{runway inspiration: elie saab, paris}

. . . elie saab never fails to be utterly breathtaking, and when you finally catch your breath, you will scarcely be prepared for the utter beauty of the latest spring couture collection, a flourish of mousseline and sheer décolleté, of tulle and organza, and flowers piled at the shoulder and tied with grosgrain at the waist, and all in glittery, fairytale shades of silver and champagne . . .









{p.s.} more of this collection

{images: elie saab spring couture 2011 collection via tsf}

{hello + a few things}

. . . hello! a sunny summer tuesday and had been planning to announce an impossibly exciting give-away today, but blogger has been having technical difficulties with comment moderation and so, perhaps it shall have to wait a little longer . . . out the door for a bit and it's a silk partydress and sky-high summer wedges kind of day and leaving you with the intricately stunning appliqués, shades of gold and champagne encrusted with paillettes and clusters of crystals & pearls, cascades of dégradé feathers, and flows of duchesse satin and chantially lace of riccardo tisci's fall 2010 couture collection for givenchy . . .

à bientôt / see you soon! & hope your week is off to a perfect start,
xo

{p.s.} also adore the romantic gilded walls and chevron floors

{also new this week:}
* two lovely things: mirror, mirror
* storage inspiration: pretty jewelry display
* wedding inspiration: little white dresses
* room inspiration: always de gournay
* shoes, shoes, shoes: sergio rossi

{& one last thing:} many thanks for this lovely post

{images: style.com via a glamorous little side project}

{late summer nights}

. . . crazy, crazy for this stunningly beautiful valentino dress, belted and worn over a vintage christian dior haute couture brassiere and utterly perfect for this summer's endless dinner reservations and sultry nights in the city . . .

{p.s.} nearly always drawn to softer colours & focus in photography, and yet quite adore the drama and high contrast of this shot

{image: jacqueline jablonski photographed by willy vanderperre for v magazine, styling by olivier rizzo via a glamorous little side project , belt by prada}

{valentino + happy weekend!}

. . . and time seems to be moving along at a dizzying pace lately -- happy for plans and dreams on slow sunday mornings . . .

have a beautiful, beautiful weekend, everyone!
xo

{all images originally from the book valentino: themes and variations; images 2 & 3 via the peak of chic; all others via fashion journalist in the city; images 1 & 5 - this is glamorous from original; more images at a glamorous little side project; special thanks to felicity for all the lovely links xo}

{weekend + links}

happy halloween! hope your weekend is filled with the soft glow of flickering jack-o'-lanterns, spiced cider and far too much candy, and most of all, mysterious masquerades . . .

have a magical weekend, everyone!
xo


{p.s.} a few fun halloween links:
* DIY: snowflake pumpkins
* fun costume: mrs. robinson

{as always, some things you may have missed:}
* halloween inspiration: orange
* better in gold: gilded pumpkins
* grey skies + crimson leaves
* fall lookbook: lyell
* backstage photographs: more lyell
* paris in black + white

{images: valentino haute couture, photography by sofia sanchez & mauro mongiello for vogue italia september 2009 via a glamorous little side project}

{karl lagerfeld photography + the winner is:}

Immediately fell for Karl Lagerfeld's photography after discovering the lovely {Harper's Bazaar editorial} at Versailles and of course, the stunning {ad campaigns} for Chanel.

These beautiful photographs of billowy, gauzy white dresses against wonderfully ornate backdrops are perfect for today's sunny mood . . .

{p.s.}
* warm congratulations to Camila P, the winner of the lovely cluster necklace give-away!
* nantaka joy stationery give-away continues below

{editorial: 24 hour couture; magazine: Harper's Bazaar June 2007; model: Gisele Bundchen; photographer: Karl Lagerfeld}

{always elie saab}

. . . giving up jeans forever and spending the summer in this stunning dress . . .

{more lovely tulle:}
* creme puffs & meringue
* marchesa fall 2009 rtw - new york
* balmain

{image: lindsay ellingson in elie saab haute couture via alexandra's favoriter}

{work of art: paper-flower tiaras}

Have been completely caught up in the brilliantly creative and exquisite bleached flower cut-outs and sculpted paper blossoms strewn about the walls, tables, and floors of the all-white space of the Chanel Spring 2008 Couture show.

Wondrously enormous and intricate paper roses, magnolias and camellias were transformed into beautiful paper-flower tiaras. According to Karl Lagerfeld, to prepare for the collection, he cleared everything away and "started with a clean sheet of paper." The result was a flutter of Spring, a stunning celebration of magic and romance . . .

{p.s.}
more information about the artist:

* the 65 different headdresses were created out of two stacks of plain white copy paper by Japanese designer Katsuyo Kamo, a master hairdresser, and his small team {hudson's jeans blog}
* kamo's work first appeared in t magazine
* more paper works of art featured here

{images: Chanel Spring 2009 Couture via style.com}