English Gent, English Genius

No, this isn't a post about my darling husband, (though of course he's a genius), rather one about the supremely talented English fashion and portrait photographer Norman Parkinson who was the subject of a brilliant Arena documentary on BBC Four last Sunday night 21st April - the centenary of his birth.

Norman Parkinson Self Portrait

With a career spanning 50 years, which is considered unprecedented for a photographer, 'Parks' as he was known, was the true English dandy and gentleman whose love of women and the way they moved, resulted in some of the most iconic images in fashion photography from the 1940's through to the 1980's.

Jerry Hall

In his early career, working as a portrait and fashion photographer for Vogue from 1945 to 1960, Parkinson revolutionized British fashion photography by taking his models outside of the confines of the studio and imbuing his images with a humour and wit hitherto not seen in fashion photography.

Parkinson's wife Wenda

His beautiful wife Wenda was one of his earliest muses, and she was more than happy to push the boundaries of conventionality to get a groundbreaking shot.

Wenda Parkinson

His portraits of her are equally beautiful. Jerry Hall says of them: "I love the pictures he took of his wife, Wenda. They’re beautiful in that sort of “1950s-perfection” way, but something about her seems very intelligent and special."

Wenda Parkinson

As times changed, Parks embraced the Swinging Sixties, working for Queen magazine and found new muses in Celia Hammond, and Nena von Schlebrügge, Uma Thurman's mother:

Parkinson & Celia Hammond

Celia Hammond US Vogue cover

Nena von Schlebrugge

Nena von Schlebrugge

Yet he never allowed himself to get stuck in a decade so by the time the 70's came along with all its swagger and glamour, he was ready for Jerry Hall and her Amazonian beauty:

Jerry Hall Montego Bay

Jerry Hall & Antonio Lopez

Hall and Parkinson became life long friends and she credits him with not only kick starting her career in the US and the UK but also with introducing her to Bryan Ferry - apparently one look at Parkinson's photos of Jerry and he was hooked - it's not difficult to see why...

Jerry Hall

However, perhaps one of the most fruitful collaborations Parks ever had during his lengthy career - he went freelance from 1964 - was with Grace Coddington, US Vogue's inimitable Creative Director, who started life as a model before moving into the world of fashion editing, thus working with Parkinson both in front of and behind the camera.

Grace Coddington

In the Arena documentary Coddington talks of Parks with great affection and recalls how an inaugural trip they made to Bird Island, the Seychelles, triggered her love of narrative fashion, where the images tell a story, which in turn brings an extra edge to the shoot, lifting it from the ordinary to the extraordinary.

Bird Island - The Seychelles

Coddington has been doing this ever since. She says that her eye was trained by Parkinson, who advised her never to fall asleep in a car as she would miss the potentially inspiring views out of the window and she considers him her number one mentor to this day.

Parkinson with Grace model Andrea Holterhof. Photo: Chuck Zuretti

 
Bath in Fashion 2013 is celebrating the centenary of Parkinson's birth with an exhibition entitled 'Mouvements de Femmes' curated by Roland Mouret from April 13th-May 12th, and Vogue's Sarah Mower has written an excellent birthday tribute which includes an excerpt from the Arena documentary. (It's being repeated on Wednesday so catch it if you can). Without doubt, Norman Parkinson was a flirt, a dandy and a true genius, never without his lucky hat, and (as he modestly used to call them) his "snaps" are an enduring testament to his vision and his artistry. Happy Birthday Mr. Parkinson, your fashion legacy is alive and well.

Chic of the week - Tucker by Gaby Besora

I'm always on the look out for designers that make fashion look easy - that laid back insouciance that makes an outfit look as if it was just thrown together, when often it was anything but.  Tucker by Gaby Besora is one such label.

Spring 2013

With a background in styling and a love of clothes since childhood, Besora started her own label in 2005 making beautiful silk printed blouses that are still the cornerstone of her label, along now with dresses and jumpsuits. Ninety percent of her prints are designed in house and all are made in New York.  She uses colour and print in a joyful way, always uplifting, never precious.

Summer 2012

Besora's inspirations come from many and varied sources including childrens' paintings and vintage photographs.

With a couple of style icons thrown in for good measure.

