Wednesday 12 February 2014

Vogue February 2014 issue review


This issue has had a lot of press - it seems like the publicity departments of HBO and Vogue have been burning the midnight oil.
Vogue had another actress on the cover for a change.

The new season ads were eye-catching.
I am not normally a huge Burberry fan but I adore this coat.
The lilac isn't sickly and the brand seems to be branching more into the pretty than just functional which it is known for.

But the brands seem to be flogging its bags.
Gucci has it front and center.

Lupita, the new darling of Hollywood, is modeling one as well.

Dolce & Gabbana has bills to pay so 
they didn't even pretend it was about the clothes.


Whereas leather goods guru Bottega Veneta was doing a very good job in piqueing interest in their ready to wear collection.
I can imagine a dress like that suiting most figures.

Do you know, when I saw this picture I thought she looked familiar but couldn't place her.  Amazing what clothes do...
Mary Katrantzou suits Lady Edith.

Another brand monopoly merger.
Nike and Givenchy is going to join forces to design a new shoe.
Problem is, it is sooo darn cool that it is already passe' and over.
As Kath and Kim say, " O.V.A.H"

Not much to add but I just adore this dress.


Hamish Bowles showed us various types of flowers in porcelain and tissue paper so they last longer.  Although Vladminir Kanevsky was already featured a few months ago in Elle Decor.
But I think this is the first time Livia Cetti has featured in a huge nationwide publication.


The editorials were a mixed bag.  The editors of Sports Illustrated is obviously doing a cross marketing editorial where Conde Nast is plugging their swimsuit issue in Vogue. 

Most of the pages were of Kate Upton posing with 
various football players I had never heard of before.

The picture below was the only one 
that looked like it belonged in Vogue.
A shirt will never get old.
This was the what to wear where monthly feature.

I love the piping detail.
Checks and circles.
Two tone is also a fresh and crisp look.
But looking at the prices of these shirts make me wonder 
why more people don't go and get a made to measure shirt 
made in Savile Row which is cheaper! 
You can get one made for $300 from the world's best.
Or you could go and buy a simple white shirt and 
get a seamstress to customize it exactly to your preference.


I loved this editorial.


But I might be biased as 
I am very interested in anything to do with Native Americans 
and Georgia O'Keefe.










I nearly didn't want to review this issue because 
it would be impossible to talk about it without talking about the 
cover girl Lena Dunham.


There was controversy about her photoshopped photos and 
the whole Jezebel thing.
In fact, she tends to polarize people not because of her show but because of her image.



Most women are interested about the issue of weight.
People of both sexes are wary about image to be fair.
I would love to write about it but part of me thinks it would cause needless furore. But having said that I have been blogging for just over a year and regular readers might have a better sense of where 
I am coming from so I might start some time.
It seems to be an underlying and recurring theme in so much of 
pop culture and indeed culture itself and personal self image hurdles.



Half her publicity is based on her not being thin.
Of course, there is her writing etc. but what makes the news?
Her weight.



So for now, let's say she looks nice.
I like her show well enough though 
the end of season two went a bit awry.


Who knows, she may be her generation's Barbara Streisand...
Ms Streisand changed the perception and 
the spectrum of what is considered attractive.

Just to let you know that I will be pinning more image that didn't make it to this post onto my Vogue board on Pinterest for those of you who want to browse this issue further.

Have a great weekend everyone! 

42 comments:

  1. It's nice to see Kate Upton being recognized for her gigantic brain.

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    1. One doesn't normally see brains that big in Vogue so it is a refreshing change ;)

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  2. Oh Naomi, I never took you as the type of gal to be nervous about a bit of blog furore. You really must do that post you so want to do and sooner rather than later. In fact I base half of my business on image (including the nutrition part to some degree) so it will be interesting to read your well articulated viewpoint.

    Happy to see an issue full of bags, definitely in to accessories more than clothes, although I've always promised myself I'd treat myself to a good quality shirt because I don't have one - love the idea of the two-tone.

    I have a girl crush on Lupita - that's all I have to say on that!

