The domino effect of becoming a contributor - Episode n.1

August 22, 2014

I never wrote a novel except in 3rd grade one about a little critterish creature living underground: it was a cartoon and the only intent was to convince my parents that we could have a hamster as a pet, and yes we were responsible enough that no way we were going to let it die of hunger nor, oh God no, forget it in the other room. That one didn't end well, but this is not the place.

This is one hell of a good story, with an awesome beginning and an end that will never end, which makes it an exciting ride.

Here's the first episode: I was picked by Wowcracy as an influencer. I picked a collection and a designer and wrote what I thought about the collection I was looking at. With my innate need of touching the fabrics, the seams, the embroideries, without being able to hear the fabric swish it was a task that I accomplished with happiness because the collection is a pearl!

An abstract:

“... each garment is inspired by a concept, as the fabric runs on the body, stops where supposed to and continues to completion. Feminine is what perspires ... ”

Soon after it was a domino's effect.

I participated to the selection of the cover of the online magazine and right after that, I became BLOGGER OF THE MONTH.

“sometimes I feel like a squirrel (industrious and minding my own business) and sometimes a giraffe (glorious, elegant and impossible to ignore)”

— FB, chicfb.com

Then, since I liked so much the process of contributing to young, talented and non-overly exposed designers yet worth every attention, I wrote about Nuna, the fall collection of Des Fleurs sur le Noir that 'calls for a Millenial girl, young, edgy and whimsical who will feel at ease wearing the collection from work to dinner and even a club.'

I did it on Lucky Magazine ... oh yes, I became a contributor for Lucky Community.

Seriously, passion and determination take you everywhere. When you love what you do it will transpire and pay you off with the unexpected.

A toast to a long collaboration with Wowcracy and good luck to Silvina.

This is not it, though, wait, the month of August has been a whirlwind. More to come on Episode n.2

Silvina Maestro @ WOWCRACY

July 26, 2014

That moment when Wowcracy selected chicfb.com as one of those blogs 'to keep an eye on' : the WOW factor. I will be watched by a team of experts of the likes of Diane Pernet, VOGUE Talents, Harper's Bazaar and Susie Bubble. It feels like a tremendous responsibility, but isn't writing, commenting, analyzing, reviewing, matching, reading, being behind the scenes, brainstorming what someone like me with a fashion nose has always dreamed of?

So #justdoit.

WOWcracy is a fashion platform that offers new talents the opportunity to showcase their latest collections and pre-tail them without any financial burden and allows influencers like me to preview them, review, widen the exposure to an extended audience, potentially infinite.

'Theorema' is the collection designed by Silvina Maestro that I will be reviewing. It is part of a project called 'Call The Tune' by Wowcracy in collaboration with Vogue Talents.

“I like to explore the tension between the presence and the absence of beauty, love, and light, all sides of the same thing.”

— Silvina Maestro

Once it was said that the clothes of a woman should follow the movement of a woman's body not constrict it, and that is a Chanel quote mesdames et messieurs and it is relevant when defining style.

If there's a word that comes to mind looking at Maestro's lookbook is 'fluidity': each garment is inspired by a concept as the fabric runs on the body, stops where supposed to and continues to completion. Feminine is what perspires and cohesively hints throughout the collection.

Rouches, cut-outs, asymmetrical hems all show up at the right moment in the body, enough to enhance sensuality without being inappropriate.

In the interview published in Vogue Talents, Maestro explains how she is interested in the 'tension between the presence and absence of beauty, light, and love all sides of the same thing'. We see black and white, short and long, shine and matte and they all blend masterfully and without edges.

My work is a progression on itself, each collection is a conceptual continuation of the previous one, like chapters in [sic] a novel. Narrative is important to me.

Silvina we take you by the word as the collection promises many more chapters to come.

Source: http://wowcracy.com/en/lab/user/1425/proje...

The Bucolics of chic

June 10, 2014

A conversation about the concept of chic arose this past week after the launch of CHIC Fille a new French magazine.

It's not about being trendy, wearing the next thing, battling against aging, reckless consumption or chasing the latest trend like a headless chicken. A girl's style and her wardrobe are not a chain production mill of fast-paced fades, it should be cradled as a curated exhibition.

