The Story of the "Marc Jacobs hat" & review of Fall 2012.

(Marc Jacobs Fall 2012)

The History of the Marc Jacobs hat is a journey that has been with Jacobs' persona through his line. The accomplished designer has used hats to express his ideas and visions into his collections. While also pulling the reigns at Louis Vuitton since 1997, and progressing the couture line with his collaborations with artists such Takashi Murakami and Richard Prince. The work of Marc Jacobs has become a recognizable work of art within the world of fashion. The hat adds to the telling of the story the collection is expressing.

(Marc Jacobs SS09)

(Marc Jacobs FW09)

(Left to right: Marc Jacobs SS11, LV FW09)

(Left to right: Louis Vuitton FW11, LV SS08)

Whether it's "Marie Antoinette" - (Fall 2012), "Mary Poppins" - (Spring 2009), highly paid escorts - (Fall 2011,Vuitton), eerie/artsy nurses (Spring 2008, Vuitton in collaboration with Prince) they all seem to complete the looks. Imagine how differently the collection would be seen without the hatwear.

The hats in the Fall 2012 collection MAKE the looks and bring a certain image from the hat as an accessory to a main attraction of the outfit. Jacobs' styling with looks is impeccable and the way of pairing pieces with looks can create a look with 7 complete pieces involved.

(AND IT WORKS!)

Only true artists can see their vision for what it is.

Bold colors, big hats and scarves, and the always play on print on print is there and always on point in flattering the female figure while staying sophisticated at the same time.

Style.com Review for Marc Jacobs' Fall 2012

NEW YORK, February 13, 2012

By Nicole Phelps

Marc Jacobs earned his reputation as New York fashion's consummate showman and then some tonight. The set was spectacular and huge. Dreamed up at the designer's request by his friend, the artist Rachel Feinstein, the construction paper folly looked like a broken castle. "Marie Antoinette's version of ruins," she said. A pretend fountain was perched halfway down the curving runway. But we weren't in eighteenth-century France. Seventeenth-century Plymouth Rock meets the twenty-first-century street-style scene is more like it. Jacobs' models wore pilgrim shoes, of both the flat and stacked heel variety, affixed with giant rhinestone buckles. And their wild outfits, the designer said backstage, were inspired by the likes of Anna Piaggi and Lynn Yaeger, fashion eccentrics of the first order and mash-up artists long before the Sartorialist arrived on the scene. Piaggi has never gone anywhere without a hat, and Jacobs had some doozies on the runway. Made of multicolored mink, they tilted this way and dipped that, like something out of Dr. Seuss. The getups were just as off-kilter: Wool stoles were buttoned over wool coats worn on top of patchwork skirts above cropped pants. Colors were all over the map; prints ranged from oversize paisleys to floral pencil doodles, and holographic appliqués dripped off dresses. Tinsel turned up everywhere. And volumes, in marked contrast to his strict, severe collection of a year ago, were turned up, too. Padded hips? Prepare yourselves, ladies. It was fearless, just like Piaggi, Yaeger, and co. And it made you fall in love with fashion and Marc Jacobs all over again.

(Photo credit: Style.com)

Pre-Fall 12 Reviews (Balenciaga, Theyskens' Theory, & Prabal Gurung)

Balenciaga's pre-fall 2012 collection showed that neon will not be leaving and bulky or tight silhouettes are the answer. Bright 80's-like colors and even a literal neon track lighting to show that the color is important to the look's appeal. Zebra prints used in the haus of Balenciaga in 1964 have been enlarged and recycled. Menswear inspired jackets are back for casual wear giving a strong female form juxtaposed with shorts and boots.

Theyskens' Theory is full of muted black and gray tones with accented beaded leggings and commanding boots that do just that. Again, on a menswear inspired trend with two-piece suits with a casual touch of a tee underneath. Mirrors seem to be a theme in the scheme of color with the pop of silver in the collection along with the literal mirroring of the model in the presentation photos. (maybe looking into that a little hard, but maybe not...) Either way, very flattering, yet still feminine and luxe.

Prabal Gurung's PF12 has a very bold color palette with structured forms and kaleidoscope prints. The color is muted throughout the collection with the exception of pink, a deep green, and a bit or orange from the print-the looks stay mono-chromatic. That's okay though because the styling and play on layered prints and patterns makes every look flawless. Full of very form-fitting silhouettes, the collection is full of every piece thought of. The attention to detail in the beadwork and attention to exact form makes the looks incredible ready to wear pieces.

