Pink Words
I have a secret to share. I don’t often tell people this but… I detest the colour pink. Unless we’re talking make-up, I don’t want to see it or hear about it. It’s too girly for me to consider wearing or perhaps I’m just too old! Give me a little black dress any day and I’m good to go. So, imagine my surprise when the June issue of British Harper’s Bazaar landed on my doormat. A black and white image of the starlet of the moment – British actress Carey Mulligan – with a smile and a pastel pink header had me giddy with anticipation. A friend recently called Harper’s Bazaar “the thinking woman’s magazine” and I couldn’t agree more. Of course there is fashion, beauty and even a little blah celebrity coverage but the magazine, particularly the ‘Talking Points’ section, gets the brain ticking. I want my Prada with a little history, my Céline with a little culture and most of all, I want to open a magazine which stimulates both my mind and eyes. I used to collect Vogue Paris but now, particularly with the unique subscribers covers, I think I have a new collectable.
Summer without Kate Moss on the cover of British Vogue simply isn’t summer. Isn’t this gorgeous? I decided after seeing some images on that very naughty Pinterest to buy a copy. The cover is quite busy which is a shame but the pink works, Kate captivates me and suddenly all I want to do is cavort around town, or at least my living room given that it’s been raining here in London, in a summer dress. Kate has so many critics but I won’t hear a word against this Patrick Demarchelier editorial. Not a word. British Vogue has me wanting a yacht in the Caribbean sea and I suddenly have an urge to spend £2457 on a swimsuit! I love the way they write ‘Model = Kate Moss’ in the credits section like she needs an introduction. It makes me giggle every time. This issue is very ‘now’ but that’s what Vogue is about. There’s an article about Jemima Kirke from ‘Girls’, photographs of what the so-called “IT girls” are wearing, the Richard Branson & Vivenne Westwood collaboration and some beautiful pieces in the Vogue Spy section. If you’re a fashion lover, this has everything you need.
Oh Julianne Moore. Could the woman be more divine? Well, Madame Figaro sets about finding out. Though it kills me to pay £3.30 for a magazine which costs 1.50€, my French professor constantly tells me to read more French literature so voilà ! It’s an easy read: a lot of French goings-on, never-ending (and utterly wonderful) beauty features and Julianne frolicking around in Lanvin. Good times!
These days I spend so much time reading academic literature that my magazine moments tend to involve flicking through the pages whilst enjoying a cup of tea and then storing the magazine for years to come. I never realised just how different these magazines are and, more importantly, what my literature choices say about me. Alas, no more time to reflect – back to reading about the Tokugawa shogunate for me.
