Runway Beauty D.I.Y.: Prada

It is so easy for me to get in a hair/makeup rut, defaulting to the same safe brown eyeshadow and loosely curled hair.  I was happy to find some fresh inspiration on the Milan runways!  The beauty look at Prada was striking and extreme, begging for a real world interpretation.  When toned down, the look could be perfect for New Year's Eve, or even just a night out on the town.  It had three fairly straightforward elements: 30s style finger waves, a heavy silver eyelid, and a strong brow.  Everything else was simple--a clean face, bare lips, and bare eyelashes.

I took a stab at recreating the look, aiming to make it less severe and more wearable.  I began with the hair, applying a generous amount of gel and creating a hard side part.  The finger wave technique is foreign to me, so I kind of fumbled my way through using a comb and clips to hold the waves in place until the gel was set.  Next, I applied liquid foundation and concealer to create an even base, then dusted translucent powder over my whole face.  For the eyes, I applied an eye primer, then swept a silver eye shadow all over my lids.  Instead of bringing the silver all the way up to the brow a la Prada, I gradually blended outwards using a pearly white shadow.  Next, I filled in my brows with pencil, adding thickness and length to the shape.  Finally, I applied a hint of clear gloss on my lips and mascara on my upper lashes, just to feminize the look a bit.

Et voila!  Prada done my way.

Spring 2011 Fashion Week: Milan

Viva Italia!  The overwhelming trend on the spring runways has been the seventies...we'll see if Paris follows suit.  I LOVE the Italian designers, so it is difficult to pick favorites.  When push came to shove, Emilio Pucci, Gucci, and Prada's spring shows were the standouts.

EMILIO PUCCI
Peter Dumas is a designer to watch.  Every collection he's put out for Emilio Pucci has been flat out gorgeous, and this is only his second spring showing for the design house.  He has a tremendous sense of color and print (necessary when you are working at Pucci), and his designs are sensual and glamorous.  This collection has a very relaxed, earthy feel, but these dresses would still look right at home on the red carpet.

GUCCI
This collection is strong, sexy, and drenched in color.  What's not to like?  I think this is Frida Giannini's best show to date for Gucci.

PRADA
Miuccia Prada is not one to rest on her laurels.  After her critically acclaimed Mad Men-esque fall show, she did an about face for spring.  This collection pushed the envelope with goggle-like sunglasses, loud stripes, and baroque-style prints featuring monkeys and bananas.  To top it all off, the models were styled with gelled finger waves and a heavy silver eye, inspired by Josephine Baker.  I think Miuccia has a pretty good sense of humor.

HONORABLE MENTIONS
I had to throw these in to do justice to Milan.

Versus

D & G

Giorgio Armani

Jil Sander

Missoni

Versace

I am finally caught up!  Paris Fashion Week begins tomorrow.

Spring 2011 Fashion Week: London

Moving right along to London Fashion Week.  Honestly, this is my least favorite of the four...I can never seem to get excited about the London shows.  It doesn't help that this season Burberry Prorsum, my usual favorite from London, was a huge disappointment.  Christopher Bailey showed one dated, tacky look after another, so Burberry remains absent from this post.  My favorites for Spring 2011 were Jonathan Saunders, Christopher Kane, and Matthew Williamson.

JONATHAN SAUNDERS
So many designers shy away from pretty, feminine looks for spring in hopes of being fresh and unpredictable.  Jonathan Saunders instead wisely sticks with what works--crisply tailored, feminine clothes in a bright spring pallette.  He showed preppy, wearable looks, and beautiful shoes to boot.  Women will want to wear these clothes.



CHRISTOPHER KANE

Christopher Kane worked with classic ladylike shapes, subverting them with eye searing neon and laminated lace (perhaps a little reminiscent of Proenza Schouler).  The collection really comes to life with his printed numbers, which are all trimmed out in neon, of course.  The result is a beautiful, interesting collection--my favorite from London.

MATTHEW WILLIAMSON
Matthew Williamson is a master of the slightly psychadelic print.  I am a sucker for a good print, so I love this guy.  My favorites from his spring collection were the fringed numbers and flowy boho printed gowns.  Hopefully we'll see some of these pieces on Matthew's muse, Sienna Miller.

 
Next stop...Milan!

The New French Mani

I now interrupt my fashion week posts to bring you this very important nail polish report.  Upon seeing this photo of Marie Claire accessories editor Taylor Tomasi Hill at London Fashion Week, I immediately zoned in on her fabulous manicure.  Of course, this was something I would have to try for myself immediately.  I love how clean and modern this looks, plus it reminds me of Chanel patent cap toe shoes.

 

The inspiration

 

The results



Spring 2011 Fashion Week: New York pt. 2

I am not going to begin to try to cover all the collections from New York; I'll just highlight a few looks from three of my favorite spring shows.

RODARTE

The Mulleavy sisters are some of the most creative designers in the biz, taking dark or ugly inspirations (decay, Frankenstein, scars) and turning them into art on the runway.  This season they were inspired by 70s suburbia in California. The collection was more tailored and wearable than their previous ones, therefore highly covetable by moi.  I am loving their wood grain prints--who would have thought that would turn out so beautifully?

PROENZA SCHOULER

Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCollough of Proenza Schouler are another immensely talented young pair.  They manage to make every collection look young and fresh, creating covetable fashion-forward seperates.  This season, they put a spin on classic "ladies who lunch" pieces, rendering them in neon tweeds and lace.  You really need to see the detail photos to appreciate their work with the textiles, as each piece has amazing texture. Proenza always has great accessories too--their bags and jewelry are to die for here. 

MARC JACOBS

Marc Jacobs usually plays with ugly pretty clothes in a mishmash of styles, but this one was just full on glamour.  Marc has transitioned from the serious 50s inspired clothes of his fall collection to fun 70s garb for the spring.  The frocks are long, flowy and saturated in color.  The playful styling is half the appeal of the collection--the frizzed out hair, oversized flowers, and colored wooden heels look like so much fun.