Ice, Ice, Baby!

Jewellery is like icing on the cake. It completes a woman’s look. From junk jewellery to gold to platinum to silver, a woman is spoilt for choice. The cherry on the cake, of course, is the diamond. Like a woman it is multi-faceted.

Icylicious Beyonce

Off to buy a rock? 

The Cut, Colour, Clarity, and Carat are the 4 C’s you need to bear in mind.

Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s

Cut This affects the light that the diamond throws out. Cut and polish affects the diamond’s bling factor. This can make or break the diamond. So pay attention.

Marilyn Monroe’s best buds

Colour Almost all diamonds have a hint of colour in them. Colourless diamonds are in a class of their own and a rarity. The cut of the diamond helps minimise the colour. Place the diamond, pavilion up, on a piece of white cloth to check this aspect. Ask the merchant for the grading. If it is E, F, G it is of the best quality while K, L, M would mean the presence of colour is noticeable.

Sushmita Sen

Clarity Diamonds have faults like crystals and feathers. Looking at it under a microscope will give you an idea how flawless it is. Lesser the number of feathers and crystals better the quality of the rock.

Sharon Stone

Carat It is the weight of the diamond. One carat is equal to 1/5^th of a gram. 1/100^th of a carat is a point. But the weight by itself does not determine the diamond’s value or its size. If it is not cut properly, a bigger diamond will be lacklustre.

Material Girl Madonna

More celebrity rocks coming up………………………….

 

– anuraadha

Manolo Moments

 Manolo Blahnik’s  fame multiplied with Sex And The City. Sarah Jessica Parker went ga-ga over it. When things with Mr.Big was on shaky ground or life itself, she went for Manolo Therapy. Happy and how!

Madonna claims it’s better than sex. Anna Wintour wears it and so does Victoria Beckham.

Half Czech and half Spanish, this affable shoe designer grew up on a banana plantation on the Canary Islands. His mother and fashion magazines were his only link to fashion. He studied literature and architecture in Geneva, moving to Paris where he studied art.

It was the Vogue editor Diana Vreeland who suggested he design shoes and that’s how it all began. He bought Zappato in London in the early 70s and his shoes found their way to the US around 1978.

His shoes – with cherries and all – were made for designer Ossie Clark. Though Blahnik had endless visions of what he wanted, how he wanted it and the ladies who’d wear it, it took him time to technically get it right, lacking as he was a formal education in shoe making.

The designer is known for designing and making prototypes of every one of the shoes that carry his name. After sketching them in Bath, he sculpts and chisels the heel, after which they go into production in his factories in Italy.  His shoes are made with anthracite leather, patent leather, nappa leather, lightweight aluminium, rings and even African beads.

 He has played with thong sandals, slingbacks, booties and ankle straps, each of which exude feminine frivolity, style and art.

 He has worked with designers like Vivienne Westwood, John Galliano, Calvin Klein and Isaac Mizrahi.

– anuraadha

A Swirl of Cavalli

What comes to mind when one hear’s Italy?

Pasta, Pizzas and Cavalli!

A student of textile design, Cavalli brings alive his designs….delighting the senses. He mixes textures. The colours are riotous…and without an expert handling them have danger of being called garish.  Nature is his muse and that is evident in the animal print designs that show up frequently on his designs.

 His Fall 09 collection lacked colour…black ruled with purple and beige coming a distant second. There was leather, satin, chiffon, suede and fur. the use of textures gave black more dimension.

Spring 09 was more fun, more vibrant. Whites, lime greens and blacks. Lace, light fabrics. A breezy feel and floral motifs.

– anuraadha

GAP

GAP  is one of the biggest brands in the USA and has in the past three years seen a drop in sales. There were rumours of a sell off for a whopping $19 billion but what did happen was the CEO was fired and there was a major management change.

Basic cuts are a pre-requisite in any wardrobe and that is one of GAP’s strong points.  But one does wish that they had more designs on offer.

Every season, their top selling garments go into production again with minor changes. Really minute changes, if at all. Not just designs but even the fabrics are the same making it so ho-hum.

Sarah Jessica Parker – The All American Brand just like GAP

But what took my breath away was the sheer amount of work that goes into even a repeat order. GAP has one of the most complex systems I have come across. Abercrombie & Fitch, I have been told, comes next.  It’s all about q-u-a-l-i-t-y.

GAP’s Classier Sister goes by the name Banana Republic

The basic design and construction, the fit, wash, ornamentation, numerous tests on the fabric, garment and accessories, apart from which there are regular quality checks during production….there’s a lot that happens behind every garment that we see in stores. Don’t even get me started about threads.

And the number of times they re-affirm their brand name on every single piece!!!

Banana Republic remains a fave coz they come out with Petite sizes. Old Navy, GAP don’t make one want to bend backwards to own one. Especially not if you are keen on wearing an unique identity.

 

Coco

What better way to kickstart a blog on fashion than with Coco Chanel, the woman who gave the world the Little Black Dress, Chanel No 5  and the Chanel Jacket?

It was Chanel who made black chic.

Chanel’s  style quotient was all about understated elegance and her designs gave feminity a makeover.  She experimented with fabrics like jersey, tweed and borrowed a lot of ideas from men’s wear. She was a non-conformist which reflected on her designs.

She was a seamstress, a mistress of prominent men, a nurse during World War and  also had a Nazi lover.

The Little Black Dress is a staple in any woman’s wardrobe. It’s timeless by virtue of which it is a classic.  It was and continues to be simple and all about the cut and proportion.

 

Audrey Hepburn helped escalate it’s appeal in Breakfast At Tiffany’s.

One of the most expensive and exquisitive fragrances – Chanel No 5. The brand is represented Nicole Kidman and has many fans in Hollywood like Jennifer Aniston and Scarlette Johansson.

The Chanel Jacket was yet another masterpiece.

Karl Lagerfeld is now the head designer of the House of Chanel.

– anuraadha