Are you passionate about fashion design accessories? If so, this blog is for you! First of all, I love fashion, luxury and top outfits designed for women all over the world. Like you, I am a fashionista but also a fashion designer living in the center of Paris. Moreover, I am fond of design and sculpture. This is why I tend to think that pure lines and minimalist accessories designed for women are the best. In summary, they can make THE difference and affirm your look! Refined leather bracelets, statement necklaces, beautiful long necklaces and why not an oversized leather cuff?
At a time when fashion is more inspired than ever by the past, the belt is making a comeback and is displayed with a hell of a dose of style. And there are 1001 ways to wear it to shine!
A belt is an accessory that enhances your style. Take a coat that is flexible or less flexible but straight, and your belt, worn over your clothing, will do the rest. Because it makes it possible to highlight the volumes and the cut.
Even more stylish: sport your belt over a cape and do so just above waist level. In this case, elegance is the order of the day.
On a dress or a tunic, your belt dresses you. Wear it low or looser to showcase your hips. On a tunic it also reminds us of a wind of 70s looks that we love. In addition, it highlights your outfit. Also, on a gandoura or sari, it works wonders and makes you shine in the blink of an eye.
Even simpler, wearing a belt over a long shirt is a big tip. Again, it is better to put it at the level of your stomach or lower at the beginning of the hips.
More classic but just as sublime in the loops of your pants, high waist or low waist, making sure to tuck your top or shirt into the pants, the belt gives you the look you want.
All styles of belts are allowed!
Straight, tied, rigid or flexible, stretchy, with knots, without knot, to each his own style.
Useful, the belt becomes an attractive fashion item. It charms the garment and our feminine forms.
Whereas in Europe, the belt mixes and mixes with all our outfits. No doubt because it has become indispensable in our wardrobe. Moreover, Yves Saint Laurent liked to tie it, in soft leather or silk around our waist. This is still so true today.
Do you know the looks of Brigitte Bardot dressed by the stylist Jean Bouquin in the 70s? Here, the belt dresses BB in a low waist over cotton veil tunics. she also wears it over her ultra-short denim shorts. More obvious are also the large belts of Brigitte Bardot, worn high waist on a gingham skirt in “Et Dieu Créa la Femme!”
At the extremes, or the antipodes, there are also the futuristic large belts of Jane Fonda in Barbarella in addition to the ones she wears every day from the 60s until today.
More recently, Mindy and Emily in the legendary Netflix series, Emily in Paris are lovers of belts!
And even more in season 2 of the American series which features a very French fashion, deliberately colorful.
With Emily in Paris, it is a parade of feminine and ultra-trendy belts.
Watch for example how Mindy, alias @ashleyparklady reveals a beige patent leather jewel belt with a very graphic oval buckle. It comes from a pretty French brand, @buttonsparadiseparis, which mixes pop buckles, colorful and adorned with patent leather. A beautiful example of a belt that dresses a dress close to the body, in a solid color and which is highlighted with this hype accessory.
The secrets of a beautiful belt
There are belts that are worth a look. Because they are worn with our most refined outfits to better showcase our figure.
The Mixi is a jewel. On top of that, it is innovative and lightweight. Its buckle is in ABS resin. ABS is a polymer resin, a French invention of a fighter pilot at the end of the 1960s. At the time, it was not a question of buckles and even less of a belt for women but of a car since this material was chosen to produce the body of the Méhari Citroën. A car for the beach, light and very resistant to impact. It is also a material that thermoforms easily. What is less known is that this resin is 100% recyclable. From this unusual material for the time, belt buckles like those that make up the Mixi are from 1968 were born.
In addition to being rare and original, the Mixi buckles can be changed to suit our outfits if desired.
And if it is a jewel, it is because it hugs the waist thanks to its leather ribbon, also recycled, without hole or barb but with magnets. A limited series and a fashion accessory which is also handmade in Paris!
Good to know for a perfect fit
Do not wear your belt too low if your hips are generous but rather high to emphasize your figure.
When you want to highlight a loose sweater or mesh, don’t hesitate to wear your high waist belt!
Couture Buttons &Jewelry Design PARADISE BUTTONS to shop on line or go to the workshop-shop 15 rue Saint Guillaume, Paris 7 #Belts #FashionAccessories #Craftsman #HandmadeInParis #JewelryDesigner
The subject is debated and the trend is strong. But then, what is a sustainable or eco-responsible jewelry? So in this article, I explain to you my vision of the feminine ornaments of tomorrow that we love so much that they draw their roots in the past!
1. From vintage to eco-responsible
Who never said that an old object like a sewing button or a belt buckle had no future? Often the old and the past are mistakenly considered old-fashioned and obsolete. Except that, by dint of unbridled overconsumption, I take a new and respectful look at these details of the past. Because a garment button tells a story, that of the craftsman who made it. Because its material can be noble if the button is in horn, Corozo or Galalith.
