Design Inspiration from Anouska Hempel

I love the level of elegance that Designer Anouska Hempel injects in to every project.

 

 

 

Anouska Hempel style spans every design aspect 

:: Residential :: Restaurants :: Hotels :: Retail :: Yachts :: Landscape :: Couture

Have a Glamourous Weekend

It's been a busy week ......... a Third Birthday celebration {how did our baby Granddaughter get to three years so fast}

a happy wedding celebration for friends,
 .....................a birthday celebration for my Honey {who barely held it together as the three-year-old-birthday-girl sang Happy Birthday to Grandpa},

Day after the birthday, Richard relaxing before a long day of yard work.

............ and three full back breaking days editing the garden.
Whew - it's been a busy week.

This is where I will be 'exercising' today.

Maybe I can bring a little Glamour to the weekend and wear the crown that Kya made at craft class this week.

Have a Glamourous Weekend.

Scenic Travel

 

 

Admit it, the summer travel bug is biting at your heels. 

You yearn to throw some pretty things into a carry-on and then carry your pretty little self on out of town. Whether it's a road trip in the family van or a last minute sell-off flight to a city called 'fun', you just need to escape. 

Maybe it is the repetitive screening of 'Thomas the Train' episodes that my Granddaughter watches that has made me itch to climb aboard a train and role out of town. 

Travel by train offers beautiful scenery, elegant coaches, plus the opportunity to sit back and relax.

Grab your boarding pass and imagine the relaxing trip you could take via the train.

 

via Venice Simplon- Orient-Express

The journey by train gives travelers the opportunity to sit back and drink in the scenery. I think of the luxury and elegance of a train like the Orient-Express when I think of extensive train travel. The experience should be equivalent to that of a top rated luxury hotel.

source Venice Simplon Orient-Express

With the rail lines traveling through some of the most picturesque back yards around the world, you are guaranteed to enjoy a truly scenic journey.

Good Morning, Room Service!

Have you traveled by luxury train? or - does the idea of traveling by luxury train appeal to you?

Chris Hadfield's glimpse of the world

Canadian Astronaut Chris Hadfield will end his space-flight tonight when he returns to earth from Expedition 35.
After five months of floating weightlessly, Hadfield will bring the space-craft back for a scheduled landing on the flat steppes of Kazakhstan at 10:31 pm (Eastern Time). The experience of a Soyuz landing has been described by astronauts as similar to surviving a train wreck, it's a dramatic jolt back to earth and will take days to adjust to gravity again.

So what does a guy do when the experiments and testing in space are done for the day? When you can't lie in bed or sit in a chair ......... you just kinda float around... what do you do?  For Chris, it meant working on the first original music album to be recorded in space. A music video released just yesterday has hit almost 2 million views on youtube already. Eighty-one videos of Chris' experiences on this space journey and over 750,000 twitter followers has brought an insightful education about the space program to followers world-wide.

The revised version of David Bowie's 'Space Oddity' is performed by Hadfield as he drifts throughout the cabin of ISS and brings to the screen the experiences of life in space. You realize while watching the Canadian Astronaut as he sings and floats throughout the cabin, that the lyrics are as much in his blood as the entire space program. Images of Commander Hadfield at the porthole window with the solar system in his constant view is inspirational.

The video was produced by Evan Hadfield {his Son}, Emm Gryner, Joe Cocoran, and Andrew Tidby.

View video below.........

Canadian Astronaut Chris Hadfield - Space Oddity

Chris Hadfield was born in Sarnia, Ontario and attended West Oak Secondary School in Oakville {where I live}.  Sarnia is honoured by the mission man - the airport and a public school where Chris once attended, have both been renamed after him. Chris' parents reside here in the southern Ontario area.  

After a 20 hour flight from a Kazakhstani airbase to NASA in Houston, Commander Hadfield will be greeted by his wife at an undisclosed time on Tuesday. He will need a few days to adjust to gravity and pending physicians approval he will make a public appearance Thursday before flying back to Canada.

I encourage all Canadians, especially local businesses in Southern Ontario, to salute the astronaut and acknowledge his expedition.

