HEY, GOOD LOOKING

So, one of my lovely customers is the mum of We Are Handsome co-designer Jeremy Somer, he of the radical swimwear featuring such icons as James Dean, or - my favourites - horses or tigers.
Anyway, Mum Somer told me Rhianna called desperate for a jaguar onepiece and was soon spotted sporting it in the surf. Way to go WAH. We heart their clever designs. Especially the gallopingly gorgeous "Arabia" body suit, the one with the clouds and the stallion.
We Are Handsome is stocked by our friends Desordre - www.desordrestore.com
http://wearehandsome.com

OH JOANNA!

So it's raining outside and feels kinda wintry. But guess what? I don't mind. No, not because I am a weird Yorkshire lass who loves a grim Christmas, but because chilly weather puts me in mind of the fashion season ahead.
Herewith, a sneak preview of our delectable Mrs. Press Winter 2011 collection,
shot by our friend Zanita on the v. beautiful and elegant Joanna. Do you love???


Lace and taffeta "Lauren" dress
Gold lace "Imogen" blouse
Taupe wool & cashmere cape (also available in black and camel)

To pre-order, email brooke@mrspress.com

HEAD'S UP

Never underestimate the power of a smartly chosen present. Presents ROCK, let's face it. My adorable friend just sent me a copy of Jay Jorgensen's sumptuously illustrated book about prolific Hollywood costume designer Edith Head, she of the rockabilly fringe and little round glasses.

The book is full of brilliant stories about Edith's gutsy attitude to life - like the time she toted a giant portfolio of sketches along to her first Hollywood job interview, none of them her own. When, the next day, she tearfully confessed, her boss was already so impressed with her ideas, and her ability to speak French and Spanish, that he kept her on.

I love Edith's designs for Grace Kelly in pretty much every film you can think of, and her creations for leopard swathed Gloria Swanson in Sunset Boulevard. I love the elegant dresses she designed for Audrey Hepburn and her low-backed vamp gown for the young Shirley McClain. But most of all I have to say I love Edith's personal style - kooky to the max, she honed her signature look and stuck to it for decades. And my, didn't it work? We won't forget Edith in a hurry.

Fleur delish

So...today I discovered that the cafe in the back of Fleur Wood's Paddington, Sydney store is open again. Yay! It serves beautiful, light gluten free yummies and the coffee comes in vintage mismatched cups. You get to sit there in their delightful sunny courtyard surrounded by pot plants and white rabbits. (I think these bunnies are made of plaster but they are real to me.) I heart Fleur and the lovely spaces she creates.

Here are some pages from her new book, which I hope she doesn't mind me stealing to post on this here blog.

All my friends will be getting Fashion Food Friends for xmas. How about yours?

Happy mid-week!

xxx

BIGUP TO THE SNOB SNAPPER

So I'm reading Hugo Vickers' fab biography of Cecil Beaton and it's eye-opening to see what a little snob he was as a young bloke. Obsessed with trying to turn his reluctant middle class mother into a socialite and grooming his sisters for fancy marriages. My fave bit thus far is when his bedroom is described in the less than posh Paddington pad the famille Beaton had to shift to when money got tight. Our Cecil bedecked it out in red velvet and gold and painted silver blooms all over his mint green walls. God bless. Anyway, snob or not he was a damn good snapper. And he got what he wished for, hobnobbing with the Queen and all that. (Incidentally, Hobnobs are my all-time favourite chocolate biscuits). Maybe being an snob's not such a bad thing. Aren't his pictures inspiring?