What I find interesting about the fact that both Sophia Loren and Patti Smith have inspired her is that they are at opposite ends of the style spectrum - one extremely feminine, the other the Queen of androgyny.  But this is one of the secrets to Tucker's success - as Besora explains to Lisa Armstrong in today's Fashion Telegraph: "You have to wear clothes that feel easy and multi-functional. Beauty is about confidence and that comes from comfort - and having fun. There's something transformative about putting on a little floral dress if you're a bit androgynous. You get to play with different sides of yourself."

Spring 2013

Fashion as a way of showing the many facets of your character, whilst having fun and being comfortable?  Sounds like a winner to me.

A Handful of Sunshine and Blue Sky

I love a painted nail. Nothing cheers me up faster than a new bottle of nail polish and when I came across this photo the other day I couldn't wait to start experimenting with multi-coloured nails. After all the mad bling of nail art recently, it looks fresh and you can make it as bonkers or as chic as you like.

Photo: Pinterest

I decided to start with the pastels, so last week I was sporting alternate pale green (YSL La Laque Couture Jade Imperial) and pink (Essie Splash of Grenadine) nails - very Laduree and ladylike,

but then, when the sun finally put in an appearance at the weekend I couldn't help myself, I threw caution to the wind and voilà, this is the result - sunshine and blue sky, from bottle to nail.

The blue is Koliary - one of my favourites from last Summer's Thakoon for Francois Nars collection and the yellow is Maybelline's Electric Yellow (pretty similar to the yellow Nars Amchoor below).

Photo: Vanity Fair

So I felt particularly pleased when I went to read Sali Hughes' brilliant beauty column in the Guardian, and what was she talking about this week? Feelgood nails! Must be some sort of beauty telepathy going on...

Models Own Ice Neon nail polish. Photo: Rui Faria for The Guardian

As she says, "Yes, they're a bit daft, but this is precisely why they're so joyful." Plus I agree with her that anything that adds a little edge to your outfit and keeps you from straying into mutton territory has to be a good thing and hey - it's just a bit of fun.  So when English Gent asked me what on earth I was doing and did I still think I was 14 or something, I rolled my eyes at him and muttered the one word that is guaranteed to make him back off - 'fashion'. Works every time.

Photo: Garance Dore

If he really thinks I'm regressing to my teenage years, perhaps I should take a tippex from Garance Dore and try the new Chanel Le Vernis Eastern Light nail polish and then when he asks me why I've painted my nails with Liquid Paper (it was a great way to while away the time in double Geography let me tell you), I'll just smile and say "It's Chanel, sweetie".

The How, Now and Wow of Happiness

Following on from my post on Lilly Pulitzer - a woman who literally made being happy her business (happiness as a style choice?), it struck me how, due to the complicated nature of our lives these days, enjoying our own happiness can seem like a Herculean task at times. Do we sometimes need to be reminded of how happy we are and how much we have going for us?

Photo: Pinterest

Whilst I'm not really one for self-help books or the like, back in January when I was thinking about my plans and goals for 2013, I noted down a list of 12 things happy people do differently (taken from Sonja Lyubomirsky's book The How of Happiness), and hopefully, with only a dash of 'psycho-babble' (thank you English Gent), I thought they were worth sharing:

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Photo: Pinterest

1. Express gratitude:  If we are grateful for the goodness that is already present in our lives, then we will feel a deeper sense of happiness.   
2. Cultivate optimism: No matter what situation we find ourselves in, we have to try to put an optimistic spin on it. Then failure becomes less of a setback and more of an opportunity to grow and learn. 
3. Avoid over-thinking and social comparison: Comparing ourselves to someone else is unhealthy and ultimately poisonous.  If we must compare ourselves to someone, then we should look at an earlier version of ourselves.
4. Practice acts of kindness: Being kind to others make us feel better - FACT.  Serotonin gets released and does more for us than a packet of pills ever could. Plus, if we're doing good, other people around us will also feel better by association.
5. Nurture social relationships: The happiest people on the planet are the ones who have deep, meaningful relationships. Happy = love. Being connected and having an active circle of good friends whom we can share our experiences with is vital to our existence. Loneliness is definitely bad for the soul.
6. Develop strategies for coping: We all know there are going to be bad days and bad times - and how we respond to them is what makes us ultimately stronger and braver people. S**t happens - cue Forrest Gump and his box of chocs. What do you do when you get the orange cream?
7. Learn to forgive: Nothing is more toxic than hanging onto negative feelings - seriously bad for our well-being. Like anger, hate is a totally negative emotion - just let it go.
8. Increase flow experiences. – Flow = being mindful - when we are completely in the now and at one with what we are doing. Yoga is great for mindfulness, but just taking 5 minutes to breathe and connect with whatever we are engaged in during the day can be just as beneficial.
9. Savour life’s joys:  We have so many demands on our time we often miss the little things that can be the most rewarding.We need to slow down and quite literally, smell the roses.
10. Commit to your goals: When we fully commit to something, this gives us a great boost - both mentally and physically. We have no choice but to just get on with it and when we have a purpose, this makes us happy.
11. Practice spirituality. – When we practice spirituality or religion, we recognize that life is bigger than us. Connection, enough said.
12. Take care of your body:  A bit of a no-brainer really - if we're in good shape physically, then our mental energy (our focus), our emotional energy (our feelings), and our spiritual energy (our purpose) will be boosted and our happiness levels will soar.

Photo: Pinterest

OK, so none of that's rocket science and we all know what makes us happy.  But maybe just sometimes it's good to have a reminder of what we need to take stock of and what we may need to change in order to be the happiest we can be - or indeed we can just celebrate where we are at.  I know that if I'm feeling good about myself and my lot in life then that rubs off on the rest of the family and if I'm not, well, they all know about it.... So here's to sunshine this weekend and happiness all round, in whatever form it takes (a BBQ and cocktails anyone?)

Yoga - remember it's only about you...

"It's not where you are in a posture, it's how aware you are in a posture" - I read this in a yoga magazine recently and I'm trying VERY hard to apply it as I contort my body into some new pose and resist sneeking a peek at my neighbour to see how they are doing.  Such simple words but boy, are they difficult to put into practice.

Photo: Marc Quinn

Lilly Pulitzer - Summer in a dress

Hang on to your hats - we are being promised warmer weather this weekend - but do we really believe that? There is fresh snow on the Jura, it's pouring with rain and thoughts of Summer are starting to obsess me (anybody else getting cabin fever?) I'm dreaming of beaches, sunshine, bright colours, sand between my toes, sun dresses, kaftans, lounging by the pool - it's torture! I saw this Ralph Lauren ad in a magazine yesterday and it was almost the last straw...

There is really only one name in the fashion world who sums up Summer in a dress and that is Lilly Pulitzer, who died earlier this week age 81. A Palm Beach socialite who was married to the publishing magnate Joseph Pulitzer's grandson Peter, Lilly and her husband threw glamorous barefoot parties on their estate and became part of the gilded social circuit.

Lilly with her daughters in Palm Beach. Photo: Howell Conant

To keep busy, Lilly set up a stand selling juice from her husband's orange groves, and to avoid juice stains showing up on her clothes, she asked a local seamstress to run her up a simple shift dress made from some brightly coloured fabric remnants - and thus an empire was born.

Lilly in her shop, 1962

Lilly's dresses became a runaway hit with the Palm Beach crowd, her influence spreading across the US to the East Coast too - think Nantucket, The Hamptons, those WASP women of leisure, all tanned legs and windswept hair.  When Jackie Kennedy was photographed in a spread for Life magazine wearing a Lilly dress, they took off, to quote Lilly "like zingo" and the rest, as they say, is history.

Jackie Kennedy in Ravello, 1962. Life magazine

Jackie Kennedy wearing Lilly Pullitzer

Jackie Kennedy with JFK, John Jr and Caroline/Photo Credit: Cecil Stoughton White House Photographs

"I designed collections around whatever struck my fancy ... fruits, vegetables, politics, or peacocks! I entered in with no business sense. It was a total change of life for me, but it made people happy," Pulitzer told The Associated Press in March 2009.

Lilly photographed by Horst. P. Horst for Vogue 1975

Rockefeller, Whitney and Vanderbilt families, Palm Beach 1964. Photo: Slim Aarons/Getty Images

Durie Desloge & Wendy Vanderbilt, Palm Beach 1964. Photo: Slim Aarons/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Vintage Lilly

"Style isn't just about what you wear, it's about how you live," Pulitzer said in 2004.  "We focus on the best, fun and happy things, and people want that. Being happy never goes out of style," she said.

