the clothes 2011

"A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its loveliness increases; it will never
Pass into nothingness; but still will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing.
Therefore, on every morrow, are we wreathing
A flowery band to bind us to the earth,
Spite of despondence, of the inhuman dearth
Of noble natures, of the gloomy days,
Of all the unhealthy and o’er-darkened ways
Made for our searching: yes, in spite of all,
Some shape of beauty moves away the pall
From our dark spirits. Such the sun, the moon,
Trees old and young, sprouting a shady boon
For simple sheep; and such are daffodils
With the green world they live in; and clear rills
That for themselves a cooling covert make
’Gainst the hot season; the mid forest brake,
Rich with a sprinkling of fair musk-rose blooms:
And such too is the grandeur of the dooms
We have imagined for the mighty dead;
All lovely tales that we have heard or read:
An endless fountain of immortal drink,
Pouring unto us from the heaven’s brink."
-John Keats

I'm not usually one for photo shoots with such a basic, flat backdrop. I understand their purpose and merit, but what I love about editorials is the romance and the dream they create; the scenic locations, moody lighting, and hint of a story all stir my imagination. However, sometimes things are best stated directly with delicate pink hair, crimson lips, and carefully composed outfits. This editorial is everything I want for spring. The pink hair and orange dress? Genius. The brown and liquid black with lilac kitten heels? Fresh. It's making me look at pastels and skirt suits in a new light.
What's Next, photographed by Glen Luchford for Harper's Bazaar March 2011

"You've read the story of Jesse James
of how he lived and died.
If you're still in need;
of something to read,
here's the story of Bonnie and Clyde.

Now Bonnie and Clyde are the Barrow gang
I'm sure you all have read.
how they rob and steal;
and those who squeal,
are usually found dying or dead.

There's lots of untruths to these write-ups;
they're not as ruthless as that.
their nature is raw;
they hate all the law,
the stool pigeons, spotters and rats.

They call them cold-blooded killers
they say they are heartless and mean.
But I say this with pride
that I once knew Clyde,
when he was honest and upright and clean.

They don't think they're too smart or desperate
they know that the law always wins.
They've been shot at before;
but they do not ignore,
that death is the wages of sin.

Some day they'll go down together
they'll bury them side by side.
To few it'll be grief,
to the law a relief
but it's death for Bonnie and Clyde."

"The night is darkening round me,
The wild winds coldly blow;
But a tyrant spell has bound me
And I cannot, cannot go."
-Emily Bronte

"Oh, sweet Fancy! let her loose;
Every thing is spoilt by use:
Where’s the cheek that doth not fade,
Too much gaz’d at? Where’s the maid
Whose lip mature is ever new?
Where’s the eye, however blue,
Doth not weary? Where’s the face
One would meet in every place?"
-John Keats
Courtney Vogler by Elliot & Erick Jimenez for Material Girl via FashionGoneRogue

"Go, sit upon the lofty hill,
And turn your eyes around,
Where waving woods and waters wild
Do hymn an autumn sound.
The summer sun is faint on them --
The summer flowers depart --
Sit still -- as all transform'd to stone,
Except your musing heart.
How there you sat in summer-time,
May yet be in your mind;
And how you heard the green woods sing
Beneath the freshening wind.
Though the same wind now blows around,
You would its blast recall;
For every breath that stirs the trees,
Doth cause a leaf to fall."
-Elizabeth Barrett Browning




Dewi Driegen by Taki Bibelas for Marie Claire Italia, via FashionGoneRogue & a reader who shared this editorial with me in an e-mail :)

There's often a subtle harmony between people and their surroundings; you know, the way a person matches their bedroom. This occurrence is what struck me about these faded, vintage-feeling photographs of Lindsey Wixson. There's a quiet candidness to the photographs with the model's back to some of the images, or looking down and away in others. It's the sort of unstudied (but really expertly composed, styled, colored, and lit) finished product I really respond to.

Lindsey Wixson photographed by Venetian Scott via FashionGoneRogue

"So was I once myself a swinger of birches.
And so I dream of going back to be.
It’s when I’m weary of considerations,
And life is too much like a pathless wood
Where your face burns and tickles with the cobwebs..." -Robert Frost






Sasha Pivovarova photographed by Nathaniel Goldberg, via FashionGoneRogue