Introducing... I Want To Be An Alt

At first I stubbornly resisted this idea, but the day that Emmanuelle Alt was announced as the next editor-in-chief of Vogue Paris I had to look at myself and laugh. What did I happen to wear that day? Grey skinny jeans tucked into worn Harley Davidson boots, a blue and white pinstriped shirt untucked beneath a vintage black velvet jacket with the cuffs rolled... I was accidentally channeling the style of Emmanuelle Alt and not my idol, Carine Roitfeld! Clearly my heart belongs to the Roitfeld family but just as steadily as the refrain "I Want To Be A Roitfeld" played in my mind, my fascination with Emmanuelle Alt has grown and I am increasingly curious to see her Vogue Paris. I will always want to be a Roitfeld but at the same time a part of me is screaming, "I Want To Be An Alt!" Let us see where the freshly anointed queen of Parisian rock 'n' roll chic takes us...

Special thanks to Pierre-Alban HF from The Crowd for his kind permission to use this striking photograph of Emmanuelle, visit his blog for more lovely shots of Paris street fashion.

Emmanuelle Alt photograph © 2011 Pierre-Alban HF. All Rights Reserved.

Carine Roitfeld Exits Vogue Paris

Carine Roitfeld ends her reign as editor-in-chief of Vogue Paris today and thanks to the sharp wits of my hilarious friend Cupcake from Fashion Tarts, we managed to gain access to Carine's shocking private exit interview... Merci beaucoup to Cupcake for sharing the goods!

Fashionistas, I am embarrassed to say I have had to take a second job which has taken me away from my little tarts. Yes, I have been moonlighting as the HR person at Vogue Paris. I do have some news to share but I am afraid I cannot say anything... it is confidential. Top secret. Cupcake's brain is a vault to which no one gains entry. I have locked the door of secrets and thrown away the key. Ouch... you have twisted my arm, fashionistas. Alright then, I will tell you but it must be kept secret. We DO NOT want this leaking all over the world web. I am releasing a snippet from Carine's exit interview from Vogue Paris. Yes, Carine Roitfeld bids us au revoir from her long standing post as editor-in-chief of Vogue Paris. It is policy here at Vogue to end your tenure with an interview. Here is the live recording... I give you a world exclusive....

Cupcake: Carine... over here, gauche, Carine... no, just turn your head gauche. My droit, your gauche. That hair... it is like a curtain! Ah yes, now I barely see those two little black marbles peaking through some string...

Carine: Je zexy.

Cupcake: Sure. Why have you left Vogue?

Carine: Iz you think bout zex you look zexy.

Cupcake: Yes, thank you for that. I will write that on my gravestone. Now, did Anna bully you into leaving? We need information.

Carine as she appeared in her exit interviewCarine: Iz zexy to provoke, non ? I like ze jewellery zat is zexy for ze mistress, non ?

Cupcake: Mmmm... yes, yes. Carine, we are not talking about sex right now. Oui?

Carine: Zey say I'm nympho zhen I drink chamomile tea and is normal you know?

Cupcake: No. I don't know what in the goddamn hell you are talking about. Just... stop. Stop your potty mouthed sex talk. We are done here. Good luck and good bye.

Carine: Zat waz zexy what you say.

Cupcake: Ok. Security!

There you have it, fashionistas! The world will never see another... a woman of mystery. And a sexy mystery it was.

Carine Roitfeld photograph © 2006 Purple Fashion magazine. All Rights Reserved.
Text and image courtesy of fashion-tarts.blogspot.com.

Smoky Eyes A La Roitfeld

I am honored to feature today's guest columnist — the talented makeup artist, Dana Argesan, who graciously agreed to find time in her busy schedule to enlighten us on the Roitfeld approach to makeup. Dana is located in Bucharest, Romania, and has studied makeup artistry in Paris, London, and Hong Kong. You may have noticed her work for L'Oreal or the Cannes Film Festival, where she served as the Official Makeup Artist from 2001 to 2007. Be sure to visit Dana's web site to see more of her beautiful work. Merci mille fois, Dana!

The Makeup Mirrors The Roitfeld Vision
By Dana Argesan

She is one of the movers and the shakers of the fashion world, a genuine trendsetter, and for most of us her opinion is word: Carine Roitfeld is a presence with a strong input of attitude and identity. The Roitfeld metamorphosis is primarily highlighted by her makeup overruling the outfits, resulting in a perfectly outlined and consequent style and also room to play with clothing. Even though she has delivered impressive amounts of magazine titles with her vision, Carine illustrates herself with her signature look: the smoky eyes completing an intelligent sight.The frame of the eyes is “dressed” with nuances of greige, grey, and black, transforming the sight into a seductive game of subtlety and refinement. Her good friend, the expert Monsieur Tom Pecheux, probably inspired her to use neutral color strokes for the lips in the context of contoured eyes. All of this is completed with a light tone of blush, just like the one used for the lips. The playfulness of the contrasting colors emphasizes her comfort with this amazing look.

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Dana Argesan with a few of the fabulous stars on her client list

Dana Argesan and Diane KrugerDana Argesan and Willem DafoeDana Argesan and Samuel L. JacksonDana Argesan, Laura Harring, David Lynch, and Naomi WattsDana Argesan images courtesy of danaargesan.com and Facebook.

