Michael Tonello's Blog, page 31
March 3, 2014
Congratulations to All the Oscar Winners at the 86th Academy Awards
And here's to Bette Midler, who looks and sounds sublime...and gets to cross one more thing off her Bucket List!
March 2, 2014
Nothing Says Today Like an Hermes Birkin Bag
In costuming the past, we lose the presentBy Christopher MutherIn “Blue Jasmine,” Cate Blanchett’s wardrobe has a central role in telling the story of a woman who (seemingly) has everything before she unravels financially and emotionally. Jasmine clings to her wool bouclé Chanel jackets and Hermes Birkin bags as links to a more stable past. Indeed, it’s those Akris blouses and Valentino cocktail dresses — and more broadly the work of costume designer Suzy Benzinger — that help Jasmine almost reinvent herself.
But Benzinger’s name will not be read when the category of best costume design is announced Sunday at the Oscars. That’s because every film nominated in the category is set in the past. From Catherine Martin’s exuberant vision of 1920s New York in “The Great Gatsby” to Michael Wilkinson’s Halston-covered “American Hustle,” it seems that the only way to nab a costume nomination is to design for a period film. Since 1980, only one film set in the present day (“The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert”) has won an Oscar for costume design.
Which brings us back to “Blue Jasmine,” a film that should have received a costumes nod. Designing for the present can be more challenging than reimagining the past. If the clothing in Alexander Payne’s “Nebraska” didn’t match our perception of today’s working class, we’d know. But Martin could take liberties in “Gatsby,” mixing the 1920s with the 2010s. It’s a work of fiction, like “Gatsby” itself.
We all love a good costume drama. But what gets lost in our appreciation of the past is an acknowledgment that the present can be just as stunning on screen.
http://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/...
But Benzinger’s name will not be read when the category of best costume design is announced Sunday at the Oscars. That’s because every film nominated in the category is set in the past. From Catherine Martin’s exuberant vision of 1920s New York in “The Great Gatsby” to Michael Wilkinson’s Halston-covered “American Hustle,” it seems that the only way to nab a costume nomination is to design for a period film. Since 1980, only one film set in the present day (“The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert”) has won an Oscar for costume design.
Which brings us back to “Blue Jasmine,” a film that should have received a costumes nod. Designing for the present can be more challenging than reimagining the past. If the clothing in Alexander Payne’s “Nebraska” didn’t match our perception of today’s working class, we’d know. But Martin could take liberties in “Gatsby,” mixing the 1920s with the 2010s. It’s a work of fiction, like “Gatsby” itself.
We all love a good costume drama. But what gets lost in our appreciation of the past is an acknowledgment that the present can be just as stunning on screen.
http://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/...
March 1, 2014
Using "Hermes" is Code for Cool, Chic...Rachel Zoe Instagram ...
Rachel Zoe’s Latest Instagram Pic Makes Us Wish ‘The Rachel Zoe Project’ Wasn’t CancelledNeed concrete proof that The Rachel Zoe Project should never have been cancelled? Check out Rachel Zoe’s latest Instagram pic. In the photo, Zoe watches the Oscar De La Renta show online while holding her infact son, Kai, on her chest. It. Is. Everything. Zoe is joined by her associate stylist, Jordan Johnson, on her Missoni pillow covered bed because apparently the WiFi was down at her office. Zoe captioned the photo, “This is how @msjordanjohnson of @rachelzoestudio and I watch the Oscar de la Renta show when No wifi at the office #ODLRLIVE #RZFW #STUNNING” The whole thing sums up what could have been a perfect episode of The Rachel Zoe Project.
Here’s how it would have gone down:
The episode starts with Rachel complaining about how much it sucks that she’s missing New York Fashion Week. It was one thing when she had to miss shows sometimes before she was a designer, but to not be there showing her collection now that she’s made the transition is so hard. Of course this is all in voice over while a montage of fashion show clips play — models on the runway, editors being snapped for street style pics, a brief, almost unnoticeable shot of Brad Goreski.