The same goes for a belt buckle in stamped metal which reveals the art of the copper maker who created it. In fact this buckle, as in the photo comes from the South of France. She is over 100 years old. So with her, we imagine a life. The woman who carried it: a washerwoman from the fields or a woman of the young bourgeoisie?
And there begins the charm of vintage and the eco-responsible in fashion and in the world of jewelry! This is why, by vintage, I mean the best of age since it is a vintage, a beautiful vintage, unique, tasty.
2. Respect from heritage
At the beginning, it is a question of preserving an object, an accessory, which tells me its story, to give it a new breath. And there, I must tell you about the jewelry and buttons of BUTTONS PARADISE.
There is also this muse bracelet, too, in leather from the short and Parisian circuit. And its rectangular 50s mother-of-pearl buckle that captures the light and dresses you in the blink of an eye: jeans and a black jacket on a white T-shirt or a small white sweater? You will gain followers, and I assure you, you will get a lot of compliments in return. I guess this is the magic of sustainable jewelry!
Well, yeah ! Here is the magic equation for a future worthy of the fashion enthusiasts that we are! This is why I revere the detail of the dress. Perfecto revisited with a big button as a brooch or for your mom’s coat or the one found in a secret place enhanced with round buttons in gold or silver metal chain! Everything then becomes sustainable and eco-responsible by giving them a second life.
Like these haute couture buttons from Paco Rabanne. These are clothing jewelry in themselves! Full crush <3 and once again, everything is a question of metamorphosis with a zest of imagination when you love design!
So have you become eco-responsible or sustainable fashion or both ?? !! If you want to know more, go to BUTTONS PARADISE PARIS or 15 rue Saint Guillaume, Paris 7. You will discover a whole world where the past and the present know no borders. And finally, you can choose eco-responsible and sustainable jewelry or fashion accessories.
Because of the lockdown, at BUTTONS PARADISE, we adapt our editorial line to offer you articles that allows you to get away or keep busy! So, let’s take advantage of it together to make it a positive moment! You may have said to yourself, “Well, I wish I could read such a book, but I never have time.” Well, it is time 🙂 Because we know that you are in love with fashion as much as we are, we have decided to offer you our top 10 fashion books that you should definitely read.
PS: We even found the links to find them in physics or digital if necessary.
Let’s go:
THE ILLUSTRATED BOOKS –
1. Vintage Fashion by Nicky Albrechtsen
Fashion Book – Vintage Fashion – Nicky Albrechtsen
A mine of gold and information, this illustrated book retraces the history of fashion. As a guideline it shows how the ideas and creations of the past continue to inspire or even influence those of today.
Hence, Vintage Fashion takes us on a journey through more than a thousand iconic pieces, photographed exclusively for the book. They reproduce the creations of yesterday worn by icons of today’s style.
From the 1920s to the 1980s, the book illustrates 60 years of creations chronologically and thematically. Filled with practical explanations, anecdotes and … Vintage Fashion. This is why this book is undoubtedly a fashion bible. Finally, mixing shapes and materials, this fashion book confirms that style is timeless.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION Vintage Fashion – Nicky Albrechtsen – Citadelles & Mazenod Edition – € 89 Fnac: https://bit.ly/39lyfJY or Amazon: https://amzn.to/2xt0j0A
2. Why is it a masterpiece? by Marnie Fogg
Fashion Book – Pourquoi est-ce un chef d’oeuvre ? – Marine Fogg
Do not trust the size of this book! It is a small format (surprising isn’t it?), but very complete. Why is it a masterpiece? This is precisely what this book explains to us through an unprecedented analysis of 80 creations that have hit the mark in the history of fashion. In the form of a notice, he presents each work as a whole, starting with its context and going into the details of what made it famous, exceptional or even emblematic.
To put your mouth watering, you can easily find the story of the White Shirt by Yohji Yamamoto, the Corset by Jean-Paul Gaultier worn by Madonna, or the Little Black Dress signed Chanel. In short, a superb invitation behind the scenes of fashion creation explained by style, materials and creators. This book offers a concise, precise and lively rendering that will delight you!
PRACTICAL INFORMATION Why is it a masterpiece? Marnie Fogg – Eyrolles Edition € 12.90
Eyrolles Edition: https://bit.ly/33P2at2
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3bv3LXc
3. Yves Saint Laurent,
the madness of the accessory by Patrick Mauriès
Fashion Book – Yves Saint Laurent : The Madness of fashion accessories – Patrick Mauriès
Notice to lovers of beautiful books, Yves Saint Laurent: The madness of the accessory, is a work that traces the boundless creativity of one of the greatest French designers for accessories. An anthology compiling all the Yves Saint Laurent accessories since the creation of the haute couture house. An illustrated and explanatory book which makes it possible to better decipher the accessories manufactured between 1962 and 2002.
It combines photographs of jewelry, belts, gloves or bridal adornments and buttons! A big blue pavement, a clever mix of preparatory drawings and photos taken behind the scenes of the parades. Through this book, one is immediately taken into his universe, and made aware of his love for accessories. As he liked to say, “The importance of accessories cannot be overstated. They are the ones who transform a dress. I like a dress to be sober and a crazy accessory. ” You will understand, we absolutely love this book!
