Sandra‘s Closet

Greetings from Mykonos where I am at the moment. The last time, I visited the Greek Island, was over 20 years ago. So I was very curious how it has changed and if it is worth the recent hype.

Before my trip, I spoke to many people who had been coming the past years to find out what I should definitely do and see. Scorpios Mykonos was definitely on the list and after last night’s experience, be sure to work it into your itinerary! Built around a contemporary interpretation of the ancient Greek agora, Scorpios is a gathering place meant to galvanize the artistic, spiritual, and social life of its community. It is often associated with the best parties, not only in Greece but the whole world.

The sunset ritual is an experience not be missed. The Sunset Beach offers uninterrupted views of the sea and is the perfect spot from which to watch the sun disappear over the Aegean. We came by boat from our hotel, the Santa Marina, around 8pm (I think next time I would come a little earlier) and already enjoyed the breathtaking view of the location. Its bohemian design overlooking the turquoise waters transports you to another world, especially when bathed into the last sunrays.

Scorpios Mykonos is a day and night club, so you have the option to stay all day or just come for the evening. We had made a dinner reservation and had the best table at the corner in front, overlooking the terrace as well as the dancing area. While enjoying the  amazing Greek food, we also danced in between at our table. The live bands and DJs are thoughtfully chosen. However, I recommend checking the schedule. All nights are great, but Sundays and Thursdays are among the best ones. Saturday are supposedly also very good. Valeron is playing then, the top DJ and artist in Mykonos. The club is open until 2am.

For the dress code, I would best describe it as «bohemian with a touch of sexy». Black is definitely a good color to wear. I highly recommend flat shoes or wedges as you will have your feet in the sand. Check out their clothing store Scorpios Bazaar that carries a collection of artisanal brands that preserve handiwork traditions while drawing influence from the raw Mediterranean landscape. This will give you the best idea of what to wear.

Details of my outfit, can be found here.

Be sure to make a reservation beforehand. The Island of the Winds is without a doubt famous for its sunsets, but there is nothing quite like it when it comes to having a great party at Scorpios Mykonos. Enjoy!

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Sandra Bauknecht
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Master the art of tablescaping with unique conversation starters. Tablescaping refers to the Instagram trend of beautiful, and sometimes heavily decorated, tables. The amazing collaboration between Swarovski and Rosenthal is living up to this trend with the launch of the new Signum Collection.

A fusion of porcelain and crystal, imagined in a range of moreish candy colors – green, pink, yellow, and blue – each piece delivers pure joy and celebrates the art of setting the table. With the Signum Collection, Swarovski introduces their new brand pattern for the first time. A translation of the iconic octagonal frame into a mesmerizing motif, the design is inspired by the Austrian art movements of the 19th century, while offering a fresh approach to art, craftsmanship, and a sense of modern sophistication for the table.

Expressions of togetherness and nourishment combine in each Signum table setting. Whether espresso hour, high tea, or full dinner service, each piece of the collection is designed to spark joy and add a sense of wonder to any meal.

A feast for the eyes ! To shop the collection, click here please.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Swarovski x Rosenthal
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Mykonos and Santorini are just a few of the Greek islands that promise unforgettable holidays. I just arrived in Mykonos. However those pictures were taken  in Santorini at the beautiful Mystique Hotel before. I love this pink and white checked outfit. It’s fresh and sophisticated. On top, the oversized jacket is perfect to resist the strong wind in the evening.

My look: Checked oversized tweed blazer, checked jacquard crop top, and checked jacquard mini skirt, all by Balmain, quilted leather mules by Bottega Veneta, pearl earrings and Chanel 19 bag in rose leather, both by CHANEL.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: ©  Sandra Bauknecht
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If you spent any time scrolling through Instagram this summer, chances are you probably felt compelled to buy a basket bag. HEIMAT ATLANTICA offers among other accessories a collection of basket bags that stand out among the rest.

Launched by designer Montserrat Alvarez in 2016, accessories label Heimat Atlantica is a study in the preservation of traditional craftsmanship. Each style is inspired by the colours and culture of northern Spain and Portugal, and is then hand-woven on looms by artisans from the regions under the supervision of a master craftswoman. The craft was originally utilized for making reed baskets that helped local fishermen and farmers transport their goods.

Driven by passion, Montserrat Álvarez wanted to create a 100% made in Europe brand which works to preserve and transform specific know-hows of craft women living in the Atlantic coast of north Spain and Portugal.

