Case Study

Subject: Christoph Schaller

Christoph is a fellow blogger. And a pretty good one at that, considering he started in his teens.  Now, at the ripe age of 19, he has recently graduated from kid school and is about to attend university in Berlin studying some form of fashion. As of yet, his easily amendable cranium is unsure where his path lies. Regardless, it is in fashion.

His blog is well followed by a loyal bunch because it is emotion filled and, to some, thought provoking. (It  probably doesn’t hurt that he’s quite a beautiful specimen, with impeccable taste in clothing and music.) It is his life, but he is unwilling to admit its importance. He sees fashion as possibly superfluous and unimportant in the scheme of things. I attribute that to his youth, because I see he lives and breathes it.  As do I. As do many.

I’m not going to preach. Only a little. What we put on everyday is our armor and our revealment.  It’s our truth, and for some, their dishonesty. No its not world peace or like saving the dolphins. But its something. And who made you so righteous and judgmental? Anything that makes your mind jiggle, your senses tingle, and inspires, is important.

It enlivens, brings optimism and energy into, perhaps, an otherwise dull life. It has inspired Christoph, who represents young Germany. From what he has told me, he feels all that has just been mentioned with fashion; enough to inspire an entire blog of his own. He shares. Honesty through blogging.  Christoph wants to inspire and IS inspired by people, music, photography, AND fashion. That doesn’t sound very “not important.”

Additionals:

Blocked in China, but Internationally ChristophWho

Favorite song from ChristophWho Blog, and another

The Cove, Save the Dolphins

World Peace

So I received an abundance of my favorite things. Sunflowers, a hand written note from my chow chow, Curry, gym pass from my husband? Cheese, Cheez-It™, home made guava-strawberry jam from the in-laws. AND this amazing oeuvre photography book from the eyes of Tim Walker, fallen fashion photographer. He fell into fashion. And fell for it hard.

Now, I am no authority in photography but, to me, the best shots are usually the most unstirred. There is a sandpaper feel to each page, seemingly to counter the soft warmth you get from the natural sunlight in each photo. Coincidentally, it reminds me of the sandy soft voices from old folklore songs. Raw and untouched.

Nothing i say is of any importance, so these are the photos that made me wide eyed. They also made me smile.  I rarely smile.

Garech Browne, Heir to Guinness Brewing Co.

Lily Cole in Wadhwan, India, British Vogue

Highlander, Papua New Guinea, British Vogue

This 4 feet tall young man does not know his age, but he guesses “maybe” 40 to 50 years old. He is in his own outfit, on his way to ‘tend his garden.’

The Cawdor Clan, Scotland, Vanity Fair

Otis Ferry and his Foxhounds, Vanity Fair

Georgina and White Mice, early photography by Tim Walker

Streets of Bradford and Cecil Beaton drawings, Vogue Archives

Thanks Mister for the gym pass and this wonderful book.

The book: Pictures by Tim Walker

The man: Tim Walker

]]> http://www.vainlane.com/2010/07/unfettered-worldwide/feed/ 0 http://www.vainlane.com/2010/07/ulterior-motives-new-york/ http://www.vainlane.com/2010/07/ulterior-motives-new-york/#comments Sat, 24 Jul 2010 11:03:47 +0000 cairn http://www.vainlane.com/?p=1026 Photo by Natalie Wang

To be honest, not a huge fan of the outfit. Wishing she had colored wellies on and a different colored bag. I don’t really get the all black outfit. I am sure this is her lazy sunday hangover outfit, to which many of us can relate. But she’s so cute cause she reminds me of my Caucasian friend Corrie in high school, in face and hair. You wonder why I even have to mention Caucasian? Well, this post has now given me a reason to add this blog’s link below…

Real reason for this post.

*Source unknown

Shanghai, with all its international amenities, can still be very wearing on an expat, especially after what will soon be 4 years.  The heat, noise, strange stinky tofu smell mixed with sewage (or is it urine?), the sidewalk air conditioning units dripping dirty water on my head as I walk, the accidental bumping of my shoulder (twice this morning) and the occasional spitting very close to my feet, leaves me feeling plain old exhausted.

