Style Want: Terra Azzura by Guerlain + Pucci, and Why I Want It

I am not a beauty blogger. Heck, I can't even manage to wash my face on a regular basis, and I've been known to once-in-a-while (ok, way more often than that, but let's pretend, shall we) not even bother with makeup in the office.

But I do love a product or 3 (see my Sample Pledge, here).

I'm also a sucker for the old French design houses. And for the mad crazy beauty of an Italian great.

Therefore, my stylish friends, when Bloomingdale's nicely sent me an email this morning (just a regular ol' promotional email, not a blogger-y-please-post-pretty-please email) touting the marriage of two of my style icons in a beauty product, well, let's just say that I'm adding it to my Things I'd Like to Have List. Why, you ask, does Guerlain matter to me? Just think Shalimar + my mommy. Even my mother-in-law knows that I love old fashion things, and gives me lovely old French perfumes bought in Paris flea markets.

Ignore the cream sample in the foreground. The Molyneux box in the background contains a lovily-bottled ancient French perfume that, while it probably smells nothing like it originally did, still holds (lord knows how long after) a stunning, old school scent. It was one of my MIL's first gifts to me, after she went to Paris on a relative whim with 2 girlfriends.

And Pucci? Yeah. I'm a scarf-a-holic. And a print-a-holic. Though I've not worn them much lately (pre-#healthyme, I felt like a scarf around my neck was just too much and made my face quite frankly fatter than it was already), but among my prize possessions are scarves of all varieties from my grandmothers, a Schiaparelli scarf (thanks, Malena, for the amazing gift) in a marvelous blue-green print, and an Ali Ro dress that screams "I copied Pucci" in a way that I think is just marvelous. One day, I'll have the real thing.

Original link is long gone, but here's the post in which I first purchased the dress at the Clarendon South Moon Under (and found my Style Mojo again, for what it's worth)

I have no idea if it's worth trying, but I'm thinking that it might just be my next #healthyme goal reward. Anyone with me?

Thank you, Bloomie's, for the image that I not-so-slyly poached from your Terra Azzurra page.

A couple of additional style notes my brain connected from this post but aren't necessarily related:

1) Crazy, ridiculous excited about the "Impossible Conversations" Schiaparelli/Prada exhibit at the Met. As I've mentioned, I'm planning a trip to NYC with The Bean and my mommy (The 2 Elsas + I). Can't wait.

2) Crazy, ridiculous excited that, as the Schiaparelli website now says, "Rendez-Vous en Juillet 2012."

3) Malena's. Yes, DC people, she's in West Chester, PA. But a) she has a rubylane store, and b) she's phenomenal. She's my dealer, and the woman responsible for The Bag.

Style Dilemma: Solving a Style Ethics Question

On Monday, I shared a crazy story from a friend. Short version? She found what looks to be like an Hermés scarf for sale at Target. For $14.99. So what does she do? I asked Malena Martinez, of Malena's vintage boutique, for her thoughts on the matter. I forwarded my friend's story, and here's what Malena had to say.

Well that is very strange.  It seems like we have two issues here.  . How did it get there, does she keep it, and 2. Is it real.  

I think her explanation of how it got priced at Target is likely. Maybe to quell her conscience she should go back to that target and ask if anyone reported a missing Hermés scarf. If so, find the right owner,  if not. Take good care of that and appreciate it as a special gift from the fairy fashion godmother.  

As for the authenticity there are a few points to consider...fakes generally do not have the same exact print as the real ones. For instance, I have an Hermés scarf with keys, the real one has 72, the fakes out there only have 46 keys. So explorer the photos here and see if her scarf has the right amount of bugs, monkeys, mermaids, etc.  

This scarf also has the artists name hidden in the print. Not all real scarves have this, but it is one more point to look for. Hermés Paris should also be printed, some times twice, on every scarf. The appearance of the accent over the e, and the copyright symbol can also have date the piece. And lastly, the white corner hang tag. These have been known to fall off, but if it is there, and if it says some thing other than may add to the authenticity of it. I recently had a 1977 Hermés scarf in the store that had a Neiman Marcus tag attached next to the white Hermés one, another variation on what to look for depending on the age.

