That Summer of 1969!

With Woodstock Music and Art fair celebrating its 40th anniversary today, its only natural to ponder how a denim boot relates to an event that celebrated hippie culture and liberalised social thoughts!! 1969 also saw a important fashion moment through the birth of the American clothing retailer Gap, named so to signify the "generational gap" between the baby boomers and their children.Gap too is celebrating its 40th year with aplomb, through a series of collaborations with artists and designers.They plan to launch an exclusive collection of denim clothes and accessories to commemorate their b'day!Shown here is one of the 69 pairs of unwashed indigo denim bootie designed by Pierre Hardy and available at their store on Kingly court, London.The event starts on 10th September and will continue for 19 days and 69 hours or for the mathematically challenged 21 days and 21 hours! And of course you guessed it right, it comes at a price of £69!! Want to make the cut? Register at gap1969.com to keep yourself updated on the other events planned around the anniversary.And more importantly would you buy into the hype, barring the fact that it was designed by Pierre Hardy and that only 69 pairs are available, do you find it aesthetically appealing enough to sleep in front of the store the previous night?If you do, tell me how you plan to wear the booties and keep them mud free as well!

Image Source:www.guardian.co.uk

Who Is It? Answer...

So the contest had many people breaking their heads over the identity of this person, that I decided to give away the answer earlier than intended.Some people with fertile imagination had gone as far as to suggest Michael Jackson and Tintin, a gentle remainder that my puzzles always revolves around the fashion people!Anyways the answer is

John Galliano at John Galliano Autumn/Winter 2005 Menswear fashion show!!

P.s :As for the clue "of getting dangerously close", afterall he is the king of bias cut known for cutting clothes close to the body!!

Image Source:www.catwalking.com

Who Is It ?

The weekend is finally creeping in, giving us time to breathe, muse and recuperate.So why don't you scratch your head a bit and solve this tiny picture puzzle?For all of those fashionistas out there you have every little fashion moment stored away in their memory, flex your grey cells and pop out the answer!! Since its "puzzle time" after a really long hiatus, things are simple only this week, so this might be your last chance at actually solving fashion puzzles!!

To be fair to all, here is a little clue.This person is known for getting dangerously close!!And its not enough if you just id the person, to prove that it isn't just a wild guess I would like you to give me details of the time and place where this was photo was taken.It couldn't get tougher, could it?

John Galliano's Boldest Look of Fall 2009 Ready-To-Wear Explained

Though Christian Dior's Fall 2009 Ready-To-Wear collection was applauded for its myriad use of rainbow colors, rich colored suits, hobble skirts, shoes decorated with oriental motifs and the classic Lady Dior bags, there was one particular look namely the blue sheer gown exposing the rear that caused many a tongue to wag.Speculations were flying in all directions like paper planes, trying to take a wild guess on what John Galliano had really intended to communicate!!Some poked fun by stating that the dwindling economy had perhaps made Galliano suggest a look sans slip while the others persisted that he was blazing a new trail on the road to titillation!!

Jokes apart, if one tries to seriously muse on Galliano's thought process behind the look, one can see his favorite historical reference namely the Merveilleuses(for more on this refer to Understanding John Galliano) being alluded to.How so? Look at the picture below to see where he would have sourced his inspiration from!

"Ah! s'il y voyoit!" ( "Oh, What if he could see!"). Library of Congress description: "Print shows two fashionably dressed women walking on a country road and a "blind" beggar with a small dog on a leash and holding a cup and stick in right hand. The man has stepped on the skirt of one of the women causing it to tear, exposing her bare buttocks for the "blind" man to see. A satire on contemporary clothing fashions."

"Contemporary clothing fashions" refers to the fashion of 1790's(the caricature refers to 1797 to be very precise) when the Merveilleuses dressed themselves in several yards of almost transparent sheer fabric.

Image Source:www.catwalking.com www.fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muscadins

We are Two !!