A great source of inspiration for us every day, and a shared vision of the importance of accessories.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION Yves Saint Laurent, the madness of the accessory – Patrick Mauriès
Éditions Phaidon € 49.95 Fnac: https://bit.ly/3dxGjdM
4. Mode Anvers L’Académie 50 by Flammarion Publisher
Fashion Book – Mode Anvers L’académie 50 – Éditions Flammarion
Creator of the greatest fashion designers, the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp celebrates its 50th anniversary with a book published by Flammarion. He presents through photographs and stories, the story of a school that “has proven that creativity was the only way even in times of crisis!” “, As Jean-Paul Gaultier says in the preface. Statement which is de rigueur you tell us! 🙂
Travel and transcription of the best years of this school which is one of the most prestigious fashion design schools in the world. It is notably thanks to the generation of Martin Margiela and Six of Antwerp (Ann Demeulemeester, Dries Van Noten, Dirk Van Saene, Dirk Bikkembergs, Walter Van Beirendonck and Marina Yee), who largely contributed to this renown.
This book is therefore a real invitation to explore the fifty years of history of the fashion section, following behind the scenes the specific teaching methodologies, the legendary annual fashion show, all while following the journey of several generations of students. In short, a sublime book, which is filled with new archives giving voice to the creators themselves with exclusive interviews. Happy birthday to the Academy of Antwerp :)!
Beautiful People, subtitled “Saint Laurent, Lagerfeld: splendors and miseries of fashion”, is a story that crosses paths with the two monuments of creation that revolutionized fashion in the 70s and 80s. It all started in 1954. The International Wool Secretariat Competition crowned two young strangers (at the time): Yves Saint Laurent, who was 18, and Karl Lagerfeld, who was 21. Both have turned the fashion industry upside down in their own way: one serving brands he will transform and the other in his own home.
This is what journalist Alicia Drake highlights in her novel by retracing their meteoric rise. Also an exceptional investigation, which makes it possible to define the cross portrait of two charismatic personalities. Furthermore, between the story of friendship and rivalry, neuroses and obsessions, passing by fear their ambitions. Finally, the journalist draws the parallel of these two stories that are linked and untied by highlighting the excesses of the time: drugs, AIDS, industrialization of fashion, search for money …
So this is why Beautiful People is a book to read absolutely! Especially if you want to decipher this unique moment in our history: in the hustle and bustle of fashion Paris and the most fantastic decades.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Beautiful People – Alicia Drake – Éditions Folio Gallimard € 10
Fnac: https://bit.ly/3dC3gwK or Amazon: https://amzn.to/2vSIyaF
6. And Dior created Victoire – Victoire Doutreleau
Fashion Book – Et Dior créa Victoire – Victoire Doutreleau
“She walks towards him. The stranger has the insolent grace of Saint-Germain-des-Prés; he is the master of fashion. Head down, Christian Dior observes at length: You will be a model, he says, and names you Victoire. – Excerpt from Et Dior created Victoire.
So, this is how the career of the woman begins! Similarly, she will become the most famous model of her time (the 1950s): Victory. But above all, through the largest fashion house in Paris, this stranger will become a true icon. Dior created Victoire is therefore a biography of the life of Victoire Doutreleau. She shares her story with us in complete privacy. From its beginnings to its glory through the after model. Indeed, Victoire will know glory and learn to face it. Not Surprisingly either, she will have to juggle between fighting against the jealousy of women, appetites of men, Paris traps … Victory will especially have to accompany a lot of celebrities (Princess Margaret, the Empress of Japan…).
It was then that she discovered the excitement and decadence of the Parisian nights of the time accompanied by her two friends, still unknown: Yves Saint Laurent and Karl Lagerfeld. In short, Victoire Doutreleau opens us in this biography, behind the scenes of the collections and shows us behind the scenes.
In short, a roughly well written and intimate story in which we discover a rebellious model. Yes yes you heard right … She always refused to wear a sheath! (An outrage at that time :))
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
And Dior created Victoire – Victoire Doutreleau – Éditions Robert Laffon € 8
Book available in E-book (Kindle / Kobo / Epub / Google Play)
7. Sonya Rykiel: When she has no Red, she puts on Black by Carmen Castillo and Evelyne Pisier
Fashion Book – Sonia Rykiel : Quand elle n’a pas de rouge elle met du noir – Carmen Castillo et Evelyne Pisier
Indeed, what about a true story of a lifetime? Amazing because this book is at the perfect cross between a biography and a novel: The true story of Sonya Rykiel’s life. Carmen Castillo and Evelyne Pisier followed the career of this great lady, Sonya Rykiel, for a year. They take up in this book, all its history, and especially, all its life.
Indeed, she was the oldest of five girls from a family of Jewish emigrants from Russia and Romania, she has no diploma in her pocket.
