About Me

I was born in the South. A Dressmaker Mother and Lawyer turned Diplomat Father. Educated at Le Rosey in Switzerland (where I have a Chalet),The Antwerp Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Harvard and Parsons. My passion is fashion. I style, I mood consult, I manage, I agent. I am the confidant of the Haute Couture crowd,the jet-set and all that's fabulous. I am International Man of Fashion!

Friday, February 12, 2010

Back In Hell A (thats LA for country folk) Package Drama continued


Hello Petals, Well after a gorgeous bottle of $900 plonk mixed with jet lag I have woken with a bit of a hangover. I’m staying at friends in glorious Bel Air. Wearing a kaftan and some gorgeous leather sandals that I picked up in Paris for a bargain from some well built Moroccan man.

I am sitting by the pool feeling like I have walked off the page of an Arthur Elgort/Grace shoot for Vogue and just imagine Giselle and Carolyn (who I need to call) leaping and bounding in the waterfall, Vivaldi is playing in the background(for those that live in the suburbs he was a Venetian baroque composer and priest).I have had a bit more time to catch my breath and had my assistant hold all my calls as none other than Victoria and David have popped in to discuss possible new looks and seek advice from Me “Hi Vicky, Hi Dave” (I don’t have the heart to tell them that the whole Galaxy(sounds like a club in Queens..The Galaxy in Hollis,ladies nights,all you can drink from 9-11 for $10...hideous) soccer thing only appealed to the West Hollywood crowd of 10 percenters trying to see David in the dressing room!

I need to stress to you that if my punctuation or spelling is wrong then just go with the flow. It’s my blog and I can do whatever I want and frankly I can’t be bothered with it all. Some of you may scratch and claw saying that she (me) was educated at some of the best schools and what happened to her grammar? I was too busy reading Vogue!! I will also make up my own words along the way!! run the show-I’m in the drivers seat and I am The International Man of Fashion!! And I cant work out all this bloody technical stuff!

Heres My show package thoughts!

The Women management production takes the cake. The packaging is divine and the choice of both model and image chosen is simply superb. Upon opening the boxed set one is welcomed with bold pictures of some of the model industries best. It is very much a statement that says “hello were here to play- but with style and a certain sense of aggression (in a good way). 2 snaps and a circle.

IMG- this monolith just keeps growing and growing- established stars and newcomers. Cards are ever so descriptive and the box is a keepsake that could even be an early Madonna Boxed set ( Oooh she just texted me). With this company’s tentacles in every major players Echsamin (A new word I made up for projects,brain or something)I am amazed that it hasn’t become complacent like houses of yesteryear. She just keeps getting better and better. Lets face it IMG has nearly everyone on the planet.

Next- Oh my goodness. This house is having such a wonderful vavoom at present. So many great girls and the cards are what cards should be. Next have busted out in Twenty Ten as a major force!! I hear that a cute little British man is partly responsible for the new growth and direction. Next are gonna rock this decade just you watch.

NY Models. Loving the tone they are giving. Very moody, very Soho, so very now. And a wonderful selection of fabulous girls. NY Models are set to make this a season to be remembered! They are on the cusp of major greatness as well being intelligently selective about the bookings they take and the models they take on. Enchante!

Marilyn: Well that divinely handsome creature Wayne Sterling from models.com sums it up in words so elegant and precise: “Flanked by two abstract illustrations, Marilyn’s FW 10 show package draws on the formal elegance of the design tradition forged by the likes of Brodovitch where a beautifully cropped photograph is everything in messaging your taste point. And what might that new message be? Frankly it is that the aesthetic intrinsic to Marilyn, one that celebrates the power of a woman’s beauty, stands as an even more vital aspect of the company’s identity than ever before" OMG I am melting -he is such a poet!

Supreme: I get butterflies in my tummy thinking of this (and I hate to use the word agency) company when it comes to image creation. This effort is more like a cinematic masterpiece than just pictures on cardboard. It breathes, It lives and it certainly delivers one of the most intoxicating statements of true fashion direction. I think that it should be a reference for a campaign- enchanté!

So these are my thoughts on the best show packages from the modelling agencies for this coming season.I wasn’t moved enough to chat about the male models agencies productions in length as the male side of this business doesn’t really matter as much. I mean the poor things all move house from Des Moines or wherever they come from with hopes and dreams as well as sculptured pecs and washboard abs all acting so butch and there is such a little market for them. It really doesn’t matter does it. It’s nice to look at but in the whole scheme of things who really takes male models seriously ( apart from after work action shots with very wealthy mature men and the odd job dancing or hosting at certain establishments that I never ever would frequent.) But I did like the Boss Models young consenting cadet look. And I may comment about male models at a later stage.

