tuxedo gown

emma stone

as we all know, most celebrities on the red carpet are pretty boring these days, so when you find one that has amazing style it is quite refreshing, too see. this past weekend, I happened to notice emma stone on stage at the screen actors guild awards wearing a black tuxedo dress with a sheer train and totally did a double take. for once, my dream came true too see something polished, yet totally cutting edge on an awards show. in case you were wondering, the gown is by christian dior couture and I love that there is also sheer paneling at the top of the blazer, too. I think it blends so well with her dramatic train. I also love how she styled the tuxedo gown with some diamond earrings by repossi and christian louboutin heels. the diamonds add just the right amount of sparkle and I love the way her heels illuminate through that sheer black train. in addition, if I must get more detail oriented, I love the pale skin with red lips and matching nails. what can I say I think this outfit is total perfection and just when I was feeling pessimistic about award show style, emma stone proves that individuality still exists and that you can be fashion forward, classy, and sexy without revealing too much skin. this is what noir chic on the red carpet is all about, brava emma stone....keep up the lovely style inspiration!

year six

photo by my sister

today marks our six year blogoversary....its amazing how fast the time has gone by and how after all these years I can still manage to be inspired by all things in black. I must thank all of our readers for actually taking the time too read my weekly posts. I have no idea if what I say is repetitive or actually makes sense, but all I know is that I love having a place where I can turn to and share my love of writing, fashion and photography. it's like my own virtual scrapbook of thoughts and ideas on style and I love how six years later I still love it just as much as when I first started back in 2009. on that note, I thought I would celebrate with my new favorite black dress, that I recently bought at zara for $40. I saw this in the sale rack and I loved how form fitting it was when I tried it on. perhaps, the best part is the added drapery on the side of the dress. this was a very unexpected surprise, but I love it when a cheap, but chic black frock suddenly appears in my life. when styling this photo, I paired the zara dress with my sky high manolo blahniks and of course my signature oliver peoples sunnies. I wanted to do something carine roitfeld inspired with a sister's in black noir chic twist. I think you can definitely see both of those concepts with the styling and mannerism of this photo. hopefully, you like this dress as much as I do. so with that I must thank our readers again and also to franca sozzani (editor-in-chief of vogue italia) for taking notice of my writing and photography on sister's in black, this past year! that really was such a surprise and honor. at any rate, no matter who are readers are, I so appreciate the support and thoughtful comments...there will certainly be more noir chic to come!

je ne sais quoi

photo by karl lagerfeld

its no surprise that the inspiration behind my zara black dress moment came from this photo of the ever so stylish carine roitfeld. in case you don't remember this image is from the september 2013 issue of interview magazine and it was photographed by karl lagerfeld. there is so much mystery about this photo, but I love how sexy it is, without revealing too much. carine roitfeld shows just the right amount of leg and I love the signature short hair in front of her face. this is the epitome of noir chic and I love that stance and pose she is giving to the camera. I could probably talk all day about what an influence carine roitfeld has had on my style and how she embodies the type of woman that I want to be, but I think if you look at this image and how I loosely took inspiration you can definitely see some style connections. on a side note, I don't think I will ever have that je ne sais quoi that carine roitfeld has, but I very much aspire to have that kind of allure that she has. carine roitfeld proves that with the right black dress and body expression you can be your own kind of chic......brava to CR for the continuous style inspiration that she possesses and shares. I like to think of her as the queen of noir chic. perhaps, you can agree with me on that!

back to black

black dress at the gagosian

this past weekend, I went to the gagosian gallery too see harmony korine's raiders exhibit and while I was viewing the art I happened to notice this beautiful black dress standing right in front of me. of course, when a noir chic moment like this happens you know I have to capture it. I saw the dress from the front and it was beautiful, but too me the most appealing part had to be the back. I love a sense of mystery in a photo and I think there is a lot, right here, in this moment. I also like all the strangers in black surrounding her and how it is a bit out of focus. I didn't mean for it to be a bit blurry, but sometimes I think the most interesting photo moments, happen by accident or when you least expect it. I also think its quite interesting how her dress practically radiates in this image. I was definitely captivated by it, especially with that pose. on a side note, I didn't get a chance to ask this woman who made her dress, but I loved the way she just walked into the gallery and strutted around in that gown. this was the noir chic style inspiration that I was longing for. a special thanks to this mysterious woman for amazing me with her black frock....I guess you never know when something magical in black, can cross your path!

so sleek

photo by michael thompson

any chance I get to display inspiring black frocks you know I will do so. for some reason, when I photographed that elusive woman in that dramatic black dress at the gagosian gallery I thought of this image of kate bosworth from the july 2006 issue of w magazine. I think subconsciously, I used this photo as inspiration. in case you were wondering the gown is by ralph lauren and I love how striking she looks in it. the black silk of her dress shines wonderfully and I think the train of the dress is the best part. the fabric at the bottom undulates in such an alluring manner. this will always be one of my favorite black frock editorial moments that I like too look back on for style inspiration. of course, photographer michael thompson did a way better job at capturing kate bosworth's open back, but I think this image proves that a woman will always be sexy, sleek, and sophisticated in the right black dress. personally, I think those three qualities never go out of style. I highly recommend checking out this editorial if you have never seen, it takes noir chic and black and white photography to the next level.