So now we have an expert opinion. Change your mind from Monday? Would you keep the scarf you bought for $14.99? Would you check in with the store? Would you even have bought it in the first place?

Style Dilemma: Ethical Conundrum or Fashion Question?

A friend wrote me the other day with the strangest story. Read on. Unedited.

I'm strolling along in Target today, looking at the scarves.  THIS scarf catches my eye.  I see that it says Hermes.  I think to myself:  "Hmmm...did Hermes make a collection for Target, like Missoni?"  The tag says it is silk, and there aren't any other scarves like it on the display.  The scarf itself doesn't have a price tag, but it's on a plastic ring, so that it can hang on the display hooks, and the plastic ring has a price tag attached:  $14.99.  Well, this scarf clearly has no business being for sale in Target.

I can only assume that some poor shopper must have lost it while at Target, and a sales associate picked it up and put it with the other scarves.  So, I put it in my cart while I do some soul-searching.  If I put it back, someone else will just pick it up and buy it later, right?  I could take it up to Customer Service, and assume they will put it in the Lost & Found box, if one exists (or will someone behind the counter just keep it?).  I think:  "am I on Candid Camera?" 

 

Well, I decided to buy it.  So, now, I wonder if maybe it's a fake,  That would certainly make me feel better, knowing that someone just lost their fake $20 Hermes, and not their genuine $400 Hermes.  A quick Google search rules out the most obvious indicators that it is a fake, so it could be real. 

 

What do you make of this?  I guess I want confirmation that I didn't essentially steal this.  Do I take it as a gift from the Couture gods?  Or did I just fail an ethical test?  Arggggg!

So. What do you think? What would you have done?

I've asked my "Dealer," Malena (she of The Bag fame), of the eponymous vintage boutique in West Chester, PA, her thoughts on the matter. Check back soon to see what she has to say on the scarf's authenticity and what she might do.

Style Debate: Fashion for the Masses

Sitting at dinner last night with H (thank you MissIzzy, for the night out with H), I had a thought.

Now, truth be told, our Guapo's (yes, rockin it Tenley Old Skool) outing was actually intended to be "thought free," and let us relax. Which we did. But somehow, in discussing This, That, and The Other, it came up.

I was thinking about a woman Malena told me about. She has a customer who collects - and started ages ago - a certain 70s jewelry designer. Part of the reason she collects is for her daughter. And apparently she picked well. Granted, she originally picked this designer (name long since forgotten on my part) because she loved the designs. At the time, they weren't Sought After. Now, they are.

While I absolutely factored The Bean into The Bag Decision, I don't have anything else I could say I collect. And I don't know if there is anything else I'd want to. It would be really hard, now, with the proliferation of available Big Names, to select something I both adored and would be unique. It's all available everywhere.

I wholeheartedly support Fashion for the Masses. I think it fabulous that H&M, Target, and the like catapulted the Jaclyn Smith/KMart model into our style conciousness. I think it marvelous that there's less and less distance (for all sorts of modern, webified reasons) between the Runway and the Average Consumer.

But then, it isn't.

Call me a snob, but it isn't so fabulous that I try and go buy something unique and special, and turn around and find someone else carrying the same bag or wearing the same scarf. There is something so elevated about The Houses that is disappearing. There are no more muses. The Grace Kellys are no longer the inspriration (there is, of course, the argument that there are No More Grace Kellys). Natalie and Kate and Reese and ... well, it's just not the same.

So for someone who actively tries to make High Fashion palatable and wearable to The Rest of Us, I suppose it seems odd to be calling out The Houses for "lowering themselves." But if there isn't any aspiration in fashion, where are we supposed to go with it? I still, no matter how practical my own daily closet choices may have to be, want to delight in details that only come with that heightened sense of style that trickles down from haute couture. The drapey flowy collar on my Gap sale T-shirt came from somewhere, and it wasn't KMart.

