from the mouth of dame vivienne westwood

there's an exhibition on at san francisco's de young museum honoring the 36 years of innovative sartorial work by dame vivienne westwood, the famed british fashion designer and doyenne of punk rock fashion (meaning, for those not in the know, she's one of the creators behind that now ubiquitous costume). known for her racy, intelligent riffs on historical fashion, westwood has been behind many a trend in years gone by, like tubular knitwear, corsetry, platform shoes, and pirate looks, to name but a very few. the dame herself was in san fran this past weekend, to open the show and celebrate her body of work with local glitterati.

(sara stockbridge in vivienne westwood, 1987.)

on sunday march 4th, vivienne spoke to the students at the academy of art university, and she gave advice to the fashion and art students that attend the school:

"If you want to be a fashion designer, don't look at fashion magazines. Don't care about them. Look at costume."

absolutely!! sound advice for aspiring fashion designers, miss viv...

and i'd suggest, sound style advice for "normal" folk too!

want to find your style center? keep your eyes open, be inspired by all that you see but don't let fashion mags or celebrities be the only source you turn to when you mold your style statements...

follow your inner muse, make your own interpretation! what comes from inside you may be even more amazing, and so much less derivative than unquestioningly accepting what's already around...and it could even be potentially groundbreaking.

natural(inspiration).

my husband and i spent last weekend in monterey, california, enjoying each other as much as we enjoyed the monterey bay aquarium, which is brimming with sea life that is so amazing and stunningly beautiful, that it almost seemed almost unreal. like these jellyfish, for instance, that fluttered through a bright blue tank of crystal clear water. they were nothing less than art in motion. looking at them, i was instantly inspired by their vibrant colors and sculptural, symmetrical yet organic shapes. their tentacles remind me of strings and yarn and they had "ruffles" along said tentacles, that fluttered beguilingly in the water as they moved.

suffice it to say, my mind is filled with a myriad of ideas just looking at these stunning creatures: ideas for potential pieces of art, ideas for fashion-y objects...

if money was no object...

if i wasn't limiting my purchases of new things due to the wardrobe refashion pledge, if money grew on flowering spring trees, i'd delightfully purchase any of the following lovely things... for starters, these hoopla earrings by ryan kundrat, available at stars and infinite darkness:

i adore the bit of rubber that ryan has inserted in these minimal sterling hoops. it apparently comes in a myriad of bright colors. subtile but yet rather bold, all at once.

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thanks to k. cooper of hoping for happy accidents, one of my very very very favorite style blogs, i'm now obsessed with these gold nugget-eqsue earrings and cocktail ring by klaus burgel:

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this striped scarf may be a product of a mass marketer (jcrew), but is undeniably lovely to me, with it's woolen texture, bright yellow color (bright yellow is one of my favorite colors o' the moment!), and tie dye treatment, making it feel a little artsy and hand-hewn:

it could be worn as a scarf (natch!), but also as a headscarf or even a belt. would look killer with dark denim anything, or textiles that embody an emerald hue.

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i love the irreverent, somewhat naughty yet cute pattern on this little pouch by medicom toy life entertainment, available at the always amazing online shop creatures of comfort:

petite pouches like this are ever so versatile, allowing for use as cosmetic purses, a bag to store little knitting supplies, or even jewelry bags for traveling.

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these superbly crafted wooden heeled sandals by chie mihara (found at what i think is one of the most amazing shoe outlets ever, gravity pope, of canada) have a 70s earthy sexy vibe:

i love that the heel is actually wooden (at least i hope it is, as i abhor fake wood on shoes...UCK! it looks cheap!). the detailing on the top of the shoe is exceedingly lovely and actually quite a bit graphic...right up my alley. i see them as the perfect addition to tight dark jeans with a handmade orange dress over top.

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