But, when I am smart enough to remember, I have a ‘go-to’ image in my head. I actually have a few, coincidentally most are of fashion capitals around the world, but this is one currently most prevalent. Funny because I recently had a bad tiff with a french woman.  Or maybe that is why this is the one in my brain at present.

I think this and I am ok again.

She came into the BeeKeeper shop. She gave me a curious look, with a head tilt, then proceeded to try on some high waisted shorts in the middle of the store. Outside the store, when asked if we could take her photo, she started posing. I suggested maybe away from the telephone?

In our second attempt at a photo we see she has taken it down a notch. Immediately.  She tries to convince us, on the other side of the lens, that she is as demure and normal as anyone else.  But, clearly, that is not the case.  Her outfit may be mediocre to some, but she designed the button up shirt she’s wearing. Much better, I say, than another H&M or Zara piece.  Boring.  My favorite part of this outfit is the invisible pair of high heels she thinks she has on.  She’s practical; she didn’t need to shell out $3600 for a pair of heel-less Antonio Berardi shoes.   On her tippy toes, she has a lot of personality that even she can’t hide. And that is the most fashionable thing a person can wear.

After she was gone, I Google Hong Kong-ed her and found out she is a fellow designer. And that her quirky follows her everywhere she goes, and is in everything she touches.

• Why we Google HK-it
• She is Andrea Crews
• Antonio Berardi
• Non- related article on Antonio Berardi and his beef with Lady GaGa

*source unknown

At first glance you might think that this is the girl who played Randy Quaid’s daughter in the 1996 blockbuster and Will Smith vehicle, Independence Day.  Well, she might be, but I don’t think so.  To me, she’s just an awesome vaguely European hair-blowy girl who has obviously perfected the hard science of blending comfort, elegance and style.  It’s like when Newton invented calculus, but more fashiony.

The belted shirt, a classic updated.

What do you think?  Does she have a PhD in casual chic?

Every day we learn something new.  For example, today I learned that eating three Ferrero Rocher chocolates for lunch will not actually satiate hunger and that I will end up ordering an overpriced salad from Element Fresh anyways.  Wisdom.

So what insights can we derive from our man on the street here?  In a new series that I’m going to call “Be a Man: Wear a Suit” (see Dapper Dan) we’ll examine suit-wearing best practices and success stories from the office to the street.  In this, our second installment, I’d like to point out a few golden take-aways that you, sir, yes, YOU, can use next time you need to impress someone at a fancy lawyer meeting (it’s a technical term).

First things first: Dark or navy blue and black can be difficult to pair.  Suity here pulls it off by wearing a tie that falls somewhere in the dark-royal-blue category; that is to say, there is enough distinction between the two colors that they don’t just look like a bruised mess.  Secondly, wearing contrasting patterns, if you’re not experienced, can result in embarrassing failures leading to self-esteem issues and a hefty bill from your therapist.  Here, the clean, even lines of the shirt compliment the clean, evenly spaced white polka-dots on the tie.  The whites crisply stand out and the blues play off each other without being overwhelming.    It is awesome to behold.  Our third and final lesson of the day is suiting accessories.  Note the tie clip.  Not only does it add a sparkling gleam to the ensemble, it’s also practical: it holds your tie in its right place and it holds your cheat sheet for that upcoming client presentation.

Remember boys and girls, with a suit on, even if you have no idea what you’re talking about, at least you look like you know what you’re talking about.

When I lived in Paris for a summer my friends and I used to play a little game called ‘spot the American.’  Telltale signs: North Face fleece.  Rainbow or Reef sandals.  College sweatshirts.  Loud voices.  Broad gesticulations.  Chanting, “U-S-A” repeatedly and for no apparent reason. (Just kidding about that last one, kind of.)

