The Pont Alexandre iii is probably one of the most recognizable bridges in Paris and it's instantly recognisable. The bridge that starts from the Champs-Élysées quarter and by the side of the Grand Palais is adorned by golden statues. The last time I saw this bridge in the media was the 2013 Victoria Secrets advert and before that in the music video 'Someone like you' by of course Adele.
I've chosen this image to conclude my fashion journal as it's a representation of the connection of two different paths. These paths lead in different directions and the one thing they have in common is this connection bridge. During the fashion season I feel like I'm on this busy road and by the end I feel like I've taken a turn onto the bridge and stopped. Life is very cut up for me at the moment and as a result I'm missing out on a lot in life and I really am struggling to find my feet let alone myself.
As I write this post I am currently in the UK and I'm about to leave for New York Fashion Week in 5 days. Although this concludes my fashion week journal, my AW14 journal will start for me in a matter of days. I have no idea what this month will bring and I can only hope for the best! There's going to be a large break now between my posts and I need to have a serious think and take some time to reflect on things.
The last piece of symbolism that this bridge takes is time for reflection. Not only the literal sense of leaning over and seeing your reflection in the water, but to also take note of the different paths on your left and right. Take time to weigh up both options and go for it without regrets and without looking back to think what could have been. Never think 'what if'. Always think 'what will be'.
Today is the AW14 Alexander McQueen show and this post takes a look back at SS14. A McQueen show will never be what it used to be and I've come to accept that. Sarah Burton wouldn't even dare to come close to one as people would only compare her even more to the late Alexander McQueen. SS14 was the first season I got to see an Alexander McQueen show and it was also the first time I've experience waiting before a show and being their as soon as the doors open. I stood in the photographers pit for the whole time and these are where the photos were taken. It really was an amazing experience and the lead up to it was even better. It was all very last minute and I was soon jumping in car to be taken to the Garde Republicaine where the show was taking place. I didn't realize until after that the floor was actually colored sand and that Anna Dello Russo was sat opposite me in these amazing gold gladiator boots.
Eddie Cambell opened the show whom was still instantly recognizable even though the makeup artist stripped all the models key identifiable features such as hair and of course eye brows. I do love how Sarah has carried on the overall look of the models from what McQueen used to do and as a result the models have kept their alien looking femme fatale characters. The models in a McQueen show are almost as important as the clothes and you only notice this in higher profile shows. Of course other designers can have an overall general look of the general model they want but to dehumanize models through makeup and make it work is a tough job to pull off.
Other models featured above include: Marine Deleeuw, Ysaunny Brito, Mijo Mihaljcic, Julia Nobis, Sasha Luss, Cindy Bruna, Carla Cliffoni, Irene Hiemstra, Vanessa Axente and Carolina Sjostrand
This post concludes fashion show related posts and in two days time Paris Fashion week will end along with AW13. Although this isn't technically true (the haute couture still to come in the summer) it marks the end for me, but not until I finish my fashion week journal!
Today is the AW14 Chanel show and last year I was at the AW13 show which was probably was in my top 3 highlights last year. I can't say it was my top because I was front row at Beyonce earlier this year but still, it's a joint 1st. I've watched the Chanel show online for over 7 years now which in the scale of things isn't that long at all. I've re watched them and I've just obsessed over them and you can't get any better than a Chanel show during Paris Fashion Week. Because of this I find it hard to explain how amazing it was to see a Chanel show in person and it really was everything I had imagined. It was quite funny too as I ended up getting lost and I managed to walk around the whole outside of the stage and find myself at the backstage room. Luckily no-one noticed and I immediately left. One thing I can say is do not mess at a Chanel show and even if you do, judging by the crazy amount of bodyguards backstage - there is no way you would be able to anyway.
Security of course is extremely tight and the only way your going to get in is through having an invite or of course being on the list. This doesn't stop people from trying and praying they are on the list and there is always a huge amount of people outside the venue just to soak up the atmosphere which is surreal and unreal. You can practically smell the money these people have and if you can't then you can either see it invested in their clothes, accessories, shoes and bags or of course in their face. I would say it's a world that I've grown to love but that's not true, I've always loved this strange fashion world pros and cons included.
Before: People leave and come back freely before the show and some will sit down straight away and others will have a chat among themselves. Milla Jovovich was just one of the lucky people sat on the front row and of course everyone was edging to get a photograph of her. Gifts are given out to people as they enter the venue and on your seat you will typically find a booklet with an A4 lookbook within of the looks. Last season these were shot by Karl himself. Many other fashion shows can be so over crowded by the Chanel show manages to have just the right amount of people within the venue and so they should as they probably have the most experienced PR team around.
During: I should note here that the globe within the centre rotated slowly around during the whole time of which you could see lit up Chanel flags in the locations of their stores around the world. I find things like this fascinating and it really was interesting to see where Chanel stores were and where they were not. As the show starts the lights change and the heavy loud music of the show begins. It's the type of music that you hear at a concert or festival where the music feels like it's going through your whole body and then the first model comes out. Every Chanel show is different of course and here models walked around in a circle and then stopping in front of the photographers pit for a split second. The show is incredibly fast and you can see just what it is like in the video I recorded at the bottom. This video shows 3 different parts of the Chanel show so make sure you watch the whole 57 seconds!
And of course the music you can hear is a remixed track of 'Around the world' by Daft Punk - which I found interesting as the music they play in the online videos of Chanel isn't the same as the show they play in the venue.
After: It can take over 30 minutes for people to sit down initially and to leave it takes all of 10 minutes max. People leave in hordes and they explode out of the venue like any other show. It's always weird seeing a place fill up so quickly and empty so fast and your see this in any venue or show. It was an experience that I cannot sum up in words and it wouldn't have been possible without my friends of which I will be forever thankful for.
Upon arriving in Paris last season we had about an hour of free time in the morning so I decided to visit Notre Dame just because I wanted to! It was at this point when I noticed I've been to more cathedrals than shows this season which I found quite amusing. The queue to get into Notre Dame is always huge so I decided to just pretend to be part of a tour guide and it worked quite well! I love stain glass windows and my family holidays always ended up in visiting a place with this feature and what a feature it is. It always reminds me of the first scene in Beauty and the Beast and I think they are just beautiful! I ended up having the complete wrong lens with me so everything was super zoomed in and somehow I manged to fit this window in the frame. This post is really just to serve as a breather as this is normally when you need one. With 3 cities down and just Paris to go the light at the end of the tunnel is there and you slowly approach it.
It's extremely important to take time to reflect on your past present and future and at times we can forget this and miss out on life.
