THE INSPIRATION. The Cut this week came out with a series of unseen pictures of thespian icons Marilyn Monroe and Liz Taylor (and more) . Vintage, behind the scenes stories, the unpublished, biographies, or just plainly knowing anything that happened but nobody ever knew it did, always intrigue my curiosity. Antique markets in Tuscany and flea markets in Miami stimulate my adrenaline, yes that little I need. I mean, little until it comes to looking for that ideal leopard coat that Ann Bancroft is wearing in 'The Graduate'. [fbcljcreations.tumblr.com] The secret is keep searching for inspirations.
THE PROCESS. Start the walk with the greatest expectations. You know how they say “do not build expectations or you will be disappointed”? Well you’ll have to bypass that rule for flea markets. There’s so more to be surprised with than money can buy. The secret is the more you exercise your eye the better you become at it.
IT’S IN THE GENES. You’ll have to weed typhoons of crap to find that rare pearl that goes ignored by the most. Something like that Roberta di Camerino that I vividly remember playing dress up with when I was a kid (where did it go, btw?), that felt hat that looks very sheperd-ish but everybody is telling you that "you are the perfect person to wear it", tons of lace sleepwear like the “one that my grandmother has in her closet”. It works as a therapeutic session to me, it reinforces my roots, those are all things I have lived with and it’s not because I am old (I am still “vintage” for that matter) nor that I feel old, it does make me proud to have been raised with that sense of respect for the past, history, stories of our great grand parents, closets to open and dresses to wear, books and diaries that smell like old dusty library (as they are old). The secret is keep trying, there are decades to work on.
PROUD MAMA. Just the knowledge of having transmuted this gene of ‘digging the old’ to my baby girl fills me with joy. She indeed got infatuated with owning a record player (her birthday last year) and an Olivetti Lettera 22 (this past Christmas). The secret is perseverance. Sooner or later it will come out.
THE FASHION LINK. “I couldn’t help but notice” the resonance of vintage, the past, the inspiration in the latest collections.
The secret here is a no-secret: if you have done all the steps above it will come natural.