Fashion Mamluk?

I always have loved fashion and costume history (even took a course in college on the history of fashion). I like the idea of mixing looks from “history”—my theme days---dressing like the soldier meets native American girlfriend, etc.

So a few years ago, I had no idea what a mamluk was, I don’t think I’d even heard the term before.

But we learn new things all the time, and certain things do end up “sticking” especially when you are exposed in one form or another on an almost daily basis ☺ And especially when you actually find it interesting.

I’ve had this turban for many months and only wore it around the house playing dress up. It was on my dresser. This morning, I could not think of anything to wear. Burnt a bit still from fashion week perhaps? And somehow this came together. Hurrah, I am not a creative failure….or am I ;) I threw the jacket on right as I walked out the door and you know, I feel good rocking this look today!

Now just don’t do me wrong in this get up, I might pull out my sword and slice your head off ;)

Dressing for the seasons....

I've been preparing for winter. Perhaps a bit of Karl's color palette (though its his palette year-round). I am loving rich, pearly cream with black and grey. Sometimes a splash of merlot or red like my nails right now. The skin is more fair, the hair becomes darker. Its a nice contrast, and it mirrors what will come in "real" winter places when nature creates silhouettes of greyish limbed trees without their leaves against the winter's stormy grey-white sky.

And then in spring, the leaves bloom once more and the butterfly comes out of her cocoon.

A few images for you from Paris fashion week.

The voluminous Lanvin dresses in the purest, saturated colors. What a fantasy to walk into a large room in this dress. The movement of air it would create around you as you'd move. I am in love.

And at McQueen, the butterfly/Japanese feel of the dip-dyed silk (okay, maybe a bit Prada from fall--but this sort of dyed silk is always gorgeous) again, the air flowing through the cape, with the amazing butterfly hat designed by Phillip Treacy.

Okay, back to my black and cream and white with my matching darling dog for now :)

This Probably Inspired Her Actual Cut

She looks amazing......
I want to rock this look too! Wow. Hello wig shop!
Love the eyes as well.
And the lingerie and patent tiger Louboutin's.

Amazing.

And...the amazing kate has given i-D magazine a 56 percent sales increase across the 42 Borders stores in the UK in the last week - and a 900 per cent increase at its store on London’s Oxford Street. The first week on the shelves her cover was outselling Vogue in the UK.

And...Pete dumped Irina because she was making him nuts and he wants Kate back. Maybe the guy realized he didn't want a girl who dressed just like him and who acted quite pushy.

State of Emergency

Malibu. How can something so horrible also be so beautiful.....

I'm not that close to the fires, but not that far away either. When you see the sky turn that nuclear greyish glow and the sunset is glowing pink and orange in a most bizarre way, its close enough. Unless you are a robot, it hits you....even if you don't want it to.....

Dave called last night after landing from his most magical trip to Paris. His friend Jesse was down in Rancho Santa Fe fighting the fires, just trying to get to homes as fast as they could to save them.

I had an intern call this morning who was down in Del Mar helping her mother to pack and evacuate. She told me that Del Mar and Solana Beach, my old home, were being evacuated. It was a weird feeling. I immediately called some people, one I haven't spoken to in a long time. I just wanted to know everyone is safe, and so far, they are.

And even though I don't live there anymore, it made me feel so protective and far removed at the same time, to think of the home I once owned, burning down.

So much to put life into perspective this week. LIVE LIFE!

My 65 year old aunt emailed me today, we just had a relative pass away. "Life moves on and goes on. If you don't grab that little piece of the pie, you're going to be pretty miserable."

Indian Summer.....

Well, I thought it was an east coast thing, but it happens here as well. And I am wanting it to go away. I want to be bundled up, cozy, wearing layers and hosiery, and boots. I appreciate the beauty of the light this morning, that warm, golden glow upon the plantation shutters on my balcony, or peaking through the palm fronds. But....I want my real fall back...... the seasons are important to me--even if they are much more slight here. The seasons are part of who I am--the girl who grew up in Virginia.

And growing up there, surrounding by history of Indians/Native Americans. I thought I'd look up "why" we call it Indian summer.

