Numéro Tokyo #77 (June 2014): "Fashion Survivor"

June issues of fashion magazines are only just coming out, but I am already declaring this story from Numéro Tokyo my favorite editorial of the month. Dutch model Querelle Jansen delivers in this story, photographed by Laurie Bartley and styled by Felipe Mendes. Her nonchalance and coolness paired with the unusual photography - gotta love those angles and the intriguing setting - make this an inspiring, memorable editorial that I just had to share here.

source: tfs forums

WANT WANT WANT

When it comes to buying clothes, I try to be rational in spite of my serious love for fashion and designers. But sometimes being rational is hard, really hard. Not to mention how hard it is to not be able to afford most things you want. But, usually I can deal with all that pretty damn well. This season, however, I'm struggling. The reason being this incredible Junya Watanabe MAN reversible jacket:

source: farfetch.com

Argh, isn't it beautiful? I tried it on earlier this year, not expecting that I would actually fall in love with it. I didn't want to take it off. But at around $1,500 it was not something I could spontaneously splurge on. So I decided I should wait for it to go on sale. The jacket, a collaboration with traditional German Outdoors manufacturer Seil Marschall (You may want to go to their website to convince yourself of their total charming German-ness), is the standout piece in the glorious Spring 2014 collection. Not too surprisingly, it's already sold out almost everywhere. Last weekend, I went back to the store where I first saw it (MAC in Hayes Valley) and they seem to have sold out of my size, as well. I am probably out of luck and will never own this jacket, but this is one genius and gorgeous fashion item that I will dream about for a while.  It is fashion. Swooooon.

Model Natalie Westling nails it once again

For a new model to constantly deliver flawless work, that is quite something. Normally I am left unimpressed with the editorials that model agencies make their models do while being in development. That's not the case with Natalie Westling.

Natalie came pretty much out of nowhere and showed up on the scene in August 2013. Her bookings for fashion week in her first season were solid (Marc Jacobs in New York, Giles in London, SLP and Louis Vuitton in Paris) but her abysmal walk had me question her skills as a model. And then what happened? Girl wowed me with her first proper print work, a stunning editorial in Vogue Russia's November 2013 issue. What followed was nothing but inspiring, fun, interesting appearances in publications such as LOVE, Interview, i-D and Vogue Paris. Her uniqueness partly stems from her seeming so confident about being awkward and weird, and it resulting in unusual visuals that you will be sure to remember (and pin! pin! pin! on Pinterest). But see for yourself:

(Vogue Russia, November 2013, ph: Benjamin Alexander Huseby)

source: thesocietymanagement.com

(LOVE Magazine online, S/S 2014, ph: Drew Jarrett)

source: models.com

Her latest coups? Three shots in the Jeff Bark editorial from AnOther Magazine's S/S 2014 issue, which make the other models' pictures pale in comparison. 

source: models.com

AND some seriously striking and captivating shots in Vogue Italia's April cover story, "Horror Movie" (by Steven Meisel):

source: vogue.it

VFiles: much awesomeness

So, I had heard about VFiles before. I had even studied their NYFW shows in detail on style.com. But what I did not realize until recently is just how freaking awesome this self-proclaimed "online cultural network" is. 

A few weeks ago, Nordstrom in SF had an in-store pop-up store that displayed quite a few items from the VFiles main collection and some of the brands promoted through them. It was fun but didn't pique my interest enough to do more research on what else VFiles has to offer. Today, however, I suddenly thought of some of their cult items, the "Team Tisci 74", "Team Margiela 57" etc. jerseys, designed by LPD New York. 

Much to my surprise, the VFiles webshop has so much more to offer than the trendy designer urban streetwear kind of stuff I had associated with this brand. The online shop is a goldmine for all quirky, fun, original and exciting brand-new and established designerwear.

My favorite pieces? 

This Wil Fry 'Expensive' sweater:

And the Jeremy Scott 'Earth Sucks' cropped mesh tank:

all images: shop.vfiles.com/

The vintage section on the website is absolutely worth checking out, too. This network really has the finger on the pulse and I can easily see myself becoming hooked. I can't wait to see which bright new talents they will add to their roster every season, because one thing is for sure: these people know what is cool. 

YSL La Laque Couture "Spicy Collection"

Normally I am extremely faithful to Chanel when it comes to nail polishes. But since it looks like they are not releasing anything all that interesting in the near future (unless you are into the boring red/pink/coral kind of color palette) I didn't feel guilty checking out what other designers are releasing this Spring. Dior has a few pretty products in their 'Trianon' and 'Transatlantique' collections, but none of them were must-haves for me. 

Now, the real standout this season is YSL's La Laque Couture "Spicy Collection", a range of nail polishes inspired by, yeah, spices. The collection includes seven different nail polishes, but not all of them seem to be available everywhere. 

I was lucky to get my hands on "Safran Sultan" (#42) and "Ambre Gingembre" (#44). I passed on "Feuille D'Or" (#47) for multiple reasons (gives me carnival vibes, looks like it could get messy, would clash with my silver jewelry, etc.). 

source: yslbeautyus.com

"Safran Sultan" is exactly what it promises to be, a lush saffron color. It's unique and interesting and I love how it matches the eye color of my BSH cat (important detail, yup). "Ambre Gingembre" is a nice amber shade that resembles the "ginger" used as descriptive term for red hair. It's the first non-trashy orange-y nail polish shade ever, seriously. It's warm and deep but not garish. Super beautiful.

What's awesome about both nail polishes is that they are super easy to apply (love the wide brush!), one coat is enough and will look fantastic for over a week. 

Favorite beauty release of the year so far!