Internet Porn

Hey -- everbody got they thang, that's what I always say. Don't judge. But if you, like me, really enjoy some good, juicy, full-on sweaty palms, hide-it-in-the-drawer-of-your-beside-table shoe action -- go here.

Don't be ashamed if you like it a little too much. We're all friends here.




IMages: Obessedwithshoes.com, awomanandhershoes.com

Films for Fashionistas -- Teutonic Edition

I don't think there's any argument that Karl Lagerfeld is a hugely talented individual. (And if you have one to make, please feel free.) I for one wouldn't balk at the adjective "protean." He designs three separate fashion lines with very different sensibilities. He also has a full-fledged career as a fashion photographer, doing editorial work for magazines as well as a good chunk of the advertising for the lines he designs.

And I'm not even going to get into the DJ-ing and the art & architecture collaborations and whatnot. It's always something with Karl. So, yes, protean, and probably genius.

I also don't think there's any argument that he's... well, an odd duck. How odd? Eh. Maybe a little less so than I thought.

Last weekend I finally got around to watching this:

Lagerfeld Confidential

Considering its subject, this movie should have been more interesting. The promotional materials talk very proudly about how the filmmaker, Rodolphe Marconi, spent three years filming hundreds of hours of footage for this film and if that is in fact true, I'm afraid Mr. Marconi needs a new editor. I'm probably being unfair here, because one of the other things that gets said a lot in the press material is that Mr. Marconi wanted to approach a documentary in such a way that "broke all the rules" of documentary filmmaking. Production notes state that "He demonstrates a delicate and subtle touch by deconstructing the documentary style and the conventions of portraiture; he chooses not to be polemical; he will show no insolence or disrespect. He rejects the style of television investigations and concentrates on what he feels as an artist about the Lagerfeld legend." That's a valid artistic ambition and all (love the Pompous Artspeak couched in that wonderful, awkward, hilarious French-to-English Translate-ese), but the thing about a movie about Karl Lagerfeld is that probably most of your audience is going to be hard-core fashionistas and design geeks and we want a little more than a tone poem.






I want to know how the guy works. I want to know what his design process is like, what his studio environment is like, just how many design assistants does he have, how on earth does a person maintain the kind of artistic output that Lagerfeld is generating? I want to meet the people he works with and hear about what he's like as a boss, I want to see how things go from ideas to plans to garments on a hanger. I want the down & dirty details of how Lagerfeld makes fashion. I don't, honestly, care all that much about his relationship with his mother.

And there is a LOT of talk about his mother. She sounds fascinating, don't get me wrong, one of those classic beaux monstres that are almost a cliché of the Artist's Mother -- a kind of post-Weimar Sally Bowles meets Auntie Mame. If Lagerfeld is to be believed, he's been openly gay since he was pre-adolescent, and his family, especially his mother, were always perfectly okay with it, even blasé about it. Given that this would have been mid-1940's Germany, that seems remarkable. On the other hand, Lagerfeld does seem an extraordinarily singular personality, so I guess it stands to reason that he was raised by unusual people.

Still, the fact remains that I personally am much less interested in finding out what makes Karl tick than seeing how he ticks, and there's precious little of that in this film. We do get this delicious nugget, footage from what I think is a Chanel Couture show:








::sigh::

I'd sure like to see more stuff like that rather than what I presume are home movies of the child Karl frolicking in the surf somewhere. (Are they Karl? Where was the surf? Who took these? We're never told. That really annoys me. It's pretty to look at, but Style Spy wants information.)

My favorite section of the movie comes exactly midway through it. It's a short interlude of Lagerfeld talking while he sketches.

He works in marker and correction fluid, mostly, and it's fascinating to watch. He's an extremely sure-handed sketcher, the pictures takes only a few minutes to complete and there is no hesitation whatsoever in Lagerfeld's movements. In my ideal version of the Karl Lagerfeld movie, we see him make that sketch, and then we find out how that garment is realized and see it worn by someone with a pulse.

But this isn't my movie, it's Mr. Marconi's movie, and in his ideal Karl Lagerfeld movie it's more important to know what Karl thinks about love, and whether he likes living alone or with someone else.

I'm not not recommending this movie. It's lovely to look at and is more information about Lagerfeld than I had before, even if it wasn't nearly all the information I wanted. It will not be a wasted 90 minutes, I assure you. (Unlike, say, the first two episodes of "True Blood," which I also watched last weekend. That's two hours of my life I'm never going to get back.) I honestly liked Lagerfeld more after watching it than I did before, and that surprised me. Yes, odd duck for sure, but his oddity seems genuine and somehow gentler than I expected it to be. I didn't get the feeling from this movie that Lagerfeld is putting on a show -- he really is this off-kilter, singular, visionary guy who lives in his own little world, but he doesn't seem particularly impressed by himself. He does make a lot of pronouncements about Life and the Way Things Are, but hell, he's earned the right. Most of his life and its activities seem motivated above all by a strong desire not to be bored or complacent, and I understand and even admire that.

