Kate who?

If only I could conjure up £300.
Mario Testino's 'Kate Moss' book which contains over 100 images of my absolute favourite model shot by Vogue's favourite photographer is being published this month.
The reason for the huge price tag is that it's limited edition (there were only 1500 copies made and each one is signed by the world famous photographer) and it includes never before seen photos of the pair as well as an actual essay from Mossy herself.

Pretty special, oui?
(Although I'd still feel really guilty for spending that much money on one book...)
So to mark the publication of the book here are some of my favourite shots of Kate Moss taken by Mario Testino, both undeniable fashion legends:

Another gothic Givenchy collection. Narnia's Snow Queen would be proud- Autumn Winter Haute Couture 2010/2011

At a glance the Givenchy Haute Couture Autumn Winter 2010/2011 collection doesn't look too gothic or menacing. Just very ornate white and gold dresses flowing to the floor similarly to the Snow Queen from Narnia or some fabulous goddess.
But on closer inspection Riccardo Tisci's dresses reveal extra pumped up gothic factor using a spinal column as inspiration for the porcelain belts (!) and actual bones for the zip pulls (!!)
Just a little freaky, non? (I NEED to find out what type of bones these zippers were made out of...)

But there is no denying that all the skull embellishments and the gothic touches add to the beauty of these gowns.
Extreme amounts of detail is the norm in Haute Couture however Riccardo Tisci's strivation for perfection makes this whole collection stand out from the rest. Despite y'know, the bones.

Beth Ruby xoxo

The dramatic Dr Suess-esque collection that was Christian Dior Haute Couture Autumn Winter 2010/2011

Round of applause for Galliano everyone!
His new haute couture collection for Dior is incredible. Inspired by Christian Dior’s childhood garden he created a bouquet of fashion delights with gigantic corsages in Alice in Wonderland evoking scale, topped off with exotic colours, prints, dyes and textures.

The beauty aspects of the collection were even more breathtaking with neon bright stripes of colour which come the grey and bleak winter (sorry, I know I don’t want summer to end) will truly inspire as the eye makeup was injected with an array of bold colours. I predict the darker plum shaded lips will be a big hit and how could I forget the cellophane veils, reminiscent of the collages I would piece together in primary school, which make the models look even more like a bunch of flowers. Truly inspired.

Then there was the Dr Seuss-esque hair styling with gravity defying hair designs, echoing the stems of flowers.

It was just spectacular. Just looking at the collection on Style.com (the source for all the photos) gave me a marvellous colour induced headache.
Everything was so dramatic- but then what else would you expect from the man who created the ‘les incroyables’ collection?- that I can easily imagine a hyperactive Galliano raiding the Dior archive of prints and colours, similarly to a child in a colouring box who snatches every single Crayola crayon.

Check out the collages I have made of my favourite looks:

Dr Suess hair styling. I wish I could try this one out myself.

I am definitely going to try out my own verision of this bold blue look. I', a sucker for "cat flick" eyes anyway but this makeup look is fabulous.

Gorgeous use of colour. Loving the complete disregard for the "lips or eyes" rule.

Fairytale shoes

Queen of the flowers. These models look like they could have lept out of a fairy tale book with their fantastically flamboyant dresses and haughty expressions.

Does anyone know who this model is?!

I love that she is sitting backstage at the Christian Dior Haute Couture show reading Oscar Wilde "The Picture of Dorian Gray" proving that she is a girl of my own heart (I would do the exact same thing) and also that it's not true when people say that all models are stupid.

Beth Ruby xoxo

Think you could win the Next Model Competition?

I know there are lots of people out there who want to make the leap from fashion blogging in their spare time to modelling.
It’s no doubt a tough business to break into but there is this brand new competition from Next, the British high street mega brand which could really help you on your way.
All you have to do is upload a photo of yourself onto their Facebook page here if you are 18 or over and live in the UK or Republic of Ireland and voila! You are entered in the competition!

It’s their second model competition they have launched and the top prize is a £2,000 shopping spree at NEXT and the chance the star in a photoshoot, plus a special introduction to leading model agency, Select.

