Lectura de sambata dimineata

Am ajuns la jumatatea anului, quite the milestone. Ca de fiecare data, ma gandesc ce am realizat in ultimele luni, ce a ramas de facut, ce vise vreau sa transform in realitate. Ca de fiecare data, caut un citat sau un paragraf care sa exprime aceste stari si ganduri. L-am gasit, este mai jos – iar citindu-l, am realizat cat de mult ne traim viata contra contra cronometru, contra unei liste pe care bifam lucruri, fara sa mai traim pur si simplu. Voi cum traiti?

„When your life is messy, it’s easy to feel that the hand of destiny is shuffling you to the back of the class, doomed to the dunce’s corner with the pencil suckers and the self-tatooed delinquents. And the frenzied pace of the way we live does nothing to allay our own (perceived) inadequacies. How does any woman get ahead when the stakes are so high?

Beating beneath the skin of our lives is an unwritten, but very blatant, timetable. It is a timetable for study, for work, for shopping, for saving and plannning and love and babies and gym and emails and housework and loans and eye-wrinkle creams and relatives, and divorce and patching up and affairs and Christmas dinners and all the damn rest. Given what is expected of us, life starts to feel like a succession of high jumps with new aspirations slapped down in front of us before we’ve cleared up first.

No wonder we „forget” to have kids or learn a language or join an organization we admire; we also „forget” to take pride in small victories or take proper stock of our milestones or just to breathe.”

Inainte sa trec la recomandarile saptamanii, un scurt reminder.  Sambata urmatoare, 8 iunie, vorbim despre coduri vestimentare si party-uri la Style Conversations #5: ce tinute alegem pentru un cocktail, ce presupune o invitatie Black Tie, cum te imbraci pentru un eveniment al carui cod este „Come as Your Are” sau „Glamorous”, ce inseamna „Casual Chic”… Aveti aici toate amanuntele!

The magician of Galliera – “Standing on the rooftop of the Musée Galliera, the tip of the Eiffel tower just in view, Olivier Saillard is literally and figuratively on top of his world. As director of the Italianate museum that the Duchess of Galliera built in the 19th century, Mr. Saillard is surveying the final makeover before the museum re-opens its doors in September with the first exhibition dedicated to Azzedine Alaïa.” In International Herald Tribune.

The man who has it all – “When François-Henri Pinault goes shopping, it’s on a grand scale. Recently Pinault, whose family generally hovers in the top three of France’s rich lists, bought Christopher Kane.” In The Telegraph.

Every scarf has a story – „The Hermès scarf is a coveted, much-collected symbol of success that defines the Paris-based luxury company. But it has no single designer. Rather, the scarves are designed by a far-flung array of freelance artists. In all, the French company has roughly 50 freelance artists at a time designing new scarves, with the aim of producing 20 new designs per year. ” In Wall Street Journal.

Luxury race to bag the best skins – “Luxury goods companies are snapping up crocodile farms and tanneries in a race to secure supplies of exotic and other top-quality leather as demand for exclusive handbags escalates.” In Financial Times.

Fashion writer Suzy Menkes to sell her on clothes online – “Suzy Menkes, doyenne of the fashion press, says she plans to auction off part of her own label-strewn wardrobe at a two-week online sale in July.” In Reuters.

Lunch with Franca Sozzani – „Sozzani is celebrating her 25th year at the helm of Italian Vogue, which makes her one of the two longest-serving editors of any Vogue ever. In the Condé Nast universe, where star editors carve out specific identities, Wintour is the string-puller, manipulating the fashion world from behind her curtain; UK Vogue editor Alex Shulman is the reporter and real woman; and former French Vogue editor Carine Roitfeld was the provocatrix; but Sozzani has become the activist – though you’d never know it to look at her.” In Financial Times.

Miuccia Prada’s circle of influence – „“Miuccia Prada is a fashion designer by profession, but she’s also an art curator, film producer, fledgling architect, conflicted feminist, avid consumer and unreconstructed socialist. Meet the modern woman.” In T Magazine.

The new cachet of „Made in China” – „For a long time, Chinese production has been synonymous with corner-cutting and cheap goods. Few Western luxury brands were willing to admit how much of their stock was manufactured there. However, that perception is slowly changing as many homegrown brands focus on quality craftsmanship, often with a traditional bent and sophisticated designs.” In Wall Street Journal.

Lessons from the stylish: Inès de la Fressange – „Inès de la Fressange’s CV is a litany of tough-but-someone’s-got-to-do-them gigs such as Chanel Mascot a being a brand ambassador for Roger Vivier.” In The Telegraph.