Hyeres - Top 5

The regular readers out there might have noticed that I can be little impatient/lazy and this forces me to take short cuts in some of my exploits, but on the majority of occasions rather than being shoddy the fruits of my quick burst of labour usually work. It works here. Many bloggers out there have been far more proactive than me when it comes to posting about Hyeres...I personally love how Susie Bubble has posted on the event, her eyes are my eyes... of course the Sartorialist captures some great images as well; there were plenty of people to snap but some of his choices surprised but as always impressed me... being a French festival there were plenty of French bloggers there, the pick of the bunch being Garance Doré, punky b and Cafe Mode. Without a further ado, here are my top 5 Hyeres moments:

1 - The Villa Noailles itself.

It is a beautifully modern building located on a mountain top with fabulous views of the city below. The drive up there might have been a little frightening (I rented a car, a nippy Citroen C3 - so I was the official driver of the event) but once there it was well worth it. The building, gardens and views are all breathtaking and it was the perfect place to chillax for most of the day reading Nico and a selection of other fashion magazines before wandering around the grounds and admiring the exhibitions.

The main garden where we sat, read and caught the sun

2 - Meeting the Sartorialist

OK - I admit it I didn't take this shot....I was far too scared to ask the great man for a photo - the image comes courtesy of A Shaded View.

After spending much of my time at the festival waiting to spot the Sart, I bumped into him at the party on the last night. He isn't at his most comfortable at parties, he certainly isn't a Facehunter, but we talked about his makeover post, why he wanted to do it and of course the furore which followed. He wanted to do it because, well he wanted to do it, his experience goes much further than taking snaps of people and the opportunity itself arose. He was a little surprised by the level of negativity on the post, it was the times that his readers had attacked him personally but he stood by what he wanted to do. You have to admire that. The overall feeling I took away after meeting him was that he knows what he wants and he stands by what he does and doesn't want to be pigeonholed by people- if they don't like it they don't have to read the blog.

3 - People watching

I'm afraid that much of my people watching was just that, watching...I didn't have the balls to ask for a photo. I think myself and Thomas from the Sunday Best need to sign up to Street Style Photography masterclasses. The most memorable person was a chap from Madrid who sported a clash of floral patterns...he certainly had the gaze of most of the people in and around the garden.

I really shouldn't like this in any capacity but I think under the sunshine of the South of France, the clash of florals worked for me.

The majority of people on show were well dressed, I saw quite a few pairs of the Pierre Hardy Hi tops which we featured back in November, a few pairs of Raf Simon shades, a few Slimane Dior Homme suit jackets but there was a lot of people dressed all in black or very casually...I'm making excuses for myself...I should have been more snap happy. I'm sorry readers!

4 - Melvin Sarkozy photography exhibition.

The images were quite astounding. The only negative was the room in which they were hung was pretty much a greenhouse, but as my eyes were melting I was happy that these photos were probably going to be the last things that I ever so (NB fortunately my eyes didn't actually melt). The photographs themselves are timeless, a masterclass of techniques and eye. Interestingly though, the man himself didn't see himself as a Fashion Photograper... he was interested in the clothing only for producing a powerful shot.

5 - Eric Lebon room

This was my pick of the fashion exhibitions. Lebon is a Hyeres graduate (but not a winner) and is a self taught designer who mixes the cultures of hip hop with more traditional notions of menswear. The room was full on wonderful pieces which I would welcome into my wardrobe... none more so that the bag shown below...

Bags: Want Vs. Do Not Want

Inspired by a Bagtrends.com feature filled with bags I either love or loathe, plus a few other bags that have inspired in me extreme reactions in opposite directions...


WANT:

($1295, Marc Jacobs, Net-a-porter.com)

Delicious.

DO NOT WANT:

($128, Anthropologie)

Raffia disaster.


WANT:

(Price available upon request, Lizzie Fortunato, Refinery 29)

Dream of a bag at a nightmarish price.


DO NOT WANT:

($3395, Jimmy Choo, Net-a-porter.com)

Too Heidi Montag.


WANT:

($1954, Chloe, Asos.com)

Unrealistic for many reasons, one of which is because I am not represented by CAA.


DO NOT WANT:

($145, Aksuona, Bagtrends.com)

Oh no. Goodness, no. It's like a gay mollusk threw up on a gem-encrusted clutch.


DEFINITELY WANT:

($675, Botkier, Saks)

That's more like it.

Cynthia Rowley's Whim...

...apparently involves picnics. And lots and lots of picnic accoutrements. Check out the Whim by Cynthia Rowley line for Target if you plan on lots of picnics this summer. My picks:



30-can cooler in red, with a ladybug appliqué! So much fun for $19.99. In less than two months this will be on the beach with me and my beer-drinking brothers and boyfriend in South Carolina. Can't come soon enough, really.



I might wear this floppy green hat, $9.99.



Maybe even this rather cute madras-print tote, $16.99. Perfect beach bag.

This post has given me a hankering for a sandwich and a pile of pasta salad. Byeee!

She Pushed You Out of Her Vagina

The least you can do is get your mom a nice prezzie for her special day, next Sunday. You know you buy yourself enough stuff. Some ideas:

Gap cropped cardigan, $39.50. I bought two of these yesterday, one in a fun geranium color and the other in versatile cream. Uh, for myself. I think I might get my mom these:

Williams-Sonoma Parisian macaroons, $49.

I don't know about yours, but my mom loves her some brooches. Here we have a cute Anthropologie spotted owl pin, $44.