In contrast, Sonya Rykiel is part of this avant-garde of women who have excelled through their double hats: Designer and Company Manager. Back on this woman who invented a style that liberates women and their gestures, while founding a family empire so she defends independence at all costs. A book that subtly combines humor and provocation with the image of the designer, in order to bring us into the interlacing of her destiny, her private life, her secrets, her intimate dramas but also her loves and her successes.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Sonya Rykiel: When she has no Red, she puts on Black – Carmen Castillo and Evelyne Pisier – Éditions Fayard € 21.90
Fnac: https://bit.ly/3bGicbp
8. The Panther by Stéphanie des Horts
Fashion Book – La panthère – Stéphanie des Horts
The Panther is a biography of the famous Jeanne Toussaint.
This book, written by journalist Stéphanie de Horts, traces her life entirely. It all started at the end of the 19th century, when Jeanne Toussaint was born in Flanders of embroiderers. Also endowed with a desire for steel, she set out very quickly to conquer Paris accompanied by her very sure and very pronounced taste for fashion. It was then that she met Louis Cartier, the famous jeweler, who fell in love with him from the first moment. As a result, she quickly becomes his muse, and he teaches her precious stones and mysterious alloys.
A few years later, their symbiosis will give birth to absolutely extraordinary and iconic jewelry: Birds of Paradise, Egrets and Chiseled Tiaras, but above all and not least, the mythical Panther which will become the emblem of the label. It was at this very precise moment that a new style was born, hers, that of Jeanne Toussaint.
Thus, Stéphanie de Horts highlights the surprising destiny and the flamboyant personality of the one who was the greatest jeweler of her time. Moreover, through reading this book, you will come to meet the key figures of the century who were an integral part of Jeanne Toussaint’s life. For example, Proust, Cocteau, Hemingway, Scott and Zelda, Coco Chanel or the Duchess of Windsor.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
La Panthère – Stéphanie des Ports – Le Livre de Poche Publisher € 8 Book available in E-book (Kindle / Kobo / Epub / Google Play)
Fnac: https://bit.ly/3bGicbp9.
9. The Irregular by Edmonde Charles-Roux
Fashion Book – L’irrégulière Coco Chanel – Edmonde Charles-Roux
The book L’irrégulière, subtitled “Coco Chanel’s itinerary” is THE reference biographical book on the life of Gabrielle Chanel.
So in this book, the writer traces the journey of the first 70 years of this century. Taking up the journey of the most famous seamstress in the world. Because everything is there: her childhood spent in an orphanage with her sister. Then her young years in Moulins where she learned sewing, passing by her arrival in Paris where she created the house Chanel.
What is even more surprising is that it is a veritable collection of minute details. But also, it is for the first time lifted the veil on the history and psychology of Coco Chanel. In fact, it is portrait of a famous stranger who, throughout her life, has been marginal, “irregular”.
As a matter of fact, the writer Edmonde Charles-Roux was president of the Académie Goncourt from 2002 to 2014.
As a result, her famous book, L’irrégulière, was adapted for cinema by Anne Fontaine “Coco avant Chanel” interpreted by Audrey Tautou and with the actors Benoît Poelvoorde and Marie Gillain. If you want to know more, we talked about it in our previous article – Top 10 Fashion Movies.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
The Irregular – Edmonde Charles-Roux – Le Livre de Poche Editions € 9
Book available in E-book (Kindle / Kobo / Epub / Google Play)
Fnac: https://bit.ly/39tAyuJ or Amazon: https://amzn.to/33NTwe6
10. How should we dress? by Adolf Loos
Fashion Book – Comment doit-on s’habiller ? – Adolf Loos
Adolf Loos (1870-1933) is a famous Austrian architect. He is revolutionary and an advocate of total stripping in modern architecture. But not only !
He was also a brilliant chronicler who was in favor of waking up Austria in the 20th century by inculcating in it the principles of modernity.
A true collection. Therefore, the book How should we dress, brings together all the texts he wrote on the subject of clothing and fashion. An intellectual, spiritual and somewhat mad work, in which nothing escapes the author.
Thus, from hats to shoes via underwear … it decrypts everything! He also does not pride himself on answering the question of his own novel: How should we dress? The book is then classified according to several questions such as: According to what criteria to choose your coat? How do you look like a gentleman when you ride a bike? Should women wear short hair? In short, a lesson in style!
Aldolf is also the author of another book, “Paroles dans le vide”. Book that we love at BUTTONS PARADISE, since it contains, according to our founder, the most beautiful of the quotes on the button:
“If nothing else were to remain of a disappeared people than a single button, it would be possible for me, from the shape of this button, to deduce the clothing and the uses of this people, its mores and its religion, its art and its intellectual life. So great is the importance of this button. […]. But the way is this: God creates the artist, the artist creates the era, the era creates the artisan, the artisan creates the button. ” LOOS Adolf, Paroles dans le vide, 1897-1900, Ivrea, 1994 Answers to questions from the audience (1919) p.270
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
How should we dress? – Adolf Loos – Editions Les Cahiers Rouges Grasset € 8
Book available in E-book (Kindle / Kobo / Epub / Google Play)
Fnac: https://bit.ly/2wG6cYo or Amazon: https://amzn.to/2WObsnm
Now tell us! What are your favorite fashion books? 🙂
Do not hesitate to tell us in the comments, we will be happy to discuss with you your favorites and discover new nuggets together!
