Outdoor sculpture from Formations

 
It's never easy to find something that is durable for outdoor decoration.  Sure there is always stone and marble but what if you need something that looks "softer"?  My go to place to find such things is Formations on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles.  I love their outdoor garden area where I can find stuff that will soften up my client's outdoor space without any maintenance issues.  My client had a choice between a custom green wall or these driftwood sculptures.  He picked driftwood sculptures because he's super busy and the last thing he wants to do is take care of plants!  So for those of you who are green thumb challenged, these sculpture may be the next best thing! 

Neverfull Bag from Louis Vuitton for America's Cup, San Francisco edition

 
I knew I should have stayed in line to get this bag!!!  I was there on the opening day.  I had no idea the Louis Vuitton pop up store in the America's Cup plaza had limited edition items.  Oh well.  How stupid of me.  I should have guessed.  I went couple days ago and the sales person told me they only made 400 of them and that they are not sure if they will get anymore in stock.  She also had no idea how many of them were sold already.  I was like no thank you.  Not interested in coming back daily when the store open to check if they get more stock that day.  That's a lot of work for a bag.  Although if my mom or sister say they want one, I probably will do it.

Winner of the Lanvin Notecards is......

 
Thank you all for entering the giveaway.  The winner of the Lanvin notecards is: Kylie M.!!!  Please email me your US shipping address!  Congrats and thank you for entering the raffle.  For everyone else, stay tuned.  I promise my next giveaway in August will surely delight most of you! 

UFO is coming!

 
The best way to light up your kid's room is using AlessiLux portable table lamps as they are absolutely the cutest lighting source one can find.  These lamps are rechargeable and by using the LED light bulb, each charge last you up to three days.  There is the added bonus of by using these lights, you will not only help reduce Co2 admissions, but also save money on your electric bill.  How great is that?!  You can find more info on Foreverlamp.  UFOs may be purchased from your local Alessi stores.

Gamme Bleu from Moncler Fall/Winter 2013

Thom Browne does it again for Moncler's Gamme Bleu line.... always outrageous, weird, and brilliant at the same time.  This season his inspiration came from Scotland.  Are men around the world going to be wearing kilts this winter?  Not likely.  It's a runway show after all.  You gotta give it some flair and drama.  Parsing the collection, I love all the Scottish Plaid patterns (Tartan)!  The layering of tartan on tartan is just brilliant.  Even though it's only July, I can't wait for the cold weather to come.

Jeff Koons' new dinner service collection for Bernardaud

If you collect contemporary art, then surely you are well versed with Jeff Koons' work.  If you never heard of him, well, depending on the critic, Jeff Koons is either brilliant or kitsch.  But whether you like him or not, he hold the record for the second most expensive living artist after Gerhard Richter.  That's nothing to sneeze at for sure.  

One can roughly divide Koon's work into many series.  The earliest is the Pre-New, the New, and Equilibrium series, then Statuary series, then Luxury and Degradation series, then Made in Heaven series, then Banality series, then Puppy series, then Celebration series, then Popeye and Hulk Elvis series, then Antiquity series, and most recently Easyfun series.

Bernardaud celebrating its 150 year anniversary decided to commission various artists to design dinnerware for them.  One of them is Jeff Koons.  Jeff decided to revive images from the Banality series for Bernardaud.  You can buy from dinner plates, to coffee cups and everything in between from Bernardaud's website.  Talk about high art for the dinner!  This dinner service bound to strike up conversations for years to come.  

What brand of sweater did William wear for the engagement photo to Kate?

 
Obviously William can pretty much afford to buy any brand of sweater his heart desires.  For this very important engagement photo with him and Kate, he decided to wear a sweater by Brunello Cucinelli. 

Brunello was born in 1953 in Perugia.  In 1978, he decided to go into cashmere business.  In 1985, he bought a dilapidated 14th century castle of Solomeo on the outskirts of Perugia.  He has operated his company from the castle since.  Today the company has about 500 employees and 1000 outside contractors. 

What sets BC apart from other fashion houses is that he treats all his workers with compassion and dignity.  Garment workers are known to be stuck in a cramp area where they work none stop.  But at BC, they are surrounded by orchards and take hour and half lunch breaks.  There are no time cards to punch and no security camera around to make sure people are actually working.   At BC, everything is on an honor system.

Together with happy workers, exceptional knitting skills, and finest cashmere one can find (Only the fur in a very limited area of the goat’s throat is used), Brunello's cashmere sweaters are ranked right up there with Loro Piana's with the price to match (William's sweater will set you back an eye watering $830).

