Happy Thanksgiving!

Hooray for a four day weekend and the official start of the holiday season! My favorite time of the year by far. Are you ready for turkey day, black Friday and cyber Monday? I hope so. Enjoy yourselves and I hope you...

eat a lot of good food...


drink a lot of good drinks...


catch up on your sleep...


finally start that bestseller you've been meaning to read...


and spend quality time with your family, friends and other loved ones.

Image Credits: fashionmag.com, firstview.com, style.it

Sense of Self

There are so many reasons why Freja is one of my favorite models. But perhaps the biggest reason I admire her is that she's attained extreme success all while seemingly staying true to herself. In an industry that pressures you to do and be a lot of things, maintaining a solid sense of self is a really difficult thing to do. I always get the sense that with Freja, it's no compromises. What you see is what you get. Any change that has taken place is the result of natural growth, progress and maturation. Nothing seems forced, and Freja doesn't seem like some modeling robot born and breed to walk catwalks. She's an individual and her uniqueness comes across so well, which is why I think her fanbase is so large and so devoted. For some reason, we all find something in her to connect and relate to. And that is what fosters loyalty and love.

Anyway, I was looking at some backstage pictures from Alberta Ferretti and those are what got me thinking along these lines. Take a look at what I mean. Here are pictures of all the other models coming off the catwalk:

And now here's Freja:

When I saw these pictures the contrast literally made me laugh out loud. But this is why I love her. She's so endearingly herself. Just because she's a model, arguably one of the most "feminine" careers one can undertake, doesn't mean that she'll act the way we all think models should act. She could care less if there's a camera around, and she doesn't need to wear a new outfit everyday in an attempt to fit our conventional notions of model style. Just a pair of black jeans, a soft tee and a black leather jacket and Freja's good to go. Whether she's on duty, off duty or caught off guard, you honestly get the sense that she is the way she appears to be, without pretense. It's this genuine quality that drew me in and served as my gateway into fashion in general. If you can believe it or not, before Freja I barely knew anything about fashion. Now it's a whole different story.

Even if I get frustrated with her work sometimes, and even if it seems like I'm a bad fan because I'm overly critical, Freja will always be special to me. She ignited my love of fashion and models, and she also anchors it closer to reality with her individuality and accessibility. I love discovering new models, but I think a part of that has to do with the hope that I'll find another Freja among all the newbies.....that I'll find another model who will get me excited and make me feel inspired for more than just a season. Impossible, I know. But I still hope for it nonetheless. I'm willing to bet that most of you out there have similar feelings and stories as well. :)

Image Credits: sonnyphotos.typepad.com

Smile

First of all, thanks to miwa for the comment letting us know that Freja made it to number 3 on FTV's First Face Countdown for F/W 10.11! The video isn't up on youtube yet, but I'm assuming it already aired on TV. And yes, according to miwa, Freja does talk. Well deserved top three spot for a great runway season five years into an already great career!

Secondly, I finally had time this past weekend to make some headway into my three ft tall magazine pile that has been gathering dust (and even more height) since the start of fashion week back in February. As I was thumbing through the February issue of US Harper's Bazaar I came across this lovely feature:

What do you know, models can smile. :) And when they do they look radiant, but also very young. Maybe that's why we don't usually see them doing so. No one wants to be reminded that most of these girls are only 16-18 years old.

No groundbreaking story here...just wanted to post this because I realize that I've never seen so many model smiles gathered into one place. Death stares and sucked-in cheeks are usually the norm. Also, I thought this was appropriate considering that this blog's namesake has one of the best smiles out there. And it's still a pretty rare occasion to see it in full force. The unamused expression from 1:22-1:33 in the video below is more like what we've come to expect:

Amazing how such a small movement of muscle can completely change the way a person looks. Recognize the girl on the left? No? That's Heloise Guerin, who I can barely recognize when she's grinning like that.

Anyway, with new campaign news breaking nearly every day, hopefully us fans will get something more to smile about soon.