Rachel decides that she’s just going to try to make the best of it. She takes off her “mom hat” for a little while so she can put on her “stylist hat” and heads down to her office to check on things. Oh no! The WiFi is down! Rachel says, ”Oh my god. Are you kidding me? Of course the WiFi would stop working on the same day I’m missing Oscar De La Renta’s show.” Immediately after, Rachel launches into a five minute story about how Oscar De La Renta is EVERYTHING. The phrase “I die” is used no less than six times.
Later, Rachel and Roger talk about Skylar’s wardrobe and whether or not is it appropriately masculine, but none of that matters because the WiFi is still down and so her staff can’t receive important Oscar-related emails! “Why do the Oscars and Fashion Week have to be at literally same time every year? Like, oh my god,” Rachel says to the camera. One of Rachel’s current assistants who is not Taylor or Brad or Jeremiah so their name doesn’t matter, suggests that Rachel takes it easy and just watches the show at home where she can enjoy family and fashion. “Shut the front door. That is literally the best idea ever,” Rachel responds while bringing Jordan with her because she likes her best.
At home, Rachel and Jordan enjoy the live stream of the show from her plush, comfortable bed while Kai peacefully rests on her chest. Rachel realizes that being a mom means more than being a fashion designer. “This is my everything now. I can be with my family and enjoy Fashion Week at the same time,” Rachel says even though this is the, like, eighth time an episode has been framed in this way. “Of course, I’m going to keep wearing vintage Chanel while changing diapers,” she adds with a smile into the camera.
Next week: Rachel heads to Paris Fashion Week but forgets to pack “that vintage Hermes bag with the ah-maz-ing detailing.” Oh no! What’s going to happen?!
-by Lia Beck
http://www.bustle.com/articles/15381-...
Here’s how it would have gone down:
The episode starts with Rachel complaining about how much it sucks that she’s missing New York Fashion Week. It was one thing when she had to miss shows sometimes before she was a designer, but to not be there showing her collection now that she’s made the transition is so hard. Of course this is all in voice over while a montage of fashion show clips play — models on the runway, editors being snapped for street style pics, a brief, almost unnoticeable shot of Brad Goreski.
Rachel decides that she’s just going to try to make the best of it. She takes off her “mom hat” for a little while so she can put on her “stylist hat” and heads down to her office to check on things. Oh no! The WiFi is down! Rachel says, ”Oh my god. Are you kidding me? Of course the WiFi would stop working on the same day I’m missing Oscar De La Renta’s show.” Immediately after, Rachel launches into a five minute story about how Oscar De La Renta is EVERYTHING. The phrase “I die” is used no less than six times.Later, Rachel and Roger talk about Skylar’s wardrobe and whether or not is it appropriately masculine, but none of that matters because the WiFi is still down and so her staff can’t receive important Oscar-related emails! “Why do the Oscars and Fashion Week have to be at literally same time every year? Like, oh my god,” Rachel says to the camera. One of Rachel’s current assistants who is not Taylor or Brad or Jeremiah so their name doesn’t matter, suggests that Rachel takes it easy and just watches the show at home where she can enjoy family and fashion. “Shut the front door. That is literally the best idea ever,” Rachel responds while bringing Jordan with her because she likes her best.
At home, Rachel and Jordan enjoy the live stream of the show from her plush, comfortable bed while Kai peacefully rests on her chest. Rachel realizes that being a mom means more than being a fashion designer. “This is my everything now. I can be with my family and enjoy Fashion Week at the same time,” Rachel says even though this is the, like, eighth time an episode has been framed in this way. “Of course, I’m going to keep wearing vintage Chanel while changing diapers,” she adds with a smile into the camera.
Next week: Rachel heads to Paris Fashion Week but forgets to pack “that vintage Hermes bag with the ah-maz-ing detailing.” Oh no! What’s going to happen?!
-by Lia Beck
http://www.bustle.com/articles/15381-...
