I was thinking about a comment a friend of mine made to me about how lucky I was to live in the US (most of the time). She lives in Asia and had to import an iPhone from Australia for around $1000. When my contract expires, I should be able to upgrade my phone to the same one for about $200. iPhones here in Europe are not much cheaper than what my friend had paid for hers. In spite of its economic meltdown, there’s probably still no bigger consumer paradise than the US. And I’m writing this while thinking about the upcoming Versace for H&M and Harajuku Mini for Target collaborations, both of which I’ll unfortunately miss while still overseas…though it may all be for the best since I’m still recovering from the last bout with Missoni for Target, not to mention the flashbacks I’m still suffering from the Lanvin/H&M debacle!
But the thing about shopping is that there’s always something else around the corner. Which brings me to the crux of today’s post. I need help. Karl Lagerfeld and Sephora are releasing a collection this week just in Europe (though they won’t specify where exactly) and Singapore. The collab consists of a few makeup items, the snowglobe, and the KL doll. I’ve called quite a few Sephoras in Europe, hit a few language snags, and so far no luck. Either the store will not be getting the merchandise at all or they’ve never even heard of Karl. I know, say it ain’t so, but the world actually does not revolve around all things KL to my dismay.
So if you live in Europe or Singapore and have come across the two items in my pics today, please let me know which store exactly. Don’t think the idea of hitting every single Sephora on this continent didn’t cross my mind, but alas, I don’t have that kind of time luxury 
!
And yes, I know a woman of my age has no business buying another doll, but it makes a nice companion to my Tokidoki KL doll. As for the snowglobe? Well, I think his quote pretty much sums it up for me (rough translation: my great luxury is not having to justify myself to anyone). I couldn’t have said it better.
Tags: Asia, collaboration, Europe, iPhone, Karl Lagerfeld, Singapore
I was pretty excited when I first heard about the Karl Lagerfeld/Macy’s mash-up, but as the photos made their way across the fashion blogosphere, I was thinking my wallet would be safe on this collaboration. The release date (yesterday, I believe) came and went, and it wasn’t only until my sister said something to me today that I remembered to let my phone do all the legwork.
After a few calls to some local Macy’s stores near me, I popped in to do the “touch” test. The gal who answered the phone was able to set aside a few pieces in XS for me. It wasn’t hard to find her as there was signage everywhere to indicate that the Kaiser has landed. But to be honest, if there weren’t a grouping of shirts with Karl’s image on them I would not have been able to differentiate them from any other collection that was also on the floor. Nothing yelled out to me in terms of style, fabrication, or…well, just KL. Lots of ho-hum black separates, and only this pop of color beckoned me to take a picture:
The tshirts and tanks were the only things on my list, and they all turned out to be too long. Maybe I wasn’t in a buying mood because of the heat (and traffic) during my drive over to the store. Or maybe–and who knew I’d ever say this out loud–I just wasn’t feeling this uninspired stuff from Karl.
This is the only item that came home with me…and it’s for my virtual bff:
Don’t quit your day job, Karl. I love your work so much more at Chanel .
Tags: Chanel, Karl Lagerfeld, Macys
No, I promise this is not another entry about the stray cat. I’m talking about my fixation with the other Coco, the one who’s long gone but lives on through Karl Lagerfeld. When (little) Larkie met Coco through the editorial pages of Vogue about twenty-five years ago, I knew one day my closet would be peppered with Chanel goodies. I just never knew it would become a full-blown drug addiction. But hey, it’s still better than meth or vodka, right? Anyway, I will bring a little bit of Coco with me on this trip.
Though to tell the truth, my head is not quite in the packing yet because i haven’t figured out which bags will travel with me this time, and usually all of my packing revolves around the bags as they set the color scheme for the traveling wardrobe. I know, it’s a nutty way to pack but I also cannot eat bumpy food (like octopus tentacles…gross)–but that’s just how it goes in my head.
Anyway, then I build on top of the color depending on the activities and climate of the destinations. Finally I throw in some great pieces for the photo shots I already have in my mind’s eye for the cities I will visit. Of course, these photo ops don’t always work out because things generally unfold differently on the road (like inclement weather or lost luggage), and I’ve learned, the hard way, that control freaks are no fun to take around the world, so I leave that inner freak at home and just hope that I get some good photos regardless of what goes wrong. And honestly, after a few weeks of living out of suitcases, it’s really hard to break out of the jeans and tshirt mode…you just want fashion to take a vacation.
So far, I’m thinking I’d like to pack a few of the Cruise and Spring cardigans shown here to throw over nautical shirts. Or maybe add these funky McQueen racer-back tanks that might be fun without the sweaters when it’s really warm…
…and speaking of warm, these Tory Burch, Sonia and Chanel tanks are good staples in my suitcase:
So far that’s all I’ve pulled for now, which I hope won’t be all because I’ve got no bottoms…yet. But I do know I’d like to use that gray Panama fedora hat in the first pic, which may hint at which color bag I have in mind…but it’s not really matching the red cardigan with navy trims, which I’d really like to wear on this trip. So I guess that means yet another hat. Grrr.
I’m also packing this Eugenia Kim for Target straw cloche. I think it’s only like ten bucks so if I accidentally lose it I can replace it when I get home without crying. I’ve lost a couple of Prada cardigans on the last few trips and those were not as easy to replace!
So without giving away too much about where I’m headed, as you can see I’m anticipating meeting some cool weather even though I hinted a few days ago that there will be lots of sun as well. It’s no wonder I can’t seem to wrap my brain around the wardrobe yet. I feel schizo, and until I can nail down the bags, the only sure thing I have in my suitcase right now is my toothbrush.
Here’s hoping in the next entry I’ll have more clarity . Happy Independence Day everyone!
Tags: Coco Chanel, Eugenia Kim, Karl Lagerfeld, McQueen, Panama hat, Sonia, Tory Burch
I’ve called about 15 bookstores and newsstands in the LA area today looking for the June 22 edition of the French newspaper Libération. Karl Lagerfeld is the guest editor, and besides his most likely insane comments, lucky readers also get to enjoy his artwork in this copy. I would love to be one of these lucky readers (collectors). But no luck to be found in my part of the world. Either we don’t read anything but industry rags here or we just don’t care enough about what’s being published in other parts of the world…I don’t know. I just want to find this one copy.
Can anyone help me?
Tags: Karl Lagerfeld, Libération
I’ve been a big fan of Kidrobot for all its quirky toys from Japan and Europe. Loitering in their stores reminds me of running around Tokyo collecting trinkets/toys from the seemingly endless vending machines. After all, Japan has about 1 vending machine to every 23 people or so according to recent stats.
Tokidoki, which means sometimes in Japanese, is a more recent love for me. It’s a company founded by Simone Legno, an Italian enamored with Japan. His company now collaborates with many other brands to produce toys, jewelry, clothing and trinkets for kids and mostly adults who still think they are kids.
And that’s where I come in. I fell for Tokidoki because of their release of this limited edition Karl Lagerfeld collectible figure:
So imagine my giddy excitement when I saw that the ubiquitous Sephora was bringing a Tokidoki capsule to their stores this summer. There are tank tops, mint tins, and eyeshadow quartets in adorable acrylic cases (I have a thing for boxes and cases):
I’ll have to troll several Sephoras for the makeup bag. They restock most Thursdays and that’s always the first item to get sold out. Guess where I’ll be this Thursday!
Tags: Karl Lagerfeld, Kidrobot, Sephora, Tokidoki, Tokyo