Of course my friends and I considered ourselves too continental to be lumped with the touring Yanks, and very carefully attempted to blend in with the populace whose lithe bodies, lightly tousled locks and androgynous-with-a-hint-of-the-feminine clothing choices gave them their distinctly parisienne look.  Margaux (let’s call her Margaux) here exemplifies the Parisian essence that my friends and I, with dubious success, strove for.

Tell me you can’t imagine her sitting at a café in the quartier Latin smoking a Gauloise over a carafe of Bordeaux reading Sartre or discussing the finer points of love-making for hours on end.  Or scooting through traffic on her Vespa with a baguette, block of brie and a poodle in tow.  I could go on and on with the Paristereotypes (see what I did there?).  But really, there’s not much more to say.  Elle est magnifique.

The Parisienne Look:
Top by Cos
Scarf by Antik Batik
Vintage black leather belt
Trousers by Hartford
Shoes by Heschung
Glasses by Oliver Peoples

One of the best shops in Paris: Zadig & Voltaire

What to say about Dapper Dan here? With such an obviously strong grasp on his own awesomeness and fashion sense, what else needs be said? Let me try to break it down for you:

Dapper Dan is a man who knows how to wear a mismatched three-piece suit with panache. Sticking to a palette of grays with colorful shirt-and-tie bursts at the neck, D.D. may appear to possess a devil-may-care attitude but underlying that is his fierce work ethic, which you can tell that he has because he’s got a Starbucks iced coffee, no cream – what is that, a venti? Also, he has a briefcase. Boom. Professionalism.

But – what? What’s that I spy, Dan? Could it be…? Yes! YES! You did it! You put the square in your pocket to create what we in the fashion world call a pocket square! You’ve taken the early-twentieth-Century-London-banker look and ushered it into 2010 without batting an eye, haven’t you, my saucy lad? And I know you knew exactly what you were doing when you partnered the brown-strapped tote with the brown shoes and brown briefcase. That’s what is known as tying an outfit together. That’s an industry term, people. Write it down.

Ni hao, sexy reader, it’s me, Crindy, guest contributor on VainLane.  Allow me to ruminate for a wee moment on this young man’s foppish (whatever, I’ve been reading Dickens) ‘fit and share some of my thinking with you, my Internet friends.

First of all, Tom’s outfit succeeds based on a fashion principle which has been oft-discussed on this site: effortlessness.  The sophistication lies in the fact that while the ensemble itself is well coordinated, nothing is too matchey and the look is all his own.  Of course once you find out that Tom is a designer it begins to dawn upon you that he’s been professionally trained to know what looks good with what, but the point is that it’s perfectly executed and it doesn’t look like he’s trying too hard (men of Shanghai: take note).

Secondably, the shoes.  I mean.  What?  Where do you even find vintage pirate boots?  Neverland?  Well they’re a damn good get and I can guarantee you that no one else has anything else like those in their shoe closets (exception: Johnny Depp) and that Tom is – to quote my favorite silver-haired sartorialist – making.them.work.

The last thing I want to point out to you, dear reader, having advantageously scooped the provenance of all the elements of Tom’s outfit, is that each piece has a story.  Shirt and shorts?  Self designed.  Shoes?  Hong Kong, Kowloon side, hole-in-the-wall.  Bag?  Thank you, grandma.  Shades?  Thank you, Tom Ford.  It’s these priceless histories that are the soul of the outfit because Tom’s fingerprint and personality are embedded in every part of the whole.  He’s a walking, talking conversation piece, but he doesn’t feel the need to scream at the top of his lungs, “Look at me! I’m bleeping awesome!!!”

Maybe you should, Tom.  Maybe you should.

Additionals:

Mix of Peter and Mary Poppins Inspired Leather Boots (for her)

Tom Ford’s Hawkings Aviator Shades

Similar perfect Bermuda Shorts from J.Crew

Not so similar, but also perfect, Plaid Shirt

Crindy’s main purpose in life