Lectura de sambata dimineata

Ia te uita, mai sunt doar 4 zile pana la Craciun. Eu am intrat oficial in vacanta si, cu toata sinceritatea, imi doresc sa pot inghesui in aceste 2 saptamani atatea lucruri cate fac in 3 luni. Am o lista lunga de lectura – autobiografia Dianei Vreeland, Deluxe, Anatomy of Fashion, cele mai noi numere din Intelligent Life si Vanity Fair – , inca o lista de prieteni cu care sa impart o cafea, o dimineata sau o dupa-amiaza, idei de articole pentru blog si pentru Forbes, cateva momente de rasfat, o calatorie…

Pentru ca sa imi fac ordine in cap, zilele trecute am trecut pe hartie tot ce voi face sau ce planuiesc sa fac profesional in prima jumatate a lui  2014 – – un exercitiu interesant, la finalul caruia am intotdeauna un sentiment de implinire si un zambet: noi editii de Style Conversations (btw, i-am facut pagina de fb, sper sa va serveasca drept inspiratie), cursuri de stil personal prin tara, un curs de psihologie a stilului (stay tuned, asta va fi super interesant!), un club deschis de lectura (yey! vrea cineva sa se inscrie deja?), o regandire a blogului si multe, multe colaborari frumoase!

In vacanta, exercitiul ia o alta forma si o alta ordine – – pentru ca si viata personala are nevoie de curatenie si frumos, nu-i asa? De fapt, in ultimii 2 ani am facut un altfel de demers: in loc de a-mi scrie o lista interminabila de rezolutii si de dorinte, mi-am ales un singur cuvant, care sa imi defineasca intregul an (curaj pentru 2012, integritate pentru 2013). Va recomand exercitiul, este extraordinar – literalmente, nu va puteti imagina intensitatea sentimentului de revelatie si de emotie din momentul in care intelegeti ce trebuie sa simtiti sau sa faceti intr-un an. Inca nu stiu ce cuvant pozitiv ma va ghida in 2014 , dar m-as simti onorata sa imi impartasiti cuvantul pe care l-ati alege voi sa va defineasca anul urmator!

Iata si citatul, simtiti cu cat entuziasm si pofta isi traia viata aceasta femeie? „Naturally, I’ve always been mad about the clothes. You dont get born in Paris to forget about clothes for a minute. And what clothes I saw […]! I realize now I saw the whole beginning of our century there. Everything was new.

The colors! Before then, red had never been red and violet had never been violet. They were always slightly… grayed. But these women’s clothes in the Bois were of colors as sharp as a knife: red red, violent violet, orange – when I say „orange” I mean red orange, not yellow orange – , jade green and cobalt blue. And the fabrics! The silks, the satins, and the brocades, embroidered with seed pearls and braid, shot with silver and gold and trimmed with fur and lace – were of an Oriental splendor. There’s never been such luxury since!”

Inainte sa va las cu lectura din aceasta dimineata si cu un citat din cartea Dianei Vreeland, va doresc sa traiti un Craciun de poveste, sa aveti o mini-vacanta in care sa va regasiti pe voi insiva cu seninatate, gratie si pofta de viata, sa va inconjurati de oameni frumosi si inspiratie, sa primiti iubire si vesti bune, sa aveti intotdeauna la voi cuvintele potrivite si un ruj rosu,  sa aveti in fiecare zi un zambet pe buze si luminite in suflet!

Holiday windows around the world in 2013 – „It’s a year for travel: start aboard the commodious Harrods Express, where you can steam over to see Jay Z’s version of Santa’s sleigh at Barneys. From there, you can join the heavens above at Harvey Nick’s, where the windows have themes of the gods, or pal around with more terrestrial fodder, making snowflakes in the Russian hinterlands at Saks Fifth Avenue.” In Vanity Fair.

The Investment Dresser: twinkle toes – „Every wardrobe needs a pair of jewelled stilettos, no matter how minimalist/shabby chic/butch it is. A jewelled show will kick the rest of your outfit into shape.” In The Telegraph.

Personal shopping kicked up a notch – „Meet the personal shoppers of the fashion world who woo customers by making house calls and Facebook friends.” In Wall Street Journal.

Why do we use sex to sell clothes? – “In order for it to work as an effective sales tool, sex must be used in an elegant, eloquent way that reflects a customer’s aspirations. If it is used crudely as a mere way to court publicity, it may raise the profile of that brand, but it probably won’t have a direct impact on sales — certainly not a positive longer term way, anyway.” In Forbes.

This bootstrapped startup is helping style bloggers drive $150 million in sales – “Style blogger Amber Venz built the platform two years ago to solve a personal problem: her blog, VENZedits, was driving sales of the items she was showing off, but she struggled to monetize her influence. So in 2011, she built RewardStyle, an affiliate aggregator for the fashion world, with the help of co-founder Baxter Box, as her own personal solution.” In Pando Daily.

The Moncler billionaire – “This week, shares in the jacket brand Moncler soared faster than those of Royal Mail and saw Italy’s biggest public flotation since 2010. The man who built the brand – and who became a (paper) billionaire this week – explains how he did it, and why he doesn’t plan to cash in.” In The Telegraph Luxury.

Less snobby shopping for men – „Luxury retailers aim to attract male shoppers by freeing merchandise from glass cases, ditching dark wood and going more informal.” In Wall Street Journal.

Style and substance: Sylvia Farago – „Day-to-day I live in leather trousers – they look dressier than jeans when you’re on a shoot or meeting a client. I had a pair of Helmut Lang ones that I wore to death and I’ve got some J Brands that I love. I have a disgusting amount of black Alexander Wang T-shirts and a smart Proenza Schouler shirt that I bought recently. ” In The Telegraph Luxury.

Return to Santa – “Online firms, even more than bricks-and-mortar retailers, have little choice but to be generous with their returns policies: few people would buy things they have not tried on if they could not send them back.” In The Economist.

A no-sweat work shirt? No sweat! – “Kevin Lavelle, then 19, was working as an intern in Washington when he saw a congressional staff member rush into a meeting wearing a shirt that was soaked with sweat … His next thought, he said, was entrepreneurial: Why not take the same sweat-absorbing technology used in performance fabrics, like spandex and Lycra, and apply it to dress shirts?” In NY Times.