Souvenir Spree: Vogue Paris Août 2019, Chanel Baroque Jewelry & Saint Laurent Rive Droite, le Retour de Années 1960

Paris 25-29 2019

We see her through a haze. One of the greatest fashion icons of her generation, Kate Moss’s appeal has also proved unparalleled. From a cover girl to the CEO of model agency, Kate Moss once again returns to grace the front page of Vogue Paris No. 999 August issue, under the neon lens of Inez & Vinoodh, the rock ‘n’ roll muse is wearing glossy velvet blouse from Saint Laurent par Anthony Vaccarello, tipsy eyes and voluminous hair portrait the le retour de années 60-80. 

I have been collecting Vogue Paris & UK since 2005 as long as Kate Moss presenting as the cover girl. Vogue Paris always is in more of the sensual and sexual touch onto photography conveying the current French trend, while about the juicy gossip of Paris chic, is always standing avant-garde among the other social media. The address 213 rue Saint Honoré 75001 has been mythical since the legendary concept store Colette waved farewell since December 2017, in summer 2019, Saint Laurent boutique has grandly opened at the same location. Dubbed ‘Rive Droite’, this new fashion destination echoes the Saint Laurent ‘Rive Gauche’ collection, which played a major role in democratizing fashion and luxury in the 1960s. Imaged by the artistic director of Saint Laurent, Anthony Vaccarello, this boutique blends fashion, lifestyle, and the arts expression, includes exclusive limited stationary and groceries. According to the article from Vogue Paris No. 999, page 43, I set my footsteps at 213 rue Saint Honoré , and ‘Appelle Moi’ lighter is one of my facourite selections, surely I am going to light up scented candles with this black cutie. 

After the training in Paris, my souvenir shopping therefore locates at Rue Cambon 31, for a pair of AW19 Baroque earrings. With Chanel double cc logo engraved onto the oval shape of pearl, decorated with four bleak rein stones on the east-west-north-south direction, in between yet another four pearl de riz, this delicate design wrapped in off-white Rue Cambon 31 jewelry box, along together with the mini paper bag, fulfill my dream of Chanel Rue Cambon collection. 

For the photography of souvenir from Paris, Chanel AW19 Baroque earrings placing on the position of ears of cover girl Kate Moss, while the Rue Cambon 31 jewelry box situates at upper top right, the white camellia flower lightens up the rather darker tone of magazine cover, Rouge Allure NO. 4 gives out a bit of focal points of the flat lay. Saint Laurent ‘Appelle Moi’ lighter echoes Kate Moss wearing velvet blouse from Saint Laurent par Anthony Vaccarello, also as if Moss is whispering to our ears ‘call me’. Chanel Fall-Winter 2019-20 RTW pre-collection campaign photography postcards by Leila Smara, express the romantic touch of La Seine, and enclosed the negative film of these photo shooting is one of the marvelous design of postcards ever!

YSL 

Leila Smara 

Fashion Fun Wien! American Apparel Disco Pants x Chanel Espadrilles on Month of Sundays in Vienna, Austria

September 13-16, Vienna, Austria 

Having been planning with parents to reunite in Vienna since August, not only do I schedule my own city tour, but also track the weather forecast, in order to travel trendy and light. Departure at 08:30 from Helsinki, carrying American Tourist cabin luggage and Chanel leather mini tote, safely and sound I arrive at Wien at 10:00 am, on Friday the 13 with 25 Celsius degrees. 

Located in the neighbourhood of St. Stephen’s Cathedral, The Plague Column (Pestsäule) is a Holy Trinity monument located in the Graben shopping area. Under the comment of Habsburg emperor Leopold I, erected after the Great Plague epidemic in 1679, the Baroque memorial with Nine Choirs of Angles, is one of the most prominent sculptures conveys the complex iconography of Austria. The basic message of the column is that the plague and the Ottomans’ Second Siege of Vienna (1683), both of them punishments for sin; In addition, the western face dedicated to God of Father, while the eastern face is associated with Son of God, and the northern face, which belongs to the Holy Spirits, all together  establish a connection between the sacral design and the Habsburg monarchy. 

Meeting parents, auntie and the other tour members at the most recognizable column, joining them the afternoon tea time and dinner, the outfit code of mine is casual but a bit edgy. American Apparel Midnight navy Disco Pants with 90% nylon and 10% Spandex is ultra flattering, with heavy woven fabric shaping and moving during the city walk is easy. Chanel glittering lambskin espadrilles with cotton woven logo provides the feel of holiday; together with straw knit top in milk white by Month of Sundays, balances a rather darker bottom tones. 

Milla Kettunen, the designer behind MONTH OF SUNDAYS, always greets me in lovely spirits while we meet either at her previous Helsinki studio or at Design Market 2019. The label’s can be traced back to the 50’s where the saying was used to define an unpredictable long period of time. Therefore, Month of Sundays refers to brand’s ageless with high quality materials; my knit top of the day was made in Italian-spun dry cotton, rolling hem design allows the piece reversible, which subverts the front-back concept of an item. The milky white colour is a great combination with Chanel SS18 100% cashmere dark blue/white stripe cardigan. 