    I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw Laura AKA Lady Edith on these two interviews - she dresses amazingly when out of character, I would never have imagined it- she wore an outfit on Jonathan Ross which I adored! xx

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    1. I love Lupita too - she is a darling no? I can't wait to see what she will wear to the Oscars.

      Lady Edith would not have had trouble nowadays getting a date eh?

      Yes I think there are certain issues that you just can't win when discussed unless there is a personal context behind it. I don't want to have to qualify everything I said or it get misconstrued as all I would have is my writing to lean on so I was always a bit wary. But I will do one when I try and articulate it properly Colleen xx

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  3. I got my hands on this issue of Vogue a couple weeks ago, and I got the impression that Vogue is trying (struggling) to stay fresh and relevant. I honestly didn't know what to think of Lena Dunham. I haven't seen a single episode of her show, and the concept of it just doesn't interest me - perhaps I am getting old... I did love the photos of Laura Carmichael (Lady Edith), she looks so modern and chic. I also really enjoyed the "What to Wear Where" feature - the looks were nice and crisp, and also easy to transfer to real life.

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    1. Vogue is struggling for sure - I thought Conde Nast was doing ok and Anna Wintour isn't going to get fired or anything but the vibe comes through on the pages doesn't it? You must watch her show if you have time only if to see what on earth everyone is talking about - and it makes you so happy not to be in your twenties hehe

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  4. Finally, I've actually read the magazine before you critique it. I found this months issue boring - mostly because I don't watch Girls, and had no idea who Lena Dunham was, but heard all about her retouched photos furore (who cares? All model photos are retouched to some extent). Sad that most comment is about her weight... she isn't fat, she just looks normal weight to me. What's the big deal? Christina Hendrickson of Mad Men fame must be sizes bigger than her (she's so much more voluptuous), and she's celebrated for her curves. I think you should write what you like N. Most people have read you for long enough to know where you're coming from.
    I liked the Burberry coat (so pretty, but not in a sickly way) and Lady Edith in the navy Erdem dress. The rest of the mag left me a bit cold.... xx

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    1. I wonder what Anna W is thinking - she is known to be cold and stuck up but all I see is that she is kissing butt all over the place like a first year intern. I understand that Conde Nast wants to share and cross seminate their markets but to put football players is just a waste of talent at Vogue. That should be left to the Vanity Fair people but Grace Coddington shouldn't be made to think about styling sports stars. I just felt robbed of a proper editorial and I am sure the advertisers were none too pleased to be robbed of space to highlight their wares. Lena Dunham is a smart girl and such a hard worker no doubt but they are trying to force her into the new SJP or something. You should watch at least a season of girls - only just as a reference point. But if you cant be bothered, it is like sex and the city but girls are poorer without even a credit card facility, badly dressed, unglamorous, and in Brooklyn. Still don't understand how they are paying rent there but that is another story. That Burberry coat is going to be a sellout I am sure and I agree - the issue was rather boring.xx

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    2. Haven't read the US Vogue issue - won't be bothering to track it down after reading this. Poor Grace having to style football players! But she's such a great creative with a sense of humour she could cope with just about anything. Haven't seen "Girls" - never heard of Lena Dunham. Might try it - though probably too old. Have watched some of the "Carrie Diaries" though. Kind of interested to see what they'd do, still undecided, but doesn't have the cutting edge "Sex" did when it first came out. Our then teenage son was hugely embarrassed at having a Mother who was a fan!

