a man who knows colour

I love a man who knows how to use colour. Throw in an aptitude for print design and you have a winner. Hello Dries.

I am always in awe of the way Belgian designer Dries Van Noten uses colour and print. The way he combines colours and patterns that logically shouldn't go together to produce amazing textiles that are vibrant and exciting, but also totally wearable, is inspiring. I wish I was as brave as him.

fall 2010 ready-to-wear

spring 2010 ready-to-wear

spring 2010 ready-to-wear

spring 2008 ready-to-wear

Images from style.com. Click here to see entire collection.

visual warmth

Still feeling a little cold this afternoon, I went in search of some more visual warmth. When I'm cold I want warm, cuddly, woolen things. I want knitted scarves, hot tea, boiled eggs and toast soldiers. I want beautiful soft blues, creams, navy, charcoal... and a hint of sunny egg-yolky yellow.

Ah, I feel all warm and fuzzy already.
Now maybe some more tea?

sun + colour = sunset

Today I am feeling cold. In need of some sun. I am also in desperate need of some inspiration. Colour-palette inspiration. The combination of these two things led me to think about sunsets, because sun + colour = sunsets (that's how it went in my brain anyway!). Specifically, I started to think about the brilliant colours and organic patterns that are created. The spectrum of colours in a good sunset is magical.
And so I went searching. And what I managed to find was a little bit of colour magic.

Amazing colours. And that cloud formation... gorgeous!
Image from here.

California sunset. They do make them pretty over there.
The soft colours with strong black of the rocks is beautiful.
Image from here.

Lone tree sunset. Alone and stunning.
The stillness in the image is lovely.
Image from here.

I want to go to Hawaii! If only for this view.
The golden-yellow light is so beautiful.
Image from here.

a little bit of luxury

Australian designer Fleur Wood's philosophy of every garment in her collections being "a little piece of luxury" is something that I identify with completely. That feeling of luxury and attention to detail is something that I strive for within my design work, but I have to say that don't think that I am always successful in creating this. Lacking a little inspiration today, I had a look at how Fleur Wood does it...

winter 2010

winter 2009

winter 2009

spring 2009

All image are from the Fleur Wood website,
which you can visit here to view entire collections.

welcome back ladies

I am pleased to see a return of some curves on the catwalk (albeit small ones!). Bye bye androgyny, hello ladies!

I am a girly-girl at heart and I have to say, it is a relief that fashion appears (at least momentarily) to be moving away from the uber-waif and towards a little more celebration of the curve. Ah... delightful. Who doesn't love a nipped in waist and full skirt? Hand me my pearls and twin-set, it's time for a revival!

Loius Vuitton is certainly on board, you just need to look at the Fall 2010 ready-to-wear collection to see that Marc Jacobs is a fan of ladylike behaviour. Ladies, grab your gloves and pop on your pumps, it's time for high-tea!

So elegant, so chic!
I love the soft colour and effortless silhouette.

All prim and proper.
But also quite sexy. Oo-la-la! That fur collar.

The cut of this skirt is immaculate.
Sigh! That's all I have to say.

The print, the colour, the belt, the gloves...
Delicious.


All images from Louis Vuitton Fall 2010 ready-to-wear collection.
To view the entire collection, click here.

monica and meridith

I have been looking at this cookbook for a while now.
What initially caught my attention was the whimsical cover illustration, and then realising it was written by Monica Trapaga, my favourite Playschool presenter, I became seriously interested.

Above images from Trapaga's cookbook 'She's Leaving Home',
(sourced from here)

Initially, I though that the delightful illustrations were by Tragaga, however on closer inspection, I discovered that they were in fact by an Australian artist by the name of Meredith Gaston. I managed to find some more of her work at a website called kindergallery, and I have to say that I am now in love with her quirky, innocent aesthetic. It is refreshingly childlike and playful, probably due to the fact it is aimed at children, but I think it has a broader appeal. It certainly speaks to me. Make of that what you will!

'Tia with lovebirds'

'Bettina Bubbles with Bluebird'

(Above images from here)

food fantasies

I have to admit to something. I am addicted to MasterChef. I love it. After a day of designing, thinking, making, there is nothing better than an hour of pure food obsession. I love the drama, the politics and the personalities, but mostly, I love the food.

Tonight, a dessert was created that was utter food fantasy. It looked amazing and I really wanted to eat it. Like really. The recipe was by chef Darren Purchese and was called 'fruit carnival with sugar tuile, aerated fruit chocolate and toffee apple'. Not exactly a catchy name. But it was so beautiful. It made me sigh. And salivate.

This image really doesn't do it justice, but you get the idea.
Gorgeous colours and textures.The baby toffee apples were totally gorgeous
(created by using a melon-baller to make little apple
balls and which were then coated in toffee. Delightful).

(Image from MasterChef website where you can also find the recipe.)