Everyday life is infested by what theorists call the 'megaphone effect', an audience pleasing game where you allure the readership by wearing the latest, the 'un-published', the hot-off-the-runway IT bag to drool over. It doesn't matter whether it's 'tasteful' or not, it's what the designer and the corporation behind him are supporting and will be featuring in the ad campaign. Coming soon to your nearby screen, meanwhile it's on Instagram or Twitter 'as seen' on X, Y and Z.

That 'as seen' means X, Y and Z received it in consignment or as a regalia where gift assumes the double sense of present for the blogger and free advertising before the paid advertising campaign. It's a merry-go-round of freebies where good taste, chic, elegance, eye for details go forgotten.

We are not here for bitching though.

Here we are in the realm of the naturally chic, instinctively refined, honestly sophisticated that doesn't happen overnight, but we believe in it. It's like going to school to learn how to cross stitch like good wives to be used to have to: it takes time, there's no crash course available, you have to climb the steps. Same happens when you decorate a house and you decide to hire an interior decorator, a landscape designer, buy pieces at flea markets and hang your child's pre-school hand-crafted masterpieces and dress your bed with family's heirloom monogrammed linens.

When people show they rely on you, they count on you and they consider you good at 'being chic', you are first surprised, baffled by the role and proud to take it seriously.

“... that’s how I ended up with this reputation for being the ultimate Parisian. I didn’t choose it, but I am very proud of it.”

— Ines de le Fressange

It happened to Ines de la Fressange, unofficially crowned the Ambassador of French awesomeness. There are various misconceptions and rules, but the most important secret lays in learning the balance of being unpretentious.

How are you being chic?

The Season's Honor Code: Spring

May 14, 2014

Spring is that season that opens the windows to colors, transparency, sun-kissed cheeks. This one is all about cool, freedom, comfort, laid-back and that mix of lady-who-lunch and tomboy-ish attitude.

There's room to play around.

this season is all about cool, freedom, comfort, laid-back and tomboy-ish attitude

Shoes, mean flats this season

Drop the heels for a season. It doesn't mean eliminating all our stiletto, pumps, wedges, D'Orsay but, on the contrary, buying flats. All is good, homework is shopping anyways.

slip-on sneakers (Celine, Aldo, Steve Madden, Gap, H&M). If you are one of us, you indeed own Stan Smith, Vans and AllStar Converse at least. To update the shoe closet, you may splurge at Givenchy and Celine or go frugal at The Gap, Steve Madden and even H&M. They may be disposable and who cares? The *good* ones will be in the closet forever. These are temporary trends.
2-band sandals (Celine, Marni, H&M, Prada, Tod's)
Birkenstocks & Co (Steve Madden, Zara)

RETIRE platforms ... yep, just for this summer at least.

Stan Smith an iconic symbol

What happened when I met Sarah Jessica Parker

The Shirt

We have done an extended research on THE shirt, like that crisp button-down equivalent of the perennial green cypresses in the Italian gardens. Alexander Wang nailed one look of his spring collection that contributed to the relaunch and resuscitation of the item.

This means that:

what you have in the armoire needs to be spruced up and brought back to pristine conditions;
this is the season to dig in to your pockets and invest in at least a couple of new shirts. There are plenty of options, Madewell, Zara and JCrew being the frugal ones. Celine, Alexander Wang and Valentino some of the VIP ones. White cotton, even the most sophisticated Swiss one, doesn't get better with time like wine does. Au contraire, it gets worn out and, no matter how many times you have it washed, pressed and starched, it will never be that David you were once proud of.

“That shirt you have in the closet needs to be spruced up and brought back to its pristine conditions.”

Skirt

the hems are descending, getting to around the knee

pleated
full
pencil (we love the lace ones, they go versatile from work to the beach as a super chic cover up)
wrap (look n. of Altuzzara SS14 is the leading example)

Pants

Billowy, wide-leg, slouchy, cropped, flowy

What happened when I met Carlos Huber @ Babalu'

May 10, 2014

I bought a new perfume after 23 years of being married to one.

If you know my adversity for synthetic colognes sold with discounts and gift-with-purchase, you know it wasn't any of that.

It was a walk in the past into one of those mid 17th century literary salons.