The term "Indian Summer" dates back to the 18th century in the United States. It can be defined as "any spell of warm, quiet, hazy weather that may occur in October or even early November."

I found the below info.

"One explanation of the term "Indian Summer" might be that the early native Indians chose that time of year as their hunting season. This seems reasonable seeing the fall months are still considered the main hunting season for several animals.

Also, the mild and hazy weather encourages the animals out, and the haziness of the air gives the hunter the advantage to sneak up on its prey without being detected. Taking this idea one step further, Indians at that time were known to have set fires to prairie grass, underbrush and woods to accentuate the hazy, smokey conditions."

feathers, glitter, and lace

sent to friends on october 13.

so i am dressed like a crazy old french gyspy today. sort of the look i've grown into of late.

here til 11 last night.

we have male & female models here for the heatherette fitting. hot boys in banana hammocks with glammed up vintage pilots caps practicing their runway walk 3 inches from my desk. now a perfect baby daddy--mocha skin with green eyes-- in 1.5 inch inseam turquoise lycra shorts and a embellished cape. sort of some peruvian rainforest action hero? not sure what the look is. amazon girls made more amazon in 6" glam rock glitter platform spectators and crazy dresses. the girls do dwarf the boys.

poor heatheretters are stressing

while all this is going on, preparing for jeremy scott casting in 45 minutes.

i'm so tired but this is the fun stuff, the visual, the theatrics, and part of the reason i took the plunge into fashion from surfboard wax and motocross tires ;)

i took it back, now its haunting me....

tiny dancer. driving down la brea towards culver city to go to the fashion show. i'm stuck in traffic for a second. the car going opposite of me is blasting her. i go to dinner with my boss in bh after the show. tiny dancer plays in the sushi restaurant. very weird. kelly's boyfriend says elton wrote it for tony danza....ha. sing it now.

kelly looks at me, after saying how sweet i am, how nice the dress is on me, "watch out for jessica trent. she's got this whole secret life we don't know anything about." she calls me by my full name a lot.....and i like it. and i told her she's right. i have a lot of lives....

6 down, 1 more show to go. mikey is amazing. the girls from ny are machines.

i love jeremy.

my heart still hurts for my family, but work tonight was good therapy. i helped this 15 year old foster child have a great evening. front row at a fashion show. and introduced her to lisa love from teen vogue who was very nice and accommodating to the request. the girl was beaming. i hope she gets adopted. losing a family member today and meeting this girl puts things in perspective. i don't think people realize whats really important until its too late sometimes. i try to keep my eyes on the spiritual prize. sometimes i fail.

all i want today

is to speak to someone who understands the issue, be there for my family, & right at this very moment have one of my grandmother's perfect grilled cheese sandwiches (the ones she made me as a kid---that comfort food). but i can do/have none of it. feeling so very far away here in la while one of my life's greatest steel magnolias is in pain. and being so stoic for everyone else, thinking of everyone else. its all she knows.

Le Plus Je Vois De L’homme, Le Plus J’aime Les Chiens

You think so Callie?

I said, "let them eat cake!"

From sweet Mikey and our beautiful babies.

Rebecca asked if they were all models!

Oh yeah, we have a great crew of fashion week interns!

Thanks kids!

ADDENDUM
I really was hoping to be able to download some photos and post separately about my FRIENDS who came through so lovingly on my birthday. But I haven't had time to do the photos....

Rebecca & Julie drove all the way up from San Diego and coordinated with miss KK and Ali to meet at my office since I was in fashion week hell. They showed up Sat. night with crazy amounts of wine & champagne and enough gourment cheese, bread, salad and other amazing munchies for the entire PR army. Kelly told me to go home, go out, have fun with the friends, so we ended up having such a lovely time even though I was half-asleep ;) It was just a great feeling to get a few of my important girls from the different aspects of my life together. So that was indeed the greatest gift of all! Thanks to you all and for the amazing gifts as well as the gift of your friendship and love :)

I took back tiny dancer last night

As a sensitive soul, sometimes seemingly incidental occurrences, experiences, and the like have a lasting effect on me. Words can become visual. They come to life in the DVR in my brain.

