On my wall of inspiration...

Pina Bausch, Nelken (Carnations), first performed Dec. 30, 1982

Ettore Sotsass (1917-2007)
5 totems, "Flavia" set. Signed: "Flavia Bitossi Italy E. Sottsass 1996 "


Céline S/S 2010 collection, designed by Phoebe Philo

Release the Gentlewoman that is in you!

Hello dear Gentlewomen and Fantastic Men!

Today, Marco and I took a trip to La Maison de la Presse (Yorkville, Toronto). We just got the newly released Gentlewoman magazine, at long last! Remember Fantastic Man's girlfriend? Well, we got ours, but it was tight as only 2 copies, out of 15 received last Friday, were left. This Gentlewoman has been quite popular... I recommend you go check by yourself if you find her success well-founded! Don't forget to let me know. ;O)

A History of the World in 100 Objects

Through my brother-in-law, artist Luis Jacob, I discovered an amazing program available online. It's called "A History of the World in 100 Objects", produced by the British Museum and the BBC. It showcases 100 different objects found in the British Museum collection, and uses them to tell a story of human culture.

Each segment is a morsel-sized 15-minute audio description, and features interactive views of each object described.

I'm hooked, and I thought you'd be interested to know about this.
Here's the first object, and you can get from there to the second object, etc....

http://www.bbc.co.uk/ahistoryoftheworld/objects/sogITE3FSKStlk12qd2W3w

Enjoy!

The Guggenheim is Haunted: don't miss the experience!

Luis Jacob's Peru Album IV is part of the collective exhibit HAUNTED,
currently at
the Guggenheim Museum, NYC
(March 26 - Sept.6, 2010)

Amazing Grace!

Grace Kelly: Style Icon

at the V&A
London

Kick-Ass (pardon my French!)

Saw the film last night and loved it!

NB: The action is supposedly based in NYC, but (as often) we noticed that most of the street scenes were shot in Toronto, more precisely on Yonge street. Oh, and the scene outside the cinema (at the beginning) was filmed just outside the Scotiabank Theatre on Richmond street. Incidentally that is the theatre where Marco and I saw the movie last night- it felt a bit weird...

To watch the trailer, click here.

If you go see it, let me know...

An Introduction to Scrapbooking...

End of March, my husband and I decided to start a scrapbook. So we went through piles of magazines* that we had previously discarded for recycling. Here are images from my scrapbook so far...

I am so grateful to Marco for having introduced me to scrap-booking. I've always enjoyed collage and montage, so laying images out in a book is like a revelation to me- an epiphany, really !

What about you?
Do you like scrap-blooking?

*Mainly Vogue (Paris, UK, US), Colors, W, Harper's Bazaar, The Face, and I.D

Facial treat-ment!

Dear dear dear!
Last Thursday I finally indulged and enjoyed the very unique spa gift (through WaySpa.com) that some London-based friends offered to us as a wedding present last year. I relaxed into a wonderful facial treatment. What a plunge!
Yes, the picture would have been flawless if... the blackheads removal had been reported missing. ARGHHHHHH! I hate this! 'Are you OK, dear?' 'Yeeees, fine, fine...'. Just biting the bullet...Trying to be polite, when I could have punched the beautician in the face, once or twice perhaps, just to release the pain. Did I say how much I hate this?
Promised I'll do the exfoliating twice a week, and will apply a hydrating mask once a week to fight against these nasty eye wrinkles, promised!
Anything that can spare me the blackheads torture again.

Two excellent reasons to fly to Paris...NOW!

Photo by Jean-Loup Sieff

YSL Retrospective

at the Petit Palais
11 March - 29 August 2010

Villa Drusch built in Versailles in 1963

Claude Parent, Architectural Work/Graphic Work
at La Cité de l'Architecture & du Patrimoine
20 Jan - 02 May 2010

Voyage, voyage!

Wonderful! Vacation time!
One week off. No trips to any exotic places but a lot of "voyages immobiles"...
I am now in a very good place.

Happy Easter Bunny!

Photo by Cédric Roulliat

Happy Easter!
Joyeuses Pâques!

LINE F/W 2010: Neat-wear!

At the Line Knitwear F/W 2010 Show @ the Oasi: Marco Jacob, Jennifer Parsons, Elyse (Ford agency), Miguel Jacob

Last Thursday, we attended the LINE Knitwear f/w 2010 fashion show, and it was a great night! The collection was stunning, and really inspirational. Bravo to designers Jennifer Wells and John Muscat!

“Toronto based brand LINE gave the city’s fashion elite a new definition for knitwear, with the showcase of their Fall Winter 2010 runway collection 'Pretty Dark'. Designers Jennifer Wells and John Muscat put together a truly innovative show for Canadian Fashion and for knitwear as a fashion medium. Up and coming supermodel Alana Zimmer, opened and closed the show which featured forty looks of chic and sexy knitwear from head to toe. The winter fantasy feel of the clothing itself gave the eye a visual feast of various textures ranging from rows of luxurious cashmere ruffles and petals layered with silk chiffon, along with sumptuous hand knit patterns that were both lush and deconstructed. The ethereal and artful creations had the room inspired by the groundbreaking design and surely will have many redefining their sweater choices for this coming fall. The show ended after 15 minutes to an unanimous standing ovation and was an extremely proud moment for Canadian fashion.” Dennis Green from LINE

Photos taken from FASHION magazine online.

'Bon cinéma' this week!

Cinéfranco 2010 is starting very soon....

March 26 - April 3

@ Cinéma AMC Dundas 24, 10 Dundas st. E
Don't miss this year's season!

For more info: www.cinefranco.com

Greta and Ezra Constantine Shows: Beauty and the Edgy!

Remember David Graham from the Toronto Star, the one who wrote an article on our wedding? Well, he too attended the show. For more information, read his article and watch the video of the show as published in today's Toronto Star.

Kirk Pickersgill and Stephen Wong after the show. Photo by C R-Jacob

Who is who?

Julie Morel, French actress, and her American idol, the great Joan Crawford.
Found on Cédric Roulliat's wall...

Spring has sprung...and in style, s'il vous plaît!

It's high time to put away our snowy boots or Loden coats and favour a lighter gear to greet the warmer days of sunny spring. Get ready for the season! Spring is back with its myriad of festivals and gives us good reasons to share in the celebration of Nature's rebirth. Que la fête commence!...

Take for example, La Semaine de la francophonie starts this week in Toronto. The francophone cultural organisations have prepared a palette of colourful events (all in French). I highly recommend the Breton party at the Alliance française de Toronto on Friday, March 19!

Que la fête commence... and in style, s'il vous plaît!
Toronto's Fashion week F/W 2010, or the Power of Style, will start in 2 weeks (March 28th-April 1st), but this week already offers a couple of pre-shows, like Nada's 3D film launch at the Scotiabank Theatre, and Greta and Ezra Constantine's show at the Audi Building. I will keep you posted.

Spring has just sprung; and yet, it is already time to go through the designers' fall-winter collections... One could easily lose track with the seasons with such anticipation, but I know that watching the models, all wrapped-up in warm clothes, strut on the runway will actually enhance my gratitude to now be on spring mode! She said with a long sigh of relief.

Vive le Printemps!
Let's celebrate with Coco Chanel and her spring/summer 1970 collection !
Note the very formal and factual tone of the commentator during the show - a sign of the times ;o)

PS: I was born that spring. Eh oui.