"make it happen"

Stefano Gabbana (l), and Domenico Dolce (r)

The term 'superstar designer' gets bandied about so much these days you forget what it was all supposed to mean in the era before fashion designers were their own celebrities. So when Mr. Dolce and Mr. Gabbana came to town a few days ago, and decided to give a live demonstration of their skills at their seminar at the Central Academy for Fine Arts, we were all definitely intrigued. The concept was simple: students would present the designers with one of their sketches and the designers would, to quote the great Tim Gunn, make it happen. Right on the spot, right there. Talk about project runway.

The process, essentially, went something like this. 1) there was a sketch presented and 2) in fifteen minutes, it was a dress.

So yes, the whole thing was held together by staples, and there was that awkward moment where I was convinced the model wasn't going to wriggle into it, but in a quarter of an hour, Mr. Dolce had taken the sketch, sans pattern, traced the outline (from somewhere in his head), cut the fabric, and in consultation with Mr. Gabbana had added some flourishes (altered the sleeves, added some very Dolce lace on the back). Then staple, staple, staple... done.

What one forgets about these truly great designers is that they are firstly, fabulous craftsmen and tailors. Whatever we think about their designs, you've got to admit that they've definitely got the skills. Much like my adored Yotsuba sushi chef, a true maestro, always makes what they do look so easy. Apologies for the awful pictures though, just couldn't bring myself to take guilt-free DSLR shots when I was supposed to be semi-working and on edge that the maestri would run out of staples...

some things old, some things new. le six

Rosamund Pike in An Education, 2009

Chloé, 1988

Chanel, F/W11

a flat boot really ought to be slouchy

'Summer Nights', Grease, 1978

There will never be a happy-clappy summer song quite like it.

le smoking

Nick Knight, Yohji Yamamato catalogue, A/W 1988-9

all the attention being paid to Yohji Yamamoto at the V&A makes me devastated that I wont be in London to see it. I might not covet his clothes for myself, but he is one of the few designers, like Maison Martin Margiela, whom I have the utmost respect for. Flicking back, this Nick Knight image is entirely seductive. The curators behind the scenes at the V&A have produced this fascinating blog about how the whole thing came together, an absolute must-read. I'm intrigued about how the 'interventions' in the other galleries will turn out. In my short-lived dream of working at an art institution, this is probably what I would have seen myself doing.

"I know. It's just fabric. But it speaks to us like a world. If it were a desert, and you a traveller, you would talk about its winds, its stars, its sun. You probably will."

- Yohji Yamamoto

recently

it's been almost a month of neglect, though i don't think I can really explain why. Maybe the evils of Chinese Twitter lured me away, but more likely it's the usual lethargy excuse, because this whole waiting-for-spring thing has made life just seem a bit lacklustre of late. Somewhere in between leaving the office at midnight and arriving home to cook myself dinner though I found an urge to give a little update. after a day of staring at words and weeks of eating all manner of spicy, oily, though admittedly tasty food, there was a surprisingly simple pleasure to be found in boiling a few vegetables. There to thoroughly enhance this enjoyment of course, were the amazing Maison Martin Margiela x Cutler & Gross sunglasses that my boss had gifted to me this very morning; what a way to ease the past fortnight of working to her European timetable....