♥ in difficult times, fashion is always outrageous.

i have often wondered what it would be like to be a painter,

walking around with an idea burning inside of me so fiercely that 

the only answer would be to pick up a paintbrush and create.

or to be a musician, hearing beats like tiny cords being pulled taut and snapping in the synapses of my brain that i could not help but tap out in a drummer's morse code.

or to be a poet, picking up a pack of beautiful words and arranging them and re–arranging 

them like a pieces of a jigsaw puzzle until they finally fit together. 

i have fooled myself time and again into thinking that there is some type of artist lying dormant within me and if i were only to sit in front of a blank canvas or page-

or carry around  a small black notebook in my purse–

 some spark or epiphany would come, 

a lightbulb would flicker on..
and i would produce 

something gorgeous.

that day has yet to come.
but if you want to get all metaphoryical-
we could say that my body is the canvas and my clothing is the medium i work in,
and what i create is a look and an image, 

which, is also a work of art!

art comes in all shapes and sizes. what type of artist are you?

there is no one who walked the fine line where art.meets.fashion 

better then italian–born, french designer, elsa schiaparelli. 

image found here.

a contemporary and rival of chanel during the

 turbulent and uncertain time of 1930's paris,

schiaparelli spun ration tickets into couture,

collaborating with surreal artists like salvador dali to

create wearable art

that ranged from shoe hats, to tromp l'oiel gloves, 

to dresses covered in lobsters and butterflies,

to capes decorated with avante garde embroideries, 

to jackets finished with mermaid buttons and exaggerated sleeves: 

clothing that did not take itself too seriously,

that entered a room and demanded to be noticed,

and made one forget,

– even for a fleeting moment–

that anything bad was going on in the world.

images found here.

in her autobiography, a shocking life, elsa asserts,

"i have never been shy of appearing in public in the most fantastic and personal get-up."

she certainly is a girl after my own heart.

on top of creating outrageous fashion during difficult times,

 elsa schiaparelli also gave birth to the term "shocking pink," 

which was not only the name of her 1936 perfume but also her signature color.

 the wedge sandal, overalls, animal prints, zippers, folding eyeglasses, shoulder pads 

and even..

.. shock of shockers!!..

the wrap dress!!! {which dvf is always credited with!}

are all her darling creations.

it should come as no surprise that now, when things are looking just as bleak 

and just as uncertain as ms. schiaparelli's time–

that designers like dolce and gabbana should choose to pay homage to

 this unapologetically glamorous designer in their fall 2009 collection.

breathing new life into the very splendid details that made her so fabulous:

the oversized shell button, the animal print, the balloon sleeve, the glove, the hats,

...it's all there in black and white.

{and shocking pink!}

images found here.