Seeing as Emanuela de Paula, Naomi Campbell, Claudia Schiffer and Uma Thurman have all graced the Next Directory pages it’s a great opportunity.
So you have until the 6^th of July to be in with a chance- get entering!

Beth Ruby xoxo

David Bailey- 50 years in Vogue

This month marks 50 years in which David Bailey has worked with Vogue.
He is a real rags to riches story, and went from living in East End London as a child where he was born in 1938 during World War 2 where he says during the winter his family "would take bread-and-jam sandwiches and go to the cinema every night because in those days it was cheaper to go to the cinema than to put on the gas fire. I'll bet I saw seven or eight movies a week" to becoming the photographer whose images defined the Swinging Sixties.

He left school, enrolled in the RAF and then determined to become a photographer, bought a Canon- he said "I was smitten, and gradually the prospect of becoming a photographer became less remote, perhaps even attainable"- and worked his way up from a photographers assistant, to freelance work and then finally owning his own studio.
His images, my favourites the fashion photographs he made whilst working at Vogue, just ooze simplicity and his story shows how talent and ambition can pay off.
These photos speak for themselves but the man behind them is equally inspirational.

Photos 1+2- the truly beautiful Jean Shrimpton

3+4- Catherine Deneuve and who he later married. Lucky man, as shown in the wonderful 4th photo.

Bailey's word of advice to budding photographers:

"The first and most obvious thing to do is to ooze awareness - and really look and act as if you know what you are doing. That means knowing your camera backwards: never fiddle with it during a shooting session - load it, focus it, fire it, but never fiddle. And get your background sorted out well before its time to press the shutter. Choose where you're going to do your portrait shooting, and place your subject there without dithering."

Beth Ruby xoxo

ps) I would love to stay and reply to all your lovely comments on my previous posts but I have to go and revise for my English Language paper tomorrow. But I promise as soon as this hellish week is over (I have 10 exams left now...) I will get back to you all individually. Or follow me on twitter here @bethrubytweets and say hello, now I have a Blackberry I am addicted haha :)
Hope you are all having a good start to the week and good luck to everyone else who is doing exams!

Here comes the summer...

Wahey I have just signed up up to do a National Life Guard award at my local pool this summer which I am very excited about (as well as a little bit nervous) so to get me into the swimming/summer/hopefully sunshine mood I thought I would do an image dump of a post with some lovely life guard related photos I have on my hard drive to share with you all.

I doubt I will look like any of the models do, seeing as I will be in my black speedo swimming costume complete with "go faster!" stripes and even less like some kind of Pamela Anderson doing the legendary Bay Watch slow motion running in red short shorts. But I don't think that the red short shorts are compulsory life guard attire so I'll be ok.


Sources from top- Russh January 2010, Prada Lookbook Spring Summer 2010 and the gorgeously summery editorial from Vogue Nippon April 2010 issue which was photographed by Blaise Reutersward and was modelled by Marloes Horst.

Beth Ruby

Where fashion and music meet- Lady Gaga

Part 3 in our photoshoots inspired by musicians who influence people for their fashion as much as their music.
This one is for you Lady Gaga.

Photographed by me- Beth Ruby Lambert
Modelled and Styled by my best friend- Xanthe May Harrison

Beth Ruby xoxo

Where fashion and music meet- Katy Perry

This is the second in the series of shoots me and my friend did for my media coursework, once again inspired by musicians who many look up to for both their fashion sense and music.

This particular shoot was an interpretation of Katy Perry’s feminine and flirty style and especially her love of florals.

Photography- Me, Beth Ruby Lambert
Modelled and Styled- My beautiful best friend Xanthe May Harrison.

Where fashion and music meet- Rihanna

Here is some of the original photography I have completed for my media production piece, a fashion and music magazine.

The series of shoots we did were inspired by musicians who inspire people for their sense of style as much as their music and lyrics.

This first one is based around Rihanna and her bold fashion sense:

Photographer- By me, Beth Ruby Lambert
Model and Stylist- By my gorgeous best friend Xanthe May Harrison (who I think you will agree should be a model one day)

xoxo