So I had always loved since I was child Elton John's "Tiny Dancer." (Even before "Almost Famous" though I really loved how they used it in that film.) My dad had several Elton John albums. I remember holding "Yellow Brick Road" in my hand and looking at the crazy, colorful artwork as I sat on the wooden floor of his place in Richmond when he lived with his friend Tommy. I was maybe 7? Certain songs are in the soundtracks of our lives. (And you know, I used to be a tiny dancer myself, growing up as a ballerina for many years......)

So I had this song "sampled" by someone else a few months ago. I had to turn off the radio if it came on.......

But last night, I took Elton back again. A gift to myself. A peaceful moment amidst the chaos. My little brother calling to sing me "happy birthday" for the 2nd time, right before he was going to bed. My cell phone was dying. I was at work. I ran outside to plug into the car, and when I did, "Tiny Dancer" came out of the radio. So as I hung up with Caleb, I BLASTED it as loud as possible, in the darkness of night, and SANG TO THE TOP OF MY LUNGS because what I really wanted for my birthday was karaoke...... but I was working. So, I had my own private karaoke session and it felt good on many levels......

The therapy of singing words as LOUD and as beautifully as you possibly could.

The love I felt from that little guy on the phone.

A moment to myself that was much needed.

And recapturing a song in my personal soundtrack :)

CLICK HERE TO Enjoy......


.......But oh how it feels so real
Lying here with no one near
Only you and you can't hear me
When I say softly, slowly

Hold me closer tiny dancer
Count the headlights on the highway
Lay me down in sheets of linen
you had a busy day today

Blue jean baby, L.A. lady, seamstress for the band
Pretty eyed, pirate smile, you'll marry a music man
Ballerina, you must have seen her dancing in the sand
And now she's in me, always with me, tiny dancer in my hand

Our party @ Mr. Chow

http://www.fashionweekdaily.com/parties/fullstory.sps?inewsid=478825

Mr. Gallo photographs much scarier than he is in person.

more photos to follow.....

So I had to oversee this schmoozy event for our firm last night. I was stressed before it like you would not believe. Going straight from work to the event, my lovely army of interns made me feel like Cinderella. Practically dressing me. Steaming my clothes, zipping me up, rubbing the lotion on my back (that sounds like hannibal lechter--ha) putting the chilled mini champagne in my bag to take the edge off for the drive there (I wasn't driving myself), printing out the tip sheets and RSVP lists. THANK YOU!!!!

So, lets see. The food was delicious! A certain actor made eyes at me a bunch, and a certain female actress rubbed all over me like a cat in heat. Hey, at least she's hot and sexy and he's considered desirable and a real estate tycoon. Can't say it was all bad. Ha. But how did the evening end......hmmm....I'll never tell ;)

What else. Paparazzi are an interesting bunch. Watching the lady eat our intern's half-eaten lettuce wrap was really hilarious. The staff @ Mr. Chow were so sweet and maybe a bit dangerous for a little girl like me. Constantly filling me up with the champs.....

Gift box was really good. Tons of organic Smashbox cosmetics. And good talks with new friends :)

Ali & Josie are a glowing sunbeam of a couple. Wow.


L.A. Confidential
Mercedez-Benz L.A. Fashion Week's kick-off party at Mr. Chow
Friday, October 12, 2007

(BEVERLY HILLS) Mercedes-Benz L.A. Fashion Week got a chic yet intimate jumpstart Thursday night courtesy of Smashbox cohorts Dean and Davis Factor and Fred Segal Beauty's Michael Baruch and Paul DeArmas, who again teamed up to dole out 100 invites for their third-annual private dinner at Mr. Chow.

"It's an under-the-radar, cool way to get excited for the week and show our support for the fashion community," explained Davis about their exclusive dinner party. "It isn't really about what movie stars are here, it's about different leaders in different industries."

That list of leaders included Matthew Rolston, Randolph Duke, Diane Warren, Lawrence Bender, Vincent Gallo, Jenni Kayne, Traver Rains, Jaime Pressly, Josie Maran, Jessica Paster, Jeremy Scott, Brent Bolthouse, Jen Rosero, Cleveland Cavaliers co-owner Gary Gilbert, Marissa Ribisi, Giovanni Ribisi, Nicky Hilton, David Katzenberg, jewelry designer Loree Rodkin, lawyer David Codikow, Steven Cojocaru, Robert Vetica, and writer Merle Ginsberg.