So. Style Spy rating? One stiletto up (out of a possible two). Have you seen this movie? Tell me what you thought about it. Or give it a watch and report back, I'd like to hear your opinions.


Images: chanel.com, karllagerfeld.com, fendi.com, all via models.com; lagerfeldconfidentiel.com

Shop Style Spy's Closet -- June 23

More closet purging from Style Spy! And this time I'm busting out some really good stuff... (Click photos for links that have more details.)



Red leather Adrienne Vittadini knee-high boots, size 40.

Gorgeous. Too big for me.

NEVER-WORN Marc Jacobs skirt from his spectacular S/S 2008 collection (size 4).



This is an incredible piece, and an incredible bargain.


Beautiful camel silk Stella McCartney blouse (size 8 or so)


A lovely thing that I never wear because it's just too big for me.



The most adorable leopard-print calf hair pumps EVER:

Giuseppe Zannoti, size 40.

A pair of Jimmy Choo flats (size 39) that will become your best friends:


Seriously, you will wonder how you lived without them until now.


All these things are guaranteed genuine and in excellent condition. Check out Style Spy's Closet and give them a good home!


Images: Style Spy

Precious

I get asked occasionally, and today would be the day to answer...


It's my father's wedding ring. I wear it most of the time -- not always, because my greatest terror is losing it, so I don't wear it when I'm running or things like that. It is my most precious possession and the thing in my entire wardrobe I would most hate to be without.

My dad died almost five years ago. I don't miss him any more than usual on Fathers' Day, because I miss him every day. And I don't need a piece of jewelry around my neck to remind me of how much he gave me in his too-short life, but I do like having it. Our relationship was complicated and not perfect, but I loved him, and he loved me, and we both knew it.



I hope everyone reading this has a memory of fatherly love that warms you today, whether your father is still with you or not.

Spill Your Guts

Inspired by dear Polka Dot, herewith find a photo of Style Spy's guts:


My purse guts, that is. This is the usual stuff that fills my handbag. Any men reading this blog right now will be scratching their heads thinking, Who cares what this wackdoodle carries around in her purse? Why would she show anyone that? But what I know about women is that the only thing that fascinates us more than what kind of handbag a woman carries is what she carries in it. Am I right? Men don't understand -- looking into a woman's handbag is like looking into her soul.

So what's in mine? (If you click on the photo it'll get bigger.) From top-ish to bottom-ish:

*See-through plastic zip-thingie with all kindsa stuff: band-aids, wet-wipes, various painkillers, Beano (Hey, I'm mostly vegetarian -- you'd thank me if you were my IRL friend), Emergen-C, Blister Block, toothpaste, floss, panty shields, fat-free salad dressing packets... You know, the basics.
*The little pink thing holds a couple of emergency tampons. Because we've all learned that lesson the hard way, haven't we? (I also have an emergency tampon stash in my car.)
*Gum (sugar-free, of course!), as well as sugar-free mints & hard candies. I'm addicted & trying to quit, I swear.
*Make-up bag: Burt's Bees balm (always & forever), whatever color lipstick I'm wearing that day, YSL Touche-Eclat, contact lens drops, blotting papers, a nail file, a nail clipper, a couple of bobby pins, a mirror, Shu Uemura concealer, an eye cream sample from Clarins, often a decant of whatever perfume I'm wearing. I'm not much of one for re-applying makeup during the day. If my mascara can't last a few hours, I need a new mascara.

(The clear zippered bags are very important. I. CANNOT. STAND. Having to root around in my handbag looking for shit. I have ZERO patience for that. These are my solution. Plus, it means I don't have to transfer everything into zip-loc bags before I get on an airplane.)

*Sunglasses (these are Miu Miu & they have teeny rhinestones all around the frames and I am totally in love with them) in a hard case. I'm compulsive about my shades -- they always go into the case before they go into the bag.
*Wallet. It's pretty much empty these days, but still...
*Phone
*Tiny notebook (from a Neiman Marcus goodie bag) in case I need to jot something down.
*Couple of pens
*Keys
*Red leather business card case (with cards, natch)
*Small tube of hand lotion
*Handkerchief (I like hankies. I get vintage ones because they're fun & colorful, and people always comment on them. It's interesting to make someone smile by blowing your nose.)