      Subscribe to Oz Vogue, sometimes interesting articles and interviews, also good pics. Amazing how different the national Vogues are. When travelling, often buy local Vogue (Paris, Italy etc - the Italian has so much more risqué material) also the Interiors mags to see different takes on design - and cultural differences. Resent it when Oz Vogue and Vogue Living repeat pieces from other national Vogues, I guess economising, but somehow always feel cheated if I've taken the trouble to buy UK Vogue and then find the same thing a month or so later here.
      The Bottega Veneta outfit looks perfect for a funeral, but otherwise not to my taste. Have to admit to being attracted by the last pic of the coat of many colours. Though probably wouldn't buy it if I could, I'd at least be tempted. Designer? The lilac Burberry is v pretty. It's good to see a break away from their usual designer codes and patterns. So many of these have been pirated and flogged all over the streets and markets, specially in HK, Bangkok etc - that the real thing's been devalued. Can't understand why anyone buys them, either the pirate versions or the real thing now. Must be a real problem for Burberry. Tend to like Mulberry bags, good styles, often in good range of colours.
      The cheapie supermarket mags like New Idea etc are so boring too, the same old same old. Formula: New diet craze; new super health food item; who's too thin, too fat? who's anorexic? is this a baby bump? Is Sophia Loren pregnant or has she just put on weight? latest affair; is Mr X cheating on Mrs X; has Ms X finally found Mr Right! Pictures of latest "loved up" couple. I pick them up and flip through while waiting in checkout queue. Total waste of money and an insult to our intelligence as women.
      As a Georgia O'Keefe fan, wonder if you've read the huge volume of her exchange of letters with her photographer lover Stieglitz, "My Faraway One"? Gives quite a lot of insight into life, relationships and her art. Best wishes, Pamela

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    3. All photos in any magazine/media have been retouched. You've never seen one that isn't. Even when you're told it's not, it has. Trust me, I'm a Creative Director. I should know.

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    4. @Pamela - I feel the same way about Aussie Vogue - sometimes they have good stuff but most of the time it is us or uk articles a few months late and they charge so much that I only would read it now if there was an exclusive. Did you read that book about the Aussie editor who got fired from Oz Vogue a few years back? Too funny re your funeral outfit! I love a wrap dress I do and if the weather allowed it I would just wear those all day long.Burberry has done well and even more so because it one sense it has devalued and yet sales are still booming( from the Asian market but still) and i think this is their way of rebranding to its original market. Mulberry is classic but a Hermes family memeber is not at the healm so we shall we how that goes - all very incestuous the leather goods industry. New Idea is for the supermarket aisle bc I noticed by the time you pick one up and read through - the checkout lady is asking cash or credit so it is all very convenient. I haven't read that book but on the list - thanks for the tip!

      @Curator - I remember when I worked in marketing in the states and we even retouched inanimate objects!! That is why I thought it was rather unfair of everyone making a big deal out of Lena's retouch...

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    5. This is why reading blogs is so good! You're educating me. Had never heard of "Girls" or Lena Dunham before. Watched it last night and was really interested. She's very clever, multiple talents. In some ways she's a US version of the English comedian Miranda Hart. Although Miranda is constantly sending herself up (other than in the Midwives series) while Lena mostly seems to play it straight (at least in the one episode I've seen), which can be funnier - and sadder.

      Interesting about an Hermes family member now being at the helm of Mulberry. It was an English woman (forgotten name) for a long time, no? Wonder what changes this might mean for the bags. I'm particularly fond of the Alexa satchels. Seem to remember the sacking of the Vogue editor. Have a couple of memoirs by the later editor Kirstie Clements, must read them. Happy Valentine's Day! Pamela xx

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    6. You are so right bout the Miranda hart thing! She is the gloomier version of her! Except that Lena sends herself up in a totally different way. There is a scene in season two where everyone of every generation was shaking their head...I haven't started season three and will do so out of sheer curiosity than genuine interest.

      Yes that English lady at Mulberry was "moved out"

      http://fashion.telegraph.co.uk/news-features/TMG10119148/Mulberry-CEO-Bruno-Guillon-on-Emma-Hills-departure-Its-not-just-Bruno-arriving-from-France-and-changing-everything.html

      That book about the Aussie editor was good but not any real revelations...Rather expected stories really but good holiday read. Hope you are having a great Valentine's day too xx

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  5. Vogue is the one magazine I subscribe to and I am barely scanning it these days, super-boring! The photo shop uproar over Lena was stupid, as Heidi pointed out everybody is photoshopped, absolutely everybody. Who cares? She seems a nice girl with an interesting style, I don't know a thing about the show. I have to say I do wish I looked like Kate Upton, and I loved the clothes she was wearing, but it did seem like something that should have been in Vanity Fair.
    Naomi go on and tell it like it is, don't hold back- you are among friends!