Dreams Do Come True

I'm an incredibly lucky girl.

I have two beautiful children, an amazing husband, and friends and family around me that I'm constantly reminded how amazing they are.

And a girl has dreams.

And they come true.

From my "dealer's" (Malena of the wonderful eponymous boutique) description:

The bag is authentic, had one owner, no dust cover or lock. It is chocolate brown calf skin. I lightened the photos so every tiny scratch is visible. Most you cannot see in real life.

The leather housing of the keys is called the pouchette. The Hermes store in KOP told me to replace the lock and keys is under $150, but problably below $100. It will take a few weeks since it comes from (duh) Paris.

The good news- No broken stitching, no stains, no chipped metal, no missing feet, strap in great condition. Interior is flawless as well. No gold initials of the original owner.

The bad news- No lock, and 2 of the corners need a touch up with brown polish. It is not visible when the bag is sitting on the table. Damage no larger than 1/4 inch. The worst of it is photographed, including the
scratch on the bottom.

For the age and quality of this bag it really is in impressive condition.

I know I shouldn't. I know it's a luxury. And I also know that it's an amazing, wonderful, beautiful thing.

Grace's biography was the first one I remember reading - in elementary school. I can still see Mrs. Wilson and the shelves and then can remember reading that wonderful book. I wanted to be her. Her wedding dress was the first picture I had in my head after H proposed.

I could be spending this money on other, more useful things - like clothes I'm comfortable in or a trip with H. But instead, I'm trying to figure out the best way to get this piece from West Chester, Pennsylvania, to Washington, D.C. without shipping it, exposing it to cold, or putting it in harm's way.

And it will be The Bean's. And she will have a piece of wearable art, Nigel.

*Photo cropped from one I found on Letters to Betsy (great blog and name, btw - another childhood memory)

Almost time...

...for a little shopping for mama.

Despite having found some real gems (my flutter-sleeve milkstars top is ridiculously flattering and comfy - and practical) online in the past few weeks and awaiting the arrival of more at my mama's house (shipped them there so I'd be sure to have them on our "vacation"), I'm jonesin' for some real shopping.

I'm sure I'll get frustrated and feel like a big cow in the dressing room (just part of the transition from M clothes to "real" clothes), but I'm excited. I'm feeling pretty good, and my Beans are relatively cooperative when it comes to being out and about. That means my mama and I can take them to the Exton Square Mall - or maybe even King of Prussia - and hit a couple of stores.

Yes, I'm going mall shopping.

For me right now - in transitional sizes - it's the most practical. It also helps that we're transitioning between seasons; I'm hoping for some sales.

On the list: a couple of pairs of pants, a skirt or two, and maybe some new shoes. I'd love to have more skirts than slacks, but so far, I'm not terribly inspired by what's out there. A simple denim skirt (lordy, am I having flashbacks there) will probably suffice, plus the black pleated one I ordered and have waiting for me at grandma's house.

My treat to myself, though (other than the massage my mama's making me get)? I'll see what fanciness I can find at Malena's. Like I've mentioned before, this is a gem of a vintage store (also reachable online) owned and expertly run by a childhood friend of my sister's (aka prettyinpink). She's always got a scarf or purse or buckle or pair of brilliantly gaudy earrings I just have to have. Unfortunately, even without the baby weight, I'm usually to Germanically-boned for vintage clothing, and my size 9s are usually too long for vintage shoes, but I can accessorize (what's that word? as Fancy Nancy* says) 'til the cows come home - and they will, up in southeastern PA, where I'll be spending the next week...

*Fancy Nancy is a gloriously diva-ish little girl who frequents a series of children's books. One of The Bean's favorite "aunts" brings her new installments in the series (sticker books, flip out books - the latest and most popular so far) when she visits. Thanks, BlueSuitGirl, for cultivating my daughter's interest in All Things Fancy.