modern approach

emma watson

with the golden globes this sunday, I started to think about last year's style on the red carpet, and how I actually liked some of the looks from 2014. I must admit that I am very much bored these days, by most style I see on the red carpet, and I also hate how social media makes such a big deal about the most generic and hideous gowns, so when something comes along that actually excites and inspires me, I love to express my thoughts. case in point, I still love the way emma watson looked in that dior red dress with open back and black trousers, underneath. personally, I think it is quite daring, but still so elegant to do a look like this and to be honest, I get tired by seeing the same kind of princess or sequin dress walk down the red carpet. its refreshing too see something unique that stands out in a sea of tedious gowns. what I love about this dior look too, is that it feels modern, but still very suitable for a fancy event. I also like that emma watson looks comfortable in what she is wearing. this was one of my favorite ensembles that I have seen raf simmons do for dior. leelee sobieski, wore this look as well, and I thought it looked so stunning on her. its cutting edge, but still so refined and I love it when fashion can blend those two concepts, together. I fully support the dress with trousers look, especially for the red carpet. I don't know about you, but I would love too see more actresses go for this kind of style for black tie occasions. its really the perfect combination of modern and old fashioned elegance!

winter beach

photo by my sister

as promised, here is another moment on the beach that was taken with my new canon rebel camera. for fun, I decided to wear my maison martin margiela sleeping bag coat for h&m on the beach, just too see how it would photograph and I was quite pleased by the quality and saturation of this photo. of course, I enhanced it, but I love how grand this moment on the beach appears to be. perhaps, the best thing about this duvet coat is that you can play with the volume and structure. I really wanted the camera to pick up the texture and color of the jacket and I really think you can tell just how great of a winter look, this is. I also love the way that sunset contrasts with the brightness of the coat. its actually quite difficult to describe this scene with words, but I just love how cozy chic it is. when I think of walking on the beach in the winter season, being bundled up in a warm white coat, certainly comes to mind. I must thank my sister for capturing this ethereal winter beach moment. I so appreciate how she can always capture my vision, even with my new camera, involved!

qui hao

photo by matthieu belin

the inspiration for my maison martin margiela duvet coat on the beach came from looking at this photo of this amazing jacket by the chinese fashion designer qui hao, from his fall/winter 2011 collection. I just love the texture and puffiness of that jacket and the way this model is wrapped in it. the volume is quite beautiful and I also love how structured it is, as well. I read that qui hao was very much inspired by reptiles for this collection. I assume he took inspiration from the texture of their skin, as I can see some parallels within that fabric. whatever, it may be I just think its a genius coat and when I think of a perfect winter white coat that I would want to wear on the beach, this look definitely comes to mind. somehow, I wanted to incorporate an element like this with my margiela jacket.....it's all about puffy structured chic! personally, I think this type of dressing is always so appropriate for the winter season, especially when walking on the beach, this time of year!

canon chic

my sister on the beach

last week, I finally bought my first camera. believe it or not, I have been using my iPhone for all my photos projects, but I feel so much better, now that I have a real camera. it is actually a canon rebel camera and I must say the quality is so much better than my iPhone. I can't complain about my phone, but there is so much more you can do with a camera and I enjoy the process of editing and photoshopping my images. there's also a huge learning process with a camera that I have to get use to, but I feel confident that it will all turn out okay. initially, I was quite scared of my camera just because it is a big deal to buy one. at any rate, last week my sister let me do some test shots with her and I was very pleased with the results. I just told her I wanted to do something inspired by ingmar bergman's 1966 film persona, so with that in mind, we headed to the beach with her sunnies and head scarf and we took some photos. I took a lot of images, but I liked this moment with her gloves and oliver peoples sunnies. its very in the moment and she definitely looks straight out of a scene from bergman's persona. there will be more photo projects to come, but I'm just proud that I finally made the time and effort to invest in such a good quality camera.....long overdue!

cottage by the sea

photo by steven meisel

as I mentioned before, I looked to ingmar bergman's 1966 film persona for inspiration, but I also looked to steven meisel's interpretation of persona from the vogue italia november 2008 issue. I have referenced this layout many times on sister's in black frocks, but I can't help it, I just always like to look through it when I need photo and style inspiration. I will probably have many more photo projects inspired by this layout in the future....but for now, this is the image I am currently obsessed with. I'm attracted to moments like this on film and in photographs, that feature women looking noir chic, in their sunnies. I think this photo emphasizes that look, so well. I could probably stare at this image all day and I even love the winter white on the beach......so magnificent. in my real life, I think I am continuously looking for these kind of moments. for some reason, I just think that look always stays in style and I think if you read sisters in black frocks you can definitely see how that is a continuous style motif. I could probably talk all day about this concept, but I will leave it at that, for now. at any rate, if you have never seen this vogue italia layout, certainly check it out. by far, one of steven meisel's most iconic noir chic editorials!