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    1. Yes i agree - I flip through and I am not itching to get back into it. I must try and find an inspirational vogue edition - maybe i will get italian or french vogue as a comparison for y'all? Kate Upton is refreshing to look at in the pages of Vogue though. I bet Anna would have loved to ertouch her as well. I will have to hold back because even with friends they sometimes raise an eyebrow!

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  6. The only magazines I subscribe to are Vogue and the New Yorker. I gobble 'em up! I really like Vogue cuz it gives me the digital version on my iPad and I can watch fashion shows for hours. Lena Dunham is cute and talented but I have to admit that I was feeling rather round one day and I thought,"Ugh! I feel like an aging Lena Dunham!" I guess I've been brain washed by Vogue after all. As for photo shop, bring it on! If i were in a mag I'd sure want it.

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    1. Love the New Yorker - I got the ipad subscription and I can't keep up with the issues actually! But their cartoons cheer me up no end. And I think we would all be shocked if things stopped being photoshopped dont you think?

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  7. I loved that Burberry lavender coat/dress too, it's just gorgeous. I didn't look at the issue very much but I did read the interview with Lena. I saw the first season of 'Girls,' which I thought was well-written and funny but my, the characters certainly do take their clothes off at the drop of a hat, and no one more than Lena. I don't have a problem with her weight or looks at all, though it does annoy me that she makes herself look not very cute in the show, when I watched an interview with her that was featured as an extra on the DVD I felt tricked, like Hey, you're actually very pretty! And oh, those poor characters in the show, I know, it's just AWFUL to be stuck in terrible ol', ratty ol' Brooklyn, who'd want to live THERE?!? Ha. XO, Jill

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    1. i might have to wait for the knock off version! The first season was good and I thought she was so talented but then in teh second season it just got more out of context and unreal. There was unnecessary nudity I agree. Plus she says she purposely gets bad clothes to ill fit her but that just didn't make any contextual sense either. Jill - you are so cheeky - you must have read the article about the Brooklynisation of everything in the NYTimes? It is like the shoreditchification over here!! :) xx

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  8. God I am so out of touch that I had never even HEARD of Lena Dunham before reading this. I am evidently totally old and past it!
    I love the lavender coat - such a divine texture and colour!

    I think you should write your controversial blog post - I'd love to hear what you think, and I think that your lovely, educated readers will treat any views you have with respect, even if they disagree with you :-)

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    1. Ruth - Lena I think is more of an American sensation as she did a press junket recently but didnt make the news here much as it hasn't really translated well for the local audience but you are not past it! PS I don't mind disagreeing as I come from an opinionated family and we never agreed on a thing but I just don't want people to think I am harsh or accusative...

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  9. Thought this Lena Dunham article was interesting and like the photos of her. I think once they showed the befores they weren't really changed at all. Silly. Much prefer real gals like her to the stupid sports spread with Kate Upton. Yawn. Noticed there were a lot of handbag ads and sadly both Vogue and Bazaar have started having cigarette ads which they haven't for almost 20 years. That makes me not want to buy either. Again Naomi, I always agree on your opinion on these reviews!
    xo

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    1. I noticed the cigarette ads too!!! This is illegal in Australia.

      I loved your round up N. I like to watch Girls and was interested in the Jezebel stuff.

      I didn't really enjoy this issue- I could not care less about footballers etc.

      I do agree they are trying to make Lena edgy and cool and a chubbier Carrie Bradshaw.

      I have often wondered how they pay rent too ..x

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    2. Kim, I don't get the cigarette ads but then again they are the few that still pay top dollar...

      Personally the retouches were so slight that I would have bothered. I found the choice of clothes interesting bc I did wonder what they would clothe her in when I heard she was going to be in it. That sports spread was such a dud...xx

      Hi FF - Yes I think it should be illegal here too but too much lobbying...

      That Jezebel stuff was just really crazy but the cynic in me says the pr team at Girls fanned the flame a bit for extra headlines for the show premiere. I also think one can't impose a status on someone forcibly and they should just let her be Lena for crying out loud! Honestly - no job,parents aren't helping out and yet they still manage to worry about boys instead of rent...xx

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  10. I wrote about weight once on my blog, I was well over 11stone for years, Jeezo talk about vitriol, so many nasty comments and emails, people are really weird about it, beware!

