Sandra‘s Closet

Sarah Jessica Parker attended yesterday in London the S/S 2011 Burberry Prorsum fashion show in an outfit that made her the style candy of the day.

The trendsetting actress wore a brown lace dress from the F/W 2010 line by Burberry Prorsum together with a stunning leather jacket from the upcoming Resort 2011 collection. In case you do not like to wait and would love to save some money, mytheresa sells a very similiar one on sale.

Sarah Jessica Parker topped off her look with a pale rose bag by Alexander McQueen and some killer heels by Nicholas Kirkwood.

Thumbs up!

LoL, Sandra

Recently the couture bottle design has become a huge craze. Companies team up with famous designers to get new “clothes” for their drinks.

After some really amazing collaborations with some of the biggest names in fashion, like Christian Lacroix, Jean Paul Gaultier and Paul Smith, Evian has chosen Issey Miyake this year to create a stylish cover. Clean, contemporary and colourful is the new design that will be available in gourmet stores.

Perrier is spicing up his bubbles with the help of burlesque star Dita van Teese who will be their new cover girl this year. Before that they worked with Custo Barcelona, Agnès B. and Paul & Joe to create some very desirable cans and bottles.

Finally San Pellegrino decided to be part of the hype and has chosen Missoni to cover their famous bottle label with the Italian fashion house’s zig zag pattern for their 111th anniversary. Thirty million units are being produced and will be sold in the best restaurants worldwide. In Zurich, they are everywhere.

Diet Coke has been increasing its connections with the world of fashion since quite a while. So no wonder that a long list of famous designers already have got a chance to embellish the beloved soft drink. Karl Lagerfeld has even changed the shape of the bottle this spring.

For all champagne loving fashionistas, Piper-Heidsieck has got some amazing pieces, from the corset bottle designed by Jean Paul Gaultier in 1999 to Christian Louboutin’s Le Rituel Box with a red soled shoe flute and Viktor & Rolf’s limited edition Rose Sauvage set with an upside down bottle.

Dolce & Gabbana’s first experiment in the wines and spirits sector is the Martini Gold Limited Edition. The exclusive mix: bergamot from Calabria, lemons from Sicily as well as oranges, Spanish saffron, myrrh from Ethiopia, ginger from India, and cubebe pepper from Indonesia was developed by the design duo themselves.

A good investment was definitely one of the 2000 individually numbered whiskey bottles that featured Alexander McQueen’s signature Union Jack colours. The late designer had teamed up with Chivas Regal to create that special piece in 2008.

As to me, all those bottles are really striking and sophisticated object d’arts and a show stopping addition to any dinner party.

Cheers!

LoL, Sandra

The nail polish is back and fashionistas all over the world crave for the newest It-colours. Celebrities even go a little further and wear sparkling glitter stones to leopard prints and striped designs. Arabian princesses might like master manicurist Leigthon Denny, who has an original nail boutique at the Urban Retreat Day Spa & Salon at Harrods in London and offers his Diamond, Sapphire and Ruby Encapsulization manicure for only $32.000.- . For this amount, you will get nine carats of precious gem inlays. O.k., this is totally insane!
But let’s come back to the actual question: Is nail art tacky or chic?

Let’s investigate this. Having the logos of Oreo cookies and Goldfish decorating your fingers is definitely ultra-tacky. Fruits, Hello Kitty and more have also no style factor. Ultra-long and sharp filed nails look more like a witch going to the carnival and who would like to be touched by those?! Ouch!

Short nails up to 2-3mm over the fingertip are very elegant and stylish. With this length all colours look beautiful. The key is to pay attention when applying the nail polish. Better make sure you do it more than perfect. It might seem tacky to match your nails to your dress like the Miu Miu version above but I am in love with this.

Half-moon manicures like Dita van Teese parades them are absolutely the style of the moment due to all the 50s and 60s inspired trends.

I also love my camouflage design. I took the three limited Les Khakis de Chanel for that. Khaki Brun is the base colour, Khaki Rose and Khaki Vert the spots.

For special events, Sephora by OPI offers self-sticking foils in all sort of designs for your nails. I think that they are kind of hard to apply but they can be fun.

So Ladies, experiment a little but keep in mind only well-groomed nails look really good. See your manicure as the crowning touch to a perfect outfit!

LoL, Sandra

Vending machines selling luxury goods seem to be on the rise. Katie Grand, editor-in-chief of LOVE magazine has teamed up with Selfridges to create such a machine for the beginning of London Fashion Week until October 15th. The new retail concept can be found in the lobby of London’s It-hotel St Martin’s Lane where many editors, models and buyers are staying at the moment.

