Grace, Annie and Alice

Today's blog post is about three women: Grace Coddington {creative director of Vogue and author of "Grace"}, Annie Leibovitz {famous photographer}, and Alice {of the storybook "Alice in Wonderland"} -- and how they created one of Vogue's most memorable fashion spreads:

via Trendland

This was published in December 2003, and boy, do I still remember it to this day. A real live version of Alice, dressed in couture, cavorting in Wonderland -- such a great concept! In her book, Grace discusses its genesis:

Anna {Wintour, Vogue's editor-in-chief} had just seen the award-winning musical version of Mary Poppins on the London stage, loved it, and returned to New York eager to base our seasonal special on that children's story. But when I sat down, I thought, "Mary Poppins wears black throughout, which really isn't going to work for Anna in the end," and so I said, "What about Alice in Wonderland instead? It could be just as much fun, and I can then ask the designers to make up all the dresses in blue, like the illustrations in the book." Anna thought about it overnight and the next morning, said, "Yes. We'll do  Alice and cast all the designers as characters from the book," which was the most brilliant idea.

via Trendland

Russian model Natalia Vodianova was cast as Alice. Everything was shot in Paris and in the surrounding area of the Chateau de Corbeil-Cerf.

via Trendland

Tom Ford played the White Rabbit {a role originally 

meant for Karl Lagerfeld}.

via Trendland

Nicholas Ghesquiere, who designed this ruffle dress, 
makes a cameo.

via Trendland

John Galliano, dressed in drag, as the Red Queen;
his boyfriend Alexis portrays the King.

via Trendland

Marc Jacobs as the hookah-smoking Caterpillar.

via Trendland

John Paul Gaultier as Cheshire Cat.

via Trendland

Viktor and Rolf as Tweedledum and Tweedledee.

via Trendland

Christian Lacroix as the March Hare and Stephen Jones {milliner}
as the Mad Hatter. 

via Trendland

Donatella Versace and her friend Rupert Everett as the
Gryphon and Mock Turtle.

What a production! Clearly we see in these images that a photographer is not just one who clicks the camera, but has a creative vision that improves the overall look of the photos and the stories that they tell.

You can read more about the drama {and who was a diva} in Chapter 15 of "Grace: A Memoir." Also, you can watch this little clip for a few more stories behind this fashion editorial.

Graceful Sketches

Yesterday, I told you about the memoir, Grace, written by Vogue's Creative Director, Grace Coddington.

One of the many things I loved about the book are her quirky personal sketches:

She has an old school approach of drawing the looks she sees on the runway instead of using a camera or depending on a look book. She says in the book, "I always sketch at fashion shows. Drawings jog my memory more than any photograph."

via Vogue.com

She also says, "Each ready-to-wear season, I usually fill on sketchbook per city -- Paris, Milan, New York -- plus one for each season's couture, resort, and cruise. So that makes 12 sketchbooks a year, and they can all get pretty full. My system at the shows is to draw, sketch, put down everything -- every single outfit -- and worry later whether I liked it or not. Occasionally, I will put a star next to a favorite. Because I don't write about fashion, I don't take notes. I find it faster and easier to draw a dolman sleeve, for example, than to describe it. It was simpler in the old days, when there weren't so many collections and most people showed a maximum of thirty outfits." 

Wouldn't it be TADA! to see and go through all these sketchbooks?

She admits to being more adept with images than words ever since she was young: "Seeing a story visually rather than in words was what I was responding to."

In fact, one of the items she values is also something very visual: "As a memento, Bruce made me a beautiful scrapbook of photographs from the shoot. It was probably my most treasures possession." {On working with photographer Bruce Weber}

Grace is also a cat lover. This part of the book shows the many cats she owned. Prior to writing her memoir, she already came out with the book The Catwalk Cats.

via Styleite

She even came out with a special edition bag and scarves with her cat drawings, a collaboration with Balenciaga! 

via Vogue.com

I was also impressed that she made this sketch, a gift to Jimmy Fallon, when she appeared on his show to talk about "Grace: A Memoir". Isn't she so nice? You can watch the segment here. 

A book with pictures! It's blah to TADA!

State of Grace

Hi everyone! New books are one of life's pleasures that are simply TADA! 

Let me tell you about a book I just finished reading.

        It's called GRACE.

via Gawker

It's a memoir by Grace Coddington.

