Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Charlotte Gainsbourg for Balenciaga
From the fashion vault, yes. Regardless of how old it is it's still an ad that I love. I'm so intrigued by Charlotte, with Serge Gainsbourg & Jane Birkin for parents, why wouldn't you be intrigued?
Monday, February 27, 2012
Welcome to AlphaStyle
New blog name! I did it! I came up with myself!
Thanks for your help and the messages I received privately also assisting in the name change. It was a long time coming.
If any of you have me listed in your blog rolls could I ask you to kindly change the link from KitCatKittyCat to AlphaStyle?
Thanks for all your support and let's get cracking! x
Thanks for your help and the messages I received privately also assisting in the name change. It was a long time coming.
If any of you have me listed in your blog rolls could I ask you to kindly change the link from KitCatKittyCat to AlphaStyle?
Thanks for all your support and let's get cracking! x
Make Life More Colourful
I love this video for Uniqlo's ankle length skinnies, featuring Tavi Gevinson and Cyndi Lauper amongst a heap of regular Joe's like you and I.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Bill Cunningham New York
Forget Scott Schuman or Tommy Ton, Bill Cunningham is the 80+yrs old original street style photographer. More than just a photographer, he is described by some as a historian of fashion in New York City.
The film documentary Bill Cunningham New York follows him through the streets of NYC & gives us an insight into his fascinating life.
Bill has a column with the New York Times entitled On The Street where he photographs people and fashions and reports on trends as he sees them from the streets.
Anna Wintour exclaims how herself & her fellow magazine editor friends are often shocked when a trend bypasses them and even the fashion designers themselves and is picked up by Bill through the photographs he takes on the street.
But the thing that stuck with me the most was that, in a modern world where we're obsessed with celebrity, and certainly in the fashion world where being a celebrity endorsement can really make a designer's business boom (see: The Kate Middleton effect), Bill really has no interest in celebrities and what they're wearing. Nor is he obsessed with designer or expensive clothes.
A former milliner, he has an eye for design and structure. But what excites him and spurs him on to photograph people is the creativity in their sartorial choices. As he says in the film whilst choosing a photo of an unknown woman in a stylish dress over a photo of a celebrity in a designer gown "that's not a model, that's a private person that bought their own clothes".
With the increase street style photography and whole blogs dedicated to them, it was inevitable that being papped by a well known street style photographer would become a mission for some. Prior to the recent fashion weeks I saw a few blogs detailing how to get noticed by the photographers. The main advice seemed to be to stick to a certain uniform du jour or be Alexa Chung.
Of course wearing head to toe Isabel Marant won't always guarantee you a spot on the street style blogs and there will always be the Anna Dello Russo's or Iris Apfel's that don't dress by trends or what's "in" and simply stick their own veritable mishmash style. According to Bill "a lot of people have taste, but they don't have the daring to be creative".
Whilst I still look to street style photos over magazines or runway trends for inspiration, what I find interesting about his comments and observations is that modern street style photography, or certainly street style blogs, seem to focus in on the same tired trends. Stylish they may be, but exciting and new? Most likely not. Sometimes you'll often see the same person featured in more than 1 street style piece, out of thousands of people roaming the streets at any one time. Surely this demonstrates just how there is a specific "look" that is appreciated by street photographers. Not so much with Bill Cunningham.
He leads what some might see as a somewhat lonely life, living in a small apartment filled with filing cabinets of his work, with no bathroom or kitchen and his bed a simple plank of wood held up on crates. A very private man, even those closest to him don't seem to know a whole lot about his background or family. And nor do they want to. It's very reflective of his own view of the people that he photographs every day & his disinterest in celebrities or where people are from in the photographs that he takes.
There's a few other interesting personalities featured in the documentary, aside from Anna Wintour and Iris Apfel, there's his longtime neighbour & well-known artist Editta Sherman. Their nonchalant chats about Andy Warhol give a glimpse into a possible past life. Also featured was the very interesting former UN diplomat from Nepal, Shail Upadhya, who used to wear conservative suits during the day at work in the UN and outfits made from various materials, including his couch, at night.
As I constantly seem to go through a wardrobe panic and often spend hours obsessing over expensive items that I can't afford, watching this made me appreciate fashion and style at it's most fundamental. Aside from the obvious, that we wear clothes to protect our modesty, we wear clothes as an extension of who we are, or sometimes as armour to show who we want to be.
Here is a man who could wear clothes from probably every designer under the sun if he so wished, but instead he opts for a $20 janitor's coat from a hardware department due to it's functionality.
He tapes up his rain poncho rather than buying a new one.
And he photograph's people because they look good in what they wear, rather than because of what they're wearing.
