the memory banks, so it's time to wrap the Spring/Summer '09 season in pretty, trendy paper and re-gift it to you. I'm going to give you all the important highlights and let you in on some DIY methods to bring them into your closet. Times are tough so we need to get a little crafty folks.

Let's start at the waist. The waist is actually a very democratic fashion zone. Everyone has a waist. Yours might be higher, lower, thicker, or thinner than your neighbors', but you've got one. And, the waist is the narrowest part of most (I said most) female figures. As long as you're hitting the right spot, cinching a garment at the waist can produce some of the most flattering looks around. The runways this season featured everything from paper bag waists to obis, and from multiplied belts to simple ties.

Ralph Lauren layers and loops a canteen (just in case) over leather belts.


Marc by Marc Jacobs learns to multiply.


Louis Vuitton ties one on.


Chloe paper bags it.

Belts are often a cheap thrift store find. I scooped up a pile of seven for which I paid next to nil at my favorite Housing Works thrift shop on 17th street.

Try your obi belt luck on ebay.

If you're feeling especially crafty, give the paper bag waist a try with an old, too-big skirt you've fished out of your own closet. Let Morgan Hungerford from Panda Head show you how in this Threadbanger episode:

Congrats, you've now earned your black belt in belts!

Images: Style.com

Pour Some Sugar on Me

The sad thing about sparkles is that they never show up well in stills.

I'm guessing that the sequin studded dresses Stefano Pilati sent down the YSL runway were stunning in person. I know they lack shimmer in 2-D, but I'm sure they shine like an elegant disco ball (is that an oxymoron?) in real light. I call that color sugared wine. I'd swig-ahem-sip it.

Images: Marcio Madeira (full length) and Don Ashby & Olivier Claisse (detail) for Style.com

Speed Freak

If you were a mad scientist whose experiments happened to take shape on dress forms, you'd be the heir apparent to Hussein Chalayan's distinctive throne. Fond of the spectacle, Chalayan has always presented beautifully designed pieces with a little something extra. Collections past have been crafted from wood, loaded with lasers, and even fitted with remote control shape-shifting devices. This spring he's collaged dresses with shimmering images of shattered glass (check this beauty out in the video above at about 40 seconds) and crunched cars, commenting on the crash inducing speed of modern life. His finale dresses really drove the point home.

Models in molded-latex minis stood in the eye of a wind storm while glasses were smashed around them. The current apocalyptic mood made this an eerily spot-on show. And, even if the end dresses were more of a statement than a workable wardrobe option, the rest of the collection offered enough wearable selections to keep Chalayan from falling into the conceptual abyss. Chalayan made speed a look like a designer drug.

Images: Don Ashby & Olivier Claisse for Style.com

Thigh's the Limit

Riccardo Tisci is a leg man.

The thigh-high boots he sent stalking down the runway at his Givenchy show are an old school kick back to the days of Pretty Woman. Remember when everybody's favorite hooker with a heart of gold, Vivan Ward, rocked the pleather out of a pair of sky-high hiker-uppers?

I for one am all for this look, somehow it's all freshened up. As is always the case, everything old is new again. Now, these aren't so practical for a cold winter state like New York; but 'til the snow falls, let the boots rise!

Draped to Thrill

That certain je ne sais quoi that is the essence of French chic was in full effect on Lanvin's SS '09 runway. Alber Elbaz is a master craftsman, but not the type who will fashion 10,000 butterfly wings out of hand-spun silk thread to adorn a glama-gown. Instead, he takes the simple act of draping to new levels of art. The expert seaming of his silky sheaths sent gentle ripples through seemingly liquid fabric.

French women are notorious for thier renowned sense of style that always appears effortless, innate. But, even if you were born on this side of the seas, you can slip on one of these Lanvin pieces and instantly claim sartorial success.

Images: Don Ashby & Olivier Claisse (details) and Marcio Madeira (full shots) for Style.com

Gridlock

Check the latest trend at Dries van Noten.

Squares are the new stripes!


Images: Marcio Madeira for Style.com

Karl's Got a Brand New Bag

When times get tough, only the clever will survive. Everyone in fashion knows that accessories are where the cash is, and most literally the cash is in the handbags. Runaway bags have been runway to retail deal makers for the past few seasons, replacing the must have dress with the must have tote. While the saturation of the IT bag has begun to push the hype into the over territory, there are still plenty of pretty young (and old) things that will pay a gorgeous penny for a great bag. Leave it to Karl Lagerfeld to reinvent the Chanel bag with enough newness to stir want in the hearts of many. Karl turned the classic bags on their sides, hanging the quilted sacs vertically from their signature chains. He also crafted copies of the Chanel retail shopping bags in leather. This way you can postpone your buyer's remorse indefinitely, ever tricking yourself into believing your purchase is fresh from the store. Clever, clever Karl.

And if I had a king's ransom to drop on a bag of my choice, I think I'd go with the quilted Chanel guitar bag. Now, I don't play guitar but I could pretend to, and it would certainly fit everything I could possibly ever think to bring anywhere. I guarantee you see someone pick this to be their purse of the season.

I'd rock that rockin' bag.

Images: Matteo Volta for Style.com

Monet Shot

Wow, so come spring you really should be in pixels. Designer Albert Kriemler of Akris created softer, gentler alternatives to Viktor & Rolf's pixelated looks. His spring dresses made quite an impression. Their pretty patterns were created by a Swiss textile mill that translated super close-up images of gardens into gorgeous silk georgette fabrics. Monet would have been very proud.

Claude Monet. Irises in Monet's Garden, 1900.

Images: Marcio Madeira for Style.com

You Should Be in Pixels

Ladies and Glentlepeople, you each have a front row ticket to the SS '09 Viktor and Rolf show! In fact the entire world does (sorry, were you feeling special for a moment?). Produced over a two-day period for a healthy budget, the webcast-only presentation features a clan of Shalom Harlow clones stalking a white runway in an empty room. You get to play the editor of your choice (Back off! I call Anna Wintour!) as you witness the clothes in motion and close up, from an omniscient VIP seat.

The looks were an ode to pixelation. There were sparkly labor intensive, hand-made dresses in crystal-studded organza. They looked like a television screen seen under scrambled conditions with a magnifying glass. There was also a T-shirt with a pixel graphic of a dragon. The T-shirt was paired with black and white graphic tights that will hopefully inspire some exciting alternatives to the solid black leggings that need to be put out of their misery by the time Spring rolls around this year.

The whole show, with it's virtual bent and finale of Shaloms dissipating into a pixelated ether, reminded me of the scene in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory where Mr. Wonka introduces Wonka Vision:


Something tells me Viktor & Rolf would get along swimmingly with Willy.

Images: Courtesy of Viktor & Rolf via Style.com