Fall Fashion Inspiration Part 2 - Slightly Wicked

The arrival of Fall has me in a slightly wicked mood. I'm loving fashion that is wickedly glamorous or just downright wicked in a kind of naughty, black spiderweb stockings kind of way.

Below is a photo of the actress Melina Mercouri that reminds me a bit of Daphne Guinness and perfectly illustrates what I find glamorous right now. The combination of veil, brooch and black gloves is perfection.

I often look at the beautiful portraits of the last century for fashion inspiration. The clothing, hair, jewels and overall decor of the sittings were so expertly conceived, yet they allow the spirit (sometimes wicked) to shine through the artifice.

Below are three gorgeous photos of the actress Janet Leigh that beautifully show how the inner self can be revealed in a great portrait.

Recently I have been looking at portraits done of burlesque dancers. These portraits are not about nudity, but are much more about conveying a stage presence, an ownership of the stage and the complete possession of the audience's gaze. These photos were often displayed in glass window boxes in front of burlesque theaters. The photos had to be striking enough to lure in the curious.

 

 

 




 
Below are two photographs of Lana Turner. In the first photo, she is wearing a gorgeous beaded dress and has an incredible expression. In the second, she is almost androgynous, but is also a powerful woman atop her steed. This photo reminds me of the iconic photographs taken of Georgia O'Keeffe in the desert.

  

  

I recently found this photo of Boy George and it made me think about how beautiful he was in these early photographs from the 1980s. I was always entranced by how he expertly used makeup in such a genius way, highlighting those beautiful eyes and lips. In the current era of Lady Gaga, I feel that Boy George and Culture Club were way ahead of their time as far as styling and fashion go.

Below is a favorite performance of Culture Club's "Time (Clock of the Heart)" on Top of the Pops in 1987.

Below is a photo of the actress Sabra Samar looking fabulously decadent and a photo of the great Lee Meriwether (Catwoman in the Batman movie of 1966) looking wicked in leopard print with a gorgeous black cat.

 
Below are two photographs from the 1950s of scantily clad young men looking wickedly seductive. The first one is wearing a great leather jumpsuit with the perfect boots and cap. The second one is self explanatory and reminds me of a photo Karl Lagerfeld might take... at least for fun.

 

Next are two great photos of 1960s chic mod girls wearing first a matching black vinyl trench coat and fedora and in the second, just enough fur.

 
Below is my favorite photo of Claude Rains from "Phantom of the Opera" (1943).

Below is a gorgeous photo taken by Harry Langdon.

Next, a photo of Janice Logan from "Undercover Doctor" a film from 1939 adapted from the book by J. Edgar Hoover.

Below is an anonymous film still that displays wonderful light and shadow effects.

Below is a photograph of the actress Anne Francis. I love the way the cigarette casts a shadow under her lip that looks like a smudge. This photograph is absolutely perfect in its own mysterious way.

Beneath is a photo of Toby Wing wearing an amazing shirt that I absolutely covet!

Below is an inspiring photograph of a very young Barbara Streisand.

Below is an amazing photo of Jayne Mansfield posing seductively for the paparazzi while holding a small lapdog in one hand. The next photo is of Jayne Mansfield and Sophia Loren. I love the man walking into the frame on the left, his gesture and expression speak volumes.

 

Finally, here is a really entertaining video clip of another wild and wickedly sexy blonde, Mamie Van Doren performing a number in a nightclub from the 1959 film "Guns, Girls and Gangsters".

Collecting Hats Is Serious Business - 60's Mod

We at Pearl Modern absolutely adore mod style. We are attracted to the sharp architectural cuts, clean lines and futuristic optimism present in clothing and design made in the mid 1960's. Mod style is as radical as punk rock, but in a way that is so distilled that its psychology is elusive to anyone lacking an educated and refined eye. What may look like a simple white coat is actually a complex structure, perfectly balanced in geometry but that sits slightly askew, causing the odd passer-by to look twice and then come to the conclusion that this garment is the most stylish white coat they have ever seen. 

Mod styling incorporates wit and whimsy into the details, for instance, whether you're exaggerating the bend in a brim of a hat to cast a mask-like shadow across the face or by cutting a hem on a radical diagonal or by lining buttons up like a game of tic-tac-toe, just because it looks cool - you are stretching your imagination of what is possible aesthetically, but within the confines of a purist's tent.

Below is a shot from a 1965 space age photo shoot, featuring cutting edge fashion from Pierre Cardin.

As far as hats go, we collect and sell every sort of chic topper from the 1920's through the 1970's, as long as we can imagine wearing them ourselves. For me personally, I get strangely excited when I see an almost abnormally tall, velveteen helmet with a cocky, slightly arrogant brim and a girly, sweet leatherette bow. Call me eccentric, but what could be more fun than wearing a fantasie on the top of your head, perched like a folly, like a canary's cage or simply like a hat that will make that random stranger say "Damn, that hat is awesome".


Below is a sunny, mod 60's Empress Marché exclusive melusine fur felt hat.

Below is a slick, 60's mod take on a classic Trilby as done by Betmar.

                                                                                                                                      available here

Below is an illustration of an Adolfo hat from the 1960s.

Below is a photo of the iconic 60's model Peggy Moffitt.

Below is another 1960s Adolfo hat illustration.

 

Below is a plum velvet bubble hat, made in Italy in the 1960s, exclusively for Marshall Field & Company.

                                                                                                                                       available here


Below is a great photo of Sophia Loren trying on hats in Rome.

Below is a beautiful photo of Jean Seberg from 1969 taken at the time of her film "Pendulum".

Below are two views of an English made 1960's emerald green bubble cloche hat.

                                                                                                                                          available here



Below is a photo of the amazing Faye Dunaway in a giant white hat.

Last, we have a photo from 1963 of a model wearing a Pierre Cardin ensemble with a fantastic graphic hat. Doesn't she resemble a mod Kirsten Dunst?