The Greatest Crocodile Jacket Hermes Ever Produced
Jean Paul Gaultier for Hermès Winter 2004/05 Collection. Worn with Kelly boots and Birkin bag by Linda Evangelista. Jacket approximately $145,000
February 28, 2014
Let Them Eat Kake: Kim Kardashian a Millenial Monarch
Ally Glass-Katz
Columnist
Kim Kardashian is the modern day Marie Antoinette, if Marie Antoinette were perennially chastized by Anna Wintour and engaged to Kanye West. The similarities are uncanny.
Let’s start with family. Marie Antoinette’s daddy was the Holy Roman Emperor. Kim’s was Robert Kardashian. Both were great protectors. While Francis looked after Austria, Robert defended O.J. Simpson.
Marie Antionette married Louis XVI and Kim is marrying Kanye West. Both are kings. King Louis XVI ruled the French Empire. Kanye rules hip-hop and everything else really, from ostentatious Hermes bags decorated with ogres and naked women to self-aggrandizing wedding proposals and killer Twitter rants.
Marie and Kim have both experienced the joys of motherhood. Like Marie, Kim also has to deal with a partner who is not all that involved in the parenting process. AZcentral.com reports that, while Kim says Kanye is a “hands-on dad,” she also concedes that he isn’t “keen on changing North’s diapers.” She says, “He’s not a diaper kind of guy. And that’s OK. But he would if it was an emergency.”
But Marie and Kim have more in common than men and babies. For instance, they both have absurd hair, large bosoms and sisters. Marie’s Wikipedia page claims she “was never lonely, since she never had the chance to be alone.”
Kim also never has the chance to be alone—not that she wants to be. Instead, she has surrounded herself with Paris Hilton, fake husbands, soon-to-be-real husbands, the E! network, a crazy-ass mom even worse than Maria Theresa, sex tapes, real dads, fake dads and now little North West. Kim would love to surround herself with real royals—the likes of Kate Middleton— but alas she is not real royalty. She is like royalty, but cheaper.
Still, we can’t forget the biggest similarity between Kim and Marie: their charitable natures. Marie wanted the starving peasants to have cake. Kim wants them to have her brand’s perfumes, baby clothes, real people clothes, and tanning lotions. They are both givers.
Although Kim should be flattered to have so much in common with such a notable historical figure, she should also be worried. Marie did not die gracefully and neither will Kim. Marie died in a white dress by guillotine. What if Kim and Kanye’s wedding starts another French Revolution? Maybe that’s why the French government won’t let them get married at Versailles.
We, like the French, should consider the repercussions of Kim Kardashian as royalty. Kim is not Audrey Hepburn. She is not Marylin Monroe. She is not even Emma Stone. Kim is her own entity. She is the lowliest type of celebrity, the kind made famous through nepotism, by shear will power and utter lack of talent.
In this way, Kim Kardashian epitomizes royalty for the millennial generation: the kind of royalty best filtered through Instagram and Twitter, reality TV and sex tapes. Kim Kardashian’s millennial royalty is the type that brings us to the palace gates but keeps us at bay.
Napoleon Bonaparte once famously said, “Vanity made the French Revolution. Liberty was only a pretext.” If we rewrite this quote for our modern age, perhaps it should read, “Wealth made Kimye’s reign. Talent was only a pretext.”
To this end, Kanye is building his own Hall of Mirrors, and “Keeping Up With The Kardashians” is paying for the whole thing! Kim and Kanye’s wedding festivities will last a week and will hopefully include performances by the Wu-Tang Clan and Lady Gaga. Although they can’t rage in Versailles, Kimye can rage in Paris, their “second home,” according to Kim.
Will “the people” be invited to the wedding? If so, perhaps we have come full circle. Kim’s metamorphosis into Marie Antoinette will be complete. Kanye will still be Kanye.
I find this concerning. Today, we live in a democracy. Tomorrow, who knows. Kanye is an ambitious man. With Kim by his side, these celebrities, our chosen royalty, could truly rule.
In the mean time, let them eat cake. Wedding cake.
http://bowdoinorient.com/article/9089
Columnist
Kim Kardashian is the modern day Marie Antoinette, if Marie Antoinette were perennially chastized by Anna Wintour and engaged to Kanye West. The similarities are uncanny.
