Monday, August 11

Art We Can Wear

I recently turned to the philosophy the display of fashion is the art of fashion.  That train of thought was immediately cemented with the editorial Touch in the Summer 2014 issue of Dazed Magazine, a beautiful look at Pre-Fall 2014 menswear captured 
by legend Jamie Morgan and styled by Robbie Spencer.  
Before the onslaught of images of the same garments throughout next months September issues, the Touch story reminds us the unexpected and clumsy can be pretty and graceful.  Alone the styles have the potential of coming off as literally from your grandfather's wardrobe.  Taking the focus off of the menswear pieces and mixing styles with uncomfortable accessories create a fresh image which 
grabs you on a journey of a brightened underground world.  
And then there's Binx.  
Not only is Binx so f**king nonchalantly cool wearing fur and carrying squid, she isn't afraid of barb wire or broken glass.  And her knowing stare lets you know she knows this sh*t isn't for everyone but YOU and her.  












Issue: Dazed Summer 2014
Story: Touch
Photographed by Jamie Morgan
Styled by Robbie Spencer
Hair: Raphael Salley
Make Up: Pep Gay
My scanner failed on me this week.  These photos are from the Dazed Magazine website.

Tuesday, July 8

Prancing Pants

Here come the shows of the Fall 2014 Haute Couture season.  The reviews, critiques and surveys will follow, and Raf Simons collection for Christian Dior could be the one which produces the ultimate variety of opinions. 
I may not be ready to delve into a conversation with this post questioning Raf's interpretation of Haute Couture.  But I am anxious to announce the one item for fall to seek out is the perfectly tailored, pressed and creased straight-leg pant.  Paired with that long overcoat you invested in last winter for the ultimate illusion of long and lean. 
This could be the first and only time us mortals will be allowed to relate to the aura of Haute Couture. 
Unless Raf has other plans. 
 We will start up that conversation down the road this fall season as we galantly prance the pavement enjoying the aire of Haute Couture. 




Sunday, June 29

Two To Tango

Someone thought we wouldn't notice all the girls showing up at the Spring 2015 Menswear shows.
  Not just in the audience, but on the runway with the boys.  
Some runways are using the time to show Resort 2015 Womenswear to coincide with Paris market that begins next week.  Other designers are presenting pure menswear looks for females.
Not a bad idea since more girls are viewing the men's shows for style ques.  Or not a bad idea to save on show costs for investors.
Either way I am a.ok with the new set up, because sometimes it takes two to tango.





y-3 


Thursday, June 26

Faux Fur Accessories Don't Stop....

Didn't realize I wanted fur on my feet until these babies from Korean retailer Low Classic.
I am going to this shoe party!




photo cred: Jinyoung Kim

Thursday, June 19

Hello Pre-Fall 2014

What ever it is about pony hair/cowhide/shearling/ that tugs at my heart strings, there is quite the selection of new furry accessories available from 31 Phillip Lim.
My fall shopping list has begun.



Wednesday, June 11

Elle August 1999:Modern Classics

Jacobs for Louis Vuitton, Ford for Gucci, and Kors for Celine, Narciso, Lang, Yamamoto...
Its been 15 years but these offbeat classics have proved themselves even more exciting than modern.







Issue: Elle August 1999
Story: Modern Classics
Photographed by Anette Aurell
Stylist: Isabel Dupré
Make-Up: Devra Kinery
Hair: Wataru


Tuesday, May 27

Social Media Find of the Day


No matter how devoted I am to the fashion industry, one can only know so much.
So, I am the first to admit when I'm late on a trend or designer or magazine.  Usually some form of social media is where I find out how really late I am to the party.  
Scrolling Instagram is when I came across Lutz Huelle.  Excited to have discovered a 'new' designer and share it with everyone, I was humbled after a quick Google search.
Not only did Huelle work with Martin Margiela during the artisanal years of the 90s, but he established his namesake line in 2000.  
Wow, thats 14 years late on ever hearing of him and seeing his beautiful clothes.  Not distraught over that at all.  Not at all.



Sunday, May 11

Kate Moss.....Corinne Day

                                                                Corinne Day.....Kate Moss.      Intoxicating.


Sunday, May 4

i-D Pre-Spring 2014











I don't trift.  I don't have anything against it, I just always wanted my closet to make it's own memories, my own stories.
I'll "thrift" my own storage in a heartbeat, and that has been happening a lot lately.
But if I was a serial thrifter i-D magazine captured a splendid mix of vintage and modern pieces in the Pre-Spring '14 issue.  
I look forward to when my closet tells this exact story. 

































