l'ete a la vanderbilt

My latest attempt at vlogging, lol. Summer visits to the Vanderbilt mansion /museum. Parisian and Spanish vibes. 🌹

Simple Summer Looks | Thrift

A few simple / minimal thrifted looks I put together this summer.🌹

A Legend : Azzedine Alaïa

(Source)

On November 18, 2017 the fashion world had lost an icon, a legend, a true couturier, Azzedine Alaïa.

Best known for his form fitting dresses, Alaïa was a "sculptor of the female form," the "king of cling," a master of his craft. Everything he created was a true work of art and was and will always be widely appreciated by many women. Alaïa made his own rules, created his own system and did things on his own terms, rarely ever following the fashion calendar, he would reveal his designs when he saw fit. 

"The present fashion system is too hard - there are too many collections. The designers have no time to think! Money is too important. Schedules are too crazy. | A human being is not a machine. Especially when it comes to creating." - Azzedine Alaïa

In July of 2017, Azzedine Alaïa showed his first couture show in six years, of course miss Naomi opened and closed the show. Their friendship is unmatched, the love they have for each other goes so far beyond anything. Naomi often talks about the positive impact "Papa" has had on her life and modeling career. She once stated that he was the one that convinced her to do runway, something she doubted heavily at the time. 

"He has been so important to me throughout my life and supported me from a very young age. He gave me confidence as a young woman and I wouldn’t be where I am if it weren’t for him." — Naomi Campbell

"All women should get to wear Alaïa, because it does something to you, I don't know what, but it just does, and everyone in a different way." - Naomi

This is a remembrance of Alaia, a man who rejected the status quo and impacted the world of design.

See more of Alaïa here

2017 Couture Collection

2011 Couture Collection

1991 RTW Collection

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Read more about Alaïa here :

Azzedine Alaia & Yohji Yamamoto In Conversation

The Last Great Craftsman of Fashion

The Master of the Female Form

Azzedine Alaïa and Naomi Campbell

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A post shared by S I L B R U I N S M A (@silbruinsma1) on Nov 18, 2017 at 1:10pm PST

The Margiela Tabi Boot

"SOMEHOW THIS ABSTRACT PIECE HAS BECOME TIMELESS AND CLASSIC ON ITS OWN ACCORD."

[ The Tabi is of Japanese origin, and is usually an ankle sock with a split in between the toes 

made to be worn easily with the Geta or Japanese wooden block shoes. ] 

This very unique piece of footwear has become my latest obsession and I kind of fell through the Margiela Tabi boot rabbit hole of research. Presented to public eye at his very first show in 1989,  Margiela's interperation of the Japanese tabi sock would not go unnoticed.. Before hitting the runway every model would cover their soles with red paint and walk across a white colored runway, leaving behind one of the most iconic footprints from one of the most iconic shoes of all time. In the beginning of his career the Margiela house budget was zilch, nothing. So new forms of shoes were not an option, his collections had to recycle, reuse, and renew the tabi boot style but luckily enough for the brand the tabi took off in an unexpected way. This boot was a hot ticket and in popular demand, it has been going strong with the brand for over 28 years now. 

See what's on the market now: 

Fulfill all your Tabi boot info needs here:

The Tale of Margiela's Tabi Boot 

Customized ‘Tabi’ boot, Maison Martin Margiela S/S 1990

The Instagram documenting the Margiela Tabi’s 28-year reign

Youtube videos 1 & 2

 Photos taken from Totokaelo and Tumblr 

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Art Meets Fashion w/ Paloma Wool

Paloma Wool is not just another brand, its an artistic project. A space where fashion, art, and photography meet. There are different artists that work on pieces of each collection and the hand painted illustrations on the garments are truly what makes this label stand out, its what makes each garment special. And I'm obsessed with it. #WISHLIST

"Paloma Wool is my name and the name of this project, which is about getting dressed and about space or ideas that are created around the act of getting dressed."

Check out their Instagram and website. 

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I've Been Waiting For

For the longest while I been obsessing over this bag from Future Glory and being that I'm a college student in no place of spending damn near $400 on bag, I was praying and hoping that some fast fashion store (*cough cough Zara*) would just remake this. A year goes by nothing so I just stopped checking for it, until recently when I was on Forever 21 just browsing through the bags while listening to Solange's new album (which is perfect btw) and by chance I stumbled across it.

I guess good things come to those who wait.
This bag looks amazing, like a high quality, expensive bag, you honestly wouldn't be able to tell it was a Forever 21 bag priced at only $25. Def my favorite purchase of the month.

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Revenge Of The Brand Tees?

              

* Photo sources are here and here *

Trend alert: because I've seen one too many today. 

Once upon a time logos on a tee were a big thing, actually they were all over everything. Then they disappeared and now they're creepin' back.

I'm talking band tees, graphic tees, printed tees, logo tees, whatever. "Merch!" Think Kanye, Justin Bieber or Vetements. Even Dolce & Gabbana came through with their own merch tees recently. Whether its from brands, bands, or your favorite artist... Everyone seems to have 'em and everyone wants to wear 'em, they're all over.
Any thoughts?
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Fall Wishlist w/ SheIn

Find here:

 Pink Off The Shoulder Bell Sleeve

Find here:

Black Long Fringe Mesh Kimono

Find here:

Black Mesh Insert Ruffle Cuff

Find here:

Black Bell Sleeve Open Back

Find here:

White Off The Shoulder

For the Fall season, its all in the details!

I'm loving regular or minimal pieces with detailing that elevate it, it's not doing too much and it's not doing too little. So I'm talking about off the shoulders, cut outs, embroidery, fringe, ruffles, etc.. SheIn has a lot of these types of pieces that I'm looking for at very good price, and now they have free shipping worldwide so that's a plus.

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Disclaimer
This post is not sponsored, I did not receive a commission to write this post.

Raw, Frayed Hems

Frayed hems, raw hems, or whatever you want to call it. This denim trend has been everywhere! 

You can find a lot of the top bloggers and street style pros rocking this trend ... they just make it look so damn good. Your fraying can be as subtle or extreme as you want, either way it will add the right amount of cool and elevate any look. I am definitely gonna try a good ole DIY with this one and see how it turns out.
Let me know what you think about this trend?

Find me on Instagram

xxMel

Photo Sources: 1 2 3 4 5 

A$AP Rocky & Naomi Campbell For POP Mag

 

Currently adoring this SS16 campaign featuring Queen Naomi and A$AP for POP magazine.

The 90s nostalgia is so real for this fresh collab between A$AP and Guess. For the new line “Guess Originals” Rocky was greatly inspired by the Guess archives, during an era where the brand was so heavily apart of the streetwear, rap scene. He wants to bring back some of that hype, as he states that “nobody ever remembers Fila and all these other brands, and what they meant to hip-hop back then." (Read full NY Mag interview here). This campaign with Naomi is one his promotions for the line and it only seems right, I mean she was one of top/most demanded models of that time. I literally replayed the short behind the scenes video so many times (watch here), and I plan on picking a few things up when the line drops. You can find it on Guess.com February 16.

Follow me on Twitter, let me know what you think about this collab.

xx Mel

New In // Zara

It was time for the sale at Zara and I did a little shopping. Bought a few graphic tees which I am loving for my lazy/casual days. Also the cute leather (faux, I think) backpack is perfect for the few festivals/concerts I will be attending this summer and it will also come in handy when I go back to school in September. I didn't go all out for this sale, but I really do love the little pieces I got.

 Let me know if you got anything during the sale or have any pieces on your wishlist.
Thanks for reading!

Till next time

xxMel