If her name's not familiar, she's the creative director of 

American Vogue.

via pjmedia.com

Miss Coddington was "introduced" to the public in the documentary, "The September Issue", a behind the scenes look on how the year's biggest issue is put together. Here, the camera-shy yet strong-willed creative director is seen battling it out with editor-in-chief, Anna Wintour.

via Guardian UK

Before watching the film, I had the expectation of seeing Anna Wintour {right}, the so called "ice queen", in a different light. Maybe as a more gentle soul beneath the cold exterior? Instead, I got to know Miss Coddington. Then and there, I wanted to have "Team Grace" t-shirts made.

When she came out with this book late last year, I put it on my reading list ASAP -- I wanted to get to know this fascinating lady. You see, I'm drawn to strong women. They don't have to be soul-less individuals even if they've achieved a good amount of success and power. I saw that in Grace -- strong but she still had heart. 

The book chronicles her life in fashion, first as a model, and moving on to becoming an editor in both British and American Vogue. It's the colorful life of a woman dealing with love, family, friendship, loss and success.

I think the book is TADA! because:

It's inspiring.

She was a quiet little girl who grew up in rural Wales. The pages of Vogue consumed her as a teenager {"I bought it for the fantasy of looking at beautiful clothes, and I liked getting lost in its pages"}, then grew up to work for the magazine, making her an influential force in fashion.

via The Frisky

We can live vicariously through her.

Imagine her life: meeting designers, going to parties, traveling to dreamy destinations to shoot fashion stories, visiting the fashion capitals of the world to view pretty dresses, among other things.

via Pop Sugar

There's a lot of inside dish.

Like what does she really think of Anna Wintour? Or what her relationship is like with fashion designers like Yves Saint Laurent or photographers like Annie Leibovitz. Also, if, like the "September Issue", you're a fan of what happens behind the glitz and glamour {ex. making of a Vogue issue or the Costume Institute's annual exhibit at The Met}, it's all in this book.

via Off Glass

It provides a back story on Andre' Leon Talley.

{Vogue's toga-wearing, over the top creative director before Grace inherited the position.}

"Grace" is an easy read that shows how one's blah life can turn into TADA!, and will leave you with a greater appreciation for fashion and fashion magazines.

Vintage Perfume Bottles

What a scent-sational week it's been! I hope you enjoyed my stroll down memory lane through fragrance and all our scented craft projects this week. 

This got me thinking about a new blah to TADA! collection I might want to start. Vintage perfume bottles, perhaps? 

I found these pictures on Pinterest. They made me all excited about perfume bottles, whilst empty, to build a thought-provoking vignette on a dressing table:

via Pinterest

via Pinterest

via Pinterest

Questions like "Who owned them?" or "When and where was the scent made?" are begging to be asked. 

Maybe I will begin hunting for them on my next trip to the flea market. Wish me luck. And, oh, have a happy weekend!

Scented Surprise

Happy Thursday!

When you open a magazine and find a page with a perfume strip, do you have the urge to open it and sniff? I do!

Same with those inserts that tumble out from a catalog,

which I think are pricey to produce.

Here's how I give them the blah to TADA! make-over:

I turn them into scented confetti using a craft punch.

I make sure to punch where the perfume is strongest.

Then I put the confetti inside cards and letters ready to be mailed. That way, it's a scented surprise to the person opening it, with a shower of hearts as a bonus!

Mini Message in a Bottle

I'm a big fan of freebies, especially sample sizes of cosmetics and perfume. I think items like these should be tested before a purchase is made -- you'll never know how it will react to your skin or natural scent. 

Tiny bottles like these are also very handy when all you have is an evening clutch but still want to be sweet-smelling all night. When the vial's contents have been consumed, here's how I transform it from blah to TADA!:

I turn it into a positive pendant, strung

on a silver chain.

I've discovered that at the start of the year, some people choose a "power word" instead of making a long list of resolutions. It's a word that they want to hang on to or to be more of in the new year. These are some of those words. 

 Insert the word in the dry and empty perfume vial.

It's now a message in a bottle.

It's a message to yourself.

Seal with a small cork and super glue, followed by jewelry findings and a chain. Wear it daily and by the end of the year, you've hopefully become one with your power word.

Perfume Strips

One of the fun areas of a department store is the perfume section. Sure, the selection can be overwhelming, but what a treat to check out the beautiful packaging and determine which celebrity has a new fragrance. I also like how we can test the scents and leave the store smelling fresh and fine without having to purchase anything!

Most stores have these plain white strips to aid in testing perfume. Simply spray on the paper and take this home with you to help you choose a favorite.   

When I stepped into Hendri Bendel, they had these perfume test strips for selected scents. How fabulous! I would love to paint like that. Also, each girl represented the essence of each cologne.  I think I want to be as chic as Gardenia and Vanilla girl!

Just a sample of how something simple as test strips can go from blah to TADA!