Spray your message here

Paris street art, stensils and guerilla advertising is all over the place, sometimes literally at your feet. Below, the photobooth outside Point Ephemere (think Bios by the river). Posters around it, figures guarding it on the wall and pictures of happy-drunk people as examples of what it's there for. Then, the new idea of a flyer sprayed on some Parisian pavement and a cheeky message right in the middle of a street in Montmartre.

Colette, where the wild things are

213 RUE SAINT-HONORÉ 75001 PARIS
That's always a top of the list address when visiting Paris. Colette, the notorious multi-concept boutique with the coolest selection of fashion & design objects and... the least photogenic windows in town (street reflections any way you see it). Right now: "Where the Wild Things Are" or "Maxi et les Maximonstres" are taking over the main window.

*inside, Rodarte girls are curating the gallery area with "findings from artists inspired by nostalgia".

Quickie from Paris

This is just a quick one to say I am alive and well:)
Truth is I have not been spending as much time in front of a screen as I thought I would. Which is good. I get to notice all kinds of things in the street, i.e. the fact that haircut prices differ according to the length of your hair. Justice? Discrimination? (and how long is "mi-long"?)

Berlin Vintage

This is the dress I chose to wear at Katerina Alexandraki's boutique opening the other night (and was very well spotted by little spy Thalia in the previous post). It was no random choice. Katerina loves Berlin and this dress was bought at a Berlin vintage store during my trip to visit her there last summer. There was a sign at the door indicating a -20% off happy hour and what a happy girl I was, strolling up and down rails full of gems!

I ended up buying this '70s dress among other things, but no matter how much I treasured the colour and fit, I could see a downside to it: pointy, asymmetrical ends. I could cut them out I suppose, but didn't want to tamper with an original vintage piece. So I got creative with bows. Sharing 'cause I think this is quite a simple and effective diy trick to bring back to life clothes with similar finishes lying in ur closet, awaiting for a revival.

Tie ends together on each side. Pointy ends: gone! The shape changes immediately, looks quite interesting and is ready to go.

I took it one step further and slid my feet through the newly created holes. Was only experimenting, but the harem pants effect this gave to my dress turned out better than expected so I kept it. Mission accomplished.

*shoes: Bally vintage, bought in some London charity shop ages ago.

Hope you found this inspiring.
I am off to Paris again today but laptop and full gear is coming with me so I'll be in touch. Have a lovely weekend.

*Quick Reminder:
This designer vanity case giveaway is still at large;)

Sooo..! boutique opening party

It was quite a glamorous opening tonight for Katerina Alexandraki's first Sooo..! boutique. Mini cocktails were coming and going, a wave of Athenean celebrities was rubbing shoulders with guests and after the catwalk show, the collection was available to touch and shop. Loud music kept the spirits high outside while inside models and customers were coming in and out of the fitting rooms. This is a quick post of pictures I managed to shoot towards the end of the night. I'm sooo tired right now... proper photo-report & video coming soon!

(Below: Katerina Alexandraki wearing her shoe-fringe, parts of the collection, the limited edition flower pin-hats -I'm wearing one too- and special touches that got my attention).

Sooo..! Cocktail anyone?

Oh yes! Wouldn't want to be anywhere else tonight. Katerina Alexandraki is celebrating her newly founded line Sooo..! as well as the opening of her first boutique by throwing a cocktail & catwalk party!

Her Autumn/Winter line, “Thrill”, will be officially presented for the first time and from the samples I've seen so far, it's going to be this season's thrill indeed.

Catwalk, cointreaupolitans, late night shopping (Alexandraki's limited edition hats will be available too!), lights, models and plenty of surprises... sounds like a hard-to-miss party. The invite features a hand-written message by the designer herself and the stamp reads "Berlin", her favourite destination and source of inspiration. You don't need one to show up though. Everybody is welcome so start getting ready! Event starts at 19:00 and the boutique is located at 145 Iroon Politechniou str in Kato Halandri (more info here). However, some lucky guests did receive the invite along with a very generous goody bag containing:

1. Various products of Lavera (Biological Beauty Care from Germany)
2. A PennyPrice AromaTherapy booklet
3. A MAC card to be used for a free make up in the store of MAC in Golden Hall, any day till the 30th of November
4. A discount card for the Cake Stores all around town
5. A discount card of the Sooo..! Boutique
6. A beautiful hat-pin straight from the A/W Sooo..! Katerinalexandraki pret a porter collection.

A couple of months ago I visited Alexandraki's stand at the Premium exhibition in Berlin. I inspected her collection for Spring/Summer 10 piece by piece. Unfortunatelly that has to stay under wraps for the time being but you can get an idea from the pictures below. Katerina also took the time to answer some of my questions for you:

Alecca Rox: What is the theme of your collection for SS10?
Katerina Alexandraki: Sooo.. art, nature and freedom..! it's a turn towards being carefree, playful, innosence and nature. It consists of girlie looks with motifs inspired by great painters of surrealism.

AR: What's Berlin to you?
KA: As the mayor of Berlin once said: "Berlin is poor.., but sexy!". I had some great moments here. I have fallen in love, got inspired and met people that have helped me become a better person, made me see things from a different angle. I'd say Berlin is my second home, a warm cuddle, a dose of adrenaline, an oxygen mask. Ich bin ein Berliner..!
AR: What are you bringing back from this trip?
KA: The journey is more important than the destination. I am keeping all the precious moments with old friends and associates and I am welcoming new ones into my life. Also moments I spent alone, reflecting. I'll never forget this trip as it started the day the king of pop Michael Jackson passed away. I am dedicating it to him.

Now you know a bit more about Katerina Alexandraki through the lines of this blog. Why not drop by tonight's party and meet her in person? I'll be there. If you spot me, do nudge me and say hello! See you in a few hours.