Ph: VOGUE.com

Long time, No Blog.

I can't really explain why it's been so long since I've blogged again other than my MacBook crashed at the beginning of September, and being the poor young 20-something trying to live a not so cheap/luxe (haha) lifestyle, I had to wait until October 1st to retrieve a new hard drive. That being said, I can now return to attempting to blog more frequently. Now on to Fashion weeks and music for Fall!

Balenciaga SS 12

The Spring 2012 collection had an element of architecture from head to toe. LITERALLY. Structured jackets and bold color-blocking with a touch of luxurious texture. Boxy menswear jackets over bloomer type shorts add a very commanding silhouette translated into a very powerful and bold spring collection for the Balenciaga woman.

Balmain SS 12

After the departure of Christophe Decarnin after last Fall's 2011 collection, Olivier Rousteing has turned the Balmain girl full of attitude/spunk and a hint of rock n' roll on to Western glam (?). It works. The collection still had the certain attitude that the Balmain brand has exuded in the past. Very detailed and full of shine with the gold beadwork all over the collection. Also, a hint of menswear with button-downs and pants giving the power back to the silhouette of the woman. The shoulders are high and so are the shorts/skirts. One thing is for sure is that these themes of neutrals, powder blue and prints are definitely here for Spring 2012.

Christian Dior SS 12

With rumors flying around one of the most glamourous of all of the fashion houses in the world, the fashion community was of course anxious to see what would come of the Spring 2012 Dior collection. Still without a successor since the firing of the great John Galliano last spring, the house of Dior seems to be coming back together after a disappointing Fall 2011 Couture showing of pastels and primary shapes as hat wear. Sheer loose fitting dresses and knee-length hems in about 1/3 of the collection gives a vintage and modest feel. Pops of bright red and again a powdery blue throughout the neutral shades of black white and nude adds to the flowing silhouette. Very girly and not one pair of pants in the entire collection, and that's not always a bad thing. I'm sure John Galliano will not be making a return, at all, but I sure did love his force of telling a story with a theme and show itself, which this collection seemed to be missing. :(

Fall 2011, Mix One.

Planes, Trains, & Automobiles (Blast from the Past) -PRADA SS12

American Graffiti! I knew I was going to enjoy the Women's PRADA SS12 collection when I saw the Menswear this past June mostly based on the brightness and the prints. Cartoon-ish prints of fire, 1950's style cars and a use of basic pastels and bright patterns. Classic silhouettes styled into looks with dresses and pieces to be worn alone to add to a great trend. As spring should be, the collection is very colorful and classic SS holiday feel. I mean, the heels even have flames. (Adding to the literal emphasis on these shoes are gonna be "hot").

Photo credit : STYLE.com

SUMMER 2011 : Mix One

A little old, a little new, fast, and slow. All the great qualities of a nice relaxing summer mix.

WASHED OUT - "Amor Fati"

Washed Out has been one of my favorite 2010/2011 discovery bands. Proenza Schouler used them in a fashion film for their 2010 FW ad campaign video and I found them on Hypemachine last year when I was in need of a new mellow band to drive to.

LADY GAGA - "The Edge of Glory", "Hair", "Bloody Mary", & "Heavy Metal Lover"

From ballad status songs like "Edge of Glory" and "Hair" - to turning the controversial story of Mary Magdalene into a screaming hit ("Bloody Mary") that helped my trip to the Vatican even more meaningful and entertaining, and using bondage like themes and lyrics pertaining to group sex in "Heavy Metal Lover" add the perfect amount of taboo to make the bass pump for the entire song.

THE KILLS "Satellite"

The Kills first single off of "Blood Pressures" sets the tone of a return of Jamie Hince and Allison Mosshart since "Sour Cherry" and "U R A Fever". The return of the Kills has made my summer that much better.

FLEETWOOD MAC "The Chain"

The classic tune of Fleetwood Mac's ballad "The Chain" is so hauntingly good that I even made a mix with only it on the tracklist.

FLORENCE+THE MACHINE "Howl" (Live at Bonnaroo 2011)

Florence Welch's "Howl" is amazing as a studio version, and this just shows that the talent never stops with this live version from this summer's Bonnaroo 2011.

SKRILLEX "Died this Way"

Enough said. The screaming doesn't even get to me anymore.