Today wearing ~ Purple and grey

A while ago, someone asked me what inspires me when I get dressed in the morning.

Apart from the obvious factors (occasion and temperature), I mostly dress in accordance with the outside light. On overcast days, I'd reach for darker tones than when it's light and sunny. In terms of colors, the decisions are often a reflection on the mood (and I have to add that black does not stand for a bad mood, to me it represents clear and simple), or derive from things that have caught my eyes in recent times.

Over the weekend I've come across some beautiful things in pink, purple and grey, inspiring today's look... glorious bulbs of fresh garlic on Saturday's market, thyme blossoms in our garden, and the summer evening sky we saw on our promenade last night.

Accessorising with a Capitales Twilly tied in a double knot, 32 Kelly in Ebene, Clic bracelet in black and a weave leather belt. It is notoriously difficult to combine scarves with prints, which is why most of my clothes are free of patterns. But when I saw this silk top, I knew it would be perfect with the Capitales Twilly, as it has the same shades of grey and purple in it. I am guilty of sometimes buying clothes for specific scarves, but not feeling too bad about this one, as I've snapped it up at a sale, 70% off.

Scarf Profile ~ De Madras à Zakynthos

This beautiful scarf was designed by Dominik Jarlegant, and issued as part of the Spring/Summer 2009 collection, in the year of travel. Sea turtles are amazing travelers indeed, some of them migrate thousends of miles outside the nesting season.

From the scarf booklet..

Many years ago I have been lucky enough to come across turtles that have justed hatched, although not in Greece, but in Barbados. For some of them, the 'mad race' towards the sea turned out to be mad race towards inland, as they decided to go into the wrong direction. Perhaps because it was night time and full moon, or maybe they were distracted by the lights of the resort, I never found out. We spent hours carrying lost baby turtles across the beach to the shore, and then watched them as they braved the surf to get to the open ocean.

I often take this scarf when going to the beach, and love to combine it with white, beige, brown or sea blue (you might recognize the dress below, it's the one I wore to the wedding a few weeks ago)

Capsule wardrobe #8

For today's capsule episode recreating the outfit, I wore on my last trip to Paris (when choosing the 'Cent Plis de Miao' Carré and turquoise enamel bracelet). Back then I accessorized with the LFASDV scarf, a black Clic-H bracelet and white Converse canvas sneakers. I like breaking up outfits, as it creates natural and easy looks, here combining a pair of jeans with boots or sneakers, and a layering of more formal tops.

Capsules: black jacket, white shirt, black pinstripe waistcoat, and blue jeans
Shoes: Ankle boots
Accessories: 'Cent Plis de Miao' 90 Carré, Clic Clac enamel and BdP Bolide
Scarf tying method: Basic bias fold. Click here for a how-to

FSH

Last week in Paris, I was very lucky, FSH already had a few of the Autumn/Winter 2010 scarves in stock (they came in very early this year) AND I have met with two readers of this blog! One meeting was organized per chance the day before, the other one was impromptu. A warm hello to both of you, it was truly wonderful to see and meet you :-))

These are the 90 Carrés I tried on, the Cheval de Légende, Jardin de Métamorphoses and Cent Plis de Miao

photo credit hermes.com


The Cheval de Légende is simply stunning when flat out, the tiny beads that shape the horse have an amazing 3D effect, and the way they are arranged make the horse look magical. It is full of wonderful energy, which gets lost a little bit when the scarf is tied, as the beads are trailing off in the corners. I still loved the scarf, especially with the silver colored beads in combination with the brownish/grey background, but moved onto the next one...

Which was the beautiful Jardin de Métamorphoses, here in a display with the matching tableware. In the china, the pattern did not come out in a way I imagined it, but it looked divine with the scarves. I can only imagine how sensational the JdM would be as a mousseline, and have begun to pray to the scarf gods for a reissue in a mousse!

And this is the one I fell in love with, the Cent Plis de Miao. The design is inspired by the pleated skirts worn and made by the woman in Miao, China, which are apparently made of 100 pleats. Not quite sure how different dress sizes would work out! The Plissé effect on the silk is absolutely amazing, and the colors are warm, rich and beautiful. I love how all corners are different, not only in pattern, but also in color, and look forward to experiment with knots and folds, to bring out the different aspects of this fabulous scarf.


On leaving FSH, I felt relieved to have kept the damage to my bank account to one scarf purchase, but of course I have not made it past the enamel counter yet, which is located dangerously close to the exit. And sure enough, my eyes were caught by this beautiful Clic Clac bracelet, which turned out to be a perfect match to my new scarf, and to Ms Bolide too. I simply couldn't resist it, and so it came home with me too.

There was one more surprise at the scarf counter, they had the La Femme aux Semelles de Vent in the black/white/blue CW. Knowing that a few of you are searching for it, I snapped it up.

The price is what I have paid (280 Euros), plus shipping and PayPal fees. As a bonus, I'll include a set of the current scarf knotting cards :-))


Anyone who is interested, please email me at: maitai55@orange.fr

I will collect and print out all emails, and put them into envelopes. By the end of next week DS will draw the winning one, good luck!

Swarovski's Crystal worlds

On my recent trip to Bavaria, a small group of our wedding party went to nearby Innsbruck (Austria) for an afternoon trip. It was labour day though, and everything was shut, so we decided to visit the Swarovski headquarters instead.

The setting of the factory admist hills and mountains could not have been prettier, and we were intruigued by the giant's head, build on top of a 'Tellytubbie land' like hillside, guarding it with his enormous crystal eyes.

It turned out that it was the entrance to the Swarovski 'Crystal Worlds', a subterranean, magical world...


