Mode as muse and wannabe models

Today I went to the Eaton Centre to check out the Ford Supermodel of the World open call and to support my friend who was trying out. Unfortunately my camera died and I couldn't take photos so I will do my best to describe the scene.

We got there about 12:15 and there was already a pretty big lineup. There were girls of all sizes and heights. Some were typically pretty (what I call "mall pretty;") others had the model requirements (very tall, very thin;) some were too short but had pretty faces and were thin; and some had horrible style (one girl wore a bright pink shirt with holes along the arms and was so tight her belly fat was leaking out.)

Out of all of them (friend excluded) I only saw one girl who caught my eye; she wasn't typically pretty but she had an interesting face. I'll try to describe it from my memory. She had dark, full eyebrows, large wide-set brown eyes that were a bit too far away from her nose but it made her look elfin. She had a small, pouty mouth and a round-shaped face. She was very tall, I would say 6 feet and looked very young and shy. She captivated me and I'm really sad that I couldn't take any photos. I hope the Ford website puts up shots from the event.

Anyway, the line up grew pretty big and they had to start lining up girls outside the mall. There were lots of moms there. A Revlon hair guy went around to all the girls spraying their hair and pulling it back into a ponytail. When the girls got to the front they had their head shots taken and were asked a couple of questions about themselves.

I was standing beside a 16-year-old girl who seemed like she was at least 6 feet (although all of them were wearing super tall heels) and said that she already had an agent and had done some modeling. She told me a cute anecdote about her agent calling her while she was writing an exam and she had to refuse a modeling job because she obviously had to finish the test.

I talked to a few other girls there and asked them how much they knew about modeling and models. Most of them didn't know the names of contemporary models such as Daria Werbowy or Coco Rocha. They all think it's a glamorous job. A lot of them were trying out just for fun or because their friends or parents told them too. Some of them were interested in fashion but a lot of them weren't.

After my friend left, I headed over to the Indigo to find some good books and I came across The Model as Muse book that's part of the Met exhibition of the same name.
The Peter Lindbergh photograph of Kate Moss sold me.

The book and the Ford Supermodel open call got me thinking about what makes a good model.
Flipping through the photographs of the greats like Linda Evangelista, Veruschka, Jean Shrimpton, Lisa Fonssagrives, Naomi Campbell, Kate and others, I wondered how much of being a great model relies on the face, the body, the makeup artist, the hair stylist, the photographer and the numerous other people that help a girl become a model.

For me, it's about an interesting face; not necessarily beautiful, but a face that you can't help but notice and stare at. I think part of being a good model is knowing how to move your body in front of a camera and knowing your good angles. Being part actor and part chameleon is a model's job. I don't think you have to know a lot about fashion if you want to become a model, but it helps.
But really, I think it all comes down to that face. No makeup, no product in the hair, no fancy clothes on. If the face can inspire people then that's a good start for a girl to become a model.

Was there a potential muse in the line up I saw? I did see a lot of girls who came across as confident, who knew they were hot. But would they be able to inspire a designer, would they define an era, would they influence a photographer? I'm not so sure.

Royal fashion

Lately I've been obsessed with the Tudor and French Revolution eras and have been holing myself up in my room reading biographies of Anne Boleyn and Marie Antoinette.

I recommend this book if you want to know more about Queen Anne and this book about the Queen of France.

These two periods of time excite not only because of the fascinating history of the Kings and Queens of Europe, but also because of the way people dressed. The style (and I'm referring to what the royals and nobility wore) from the Tudor period (1485-1603 in England) was very different from the time of Marie Antoinette (late 1700s) in France; but both periods were obsessed with luxury including lavishly detailed gowns for the ladies and plenty of jewelry.

But it was the French court that was envied by everyone, including England. France has always been known for its style and it really began with Louis XIV and then Marie Antoinette; both knew that clothes were a symbol of power and wealth. And ultimately, it was their love for luxury that brought the French court literally to their knees with the French Revolution.

