P&C Questionnaire: Helene of The Luxe Chronicles
Monday, August 16, 2010 at 11:03AM For today's P&C Questionnaire I am so pleased to bring you Helene of The Luxe Chronicles! I have been an avid fan of The Luxe Chronicles since it launched three years ago, and over this time Helene & I have developed one of those strange but wonderful blogger friendships; we've never met in person, but seem to have reached a simpatico based on our mutual luxury backgrounds, appreciation of craftsmanship and design, and love of beautiful things. Always encouraging and inspiring, I look forward to Helene's well-considered, no-nonsense insights into the world of luxury goods. Here is a blogger whose content remains untouched by the machinations of well-funded PR machines, and who is unafraid to stand up to the luxury marketers and cry foul if need be. Her candor is indeed refreshing!
Helene's contribution here is no less true to form. If this post proves anything it's that there's always so much more to learn about a person you think you may know!
What is your occupation and how did you arrive at it?
I'm a writer and consultant to luxury brands. I work with brands helping them to communicate and brand build online and off. I took a rather circuitous route to get here. Like a dutiful daughter, I went to law school, qualified and slugged it out in a large law firm for a number of years. Then in the late 90's, I was working as a lawyer in Paris and took several courses on French decorative arts at Christie's Paris. There was an immediate click in my brain and I discovered a passion I never knew I had. Many consumers of luxury goods don't realise it but what we refer to as antiques today were actually the cutting edge design and luxury goods of their day. They are very closely intertwined worlds.
Name three things that inspired you this week.
(i) A dear friend of mine was diagnosed recently with breast cancer. She has just undergone a complete mastectomy and has a long course of chemotherapy ahead of her. We had lunch a few days ago and she was so positive and brave in the face of this very scary disease. She's not letting the cancer define her. She's getting on with her life and enjoying it to the fullest extent possible. I find her courage very inspiring.
(ii) I attended the Business of Fashion interview of Net-A-Porter founder Natalie Massenet. She recounted how when she first floated her idea of selling luxury fashion online, nearly everyone told her it would fail. Luckily, she refused to listen and now ten years later, she and her team have not only changed the way women shop for fashion and accessories but they're challenging deeply ingrained ideas within the luxury and fashion industries as well. I find that kind of clear-eyed determination inspiring.
(iii) My daughter is 8 years old and she is doing a sports & arts camp this summer. One of the projects was to write and perform a short play. She and her campmates concocted a story about a Martian who crashlands at their school and needs help from the earthling children to return home. She was cast in the role of the Martian and was very nervous about performing in front of parents. She overcame her stage fright to give a very convincing performance. Facing your fears is pretty inspiring no matter what your age.
What is your personal style "uniform"?
I'm petite so I tend to favour simple, well-tailored pieces that don't overwhelm my silhouette. I especially like shift dresses because you can dress them up or down with the help of accessories (especially useful when you travel). The best are by Roland Mouret and Oscar de la Renta.
Name one type of clothing, shoes, or accessory that always makes you stop and stare, and explain why.
When I was three years old, I fell in love with my very elegant grandmother's black, pointy, patent leather stilettos and I've been infatuated with shoes ever since. The right shoe can completely transform an outfit and the wrong shoe can totally ruin it so I tend to focus on them first and foremost. I have a soft spot for Roger Vivier and Rupert Sanderson shoes which walk really well. When I need something more funky, Prada, Pierre Hardy or Miu Miu usually do the trick.
Do you buy vintage? If so, what piece in your collection is your favorite?
I am a vintage virgin. While I'm fascinated by clothing from previous eras, I simply don't have the time to hunt down good vintage pieces. Serious collectors of vintage fashion tend to invest a fair bit of time scouring markets and specialty shops. I'm much more of an "instant gratification" kind of girl. Most of my wardrobe including clothing, shoes and accessories are purchased online from Net-A-Porter.
Do you ever feel like you were born in the wrong time? If so, what era would you like to have lived in and why?
From a style perspective, I love the fashions of the 30's, 40's and 50's but since I have a strong feminist streak, I suspect I might have been pretty miserable living in any of these decades. What I envy of previous generations are the manners and the sense of decorum which were expressed at least in part by how people dressed. Daphne Guinness said it best recently: "You can tell the state of civilisation by the way people dress. If the people who fought two World Wars came back to 2010 and saw all of us running around in tracksuits, what would they think? It is just being sloppy. And it is not about the money, it is a mindset." I agree with that view. I think the act of putting yourself together in the morning before you step out into the world is as much about respecting others as respecting yourself. As a society, we seem to have lost that.
What current trend do you like the most?
I'm only 5' 4" so I'm currently in love with platform pumps especially those with a concealed platform. My heel limit is normally 4 inches. Anything higher and I'm unable to walk elegantly and confidently. Platforms allow me an additional inch so I hope they're around for a very, very long time to come.
What current trend (in your opinion) cannot disappear fast enough?
The exaggerated Balmain shoulder. I find them unflattering on 99% of the women who wear them.
What film could you watch over and over and still find something inspiring? Why?
I found Cate Blanchet's portrayal of Elizabeth I in "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" absolutely mesmerising, especially the scene where she dresses down the Spanish Ambassador over Spain's threats to wage war against England:
"Elizabeth I: Go back to your rathole! Tell Philip I fear neither him, nor his priests, nor his armies. Tell him if he wants to shake his little fist at us, we're ready to give him such a bite he'll wish he'd kept his hands in his pockets!
Don Guerau De Spes: You see a leaf fall, and you think you know which way the wind blows. Well, there is a wind coming, Madame, that will sweep away your pride.
Elizabeth I: I, too, can command the wind, sir! I have a hurricane in me that will strip Spain bare when you dare to try me!"
I could watch that scene over and over!
If blogging didn't exist, how would you fill your extra time?
That's a difficult question to answer. To be honest, when I started The Luxe Chronicles in 2007, I didn't know how long I would keep it up. It was an experiment. At the time, luxury goods were still selling briskly and many brands were aggressively pushing brand extension and "masstige" as a model for growth. Consumers seemed perfectly willing to accept any product labelled "luxury" without question and pay handsomely for it. I wanted to challenge luxury consumers to ask themselves: "What are these brands selling me?", "How, where and under what conditions was this product made?" and most importantly, "Why should I spend my hard earned money on this particular product?". I wanted The Luxe Chronicles to both inform and challenge readers.
Today, I would say that my readers challenge me as much as I challenge them. I'm lucky to be read by an eclectic mix of both luxury consumers and luxury industry professionals. The conversation I have with them via the comment section or via e-mail (for those who prefer confidentiality) play an important role in nourishing my thinking on issues and helping refine my ideas and opinions. I suppose this is a long-winded way of saying that if I didn't already write a blog, I would need to start one!
Images: 1) Lalique Pendant, 1901. Metropolitan Museum of Art; 2) Roland Mouret, Fall 2009 from Style.com; 3) Richard Rutledge - David Webb ring & Janianelli shoe for Vogue, 1957. Condé Nast Images; 4) Henry Clarke for Vogue, 1955. Condé Nast Images; 5) Balmain, Fall 2010 from Style.com; 6) film still from Elizabeth: The Golden Age
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