More to discover on the #FEELGOOD BUTTONS PARADISE
With the current health crisis, there is a good reason to believe that fashion will open a new era, even more responsible and local. And as in any transition in movement, why not return to the French symbols which participate in the fashion of today and even more that of tomorrow?
Here is a quick and fun look at 5 French symbols that make France one of the leading figures in fashion.
1. The marine style
Initially, it was primarily a style of British naval inspiration. In the 18th century, in fact, King George II has been inspired by his wife’s red and white Amazon clothing, for him and the uniform of the Navy. Very quickly, the Americans followed suit followed by the French who brought a touch of blue. Because the sailor uniform fascinates. It is sober, elegant and above all practical to allow movement and action. With the burgeoning growth of cruises and seaside resorts at the start of the 20th century, the marine style overwhelmed fashion with a very French style.
And it is above all, a great French fashion designer, Coco Chanel who gave a real naval inspiration to the fashion of yesterday and today: the feminine flared pants, it is her and the striped sailor sweater too!
2. The striped sweater
It is especially the striped jersey that most symbolizes, the sailor clothing. Did you know that originally, the striped sweater displayed twenty-one indigo blue lines to illustrate the number of Napoleonic victories? Brittany, meanwhile, made it from the 19th century, the working clothes of shipyard workers and fishermen.
Then in the 1920s, as said above, it was Coco Chanel’s turn to take it. She wears a sailor sweater and a male jacket, a very avant-garde sign for her time. Then it’s Brigitte Bardot’s turn in the 1950s, notably in the film Viva Maria. It must be said that there is something very elegant in this French-style t-shirt. It is undoubtedly for this also that Jean-Paul Gaultier places and revisits, in the 90s, the theme of the striped sweater at the heart of his parades!
3. The emblematic hats
The beret
Originating from the Pyrenees and more precisely from Béarn, the beret is THE most used French fashion symbol abroad. Worn by Occitan peasants from the 17th century, the beret is an accessory that is still worn today. In wool, cashmere or covered with pearls or buttons, the beret has its fans. It is also probably because it is the smallest French hat that it inspires the biggest!
From Elsa Schiaparelli through Chanel, Maison Michel or even in 1967, Brigitte Bardot for the video for “Bonnie and Clyde”, the beret is the most French of hats, mythical and inspiring. Without forgetting Jane Powell and her dancing beret with Fred Astaire in the film Royal Wedding!
The Cloche hat
Made inseparable from the boyish style during the roaring 20s, this hat is a true example of a French symbol. Imagined by the talented French milliner Caroline Reboux, it embodies a form of femininity that is still relevant today. The Cloche hat is a timeless best case! Particularly suitable for short hair, as practical and space-saving as the beret, it highlights the face like no one. This is certainly why its shape has become a model of French inspiration. Notice to fans of hats for a guaranteed Parisian style!
4. The gingham
This fabric and its checkered pattern have origins that are not very identifiable. That said, as early as the 14th century, we already find traces of this motif. The checkered canvas was made by Flemings and Burgundians living in Burgundy. A kind of Europe before Europe! Later, it was Napoleon III who brought it to light. While traveling near Vichy he fell in love with this motif by visiting a factory very close to the city. The baptismal name is sealed because the fashion is then in lilac and white, the two favorite colors of gingham!
But still in Europe, this motif would also be a Franco-British mix! Indeed, the gingham fabric before becoming that of the city of Vichy, where it was mass produced, would be that of the checked linen fabric of the city of Guingamp in Brittany. And that’s why in England this fabric is called Gingham, because it was imported from Brittany! Except that in Manchester, where it was copied, the English gingham was primarily blue and white and not pink and white. Queen Victoria adored her as much as Brigitte Bardot in a gingham skirt in and “God created the woman”!
5. Blue white red
Because we cannot evoke the emblems of French style without its colors! First white, universal color even if for France, it is the royal color. Then the blue and red which at the time of the revolution represent the city of Paris, quite a symbol! Finally, let’s admit that these three colors are harmonious and bright. Jean-Paul Gaultier at the risk of over-citing it in use and abuse it for our greatest pleasure. And I especially remember that a fashion that reinvents itself, makes consumers useful, responsible and local must precisely draw from its origins!
More to discover on the #FEELGOOD BUTTONS PARADISE
Our coats are our darlings. We can hardly resolve to part with them but we like to revisit them. Here are 3 tips or unstoppable details to revamp your beloved coat.
Because few coats have no buttons. So start by observing your pimples. Are they always on trend or in tune? Too often we overlook this important detail. Probably because a button is only considered a fastener. Only think again. The coat button is anything but a way to close your pea coat, frock coat or cape!
