Dressful

"The best fashion show is definitely on the street." – Bill Cunningham

Before I watched the Bill Cunningham New York documentary (directed by Richard Press), I had wondered why New York is given equal importance in the title as Bill Cunningham, the documentary's main subject. He is the city's most iconic street style photographer; his photo-column "On the Street" is published weekly in the New York Times, for which he also covers society events. Cunningham has been shooting street style for more than 50 years and many consider him the first ever street style photographer. Indeed, it began way before The Sartorialist!

"We all get dressed for Bill." – Anna Wintour

By the time the documentary ended, the title made sense: I understood the photographer and the city are intertwined so closely that one cannot exist without the other. Bill Cunningham takes photos in other fashion capitals too (the documentary crew follows him to Paris, where apart from continuously taking photos with his little analog Nikon he also receives the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres), but New York is the place where he functions the way he wants, riding his bike all day in a sea of aggressive cabbies who should have never been given driving licenses (I'll never forget my family's flabbergasted expressions the first time we took a cab in NYC), interrupting conversations with his acquaintances because he's seen an interesting pair of wedges on the street and has to take a photo, refusing food and even water at events in order to report objectively ("Whatever that means," he adds) … The city is the bread and butter of his work and vice versa.

Designer Oscar de la Renta has said about Cunningham, "More than anyone else in the city, he has the whole visual history of the last 40 or 50 years of New York. It's the total scope of fashion in the life of New York." In terms of preserving fleeting glimpses on how we lived (and dressed, which might as well be the same thing, especially in any context involving Cunningham), Bill Cunningham and his photography are indispensable.

One of my favorite parts of the documentary is when they're talking about Details magazine with Annie Flanders, its founding editor. The original Details (started in 1982) was all about New York's "edgy fashion and nightlife scene", and Cunningham's photography was featured prominently in every issue. He contributed his work for free so that he could do whatever he wanted artistically (at the time, he had another day job to pay the bills). "You see, if you don't take money, they can't tell you what to do, kid." When Condé Nast bought Details, Cunningham again refused to cash his check. "Money's the cheapest thing. Liberty and freedom is the most expensive."

If you can afford it (figuratively and literally), I think this is the best attitude an artist can have, and I suppose the reason Cunningham was able to flourish as a photographer is precisely because he wasn't creatively restrained in any way.

My mission at New York Fashion Week is to see Bill Cunningham in action, to be a part of his world. No wonder why New York is the only city where I don't feel like I'm missing out on something.

2011 was an exciting and fruitful year for me as a fashion blogger.

In February I attended my first major runway show, Emporio Armani F/W 11/12 at Milan Fashion Week. Envisioning myself working in fashion before I started blogging, I thought I would have to spend years interning and assisting at magazines before my boss granted me a privilege to attend shows and write about them. I am my own boss at Dressful so nobody showers me with benefits, but thanks to the "democratization of fashion" we bloggers have become regulars at fashion weeks, be it catching street style photographers' attention with eccentric outfits or reporting from shows.

Concept Korea Spring 2012 presentation at New York Fashion Week.

In September I attended New York Fashion Week, which turned out to be a much bigger deal than I had expected. It's the collections shown in Paris and Milan that get the most international attention, but New York is the most blogger-friendly fashion week (Reuters claims that 40% of the press at NYFW are bloggers) and a great place for networking. As opposed to Milan and Paris, all shows take place under one roof in New York, which means you can hang out with people in-between events instead of wasting your time getting stuck in insane traffic jams.

When I started going to fashion weeks, I quickly realized there would be no way back, i.e. if I attend, I have to return next season to see more shows, meet more people and do better work. Due to unexpected health problems I didn't create as much content as I wanted to at NYFW in September. I will be attending NYFW again in February and I'm tickled pink to have a chance to improve. I haven't seen wintry New York in three years.

Invitation to the Emporio Armani Spring/Summer 2012 show
Celebrating Halloween with a Chanel pumpkin carved by my dad

Dressful has gained many new readers in 2011. I receive charming, encouraging emails from those of you who find it inspiring and I wish such perceptive and intelligent readers will accompany me in 2012 too. Constantly working on ways to reach more fashion enthusiasts, I'm satisfied with the direction Dressful is developing in. I've discovered that in my case, sharing original and quality content is the way to go. People like words and images they won't find elsewhere and I feel good expressing myself in different creative ways.

In 2011 I rejected various proposals that would have brought me money but didn't align with Dressful. I've been hesitant with monetization because I find some methods largely inefficient and because this blog is my personal space where I only recommend what I absolutely love and know well.