I'm happy to announce the addition of a new member to Fashion, Art and Beyond's editorial team.Its my extreme honour that Arian Galilei, a high IQ, unconventional thinker and more importantly, a very keen observer of the world for over 35 years, has kindly consented to be my guest columnist.He disbelieves in fashion as much as I believe in it and unabashedly claims that "Contemporary fashion is at the nadir of creativity" and claims he can prove it. So what is he doing here? While I review each designer's work highlighting the positives in their collection, he would be the Scrooge of fashion critics, dissecting each collection to its minutest detail, bringing to surface flaws that were blind to most eyes and helping you view a designer's work from a very different perspective.Keep watching this space for Arian's convention shattering views on fashion!!

Image Source:www.coutorture.com

Sergeant Pepper's in town !!

First we spotted him on the runways of Spring 2009, raised our eyebrows with pleasure and had him mentally marked, to take home to our Spring closet...

Then we saw some ladies of Paris courting him and felt a mix of envy and anguish about not being able to lay his hands on him as yet...

And spotting Beyonce with him drove the final nail into our coffin of desperation...

So much so that nothing else would assuage our ego more than being the next hottie to be seen about in town with him...

Balmain Crystal-embellished canvas jacket

Balmain Military style denim jacket

All for a good night's sleep.zzzzzzz...

Image Source:www.style.com www.nytimes.c0m www.net-a-porter.com

Black is Funereal?

One look at these ladies and that's what crossed my mind!! Often black seems to be the panacea for avoiding any fashion faux pas on the Red Carpet.While it may be true that the color is very accommodating to skin tone and body shape especially popular for its super slimming effect, done the wrong way it can end up looking funereal like the ladies pictured here(while Anna(left) might be on her way to an ordinary funeral, Carrie might be credited with a designer's funeral, still its a funeral that both seem to be dressed up for and not for "True Blood at PlaeyFest09" that they are actually attending).The very simplicity of black necessitates it to be rendered on clothes with interesting silhouettes, sharp tailoring or clever detailing.And despite all the black beauties(implying models wearing black) seen on Spring 2009's runway it really pains a lot to see "interesting" people turn out in boring outfits maligning black.Get a stylist girls and until then, do yourselves a favor by leaving black alone!!

Image Source:www.zimbio.com

Black and White in more ways than one!!

We all know that monochrome dressing is one of the hot trends of Spring 2009 and these ladies could well be on the cover of "Dummies Guide to Monochrome Dressing - Ways to work it"!!!

Image Source:www.zimbio.com

Who Is It ?

Folks, its contest time once again.So rack your brains, bring back some long lost memories and guess the celebrity.

Of Circles and rectangles

Manolo Blahnik Stasi Leather d'Orsay

Stasi Headquarters, Berlin

Can you connect these two pictures?While most of us would answer in the negative, there is a genius among us who drew inspiration from the building to create the shoe.Overwhelmed?Needn't be when the man in question is none other than Manolo Blahnik who resonates with chicness and sophistication when it comes to the design of shoes.His uniqueness lies in his ability to discern patterns from mundane objects ,and impress them upon his shoes.This pair of shoes, despite being part of the spring/summer 2008 collection which draws heavily on the Turkish architecture, is inspired by the many rectangular windows of Stasi(secret police of East Germany)headquarters.By alternating silver tone grommets with neatly cut rectangles (Stasi influence) in black leather and styling it d'Orshay, Blahnik has undoubtedly created a master piece.The shoe gives a mellowed yet classy statement, ideal for a cocktail party.

Image Sources : www.neimanmarcus.com www.jonathantaylor.eu

Pink waves on your feet

Pink is the hue
That colors this shoe
On seeing it, at once I knew
Few dollars I'll unglue
To add this to my slew

Two-Tone Wavy Heel

This shoe is so reminiscent of the famous cherry blossom sightings.It perfectly captures the spirit of spring in its youthful choice of colors accentuated by the color block style it has been rendered in.The two shades of pink covering the vamp, are further emphasised by a similar pattern, not on the ankle strap as is the usual fare, but on the heel, which in addition to being a new trend this season, is also a cheerful deviation from the boring plain heel one is usually used to.The shoe is peppered with a wavy detail complementing the break from mundaneness which the season ushers in.Ideal for sporting on weekend getaways and informal girlie meetings, these twosome towers are a must have this season.Its simplistic design, minimalistic detailing and girlie color makes a feminine, trendy, casual yet powerful fashion statement.

Make a fun statement this spring with these shoes.

Image Source : www.neimanmarcus.com