I will not be abandoning my Patchouli, but 'it's like choosing what to wear in the morning', that's how I was broken into the New Me by Carlos Huber, the one of the only two Latin American 'noses' in the world and the creative director of Arquiste parfumeur.

Here's how it started.

This is how Babalu looked before the party

As I am getting ready for the event where the master perfumer will be doing a one-of-a-kind appearance, I realize I am walking to Babalu without wearing my own perfume.

(Un)consciously naked. This is going to be interesting.

Unusual to say the least. The fixation with my own scent started from getting acquainted to the Galateo of Giovanni della Casa: a debutante is supposed to own her own personal fragrance. God only knows I am long past that decade.

Carlos is behind the counter like a master mixologist and we are welcomed with a refreshing gin cocktail, the perfect concoction for a steamy Miami Beach afternoon. (Don't you even think I got drunk and bought the perfume like one would get married in Vegas and not remember the following day. )

The atmosphere is understated and chic as usual at Babalu, the 'antithesis to a department store' [Greg, one of the owners - cit.] boutique cornered in the most unusual real estate spot of Miami Beach.

Huber sniffs (baaad pun) I am Italian and Paolo, the other owner of Babalu, says he is too - 'molto piacere'.

As I ask where is Carlos from, I realize I didn't come prepared. Another sign that this is going well: no expectations.

“Huber collaborated with internationally recognized noses in order to recapture the olfactive notes of historical moments. ”

— www.arquiste.com

The nose behind Arquiste is from Mexico, 'but I spent all my summers in Florence, as long as I remember' he adds.

Signs of the unexpected are folding over me like an origami flower.

Miami, the ocean and at one point there must be those essences in one of the perfumes

FB - "How did you begin the path to fine fragrances?"

CH -'I am an architect specialized in historic preservation.'

History, Tuscany, travel, a unique zeal for the past and the aromas of past moments.

I am charmed and intrigued to hear how those stories got trapped in the bottle and I want to spray them out. But since I cannot keep my mouth shut, we diverge into talking about heritage, living in different countries, national pride. An engaging conversation with a stranger who wasn't a stranger anymore.

FB - "How were you drawn from designing homes, rooms and bridges, to the ethereal job of combining essences into fine fragrances?". They seemed two opposite worlds, one tangible and the other ephemeral.

The fil-rouge unifying both worlds is time - and memories. Buildings have their own unique scent fruit of the combination of materials used, events that happened there, people that populated and visited them.

WARNING: if you are intimidated by old constructions or don't like history, do not proceed.

The gardenia is in one of the fragrances ... for sure!

Each fragrance of the Arquiste line is an olfactive reminiscence of events of centuries past in detailed minutiae .

Life in 1695 in a Mexico City convent, the celebration of a good harvest in a Calabria 1175 (before the Americas were even discovered), the day when Louis XIV married la Infanta in June of 1660 that, by Carls interpretation, produced two fragrances, masculine and feminine.

FB - "How would you convert someone like me who has had one perfume forever?" And then my rant about patchouli bla bla bla went until he said:

CH - 'Let's not give too much credit to a perfume. It becomes who you are, not the other way around.'

I start getting the whole essence (I swear this is the last pun).

CH - 'What the perfume smells on the sliver of paper is not how it develops on your skin', Carlos continues. 'When you spray it on your skin, it goes through phases and it builds on you in a different way it does on anyone else.'

CH - 'Let's say you remember that day you spent in the garden in Florence, the cypresses, the honeysuckle, poppies, jasmine, you wore a linen blouse and leather boots.'

Carlos is good. He brought me back to my summer vacations. This is getting better by the minute.

“A scent is a time capsule. It can invoke our most intimate memories and dreams, and open doors to distant worlds.”

— Carlos Huber - Arquiste parfumeur

Gotta say we took a train ride on the Orient Express, did a VIP tour of the world through centuries and landed on our almost exclusive fragrance. Our essence in a capsule.

Grace Kelly and YSL: the curse of the biopic

April 10, 2014

Grace Kelly and Yves Saint Laurent, the beautiful and the damned. Some post-mortem analogies.

The American Princess

Grace Kelly, the American princess, the actress, the fashion icon, an utterly good-looking offspring and a doomed cruel fate. We have seen her, loved her styled by Givenchy in 'Rear Window' and at least once dreamed to be her.

