Australia meets Japan.

Deborah Sams and Mary-Lou Ryan founded the Australian brand Bassike in 2006. They combine easy-going style with a subtle element of luxury. Bassike’s aesthetic is influenced by the contrasts of loose Australian beach style and the simplicity and minimalism of Japanese design. The designers want to create timeless wardrobe staples with sustainable fabrics.
They have now released their resort 2014 lookbook, featuring a collection of deconstructed silhouettes in neutral tones with materials such as cashmere knits, soft wool and Italian cotton. I particularly like the slouchy leather pants, the coats and jackets with the industrial looking belts and the styling with thick socks and Birkenstock sandals.

Young Kate.

David Ross was the first photographer who shot a very young Kate Moss in 1988 at the beginning of her career. His pictures are being exhibited at London’s Lawrence Alkin Gallery. The images are titled “Kate Moss: Roll 1″ and show the girl who would become one of the most prolific models of our time fresh-faced and fluffy-haired. The photographer remembers the moment he first met 14-year-old Kate in October 1988: “There was a unique sparkle to her which was bound to evolve into something special, although I had no idea how much at the time”.

© David Ross

There is no such thing as too much Gisele.

Beauty and physical perfection is a strange, much discussed, elusive and fascinating thing. We can’t get enough of it, we strive for it, we want to surround ourselves with it and ogle it wherever we can. Vogue Paris seems to feel the same: In its November issue’s “Body Double” editorial, photographers Inez and Vinoodh shot not only one Gisele, but pictured the model multiple times in one shot, so as if they just couldn’t get enough of her.

   © Vogue Paris

Pearl earring included.

The only thing I would change in this editorial is the choice of models: I wish they had cast much more unconventionally beautiful women than shown here with stronger, edgier faces. Other than that, I have nothing to complain about this shoot, inspired by Dutch Golden Age paintings and shot by Josh Olins for Vogue UK’s December 2013 issue.

© Vogue UK

Lou.

Lou Reed died yesterday at the age of 71. He was the lead singer of the Velvet Underground – a band who was managed by Andy Warhol – and had a long career as a solo artist with a fan base that included David Bowie, Mick Jagger and Patti Smith (not to mention that he was married to performance artist and musician Laurie Anderson). He was also a true pioneer who wrote lyrics that dealt with homosexuality and drug addiction at a time when these subjects were very much taboo. He also had an iconic, signature style that captured his dark, rebellious side.

1983

1970s

1970s

1975

2013 cover of The Times featuring a portrait from 1975.

Hedi Slimane for V magazine, 2013.

1972 album Transformer, shot by Mick Rock.

With Andy Warhol at a release party for Rock and Roll Heart. New York, 1976.

With David Bowie and Iggy Pop. London, 1972.

With Mick Jagger and David Bowie after Bowie’s last performance as Ziggy Stardust. London, 1973.

©Transformer, by Lou Reed and Mick Rock.

Hair-raising.

The Ardorous is an online art platform showcasing feminist projects of female creative professionals curated by Petra Collins. Arvida Bystrom is one of the artists featured on the site; her photo series “Lolita” show young girls portrayed in the usual dreamy fetishizing manner very often found in fashion magazines and as described by Nabokov himself in his eponymous novel. Bystrom’s pictures have a subversive quality in the undesired and unsightly body hair that hasn’t been shaved as is usually the expected norm.
©Arvida Bystrom

I wish you were here (summer).

For my first personal style post in ages I chose an outfit I actually wore quite a while back: a crisp white shirt with a bright orange swingy skirt and cobalt blue sandals.
I wish I could still run around like that! Unfortunately, fall is not approaching; it has already come – to stay. So no more open-toed shoes, short-sleeved blouses and tights-less anything. Oh well, at least I don’t have to keep up with immaculate pedicures and perfectly shaved legs for the next couple of months.

  Shirt: Cos, skirt: American Apparel, shoes: Zara, glasses: vintage, rings: &other stories, Topshop, H&M

Ease.

Just beautiful, beautiful pictures:
Model Julia Nobis and her brothers, four-year-old Luka and Raphael, photographed by Stephen Ward at the Hillsdale Orange Orchard in Bulga, New South Wales for the October 2013 issue of Vogue Australia.

© Vogue Australia

I want to be a Pom, too.

Sun City, Arizona, is a town near Phoenix with a population of over 37,000 retired residents all living there. The community is renowned for being a senior citizens’ paradise. When London-based photographer Todd Antony recently visited the town, he met ‘The Sun City Poms’, the town’s cheerleading squad. They formed in 1979, recruiting 55-year-olds (and older!) to support the Sun City Saints women’s softball team. Today, the group entertains at around 50 shows per year.
Antony says on his blog: “While I was [in Sun City] I couldn’t help but think that with the American obsession for child beauty pageants, you have one age group of society trying to grow up way too fast, while at the other end of the age scale another group strives to hold back the years in some way. And does a pretty damn good job of it really.”
The Poms say of themselves that they represent the fulfillment of life at any age. They add: “Performing with spunk and energy of their youths, these ladies share positive aspects of retirement and aging, and shatter conventional images of “senior citizens.”
What I love about the women in the pictures are the grace, beauty and great sense of pride and energy they exude.

Greta Lois Shirley The group TommieAll images ©Todd Antony

Yep, even there.

Last week, I was asked by the people of the Frankfurt Book Fair (who happens to be the world’s largest) to take pictures of stylish visitors and exhibitors for their lookblog tumblr. Great! I thought. But wait a minute… Are there even stylish people at a book fair? It’s not NYFW, after all, where you stumble over fashionistas, whether you like it or not. And indeed, it wasn’t easy to find the handful of people who weren’t clad in shapeless jeans, t-shirts and “reasonable” shoes. But I did find some beautiful women and men with a great sense of personal style, after all. So, this is what I have been up to in the last couple of days. You can find all pictures here, and below some of my personal favorites.