Nights (and Days) in the Gardens of Spain

Hola amigos!

Happy Cinco de Mayo!  It's super duper hot here in Cairo (my current home-away-from-home), but I know it still feels like winter back in Canada, so here's a post for my peeps to heat things up :)

A while back, before I officially debuted my line, Corinne Monique, I designed and made a few capsule collections.  This post features one of those collections entitled 'Latinada.'  The collection was inspired by Spanish, Mexican, and South American painters and composers, by Latino and Hispanic artists who conjure up images of faraway terracotta-tiled, sunkissed villas and ladies with flowers in their hair, swaying in the breeze.  Press play & close your eyes...

{ http://youtu.be/aSf8Z5xuMBQ }

{ http://youtu.be/sIvmYMXB7FQ }

Now open your eyes!

Miquel Barceló

Ricardo Chavez Mendez

Valentina, Valentino

Hello Lovelies,

Spring is in the air!  Ahh, Spring...a time for flowers, baby animals, and new fashion ad campaigns!

Has everyone seen the beautiful Spring 2012 ad campaign for Valentino?!  The elegant and feminine Spring collection by Maria Grazia  Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli was photographed by Deborah Turbeville, featuring models Bette Franke, Fei Fei Sun, Maud Welzen, Zuzanna Bijoch, and Clement Chabernaud.  The pretty campaign was shot near Turbeville's home in Mexico, although the setting's textures and colours makes me think of sunwashed stones and romantic ruins in Italy.  The exquisitely delicate and graceful designs against the unrefined backdrop, punctuated by sunlight or shade, made for an ethereal and slightly distant tableau.

I was so struck by the gorgeous Valentino images that I was inspired to create a photoshoot of my own for my sister's upcoming cello concerts this Spring and Summer.  I regularly use my lovely sister, Kathleen, as a model, and you may remember her from a previous cello photoshoot we did a while ago.  For this shoot, it was difficult to create a background that gave the feeling of a sun-drenched Rome here in Toronto, but with some assistance from my location-scout-extraordinare Mother, I think the suggestion is there :)  Kathleen didn't really have a dress she wanted to use for the shoot, so I designed and made a gown for her.  It's actually eco-friendly - I didn't have any material around that quite fit the bill for the colour/texture she was after, so I used some old curtains of hers that were lying around (and were on their way to be given away!) that were just right.  If curtains are good enough for Scarlett O'Hara or Maria von Trapp to sew into something to wear, they're good enough for me!  Anyway, I hope you enjoy the photos!!

Here is a sample of the original Valentino ad campaign:

Rocking and Rolling in the Deep

Dear Readers,

Sunday night's red carpet at the 54th Grammy Awards (or should we just call it the Adele Awards?) was a bit more subdued than it was last year.  Most of the celebs showed up in black, with a few metallics thrown in to the mix.  Here are a few of my favs from the evening:

MTV Video Music Awards aka Beyoncé's Baby Bump

Dear Readers,

Before I get to my summer recap, I had to do a quick post on the MTV VMAs.  Any music industry red carpet event is guaranteed to have a few how-outrageously-dressed-can-I-get-away-with looks.  This year, there were the usual loud and crazy "what is that?" outfits (think Nicki Minaj), most of which were fun and humorous rather than the more traditional scantily clad options.  Of course, Lady Gaga had run out of outrageous ideas, so she just showed up as a dude - Jo Calderone to be specific.  But even with all that going on, even with the Britney Spears Tribute, Beyoncé outdid them all...and looked fabulous (and normal) doing it...just because she was preggers!!

Beyoncé in Lanvin

Cellissimo

Dear Readers,

It's a rainy night here in Toronto, and I hope it's a sign that Spring is finally on the way because one of the best things about warmer weather, for me anyway, is being able to go on an outdoor photoshoot expedition :)  It's so entertaining to come up with interesting new locations to set my designs against and just have fun with the camera.  Also, it seems much easier for me to find a good spot outdoors rather than indoors, and the pictures almost always turn out better too.

My sister, Kathleen, whom you have met before in this blog, is one of my favourite models and, lets face it, is also the most readily available model who is willing to be coaxed into doing a photoshoot ;)  She is a gorgeous girl and lovely cellist.  Last Spring, for her graduating Master of Music Cello Recital, we went forth into the brisk Spring air to take some photos, which I later used to make her recital posters, invitations, and programs from.  I was inspired by the Chanel and Dior Spring/Summer 2010 ad campaigns and used them as guides for art direction and styling ideas.

Here are the original ads.  I love the absence of bright colours.  Everything, even the black, is pale and muted, almost unnaturally so.  In the Chanel ads, the stark contrast of black and white is strangely unified, blended by the diffused light.  The Dior ads (from back in the John Galliano days, pre-ruined reputation & probable Ricardo Tisci at Dior / Haider Ackermann at Givenchy takeover, which I'm sure I will have something to say about in the near future, after the dust settles) really play up light and dark by using the blinds to create interesting shadows.  I also love the use of hard architectural structures (doorways, stairs, walls) in both ads and how they simultaneously contrast with and complement the garments, suggesting a time, place, and story.