The movie 'Grace of Monaco' starring Nicole Kidman will premiere at Cannes Film Festival, how fabulous and geographically appropriate, right? The picture perfect novel is screeched by the news that the royals of Monaco, the Ranieri, her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren will not be in attendance. Prince Albert has spoken: the character of his father has been 'vilified' to paraphrase.

While we are anxious to watch the movie, see Nicole Kidman's performance

The French artist

Yves Saint Laurent and his troubled and dark life are the subject of two movies. When one life and a bigger than life legacy cause controversy and debacle.

Yves Saint Laurent vs. Saint Laurent

Corporate battle? With the first being blessed, approved and authorized by Pierre Berge' and the latter fought, threatened to be banned by the designer's long-time partner. We have read YSL's bio by Alice Rawsthorn, his Voguepedia profile and watched the documentary on Netflix on numerous rainy Sunday afternoons.

Fact is that now that the new creative director, Hedi Slimane, has taken bold decisions and veered the direction of the brand far from where Stefano Pilati had aimed and eons away from the artist's world [told ys the opinions are mine], we, and by 'we' here I mean us, fashion world, not 'we the people' have risen our antennas ET style.

A series of questions arise:

What took Monsieur Berge' to take the biased decision? 'I will give access to the archives and my personal approval to one and not the other one.'
Are we really even sure that we are going to be able to see the movies in the US? [usually when movies are so controversial they are shushed in our beloved America]
If so, when? May is one, the 'blessed' one, but how about the black sheep?
Why, if the company's name has been officially changed by Slimane to Saint Laurent with Monsieur Berge' approval, the title of the authorized YSL sealed movie is called Yves Saint Laurent?

Some numbers and curiosities:

seventy-seven is the number of outfits lent from the headquarters and each of them hand delivered by one handler
'conditio sine qua non' to borrow the garments was that the Fondation Pierre Berge - Yves Saint Laurent would choose models, hair and make-up ... talking about micro-managing
Pierre Niney, the actor impersonating the designer, was allowed to wear the glasses that Saint Laurent used to wear (I mean the same frame). He looked so identical that the dog, the very one dog that the couple used to have though he had found his lost owner.

Analogies?

They were both talented gracious souls.

He had this noir halo that persecuted him, in other words what it is called a troubled soul. She had a noir fate persecuting her.

We lost them too early: we needed more of them ...

There's only one thing to do: wait and devour [the movies when they come out].

What happened when I met Sarah Jessica Parker

March 9, 2014

After 2 hours in line and a few hundreds dollars less, I met SJP (who shook Cecilia's hand and wrote my name correctly).

This is not it.

The combination of being a fashion freak + a #shoesaholic causes already chills of danger. Nothing simple or understated can possibly generate out of it.

It all started like this

This was early in the am. And, in case you wonder, we still can't decide if her eyes are blue or grey, but they are captivating and bewitching.

Below is what I woke up to on Saturday morning. As I needed any other reminder while getting my eyes to open at 6 am to take Cec to her oh-so-delighful rowing practice at the crack of dawn.

When in Nordstrom

There were people coming from Tampa who stood in line from 5 am. It was heavily pitched, publicized, advertised and social media hyped.

Appearance was scheduled to begin at 1:30 pm. We descended the escalators at 1 pm to find all papz pointing at us and women staring. We thought 'wow' and they thought 'who are these? where is Sarah?' The line (a mile long enveloping the entire first floor) was starting in front of the escalators where she was expected to come from. But we didn't know that part.

We were greeted and nonchalantly stationed at the very end of the mile long line, offered chic mini bites of pizza and no champagne, but invited to a shoe associate to attend our desires.

'He can come here, if you know what you want to buy, or you can go, but loose your spot.'

We killed 2 birds with one stone by me going and leaving Cec in line a.k.a., fresh flesh for the paws of who at a glance looked voraciously aggressive wild women. The usual motherly recommendation 'keep the phone with you, I'll be at the shoes department' didn't make me feel any better ('what will she remember and tell her friends?').

Needless to say, I knew my collection, the names of my favorite styles and of course my size. [They are Made in Italy, like me, hence a high price/quality ratio and they'll fit like a glove]. No shit .

