Extraordinary Designer Highlight

Antonio Berardi

I recently stumbled upon a fantastic designer I had never heard of before. His name is Antonio Berardi, and I am completely in love with his designs!! He is from Great Britain and is of Sicilian descent. So far, he mostly shows at London Fashion week, but he has shown at Milan and Paris as well. I personally think it's only a matter of time before he becomes a major, recognizable name in fashion.

Perhaps my favorite thing about his designs is his unique use of color and shape. Some of his pieces border on strange, but for me, most of them are downright stunning. I would love to hear what you think of the selection I have complied from his past 3 or 4 collections.

His most recent, pre-fall collection:
(This collection is all about angles and textures. So amazing!)

spring/summer 2015:
(Wonderful and varied colors and silhouettes!)

fall/winter 2014:
(That teal is absolute perfection! And combined with yellow?! Genius!)

The Face of Poldark: Past & Present

As a child, I grew up watching the 1970s BBC series of Poldark, a tale set in the l8th century Cornwall, full of passionate drama and larger-than-life characters. When I found out that a new series was in the making, I was more than thrilled. 

Angharad Rees & Robin Ellis as Demelza & Ross Poldark in the original 1975-1977 series

A couple years ago I started reading the novels, the first of which was published in 1945. I realised that the 1970s series had departed quite a lot from the novels. 

Last week I was able to see the first episode of the new Poldark series starring Aidan Turner and Eleanor Tomlinson, and so far it seems to follow the novels more accurately. Novel to screen adaptation aside, I want to take a look at the costuming of both series and see how they compare to extant late 18th century fashion. 

They did a good job in the original series of using bright colours and prints. 

This 18th century ensemble is similar to the outfit Demelza is wearing in the above picture.  (Fashion Museum Province of Antwerp)

Norma Streader as Verity Poldark. I love this dress, but think it might fit earlier in the 18th century than the Poldark story takes place.  

Detail of stomacher, Robe à la Française, 1725

For the most part, I think the costuming in the 1970s series is quite good. You can tell that they tried to be accurate, though it is inevitably 70s influenced. Even this frightening flight of fancy (Demelza's ball dress) is pretty authentic, though the colour is a bit garish. 

French, ca. 1775 (Met Museum)

In the new series, I think the same could be said - it is mostly accurate, though authentic details such as caps, fichus and neckerchiefs are missing. I think my biggest complaint in the new series is how flat the dresses are. Sometimes it doesn't look like the women (Demelza especially) are wearing any petticoats. 

Demelza's dresses are very plain as well. This reflects the fact that she is working-class, and is employed as a kitchen maid. But I think there is a misconception that poor people wore plain clothes, or only one layer of clothing. 

Here is a painting of a kitchen maid, complete with apron, cap and neckerchief.  (A Kitchen Maid, Hughes Taraval, 1783)

Sometimes, however, they get it pretty spot-on, as in these examples: 

Heida Reed as Elizabeth Poldark (BBC One). 

Dress a la polonaise, about 1780. Almost exactly the same as the above dress. Notice the fullness of the skirt, though, which is missing from Elizabeth's dress.

Ruby Bentall as Verity Poldark (BBC One). 

This Robe a l'Anglaise (Glasgow Museums) is astonishingly similar to the gown above, as though the costume designers made a copy of it. 

Elizabeth, Demelza & Verity in their ball gowns. I don't really like Demelza's dress. I doesn't seem accurate, and the fit of the bodice is awful (BBC One). 

It may have been based on this painting, though this is from 1761, and is therefore a good twenty years earlier than when the Poldark novels take place. If Demelza's ball gown had a better fitting bodice (look at how perfect it is in the painting!) and been fuller in the skirt, I think it would have worked better. 

I find that I quite like Verity's wardrobe in the new series (and in fact, I loved it in the old series as well). This ball gown of hers is very reminiscent of the Chemise a la Reine that became popular in the 1780s:

Probably in style it is a Robe a l'Anglaise, but the light colour and the gathering on the bodice are pulling elements from a Chemise a la Reine. 

Chemise a la Reine, 1785-1789. (Musée de la Toile de Jouy)

As with the way in which the books are adapted, there will be elements that you love, and some you do not like. The same goes for the costuming. Make sure you're in on the evening of June 21st (for those Americans reading this) and you can see for yourself!  

Cannes I Have Your Attention!

I love everything about this dress: The silhouette, the amazing print, the pockets, and Cate!

I have been terribly neglectful of my blog lately due to the fact that I am about to uproot my family and move to a new state. But I decided I could spare a few moments in order to highlight some of the beautiful fashion that came out of the Cannes Film Festival recently. I hope you enjoy my selections!

Fan Bing Bing never ever ceases to make me smile. Not everyone could pull this off, but I think she looks perfect!

This color is kind of crazy, but it somehow works on the beautiful Lupita.

Almost no one has the body and beauty to pull this form-fitting dress off. I love that it's daring without actually revealing any skin. Emily Bunt can honestly wear whatever she wants. 

