Helsinki Gloria Fashion Weekend: August 31, 2013

August 31, Helsinki 17:00-18:00

Autumn Winter 2013 collection is on the racks of boutique shops, September issue is usually the thickest copy of the year, and bloggers, editors, observers and shoppers are flocking to New York, Paris, Milano, Tokyo and yes, Helsinki, to experience those intellectual works of art and get a great inspiration.

Sponsored by Gloria, Menaiset and COSMOPOLITAN Finland, Helsinki Fashion Weekend is holding at Mannerheimintie 30, a huge white tent near Kiasma Museum. Since working for R/H but without backstage invitation, we folks wait around 5 minutes to get near the stage, the front rows are, of course, not available, but for photo shootings, perhaps we are very lucky to occupy the right corner of the stage.

 

Before the show, the host sounds a bit nervous; out of my surprise, the fashion show is lasting over 40 minutes, from Marimekko to Stockmann, promoted under Giorgio Armani and Luis Vuitton. My favourite outfit is from boutique Kaarina K, that the bare shoulder dress, sleek and simple, clean and chic. The interesting concept of the whole show is FLAKE and Stockmann, Flake adapts the 'Black is the new black' concept, and Stockmann brings up the colourful touches for the darker Autumn/Winter imagination of Finland, plus, the 2 shows use the pack rather than single on the cat-walks.  

And the goodie bag is filling up with Gloria September, L'Oréal and Lancôme sample, Helsinki Sanomat, BMW and Aigner flyers, Giorgio Armani perfume sample, Fazer Chocolate and the show, free Magnum chocolate popsicles!!!

Photography: Mindy Yuan 

Special Thanks: Beto

Helsinki Late Night Shopping Event: At IVANAhelsinki

At 19:00 August 22, 2013

Summer sale slows the syksy season, and IVANAhelsinki decorates Design District at Helsinki Late Night Shopping Event!! Since music is always an essential inspiration for designer Paola Suhonen, at IVANAhelsinki flagship shop, duo Mirkka Paajanen and Lasse Sakara perform Jazz/folk easy listening, fulfill event goers’ ears and souls.

Mirkka Paajanen & Lasse Sakara @ IVANAhelsinki

downstairs collection 1

downstairs collection 2

Enjoying popcorn holding with Pirkka+IVANAhelsinki collaboration paper cups, plus appreciating S/S 2013 collection, surely is an alternative experience of being at gallery. Mourning Sun Hotel prints owns both very romantic and melancholic touching, its fabric portraits the falling maple leaves staying on a dark tree truck, as if a pre-autumn water colour painting on a viscose/cotton canvas. Since my eye glasses desperately require a safe storage, the red flora case becomes my yet another IVANAhelsinki ingathering. Thanks for lovely staff Ansku’s courtesy, I have a caramel ViTALiS lip balm and a 15% voucher card as freebies, oh yes, perhaps I should just go and obtain Roselyn dress as my September party treat!!

Photography: IVANAhelsinki, Mindy Yuan 

www.ivanahelsinki.com

http://www.designdistrict.fi/

Uudenmaankatu, 15

00120, Helsinki,

Mon-Fri 11-19

Sat 11-16 

Fashion Fun! Seashore to Style--Ease Up At Westend!!

WESTEND, Finland

Sunny side up is slightly rare in Finland, especially in windy Helsinki. Trying to catch the final tiny tail of summer time, we folks decide to take a short ride to Westend, a very relaxing, easygoing area for locals to enjoy beach activity.

Green towel, Tsumori Chisato polka dot tote bag, Fazer blueberry pastry, home-cooked coffee, Jaffa Light, and of course, my lovely new sunnies!!Purchasing at sale season at ZARA, I love the peach pinky optical frame, matching with H&M Water Collection for a print corset, though the stripe was missing when I spot it, but it’s 60% off from the original price after all, 13e, quite a bargain I must say!

Driving to Westend takes around 15 minutes only, parking is free and entrance fee is none. First we pass by the short forest route, then ‘Pets Only’ shore showing at sight, finally to Homo Sapiens’ area. Spreading the towel, biting some snacks and sunbathing for a while, later I try to soak my legs into sea water, still, a bit too chilly to swim for good.

