“C’mon Dover, move your bloomin’ arse!”

As an interior designer, I am constantly inspired by fashion. Just like your home is a reflection of who you are, fashion is a reflection of you — except you get to change it everyday!! When I was a little girl, my favorite movie was My Fair Lady and like many other girls Audrey Hepburn has always been a style icon for me. The vision of her as Eliza Doolittle at the Ascot racecourse in her spectacular black-and-white hat and gorgeous gown was really my first introduction to the world of high fashion and the culture of horse racing.

As the Kentucky Derby approaches this weekend, there’s no better place to see all sorts of fashion than at the Derby and the parties — it’s a sporting event and a fashion show all in one! Dressing for “the most exciting 2 minutes in sports” is something that I have really had fun with and last week I filmed a segment with NBC and Linda Pagan, proprietress of The Hat Shop, on how I selected my hat and picked my outfits for the Kentucky Derby party this year. Click here to see the video segment and read a brief history about hats at the Derby. To my friends shopping for a hat this week, I would suggest taking a simple dress you already own and spend your time and money on a fabulous hat! Personally, I pick a classic style with lots of details, and stick to neutral colors so it’s very easy for me to match my hat with something I already have in my closet. And I always visit Linda for the perfect chapeau at her shop on Thompson Street in SoHo.

A big thank you to Linda Pagan at The Hat Shop, Elisabeth Ladzinski, Emily Feldman and Corey Crago at NBC for including me!

Some behind the scenes photos:

Photo sources: top - christopherriordan.com, middle - NBC, bottom two - Michelle Lin Greenip

My pinboard and more of what inspires me.

Eye On: Au Jour Le Jour

While in Dublin recently, I noticed mentions in some magazines of a relatively new Italian brand, Au Jour Le Jour. Started by Mirko Fontana and Diego Marquez, two cool young designers with a background in fashion PR. Au Jour Le Jour means from day to day, which is quite a perfect way to describe the casual cool of the clothes. I love the Pre-Spring 2013 collection’s prints, collars and skater skirts — can’t wait until it’s finally warm enough here in New York.

View my pinboard and more of what inspires me.

Photos from Vogue Italia, check out the rest of the collection here.

eye on: oversized coats at Carven

All images from style.com

Spring/Summer 2013

This whole blizzard mess has really left me dreaming about spring, and what better way to cope than to highlight some of my favorite looks from the 2013 spring collections?

Leather & Pearls at Chanel

How chic is this gold, lace trench at Burberry Prorsum?

Blazing shades of red at Carven

All things denim at Miu Miu

A perfect summer dress at Isabel Marant

Super chic at Céline

Colorful menswear at Elizabeth and James

A frothy little number at Chloé

Magical cocktail dresses at Lanvin

Dreamy florals at Cacharel

{All images from Style.com}

de Gournay opens in nyc

To fully illustrate my love for de Gournay I must mention our last trip to London. Two years ago, we took the red-eye there, checked into our hotel in Mayfair and I immediately dragged my husband in search of this very special showroom which I insisted he too would love. With only a day and half in London, there was no time to waste. When I tell you that I dragged him, I’m not exaggerating. On our walk there, we stopped in a home decor store where he actually fell asleep while standing. When we finally found our way, as I had promised, he was blown away by the exquisite hand-painted wall coverings. You can imagine my excitement when I found out that de Gournay was opening its first outpost here in New York.