Marie Antoinette

Last week I came across this article about a clothing exhibition at the palace of Versailles in France. The exhibition is called "Court pomp and royal ceremonies: court dress in Europe 1650-1800" which attempts to recreate the clothes from the 17th and 18th century in France.
The article mentions that "ironically, nothing remains of the garments worn by the French sovereigns."

Here's why:

This was not just due to the destruction wreaked by the Revolution, but because of the habit of the French royals of handing down their clothes as they went out of fashion to their ladies and gentlemen in waiting, who transformed them or sold them on, many eventually ending up in rag shops in Paris.

Some more snippets:

But special ceremonies aside, Louis XIV is credited with simplifying male dress by authorising courtiers to adopt the long jacket and fitted breeches which they wore to go hunting as everyday wear, the ancestor of the modern suit, says Pascale Gorguet-Ballesteros, deputy curator of the exhibition.

Nevertheless it still cost a fortune to cut a fine figure at Versailles.

No woman could appear at court until she had been formally presented, and a presentation outfit could cost up to 3,000 livres -- the currency of the time -- "for the total look", says Gorguet-Ballesteros. "A weaver with a wife and two children in Paris could live on 340 livres a year."

The account books kept by Marie Antoinette's favourite supplier Rose Bertin bear witness to the astronomical sums aristocrats owed -- and often never settled -- for their finery. A canny businesswoman, Bertin circulated dolls dressed in the latest Versailles fashions for clients to place orders, long before models and catwalk shows.

Marie Antoinette

I then came across these shoes:




I can't decide whether the Louboutins are atrocious are awesome. What do you think?
It would take a special kind of woman to wear these; either she is super confident and wants to have fun with them or she's going to a halloween party. I don't know. Kind of kitsch?

They are a limited edition, inspired by Marie Antoinette. Here is an invite to preview the collection:

I think it's the gigantic head that turns me off. It's a bit morbid knowing that the Queen's head was cut off and now it's stuck on an overpriced shoe. But it makes me giggle too. Vive La Reine!



And just for kicks here's my favourite picture of Kristen Dunst as Marie Antoinette in the movie.

For more royal fashion readings check out:

Dressed to rule: Royal and Court Costume from Louis XIV to Elizabeth II

Queen Of Fashion: What Marie Antoinette Wore to the Revolution

Dangerous Liaisons: Fashion and Furniture in the Eighteenth Century

Seventeenth and Eighteenth-Century Fashion in Detail

The Tudor Tailor: Reconstructing 16th-Century Dress

Good reading: Kate Moss Style

I just finished reading Kate Moss Style today and I have to say that I now realize what a huge influence Kate has been on the fashion world. The read itself is kind of boring; it's like a really long article with interviews with Kate's friends, stylists and vintage dealers. They keep repeating that Kate has great style and how she is a style icon. The real treat is the photos of all of Kate's looks from when she was a teenager, to her days with Johnny and Pete to today as a TopShop business queen. Her transformation is amazing to watch. It's so much fun to see the vintage clothes she picks out; from a goth Victorian ruffled cape to a Swarovski crystal beaded flapper dress. Her choices are always unconventional, forward-looking and un-trendy.
It's amazing to see how her choices, whether it be skinny jeans, moccasin boots and fur jackets, have become popular trends as soon as she is photographer wearing them.
I love her rock-chic I-don't-give-a-shit attitude.

Here are pics of some great Kate Moss moments:


Leave it to Kate to dress the complete opposite of everyone else. While all the other actresses at the Cannes Film Festival were dressed in flouncy ballgowns; Kate went with a simple grey dress and stood out. This woman really takes chances. I miss the Johnny Depp days...

Leopard on leopard. Love it.





Probably my favourite Kate Moss dress is this customized Swarovski flapper dress. And I love how she paired it with Mary Janes.

