Sunday, December 28, 2008

urban art deco

wicked cool...i have been deeply inspired by ART DECO design for awhile now but am seeing the emergence of a new kind of URBAN ART DECO that makes sense to me. if you think about it, years ago the aviator graced movie screens with its sumptious but soft lit images that were both muted and brillant at the same time. it's that idea of going back in time through a lens that reveals fluid grace and clear lines. the same lines that evoked security and structure for the unsure depression era.

with its clean lines, geometrical structure, and subtle but unique form, ART DECO is a soothing design style. it's simple and modern. everything from interior design to fashion seem to be taking its cues from a kind of art deco, structural assurance...perfect for our modern-day uncertain times...you can see it in chevron patterns, the same uniform lines that can be found in vintage art deco pieces. there's something reassuring, beautiful and modern in something so timeless.

case in point: i've coveted for some time items like Oscar de la Renta's chevron flatware & serving pieces from his home collection. it's a kind of modern & urban art deco look that's at home in relaxed & organic environments that let accent pieces have center stage. these de la renta pieces are sold out everywhere, but a girl can still dream. artel also has gorgeous chevron patterned crystal barware infused with vibrant colors...kinda like the new ipods of barware. 

joya also makes luscious oil diffusers and candles in scents such as himalayan goji berry, and the literatti cool gunpowder green tea...which you know 18th century French poet Baudelaire would have written to by candlelight. and the  jasmine absolute & sugar which Colette would have hidden in between flapper embroidered lingerie. The asteroid shapes...black & white...with simple accent images remind me of something phillip starck would create if he was time machined back to the art deco era and had to show everyone what the future was like. i particularly love the octopus oil diffuser (my nephew is currently obssessed with them and i must admit i truly share his love affair with these sea creatures) .
the skull and cross-bones candles look like something a modern day f. scott fitgerald would have in his loft apartment in the east village or what would inspire a gautier pirate & punk rocker collection... 

 
....i'll cover more of this trend under a future VINTAGE FIGHTING SPIRIT post this week. i would certainly expect to see more of this art deco inspired design in the future...ie. hillary swank is working on that new Amelia Earheart-inspired movie and i sense more structure, clean lines, to move us forward Great Gatsby style, bringing structure & clarity of design to our shaky times... - STYLE NOMAD 12/28/08



PHOTO CREDITS: 1.-4. Aviator movie by Warner Bros. 5.-6. Oscar de la Renta home acessories. 7. Artel glasses. 8.-10. Joya candles. 11.-13. Photos by Unknown.





Friday, December 26, 2008

while sugar plums danced in their heads...

joyeux nöel & mele kalikimaka...something to listen to and be inspired by...I discovered the talented Priscilla Ahn awhile ago but thought the holidays was the perfect time to share her song "dream...."
STYLE NOMAD 12/26/08

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

inspiration













inspiration...Coco Chanel once said, "La mode se demode, mais le style, jamais..." I've wanted to do this blog for a long time, because she was right. Fashion goes out of fashion but true style lasts forever. Style is something you have even if you can't afford those thousand dollar Gucci shoes. Style is expression and grace and beauty and personality all rolled up into one...it's that indescribable it factor that makes someone, something, or some place unique.

i've worked in magazines as a stylist and editor, am a published writer, and have also worked in advertising and brand design....yet at the heart of it i think i am some kind of visual stylist, finding that i can't fall asleep without visions of sugar plums...inspiration running randomly through my head..so i had to capture it and leave it all somewhere..like a butterfly that is free but needs a place to rest. so here is my nest, my little bursting cocoon stuffed and filled with goodies and delights i hope you enjoy as much as i do....smile, relax, and be inspired to set sails in your own life. we connect the dots sometimes through inspiration so run off after reading this blog to be a style nomad and fill your life with beauty. for life truly is BEAUTY full.

Tim Walker (above) is an amazing fashion photographer. He creates whimsical visual landscapes with humor and wit...stunning juxtapositions of opposites and objects in impossible placements ...as if you've fallen through the rabbitt hole. Much has been written about Walker and his Alice-in-Wonderland, beautiful, other-worldly photographs but he's one of my favorite photographers so I wanted to start off this blog by writing about him. Walker's most recent exhibit was at the Design Museum in London this past Fall. Their online shop still has his prints, exhibition books, and 2009 calendars available. --- STYLE NOMAD 12/23/08

PHOTO CREDITS: All photos by Tim Walker.