This is why it can have a staggering effect on clothing. Design buttons, fancy or haute couture buttons? Contemporary buttons or vintage buttons? There is something for all tastes and styles. And that’s without counting on their materials: galalith (i.e. milk resin), wood essence, molded resin or faceted glass …
In addition, the sewing button is a reasonable budget. So do not deprive yourself of this clever and stylistic accessory.
Detail n ° 2: the crush accessory
Why crush or key accessory? I always say that THE fashion accessory is essential. So, it is above all a question of making a color shock or adding an unstoppable and identifiable one which will transform your appearance and that of your coat.
Looks of accessorized coat – royalty-free photos
Because nothing is more sad than a coat without a touch of color or a desirable and creative object, like a magical adornment. Here, the field of possibilities is vast: scarf, scarf, snood or THE bag that will highlight this centerpiece of your ultra feminine wardrobe.
There, I hear you say: but where does she come from? By changing shape, I mean not running to the touch-up point near you unless you are passionate about sewing!
No, by changing form, I’m still in the trick. And there, the belt comes into play. Because yes, a belt can also transform the style of your coat. And whether it’s an overcoat or, on the contrary, a couture piece … haute couture.
The belt like the button can do a lot. And then, these are fashion details that participate in the current of anti-fashion: consume less by revamping your coat or consume differently: buy vintage, re-use and revamp your adored coats!
More to discover on the #FEELGOOD BUTTONS PARADISE
For this post, everything started with an observation and a meeting … Fashion is changing because it has gone too fast, too far. But the next generation is on the move… The new-vintage is resolutely a women’s affair towards a new fashion. Meeting around an original collaboration.
Emma came to see me in the workshop in March. When it came to a possible partnership, I went to her Instagram account and there, guess what? Total crush <3
I don’t know why but I imagine her straight out of a Sofia Coppola film. No doubt because she is herself, as if out of time; Emma does not cheat; She loves it or she doesn’t, without half measures. In terms of music, I would say that she is the fashionable side of Weyes Blood in blonde, with a dreamlike style, very colorful.
Question of values
You all know it like I do. The textile industry is the second most polluting activity in the world. It is true that to make 1kg of cotton, 20,000 liters of water are spent, the equivalent of 340 5-minute showers or 110 baths. So, the era of the 50s / 60s of hyper-consumption illustrated by the Madmen series is over.
But above all, with Emma, we share simple values: a new vintage fashion, responsible and made in France when it comes to bringing a touch of novelty. To consume less but better. Because having style is anything but a matter of money. Besides, Yves Saint Laurent was not mistaken when he fell in love with Loulou de la Falaise. Already at the start of the 70s, Loulou only dressed in flea markets, mixing looks and styles, without taboo, without prejudice for a liberated fashion.
New fashion codes
Maggie Bracelet by BUTTONS PARADISE for capsule collection oldé.paris
This is why with Emma, we wanted to combine our strengths: – Emma Bonneau, for her vintage OldéParis e-shop and her blog, AllIneedisclothes offering vintage outfits and clothes of beautiful brands from the 60s to the 90s. She deciphers and stages genres like nobody! – Sandrine Mettetal, for ATTELIER by BUTTONS PARADISE’s jewelry, mixing rare, vintage buckles and recycled leathers for design necklaces and unique bracelets or in very limited series. All made in Paris!
This is why, in the boom of online thrift stores, this is THE new vintage deal of the season. For the launch of the new oldeparis.com site, BUTTONS PARADISE via its ATTELIER range (with two T’s to highlight craftsmanship with both hands!) is launching two limited series of cuff bracelets: First, the Eden Fauve cuff. Adorned with an acetate buckle, designed by its creator and made in the Jura, mounted on a recycled coral orange patent leather. Eden Fauve is available exclusively in this color on the OldéParis eshop (5 pieces created).
As for the Eden Maggie bracelet, it is made of white recycled patent leather. The Maggie has a tangy daisy loop! In summary, a beautiful trendy cohabitation around new-vintage, at the initiative of two Parisians not quite like the others.
More to discover on the #FEELGOOD BUTTONS PARADISE
You want to bring something new to your wardrobe but not just how? Do you want to renew all or part of your dressing room while preserving your purchasing power? Here are some tips for sustainable and responsible fashion!
Idea n°1 for inspiration: storage by the classification
Jaimie Chua on her Instagram in a consumerist wardrobe – Pinterest
I know what you think … Storing your wardrobe is a must before buying new outfits. Except that there are 1001 ways to organize your dressing room to have a global vision; the basic pieces, the stylish favorites that you love but worn little or no at all. There are also your essentials, your it-clothes, because of memories or you feel comfortable with them and they are your second skin.
Colorful wardrobe classified by color and type of outfits – Pinterest
Then organization side, you can first, classify your outfits by color and by genre. Like black for example and in the black: sweaters, t-shirts, pants, then dresses etc … This will allow you to evaluate your dominant colors. But most importantly you may find that your wardrobe is overloaded in one color rather than another.