Diana Ewing wearing Lilly Pullitzer printed trousers, 1972. Photo: John Shannon/Conde Nast

Whilst the brand lost its footing in the 80's, it was revived by a licensing company in 1994 and the Lilly brand is still alive and well. Naturally, Charlotte in 'Sex and the City' was a fan - it perfectly suited her preppy, clean cut look.

Photo: Ron Smits/London Ent/Splash News

When I visited the Hamptons 3 years ago, even out of season, her influence could be felt and the stores were jazzy and fun, selling that brand of beach chic we'd all like a slice of.

 

Photo: Tumblr

Palm Beach store. Photo via lillysnotebook

I'm a big fan of the shift dress, so I'm definitely going to be channeling Lilly this summer and upping my happiness levels.  As the Patron Saint of the printed dress said herself: "Life's a Party, Dress like it!"

Lost and Found in Venice

So, English Gent had to go to Venice for work a couple of weekends back and as my birthday was on the Saturday, he managed to organize things so I could accompany him, which meant that whilst he was working, I had the chance to wander around, both with purpose and without, savouring the many delights this decaying, yet still beautiful, city has to offer.

Grand Canal

He wasn't having such a hard time of it - this is where he was working:

Scuola Grande di San Giovanni Evangelista

Walking around Venice on my own, I tried to have an idea of where I was going - too many dark alleyways and it quickly turned into a "Don't Look Now" scary movie moment, so I preferred to stay fairly well on the beaten track observing daily life, Venetian style:

Laundry day

Fruit & Veg canal boat

Sun on a side canal

I gazed in Antique shop windows and dreamed of taking home more than my hand luggage would allow:

Canestrelli Antiques

Beautifully ornate Venetian Mirror

Painting of The Doge's Palace

Then it was off to the fabulous Peggy Guggenheim Museum where I feasted my eyes on her wonderful collection of modern art. When you have young children, art galleries become a complete luxury so just having time to stand and stare at the paintings and sculptures was a holiday in itself.

Vasily Kandinsky, Landscape with Red Spots No 2 (detail)

Adolph Gottlieb, Floating

Fernand Leger, Men in the City

Pablo Picasso, Man in a Striped Top

Barbara Hepworth, Single Form

Peggy herself was a fantastic woman, one of the original party girls, devoted to Venice, her dogs and her crazy sunglasses - doesn't she look like a whole lot of fun?

Photo: David Seymour/Magnum

Palazzo Fortuny was my next port of call, an amazing building in its own right, and home to Mariano Fortuny's many works - paintings and tapestries - but I was most interested in his beautiful Delphos dresses.  This is where the 'Fortuny pleat' originates and his designs were considered pretty radical when he started making the dresses in 1909. They were to be worn without corsetry and became known as 'lingerie' dresses, as they offered freedom of movement and emphasised a woman's shape.

Fortuny Delphos dress

Lauren Bacall wore a vintage Fortuny dress to the 1978 Academy Awards - she looks elegant, definitely 'liberated' and it fits her shape beautifully - Fortuny would have been delighted:

And Natalia Vodianova proves that the "Delphos" style still has a place in contemporary fashion:

After all this walking and culture and with my feet literally about to drop off, it was time to go and find English Gent and head in search of a Spritz, which is a mix of 2 parts Prosecco, 1 part Aperol and a dash of soda water - add a slice of orange and an olive and Salute!

This is the wildly popular Venetian aperitif, drunk by everyone, from the young to the old, and anywhere - in the local pasticeria whilst waiting for your cakes (at 11am!), in the bars and osterie - it's always Spritz o'clock....

My birthday treat was a visit to Harry's Bar, just off St. Mark's Square where the Bellini is world famous, but it was a Martini I was after. Sitting at the bar, sipping my ice cold cocktail, heaven.

Dinner, rain, getting a little bit lost on the way home, my birthday really couldn't have been any better and the following day we did a bit more of the same before having to head to the airport and home.

The postcard shot of the weekend?  When I was waiting to take the poor man's gondola, the local Traghetto, across the Grand Canal - truly Venice in a nutshell:

Gondola on the Grand Canal by the Rialto Bridge

Arrivederci Venezia, a la prossima!