'Hi Susie, pleased to meet you. Can you please bring me a Carrie in Cream and a Slim in avio suede both in 38 1/2? And it's 1:15 pm, my daughter is in line, I will look at them and buy the one I want. No need to try.'

This is how it looked from the shoe department

Do I have to mention the cat-fight I had to witness between my sales associate (A) and another (B) when the other (B) found out that (A) was going to make a commission out of sale of a pair of 'Carrie' (MINE) that was found abandoned on the floor, with no owner around? After moments of commotion culminated with the floor manager called as a referee on a ring, turned out thet (B) assumed that MY Carrie were indeed the SAME pair of shoes she had reserved on pre-sale for a client. They were the SAME shoe in the SAME size. Not cool.

Lost?

All you have to gather from the above: la Francesca GOT her pair of shoes and went back to the line. Switched with Cec who went at the escalators because 'she is coming any moment now'.

There she comes

This is what Cec was able to snap before being swept away and run over by a couple of pick-up-track-sized women. Pretty damn good indeed.

So she's wearing my shoes in black [conversation point in my pocket].

Atmosphere was calm, relaxed and well kept under control. We ended up befriending a group of women next in line to us and have a blast (I wish they could have sent me their names and the pictures we took, they were fabulous and opinionated like us and we formed an immediate bond).

A chongalicious situation happened when someone in line, behind us, decided that trying to bypass the line of a 100 women and convince the sales person that she deserved the spot, was the one thing to do. Overall, who has the time to wait for another hour? I don't even need to tell you what happened to the rachet-y girl.

The guys above are 2 fab Nordstrom stylists and, to say it like one of our SJP fandom friends, 'I can't even get close to his look if I wake up at 3am'

Then it happened

While she was signing my right shoe and Cecilia was trying to make her sign the box, conversation was flowing from 'I love your ring' (Cecilia) to her spelling my name correctly (that's where her eyes looked at mine, letter by letter) to 'You girls look so good' (SJP)

I could not stop cataloguing and branding all she was wearing, everything was outstandingly enviable. To begin with the white blouse under a strapless (or almost) dress that is trending. Or the stacked rings oh, and the stirrups. Wearing a pair of shoes will never be the same.

Then one of our SJP fandom friends screamed: 'You gotta see her socks' referring to mine (and yes mom, I was wearing cashmere socks + bronze Oscar de la Renta T straps).

It was a thing in the line, while we were all prepping on what we were going to say to SJP to avoid the star-struck face and a blank mind, they suggested I mention my shoes + socks that would kill her. So I told her and those grey eyes sparkled: 'Let me see'. Came out of the table + chair, as minute as gorgeous, 'ohh love them, but girl I love the whole look. They look like Tango shoes' and the 'they are Oscar de la Renta' was my name dropping of the episode.

Done. Cec is not pleased that she misspelled her name to Cecelia and, as a consolation, I told her she was lucky enough to have been SaraJessicaParker-ified like Idina Menzel had been Travoltified.

The End.

and the Oscar goes to ... Twitter

March 9, 2014

Bowing to the winners, their performances and for portraying the highest level of professional tenure of their category, let's go down to the dirty truth.

How about starting with the men. They stunned us for elegance, glamour and impeccable styling.

Saying it in one sentence: longer exposure to this stardom of gorgeous, handsome and so-talented-we-can't-stand-how-sexy they are men could cause burns or allergic reactions.

The conclusion is this year the guys outshone the ladies.

Pharell-Williams-Meryl-Streep-Vogue-3March14-Getty_b_426x639.jpg

[the images above were taken at the Vanity Fair party]

Matthew-M-Cate-B-Lupita-Jared-Vogue-3March14-PA_b_1080x720.jpg

[the images above belong to www.vogue.co.uk]

Before getting at the women and their glamour. Some numbers:

3.1 million: the times he most epic selfie of all selfies in the history of selfies was retweeted.

$ 44,000: the final bit that allowed Arby's to buy back its own hat and close the auction at exactly the same time when Pharrell was dancing with Lupita and Mery Streep.

No new Twitter handle was born, however John Travolta made a unique record by what since then has been called Travoltifying the name of Idina Menzel. Btw, if you want to get Travoltified go here

$600 in cash was the tip that the pizza delivery guy collected while being open-mouthed and star-struck on stage.