Why spend that money when you can get a cashmere sweater at some department stores for less than $100 if not $50?  You get what you pay for always rings true in this case.  Lesser quality cashmere will pill and sag.  When you stretch your cashmere sweater, does it go go back into shape?  Lesser quality will not.  When you holdup your cashmere sweater to sky, do you see much of it?  Good quality cashmere with finest yarn has density to it thus you should not see much sky.  Beware of the super soft cashmere sweaters, that means they are over-milled and will loose its shape.  Best cashmere sweater will get softer as you hand wash them and should last years.  In addition to all of these, there is also sustainability factor to farming for cashmere.  Cashmere goats (mostly from Mongolia) doesn't just eat grass, they yank the whole grass up by the roots.  Part of the reason why Beijing gets hit by sandstorm yearly is that all the sands are blown down from Mongolia because they are not being held down by vegetation.  Sustainable cashmere means the goats will have to be kept in enclosures and fed regularly so they don't tear up all the grass.

More history of Brunello Cucinelli can be found on their own website and their goods can be purchased at Barney's New York, Bergdorf Goodman, and Saks Fifth Avenue.  

100+ Member Lanvin Stationery Notelets/ Cards Giveaway

Thank you all for joining my blog.  To celebrate the 100+ member milestone, I decide to giveaway a box of Lanvin notelets/cards (retails for $80) as a way to thank you for reading my blog.  The set includes faces drawing by Lanvin designer Alber Elbaz who also made a special appearance on the card (the guy with green bow tie).   Naturally these cards are as chic as they come.

With internet age, people rarely send physical cards anymore.  However, I still like to send a thank you card whenever I attend a house party.  Perhaps I'm a bit old school but I think at the end of the day, any host would appreciate the gesture.  Don't you think?  This set is also great for that fashionista friend of yours.  Doesn't she has a birthday coming up?  Who doesn't love to get a box with Lanvin inscribed on the top?  

Please note: apologies to my international friends - I wish I could extend these giveaways to you but legal restrictions prevent it. Thanks for understanding. 

And the winner for Michael Kors iPad giveaway is....

 
Congrats to Lauren D.!  Don't forget to send me your mailing address.  And thank you everyone else for entering.  Please looking for another giveaway from me very soon.  I promise it'll be something equally as fabulous if not more next time.   

Review of Saint Laurent Paris Womenswear Fall/ Winter 2013

 
We are just getting into summer but fall/winter collections are making appearances in stores.  One of the hottest brand right now is still Saint Laurent Paris.  Everyone is wondering what Hedi Slimane will do next after some said a very safe YSL spring/summer 2013 collection.  Well, looks like Hedi went in a total different direction for the fall/winter season.  Many said it was a head scratcher....  He visited the grunge era this time around.  People thought that it was too un-YSL; not luxurious enough and not too daring either.

The naysayers need to give Hedi time.  It's very hard to incorporate the legendary YSL magic into one's own design style.  With that said, I actually do like the fall/winter collection from Saint Laurent Paris.  The womenswear more or less modeled after Courtney Love while men's wear is after Kurt Cobain... ie grunge style.  Obviously grunge was popular back in the early 90s.  20 years have passed and we all know fashion goes in circles (for example bell bottom was popular in both 70s and 90s).

I particularly like this look for the ladies.  It feels like a good mixture of elegance (can one say grunge and elegant in the same sentence?) and hip.  If one pulls the whole look apart, there are actually a lot of YSL-ism in this outfit.  First, the jacket itself is a pure YSL color (sparkly gold and black) and fabrication.  You can easily pair that jacket with black pants and look totally chic.  The nude color dress underneath the dress is very feminine looking.  With a pair of stiletto, you can be the bell of the ball at any cocktail party.  Pairing of the long scarf, fishnet stocking, and studded boots give this look a grunge styling.  I actually love the scarf.  It feels most out of place in this ensemble which is why I think it's ingenious.

I'm actually quite glad that Hedi brought back the glamor rock and roll girl.  Since the departure of Christophe Decarnin of Balmain, I feel there is a hole in the fashion world.  Hedi does it in a very controlled elegant way whereas Decarnin's version feels overtly sexual.  Men's 2014 Spring/Summer collection was recently shown and it was obviously inspired by Mick Jagger.  One has to wonder who will inspire his womenswear this time around?    

Missoni Home Pouf sale!