HEIMAT ATLANTICA x Comme des Garçons

From the rainbow-like colourways to the luxury leather and delicate ceramic charms, the label’s elegant bags – including basket styles and pouches – have an inherently exotic flair. Heimat Atlantica has gained international presence with well known stockists and launched an exclusive bag in collaboration with the Japanese label Comme des Garçons.

Heimat Atlantica, from Galician artisanal brand to luxury object of desire worldwide.

To shop HEIMAT ALTLANTICA online, click here please.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: ©  Heimat Atlantica
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Le Byblos St. Tropez is so much more than a hotel, it is a whole way of life. It is one of my favorite spots in the world and I always feel home away from home. What is the Gstaad Palace in winter for me, is the Byblos Saint Tropez in summer.

Finally, I can take some holiday feeling back home with the beautiful Byblos scented candle that is created in collaboration with the oldest candlemaker in the world – the House of Trudon.

The candle is made in a colour exclusive to Byblos and is limited to only 55 numbered pieces, an homage to the 55th anniversary of the Byblos. Each candle is a reflection of extraordinary know-how and is recognisable by the emblems of both houses as well as its highly unusual orange glass. The Cyrnos fragrance, with its lemon, lavender and pine notes, resonates with the joie de vivre that permeates life on the French Riviera. Available as 270g for CHF €130.

To shop the candle, click here please.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Byblos St. Tropez / Sandra Bauknecht
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St. Tropez nights are just amazing – one of my favorite spots is the terrace of my hotel, the Byblos St. Tropez. On my way from my suite to the pool area, I always pass the Galerie Palmer. The paintings were the perfect backdrop to shoot this vibrant Fendace look.

My look: Fendace Wild Baroque cropped top with lace, and matching Fendace Wild Baroque ruched midi skirt, and black leather double platform sandals, all by Versace, V-Logo leather shoulder bag by Valentino, Clash de Cartier ring in 18K rose gold with amazonite by Cartier, logo earrings by CHANEL, and Oyster Perpetual 36 with turquoise dial by Rolex.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: Michael HJ Lopez Photographie / Sandra Bauknecht
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Sneakers are still trending. Speaking of stylish, forget the ugly Dad sneakers, small details make a big difference this year. It’s more about the «unexpected». One model that has caught my eye is the Odissa – a new Versace sneaker style inspired in its architectural shape by celestial travel and the stars, in a distinctly positive take on futuristic design and fashion.

Basketball sneaker elements are cut-through with futuristic line punctuations and a 3D rubber Medusa plaque that defines the silhouette—its clean, sharp lines recalling the shape of an aerodynamic cycling helmet or dynamic future spacecraft. Seen styled with both casual and more formal looks in the Pre-Fall 2022 lookbook (see below) and Fall-Winter 2022 collection film, the sneaker’s volume and range of tonal colors—in black, white, ultramarine blue, pink, brown, and metallic silver—create an impactful visual identity.

To shop the Odissa sneaker for women, click here please and for men, here please.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Versace
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A piece of contemporary design created from the awareness of a modern attitude and of the intentional revival of a historical object from the archive: Gucci Attache is a bag that reinterprets tradition and the system of House codes while transporting a silhouette, which draws from an intuition and an attitude of the 1970s, into the present through a narrative and gesturality outside the confines of gender, feminine or masculine.

Attache, like the French word for «hook,» like the geometry with which, through the power of symbols, can be defined as onomatopoeic because it closes onto itself like a hook. Or like the metallic hook that attaches the two corners. Attache, therefore, is the bag that progresses from a half-moon design encompassed by the Web, distinguished by a metal G that opens and closes its silhouette.

Versatile as a symbol, in shape, and in volume, the Gucci Attache is presented as the essence of a very current attitude and gesturality. Both in its medium and small sizes and in the diverse ways it can be worn, either on the shoulder or across the body, the line presents that appeal that only objects with dual functions can have.

«I was fascinated by the bag after having laid upon it a casual and fleeting glance while I was in the archive… Immediately, a desire took shape to reinterpret it and include it in the Love Parade collection for the fashion show in Los Angeles because its silhouette, typical of the Seventies, projects a very modern attitude that convinced me to draw out an eclectic symbol that could express the idea of a dual function. It is its G-shaped clasp detail, with its mechanical origin, that makes it the joining link between a bourgeois spirit, typical of an object of this kind, and the functionality of the world of utility,» says Alessandro Michele, Creative Director of Gucci.