I was reminiscing with Marc, Martine and the gang and must say that I wish there would be a return to greatness in the way that Rifat Ozbek assembled Amber, Shalom, Kate and many others in that fabulous show at the Armoury back in the 90’s. It was simply to live for. Lets hope that this season several of the more experienced “Ubers” appear on the NY runways, as we need it. Have to run now- off to a very important meeting with a young man from one of those Hollywood agencies that has just been promoted from the mail room to budding agent (Not to be confused with a now defunct Mens club of a similar name that was on Sunset called the ‘Male room’)But first I need to trim my legs with a good old fashioned razor as those hair removal cremes just give me a hideous rash and I cant stand being waxed! The Iphone is vibrating again- It’s Naomi!Gotta run.

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Show Cards and Package drama


Well all this pageantry and carrying on about show cards is quite exciting. Each season the model agencies try to out do each other in the way of presentation and imaging. Some get it right and many don't and many shouldn't bother as their talent stable resembles exactly that- a stable and in some cases a kennel!
Some of the agencies go to great lengths creating and then others just seem to use Microsoft clip art and send out a scrubmbly (A word I have invented)mish mash of sheer garbage. Anyway I just got off the phone to Delois ( Hi Steven,lunch next week with the girls? xo)and we had a long chat and a giggle about some of the bad packages. But I am going to just chat on about a few of the interesting ones another time as they derserve attention.

I posted the following comment on that wonderful site models.com under the name of "International man of Style" to give you an idea of a good show package and here is what I said about the Boss Models package:

"I love the overall look that Boss are going for.It’s clear,crisp with a definite theme to it. But one asks- is a theme really important in this day and age of “faceless fast food models?” Especially when the men’s side of the business is drowning in lower fees,over population and a strange belief that any tattooed funky looking kid can become a star overnight (Thanks Hedi…who I need to call as he has 7 of my stars on hold for campaigns). If I were a client I would love this package as you can see all the boys without distraction except for the helmet thing on a few of their heads. I just dont know about the helmuts-what if a boy has just got a great new cut from Garren or Oribe-Why hide it?
The Boss package does deliver fashion clarity and I get it. I do. I love that whole military cadet look that is going on here.It’s simple and sends a very fresh message that reflects the “vibe and direction” that this legendary star making stable is putting out there.
It reminds me of a party that Karl,Donatella and I hosted for Madonna back in 2003 where she demanded that all the boys dress up in a military theme. It was fabulous! It was a 4 K night- Kate,Kylie,Karolina and Karl!
I dressed up as a British Palace guard and Karl later referenced my look in a story he shot for German Vogue! Oh well have to run as I have such a busy day ahead here in Paris and Martine Sitbon is late for brunch!!
Concluding I give the Boss package the nod."

And some idiot replied in such a negative way that I was a name dropper! Here is my reply:

To simmasimma: "Well to you I may sound like an idiot but lets remember one thing here-in fashion -High fashion (which is a community that I am a member of) knowing the people that I do just comes with the job darling. Lets face it, I am regarded as a fashion Icon in certain circles with great respect. Just last week I was asked by a certain sittings editor for Vogue Paris (which you probably call French Vogue,read the actual title) about what she should wear to a shoot. I replied “what you have on is fine darling but remember that teal doesn’t always match gray,especially with fuchsia leggings, even in this weather!” and with that she changed!! By the way brunch with Martine was fabulous and we were joined by Marc Ascoli,Giselle and Beyonce! I even checked in for Giselle with her agency! Anyway they all agreed with my comments about this seasons show cards and suggested that I create my own blog…as well as my own perfume line. ta ta."

I really cant be bothered at the moment to write anymore as I have a huge day tomorrow and need some beauty sleep. I will put on a pair of fuzzy slippers have a glass or 3 of Petrus (that's a fine wine for those who don't live in a major city) and watch a video of Mahogany.
Go and check the models.com show package reviews.
Ta Ta!

The Passing of Lee


What a sad way to start my blog. I will miss a very good friend. Anna sums it up best:
Anna Wintour: "We are devastated to learn of the death of Alexander McQueen, one of the greatest talents of his generation. He brought a uniquely British sense of daring and aesthetic fearlessness to the global stage of fashion. In such a short career, Alexander McQueen's influence was astonishing—from street style to music culture and the world's museums. His passing marks an insurmountable loss."