Issue: i-D Pre-Spring 2014
Story: Spring is Nature's Way of Saying Let's Party
Photographed by Walter Pfeiffer
Stylist: Jodie Barnes
Hair: Mark Hampton
Make-Up: Petros Petrohilos

Monday, April 28

Talking With Magazines: ElleUK March 2014

Well, well, well.  Look who it is.  Yes, its been a while, a long while.  
But without going into the reasons, or excuses, let's begin with the reason I jolted back to life.
The below photo from the March 2014 issue of ElleUK 
taken by David Vasiljevic and styled by Natalie Wansbrouhg-Jones.  Of all the pages in all the March issues, this was the image jumping off of the paper capturing my attention. 
First, altered by an everyday tee, the look is Yang Li, who's life as a designer is young but I am already a committed disciple. 
Second, the mix of street and sweet pulls at my heart strings with its reference to the 90s and the Grunge movement I lived through not knowing it was just a moment. 
I found myself analyzing the image long after the magazine had been closed and placed in its proper stack among stacks of magazines. The elements of the image still whispering to me each time I opened my closet. It might sound silly, but I can't be the only person who has conversations with magazine images.  Maybe if I am, then my own blog might be the best place to further the discussion. 


ElleUK: Do you admire the designer or stylist for recycling the idea of mixing casual and delicate details?
RSF: The designer.  I sense Yang Li influenced Natalie Wansbrough-Jones. It is not the exact runway look, but the military jacket/silk skirt combo mirrors the essence of the entire collection.  A collection creating a runway dream sequence by balancing street wear with romantic fabrics.   Li's update on grunge is androgynous and graceful.  I didn't know this is how I actually wanted to look back in the 90s until I came across Yang Li.  Grunge for me was straight up wearing my dad's hand-me-downs. Or in some cases I just took what I wanted from his closet.  This look is not from my dad's closet. 
I love the location Wansbrough-Jones scouted for the photograph.  Li's clothes were ultimately meant for the street, and the setting highlights the practicality of wearing a floor length skirt for day.

ElleUK: What element will inspire your closet?  
RSF:  Proportion.  Pairing insanely oversize shirt/jacket with the delicate oversize pleated skirt counts as a double whammy!  Instead of balancing the silhouette with a skinny jean or shrunken blazer, just wear it all big and baggy.  

ElleUK:  Is there a particular image that comes to mind first?
RSF:  Sharon Stone.  One, because of her Gap tee/Valentino skirt combo at the 1996 Oscars.  Which was the first example of mixing high fashion with low fashion to creep out of glossies and hit mainstream America.  Two, because of one of my favorite Elle covers from December 2000 with Stone wearing Galliano for Dior.  The cover brings me back to a time when Elle was deep into creating desire for fashion, travel and lifestyle.


ElleUK:  Does the image represent the past, present, or future?
RSF:  Present. Having a past reference to Yang Li's modern look in ElleUK pop into my head as soon as I saw it, for me is exciting. It created a conversation I have been craving to build on during my break from blogging. 
Today the fashion cycle works more like hitting the refresh button.  Frankly, nothing is new in fashion.  Fashion is moving too fast for anything to appear new.  Coming to this realization saved Readysetfashion.com.  I had to let go of the guilt I felt for calling out the source of a designer or stylist or photographer on the blog.  Today we have the tools at our fingertips to search the past for that image we know we saw already. References are posted everywhere from Pinterest and Instgram to museums and library archives not just on Readysetfashion.com.
The connections I and others find between the past and present could be the next wave of discussion in blogging.  Where street style represents the "Golden Era" of fashion blogs, the awareness of why current fashions are in vogue is ready to take precedence.  Even if that's not the case, you will find a logic for it here.

So let's go.  Ready. Set. Fashion.

Wednesday, July 24

Harper's Bazaar August 2013 VS. Vogue March 1995

The years of either editorial don't mean a thing.
Lady-like is never out of style.
Mix beautifuly tailored clothes with movie-picture glamour and you'll wake up ready to cinch your waist, arch your brows 
and rock a flare like you just don't care.





Issue: Harper's Bazaar August 2013
Story: Ladylike Looks
Photographed by Gregory Harris
Styled by Tony Irvine
Make-Up: Yadim
Hair: Anthony Turner

VS.

Issue: Vogue March 1995
Story: Portrait of a Lady (not in it's entirety)
Photographed by Steven Meisel
Styled by Grace Coddington
Make-Up: Laura Mercier
Hair: Garren






P.S.  McMenamy with Meisel and Coddington win this one.  Simply ageless.