As for accessories, Chanel leather tote with quilt and chevron patterns can restore Chloé sunglasses, cosmetic pouch, long wallet, map of Vienna, mini snacks, monthly schedule and even more, for instance, family souvenir from Taiwan and Czech Republic! The discreet design of 0-logo and ruthenium zipperavoid my worry of theft on the road, still convey the high quality of the house craftsmanship.

At Holy Trinity monument, I even instruct my dad how to dodge the photo bombs, nail the zooms for the fashion fun photography within 20 minutes before the group dinner at Gösser Bierklinik near Graben neighbourhood. This how I meet my parents during Autumn Festival (中秋節): They spend 13 hours from Taipei and I departure early from Helsinki. 3D plus my auntie share the funniest conversation in a month of Sunday, Vienna, Austria.  

TOP TIP 1: Bring a light weighted cashmere/wool cardigan to prevent the ultra sunlight without spreading over doze of UV cream 

TOP TIP 2: milk cream colour is good combination with midnight blue, hazel orange or pastel pink 

Special Thanks: Mom & Dad & Auntie 

Cuisine Crush: Street Food Festival Helsinki 2019

Asian Food Festival August 31^st, 2019 

Street food market is becoming a trendy event in Helsinki after 2010s. They are held at Esplanadinpuisto or Kamppi Square, those open-air kitchens are from China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam or even Turkey; each tent gives exotic spice odor, various tones but the very same big smiles. 

Following the long queues without any clue is one of the best ways to discover something new at street food market. Those creaking sounds from one meter-length diameter iron pan are standing-by extra large size Tibetan momo dumplings. On the square table covered with poppy red cloth, the dough is rolled into small circular flat pieces. The filling is then enclosed in the circular dough cover either in a round pocket or in a half-moon or crescent shape. The dumplings are then cooked by steaming over a soup (either a stock based on bones or vegetables) in a momo-making utensil called mucktoo. Flavours choosing between buffalo, pork or cabbages, these crispy bottom with chewy thick-skin dumplings are juicy on the fillings; dipping with ultra chili red sauce and Tibetan pickles, merely 8 of a plate is making me almost half-full. The Tibetan chef lady moved to Finland during the 1990s, though not particularly fluent in Finnish, exactly similar to her young son, their cheeks are as happy as blushing apples. 

Being as Vietnamese popular street food, Phở is a bowl of soup consisting of broth, rice noodles (bánh phở), herbs, and meat (usually beef) (phở bò), sometimes chicken (phở gà), while the origin is poorly documented, it is believed that Phở invented between 1900s near Hanoi. Phở is homophonic to ‘rice noodles’ (河粉) in Cantonese, according to linguistic map, during the early 20^th century, the South-eastern cost line of Asia reside millions of Cantonese speakers. 

My bowl of Phở at Asian Food Festival Kamppi Square is served with a specific cut of flat rice noodles in clear beef broth, with thin cuts of beef (Medium rare fatty flank and lean flank), featuring slow-cooked tendon and tripe. The family from Northern Vietnam cook the soup made by simmering beef bones, oxtails, flank steak, charred onion, charred ginger and spices. I like how Phở soup is garnished with fresh ingredients such as green onions, white onions, Thai basil, fresh Thai chili peppers, lemon or lime wedges, bean sprouts, and cilantro. It is also customer’s choice to add up several drops of fish sauce, hoisin sauce, chili oil or hot chili sauce as wishes. The Vietnamese chef is serving Phở to my mini table, speaking a ton of local language to me, I only can reply and smile him in both English and Finnish: Thank you so much sir, I surely enjoy it a lot. 

TAPIOLANPÄIVÄ Street Food Festival August 31^st, 2019

Being as working-class street food in the United States, the sausage of Hot Dog used is the wiener (Vienna sausage) or frankfurter (Frankfurter Würstchen, also called frank), which, the preparation and condiments vary regionally, typical condiments include mustard, ketchup, mayonnaise, relish, and common garnishes include onions, sauerkraut, jalapeños, chili, grated cheese, coleslaw, bacon, and olives. The term hot ‘dog’ has been used as a synonym for sausage since the 1800s, possibly from accusations that sausage makers used dog meat in between the buns. My choice at Tapiola Street Food Festival is German style, without cheesy garnishes, crumbles of bread are delicious to elevate the flavor of the Frankfurter Würstchen. 

All-year round available as Finnish staple street food ‘muikku’, also known as the vendace or as the European cisco, is a species of freshwater whitefish in the found in lakes in northern Europe in the Baltic Sea. The length of an adult is normally about 20 cm, while a school of pan-fried muikku in my dish is approximately less than 8 cm. Never ever as a fan of smashed potatoes, the basic portion supports me satisfied enough for the lovely street food day of August, 2019.