After the mystic fog fading away, we climb up the rocky bridge, and zap! The wide sight opens up the whole horizon. Suddenly, the sun, the sky and the sea totally liberates me.

Special Thanks: JMH

Magazine Madness: COSTUME August 2013: Anniversary and R/H

COSTUME has been celebrating one-year anniversary, on editor-in-chief’s column, there are greeting cards from Daniel Palillo, Lancôme, Samuji, COSTUME Denmark, paparazzi and the women’s ready-to-wear design company I am on the internship now, R/H.

R/H is named after a dual designer team, Hanna Riiheläinen and Emilia Hernesniemi, the first alphabet of their surnames. They met while studying in University of Art & Design Helsinki. After working in different fields of fashion & design, Riiheläinen at Zac Posen in New York and Hernesniemi in Berlin at Agency V, they decided to create their own design world through their own perspectives of styles.

Established in 2010, R/H promotes around 80 pieces per seasonal collection, including tops, bottoms, dresses, jackets, accessories and jewelry. On COSTUME August issue, from p.48-52, Finnish musician Iisa Pykäri wears Mickey square dress, Annie Pilot Jacket, Biker Winter coat and Freedom T-shirt to show the R/H woman is a balanced individual with a creative mind.

Totally 178 pages of anniversary issue, COSTUME adapts non-glossary papers to perform catwalks campaign of AW 2013 collection, offers up some surprising touches to readers; for visual pleasure, COSTUME also investigate readers’ likes and dislikes. Curious of results? You have to purchase one copy yourself.

Photography and works cited: 

www.costume.fi

http://www.rh-studio.fi/rhstore/

https://www.facebook.com/iisaofficial 

Magazine Madness: Chloë Moretz InStyle UK August 2013

InStyle UK August 2013

The layering hues of InStyle UK August 2013 cover echoes photographers Sofia Sanchez & Mauro Mongiello’s fashion campaign on Chloë Moretz: strong, rich and feminine tones from Katya Katya Shehurina silk white bridal-like gown, Simone Rocha Mohair dress, Miu Miu polka dot silk jacquard coat to Tim Tactel dress. Those pieces of photos, with touch of Mexican melancholia, are my favourites, since, despite how cute Chloë in Kick-Ass 1 was, her more-or-less cross-eyed shots (when she grows a bit mature), weaken the elegantly luxurious outfits somehow.

But stylist Natalie Hartley and campaign team perform 11 pages in a very romantically happy pink aura, by using abandon pink Cadillac at semi-derelict pink Motel. Though blogger Tom Lorenzo criticizes Chloë that “she’s struggling with the Gucci and she just looks silly in the Blumarine......generally (,) one needs a few more years’ experience to be able to work the hard-to-work looks.” I could only agree 50% with Uncle Lorenzo’s opinion, due to, perhaps, it’s more like those famous houses forcing her to commercialize their collection than her personal choices. And most of the times, age does not necessarily represent grace, if a homo sapiens has a hollow, chilly or snobbish soul accompany the lost eyes.

On article ‘Dressed to Impress’, Columnist Lucy Pavia confesses her not-so-cool dressing competition among her friends, and she concludes ‘Women dress for other women” (Pavia, 33) by taking the examples of those editors and bloggers on Fashion Weeks. Of course a lot of females out there tend to be gazed and treated by their well-dressed, but attiring, writing, sketching, illustrating, sculpturing, those acts of art should be from the happiness of one’s heart, truly passionate. If not, then it’s just a post-modern bourgeoisie’s collective influenza: stuffing taste by using dress-up.

Back to photography and styles, I doubt those girls appearing on fashion magazines, such as Chloë, can freely choose what they really want to wear on the front cover/fashion campaign pages in order to convey their personal styles. Magazine cover is more a competition platform between those fashion houses, if they call vogue business, not to mention fashion magazines are majorly supported by those fashion house advertisements (so entirely, it’s not Chloë’s immatureness on wearing Blumarine). Actually, I prefer some Behind-the-scenes photos of cover girls’ daily-wear to those interviewers’ descriptions, it’s more like a ‘intimate privilege’ because I usually purchase this exact issue due to the personal curiosity/admiration of its cover girl.