Then and during this stage, take the time to try your outfits if you have a doubt. Your goal, our goal is primarily to classify what we wear and to put away what we love less. To live a sustainable and responsible fashion, also consists in rationalizing our choices without constraint!
Idea n°2 to adopt: trendy thrift shops
To do this, sort out your clothes that can be resold or donated. And there, neither one nor two, you are spoiled for choice in donating clothes. Oxfam, charity shops, various associations or, if you live in Great Britain for example, associative shops that sell second hand clothes to support a cause: medical, animal …
Denim jumpsuit IKKS videdressing.com – Dress Zara patatam.com
Regarding your choice of outfits for resale, here too, the solutions are many: market places online thrift especially if you have luxury parts or beautiful essentials or … young children who grow up quickly!
TOP 6 online second hand clothing platforms
www.videdressing.com (luxe)
www.vestiairecollective.com (luxe)
www.vinted.fr (toutes gammes, tous les prix)
www.percentif.fr (toutes gammes, tous les prix)
www.onceagain.fr (toutes gammes, petits prix)
www.patatam.com (toutes gammes, petits prix)
Idea n°3: the deposit-sale alternative
If you run out of time, you can always opt for the consignment. Be aware that this solution is less advantageous. A deposit-sale applies, on average, a commission of 40 to 50% (VAT included that it supports). An online thrift shop, in general, operates around a commission of 25%. To know also: the deposit-sale is primarily oriented women’s fashion unlike online thrift stores that offers an offer of second-hand clothes for you gentlemen.
Whatever the second-hand sales method you adopt, you’ll do good for the planet! And wait, there are still two tips for living an even more sustainable and responsible fashion 🙂
Question of look, little conclusion for the responsible fashion hardcore you are!
Idea n°4: the vintage fashion accessory
After sorting, ordering and tidying up, you can also relook or customize your outfits. Indeed, you have a Courrèges straight dress style or a ‘Saharienne’ style jacket in the manner of Yves Saint Laurent in the 70s but you want to give them an air of revival? Here again, the field of possibilities is quite wide.
Break the codes of your fashion mix. Wear one of your silk scarves as a belt … Even more radical? Why not shorten the bottom of your overalls by 20 cm to wear it in combi shorts?
And here, bam, two solutions to choose from. > Purist method: you cut and make a hem in proper form. > Quick solution and even more stylish: you make a big outside lapel or twobacks but very wide in height. It’s original and will give a new line to your outfit.
As for your dress, think of the sewing buttons! Especially since more and more young brands are getting into vintage accessories. So nothing better for a sustainable fashion than to revive beautiful jewelry buttons of the 70s, 90s or even 60s? In the three options: scarf, lapel and / or sewing buttons, you participate in a fashion solidarity and benevolence in the sense of non-polluting.
Especially for beautiful vintage buttons, you can also choose from natural materials such as wood, horn or a beautiful galalith resin made from milk. Galalith was very popular for the design of jewelry, buttons and belt buckles from the 50s to the 90s.
Idea n°5: Be ethical, slow and sustainable fashion
Frida Westerlund for D magazine – Ecodesigned sneakers Veja V10 suede brown
In other words, there is more and more choice to buy sustainable fashion.
The concept of slow fashion is to buy little and responsible as opposed to the brands that practice the ‘fast fashion’ with more than 6 collections a year and many, many restocking.
Necklace Eden Duo ATTELIER by BUTTONS PARADISE – Coat and jacket Kimbo by Lesrécupérables.com
Here again, becoming a responsible consumer is easy. Look for young designers who are experts in sustainable fashion. ‘Les Récupérables’, a French brand that practices a fashion around the up-cycling by transforming curtains in trendy dress. Or Gaëlle Constantini who shapes her models from recycled fabrics. L’ATTELIER (with two T’s) by BUTTONS PARADISE, created in 2015, in Saint Germain des Prés, where the designer transforms belt buckles into designer cuffs or long necklaces like the Eden Duo, fashioned to 100% with components vintage. Bluffing effect guaranteed!
More to discover on the #FEELGOOD BUTTONS PARADISE
No silhouette without a belt? Think again, the belt is more than just your waist. It dresses you and signs your style. So, ready to buckle up your belts for a damn curly fashion trip?
In the first place, forget the too often cited chastity belt, a trap too obvious. That being said, it is interesting to remember that the women’s belt, before becoming a fashion accessory, had a utilitarian role. Because yes, no drape or dress without belt, without fastener, fibula or button … So we say: before being design and aesthetics, the women’s belt was especially useful and practical.
Now, place to the beauty of the genres!
From left to right: CELINE puffy large buckle belt, wide belt inspiration on Pinterest pleated skirt
TYPES of belts
Fine belts materials on Fractals.it
In the second place, and since it is a matter of deciphering the basis of the art of the belt, the fashion illustrations speak for themselves. In addition, great are the choices of materials to sculpt our waist!