.. featuring crystaline art works by Salvador Dali, Keith Haring and Andy Warhol, installations by André Heller, sculputures by Alexander McQueen and Niki de Saint Phalle, sound worlds by Brian Eno and the largest cut crystal (300,000 karats) in the world. My favorite expo was the crystal dome, where you walk into a dome shaped room, made of 595 elements, and watch in wonder as they transform into every changing worlds, making you feel as if floating in space.

And of course there were amazing displays of fabulous Swarovski creations, sparkling in every corner. The settee below inviting visitors to relax in the retail space (their largest worldwide) was incredible smooth to the touch, even though the surface was made up completely by crystals.

The Crystal World is open all year round, except for the 1st of January and the 2nd and 3rd week of November.
6112 Wattens/Tirol
Austria
Tel: +43 5224 51080
www.swarovki.com/crystal worlds

And as by request from my dear readers, here is what I've been wearing at the wedding. Silk dress in pale aquamarine/cream, cream lace jacket embroidered with pearls and beads, shells and sequins, embroidered linen shoes and pearl earrings.

Capsule wardrobe #5

In winter, I wear a lot of black, and I like to combine it with more black, grey, brown, and even blue. This day, it was sunny and beautiful, and I felt like adding a 'coup de couleur', a little punch of color. The fuchsia Twilly turned out to be perfect, not too big and overwhelming in size, but with elements in grey, matching the trousers. There is something very uplifting about Twillys, even though they are so small ~ Twilly power!

Capsules: grey wool trousers and black shirt
Accessories: Capitales Twilly and black Birkin
Scarf tying method: Tie knot

 

Variation:

 

With a white shirt and black blazer, and the Twilly tied into a Criss-Cross knot with a Petite Classique scarf ring. 

Capsule wardrobe #3

Capsules: knitted vest, white jeans
Accessories: Puzzle II 90 Carre, Bolide in Bleu de Prusse and horn cuff (MaiTai collection, more info to come soon)
Scarf tying method: low half Ascot knot. Click here for a how-to

Capsule wardrobe #1 ~ grey and white

Today starting the new capsule wardrobe series with it's first post, feeling truly happy and excited about the project. Many thanks everyone for the wonderful response to the idea, you are making this so much fun. Looking forward to experiment with those twenty pieces, and would love to hear your comments/suggestions/ideas as we go along. It will be fun to see how many different looks we'll end up with!

Teaming a white shirt with grey wool trousers for a clean and simple look

adding a 90 Carré (Aux Pays des Epices), chaine d'ancre enamel, jumbo pearl necklace and Bleu de Prusse Bolide

The basic bias fold is my favorite way to wear this gorgeous scarf, as it highlights it's symmetry so well, and brings out the design beautifully. Tucking it inside the shirt collar stops it from sliding around too much, and it feels just wonderful too.


Hope everyone had a great weekend, and wishing all moms a very happy Mother's Day!

Capsule wardrobe

Today introducing a new series, 'the capsule wardrobe'. In the upcoming episodes, I will put outfits together from the clothes featured in the collage below, and much like a kaleidoscope, come up with different combinations, accessorized in different ways.

I chose those twenty two capsule pieces, because they are my current most trusted and loved wardrobe staples, clothes that I enjoy putting on and which have never let me down. They are a mix of high end and low, and have one defining element in common, their colors, fabrics and shapes work with my frame and skintone, which is why I feel comfortable and happy wearing them.

These staples can be mixed and matched in endless combinations, and because of their simplicity, they are a perfect canvas for accessories. Adding a scarf, necklace, bracelet and/or bag is my favorite part of getting dressed. I feel these touches bring my clothes to life in a very personal way, as they are a reflection of my mood and my surroundings.

This new series will be strewn in admist the H it Up , Joie de Vivre and other posts. It should be fun, and I hope you will enjoy!





First row ~ Cardies
khaki and black
Second row ~ Shirts
black and white
Third row ~ Jackets
beige and black
Fourth row ~ Jeans
blue, white and 3/4 length beige
Fifth row ~ Cotton trousers
khaki, beige and light grey
Sixth row ~ Trousers
black viscose/acetat and grey wool
Seventh row ~ Vests
sleeveless black with collar, cream and chocolate tank tops
Eigth row ~ Splashes of color
khaki sequined top, purple sweater and beige/purple tank
Ninth row ~ Waistcoats/Vests
taupe knitted and black pinstripe

Lüftlmalerei

Last weekend I've been to the picturesque upper Bavarian town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, attending a beautiful and happy wedding. The town is located between forested hills, rolling green meadows and has stunning mountain backdrops. It's houses are picture book pretty, and most of them are decorated with amazing fresco paintings, called Lüftlmalerei.





The day after the wedding, I spent hours wondering around town, admiring the stunning trompe d'oeil effects, and wonderful creativity and craftsmenship of the fine Lüftlmalerei artists.

 

 

In Bavaria, the tradition of decorating houses with murals goes back to the 18th century, the colorful frescos were meant to show the status of wealthy merchants, farmers and craftsmen. The paintings often incorporate existing architectural structures or depict fairy tales, biblical or pastoral scenes.

The most famous Lüftl painter was Franz Seraph Zwink (1748-1792). He lived in a house called ‘Zum Lüftl' which might be where the word lüftl derives from. Others argue the origin of the word comes from the word lüftig (fast) or luft (air) - as the murals are painted in the open air.

The weather was sunny and beautiful, and the wedding was absolutely lovely.

It has been a long time since I saw the mountains in Spring/Summer. The last time was, when I was a little girl, holidaying with my family in Garmisch-Partenkirchen. What a coincidence to came back to the exact same town almost 40 years later! So here is Little MaiTai, pictured with the sweet and kind dog I befriended during my stay.