Style Diary

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Royal

Tuesday, April 23rd, 2013

What

Photography copyright and courtesy of Hannan Saleh | Dress by Maryling | Head scarf by COS as head wrap | rings on middle finger by Maria Francesca Pepe | Nicholas Kirkwood for Peter Pilotto shoes | gifted silver Boleyn M neklace by Wendy Brandes | sequin collar by Joanne Hynes

Why

These photos by Hannan Saleh reiterate that this Maryling dress needs an entourage of its own. It embodies that inexplicable mix of elegance meets edge that the brand does so very well.
 
I am sucker for Joanne Hynes’s work. Her sequin collar paired with Wendy Brandes’s silver Boleyn M necklace made me feel as regal as a girl can get minus a gem encrusted crown. My kind of a crown is a bold turban or head wrap and this check scarf by Cos transforms into the latter quite nicely.
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Happy Hour

Sunday, March 3rd, 2013

Photography and copyright kind courtesy of Hannan Saleh.

What

All rings and necklaces by Maria Francesca Pepe | faux fur shrug | trousers by Theory | jacket by Nicole Farhi | knit dress by Nanette Lepore | shoes by Preen x ALDO | silk scarf worn as turban

Why

A great jacket pulls everything together. The green knit by Nanette Lepore and other elements of this look as shot by Hannan Saleh all come together nicely with Farhi’s multi texture.
 
The meeting place of leather, nylon and plastic is always a happy place.
 
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Ice Pixels

Tuesday, February 12th, 2013

Photography and copyright kind courtesy of Hannan Saleh.

What

All rings and necklaces by Maria Francesca Pepe | T-shirt and leggings by artist and designer Helen Steele | short skirt by Lulwa Al Amin | longer grey skirt by Helen Steele| shoes by Preen x ALDO | Momo scarf worn as turban

Why

Taken in the alcove in the tents at the Lincoln Center at New York Fashion Week fall 2013, these photos by Hannan Salehshow just the tip of the iceberg that New York has frozen into.
 
The hyper digital feel of the overall outfits created a slightly greyscale pixelated mood that I was happy to wrap myself in against the city’s backdrop of ice.
 
Concerning the skirt over skirt situation, I’m of the belief that two is better than one. When it comes to two prints seeming like they were born to be together, these two from two different designers made a loved up match.
 
Artist and designer Helen Steele’s critically acclaimed abstract art turned prints on garments is pretty much the equivalent of wearing a one off painting on your back.
 
The pixels on ice would not be complete without Preen x ALDO’s blown up pixek print heels with cube heel. Cubes in the ice box? How apt.
Maria Francesca Pepe trio of gold crosses on the black tone metal chain necklace (her pieces work with everything, centering a look time after time) brought the toughness the outfit needed.
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Paisley Park

Saturday, February 9th, 2013

Photography and copyright kind courtesy of Hannan Saleh.

What

All rings and necklaces by Maria Francesca Pepe | pink dress with black piping by Nanette Lepore | pink collar paisley print polo shirt by Carven courtesy of My-Wardrobe | faux fur shrug | shoes by Preen x ALDO | Momo scarf worn as headscarf beneath hat | pants by Gestuzaddress>

Why

I like how my outfits (such as this photographed by Hannan Salehat New York Fashion Week) encaspulate my fascination with the 70′s. I think there is something so inherently 70′s about suede pants and paisley.
 
To me the genius is not referencing the past in a ‘copy-and-paste’ regurgitative way but doing so in a manner that brings it bang up to date while retaining its quintessential essence. These Gestuz pants do that nicely.
 
The pink polo shirt dress with that paisley print (in a palette that may I add blows my mind) via My Wardrobecould not make paisley any more modern. Add it to Nanette Lepore’s playful zippered pink dress, ALDO by Preen cube heel  and Maria Francesca Pepe’s forward thinking jewelry and it was an outfit that was dragging the 70′s into the hybrid digi print and color loving present day.
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Big Apple

Friday, February 8th, 2013

Photography and copyright kind courtesy of Hannan Saleh.

What

All rings and necklaces by Maria Francesca Pepe | blue stripe lace skirt by Moschino Cheap & Chic and By Malene Birger neon animal print angora sweater courtesy of My-Wardrobe | faux fur shrug | shoes by Nicholas Kirkwood x Peter Pilotto | scarf worn as turban | pants by Killian Kerner | vintage Celine bag.

Why

New York has that “any dream is possible here” feel in spades. This outfit as documented by Hannan Salehat New York Fashion Week is a reflection of that Big Apple mood.Like New York City, I think clothes and how we put them together should be about the possibilities they hold. Dreams take bold steps of faith and allowing the imagination infinite adventure.So whether it is layering Maria Francesca Pepe tough meets feminine jewellery on (her spring 2013 collection is all micro studs embelished with delicate pearls as seen in shot of rings. No one does that hard meets soft, feminine meets masculine elements better than Pepe) or contrasting textures, like New York City, my style (and how it is expressed) is of the school of thought that the opportunities are endless.