Fine belts types on Fractals.it
First there were the thin belts in fabrics of the roaring twenties, just after the end of the corset achieved by Mademoiselle Chanel. Then the 40’s/50’s leather straps, the metal belts of the psychedelic years from “Twiggy” but also the rope and ‘belted’ scarves.
Jane Birkin belted 70’s – Paco Rabanne RTW 2019 – mythical belt metal
BELT BUCKLES
In fact, you have understood, and for those who know me, what I like in the belt is the loop! Design buckles, buckles like meshes as Celine, the variety of possibilities is endless …
On the left, oversized belt Zana Bayne plexiglass buckle – On the right, Celine black grosgrain belt
Also and for the ideas of look to borrow, the Haute Couture draws in abundance in history: buckle-belt military Ferré, buckles like fibula for Céline or 70s metal buckle in extra-long mode for Adam Selman! …
From left to right – Gianfranco Ferré dress and belt, Céline dress with pin-loops, Adam Selman outfit and extra long belt
Buckled up silhouettes Haute Couture or New York style
From left to right: Mango Ring Belt, Stéphane Rolland Haute Couture Metal Ring Belt
In addition to the creativity of women’s belts, it is the boldness and excessiveness that make them fashion accessories. It must be recognized that the border is narrow between the accessory and the jewel!
Once again, the belt shows that THEaccessory is essential: simple or sophisticated, primary or complex, the belt guides us!
Jil Sander Stretch Wide Belt FW18/19, Right, Strap and Button Belt, Giorgio Armani Privé
More exactly, young fashion brands are free from conventions.
They go from waist and bust to the corseted belts of Azzedine Alaïa and Jean-Paul Gaultier (which we also love!), Ankles and wrists.
Their common denominator? The BUCKLE belt still and always !!!
For example, ATTICO in Italy now has a range of satin anklets inspired by the belt. At the same time, on the French side, the Hermès, Boinet and BUTTONS PARADISE houses break the codes and wear the wrist bracelet.
Left: Hermès black bracelet, bottom, Maison Boinet wrist bracelet, right, satin anklets Attico
Finally, if Hermes and Boinet are very close to the wrist belt (simple metal buckle with smooth or grained leather strap), BUTTONS PARADISE creates very colorful pieces, unique or in very limited series! In addition, the designer of the brand is concerned about sustainable and responsiblefashion: recycled leathers adorned with rare vintage buckles from the roaring twenties to the disco 90’s! In summary, it is to see!
More to discover on the #FEELGOOD BUTTONS PARADISE
Contrary to popular belief, the very first buttons for clothing were jewels and not fasteners. A cult accessory and a symbol that makes sense especially when its style resonates with haute couture …
Idea n°1 to borrow: Bib Buttons
Viktor & Rolf jackets highly buttoned up
In the first place, there are surprising accessories that bring a touch of chic poetry to the seam. Like the very buttoned effect imagined by the house Viktor and Rolf which is bluffing. How to accessorize a super classic blazer jacket? Simply by covering it with monochrome buttons in three colors: black, blue, white for a dark blue or beige jacket, cream, green and turquoise for a khaki blazer. Having said so, the ultimate effect lies above all in the choice of pieces that are adorned with buttons: the sleeves … a sweater or jeans!
Viktor & Rolf tops and pants buttoned up
Idea n°2 to borrow: The paper clip
After the luxury bohemian style, here is the haute couture ‘business’ look.
And there, Versace in his autumn-winter pre-collection is of a malicious inventiveness. Moreover, it is a luxury trick made of a singular detail. So do not hesitate to clip the paper clip of your office on your jacket pocket! Donatella will forgive me and Miss Chanel even more! Above all, have fun with accessorizing your black outfit with stylized metallic jewels: original design buttons for example or oversize paperclips!
Idea n°3 to borrow: The paintbrush effect
Contrary to what one might believe, there is no question of canvas or painting but embroidery and buttons effects matter!
So that elegance is absolute, here is a couture design inspiration. An outfit that speaks for itself! It’s beautiful, sober and explosive. So here too. Do not wait or rather, give free rein to your inspiration! Accessorize your black coatwith beautiful beige white buttons and ultra modern minimalist embroidery.
Often, we do not dare to adopt enough small details that are the singularity of Haute Couture. And one of the most talented of all the great couturiers and the most disco-pop is certainly Olivier Rousteingfor BALMAIN.
Idea n°5 to borrow: Contrasted black look
Yohji Yamamoto FW 2019-2020 – Set of buttons in symmetrical & asymmetric pose
Similarly, the frock coat or the military imper affirm with a subtle game of buttons … So there, to say that I am totally a fan of this accessory and this style minimalist luxury! Moreover, there is a rare address in terms of haute couture buttons to shopper style haberdashery online or at a parlor like BUTTONS PARADISE installed in Paris.
In short, fashion accessories surprise us! Not necessarily ostentatious, they are the delicate and original detail that marks a style. Whether they are jewelry buttons or designer buttons, cultural objects that make our everyday life like a paper clip or a contemporary pen, they shape and guide our look!
More to discover on the #FEELGOOD BUTTONS PARADISE