 
Ever had a huge party and your guests ended up having to stand for hours on end because you don't have enough seating?  Or one of your room needs some pizzazz but you are at a loss how to make it work?  Well Missoni Home has just the right thing for you.  Their poufs are colorful, fashionable, and actually utilitarian.  These on-the-go seatings come in many different fabrics, patterns, shapes, and sizes to fit your needs.  Yliving is having a 10% off sale on these poufs until July 14th or wait for flash sales at Gilt or One Kings Lane.

Is that a necklace?

If I told you it's a sleek clean lined necklace, you would have believed me.  But I'm here to tell you, it's not a necklace.  It's actually a light pendant!  Yes.  You read it right.  It's a light pendant.  The light fixture is called Rudi Single Loop designed by Lukas Peet. I bet he was inspired by one of the jewelry in his father's (who's a jeweler) possession.  I love the simplicity and elegance of the design.  I can see 30 of them hanging down in a two story lobby in a boutique hotel or few of them in a Poliform closet.  You can get the pendants at Roll and Hill.

Collaboration between 3.1 Phillip Lim and Target

As you may know by now, Phillip Lim is doing a collaboration with Target this fall.  The collection drops on September 15.  I'm very excited to see what he comes up with.  It's nice to see that with this collaboration, menswear will be included.

For those of you who don't know much about Lim, here's the 411.  He was born in Thailand to Chinese parents.  They immigrated to LA (Orange county) when he was a baby.  He got an internship which turned into a design assistant job at Katayone Adeli after college (he studied fashion merchandising).  In 2000, he cofounded a brand called Development.  In the fall of 2005, he parted ways with Development and co-founded 3.1 Phillip Lim with his friend Wen Zhou.  The company is called 3.1 Phillip Lim because both were 31 years old at that time.

Lim has since racked up awards left and right.  He won the Emerging Talent in Womenswear award in 2007 awarded by Council of Fashion Designers of America.  In 2012, he was given by CFDA the Swarovski award for Menswear.  In 2013, he won the Accessories designer of the year awarded by CFDA. 

According to his website, "3.1 is about clothes that refine instead of define.  A refinement that's a bit classic in attitude, but imparts a sense of individual style, without looking for feeling forced.  Confident, chic, and most of all, effortless."

Make sure you follow my blog closely.  I may just have a giveaway of something something from 3.1 Phillip Lim next month before his collaboration with Target drops.  ;-)

Happy 4th July Giveaway! This time is a Michael Kors iPad Sleeve.

Happy July 4th!  To celebrate this holiday, I'm giving away a Michael Kors iPad sleeve.  For tech-savvy fashionistas on-the-go, this eye-catching iPad case from Michael Kors is the ultimate accessory. The super-soft neoprene is decked out in signature-embossed circles, while the well-padded interior keeps your iPad safe and secure!  Please note: apologies to my international friends - I wish I could extend these giveaways to you but legal restrictions prevent it. Thanks for understanding.

Roy Lichtenstein paper plates

 
With July 4th looming, I'm sure you are either barbequing in your backyard or attending one celebrating this great holiday.  With so many paper plates to choose from, can I suggest one with Roy Lichtenstein print?  Barney's New York is collaborating with Art Production Fund to produce Roy Lichtenstein's famous paper plates with 25% of the proceed going to the Fund.  So not only your bbq will look even more fabulous with these fantastic plates, you are also helping a worthwhile organization that commissions and produce ambitious public art projects, reach new audiences, and expand awareness through contemporary art.  Nothing is better than functional art! 

Damien Hirst's Large Spot Clock

 
If you are a contemporary art collector, no doubt you have heard of Damien Hirst before.  If you don't venture much into contemporary art scene, here's a quick 411: he is one of the biggest cheese among his contemporaries; like Andy Warhol who dominated 1970s and 1980s, Damien Hirst dominates 2000s and 2010s.  Hirst is known for a few things: formaldehyde animals in vitrines, spot paintings, medicine cabinets, and a human skull recreated in platinum and adorned with 8,601 diamonds weighing a total of 1,106.18 carats. 

The Large Spot Clock is, of course, after his own spot paintings.  Hirst explains that, “mathematically, with the spot paintings, I probably discovered the most fundamentally important thing in any kind of art. Which is the harmony of where colour can exist on its own, interacting with other colours in a perfect format."  Hirst once said he imagined these works as depicting a kind of alternate reality covered entirely in dots.  Like all contemporary art, how you interpret his spot paintings is your own business.  Of course Damien Hirst, being as commercial as he can, came up with spot clock which you can buy on his website.  And why not?  He's just taking Andy Warholism a little bit further.  Surely Andy would have done the same if he was still around.  Don't you think?