Fashion is art, fashion is glee. If fashion is our every-day love of life, since life is not a competition, so is fashion.

Photography and Works Cited:

www.instyle.uk

http://www.tomandlorenzo.com/2013/07/chloe-moretz-for-instyle-uk-magazine.html

Pavia, Lucy. ‘Dressed to Impress’. InStyle UK, Vol.149, August 2013. London: IPC Media, 2013.

Cuisine Crush! Midhill Burger Answers My Hunger

Helsinki, CityKäytävä

Eating burger shall not be unavoidably super sizing up, as long as the bun, the beef, the sauce and the salad are non-gene modification and properly made. After my Mountain View life in August 2011, I have been hunting and searching some high quality burger inn with casual dining atmosphere hiding in Helsinki, Finland.

Passing by the passage linked between City Centre and Aleksanterinkatu, Midhill Burger is waiting there, vibe, brisk and full of American graffito ink on the porcelain wall. Fascinated by the chalk hand-written ‘Brgr of the Day’ on the storefront board, we folks decide to give it a fresh try. The menu is designed a twitter-like layout, and the pony-tailed waitress takes our order soon. First served French Fries on green pepper, 4e, I love the iron pen-rack and yesterday newspaper loading the hot snack. Secondly is Brgr of the Day,9,80e: holding onto a very-in-and-out burger basket, with slightly baked bun, yellow pickle, purple onion and red potato rings, chowder cheese, and juicy, rich, thick and medium rare beef, Top-A!D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S!!! Usually beef fiber can be easily un-chewable and later stuck between teeth gaps, but Burger of the Day has answered my very own meaty concerns.

Operated by TV chef Hans Välimäki, only open for a few weeks and already become one of the hippest burger joints in the centre of city. The menu at Midhill Burger Helsinki features a variety of burgers, with fresh ingredients and black Angus beef. Recommended are the Korean BBQ burger, the classic cheeseburger and hot dogs!! With the a bit tough of American diner, and the designer furniture and stuffed wild boars on the wall, its interior is reminiscent of retro and trendy. This restaurant is great for lunch while shopping and reunion of a group of happy at the same time goofy buddies. 

An unforgettable burger defines its beef quality and sauce taste. Enjoying my burger and watching the head of boar hanging on the beam column at Midhill Burger, hhuumm…Brgr of the Day does make my day!!

Photography: Mindy Yuan 

Special Thanks: JMH

https://www.facebook.com/midhillbrgr 

Magazine Madness: Kate Moss, allure August 2013

allure August 2013

Kate Moss is reticent, remote and, yes, always intensively relaxed on her fashion campaign shootings. Collaborating with Mario Testino again (yes), Mrs. Hince this time graces rock ‘n’ roll on allure August 2013 covers, indeed surprises me for a quite awhile. Though allure USA provides practical beauty tips and resourceful med-articles all the time, the choices of cover girls have bothering me, let’s say, too many times to purchase my personal copy. Since the cover styles of allure would make a zoom portrait of celebrity/actress/you name it, the elusive and strong face, better with elegant temperament, is the major key for me to spend and keep.

On campaign pages, Kate wearing Marc Jacobs fox fur coat and velvet dress, with a New York-ghetto background, it’s bleak, black and boom! I like allure a lot is, unlike any other female fashion magazine, the cover girl interview would definitely contain double page spread photo album special, so that I can view the process of the metamorphosis of the female I really admire.

Kate seldom takes verbal interviews, but not this time at allure August issue. On styles, she tries to be “a little bit chic”, and she “wouldn’t wear sweatpants nor twinset.” On beauty, she uses Moroccanoil stuff, bit of blusher (bronzer) and eyelash curler. And “always clean hair. That’s a must. If in doubt, wash it.” About her previous scandals on heroin, Pete and Johnny relationship, she suggests: “never complain, never explain.” My favourite tip from this super-tiny model is, on personal look, “You have to make it your own. That’s what fashion is all about.”

How can Moss be so great? Because like Kate says: “I am not just a face.”  

Photography and works cited:

Hauser, Brooke. ‘The Face’. Allure August 2013. New York: Condé Nast Media Group.  

p.154-63.

www.allure.com