The Love Affair

I had this love affair. I had one a couple years ago.

It was with Paris. The city, not the girl.

And I had another one earlier this year. With Japan.

Maybe love affairs with cities are essentially more meaningful, more romantic in a way, than love affairs with men. Because the end of a love affair with a man brings about all those bad feelings, but a love affair with a city is much more ideal.

Maybe I am delirious......

A friend I made on the trip, Miss Megan, reminded me of what I'd written. I thought I'd post it again.

my love affair..... with japan

my maternal great grandmother traveled a good amount for a woman of her time. born in nova scotia to british parents with a bit of french blood, she traveled the entire eastern seaboard all the way to cuba. i believe she went to europe as well. she was such a beautiful lady. so proper in her photos.

and here i am.

6 AM. purple glitter stockings. veuve cliquot bubbling in our brains. 3 new girlfriends on my hotel room floor digging through clothes. laughing about the flight they'll be catching in a few hours. thinking of our private karaoke time with our 15 best new japanese friends. wow....... attention!

uv protection everywhere. fingerless gloves. face powder. umbrellas. way more on it than we are in the us.

tokyo airport. how is a place that important in travel so organized and so quiet? its sort of uncanny honestly. they don't make obnoxious announcements on the PA. makes traveling so much nicer!

cute lacy footie socks that are somehow sexy. secret padding in the ball of the foot keeps those little ladies walking in heels for miles and miles.

the only white girl on a train and bus to kyoto. the splendor of the silence. no one talks on their phone, they only text. much more polite. when i was with the girls, of course we turned heads and people ran up for photos. but alone, the people were more subdued. they'd look @ you, but then look away. i think they wanted me to feel not like an outsider. if i gave a smile to a man when i was alone, my gosh, he was so startled that i'd caught him glancing my way he'd almost trip on himself. so humble. what a change from california!

real honest to life geishas walking around shopping. they are at least a foot taller with their platform flip flops and amazing hair. they are so perfect. i feel so lazy compared to them. i'd love to be a geisha in all actuality. being a lovely hostess, all made up, tradition..... i struggle with being independent yet yearning for the traditions. when a man was a man and a woman was a woman. a great part of if sucked, yes, and i've fought hard to try to gain respect and whatever semblance of equality there is in the workplace..... but honestly in my personal life, i don't REALLY want to change my own tire or open my own door!!!! wasn't it easier for the older generations in a sense? men courted you properly. women dressed better. i miss that stage show i think.

visiting a buddhist temple. praying where others have prayed for 1,000 years. tears in my eyes. walking the grounds. japanese schoolgirls in their little sailor styled outfits. they give a big smile. soba noodles and a hot ginger drink in solitude outside the temple overlooking a cliff.

back on the bus. standing room only. going with my gut that it is indeed the right bus. kyoto station. sad to leave. but the ride back to osaka, wow....seeing smaller towns, rice paddies, people riding their bikes through the fields. the mountains look like Oahu. i can see why the japanese feel so good in hawaii.

Keeping up. And not being jaded.

Okay, while I am entering my own special hell of LA fashion week right now, I am still trying to make time to keep up with the runway shows in Paris, the reviews, etc.

Lagerfeld. Loved the sheer hosiery-like pants layered under his other garments (happy that they would look amazing on skinny little legs) and the modern corset/girdle/bondage belt. His staging and lights were just amazing. Do yourself a favor and look at more of the photos on Elle.com or Style.com. Always check the "detail" shots. They are the best. Loved also the little nods to his lighting in the lucite accessories on the models, the only "light" in their otherwise black/grey/white palette. I may have been more captivated by this than his Chanel collection....



Galliano. I think the fashion editors were just bitter that he had them shlep across town into some crazy stadium just full of rugby fans. Bitter. Jaded. I thought his collection was beautiful. If I could dress like that several times a week, I would. Its the perfect girl's fantasy of dressing up in great-grandma's clothes meets ballet meets a priceless doll collection with maybe a splash of too many cocktails. PERFECT for a Sunday brunch with girlfriends! The colors of the garments ranging from those in hand-colored antique photos to deep crimson like the classic flapper's lips. The hair and makeup was truly amazing. Gold hair. Love it. Painted doll lashes and bubblegum pink cheeks, beautiful. The sequin "flapper wigs" were amazing. He should make movies and design the costumes himself.