I have seen bloggers rush into monetization without thinking it through; in the end, they were not compensated fairly, the brand or product they promoted didn't fit their blog, the banner ads looked out of place … If done wrong, such deals can do more harm than good to the blogger, despite the money they earned. That being said, there are several types of collaborations I am interested in; I will soon create a separate page to outline them more precisely.

Sens(n)ation Maison Martin Margiela exhibition in Ljubljana.

I would like to thank everyone who takes time to comment on my posts; your comments are not of the "nice shoes check out my blog" variety; rather, they contribute valuably to the post and discussion. I truly appreciate it when you share my posts on Facebook, Twitter and other platforms – this is the easiest way to help me reach more people. Next to providing quality content, expanding my audience is my number one goal for 2012.

Though the world is far from perfect, the opportunities I've had in 2011 make me grateful to live here and now. Five years ago it would have been impossible to jumpstart my fashion career with a blog.

The blog is just the beginning.

I wish you happy holidays and lots of health, love, creativity and success in 2012.

I finished this season's fashion week tour tonight in Paris, attending the presentation of the Hogan by Karl Lagerfeld Spring/Summer 2012 capsule collection at Hôtel Salomon de Rothschild. This is Lagerfeld's third collaboration with Hogan (see my photos of Fall/Winter 2011/2012). A mostly black and white collection is accompanied by a book of sketches and photos of models Bianca Balti and Jacquelyn Jablonski by Lagerfeld.

The pieces were presented on an enormous sleek, black construction spanning across five rooms (the event design was a joint effort of Karl Lagerfeld and Hogan's creative teams). Small white candles added the bit of magic that comes more than handy when you're launching a new collection. There has to be beauty with a pinch of drama. The presentation and the well thought-out collection had (have) both - after all, this is fashion!

Hogan and Lagerfeld showed sneakers and patent ballet flats whose main theme is wearability. Sneakers are made of black or white python, two-toned nappa leather and rubber - a juxtaposition of luxurious and ordinary materials. You'll appreciate them if you understand the difficulty of coming across sneakers you don't want to immediately dismiss as a fashion crime.

Black technical nylon trench coats and gorgeous fitted soft leather jackets with zippers meant to be worn as a second skin. There are also zippers on the back of the jackets for a better fit. If unzipped, imagine all the ways you can wear them and the new dimension it adds to your outfit!

I loved the clutches with a bubble pattern (a similar pattern is also used in larger bags and flats). The collection is incredibly consistent; the pieces create a distinctive, uniform-like look paired with one another - a look that ranges from cosmopolitan to tough rockstar glamour, the latter mostly due to super skinny high rise jeans. It's unmistakably Hogan, but it takes a designer of Lagerfeld's skill to give wearable, practical pieces that oh so necessary pinch of drama.

I'm flying back home tomorrow and like half a year ago, I feel sad about leaving Paris so soon, postponing the occasion to have more time for its streets and spirits. It's a beautiful opportunity to come here for fashion week, though, and I wouldn't prefer it any other way. See you next season.

Le Journal des Dames et des Modes was a fashion periodical published in Paris in 1912-1914. Containing columns, poetic texts, illustrations and fashion reports, it was a reflection of the refined and optimistic Parisian society before the First World War. I am in love with the Journal's vibrant illustrations, some of which have luckily been preserved though entire volumes of the Journal have been lost. The garments bear little connection to today, but I would have loved to attend Paul Poiret's legendary parties dressed lavishly in what was the very beginning of couture.

Quotes on elegance by Pierre Véber, published in the Journal:

"The elegant person should not wear anything conspicuous or extreme. He refrains from colors that are too crude, clothes of eccentric cut, perfumes that are too heavy, jewelry that is too rich, excessive gestures, vocal outbursts, and words that are too strong.
The elegant person is the one who makes himself noticed by means of discretion."

"In order to dress, one must know how to "choose", and in order to choose, one must know oneself well. But when one knows oneself well, one must overcome the horror that one has of oneself."

"Elegance resides in the perfect harmony of thoughts, words, acts, gestures, attitudes and costume. It is through costume that elegance expresses itself most quickly."

"I," says a newly rich woman, "give my old dresses to my maid." Here, at last, are some dresses that are going to be worn.

"An ordinary man is insolent. An elegant man is barely impertinent. Generally he is indifferent."

"The fashions of the past are almost always ridiculous; but whatever the period, the corresponding "elegances" are always pretty."

Do not say to the milliner, "I want a pretty hat", but rather, "I want a hat that makes me pretty".

"One is born elegant, one can also become so. It is better to be born so."

