FALL'S BEST NON-TREND

Fall, 2009....

...Season of the Snood. They were everywhere - and around every neck. The Wall Street Journal, in a fit of fetish, even declared that the snood was going to "save Christmas." But one year later, this relic of 20th century female propriety has again gone the way of, well, propriety, as designers offer scarves and collars as the au courant insulation against chill. 

Which is why I'm on a mission to save the fur snood! Why not? It's stylish, elegant - and need I mention the practical factor? - WARM. And despite a lack of runway presence, there are still plenty available, in many looks and prices. Here are a few cheap and chic options for fur fabulosity:

Or, break the bank on fine furs that will feel marvelous.

One of the best sources of fur snoods is vintage - don't overlook Ebay, local vintage stores, or grandma's closet! The snood also goes by the names neck-wrap, fur collar, cowl, and muffler (keep that in mind while searching). 

A few more looks from '09...

So, do you wear a snood? Are you going to start this season? 

Images, all group shots from Fashion Time; products: Shop Bop, TopShop, NY & Co, Forever21, Coach, Burberry, Helmut Lang. 

THE FUTURE OF ADVERTISING

Chanel Long Necklace, Fall/Winter 2010/11

This week over at Human Events I'm writing about the future of advertising... 

"We Americans have long been passionate about our purchases, but we now blur the line between owning and being (just try asking your friends whether they're a Mac or a PC). With the new identity shopping, the monologue form of advertising has ended; ads are now a conversation between the company and the acquirer. Gone are the days when we purchased items simply because they were appealing, useful, or well-made..."

A fake copy of the Chanel Long Necklace.

Our "wardrobes these days are fabric billboards. Our jeans have leather name patches, our shoes have logo-imprinted soles, and our buttons have carefully etched designer names so tiny that attempting to read them can provoke a sexual harassment suit. Gone are the days when companies paid big bucks to paint "See Rock City" or "Burma Shave" on farmers' barns. Nowadays, we are the ones who pay bale-sized amounts for the privilege of wearing branded togs."

An inexpensive imitation at Forever 21.

But what happens when everything is branded? When all is logo-ed and labeled? Even non-luxury products are competing to win customer loyalty for their $20 and $30 creations. These days, coming out of a strip mall with any unbranded product is almost a victory. At the same time, brands have become a short-hand for taste. It's as if we no longer need to be able to discern quality, or create a unique style: just buy a famous brand.

You can read the full article here.

Images, Chanel, Forever21, and a forger.

SADDLE BAGS

Fashion house Coach often reminds me of the lines from that old Frank Sinatra standard, I Get a Kick Out of You:

Coach was one of my earliest fashion loves. Those classic lines, the Americana styles, the careful detailing of leather that only a house founded in the tradition of saddlery could achieve. Yet over the decades, Coach has changed her style from staid, yet elegant, matron of accessories to a hip, label-happy young thing, hawking logo encrusted designs where all that shimmers is not hardware, but sequins. It's rather hard to fault them - targeting teens and young twenties with their Poppy line is a smart marketing move, as is embracing our brand-focused times. But I'm wearying of little girl style. Where will it end? Perhaps someday soon we'll be toting bags in pink pastels with rhinestone encrusted rattles and little diaper shaped wallets. No age is too young for inspiration. 

Coach's Poppy line: where the girls are.

I crave classics - style that a daughter would want to inherit, rather than steal for junior prom. And though I'm young, I enjoy investing in something my older self might savor. If nothing else, feeling as if a purchase will last for years is salve for the shopper's conscience.

Thus I'm excited by Coach's fall line, with its Hepburn tributes and lunching ladies vibe. It's style without sass, crayons giving way to class. I'll take the tweed over sequins, thanks much!

Images, Coach.com. Vintage Coach from DeniseBrain.blogspot.com. 

UNMASKED

Conceal - reveal. We all love a little mystery.

"Masquerade!

Paper faces on parade.

Masquerade!

Hide your face, so the world will never find you!

Masquerade!

Every face a different shade.

Masquerade!

Look around -

there's another

mask behind you!"

- The Phantom of the Opera

Gisele-No-Last-Name-Needed in a half-mask. Ooh la la!

This Halloween, why not dress as a glamazon instead of a goblin? 
A fashion doyenne instead of a devil? The new motto is Balenciaga, not blood! 