At an intimate bloggers’ reception held at the new showroom last Thursday, I got a chance to chat with Hannah Cecil Gurney, daughter of the founder Claud Cecil Gurney. Encouraged by her father to first gain a solid background in accounting, she spent several years at Price Waterhouse Coopers before entering her family business last year. Her father too had been an accountant before he founded the company 26 years ago after an unsuccessful search of artisans to restore antique Chinoiserie wallpaper in his home. Since then, de Gournay’s products have expanded to include hand-painted porcelain and fabrics, and hand-carved and -gilded furniture. Their wallpapers are hand-painted on silk in China, taking the artists anywhere between 36 to 50 plus hours to paint each panel. The majority of their work is customized and they’ve added the Japanese & Korean and Eclectic Collections for more contemporary interiors. Hannah’s excitement and passion were infectious as she told me about some of the custom projects they’ve worked on. For fashion designer Matthew Williamson, they created a custom color-way of their Chinoiserie wallpaper for his London flagship store. Since the papers were painted on silk, Mr. Williamson was able to fasten decorative pins to the beaks of the birds. How gorgeous is that? See below for photos of the new showroom and the Matthew Williamson shop.

De Gournay opens today to the trade at 243 East 59th Street.

Matthew Williamson flagship store in London - photo courtesy of de Gournay

NYC showroom photos by mlg

calling all prepsters

It’s a rare occasion when I am at a party more interested in what the fellas are wearing than what the ladies have on. This was the case at FIT’s “Ivy Style” exhibit opening last Friday where men came to the reception in bow-ties and boater hats. Curated by the museum’s deputy director, Patricia Mears, the exhibit focuses on menswear from the 1920’s to present. Madras sports coats, tweed jackets, khakis, oxfords, loafers and formal wear were displayed against various campus settings from college life. All the while, Columbia’s male a cappella group singing really completed the scene. Hello prep school days!

Ivy Style - on view until Jan 5th at the Museum at FIT.

the little black jacket

You could probably tell from my prior posts, I have a love for anything Chanel and Karl Lagerfeld related. Last week, I was invited to the preview party for Karl Lagerfeld’s exhibition for “The Little Black Jacket” but sadly could not attend as we were out of town. I finally had a chance yesterday to see the exhibit, which features photographs by Mr. Lagerfeld. The photographs together show the endless versatility of the iconic black Chanel jacket. Mr. Lagerfeld photographed 109 celebrities for the book which will be available this fall. For those of you who haven’t gone to see it yet, catch it today before it closes at 18 Wooster Street. If you can’t make it in NYC, be sure to check their site for the travel schedule and e-experience (note to my cousins - next stop is Taipei!). Also, don’t miss the incredible behind-the-scenes video of how the jacket was made. 

Later, more on Marrakech! 

the book

anna!

posters to take home as souvenirs

luxury in a carpark

I spent a ladies weekend in South Beach last month and enjoyed a day to myself strolling Miami’s Lincoln Road in search of Isabel Marant’s new spring pieces. I admit, Lincoln Road was one of the least likely places I would have thought to look but I had read about a shop - alchemist - which carried the line. Owned and run by a super chic couple, you can find a wonderfully curated selection of designers including Celine, Chrome Hearts, Proenza, Dries, Rick Owens and Alaïa. They have two locations bookending Lincoln Road. At the main shop I found the Isabel pieces I was looking for freshly unpacked from their UPS boxes. At the other end of Lincoln Road, I found myself walking to a very cool parking garage, really a 7-story architectural sculpture, designed by Herzog & de Meuron. With high end retailers such as Shake Shack, Nespresso, Journelle and Taschen on the bottom floor, I knew I was in for a treat as I stepped into the garage elevator. Stepping out on the 5th floor you are surrounded by concrete and cars but then you turn the corner and you catch a glimpse of a glass box that seems to float in the midst of this huge concrete construction. And you are amazed…

alchemist, 1111 Lincoln Road, carpark level 5, Miami Beach                           

Photos by MLG

mini karls

Mr. Lagerfeld has been quite busy - last week, his new Chanel couture collection showed in Paris and as posted before he launched his more affordable line KARL with Net-A-Porter. What I find most exciting though are the mini Karl’s we can buy at the pop-up shop on Bleeker Street in the form of dolls, figurines, key chains and necklaces… 

375 Bleeker Street

Photos by MLG

Karl interviews himself

Karl Lagerfeld’s KARL collection launched today on NET-A-PORTER. Watch him interview himself.

Source: NET-A-PORTER.com