Wishing you a safe landing  -  Congratulations Commander !!  

Visit Commander Hadfield's twitter page to view the images from space.

Chris Hadfield Twitter - https://twitter.com/Cmdr_Hadfield

source : Gavin Aung Than/Zen Pencils.com

Being a Mom is so rewarding

I love being a Mom, it's what I was put on this earth to do.
And I thank God often for the gift of my children. 

Parenthood is a tough job and it's not for everyone. But for those who venture into it, it is so rewarding. As a parent you must be willing to sacrifice,

but when you do the benefits are momentous.

My Son Dallas at age one. Now 31 years old.

I'm a good Mom. 

It took me years to admit that to myself. 

I always said 'my kids are wonderful, and they make me look good' {and yes, that is true}. But I'm a good Mom...... not afraid to sacrifice for them, not afraid to fight for them, not afraid to back away and make them fight for themselves.

I can't imagine a more important role in my life than being 'MOM'.

My Daughter Monique age one. Now 29 years old.

And just when you thought it couldn't get any sweeter, along comes the topping on the cake............. a beautiful Granddaughter. 

Again, I say thank you God, for the gifts you have given me.

My Granddaughter Kya..... three this week.

Happy Mother's Day to all who answer to the sweet name of Mom.

Mom-to-be

I previously wrote my thoughts on maternity style for the Duchess of Cambridge {here} and I have to admit that her choices have not surprised me. Kate is one of the most elegant and pretty Mom's-to-be and it's worth a look at her glowing style.

Simple, elegant, and great colour choices.

Mommy-to-be Kate has well toned legs and looks great in heels.

There was a lot of media buzz about the price tag for the new buggy-wheels for the baby in waiting. 

I suggested the  Silver Cross Surf Pram - Aston Martin edition {retails for $3,000}.

It is reported that the Duchess has chosen the  Bugaboo Cameleon convertible stroller {retails for $1,200}, more modest in price and a great stroller. Our own little Princess {my Granddaughter} enjoys the smooth ride of a Bugaboo.

 But maybe William has a different set of wheels in mind...............

There is no doubt about it, pregnancy is agreeing with Kate. She is beautiful and glowing.

Blooming Season

I was on my way to the grocery store tonight and had to stop to snap this picture of the harbour in Oakville. When I looked over towards the lake I couldn't help but smile at the beauty. 

Was it only two weeks ago that we had a blast of flurries?  

We watched the cranes launch the boats over the past week and tonight a beautiful white sailboat skimmed across the lake water like it was a pane of glass.

My Granddaughter is happy to go to the garden center with me to pick out flowers......... and jump in the puddles. After all, isn't that what spring is all about.

It's turned warm enough to leave the pretty pink jacket on the hook and run around the park in short sleeves.

It's the start of a blooming good season.

Gatsby Fashion

Some of the best designs and the ones that inspire new trends, are representations of a past era. The newest film rendition of The Great Gatsby is about to explode on the screen {see my last post on it here} and it is already creating a yearning for the opulence that was the 'roaring twenties'. 

The Great Gatsby movie is creating a design buzz with both the decor and fashion industry. It's easy to understand why weddings with a Gatsby theme are popular this year, design from this era offers sparkle and sexiness.

Deco inspirations include ....... Ladies with milky skin and striking ruby lips, short bob hair styles with pin curl fringed edges. Beaded headbands, netted trims sweeping the brow, earrings that sparkle and drape, layers of draped pearls, beaded trimmed dresses with a flirty swing to the hemline.
The 'boys' dressed as gentlemen in crisp dress shirts with French cuffs, tuxedo's for nights out and three piece suits for day, oxford dress shoes, suspenders on trousers, and the straw boater hat to top it all off.

Daisy Buchanan's beaded gown by Miuccia Prada

And while costumes are costumes, it is the inspiration of movies like Gatsby that helps to create the trickle-down effect to fashion. Much like the couture creations for the runway become paired down into the ready-to-wear market that intrigues the basic consumer each season.