And back to this simple little world here. I wish it were simple as my life used to be at times back in Virginia. I am missing my family so much right now. Hired a sweet intern from North Carolina. Her "dream is to work in fashion," so I wanted to make her dream come true, no matter her experience. She says "ya'll," is in a college sorority back East, has to get a dress for "semi formal" and made me have a good hearted laugh that the 2 people she wants to meet are "God and Lauren from the Hills." Bless her heart..... But seriously, its great to have that complete open enthusiasm around, especially when you are asking kids to put thousands of lables on envelopes for fashion shows. She was so thrilled to be able to tell her friends that she stamped Carmen Electra's invite and opened up her Max Factor ad in V magazine to proclaim it. God bless the bible belt, ya'll!

A little good, a little bad.

Jessica's dad says, "by the way, I've been making vodka drinks using Vitamin Water tropical flavor. Very tasty."-- Danny Trent


My dad is funny in that dry, sarcastic kind of way that might make some people nervous.... He's 61 this week, our birthdays are 2 days apart. Not your typical dad and what a good idea. I might have to try it, especially this week! Thanks Dad and happy birthday fellow libra! I love you!

Ophelia

Ophelia. John Everett Millais.

I really prefer this to the Waterhouse depiction of Ophelia.

I must have been 17 or 18 when I "discovered" this painting, she really affected me and since then I've always been intrigued. I do not know "why" she affects me so. I don't really need to know. She has always sort of haunted me somehow, but in a beautiful way. I think I seek her out at certain points in my life. Maybe its because I understood how she loved a slightly "mad" Hamlet. Maybe its the ethereal feeling though she is dead. Is she truly dead? Perhaps because her surroundings seem familiar to me--the mossy, wooded streams and riverbanks I played alongside as a child. Perhaps its also because I fell in love with Shakespeare's work as a young teen, after I'd fallen deeply into Greek tragedies. I just remember English literature class, with the rest of the kids rolling their eyes to have to read Shakespeare's works while I relished it and felt it taking hold of my heart and mind.

I would love to see this painting in person someday at the Tate. I could likely look into the woods around her, the details of the flowers and plants, her hands and face, for hours. I'll probably cry. Its what just happens to me sometimes when I'm so affected by certain pieces of art. I'm glad I am still that open and naive......

And how we humans still go about things in the same way as William wrote.....

POLONIUS
Come, go with me: I will go seek the king.
This is the very ecstasy of love,
Whose violent property fordoes itself
And leads the will to desperate undertakings
As oft as any passion under heaven
That does afflict our natures. I am sorry.
What, have you given him any hard words of late?

OPHELIA
No, my good lord, but, as you did command,
I did repel his letters and denied
His access to me.

POLONIUS
That hath made him mad.
I am sorry that with better heed and judgment
I had not quoted him: I fear'd he did but trifle,
And meant to wreck thee; but, beshrew my jealousy!
By heaven, it is as proper to our age
To cast beyond ourselves in our opinions
As it is common for the younger sort
To lack discretion. Come, go we to the king:
This must be known; which, being kept close, might move
More grief to hide than hate to utter love.
Come.

Jeremy Scott--Paris

Models walk the runway during the Jeremy Scott Spring/Summer 08 Collection at the Fashion Show held at Elysee Montmarte of Paris on October 2, 2007.

This show was produced by my firm. Aside from that relationship, I have to say, I do honestly like this collection. And of course the models, the gorgeous lips and makeup. He does make a trashcan lid look good and the garmets themselves are really smart. And I LOVE the accessories.... Now the fellas, I haven't looked as closely at.