That's pretty much it. I will cop to having removed all the bits of paper & candy wrappers & receipts that were lurking in there for the sake of neatness, but other than that it's what lives in my bag day to day. It doesn't change a whole lot -- if I'm not going to be out long (say, just a run to the grocery store), I might leave home the notepad and the first zipper bag. For evening, it gets much smaller -- phone, keys, blotters & lippie, mirror & eye drops (I have a tendency to dry eyes, which gets unpleasant, especially in the over-air-conditioned Antarctica that is Austin in the summertime), and I have a smaller wallet that goes into an evening bag.

So. Now it's your turn. Spill your guts for Style Spy. If you're so inclined (and I really, really hope you are), take a picture of your purse guts and send it to me in an e-mail to shine at austin dot rr dot com. It's okay if the photos are large -- I can size them down. Don't forget to tell me about the contents. I'll be posting a few of them on the blog. It's a fun way for me to find out a little more about my readers.

Have a great weekend, everyone!



Image: Style Spy

Are You a Good Boot? Or a Bad Boot?

Hmmmmmmm... I dunno about these. Theoretically, I should love them. I love the idea of them.

But I just don't know. They may be just a little too Pleaser USA, if you know what I mean.

They are not Pleaser USA (the $800+ price tag is your first clue there); they are actually Giuseppe Zanotti, a shoe label that is really marvelous when they get it right and pretty tragifying when they get it wrong. I'm on the fence about this one.

Tell me what you think. Vote in the poll in the top right corner!


(With thanks and apologies to lovely Stephanie at Style Odyssey!)

Amended to add:

Just to be clear, I'm not contemplating purchasing these boots. I just saw them on Stephanie's blog and they made my mind whir. I don't think I'd ever buy shoes I was that doubtful about, especially not at that price. Besides, I already have these:


My Stuart Weitzman Goliaths, which have given me nary a moment of doubt and many an hour of joy, for a fraction of the price. What more could a gal need?

Un Chapeau Pour Monsieur Blue

My friends Mr. Blue and Mr. Blond are going to Paris and London this September. I don't hate them for this (she said through gritted teeth) because they are two of my most beloved friends and of course it makes me happy when people I love go to my favorite places on Earth (even without me).

Recently, Mr. Blue sent me a note about the trip:

"I'm wondering if I'll need a hat, since we'll be walking around a great deal and, well, Mother Nature no longer covers up my scalp the way she used to. Will sunburn be a factor in September? And if so, can you recommend a certain style of hat for me?"

Well, good heavens, I told Mr. Blue, when don't I recommend a hat??

September in Paris could be summery and could be autumn-y, but I think they're more likely to have warmer weather. (Those with a better knowledge of Paris, please feel free to correct/amplify on this. I've been there in August, and I've been there in October, so I'm extrapolating.) Of course, they will be much further north than they are at home in Dallas, so the sunshine won't be anywhere like as intense, but it's never a bad idea to protect the scalp. I would suggest a trilby. A trilby is always sharp, covers the ol' headbone, is not as affected as a fedora. I think for these purposes something made of fabric -- it's really a little late in the year for straw (summery) and too early for felt. (And god forbid you should ever, EVER even contemplate a leather fedora. Just put a knife in my heart & be done with it.) Knowing Mr. Blue's wardrobe & coloring, I suggested blue or gray.

I love a trilby because it takes a guy's wardrobe up a teeny notch -- with a nice hat on your head, you feel a little less inclined to wear dirty sneakers and cargo shorts, but it's not so snazzy you can't wear a pair of jeans.

Hats are funny. People can be very resistant to them, but once they start wearing them, usually I find their response is, "Oh, of course, why haven't I always been doing this?" Many people think they will feel self-conscious wearing a hat, but I find that while I do sometimes get attention for wearing one, it is without fail positive attention. And in Paris or London? Pshaw. Seriously, you could die from how chic the Parisian men are. And Londoners? Nothing phases Londoners, fashion-wise.

So, yeah, absolutely. Hat it up, baby!! Here are some ideas:

Vintage Denim Jean Cotton Trilby

Houndstooth Tweed Trilby Crushable

Cotton Plaid Tweed Trilby Dark Brown

Classic Jacquard Plaid Trilby

Metallic Gold Mesh Trilby Crushable

(This isn't for Mr. Blue, of course, this is for ME! How fantastic is this?? I am SO buying this hat!)

Linen Cotton Ribbon Band Trilby

(This one is also a bit femme-y for a man, probably. But all of these hats would look great on a woman.)

Stingy Brim 3 Pleat Swirl Trilby

And how did all this hat talk turn out? Well, see for yourself.

M. Blue dans son nouveau chapeau.

This is deeply satisfying. Because the only thing Style Spy likes more than telling people what to wear is having them listen to her and actually wear it!