Also the colder it gets, the brighter my clothes invariably get.

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Hallway

Monday, November 12th, 2012

What

Faux fur shawl | green turban | dress by Alberta Ferretti | necklace by Maria Francesca Pepe.

Why

It was as if this dress was waiting for this hallway its her life. I like how the color palette of the tiles come together with the print of the Ferretti piece.
 
Never judge a demure dress on first glance. It just might pleasantly surprise you with an unexpected back.
 
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Molten

Tuesday, October 9th, 2012

What

Aqua pants | MSGM shirt | Hoss Intropia fuzzy vest | Zan Zan eyewear | Piers Atkinson pom pom headpiece worn over scarf

Why

Because Midas had nothing on the hue of these pants. They are everything. They are the product of perfect cut, fabric, color and proportion. They happily made friends with the MSGM shirt, the pom pom headpiece and the fuzzy vest.
 
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Comfort Zone

Friday, September 21st, 2012

Photography and copyright kind courtesy of Phill Taylor.

What

Necklaces by Maria Francesca Pepe | feather dress worn over lace skirt by Moka | sunglasses by Diane Von Furstenberg | shoes by Preen x ALDO | sweater by H&M | jacket by YSL | scarf worn as turban by Helen Steele.

Why

There is something comforting about the tactile feel of textured fabrics. Given this outfit taken by the lovely Phill Taylor on the last day of London Fashion Week spring 2013, I must have been invariably seeking comfort. An angora mix sweater went over a feather dress like top by Moka. Given my ‘more texture the merrier’ rule, I also added the lace skirt, also by Moka. Beneath it went the vinyl leggings.

The ear cuff, Maria Francesca Pepe necklaces and the Diane Von Furstenberg eyewear weaved their way into the picture. I liked the cold industrial hardness they lend to an otherwise fairly sweet hued outfit. The vintage YSL jacket and I go way. So throwing it on made just made sense. So much texture needs a classic fabric like a houndstooth to keep it grounded.

Visit Phill Taylor’s site and blog
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Collage

Tuesday, September 18th, 2012

Photography and copyright kind courtesy of Phill Taylor.

What

Ozi necklace by bespoke jewel curator Anita Quansah London | Dress as top and pants by Maryling | vintage faux fur jacket | sunglasses by Oliver Peoples| shoes by Nicholas Kirkwood x Peter Pilotto

Why

Taken by the talented Phill Taylor, this photograph was taken on the fourth day at London Fashion Week spring 2013. I was wearing one of my favorite neckpieces by bespoke jewellery curator Anita Quansah London. Hailing from Nigeria and Ghana, the Chelsea College of Art and Design London graduate (she went on to work at design houses such as DKNY, Diane Von Furstenberg and embroidered a jacket which featured in the Christian Lacroix Haute Couture show in 2004) is someone I speak of oft.
 
Her work is interesting in that it ticks a lot of boxes for me. High on texture and referencing a cross section of cultures, each complex piece is made from many parts with each being reclaimed and recycled. Hardware is juxtaposed with precious stones from old jewellery. Rare cuts of vintage fabric is added to varying mixed metals.
 
Hers is a melting pot that speaks to me as so is my personal style.
Like Quansah’s work, my style is like a collage with many elements. Somehow all the bits of each look find each other. In the words of Aristotle, the final whole always being greater than the sum of its part.
 
Visit Phill Taylor’s blog and site.
 
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Prism

Sunday, September 16th, 2012

Photography and copyright kind courtesy of Phill Taylor.

What

Scarf as turban, leather shorts and print pants by Helen Steele | top by Baum & Pferdergarten | Celine bag | jacket by Nicole Farhi | shoes by Nicholas Kirkwood x Peter Pilotto | collar by KARL by Karl Lagerfeld | sunglasses by Oliver Peoples | Necklaces by Maria Francesca Pepe

Why

My clothes have to work overtime. As this photo by lovely Phill Taylor shows, they get re-purposed in ways that probably only make sense emotively to me. The athletic slouch of the drawstring leather shorts and the fuzzy top gave me the comfort my flu ridden body badly sought this morning. The warmth and shards of color running through the Oliver Peoples shades and Helen Steele (the artist and designer creates prints as art) crop pants make me feel like I am looking at the reflection of them through a prism.
 
Those colors seep through the prism, finally centering at my feet in the elastic print strap and within the hollow steel cube heel of Kirkwoood’s architectural wonder for Pilotto.
 
Visit Phill Taylor’s blog and site.
 
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