You can get a lot of fantastic items, some highly exclusive, let me name a few:

-Falabella bag by Stella McCartney

-leather and sequined dress by Alexander Wang

-draped dress by Vivienne Westwood Anglomania

-a unique pair of trainers by Rick Owens customized by Chrome Hearts with solid silver hardware

-Amazona handbag by Loewe

-limited Dior nail polishes

-Mimosa candles by Diptyque exclusive to Selfridges in yellow

–Falke’s new „secret socks“ for men

-a vintage Rolex watch

-embossed leather wallets by Comme des Garçons

-clutch purses by Mulberry

A word to the wise, do not get drunk in the hotel bar, you might lose control and this could end on the way to your room passing the LOVE machine in a financial disaster.

LoL, Sandra

The traditional French house Hermès is starting to be more and more advanced by surfing on the internet trend. Similiar to the Sartorialist, they created their own street style inspired photos of It-girls all over the world for a standalone website named J’aime mon carré (I love my scarf). There you can find ideas and instructions on how to wear and knot your Hermès scarf.

Cashing on the recent 70’s trend, Hermès shows how hip the classic accessory can be.
It is definitely another sign of how luxury, fashion and street have merged in the last years.

If you like to be part of it, you can still get your pictures taken. Today in the Swiss Hermès boutiques in Basel, Bern and Zurich where last night the brand new and gorgeous store celebrated its opening. Other cities to follow will be: September 25th, Surabaya, Indonesia, September 27th Paris and November 3rd, Hong Kong.

LoL, Sandra

Some impressions of last night’s party:

The new Hermès store in Zurich on Bahnhofstr. 28A

Stilt walkers with Venetian masks were welcoming the guests.

Sophie C. Anache-Strobel, store manager, in HERMÈS with me wearing a LOUIS VUITTON dress and scarf, an ALEXANDER WANG leather jacket and a PROENZA SCHOULER PS1 clutch.

But I had a little HERMÈS accessory as well: A silk twilly wrapped around my wrist.

The party continued in the beautifully decorated Zunfthaus zur Meisen.

Isabella Fendt, the mastermind behind ballerinas to go, had a brilliant idea when she invented the disposable ballets flats that are sold exclusively in shoe automats placed in night clubs. What a relief for hurting feet!
You can buy the pain killers for 7 Euros in four different colours and in sizes 34-43. They also come with a little pouch to store your high heels. Unfortunately, only available in Munich at the moment. But I am sure that this concept will soon spread all over the world…

LoL, Sandra

The Swiss based label Ginger Tea & Nuts has launched its online shop today.
Individual T-shirts, longsleeve tops and more for babies, girls, boys and mamis are available with cute little prints. Each piece is a one of a kind and can be personalized at your request.
Ginger Tea & Nuts offers worldwide shipping. Please send an e-mail to for further details.

LoL, Sandra

Tory Burch is an American fashion designer who launched her namesake brand in 2004. The label was an immediate success, filling the gap in the market for clothes that offered good quality to an affordable, accessible price.
Today, her fans include celebrities and fashion lovers all over the world. Her collections are available at her own beautifully decorated, unique Tory Burch boutiques, online at net-à-porter and in more than 450 select department and specialty stores worlwide.

One of her bestsellers are the Reva ballerina flats that have become a wardrobe essential. And they definitely deserve their cult status combining casual chic with unsurpassed comfort.

Recently at a birthday luncheon, I took a photo of two of my stylish girlfriends who wore by coincidence almost the same look.  They are like Tory herself mothers of three kids and like to be fashionable and comfy in one. Well done, girls!

LoL, Sandra

Photos: Courtesy of Tory Burch and © Sandra Bauknecht

A limited collection to covet: Ugg for Jimmy Choo, launching in October but available now for pre-order at Saks (shipping worldwide) and Ugg Australia.
The stylish versions of the ultracomfy must-have boots have already got their own nickname: Chuggs. But with a $495.- and more price tag, not everybody can affored to keep warm in style.

Two icons, one collection – I am crazy for them!

LoL, Sandra

Stefano Pilati, creative director of Yves Saint Laurent, is responsible for the “Edition 24” collection, designed to meet the needs of a woman going on overnight trips.
It is a new attempt at travel fashion. The 24 looks are meant to be layered, mixed and put to versatile use from the airplane to boardroom, from day to evening. The leightweight, functional, stylish and timeless pieces that do not wrinkle easily are low-key, less expensive versions of the French house’s high-fashion designs. I think this is a very modern vision, a new concept of luxury, making packing –which I always hate- less work.
Below are some ideas that I put together for you.

Get your style passport!

LoL, Sandra

Photos: Courtesy of YSL