HERE'S HOW...

The inspiration: last month's French Vogue fete in Paris, a grand masquerade for fashion's finest to celebrate the magazine's 90th anniversary. 

The location: the Hotel Pozzo di Borgo.

The guests: France's fanciest.

Natalia Vodianova in a barely there lace mask (would you hide that face?).

Anna dello Russo in a hat and mask combined, and dressed as - a warrior swan? 

Elettra Rossellini Wiedemann continues the half mask trend - is she a wisp of lace, or a bird in flight?

Diane Von Furstenberg, fearless as usual! She transforms into a bird of paradise.

These stylish ensembles reminded me of the best master of the mask in Hollywood. No, not Johnny Depp. The queen of masks is Madame Hepburn.

In Breakfast at Tiffany's, Audrey Hepburn frolics in the Five and Dime in a cat mask and orange funnel-necked coat. Meow!

Ms. Holly Golightly answers the door, replete in turquoise sleep mask and tassel earplugs. She no doubt awoke each morning on a glitter covered pillow...

In the 1960s film How to Steal a Million, Audrey looks the part of a debonair thief - even though what she's stealing is her own. Why not party in an homage to Hepburn and Mad Men? Lace mask? Darling little gloves? Check and check.

At the French Vogue party, Karolina Kurkova channels the Hepburn lace mask look.

In the film Marie Antoinette, Kirstin Dunst employes an equally glamourous concealment.

Other famous faces have enjoyed going behind the mask - here, Kate Moss bedazzles in an easy do-it-at home style.

Sienna Miller glams it up with a feathery mask cum headband.

How glamorous will you be this Halloween? 

Images:  French Vogue Party. Hepburn images here and here. Dunst in Marie Antoinette. Kate Moss here. And Sienna Miller.

PILE IT ON

Collecting beautiful things leads to beautiful problems - what to do with all of them? Show off, of course. Pile up those trinkets and treasures, spill out the frills and furbelows, spread about the brights and baubles. But first, a few rules...

THOU SHALT pile on mantels, desks, side tables, coffee tables, entryways, shelves, and vanities.

THOU SHALT NOT pile in closets, under beds, in bathrooms, children's rooms, or block any route you might need to escape in the event of fire, unexpected in-laws, etc.

Lovely mixes of every day things are what photographer Melanie Acevedo captures - these beautiful layerings of pattern and color elevate piles to an art form.

Mixing the practical and the fanciful (books, letters, trinkets) in an ad for One King's Lane - props for doing a fun piece of decor for a decor ad! 

Italian store Flair, NYC, creates a lovely golden palette with nature inspired objects (Lonny Magazine).

Kelly Wearstler makes table piles into an art form. I love her books, often featuring images of her own home(s), where pyramidal constructions of objets d'art tower over table-scapes - and no doubt cause some distress to the housekeeping staff (dusting these must be fun!).

In Herve Pierre's home (courtesy the Selby), the creative director for Carolina Herrera cultivates careful piles of curiosities - books, hatboxes, miniature architectural models, and perfume bottles.

Beloved magazine Domino shows the power of piling accessories - it doesn't hurt if they're all in the same color family.

Designer Todd Romano uses his piles as structural accents; placing similar items in pairs keeps things from looking too cluttered, but avoided identical sets keeps the look from becoming matchy-matchy. 

What about you? Are you a piler? Do tell!
Kelly Wearstler close up, Stylecourt.blogspot.com, other Wearstler photos, kwid.com. Domino vanity, gaitainteirors.com. Pierre apartment, theselby.com. Acevedo's photos, melanieacevedo.com, Todd Romano's room, toddromanohome.com. Others as previously attributed.

GOING GREEN

Haaaappy Friday! It's the end of the week, so let's go out with a big green bang.

Rachel Zoe is always going on and on and on about Oscar de la Renta, as if he were the most amazing designer in the discovered universe. Which he is. Oscar de la Renta was my first designer purchase, ever, and he will always have a special place in my heart (and my closet - right alongside his black satin bow shoes).

Oscar de la Renta's spring 2011 collection featured heavy doses of green jewelry, but you don't have to wait til spring to get your hands on some. Emerald green gems are big for fall - and why not? It goes great with tweed and cheetah print. Below, some beautiful chances to green things up.

Oscar de la Renta

Shop it Out

Images, companies as attributed.