eight30 blog - gucci - paris fashion week

PARIS IS ALWAYS A GOOD IDEA

Somewhere before all the Purim and International Women's Day celebrations, I flew to Paris Fashion Week. Remember? ;-)

The string of events and experiences, that adorned my days over the last few weeks, was so full on and in such intensity, that I haven’t even had a chance to take a moment and write about the amazing week my Sister and I had in the beautiful City of Lights.

So how was Paris?

Meeehhh… it was alright.

YA THINK???

For the first time in years I had the opportunity to spend quality time with my super busy sister Lipaz, that just her presence made this trip an exciting experience and gave it an even more special meaning.

As for Paris, the city was dressed in a holiday vibe and was the perfect setting for a week full of style and fashion (except for some very tough rainy days). Hotels and storefronts were scrubbed and decorated as creatively as done for the best museums.

The streets were filled with the sound of drumming heels of beautiful young women in tune with the sounds of camera clicks and cheers of happiness. The festive atmosphere re-ignited the flame and passion for aesthetics and fashion in me that was somewhat forgotten lately.

Where we visited and who we met?

Apart from the fashion shows we went to, which I'll tell you about soon, we got a special invitation from MAC cosmetics to go backstage and be exposed to the inspiration behind the looks and the makeup artists’ work process. There, behind the scenes, we were exposed, firsthand, to the artists, designers, models and designs that made up this incredible phenomena called "Fashion Week".

Among all the people involved we met the charming Kabuki. A New York-based makeup artist who worked with Rihanna, Lady Gaga, Madonna and every other artist imaginable.

In a moment of surprising candor, he told us about the excitement and tension of working behind the scenes and the creative process and inspiration behind the makeup strategy behind the spectacular fashion show of Indian designer Manish Arora (Manish Arora).

Kabuki described the look he created as “tribal with a twist” – Clean and smooth face with different sized pearls placed strategically on them to give a look that resembles the patters of African or American Indian tribes.

At the Lutz Huelle fashion show we met the London based makeup artist Terry Barberon for a chat about today’s distinct fashion statements and colors in makeup.

By the way, just in case you were wondering, his inspiration for dominant eye makeup and the white color that adorned the models' faces, was drawn from the tough urban city look and the white stripes on the road.

Remember Chanel?

Of course, one simply cannot talk about Paris without mentioning Chanel! :-)

My previous visit to the City of Lights was where I first met, personally, this prestigious and elegant fashion house.

This time, to my surprise, the kind friends at Chanel opened their doors and invited me to their home.

My sister and I were invited to visit some of the brand’s exclusive shows – Métiers d'Art.

We visited the “open house” show for the prestigious hat brand – "Maison Michel", and closely examined the visors, bonnets, hats and spectacular hair ornaments. We listened to the inspirations that characterize the various collections and at the end of the visit, we even won a real French beret!

The next day, we went to the open house show of the Scotland produced, exclusive cashmere knitwear collection, of the brand that goes by the name "Barrie". The quality of the threads and the unique colors that characterized the collection, left a great impression on us and a strong desire to snuggle up with this soft knit by the cozy warn light of a fireplace.

Later on, we met the smiling, luxury jewelry designer, Robert Goossens. The artist behind the brand "Goossens" and second-generation designer of elegant, original and unique jewelry.

Oh and by the way, his father was friends with Gabrielle Chanel for years, which earned him his way in to the prestigious fashion house, even though he designed accessories and jewelry for other French couture brands.