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    1. Ay aya ie. even you got that? Hmm - maybe I should do an invitation only post then!!

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  11. I used to subscribe to Vogue and then to Harper's but now I prefer to select a magazine when they come out (I still have my Condé Nast Traveller subscription as I feel the magazine gets better every year!!) I'm pleased you reviewed this issue as I decided not to buy it. The Burberry coat is gorgeous, a kind of ultra-feminine version of their trench. I'm ready for a new white shirt for spring and love the one with the piping.

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    1. Yes I like Harper's and perhaps I should subscribe to them but they usually have them in hairdressers so I get to read them in waiting rooms! Yes I am glad I saved you some money because it was not worth it miss b!

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  12. It's not in the same league as Vogue, but the only magazine that I have bought lately is the Australian magazine Frankie. http://www.frankie.com.au/ It's very different from the usual magazines on the shelves. And speaking of weight and looks and Sports Illustrated, our latest in flight safety message on Air New Zealand is causing a few raised eyebrows http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2557774/Turbulence-Air-New-Zealand-highly-sexualised-flight-safety-video-featuring-Sports-Illustrated-swimsuit-models.html

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    1. Thanks for the tip Gallivanta! I just went on the website and it looks cool and different. Ha - NZ always did do impactful government messages as I mentioned to you the other day :)

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  13. I've never watched Girls, but I am always horrified when I see her on the red carpet - how she is dressed is a disservice to her charms I think....

    I love reading your magazine analysis - you read them so differently than me and I just love it!

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    1. Thx Wendy - I think her red carpet dress was something her character in the show would have worn so I was a bit confused as well...

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  14. Not a Vogue fan. I find it tiring to flip through all those ads. It's even exhausting just to hold. There is a certain protection of Lena because she represents a more natural, real woman...there is a protection of Christina Hendricks also but she has been around long enough the media now knows to leave her alone. Write about what you want, people don't have to read if they don't like...I am kind of getting tired of our pussified society. My daughter pinned a little poster that I thought was funny and true. It said "the two things I always want to do: Lose weight and Eat".

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    1. Yes it is ads mostly which is why I review the ads as well!! Yes I can understand the protective side of the Lena thing though Christina is lauded but then again she has a different type of curvy figure. I love that saying so much and I think most of us can relate :)

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  15. do you do this every month? you're going to save me a FORTUNE!

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    1. Yep - pretty much and if I don't I put it on my pinterest board! I shared mags in real life so this is just the internet version :)

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  16. Hamish has the best pieces. I agree with Alexandra, these magazine summaries are awesome!

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    1. Or shall we say Hamish gets the best pieces ;p

      No he is good really!

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  17. Haven't watched Girls, but might have to start- although not sure if its in the 'essential' foxtel package??? Love that Burberry coat- good to see them thinking about design as well as functionality. Hope you have a fabulous Valentine's Day. x

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    1. I really suggest seeing a bit of it because it is such a cultural reference point now - especially in the states and I think will be for sometime to come as she has a lot of steam at the moment. Don't get me started on the cable packages - Mr CSW thinks sports is "essential"...Bet you are rocking an amazing dress for Valentines day - cant wait to see pics xx

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  18. I don't get the whole Lena Dunham thing, probably because I don't watch Girls and I don't know anyone who does. I did catch the debate about her photoshopped pictures but I still don't get it. All images in the glossy mags are photoshopped to a greater or lesser degree. Glossy mags are about escapism & fantasy. If you want real life, go down the supermarket. Maybe I'm being a bit harsh but that's my opinion.

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  19. I knew I'd like this post as soon as I saw the title on Bloglovin.:) Nike and Givenchy - what kind of a combination is that??? I definitely have to see the end result... But you're totally right about the cover girl, all they ever say about her is that she's not skinny. So? It's kind of annoying and eradicates everything else that she's doing. She should just lose the weight so people would start paying attention to other stuff that she does.:) Just kidding, of course.:)

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