The fashion trends that roared through the twenties are making a mark on the design scene again thanks to Gatsby. Let's take a look at some of the styles, fabrics, lines and designs in both garment and jewel fashions inspired by era.

Carey Mulligan plays Daisy Buchanan in The Great Gastby

I love this image above of Carey Mulligan {shot by Mario Testino for Vogue, Australia}. The soft blush pink satin halter style gown adorned with individual rose petals portrays the era perfectly. Jewels by Tiffany & Co {more on the special Gatsby collection later}. Looking at the soft pink set against the patina matte gold iron work it is easy to see why this is such a  popular decor colour combination.

Carey in Chanel couture chiffon, feather and tulle dress.

Carey wears a ice blue silk gown with black lace floral inserts by Nina Ricci - onyx and diamond earrings by Chanel, bracelet by Gray & Davis .

Carey as Daisy Buchanan - wearing a feathered night shawl and diamond headband with detachable broach. Jewels by Tiffany & Co. 

The Savoy Headpiece by Tiffany & Co.

The Savoy Headpiece crafted by Tiffany & Co. specifically for the character of Daisy Buchanan features a detachable brooch. The diamond and fresh water pearl feather designed brooch sits on the diamond and pearl headband, making it a 25.04 carat masterpiece. Contact Tiffany & Co to order privately.

Tiffany & Co. created an entire Jazz Collection of jewels inspired by the Ziegfeld era. The Art Deco Drop earrings above feature brilliant round, baguette, and pear-shaped diamonds set in platinum with a total weight of over 16 carats. Price $140,000.  In the roaring twenties it was common for people of a certain level of wealth to display their status with the jewels they wore, Tiffany's was one of the main jewelers of choice. 

F. Scott Fitzgerald, author of The Great Gatsby, was a client of both Tiffany's and Brooks Bros. during the twenties. It was a natural style fit for the film to work with the brands and became integral part of the design building for set/costume designer Catherine Martin. Both Tiffany and Brooks Bros. developed Gatsby inspired retails collections for 2013.

Leonardo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby wearing a Brooks Bros. suit. source Andy Anthineos

Brooks Bros.

Suspenders - Brooks Bros.

Straw Boaters Hat - Brooks Bros.

The fashion runway showed the influence that Gastby brought to several design houses ......

Emporio Armani - Fall 2013

Armani                                              source : Yannis Viamos

Jil Sanders

Ralph Lauren's collection. Lauren designed the costumes for the 1974 Great Gatsby film.

Ralph Lauren - The blush pink three-piece suit for her.

Gatsby inspiration - white with silver beaded dresses. source : unknown

One of the top wedding trends for 2013 is the Gatsby themed soiree. If you are planning a wedding or attending a themed wedding as a guest here are a few examples of fashion and accents to help create the look.

via : Bella Eventi blog

Getting the 'do' right is crucial. Charlize Theron wears a headband with soft waves tucked into a bob style. Christina Aguilera's look combines soft push waves and pin curls. Christina's platinum blonde colour, smokey doe-eye and raspberry lips create a sexy roaring twenties look. Her beaded neutral toned dress and diamond necklace in layers is a classic deco era look.

Get the crystal headband look. source : theprancingfox on etsy

Beaded and fringed handbags will complete the look. source : Armani

Kate Moss wore one of the most romantic bridal gown and veil which is a nod to  the 1920's.

This crystal bandeaux by Jennifer Behr is elegant when paired with simple veiling.

If you are attending a Gatsby themed event, whether it is a wedding or party, getting the look is simple. Although it was a time of opulence avoid looking like you are wearing a costume by keeping the details toned down. Don't wear it 'all' at the same time and no matter what - don't wear patterned knee high stockings with your shoes - it's a look that only leggy models can achieve.

This is the look that most brides will be striving to achieve for their Gatsby inspired weddings. Elegantly traditional with a hint of the roaring twenties era will bring the romance to a wedding. source : Sarah Yates.

I'm off to see the movie on the big screen next week. Somehow I feel that the popcorn concession should be serving up champagne in crystal flutes to movie goers.