Image Credits: My scans from the February 2010 issue of Harper's Bazaar

Boards of Reality

Every season I always look out for and collect pictures of designers' backstage "model boards." I feel like these usually get overlooked in favor of other backstage pictures (like ones that actually feature models), but I think they're a goldmine of information especially if you're big on models.

Aside from individual model polaroids, these model board are the closest most of us will ever get to seeing models au naturale. And the beauty of these boards is that you can see all your favorite girls in one go, and even discover some new girls that you previously overlooked. In addition to being extremely functional, these boards also serve as the fashion version of "Where's Waldo" in that it can take a few seconds before you spot whichever model you're looking for.

The boards look different from designer to designer, yet they feature nearly all the same girls. Some have the girls in their full looks, others just feature their stark head shots. On the surface these board don't appear to be anything special; but if you look closely they're full of little surprises. (And I'm personally attracted to their meta aspect in that they're pictures of pictures. I just love that!) They tell you a lot about the models, and a lot about the show process if you pay extra attention to all the notes, post-its and scribbles. For example, I noticed at least two instances where a girl was on the board, but didn't actually walk the show in the end. Let's see if you can spot who and what shows I'm talking about. ;) If anyone actually gets this I'll be impressed because that means you actually read what I write instead of just scrolling past it....haha! I'll even give clues if you ask....

You get to see how the girls look without full hair and makeup and also how they look all lined up next to each other for comparison. You begin to notice similarities, differences, who's naturally beautiful, who needs a little help from the makeup, etc... Also, I think that age tends to shine through really well in these. Some of these girls really look their age (which is really young) without the glossy sheen of the runway to hide their youthful innocence. On model boards things are laid out bare, without pretensions, without editing. Perhaps the closest thing to reality in an industry that is all about aspirations.

Have you been able to spot Freja in all the model boards posted so far? And here's one last final board for you to look over. It made quite a stir for it's realness. Freja isn't on it, but a lot of girls are and if you haven't already, it's definitely worth perusing for a good while. Some models look amazing to the point where they look otherworldly (hello Constance!)....others, not so much. I feel like this could go in a new section of US Weekly called "Models, They're Just Like Us!" they age, they get bags under their eyes, and they even get acne. Not that I think this is a bad thing at all, mind you.

Fashion is a wonderful form of escapism and fantasy; but sometimes we all need to be reminded that it's "perfections" stem from the same imperfections that bind us all together and ground us in a solid reality.

BTW, most of the images are in HQ so definitely click through if you want a better look. Also, the show and the image source are all in the image file name.

Image Credits: cobrasmake, dazeddigital, dossierjournal, elle, elle.fr, fashionista, dolcegabbana, lastnightsparty, models.com, style.com, style.it, thelovemagazineblog, videofashion twitter, vmagazine, ysl facebook

Miu Miu Moments

With tomorrow being the last day of the FW season and Miu Miu being the last show, I wanted to post these fitting pictures from last season's show. There's just something really simple, touching, and intriguing about this series. Beautiful, quiet and precious moments before the chaos of a show:

Here's hoping Freja walks and isn't left out like she was for Prada. Miuccia and Marsh have been with her since the start of her career, so I'd definitely like to see her walk the show tomorrow. And it would of course be the proper way to cap off a wonderful season. A season that has undoubtedly surpassed all expectations we had coming into it a month ago.

So as the shows wind down, we now begin to think about pages and ads. It never stops, right? Needless to say, I'm very interested to see what kind of work Freja's wonderful runway season translates into once the runway lights dim. This season has been a strange one in terms of castings, new girls and "it" girls. Less continuity between the four cities cities, fewer obvious front runners for top 10 newcomer spots, and the return of many veterans who had previously been absent from the catwalks for a few seasons. Trying to guess the impact all of this will have in general, and for Freja, is just as exciting as watching show looks come in...well, at least for me it is. I'm sure most of you could care less as long as you see Freja, right? :) And that's perfectly ok too.

Image Credits: miumiu.com