I loved this film/documentary on a humanist level as a great insight into a fascinating person from an era gone-by, an era of camera film developing and manners. And an insight into being creative and having creative relationships with people who admire your work.
But it's also made me appreciate more that some trends are just that, trends. A passing fad that mightn't necessarily be flattering to everyone. So, can I finally hold my hands up high and say I think JC Lita's look like orthopedic shoes for someone with a club foot? Or is that not very PC? Ah, send the PC brigade to me if need be, i'll already be fighting off the rest of the fashion blogger brigade for speaking out against Lita's!
The film documentary Bill Cunningham New York follows him through the streets of NYC & gives us an insight into his fascinating life.
Bill has a column with the New York Times entitled On The Street where he photographs people and fashions and reports on trends as he sees them from the streets.
Anna Wintour exclaims how herself & her fellow magazine editor friends are often shocked when a trend bypasses them and even the fashion designers themselves and is picked up by Bill through the photographs he takes on the street.
But the thing that stuck with me the most was that, in a modern world where we're obsessed with celebrity, and certainly in the fashion world where being a celebrity endorsement can really make a designer's business boom (see: The Kate Middleton effect), Bill really has no interest in celebrities and what they're wearing. Nor is he obsessed with designer or expensive clothes.
A former milliner, he has an eye for design and structure. But what excites him and spurs him on to photograph people is the creativity in their sartorial choices. As he says in the film whilst choosing a photo of an unknown woman in a stylish dress over a photo of a celebrity in a designer gown "that's not a model, that's a private person that bought their own clothes".
With the increase street style photography and whole blogs dedicated to them, it was inevitable that being papped by a well known street style photographer would become a mission for some. Prior to the recent fashion weeks I saw a few blogs detailing how to get noticed by the photographers. The main advice seemed to be to stick to a certain uniform du jour or be Alexa Chung.
Of course wearing head to toe Isabel Marant won't always guarantee you a spot on the street style blogs and there will always be the Anna Dello Russo's or Iris Apfel's that don't dress by trends or what's "in" and simply stick their own veritable mishmash style. According to Bill "a lot of people have taste, but they don't have the daring to be creative".
Whilst I still look to street style photos over magazines or runway trends for inspiration, what I find interesting about his comments and observations is that modern street style photography, or certainly street style blogs, seem to focus in on the same tired trends. Stylish they may be, but exciting and new? Most likely not. Sometimes you'll often see the same person featured in more than 1 street style piece, out of thousands of people roaming the streets at any one time. Surely this demonstrates just how there is a specific "look" that is appreciated by street photographers. Not so much with Bill Cunningham.
He leads what some might see as a somewhat lonely life, living in a small apartment filled with filing cabinets of his work, with no bathroom or kitchen and his bed a simple plank of wood held up on crates. A very private man, even those closest to him don't seem to know a whole lot about his background or family. And nor do they want to. It's very reflective of his own view of the people that he photographs every day & his disinterest in celebrities or where people are from in the photographs that he takes.
There's a few other interesting personalities featured in the documentary, aside from Anna Wintour and Iris Apfel, there's his longtime neighbour & well-known artist Editta Sherman. Their nonchalant chats about Andy Warhol give a glimpse into a possible past life. Also featured was the very interesting former UN diplomat from Nepal, Shail Upadhya, who used to wear conservative suits during the day at work in the UN and outfits made from various materials, including his couch, at night.
As I constantly seem to go through a wardrobe panic and often spend hours obsessing over expensive items that I can't afford, watching this made me appreciate fashion and style at it's most fundamental. Aside from the obvious, that we wear clothes to protect our modesty, we wear clothes as an extension of who we are, or sometimes as armour to show who we want to be.
Here is a man who could wear clothes from probably every designer under the sun if he so wished, but instead he opts for a $20 janitor's coat from a hardware department due to it's functionality.
He tapes up his rain poncho rather than buying a new one.
And he photograph's people because they look good in what they wear, rather than because of what they're wearing.
I loved this film/documentary on a humanist level as a great insight into a fascinating person from an era gone-by, an era of camera film developing and manners. And an insight into being creative and having creative relationships with people who admire your work.
But it's also made me appreciate more that some trends are just that, trends. A passing fad that mightn't necessarily be flattering to everyone. So, can I finally hold my hands up high and say I think JC Lita's look like orthopedic shoes for someone with a club foot? Or is that not very PC? Ah, send the PC brigade to me if need be, i'll already be fighting off the rest of the fashion blogger brigade for speaking out against Lita's!
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Such a cliché
I'm in love with Zara. I pass by a fairly large Zara store every day on my way to & from work. Some days I go in & get annoyed with everything in the shop, other days, like today, I go in and fall in love with everything.