Tavi Gevinson (Style Rookie) has recently written a great post describing her disenchantment with the fashion industry. For those who don't know, Tavi is the epitome of fashion blogger success - she's sat front row at fashion weeks, collaborated with Rodarte, interviewed John Galliano in Paris, written for Harper's Bazaar etc. - and she's only 14 years old. She also said her blog will be focusing less on fashion in the future.

Fashion Week is weird. It is very high schooly. Someone will take that and decide that it means Fashion Week highschooliness is getting me down hard without realizing how highschooly what they're doing is. I love fashion but it's disappointing when you have to sift through a lot of junk before you get to, like, the clothes, and the whole point of it all. It's more disappointing when the clothes aren't very interesting. Lately I've been looking to other places for a creative outlet and for inspiration. I miss following magazines and obsessively checking style.com the way I used to but something is different about it now. A year ago I got to go to Paris to interview John Galliano at Dior, and a couple weeks ago today he said he loved Hitler and got fired.

I think I've been following Tavi's blog since I knew fashion blogs existed. She's a brilliant writer with an approach to fashion that's completely different from what you'd expect (in general, not just from a 14-year-old) and she has personality in spades, so her blog always has that flair and uniqueness drawing you in.

Reading her post made me feel a little sad she's experiencing disappointment with fashion at such a young age. Then again, maybe she's experiencing (and voicing) it precisely because of her young age. You know how we're all very perceptive, honest and unrestrained when we're younger, and then "growing up" also means you learn to sometimes pretend you don't care or omit truths or keep doing something without noticing it doesn't fulfill you in any way? You learn the new rules and you also figure out people don't want you to be honest and unrestrained. If you stay that way, it's a kind of luxury. In that sense, I'm glad Tavi is going strong.

I wanted to be mature and witty and polite and strike up a conversation with Anna Wintour, I really did. But like, it was the end of the day? And I was exhausted, in so many ways? And not prepared to enter a room as the last one to be seated and find out two seconds before sitting next to Anna Wintour that I was sitting next to Anna Wintour? And I was wearing the sweater Kathleen Hanna gave me and felt kind of in the middle of an overdramatic identity crisis, like I had no right to wear the sweater OR sit next to Anna Wintour? And when I did look around a bit, no one looked happy and it was kind of a huge downer? So I let myself be kind of shy and quiet that night, to join the rows of sullen-faced people who looked as though they secretly wanted to be at home with their pets wearing comfortable clothing and eating fattening food.

Of course, fashion industry is not the only industry where people will be aloof and disinterested. People like that are everywhere. Ideally, you shouldn't let them get to you, but I know this is easier said than done. It's discouraging to see someone with your dream job and opportunities acting like they don't give a damn when you'd be over the moon if you were in their shoes. However, there are also really fantastic people working in the fashion industry, so maybe in the end it all evens out?

At Milan Fashion Week in February I realized that after a long time I felt like I belonged somewhere again. I went to Milan and Paris because after having decided I'd work in fashion, I wanted to see if fashion week is the kind of environment I'd be comfortable in (I know fashion week is just the tip of the iceberg, but sadly, as much as I'd love to, I can't hang around Vogue offices or designer studios ... It was the opportunity I could seize!). I was testing the waters because I'm sensitive like Tavi in the way that the things she found disappointing in the fashion industry would get me down as well.

I noticed how very few people looked happy to be there, the frenzy to be seen and photographed, the intimidation. It didn't bother me, though. Maybe because in the past few months I've finally been feeling content with myself, my achievements and relationships so I don't get so wrapped up in false insecurities any more. Yet maybe it was because I don't have as much fashion mileage as Tavi and I'm still too far away from "having seen it all" for it to leave a negative impression on me. You never know.

Here's a little secret: I belong in fashion, but I don't really see myself as a "fashion person". I think it's overrated because to be a credible "fashion person" nowadays means there must be extreme buzz surrounding you all the time. This is something I really dislike in fashion today: the cult of personality. The obsession with who wore what, who sat first row, who appeared on which blog, who knows who, who is "important". Give me a break! Fashion should revolve around fashion, not hype.

Ironically, there's a 99,99% chance Tavi wouldn't have achieved what she did - at least not in such a short time - without the very same "flawed" fashion industry. Because you see, there are also good sides to it, the most notable one being that (some) young people with a genuine interest in fashion and creativity get recognition easier via blogs.

Tavi is an exceptionally talented person who will most likely be successful at everything she chooses to do. At 14, the most normal thing is to change interests; I'm looking forward to see where they take her in the future.