A few snowy hours ago in Paris...

... Simon Procter snapped these photos at Dior.

I became a fan of his two years ago, when I first saw the 2011 spring/summer collection. His photos aren't just great because they capture the beauty and magic of haute couture. 

 But because they show the beauty and magic of two art forms together.

P.S. How many Vegan Mondays do you think you have to do to get arms like that??

Louis & Marc

In 1854 a country boy named Louis Vuitton launched an eponymous trunk company in Paris.

In 1997, Marc Jacobs, a skinny kid from downtown New York was tapped creative director of the famed House.

The current “Louis Vuitton Marc Jacobs” exhibition at Musée Arts Décoratifs is a bright, brilliant showcase of these two men and the couture and culture they’ve created for the House of Vuitton.

The first floor of the exhibition is devoted to Vuitton, the origin of the company, and the nineteenth century.

Move upstairs to second floor for Marc Jacobs and all his modern glory.

It's bold, modern, fun and riveting. Along with Helmut Newton at the Grand Palais, it's a seasonal must-see.

Hightops, people

Hightops.

Let there be no mistake.

They're coming back.

Vitrine magic

I always love the vitrines in Paris. Moschino's salt and pepper rainstorm is no exception.


And back here in New York, Christian Louboutin's pompadours of red-heeled magic are no less charming.

Autumn's must-have trend

Leopard print!

Purity, charm and mystery… and one late night out

As much as I love Paris, my heart has always belonged to New York. And while I’ve been having little moments of quiet glee and deep connection, walking through the crooked streets and long avenues, it was the Bill Cunningham documentary that made me so happy to be in New York right now.

You probably know his On the Street column (and party pictures) in the Sunday Styles section. But the man himself is mesmerizing. He is goofy and sweet, sharp and singularly focused, and he restores your faith in people. He’s kind, a creative genius and an icon. There is absolutely no one like him in this world. (I’m so glad I stalked him in Galignani last fall! Strangely enough, I saw Grace Coddington when I went to see Jane Eyre a couple weeks ago. But that's another style obsession...)

Beyond making you fall for Bill, the movie is a love letter to New York: the creative energy, the crazy people, the history, the chutzpa, the fame and fabulousness. It made me so proud and excited to be here.

And yet it just so happens that I saw the movie a couple nights after hitting the town with Amee. We had a drink at Orient Express, popped into Pastis for kir royales, then found ourselves at Abe & Arthur surrounded by men—such a rarity in this city that teems with women—and ultimately wound up dancing at SL, where bottles of Cristal were delivered with sparklers and eight-foot tall women were gyrating on the booths. It was fun because, well, how often do you swig Cristal straight from the bottle and dance with a bunch of amped-up traders? But it was also soulless, uninspiring and empty. It just seems like there are no more unique characters, no only-in-New-York clubs, no creative spirit. The Bill Cunningham doc showed the yesteryears of New York as thrilling and unique. You never knew what you were going to get. The New York of today is Duane Reade, Citibank and bottle service.

What can we do to keep New York as charming and mysterious as Bill Cunningham himself?

Adoring Dior

Look at these gorgeous photos from Christian Dior’s Spring-Summer haute couture show.



Don't they make you wish we still dressed?

Karl, but more Yves

If you haven’t read A Beautiful Fall, you must. It’s Alicia Drake’s parallel biographies of Karl Lagerfeld and Yves Saint Laurent, and it’s super.

If you haven’t seen L’Amour Fou, well, that’s okay. I saw the documentary about YSL and Pierre Bergé the other night with Marga and, aside from being blown away by the duo’s homes and art collections, the doc was a little boring.

I missed the YSL retrospective at the Petit Palais this summer. Or, more accurately, the one time I motivated to go, the line snaking around the building deterred me from going in.

But Karl’s Parcours de Travail exhibition at the Maison Européene de la Photographie—I checked that one off my list last Sunday. He’s definitely a talented photographer, more than I ever would have given him credit for. But very fashiony and nothing that really moved me.

But now I am super keen to get to the Fondation Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint Laurent. A David Hockney exhibition opens next week and, already, I’m in love with the vibrant colors.

(I’m also super keen on the grey YSL Roady bag. But it’s more likely that I’ll get to the Fondation than I’ll get the bag.)

The nutty shoemaker

Once again, M. Louboutin is exhibiting his penchant for fun and kitsch. After fantasizing about a tapdancing career, he’s now a mad scientist with glowing green eyes and a kickass collection of bags and shoes for fall. I’d like to get me some.

Viktor & Rolf (and Bill and Grace)

I can’t even tell you how excited I was when I received my invitation for the Viktor & Rolf défilé. Ever since Chris and I saw the exhibition on this extraordinary Dutch duo at the Barbican a couple years ago, I’ve been a huge fan. They’re visionary and wild and blend beauty and irony and fantasy in such a revolutionary fashion cocktail. I knew their show would be a spectacle.

Seeing as it was in the Jadin des Tuileries and I had a little extra time, I stopped in my favorite bookstore, Galignani, to browse the latest titles. And who did I see? Bill Cunningham! I was too shy to ask him if I could take his photo, so, at the risk of looking like a stalker, I covertly snapped him leafing through the giant photography books.

Then I was off to the show! Outside the tents is always its own form of entertainment.


Photographers, lookie-lous, wannabes. You do see some good fashion and characters and all the fabulous editors (like Kate Lanphear). But I always feel like such a loser. Just one of the plebes.


But inside, it’s a thrill. I wish I could take good enough photos, or even record clips to give a sense of the energy and excitement. But these are the kind of photos that my crummy camera and me manage to capture.



Good thing there are plenty of pros with heavy-duty lenses to get the good shots.

And at least I could hone in on Grace Coddington, Hamish Bowles and Lynn Jaeger.

The music was incredible, building up a super cool remix of Billy Idol’s “White Wedding” to showcase their wild “wedding gowns”. Trop cool.



And outside, voila! Bill again!

And Grace!


They made my day and didn’t even know it.