Perfect for Diwali, Christmas, Hanukkah and anything else you might celebrate.
1. Organic food basket, The Altitude Store 2. ‘Saris: Tradition and Beyond’, CMYK Bookstore 3. Eternal Youth Formula Date & Litchi, Forest Essentials 4. Long gold filigree cuff, Pernia’s Pop Up Shop 5. Lotus table, Viya Home 6. Panchatantra playing cards, 61c 7. Tassel Smoking Slippers in Velvet, Taramay
Emily Dickinson
Truman Capote
Virginia Woolf
Ernest Hemingway
Victor Hugo
Paris based illustrator Kerrie Hess’ book does exactly what it says on the cover, but oh so beautifully.
Moreover, we love her grounded approach to fashion and trends: “Nine times out of 10, I would probably prefer to really splurge on a great vacation or even a weekend away than spend thousands on a bag.”
Mixed with personal anecdotes: “I work for myself and just know I cannot have a phone conversation with Vogue while I am still in my pajamas, even though technically, I could!”
On mixing and matching: “Basics from the less expensive stores in neutral shades like black, gray and beige will likely still look expensive –- especially if teamed with something more tailored. Certain styles are just always chic no matter where you bought them.”
On staples: “A tailored black blazer is a great staple as well as dark denim jeans with a mid rise and low-ish back pockets either in a slim or boot fit. A really fabulous cocktail dress that isn’t black is good to have on stand-by as it always seams impossible to find a great dress for an event under pressure. A black or camel trench coat, crisp white and gray t-shirts that are long in the body and a black wool turtleneck sweater are a few other must-haves.”
And to know more about Kerrie Hess, read her blog.
This is one of those squirrel day where I can’t find the discipline to focus my thoughts on one thing, so I’ve decided to run with it.
I’m enchanted by this bookstore in Holland which use to be a Dominican church. Read about other beautiful bookstores here.
A gorgeous shoot featuring Taramay “Eiffel Tower Ballet Flats’ in Metallic Gold
Making fashion week easier:
Made Fashion Week’s mobile app…has been designed to listen for specific sound waves that will be played over the speakers during runway shows throughout the week. These sound waves, inaudible to the human ear, are synched to the shows themselves and tell the app which outfit is on display at any time. The app will then automatically pull up a photograph of the outfit…as well as the designer’s name, biography and contact information. The app aims to be a more orderly version of the frantic note-taking that editors and buyers engage in as they shoot through various shows and presentations.” Via NYT
And something from the archives – Audrey Hepburn for Vogue
From left to right: ‘Fashion: 150 Years of Couturiers, Designers, Labels’ by Charlotte Seeling; ‘Avedon Fashion 1944-2000′ by Carol Squiers, Vincent Aletti, Philippe Garner; ‘Irreverent’ by Carine Roitfeld; ‘Daphne Guinness’ by Valerie Steele, Daphne Guinness; ‘Fashion Illustration 1930-1970′ by Marnie Fogg; ‘Harper’s Bazaar: Greatest Hits’ by Glenda Bailey, Stephen Gan; ‘Another Fashion Book’ by Jefferson Hack; ‘Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has To Travel’ by Lisa Immordino Vreeland, Lally Weymouth, Judith Thurman; ‘The Impossible Collection Of Fashion’ by Valerie Steele; ‘Paolo Roversi Photofile’; ‘Vogue: The Covers’ by Dodie Kazanjian, Hamish Bowles
I have a growing collection of children’s books that make for great adult reading – the Olivia series for one – they’re often beautifully illustrated and like little works of art.
‘The Super Adventures of Sophie and the City’ is a welcome addition to my wishlist – telling the story of a girl who misses her father and wanders into his Condé Nast offices. She gets lost along the way and through the course of the day has many a stylish adventure, all of which are stunningly illustrated by Judit García-Talavera.
The author, Kelly Florio Kasouf, is the daughter of former Vogue publisher Steve Florio. Written as a homage to her father who passed away in 2007, the book is full of personal anecdotes from her experiences growing up in the Condé Nast world.
A project by Alyson Fox which brings together women leading very different lives but all of whom have one thing in common – red lipstick.
“For many young girls lipstick is the first thing you try on in your mother’s make-up drawer. Sometimes wearing it became a way to fit in. Sometimes a way to stand out. Sometimes a uniform. Sometimes an armor. Sometimes a gash. Sometimes an incision. Sometimes an invitation. Sometimes a warning. Sometimes just something that goes with your dress. Whatever the reason, it is always transformative.” – Alyson Fox
She photographed 150 women, among them was an artist, a pastor, and an opera singer. Most of these women have never been professionally photographed and Fox talks about how they reacted differently to being in front of the camera.
Here are some of our favorites:
From the Leela group, this book offers recipes from their impressive stable of restaurants in Delhi including Le Cirque and Megu.
Pappardelle with duck ragout and orange gorgonzola
Photographed by Rohit Chawla, the food was shot against a light-box which “brings out the circus-like colors… and recreates them in such a way that the blocks of pure color appear to hang suspended like the shapes on a mobile by Miró”, writes William Dalrymple in the Foreword.
Eggplant with sweet Miso sauce
Moving away from a traditional still-life approach to food photography, Chawla removed all the “props” and allowed the food to stand out. “The food presented in this minimalist fashion becomes colors, lines, shapes and forms…akin to a visual Haiku”, he says.
Colorful idlis
This is not an everyday food cookbook, this is glamorous food that requires lots of time, planning, and a special occasion. Till then, it remains proudly displayed on my coffee table.
Elderflower Pressé - The perfect drink for when the sun is shining
Where I whiled away many hours last weekend
Book delivery!
Nigella’s South Indian Vegetable Curry that I made last night. Except I added prawns. I’d also recommend a little more acid, but all in all it turned out pretty well. Recipe here.
“Dear Mary — Please make sure all the errands are done before you go on vacation, as I do not want to be bothered with insignificant things. Thank you. J.D. Salinger”.
A handwritten note by author J.D. Salinger to his maid is on sale for $50,000. Well, as long as the stationery’s nice… {via Los Angeles Times}
New York Fashion Week dabbles in international politics as they cancel Uzbeki designer Gulnara Karimova’s show. The daughter of strongman Islam Karimov, she is said to be “the single most hated person in Uzbekistan,” according to a US cable released by Wikileaks. {Eurasianet}
Isabel Schwab reviews a new biography on Coco Chanel. What’s different about this one? It brings to light a whole other side of the famous designer - that of an anti-Semite. {via The New Republic}
A look at fashion week in 1947 when “the mannequins held up a card with a number as they stomped by…but the clothes were fabulous!” {via Paris Review}