A bird doesn't sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song - Lou Holtz

Milan Fashion Week S/S 2012

Surprisingly, because I expected a lot from the huge fashion brands like Prada, Gucci and Versace, the small houses were my favourite this third fashion week of S/S 2012. Fashion crowd has arrived in Milan (at this moment they're already in Paris) and here's (among other things) what they saw:

N21

Missoni

Laura Biagiotti

Dolce & Gabbana

Byblos

Midnight in Paris

Imagine going on a short trip to Paris, where your mornings and afternoons are filled with cultural activities until the clock ticks midnight and suddenly you're in the Twenties. The roaring Twenties indeed, and yes, you're still in Paris. Of course you're gonna meet the most fabulous people that were alive in that era: Ernest Hemingway, Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald (especially Zelda is hilarious), Pablo Picasso. Sounds like a fairy tale right? It actually is Woody Allen's newest movie: Midnight in Paris

Woody Allen casted Owen Wilson (who I always kind of under-appreciated, for his choice of films) to play himself. Yes, Owen Wilson does a quite good version of Woody Allen. The chaotic way of acting, the fast talking, the awkwardness, his fear of death and the left-wingness. Even his voice sounds exactly like Woody Allen's. I bet he's watched Annie Hall many times to learn it from the master ;)

Anyway, while watching Midnight in Paris I felt like I was in a dream for 90 minutes. How often have I wished I was born a few decades earlier? Though I always wanted to be young in the sixties, I have to admit the twenties wouldn't have been bad either. Especially not in bohemian Paris. I would stroll through Montmarte, visit little vintage shops, go to the best cafés in town and listen to the greatest jazz musicians that lived. And if I also had the luck to meet the icons of that age, like Hemingway (performed like a real macho, as they said he was), Cole Porter and Gertrude Stein, my vision of heaven would be complete.

Midnight in Paris is romantic and funny. You feel empathy for Gil whose wife Inez (Rachel McAdams) is the complete opposite of him and she falls for this extremely annoying Mr. Know All. Fortunately, Gil doesn't care that much because he has met the beautiful Adriana (Marion Cotillard, our generation's Audrey Hepburn if you ask me. She's sophisticated, eccentric and elegant)in the twenties. Adriana feels something for Gil as well. One night, when they are strolling around Paris, they see a carriage which takes them even further in time. They arrive in 'La Belle Epoque' (around the turn of the 20th century), Adriana's favourite era.


I have to stop myself at this point before I tell the complete plot of the story. I'm sorry if I have already ruined the film for you (cause you didn't want to know all this already) but I'm just really crazy about the story ;) If you watch the film really critical, you'll probably say that it's quite unusual that Gil suddenly sees an oldtimer who takes him a century back. But hey, there's nothing wrong with a little bit of fantasy and imagination, right? The other poor thing is the acting performance of Carla Bruni. She definitely didn't have any impact on me and her part is quite meaningless.

Woody Allen has done a great job making this movie. Although he's a New Yorker in heart and soul, he shows us that Paris is fabulous as well. And though it's almost unbelievable, I honestly think it was even better in the twenties.

Home is wherever I'm with you

Source: www.honestlywtf.com

Highlights London FW s/s 2012

Mulberry had a diverse collection of long lace skirts and leather shorts. With hair that reminded us of Amy Winehouse (in blonde) and real dogs as accessories, Mulberry was quite refreshing.

Sometimes all you need, is a good and wearable collection. Matthew Williamson understood that. He designed gorgeous leggings, which I would buy immediately if I were a rich girl, kaki blouses and chinos in the most beautiful colours. It was wearable, but definitely not boring, due to the remarkable colours.

The flower definitely got back her power at Christopher Kane's collection. Exquisite mettalic flower patterns and fine embroidery are the keywords of his fairytale-like collection.

Christopher Bailey and British label Burberry Prorsum are a golden match, if you ask me. He went back to the seventies, collected some pleated skirts, little hats with pompons and lent the trenchcoats from the sixties and took it back to London fashion week 2012. And all these beautiful things in the colours aubergine, ochre, moss green and purple.

Sabrina

“Once upon a time, on the north shore of Long Island, some thirty miles from New York, there lived a small girl on a large estate. The estate was very large indeed, and had many servants. There were gardeners to take care of the gardens, and a tree surgeon on a retainer (...) Also on the estate there was a chauffeur by the name of Fairchild who had been imported from England years ago together with a new Rolls-Royce. Fairchild was a fine chauffeur of considerable polish, like the eight cars in his care, and he had a daughter by the name of Sabrina...''

Without a doubt I can say that the Audrey Hepburn Box I bought a year ago was one of the best purchases I ever did. It includes seven films among which Sabrina. This 1954 movie is a classic, directed by the famous Billy Wilder (Some Like it Hot, Sunset Boulevard) and starring a young Audrey Hepburn, William Holden and a bit older Humphrey Bogart.

Sabrina is the chauffeur's daughter and lives on the same estate as the rich Larrabee family. She has been in love with the youngest Larrabee son David for all her live, but he doesn't even knows she exist. After a attempt to leave her live for what it is (you'll know what I mean when you see the money, can't give the juiciest details of course!) she goes to Paris to become an excellent cook. In Paris she changes into this sophisticated and elegant woman and when she comes back to Long Island no one recognizes her.

David falls for her the minute after he sees her. Unfortunately, he's engaged to another woman. This soon-to-be marriage is very important because his fiancee is the daugher of the most important business partner of David's brother: the cold entrepreneur Linus.

After a small accident which involves glasses of champagne, David hurts his butt. Linus has to entertain Sabrina while David has to recover and he uses this occurence to make her fall in love with him. That would stop the affair between her and David and that way his deal will be saved. As you can imagine, Linus falls in love with Sabrina and Sabrina is jammed between the two brothers, not-knowing whom she likes more...

Audrey Hepburn is at her best in Sabrina. She takes your heart during the entire movie and gives it back to you when it ends. Audrey is lovely, funny, spontaneous and sophisticated indeed. You'd almost remember she's American (though actually she's Dutch and Belgian) and not French. She outshines her male opponents. But that's also because Humphrey Bogart doesn't really fits into this part. He's old, grumpy and you can hardly imagine someone like Sabrina would fall for him. Besides, he's way too short. Reminds me of that fabulous song, short people ;) Anyway, Humphrey Bogart was a disaster on set. He hated William Holden, thought Audrey Hepburn was too inexperienced and caused a lot of stress. He earned 300.000 dollars for the movie, whereas Audrey Hepburn only got 15.000. Horrible, isn't it?

Audrey is fabulous as Sabrina and Sabrina is a magnificent story, a Hollywood fairy-tale.

Ethnic Inspiration