Relating To Carine Roitfeld

I am happy to introduce another winning essay from our The Little Black Jacket contest — “Relating To Carine Roitfeld” by Jessica Eritou. She is truly inspired by Carine Roitfeld: she finds the motivation to pursue dreams that she once thought unattainable by emulating Carine's kinder and gentler approach to fashion. Many thanks, Jessica, for sharing your passion!

Relating To Carine Roitfeld
By Jessica Eritou

I find fashion intimidating. It is intimidating from the notion of if you have taste or if you do not — you are born with or without it. Carine Roitfeld helped me ease into the fashion world, making it not such a scary place after all.

When I was much younger, I would look up to older girls in awe of what they would wear and try to emulate it similarly with the hand-me-downs sent from my cousins. Usually they were elasticized denim leggings or crewneck sweaters. I dreamed of the day my Nike tracksuits would be as cool as the girls in the upper grades wearing Club Monaco sweatshirts.

Now I do merchandising at one of Canada's higher end retailers while I am working on my degree to later work in the industry. But at the beginning of this, I thought this was as far as I could get and I would never dream of meeting anyone who is anyone.

Being from Canada, fashion was never considered important or emulated yet I had the urge to be a part of it. Thankfully I could escape with Fashion Television in the afternoons and watch Jeanne Beker go backstage at Gucci to see Tom, or congratulate John at Dior (which I could never relate to), or thank Marc (back in his Coke bottle glasses days) for a great collection. From then on, I knew I wanted to be a part of the fashion world, but it seemed so exclusive and inaccessible. Everything looked to be extravagant and deemed “cold” like Anna Wintour's alleged personality.

Before I could never relate to the cold glares coming from the first row at fashion shows. Fashion to me is not something that you should hide with your emotions. It is an outlet. It is freedom to show your thoughts, ideas, and imagination. I think the giddiest I have been was when I saw Carine at the latest Dior show (being a fan of Raf since I was 16 or so and he was at Jil Sander).

It was not until I discovered Carine Roitfeld that I felt I could be part of the fashion world. Carine's effortless and refined style was relatable to me. I could connect with someone with such a prestigious career who does not look like the catwalks of Galliano-era Dior, or McQueen at McQueen. Her maximal minimalist style was what I found so endearing in the first place. Here is her sweet, genuine, charming, and gracious personality which is still chic and can still do a great job styling and being an editor at Vogue (at the time). In her shoots or her campaigns, I can always connect with her ideas, her impressions, and her overall aesthetic which keeps me motivated to become even better at my current job in merchandising which funds all of my schooling. Because of Carine, I continue my path to apply to graduate studies in fashion in hopes of styling and journalism.

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Carine Roitfeld photograph courtesy of Fashion Spot.

Review: The Little Black Jacket

Extra special thanks to Sarra Salib, the winner of our The Little Black Jacket contest, for her review of the book which appears below. If you have not had a chance to see this book in person yet, I definitely recommend you do so, the stark layout and the quality materials support the elegant images perfectly.

Review: The Little Black Jacket
By Sarra Salib

It would be an understatement to claim that a Carine Roitfeld and Karl Lagerfeld collaboration is legendary. Revamping Coco Chanel’s classic design is a challenging task; however, this explosive combination of creative minds had the ability to transform the jacket from its simple yet elegant reality to the most fanciful of fantasies. The result is images that are unabashedly clean and stark, dark and romantic.

Perhaps my favorite element of The Little Black Jacket is the unrestraint of each individual’s personality. From Vladimir’s rather stoic and elusive expression to Akuol De Mabior’s African heritage, each person’s individuality remains intact to the very last image. With Carine’s brilliant styling and Karl’s dramatic photography, the jacket never overpowers the individual’s spirit, but rather becomes a means to illuminate it. This crucial element takes a tongue-in-cheek turn when the Anna Wintour image hits. The signature bob, the jacket propped on the shoulders just so, the austere pose. Description is still provided just in case someone is at a loss as to who this character might be.

The Little Black Jacket’s milky way of model repertoire runs the gamut: actors, models, designers, adults, children, musicians, talk show hosts, men and women alike. Carine and Karl don’t discriminate. They prove that one garment can pass the test of versatility and have the ability to be dressed up or down. They also throw convention out the door. The jacket doesn’t have to be worn just as a jacket. It can be worn as a skirt, as a headpiece, or simply wrapped around your top if you are willing to be daring. Individuality and Freedom. What else could anyone want?

The Little Black Jacket is a classic and is undoubtedly leaving an indelible mark in the fashion world. Its 113 towering images maintain a duplicity of complexity and simplicity that brings modernity to an item that has been around for ages. Bravo Carine and Karl.

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The Little Black Jacket book images © 2012 Chanel. All Rights Reserved.

Carine Roitfeld: La Petite Veste Noire Paris

"The Little Black Jacket" opened in Paris last week at the Grand Palais, displaying the elegant black and white portraits that are collected in the book of the same name by Carine Roitfeld and Karl Lagerfeld. Among the chic guests celebrating the launch were Anja Rubik, Laetitia Casta, Daphne Guinness, Haider Ackermann, Charlotte Casiraghi, Maïwenn, Caroline de Maigret, Aymeline Valade, Sigrid Agren, and Theophilus London. After the reception, guests enjoyed a private performance by Frank Ocean at the Mini-Palais. "The Little Black Jacket" exhibit will be open to the public at the Grand Palais from 10 to 25 November.

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Carine Roitfeld photographs © 2012 Olivier Borde/Best Image, PacificCoastNews.com, thefrontrowview.com, fashionweekdaily.com, chanel-news.chanel.com, purepeople.com, Getty Images, instagram.com/francistenenbaum, mixbeat.tumblr.com. All Rights Reserved.

Carine Roitfeld: Dictionnaire Impertinent De La Mode

I was excited to receive a note from the talented and lovely Isabelle Oziol de Pignol, sharing with me her latest artistic accomplishment: she has illustrated a sassy dictionary of fashion and of course who but Carine Roitfeld would appear under the letter "R." Published in September by François Bourin Editeur, Dictionnaire impertinent de la mode is a humorous and refreshing look at fashion written by Sylvie Barbier, the former editor-in-chief of the French edition of Marie Claire, and illustrated by Isabelle Oziol de Pignol. Readers may recognize Isabelle's style from the banner images she created for IWTBAR and IWTBAA, please be sure to visit Accro de la Mode to see more of her work. Note that the book is printed entirely in French but Isabelle's marvelous illustrations transcend any language barrier.

Read the first chapter of Dictionnaire impertinent de la mode

Carine Roitfeld: Dictionnaire impertinent de la mode illustration © 2012 Isabelle Oziol de Pignol. All Rights Reserved.

Carine Roitfeld At Chanel Little Black Jacket Opening

Carine Roitfeld at the Chanel Little Black Jacket Opening at Saatchi Gallery photos © 2012 Getty Images and ZTimages.