Like these boots. Now, tell me what these wouldn't go with in an Irish summer?
Like these boots. Now, tell me what these wouldn't go with in an Irish summer?
Then there's cutesy summer dresses with peter pan collars. I'm still not tired of peter pan collars FYI.
One thing that i've found online & not yet in the shop is this poncho tshirt. But i'll persevere until I find it (or buy online).
As well as dipped hem skirts & dresses, there are scarf print blazers, beautiful fitted macs, parkas and leather jackets. But it was the vast selection of blouses & tops that got me really excited.
I could imagine wearing this blouse loose over skinny black jeans or leather leggings, or tucked into my pleated leather skirt.
This lace peplum top looks great as styled above over a tight fitted skirt. I love peplums & they look set to be everywhere for Autumn/Winter as well.
This lace blouse is a perfect example of feminine/masculine. The lace makes it oh-so girly, while the crisp, white cotton gives it a masculine edge. I'd love this in black.
My only gripe? The sizes. Please, Zara, give a little more room for the more ample bosomed ladies! And with that, i'm off to wait until payday and perhaps try a few on in between!
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Mary Katrantzou
From A/W 2012. I'd like a bit of that please.
Peplums, pleats and prints, oh my.
Images via style.com
NoirCat?
Kit-Cat-Kitty-Cat. It's a bit of a mouthful isn't it? When I started this blog I didn't think i'd tell anyone about it. But as opportunities have arisen and conversations have taken place, I realised telling people that your blog is called "Kit-Cat-Kitty-Cat" just sounds like you're taking the piss.
Which I might be, some of the time.
Anyway, I need a new name . Let's hussle. Got any ideas?
Closet Cat was one that I had decided I might like. Closet being another word for wardrobe, ceiling cat being an internet meme that makes me laugh. But then I thought it might make it sound like I have a secret to tell my family. And ex-boyfriends.
Catasrophe. NoirCat. LookCat. Gold Cat. CatBook. StyleCat. CatNip. CatSup. Cat Litter. Ooooh, see, the longer i'm left to think about something, the weirder it gets.
HELP.
Monday, February 20, 2012
Friends
The excitement I felt when I saw these 2 together on the front row at Mulberry LFW. I didn't know before now that they were friends. YES.
Anna Wintour & Billy Nighy
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Studs & Buckles
I've been looking for the perfect pair of ankle boots to wear whilst running about town. And here they are.
A dead ringer for Chloe Susan boots as well, eh?
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
DIY - A €3 Dress
At the weekend I trudged out in the rain for coffee and a jaunt around the local monthly flea market. As I stood sheltering under the cover over a slightly messy stall a golden glint caught my eye.
Ever a magpie for things of a tacky nature, this dress sang out to me. I fully expected it to be a tenner at least, so I was delighted to be told it was only €3! BARGAIN.
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I pulled it out of the pile fully and was quite disappointed to see it was quite large. But for €3 it was definitely worth chancing a bit of a DIY project.
First I chopped off the underskirt. And I was left with a lovely, tacky gold & black oversized top. My initial plan was to just wear this over pleather skinny trousers, but it was so oversized that it just looked like a sack of potatoes.
Next I cut the arms off at the seam. At this stage I tried it on again and was disappointed that the "shift dress" I was hoping for was, again, just a sack of potatoes.
I felt slightly defeated and threw it in a pile of clothes to be customised, vowing to take it in with a sewing machine at some point to make it less...voluminous.
And then I had a brainwave. The most obvious of brainwaves and Gok Wan's favourite piece of style advice - I added a belt.
And voila! Here is my €3 dress.
.JPG)
.JPG)
Ever a magpie for things of a tacky nature, this dress sang out to me. I fully expected it to be a tenner at least, so I was delighted to be told it was only €3! BARGAIN.
.JPG)
I pulled it out of the pile fully and was quite disappointed to see it was quite large. But for €3 it was definitely worth chancing a bit of a DIY project.
First I chopped off the underskirt. And I was left with a lovely, tacky gold & black oversized top. My initial plan was to just wear this over pleather skinny trousers, but it was so oversized that it just looked like a sack of potatoes.
Next I cut the arms off at the seam. At this stage I tried it on again and was disappointed that the "shift dress" I was hoping for was, again, just a sack of potatoes.
I felt slightly defeated and threw it in a pile of clothes to be customised, vowing to take it in with a sewing machine at some point to make it less...voluminous.
And then I had a brainwave. The most obvious of brainwaves and Gok Wan's favourite piece of style advice - I added a belt.
And voila! Here is my €3 dress.
.JPG)
.JPG)
Excuse the bad quality photos, blame the iphone.
I've caught the bug now and i've been scouring eBay for 80's peplum dresses so I can make more. MORE!
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