Tam's pick:

($45, Delight.com)

It's a teaposy set. Duh. Not really sure how or why, but it looks mom-like in a cool, non-Anne Geddes way.

Of course, you could always *make* something special, too, but that's another post. For another blog. As you were!

Sale Saturday: A Belated Report

Well, kids, I made it down to the Dolce Vita sample sale last weekend. I was a couple days too late for shoes, I guess, because there was nary a 7.5 to be seen. I fared a little better at the clothing racks, however, where everything was $25 or two for $40. I'm pretty excited about my awesome drapey royal blue dress, which everyone was trying on and advising each other about. I was debating between the small and the medium and was given the sound counsel to go with the small, because it's "already such a loose style." I wish I had a picture of it, but I can't find it anywhere online. It's this color though, but is way smoother:



Dolce Vita "Paper Bag" dress, $275.



This one's pretty cool too: the Dolce Vita "Leslie" dress, $209.

I also got a jersey tie cardigan, since I've been looking for cardigans for this "transitional" weather. Kinda boring but cheap and everyday-wearable. As I was checking out the girl taking money was loudly telling a story about Michelle Trachtenberg's visit the other day, and how her mom tried to get them to reduce the shoe prices from $25 to $15 for her. Famous people and their entitled entourages: still tacky!

Then I went to Puck Fair and had a few delicious beers with some friends I see all too rarely.



Hoegarden, $6 a pint. (Shouldn't daytime be happy hour?)

Then I headed up to the Union Square farmer's market and bought some gorgeous snapdragons.



Snapdragons, $10 a bunch.

Next I decided to check out Filene's Basement since it was right there, and lo and behold, bought two pairs of jeans. Go figure.



Earnest Sewn "Garbo" jeans, $59.99 at Filene's.





Plus a pair of Marithe + Francois Girbaud straight legs with thick topstitching and asymmetrical hem for $39.99. Excuse the extreme butt close-up.

THEN I popped into Payless in search of the fabulous Jill kitten heel in black, which is sold out everywhere, it seems (if you see it in size 8, get it for me! I have it in Berry and it was my go-to fall shoe). Instead the salesman told me they had a lot of shoes for $5 and were also doing a BOGO half-off sale, so I got these two Abaete pairs for a cool $7.50.



Abaete for Payless "Betty" ankle-wrap sandal in baby blue, $19.99 online.



Abaete for Payless "Harlow" pump, $19.99 online. ($2.50 in store!)

I can only hope this coming Saturday is as fun!

Alessandra Ambrosio On Arena Magazine June 2008

Although Alessandra Ambrosio was not included in the Forbes' World's Top-earning Models and doesn't have more appearance compared last year, at least she was not totally away from the spotlight. The soon-to-be-mom will appear on the cover of Arena magazine June 2008 issue.

For the mag, she had done sexy and racy photo shoot. The photos were obviously shot before Alessandra she got pregnant - as you can see, there was no baby bumps.





Photo Source



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World's Top Earning Models by Forbes

A quote from Heidi Klum states, "In fashion, one day you're in and the next you're out". Upon their release of the World's Top Earning Models list last April 30, 2008, Forbes magazine agreed to this statement. Looking to their list, I can observed that some models moved up, some down, some off, a few on.

1. Gisele Bundchen - $35 Million


After spending a year apart from Vistoria's secret, the 27-year-old Brazilian Bombshell continues to bag new contracts with Pantene and other cosmetics giant. Gisele also graces ads for Disney, Nivea, Vogue eyewear and Aquascutum. She also have her own line of Grendene sandals and Ipanema by Gisele.

2. Heidi Klum - $14 Million

The 34-year-old model and mother of three has renewed her Victoria's Secret contract, joins the hit Bravo (coming soon) reality fashion show Project Runway and Germany's version of America's Next Top Model. She designs three lines of Mouawad jewelry and a line of Jordache jeans. Heidi had new deals with Diet Coke, McDonald's, Volkswagen and Fontanis water. She's also coming out with a skincare line, In An Instant, to be marketed by powerhouse Guthy-Renker.

3. Kate Moss - $7.5 Million


The 34-year-old, Kate Moss, had ended ad campaigns with Burberry, Stella McCartney, Dior and Versace. But her retail line with British retailer Topshop, carried in 29 countries, is there to her rescue. Kate's clients include Donna Karan, Longchamp, Agent Provocateur, Yves Saint Laurent, Roberto Cavalli and Rimmel.

4. Adriana Lima - $7 Million


The blue-eyed beauty, 27, lost her Italian phone company Telecom Italia contract, but still holds on to her usual clients Victoria's Secret and Maybelline. She also modeled for Mexico City-based department store giant Liverpool and graced the April cover of GQ magazine. Adriana is hugely popular on the Web and in her Victoria's Secret commercials.

5. Doutzen Kroes - $6 Million


The Dutch model, Doutzen, makes the longest leap up the list this year. She represent fragrance and fashion with Calvin Klein's Eternity and White Label, cosmetics with L'Oréal and lingerie as the newest Victoria's Secret model. She's also into diamonds with De Beers.

The rest of the top 10 include:

6. Karolina Kurkova $5 Million
7. Natalia Vodianova $4.8 Million
8. Carolyn Murphy $4.5 Million
9. Daria Werbowy$3.8 Million
10. Miranda Kerr $3.5 Million
11. Gemma Ward $3 Million
12. Selita Ebanks $2.7 Million
13. Valentina Zelyaeva $2.3 Million
14. Hilary Rhoda $2 Million
15. Liya Kebede $1.5 Million

Too bad, Alessandra Ambrosio didn't make it to the list. She was on the #5 last year.



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