Cavallo Point Lodge

 
Cavallo Point Lodge is where San Franciscans do their staycation.  It's a hotel right across Golden Gate Bridge north of San Francisco.   There are two lodging style choices:  One is traditional and the other is modern.  The traditional ones are perfect for families with kids.  There are multiple rooms in these lodges where everyone can have their own room.  In front of traditional lodges is a huge grass lawn where kids can run wild (and they do).  The contemporary lodges are up in the hills with great views of the Golden Gate bridge.  I had the pleasure to stay at a contemporary lodge and it was definitely memorable.  If green building is your thing, then Cavallo Point will not disappoint you.

Murray Circle restaurant on site is also quite good.  Prices are very reasonable.  Sure, you are not getting a Michelin Star food and presentation, but you are not paying Michelin Star prices either.  Their four course lunch menu for $23 is a steal!  You can't go wrong with the price and quality.

CP also has a very nice spa.  If you have a chance, definitely go check it out.  I had a pleasant facial there.  Staff were friendly and the facility was calming and tranquil. 

I had a very pleasant stay here and would definitely be back.

Early summer sales round up! 2013 edition

 
No doubt you have seen lots of department stores slashing prices left and right so that the savvy shoppers can snatch up a thing or two at lower price points.  Currently Saks is running 55% off, while both Bergdorf and Barney's New York is running a hefty 60% off.  Although frankly speaking most of the stuff at Bergdorf Goodman is still less than 50% off while Barney's did their slashing a week and a half ago which drastically diminished their inventory.  I think whatever is left on Barney's.com now is basically none moveable until they do another round of price cutting as it's pretty much picked over and then some.

Online retailers such as Mr Porter and Ssense are also furiously cutting their prices.  Ssense slashed some of their Lanvin leather handbags to 70% off a week ago.  Needless to say, most of those are gone.  This morning, some of their stuff besides Lanvin leather bags also join the 70% off club.  However, quite a few more desirable pieces are still hung onto that pesky 50% off.  Mr Porter also claimed up to 70% off but the more desirable brands are still at 40-50% off.  I don't think they can move those until they get to a truly 70% off in a few weeks.

For those of you obsessed with Missoni, just go to their main website and you can find the spring/summer stuff are already at 50% off (while websites like Mr Porter with less selection are still at stubborn 40% off).  Many places still have Saint Laurent Paris at 30% off.  But just go to Saint Laurent Paris' website.  It's already 50% off.  More selection and better mark downs.

The best sale of this season has got to be at Barney's New York.  They decideded to mark down most of their men's Fendi Selleria bag line to 60% off couple weeks ago.  I was in bag heaven!  I mean you really can't go wrong with buying a well made classic bag that you can use many many years to come.

The surprise sale of this season is men's Christian Louboutin.  They never ever held a men's sale before so it was a huge surprise to see finally men can buy on sale CL shoes (in their men's boutique as well as Barney's New York only)!  While most of the on sale shoes are basically the styles that you wouldn't want to be caught dead in (I kid), but it's an improvement of absolutely no sale to one sale every three years??  I hope to see it every season!

If I have all the money in the world, I would get this Lanvin watersnake leather jacket.  I have never seen anything like it.  It's got to be one of those classic cool jacket you can wear year after year.  It's nicely marked down at 50% off...... sadly still way outside of my budget.  One can only dream!    

Lighthouse Lamp by Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec

 

This lamp created by Ronan & Erwan for Established & Sons and Venini is just brilliant.  I love the shape of the glass.  It feels very fragile yet substantial.  This lamp is actually quite large in person.  I was told the glass is rather difficult to blow because of the size.  I just love the clean line of the form.  The juxtaposition of the hardness of the marble base and fragile nature of the glass top is very interesting and give the piece just right amount of tension.  Apparently it can be purchased either through your Venini dealer or Established & Sons.

BVRB, maître ébéniste

BVRB, aka BERNARD II VAN RISAMBURGH.  He is probably regarded as the best cabinet maker during the reign of Louis XV.  His gilt bronze mount (ormolu) is always more delicate looking when compares to his contemporaries and typically his cabinet would be inlaid with Japanese lacquer panels.   He is also known for inlaying his pieces with Sevres porcelain plaques.  In fact, he was the first cabinet maker to incorporate them into furniture.  His work is actually very easy to spot once you see enough of them.  The biggest giveaway is his ormolu... they always look so delicate and spindly.

To see his work, one just have to stroll through the Getty Museum in Los Angeles, the Metropolitan Museum in NYC or V&A Museum in London.   His work do come up at Christie's or Sotheby's from time to time.  They are highly sought after and often cost upwards of seven figures.