Let’s start with family. Marie Antoinette’s daddy was the Holy Roman Emperor. Kim’s was Robert Kardashian. Both were great protectors. While Francis looked after Austria, Robert defended O.J. Simpson.
Marie Antionette married Louis XVI and Kim is marrying Kanye West. Both are kings. King Louis XVI ruled the French Empire. Kanye rules hip-hop and everything else really, from ostentatious Hermes bags decorated with ogres and naked women to self-aggrandizing wedding proposals and killer Twitter rants.
Marie and Kim have both experienced the joys of motherhood. Like Marie, Kim also has to deal with a partner who is not all that involved in the parenting process. AZcentral.com reports that, while Kim says Kanye is a “hands-on dad,” she also concedes that he isn’t “keen on changing North’s diapers.” She says, “He’s not a diaper kind of guy. And that’s OK. But he would if it was an emergency.”
But Marie and Kim have more in common than men and babies. For instance, they both have absurd hair, large bosoms and sisters. Marie’s Wikipedia page claims she “was never lonely, since she never had the chance to be alone.”
Kim also never has the chance to be alone—not that she wants to be. Instead, she has surrounded herself with Paris Hilton, fake husbands, soon-to-be-real husbands, the E! network, a crazy-ass mom even worse than Maria Theresa, sex tapes, real dads, fake dads and now little North West. Kim would love to surround herself with real royals—the likes of Kate Middleton— but alas she is not real royalty. She is like royalty, but cheaper.
Still, we can’t forget the biggest similarity between Kim and Marie: their charitable natures. Marie wanted the starving peasants to have cake. Kim wants them to have her brand’s perfumes, baby clothes, real people clothes, and tanning lotions. They are both givers.
Although Kim should be flattered to have so much in common with such a notable historical figure, she should also be worried. Marie did not die gracefully and neither will Kim. Marie died in a white dress by guillotine. What if Kim and Kanye’s wedding starts another French Revolution? Maybe that’s why the French government won’t let them get married at Versailles.
We, like the French, should consider the repercussions of Kim Kardashian as royalty. Kim is not Audrey Hepburn. She is not Marylin Monroe. She is not even Emma Stone. Kim is her own entity. She is the lowliest type of celebrity, the kind made famous through nepotism, by shear will power and utter lack of talent.
In this way, Kim Kardashian epitomizes royalty for the millennial generation: the kind of royalty best filtered through Instagram and Twitter, reality TV and sex tapes. Kim Kardashian’s millennial royalty is the type that brings us to the palace gates but keeps us at bay.
Napoleon Bonaparte once famously said, “Vanity made the French Revolution. Liberty was only a pretext.” If we rewrite this quote for our modern age, perhaps it should read, “Wealth made Kimye’s reign. Talent was only a pretext.”
To this end, Kanye is building his own Hall of Mirrors, and “Keeping Up With The Kardashians” is paying for the whole thing! Kim and Kanye’s wedding festivities will last a week and will hopefully include performances by the Wu-Tang Clan and Lady Gaga. Although they can’t rage in Versailles, Kimye can rage in Paris, their “second home,” according to Kim.
Will “the people” be invited to the wedding? If so, perhaps we have come full circle. Kim’s metamorphosis into Marie Antoinette will be complete. Kanye will still be Kanye.
I find this concerning. Today, we live in a democracy. Tomorrow, who knows. Kanye is an ambitious man. With Kim by his side, these celebrities, our chosen royalty, could truly rule.
In the mean time, let them eat cake. Wedding cake.
http://bowdoinorient.com/article/9089
February 27, 2014
February 25, 2014
Without Question - The Single Most Valuable Thing at Hermes
Think about it....without the Hermès logo nothing at Hermès is really worth very much. How much would you pay for a Birkin bag without the Hermès logo? Or, how about an exact copy of a "Garden Party" bag (it's not too difficult to make one, they're not even made in the Hermès ateliers) without the Hermès logo?Anyone can buy a "chaine d'ancre" sterling silver bracelet in most airports for around $100....but at Hermès that same bracelet is $1,000+ ...Bottom line? This is the single most valuable thing at Hermès (do you think they keep them in the safe?):