DRKSHDW Competitioooon!

Now that we're through with the elections and all that, I can start the week with a competition! Whether you felt like a winner or a loser last night, today you have the chance to win this limited edition DRKSHDW Eastpak vanity case!

I am thrilled Eastpak has trusted me to show you this. This is the only vanity case they have in any of their lines, designed by Rick Owens and a true sample of his design philosophy. The line won't go out in stores in Greece for at least another month, available for sale only online, here. Best part, this case has not yet been released so you are in for a very unique treat!

Includes a mirror for freshening up on the run...

...a net to keep stuff in place....

...a removable purse where cotton and q-tips or simply your coins can finally rest...

...features nice touches marking the collaboration, and...

...it keeps seams to the minimum, even the zip is hidden to keep the design as high-tech and clean as possible. The fabric is quite unique too: "TOP COATED NYLON, DRY STONEWASH FINISH, MADE USING A REVOLUTIONARY WELDING TECHNIQUE".

To win this, email me at aleccarox@windowslive.com , subject: CASE, stating your full name as usual but this time also let me know if you want to participate automatically in any future competitions (will save you the emailing each and every time!)

This competition is massive, so it will run throughout October, ending on 31/10.
Open to all!

I'm (on) Lucky

I always trust Lucky magazine for some good shopping insight. I guess they trust my reports on fashion events too. (link)

DRKSHDW EASTPAK FW09

It's all elections over here at the moment. B.o.r.i.n.g, I know. However Rick Owens' latest project has got me all excited! The spirit of his Dark Shadow or DRKSHDW line has been translated into perfect, almost seamless bags in collaboration with Eastpak. What follows comes straight from the official release, thus the capital SHOUT OUT letters. Kept it original, totally adds to the images. Check it out.

FOR FW09 EASTPAK UNVEILS ITS MOST INNOVATIVE COLLABORATION TO DATE WITH THE PARIS BASED CALIFORNIAN NATIVE RICK OWENS. THE KING OF MODERN, MINIMALIST GOTH THAT IS CHIC UNDERSTATED AND DEEPLY LUXURIOUS COLLABORATES WITH EASTPAK VIA HIS DENIM LABEL DRKSHDW. THE COLLABORATIVE PROJECT IS CO-BRANDED ‘’DRKSHDW EASTPAK’’ AND WILL BE AVAILABLE IN SELECTED STORES ACROSS THE GLOBE FROM SEPTEMBER 2009. IT IS ALSO THE FIRST OFFICIAL CO-BRAND THAT RICK OWENS HAS UNDERTAKEN FOR ANY OF HIS LINES.

RICK OWENS – INSPIRATION FOR DRKSHDW EASTPAK FW09

''ONE OF THE REASONS I ALWAYS LIVED AROUND HOLLYWOOD BOULEVARD WHEN I LIVED IN L.A. WAS THE ENERGY AND ALLURE OF THE PACKS OF WILD KIDS THAT LIVED ON THOSE STREETS THEN. THEY WERE SUCH A WORLD AWAY FROM THE SAFE CONSERVATIVE TOWN I’D COME FROM. THEY WERE RECKLESS, DYONISIAN, CUNNING, EXOTIC.

THE COLOUR THAT I CALL DRK SHDW COMES FROM THE LAYERS OF FADED ARMY SURPLUS CLOTHES AND BACKPACKS THEY DYED BLACK AND WORE. EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE I’D FEED ONE UNTIL IT LET ME PET IT, BUT IT USUALLY JUST ENDED UP BEING MORE TROUBLE THAN IT WAS WORTH.

IT BECAME SATISFYING JUST WATCHING THEM PLAY AND WASH IN THE FOUNTAIN ON HIGHLAND AVE AND SUNSET BLVD WHEN I WOULD BE DRIVING HOME AT DAWN. THE MEMORY OF THOSE KIDS AND HOW I FELT ABOUT THEM IS WHAT I WAS THINKING ABOUT WHEN I DID THESE BAGS WITH EASTPAK...''

Yummy end of story

Smoof...smoof... I could smell something was cooking at Tell a Story's final day! Outside Bios, the air smelled delicious.

Moving closer, I saw "koupes" and other Cypriot delicacies being fried and grilled at an impromptu street barbeque. Grabbed a carrot and went for the dip whilst trying to figure out was was it all about...

Volunteers kept refilling the bowls with ice from the bar and the cooks switched to barmen, then cooks again in seconds. Now I had a "koupa" stuffed in my mouth and was mumbling "I want one too" as people kept coming back for more of...well, everything!

I watched Metaxa brandy, lemon squeeze, soda, ice and mint being pured into my plastic glass. "What is this?" I had to know. "It's Brandy Sour, a cypriot cocktail" I was told by the cook/bartender "Google it!" (and so I did.) Such a refreshing and simple cocktail, helped the "koupes" go down nicely.

And this is MCP's work. MCP is Maria Christina Papaleontiou, an architect turned into a jewellery designer, with designs as particular, fresh and yummy as what was going on a few metres away from it, by the barbeque!

What's Maria got to do with all this? First I noticed the cooks' brooches. Then I realised it was Maria's man, Nikos, who had organised this street feast for us. (Pictured below with lovely Maria. She is wearing one of her wooden necklaces, a great example of what fashion's gonna look like in ss10 - "statement necklaces")

By the end of that evening, all the visitors were toasting to MCP, and both buyers and the crowd left with a.. good taste in their mouth. Thank you Niko, Maria & friend! Update: Thank you Demetri, Maria and Constantine. (oops! blame it on the brandy sour!)

(picture below: it seems that MCP designs were quite a hit among exhibitors too. Here's 1/2 of designer duo 2D featuring MCP)