Jeremy will be showing this collection in LA @ Smashbox on Wed. Oct 17th. I am sure every queen and hipster alike will be trying to get in.

inspiration.

keith lissner is an amazing designer launching his collection for spring 08. (i'll post at another point his black silk dresses with nude tulle that are classic chic at its best.) he's also a gentleman, which goes quite a long way with me. i am a southern belle afterall.....

keith is a "real" designer. he creates stories. he seeks inspiration. he knows the importance of cut and patterns and the details in the construction of a garment and how it works on a woman's body. and he has the most beautiful stories for each of his dresses, which of course for someone like me, also makes everything even more special and makes me fall in love with the pieces even more.

i'd love to wear this dress in one of josephine's gardens. with gloves. its much more vibrant and green in person. its a subtle sort of sexy with the way it grazes the body as you walk and the slight sheerness of light coming through layers. this dress changes colors so slightly and beautifully as the light hits it. it comes to life for me, like the leaves of a beautiful flower.

final speakeasy night....for now

i've had the best time at the underground speakeasy below the higgins art gallery downtown. my friend casey's band x-factor has played there several times and i just love the whole experience there. a real, unique crowd. hipsters, un hipsters, and everyone in between. it always felt like you were in new orleans during the prohibition. just amazing.

thurs oct. 4 is the last show there as the building is being demolished sadly. more to follow on the last performance.

thanks babeland!

so, its my first time working la fashion week for people's revolution. i guess you could say i'm a virgin. its getting a little crazy already, a bit stressful at times, and well, looking really forward to working 3 weeks straight in a row........

to our rescue today were the nice people at babeland. they hand delivered little goodie bags for us. one of their more interesting products is their massage candle. it is made of skin-safe soy that transforms into warm, deliciously scented massage oil as it heats up. i just gave one to a friend earlier this week, and i'm happy to receive one :) also included in our goodie bag was the flower balm or rocket balm (depending on your gender) which will make you tingle in all the right places and a yummy bath fizzy. thank you for helping us relax babeland and for taking the stigma away from pleasure for so many!

oh, and looks like we might be putting some of their "mechanical" products in one of our fashion show giftbags.......good for the boys and the girls ;)

have you seen this shoe?

last seen on melrose between sycamore and la brea.

my dear mikey vargas lost his shoe. can you help?

he wore his "heels" (boots) to work on monday (the FIRST time in 6 weeks i've seen him NOT in vans), and brought along these "flats" to change into. maybe his most favorite vans (one of what must be several dozen pair). but now mikey is missing one. and he is sad. as am i :( we love this pair on him. lovely marc jacobs for vans.

please return if found. it may have fallen out of his car.

reward offered!

cause me pain hedi slimane

I touched greatness today. Really touched greatness in the flesh. Smiled the rest of the day. Fired UP! Ha. I never am groupie style.

So I see him sitting there inside M Cafe, and I feel like a recognize or know him, but then I recognize him not because he's someone I know but because its, well, HIM! (the trickery of our brains....still programmed from caveman times that if we see someone and they are familiar, we do actually "know" them...thanks Jane) But he's someone I *SHOULD* KNOW my brain said! He has huge, piercing blue eyes. His haircut is a bit geeky, but less so in person than photos. J'adore le geek chic. He had on a fitted green polo with a vest over it. Yes, he eerily reminds me of someone I know..... Anyway, Rebecca's sister met him at an art show in Amsterdam a few months ago and said he was super sweet.

So I enjoyed my lovely lunch with Keala & Jane, and was going to wait for him to get up to leave to say "hello." But he was apparently in no hurry. And I had to get back to my babies left alone in the office. So, as we left, I politely interrupted his group, introduced myself and just told him that I "NEVER" do this but I am just a huge admirer of his work, etc. He was super sweeeeeeeet, smiled a big smile, looked at me, stood up from his table and looked at me eye to eye with his huuuuuuge baby blues, shook my hand, thanked me profusely........ I told him to have a wonderful time and enjoy LA as I smiled and left floating out of the restaurant. He was smiling too :)

Ah, Mr. Hedi Slimane, I LOVE YOU!

Love him.

LOVE HIM

LOOOOOOOOVVVVVVVEEEEEEE HIMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

Wish he liked to make out with girls :(

And I myspaced him. (What am I now, 20? ) And his personal assistant promptly messaged me back and said how sweet I was (he was there with him) and that Hedi always loves LA :) Glad to be a good representative.