Valentino: Themes and Variations book

I was at Nicholas Hoare a few weeks ago and went on a mad book shopping spree; I ended up buying more than $400 worth of books. Most of them were Christmas presents but I picked up a couple for myself. One is this gorgeous hardcover coffee table book called Valentino: Themes and Variations. It lists the designer's most beautiful looks from all the way back to the 60s, to his last collection in 2007. I thought the photos were so beautiful that I had to share them here.
Since most people aren't able to see haute couture in real life, this book makes us feel as if we are with the garments. You can see all the beautiful details that make up the dresses and appreciate all the hard work and endless hours that went into making them.
There isn't that much text; Valentino writes a short introduction and there is a biography of him at the back of the book, followed by photos of the designer's numerous campaigns.
But it's basically a catalogue of his most beautiful and famous dresses. There are some great backstage shots with models like Natalia Vodianova and Sasha P as well as shots of seamstresses putting together the clothes. Some sketches of the dresses and the finished products are shown side-by-side.
It's a beautiful book for anyone who loves Valentino or for anyone who appreciates haute couture.

Amazon is a dangerous, dangerous site

Today at work I started browsing Amazon to get Christmas gift ideas. Naturally I found books and dvds that I wanted to get for myself so I started picking out a bunch of stuff and added them to my cart. When I checked on my cart I realized that I had picked out 17 items, most of them books about fashion. What can I say? I'm obsessed. Since I knew it would be hazardous to spend several hundred dollars when I have unpaid credit card bills, I emptied said cart, and bought one book: Influence by Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen.

There's been a lot of press around this book, especially today when both twins did a bunch of interviews and a book signing (the one with the list of peculiar rules. ) I had no intention of buying the book until the media flooded me with images of the twins and my stupid brain fell for their marketing scheme.

But if you can believe bloggers, the book is supposed to be really good. The twins don't talk about themselves (a relief because I am thoroughly sick of them now) instead it talks about, duh, their influences. They talk to Chanel master Karl Lagerfeld, actress Lauren Hutton, John Galliano, Diane von Furstenberg and more fashionable people. These are people who I admire greatly and so I'm excited to see what they talk about to MK and Ashley, who, like it or not, are fashion icons.

I was never a fan of MK's boho bag lady look but she inspired a whole new movement who will now only wear sack dresses that look like they came from the attic, bug sunglasses, unkempt hair and gladiator sandals. That look defines our time. Well maybe not anymore, but it did.
I loved it when the sisters were photographed at the Chanel show last season decked out in head-to-toe Chanel. They were so glamourous.
And the fact is they are influential. Everything they wear gets copied. It's undeniable.



Here is Ashley's interview on Good Morning America.

Buying fake bags

Last week a friend of mine pointed out the news event that EBay had to pay luxury company LVMH Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy $61M for selling fake luxury items. She then asked me where she could find fake bags. I wasn't up to preaching/ranting to her about why she shouldn't buy counterfeit bags so I told her "Try Pacific Mall....or Chinatown."
Yesterday I read an article in the Toronto Star about the repercussions of counterfeit goods and how much of the world's fake goods are made my children in abhorrent conditions. The article quotes fashion journalist Dana Thomas in her book Deluxe: How Luxury Lost Its Luster, a book that I have and recommend to anyone who is either into luxury goods or who has thought of buying a fake purse. So friend (you know who you are!), if you are reading this post, let me tell you now what I should have told you last week: Don't buy a fake bag!!
Here is why:

1. Young children, from as young as eight years old, are sent to factories to build counterfeit goods. They are exposed to harsh conditions such as breathing in acrid glue fumes, long work hours and barely any pay.

2. It has been proven that there is a link between the sale of counterfeit goods and terrorist activities. Police in the States believe that sales of fake bags, t-shirts and glasses in New York City directly funded the al-Qaida and could have helped fund the Sept. 11 attacks.

3. Related to #2, the sale of fake goods funds criminal activities. Mafia groups in New York City, China and around the world run counterfeit sales and use the profits to fund their illegal and deadly activities.

I understand why women want to buy fake bags; They are a lot cheaper than the real thing and there are plenty of convenient places to buy them whether in the city or on the internet. The real reason I think women buy fake bags is that they don't think they are hurting anybody. Well ladies (and the men who shop for ladies), you are hurting people. So if you can't afford the real deal, there are other options. Buy a non-designer bag. There are lots of cute REAL bags at stores like Guess?, Banana Republic, Old Navy, the Gap and Forever21. Or take a walk down Queen St. W. and look for some cool vintage purses. Just don't buy a fake purse.