With its interchangeable straps, in leather or the Web, that allow it to become both a shoulder bag and a handbag, the Gucci Attache is an item of design that is both transportable and ergonomic, living in contact with the body, a perfect silhouette to add to a hypothetical collection of objects of desire. In other words, of those wonderful, useful, inseparable objects that in the culture of contemporary living, have become bags.

The Gucci Attache is featured in a campaign that Art Director and photographer Max Siedentopf shot against a metropolitan backdrop, underlining the same symbols that form the meaning of this bag: references and perspectives that together, know how to create that glam-utility that is the expression of a culture of appearance and practicality. Two elements that create a desire for beauty.

TO SHOP GUCCI ATTACHE, CLICK HERE PLEASE.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Gucci #GucciAttache – Creative Director: Alessandro Michele – Art Director: Max Siedentopf – Ph & director: Max Siedentopf – Make up: Camilla Romagnoli – Hair: Andrea Martinelli
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For all who couldn’t get their hands on the Louis Vuitton x Nike Air Force 1 by Virgil Abloh sneakers, here might be another option from the French Maison: the new version of its iconic LV trainer that pushes the concept of sustainability even further, with its utterly graphic silhouette made of 90% recycled and bio-sourced materials. Available in three colour variations, the LV Trainer is adorned with the Maison’s signature Sustainable Development logo.

A newcomer to the Louis Vuitton collection and the embodiment of the Maison’s innovative spirit, this unprecedented model created by Virgil Abloh marks a new chapter in eco-design. Manufactured in the Louis Vuitton workshop in Fiesso d’Artico, Italy, using a highly complex process, the sneakers blend eco-design with fine craftsmanship, in accordance with the codes of circular creativity.

A true icon in the sportswear world, the LV Trainer is now breaking new records, without ever compromising Louis Vuitton’s standards for creativity and quality. The sole, a key component in terms of weight and comfort, is composed of an unparalleled 94% recycled polyurethane, with unchanged efficiency in terms of bounce, cushion and foot support – most notably thanks to the use of recycled cotton inner pads, and an insole made out of fully recycled polyurethane. As for the upper, it blends recycled polyester with a corn-based plastic material. The laces, made from used plastic, cross over the tongue, which is also recycled polyester, whereas the eyelets contain 91% regenerated polyurethane.

Available in sizes 4 to 15.5 (which means it is also available for women), this LV Trainer boasts the logo designed by Virgil Abloh. A visual example of Louis Vuitton’s upcycling philosophy, it has since become the symbol of the Maison’s commitment to sustainable development. The logo will be released in white with green accents from August, and then in red and black versions this September. The logo also features on the inside of the box, which is made out of entirely recycled and recyclable cardboard and which, thanks to an ingenious handle, turns into a bag – a strategy saving as much as 70% in materials to ensure the lowest environmental impact in terms of transportation and storage. Going even further, Louis Vuitton made the choice to use plant-based inks and to leave the inside of this unprecedented packaging in its original kraft.

Finally, a felt shoe bag in Tencel™ – renewable fibres from sustainably managed forests – acts as a layer of sustainable protection for the LV Trainer.

«Our committed journey» is Louis Vuitton’s sustainable development plan, in line with the LIFE360 (LVMH Initiatives For the Environment) programme. Through six lines of action, it aims to preserve natural resources (sustainable supply of materials, contribution to climate protection, circular approach of creativity) and to have a positive impact on society (diversity and inclusion, commitment to local communities, development of know-how).

Shopping with a good conscience!

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Louis Vuitton
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Don’t shampoo this summer, because headwraps will salvage dirty hair days more than just any other trending accessory. On top, they are the perfect tool to absorb sweat during these hot temperatures. While being in Saint Tropez, they are my on-the-go item when I don’t have time to fix my hair after the beach. Put it on and it’s literally a wrap.

A-listers like Beyoncé, Chrissy Teigen, and Sarah Jessica Parker love them and even that they have never truly left, they’re now on-trend. While you may think headwraps are a daring accessory, wearing one is easier than you might think – and in the end, how you wear it will depend on your own personal style. Headwraps are a versatile garment, pairing well everything from your favourite jeans or leather jacket, to skirts and sneakers. Below is my selection of the best ones available at the moment.

LoL, Sandra

Silk satin headband by Saint Laurent

Marin leopard stretch-silk headband by Jennifer Behr

Printed headband by Pucci

Floral cotton headband by Erdem

Floral jersey headband by Dolce & Gabbana

Printed silk twill headband by Gucci

Knit headband by Missoni

Photos: Michael HJ Lopez Photographie and Rian Davidson / Courtesy of the Brands
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