Seasons. Happy New Year 2013 with Louis Vuitton, ss 2013.

We are living the last days of the current year. The winter solstice was already 21st December and after that the day is approximately five minutes longer every day in the northern part of world like here in Finland. I'm celebrating it with this Louis Vuitton spring/summer 2013 outfit. It condenses perfectly the black-and-white trend of the spring 2013. Towards spring we go, believe it or not!

I wish you all Happy New Year 2013! Let it be great and full of inspiration!

For Fun. Circus.

When I was a kid, always on Boxing Day came Billy Smart's Christmas Circus on TV. It was a magical moment to see all the glitter of the costumes and the acrobats flying in the air. Trapeze was so high up and there was a lot of animals in the show. Those were the moments when my love for circus has begun. 

 I have visited Circus Finlandia's performances with my kids. I love the atmosphere in the big tent. The starred top of the tent, the orchestra, cones of light, the variety of feelings from joy and excitement to wonder when a magician conjures a parrot out of nothing. This year before the acrobats acted their most demanding act Circus Finlandia's director Carl Johan Jernström introduced the coming stunt with the words:

"Circus performers are showing off the best they can do."
What a great phrase to think of when we are due to do some demanding task in our daily lives.

Dolce & Gabbana would be my number one costume designer for Circus Princesses. The first lady could perform an entrance in the pelerine and throw it off to some assistant's hands before starting to walk with string up in the air.

Sometimes when I look through my favorite street style sites I hear echoes of Circus. Or what do you think of these two characters below in the framework of circus?

The Urban Spotter

The Streetstyle Aesthetic

On the Street. The Mystery of the Fox Girl, Kamppi, Helsinki.

A hat is an essential accessory around here in winter times. Frost and snowing is much more pleasant when you have your head warmly covered. Few days ago I saw this fox-like hat. Somehow that suited well to my mood and gave me a motif for a little Christmas story.

MYSTERY OF THE FOX GIRL
On the last week before Christmas some forest animals dare to explore the habits of people. To make sure to be safe among people they change themselves to human form. This Fox Girl is now among us in Helsinki looking around wondering lights and odd things it sees. It is used to interpret the shadows and paw prints in the snow. It doesn't know what to think about all it sees in the town of Helsinki. The Fox Girl returns back to the woods a bit confused and it is very happy to be able to dive under the spruce branches with no lights on.

Seasons. December Amaryllis Belladonna from Sketchbook.

 

I have a habit to plant an flower bulbs of Amaryllis in the middle of the November. It's a pleasure to follow how the first green leaves appear from the large brown flower bulbs and the flower stalk get taller every day on the kitchen table. The result of that growing feels always such a wonder. This year our Amaryllis appeared in light red tone, a bit like red crab. Flowering began in mid-December when nothing will flourish outdoors because of the cold and snowy climate around here.  The contrast is very effective to meet such a flourishing beauty at home.

The Amaryllis bulbs can flourish again if you treat it right. From the site of the United States National Arboretum I found a step-by-step plan to get your amaryllis to bloom again.

Amaryllis is a traditional flower for Christmas time in Finland. I'd love to hear if there are some other traditional flowers in other countries. If you like, let us hear from your plant selection for Christmas in comments.

Catwalk. Chanel Pre-Fall 2013 Goes Saint Lucia.

The 13th of December is Saint Lucia's Day. To the ceremony belongs that a girl is elected to potray Lucia. She is wearing a white gown with red sash and a crown of candles on her head. Lucia brings the light to the darkness of the wintertime. You can read more about the tradition of the Wikipedia article Saint Lucy's Day.

Today I opened a new window of my Advent Calendar. A singing Lucia appeared to the middle of the singing rabbits. At once I started to sing the beautiful Sankta Lucia -song. In Saint Lucia's Day you can encounter Saint Lucia almost anywhere. Once I was in dentists and the staff had dressed up to Lucia and performed the song. That became a memorable event.

Then my brain started ticking. I looked through a Chanel Pre-Fall 2013 show a couple of days ago. I absolutely loved it. I'm pretty sure I'll come back to it later. I felt that the last white outfits would be perfect for Lucia also. So the crown of candles accompany the Chanel-look this time.

Catwalk. Monocler Gamme Rouge, fw 2012.

We are now living in a winter wonderland here in Finland. Every other day it's snowing. It made me think of the best outfit from Catwalks for winter season. My choice is Monocler Gamme Rouge's checkered outfits. They are fun, yet stylish with 60's twist. There shouldn't be fear for cold feet in these boots either.

One Day. The Castle Ball 2012, Linnan Juhlat 2012.

6.12.  is Finland's Independence Day. In the evening, the Presidential Independence Day reception is held for approximately 2000 invited guests at the Presidential Palace. This event, known as "the Castle Ball", is broadcast on television and has been a perennial favorite of the viewing public.

The best part of the show is when Presidential pair shakes hands with all the invited guests. 1800 this year. It's the moment when you can see all the beautiful evening gowns. This is also the moment to shout judgements in the home couch. Great fun! This year I did some rough sketching while watching.

On the Street. December Snow Attack, Ruoholahti, Helsinki.

 

Last Friday was a big snow storm here in Helsinki. The best way to move around would have been the skis. There came like 50 cm snow in one day. Thanks to the storm we now have snow mountains in every corner of the streets. Well, at least the kids love it.

Nowadays, if I have a opportunity to say somebody that like her/his coat, or shoes, or total outfit, I always say it. People are delighted and they sometimes start spontaneously tell me some stories that are related to that specific garment. This time I was fascinated by the wide black and white herringbone wool coat. The whole outfit had a nice 60's feeling.

The young mother told me that when she had started to wait her first child, she didn't have a coat to fit in. So they changed coats with her sister. And then afterwards she didn't want to give it back anymore. The sister had abandoned the coat in her mind already. So everybody was happy.

Do you have some nice stories to share about the contents of your wardrobe?