Similar to the Met Gala (though not nearly as extreme), Cannes tends to be a little unique and gives stars some freedom at being a bit more creative than on the more conservative US red carpets. If you're wondering why some people are featured more than once, it's because the festival runs for more than a week and, therefore, has multiple red-carpet occasions. So it's kind of a win-win for us!

The sparkly black and full skirt on this gown is so lovely!

This is so simple yet elegant. Plus I don't think Natalie Portman has ever looked better.

In addition to Cate's amazing dress, I also love this slightly 70's look on Rooney Mara. 

A less-formal look. I love the color and shape combination! A lot!!!

OK, I am fairly certain that you will all scoff at me for this one. But it is just too dreamy for me to put on the worst list. Again, maybe if someone else was wearing it. But Fan Bing Bing is a perfect china doll who can get away with quite a bit of crazy. That light blue is my favorite color, and I am a sucker for florals. I simply have to sigh blissfully when I look at this.

I love the color and intricate beading on this dress! And I love how the skirt adds a lot of interest from the front, and some beautiful volume in the back.

And I leave you with three more AMAZING looks on the always stylish Cate Blanchett. I'm not sure which look I like best. Well done!

The Magical Met Gala

The Met Gala is probably my 2nd favorite red carpet event (just after the Oscars - of course). It is unique and particularly wonderful because stars, celebrities and designers are given a free pass to be a little crazy with their fashion choices. 

There is always a theme pronounced by the Met, and this year it was China. There were many beautiful gowns that were lovely but safe. In circumstances such as these, there is always part of me that is a little disappointed because the star (and their designer) threw away their chance of taking a risk. 


That being said, I am still including my favorite tame looks, because there were a few that still took my breath away. I will also include a list of my favorite amazingly creative looks, and then the absolutely ridiculous and terrible one's. (Some people should never be encouraged to go crazy.) I hope you enjoy!

THE TAME BEAUTIES

Honestly. The simple perfection of this dress takes my breath away. (Tang Wei)

Jennifer Lawrence's dress is just stunning! And that piece at her neck is almost crazy enough to add her to the next list down.

My jaw actually dropped when I saw this dress on Katie Holmes. It might actually be my favorite. Can you believe it? And having the wonderful Zac Posen on her arm only adds to the beauty.

I love the slightly Medaeval look to this red stunner! (Shupei Qin)

What?! Cher is on the simple, best list? But seriously though, she looks incredible!

Eddie Redmayne's wife Hannah Bagshawe continues to impress me on the red carpet. This is so simple and elegant, and even a little unexpected.

THE CREATIVE MASTERPIECES

I changed my mind, this is my favorite look of the night. Fan Bing Bing hit the nail on the head. The gown itself is straightforward and stunning, and the cape! The designs remind me a lot of the Macintosh designs from the turn of the century. And honestly, she deserves extra points for pulling off a cape anyway.

OK. The headdress is crazy. But I love the design of the gown, and somehow the whole look just works for me. Sarah Jessica Parker can really do whatever she wants on the red carpet. And I love that!

This gown on Keri Russell reminds me a lot of the costuming in Snow White and the Huntsman. Did I mention that the costuming in that is some of my favorite of all time? I think Keri looks incredible! And the dress itself is daring without being ostentatious.  I love it!

This is a wonderful, red nod to the theme of the evening. Perhaps it should be on the simple list, but I love the material used, and the bodice almost looks armor-like. And also, George Clooney = A+.(Amal Alamuddin)

I'm kind of a sucker for good floral prints. This dress is an outstanding example of florals done right. (Emily Ratajkowski)

Am I crazy to like this dress on Anne Hathaway? As with the cape above, a hood is equally hard to pull  off. This light gold is so beautiful. Though I was wondering if this was more of a nod to "May the Fourth" than to the China theme.

THE CERTIFIABLE GOWNS

I honestly don't know if I have ever seen a more unflattering gown. Ever! It looks like the bodice is actually a bullet-proof vest. And the weird cut off length in the front makes her look four feet tall. And normally I love green with pink, but those kelley green shoes are really the exclamation point to this pink disaster. (Kerry Washington)

Is this Solange or a black hole? I can only imagine that her neck really hurt at the end of the evening. Plus, she probably could't sit down. (PS - I will take this dress any day over her sister's barely-there gown.)

I want to like this. There are things I really like about it. But to finish it all off with a giant red tutu is just unforgivable! It ruins the whole thing. (Karen Elson)

I'm sorry. Did you say there was someone else in this picture other than Lenny Kravitz? Yummy. Come on Lisa Bonet! What were you thinking?

OK, to a certain extent Katy Perry can wear whatever, because that's what she does. But that spray paint can purse just pushed me over the edge. Just no.

There were at least 2 other garments similar to this one,  and I found them all to be very disturbing. I simply cannot call this a dress or a gown. Strategically placed jewels and sequins do not count as a gown. And frankly, I just find it to be beyond tacky. I'm really tired of celebrities doing things for shock value. That's such a 90's thing to do. Get over it Beyonce (and J Lo, and Kim Kardashian), and go buy a real dress.

Last but not least. Rihanna. Honestly? Garish yellow train fit for a giant. Whatever!