Update on mercredi 2 février 2011 by kellina

Read my post "Yves Saint Laurent Dessin du Regard Eye Pencil" for information about the specifc makeup products that Carine Roitfeld prefers to craft her mesmerizing smoky eyes.

Carine Roitfeld's Last Vogue Paris Party

This evening Carine Roitfeld hosted a private Vogue Paris party in honor of Gucci's creative director Frida Giannini at Hôtel de La Rochefoucauld-Doudeauville, the Parisian home of the Italian ambassador, His Excellency Giovanni Caracciolo di Vietri. Among the lovely guests were Stefano Accorsi, Jessica Alba, Gemma Arterton, Charlotte Casiraghi, Laetitia Casta, Laura Chiatti, Josephine De La Baume, Poppy Delevingne, Valeria Golino, Diane Kruger, Tali Lennox, Kate Moss, Karmen Pedaru, François Henri Pinault, Mark Ronson, Paolo Roversi, Maya Sansa, Caroline Sieber, Mario Testino, and Olivia Wilde. Anna Calvi provided the evening's entertainment. It is with extraordinary sadness that I write this on the occasion of Carine's last official party as editor-in-chief of Vogue Paris, as Derek Blasberg tweets: "Carine will be missed. She knows how to throw a party..."

Jessica AlbaDiane KrugerCarine Roitfeld, Jessica Alba, and Diane Kruger photographs © 2011 Getty Images. All Rights Reserved.

Update on mercredi 26 janvier 2011 by kellina

Courtesy of Hia Magazine here is another gorgeous photo of Carine Roitfeld with the guest of honor, Frida Giannini. See even more photographs from Carine's last Vogue Paris party at Les Mads.

Carine Roitfeld and Frida Giannini photograph courtesy of facebook.com/Hia.Magazine

Update on mercredi 26 janvier 2011 by kellina

Thanks to Fashion & Runway, we have a breakdown of all of the guests that wore Gucci for the party although they somehow managed to overlook Carine who was stunning in a full length Gucci dress...

Frida Giannini wore a black velvet jacket, a georgette satin insert shirt, velvet tuxedo leggings with black leather platform ankle-strap sandals with square and pointed stud details on the back, and black satin evening bag with gold and silver crystals and studs.

Stefano Accorsi wore a Fall/Winter 2010-2011 dark grey “Signoria” plain wool suit, white popeline shirt, dark grey silk tie, and black leather shoes.

Jessica Alba wore a one-of-a-kind strapless cocktail dress embroidered all over with a degradé of pale and silver grey metallic beads and crystals and featuring a draped back and low single strap detail.

Gemma Arterton wore a Spring/Summer 2011 sablé corse linen stretch seam cape dress.

Anna Calvi wore a Spring/Summer 2011 black georgette satin tuxedo jumpsuit.

Charlotte Casiraghi wore a Spring/Summer 2011 black matte jersey jumpsuit with embroidered bias strips with high heel platform sandals in black velvet and leather, with gold leather.

Laura Chiatti wore a one-of-a-kind cocktail dress with hand dyed lilac and pale grey paillette embroidery.

Poppy Delevingne wore a Spring/Summer 2011-2012 black fine cotton long sleeve boat neck top with leather details and a black cotton duchesse leather cage skirt with metal embroidery.

Valeria Golino wore an ice silk crepe de chine shawl collar jacket, army green crepe romain pants, high heel platform oatmeal suede back zip sandal with stud detail, and a sable leather Gucci "1973" clutch from the Cruise 2011 collection.

Diane Kruger wore a Spring/Summer 2011 black silk organza backless dress with leather, PVC, and metal fringe embroidery.

Tali Lennox wore a Cruise 2011 peach crystal embroidered georgette dress, high heel platform ankle-strap sandals, and small shoulder bag in sand leather with chain and double G logo ornament.

Karmen Pedaru wore a Fall/Winter 2010-2011 black ostrich feather embroidered side collar.

Mark Ronson wore an ink notch lapel two button suit and white button up shirt.

Maya Sansa wore a Spring/Summer 2011 black matte satin drape strapless top, indian jade crepe romain fold pants, a black silk satin short jacket, high heel platform sandals in black suede, and a clutch in black satin with gold leather trim.

Caroline Sieber wore a Spring/Summer 2011 runway black leather fringe cut detail top with black suede fringe skirt along with high heel open toe black leather booties.

Olivia Wilde wore a Spring/Summer 2011 black and jade silk wrap jumpsuit with azure sash detail.

Carine Roitfeld: Death Of A Boxer

In digging through my archives I unearthed this little gem of an editorial by Carine Roitfeld titled "Death of a Boxer" in which she seeks "a pair of pants which guarantees permanent pull-'em-off pulling power." La Roitfeld selected briefs by Yves Saint Laurent, Helmut Lang, Valentino, Gucci, John Paul Gaultier, and Hugo Boss to try to take down the classic boxer, a tough challenge but Carine posed worthy contenders. In my humble estimation the clear winner is YSL — pull-'em-off, honey, pull-'em-off! Her sexy bit of styling appeared originally in the Spring/Summer 1996 issue of Arena Homme + with Mario Testino shooting the photographs. What do you think, boxers or briefs?

Arena Homme + editorial images © 1996 Bauer Consumer Media Ltd. All Rights Reserved.