Fashion and Style... What Do They Mean?

Do you know what is fashion and what is style? Of course, you know and you can explain these two words. I know them as well, but it was very interesting for me to know what fashion creators think about fashion and style. I'm sure they know more about them than we do, and I've collected some of their quotes here. I think they will help us to understand this world of fashion from the inside. Some of their thoughts are very interesting and new to me. I hope you will enjoy them as well:)

"Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening."

~ Coco Chanel

"Fashion fades, only style remains the same."

~ Coco Chanel

"A fashion that does not reach the streets is not a fashion."

~ Coco Chanel

"My dream is to save women from nature."

~ Christian Dior

"A woman's perfume tells more about her than her handwriting."

~ Christian Dior




"Dressing is a way of life."

~ Yves Saint Laurent

"Isn’t elegance forgetting what one is wearing?"

~ Yves Saint Laurent

"You like? You are happy? Yes? Okay, go! Go in the street."

~ Domenico Dolce (Dolce and Gabbana)

"It’s all a game, with new rules every season."

~ Stefano Gabbana (Dolce and Gabbana)

"I am always researching new ideas on beauty and femininity and the way it is perceived in contemporary culture."

~ Miuccia Prada

"It’s still feminine, but not in a romantic way. It’s all about masculine and feminine, and being strong."

~ Miuccia Prada

"Fashion is very important. It is life-enhancing and, like everything that gives pleasure, it is worth doing well."

~ Vivienne Westwood

"I think dress, hairstyle and make-up are the crucial factors in projecting an attractive persona and give one the chance to enhance one's best physical features."

~ Vivienne Westwood

"That is the key of this collection, being yourself. Don't be into trends. Don't make fashion own you, but you decide what you are, what you want to express by the way you dress and the way to live."

~ Gianni Versace

"My fantasy is to leave options for women - to make their individuality come out, to try to accomplish what they want, and I think women want to look beautiful. (It's) less about jacket(s) and more about shirt(s) and about sweaters, about T-shirts and about freedom."

~ Gianni Versace

Fashion Designers: Top 10

Twice a year the Top Fashion Designers take to the runways in the major fashion markets of Milan, Paris, London and New York for fashion week. Many magazines are filled with other people's opinions about who is the best in fashion industry. Well, here goes my opinion on top ten. After quite a lot of pondering, I came up with some names. So that is not a 1-10 from the best to less. These are the best from all over the board to my mind.

1. Dolce & Gabbana are fashion's answer to Viagra: the full throbbing force of Italian style. The winning- combination of Dolce's tailoring perfectionism and Gabbana's stylistic theatrics has made the label a powerhouse in today's celebrity-obsessed age and just as influential as the ambassadors of sport, music and film that they dress.

2. Stella McCartney's stratospheric success story has only a little to do with her fabulous connections. Born in 1971, she graduated from Central Saint Martins in 1995. Her final year collection was snapped up by the biggest names in retail(including Browns and Bergdorf Goodman) and a mere two years later her sharp-tailoring talents landed her the top job as creative director at Chloe. Like her late mother Linda, she is serious about animal rights and refuses to use leather or fur in any of her designs.

Her clothes are the height of class and speak volumes of her personal talent.

3. Valentino Garavani - who, like all megastars, is known simply by his first name -is Italy's greatest couturier and one of the most respected designers showing in Paris.

Valentino's signature style is "opulence" He is known for his meticulous detailing and magnificent embroidery. The perfection of luxury in Valentino is never ostentatious, but rather a very strong yet discreet appeal of shades stolen from precious stones, from the impalpable delicateness of powder and milk. Absolutely unique, incredibly elegant Valentino style contains all the best Italian fashion design and style.

4. Giorgio Armani is more than just a designer - he's an institution, an icon and a multinational, billion-dollar brand. Giorgio Armani became a household name when he "dressed" Richard Gere in the movie American Gigolo. In the fashion world, he made a name long before the movie.

The secret of Giorgio Armani's continued success is the quality of his clothes. Working only with the finest fabrics and materials, both fashionistas and conservative boardroom executives appreciate the highly refined and sophisticated clothes by Giorgio Armani.

5. Designer Tom Ford is a true heavyweight in the fashion world. He was working as creative director at Yves Saint Laurent, and fulfilled the same role at Gucci.

Ford opened the fashion house, Tom Ford. Beginning with accessories, Ford laid the groundwork for his swiftly-growing fashion empire. While all facets of his label have been received incredibly well, his line of eyewear were the first of his collection to really take-off, with virtually every celebrity from Brad Pitt, Lindsay Lohan, and Madonna to Joaquin Phoenix, Jennifer Aniston and Sally Field being huge fans of his eyewear collections. And even more, George Clooney has stated his fondness for Ford's menswear designs.
The Tom Ford line now covers Menswear, Beauty, Eyewear, and both Men and Women's Accessories.

6. Prada almost has a hundred-year history. Established in Milan in 1913 by Mario Prada, Fratelli Prada catered luxury leather goods to the rich and influential. Miuccia Prada, Mario's granddaugther, inherited the business in 1978.

Business acumen and cutting edge, Miuccia Prada continue to present Prada as a luxury good, following the footsteps of her grandfather. Her genius lies in choosing and mixing fabrics for both clothing and accessories, and putting them together as one piece.

"In the end, fabric is fabric. What is really new is the way you treat it and put the pieces together." - Miuccia Prada.

7. Donatella Versace (born 1959) is a goddess of fashion. The female figurehead of one of the few remaining family-run fashion houses, she presides over seven brands under the Versace name. Her flamboyant, party-girl image has become synonymous with Versace itself. Donatella started as an accessories designer at the House of Versace. Later on, she would start designing the children's line (Versace Young) and then Versus, a fashion-forward line where Donatella was named Head Designer.

8. The Gothic sensibility of a Brothers Grimm fairytale is closer in spirit to Alexander McQueen's clothing - than the fetish, gore and misogyny he's been accused of promoting. However dark McQueen's design, it still achieves a femininity that has seduced everyone from Bjork to the Duchess of Westminster.

9. Karl Lagerfeld is perhaps the ultimate fashion designer. Prolific and driven by-change, he is certainly one of the industry's most successful 'mercenary' designers. Yet he is far from a behind-the-scenes figure. Lagerfeld's ever-present pony-tail, fan and sunglasses are iconic; his personal preference for bespoke white shirts by Hilditch & Key, Chrome Hearts jewellery and Dior Homme suits is well documented. Karl Lagerfeld is well known for his "philosophical" quotes. Once, he said "When people ask me what I do, 'designer' seems inadequate. I tell them that I'm in the fashion business. But that is what happens with ready-to-wear. You become an enterprise."

10. Vivienne Westwood is a legend in her own lifetime, a designer who inspires many other designers and who makes clothes that delight her loyal customers.

There is an intellectual method to the madness of her creative energy. Historical references, techniques and fabrics are intrinsic to her approach to design. The results are unconventional and alluring. Vivienne Westwood subversive shapes and constructions have consistently proved to be ahead of their time. Today she shows her ready-to-wear women's collection in Paris and a menswear collection, MAN, in Milan.

Fashion and Beauty by Michael McCabe

"That is the key of this collection, being yourself. Don't be into trends. Don't make fashion own you, but you decide what you are, what you want to express by the way you dress and the way to live."

~ Gianni Versace

Copyrighted by Michael McCabe

10 Interesting Places to Visit Before You Die

We all have our dream destinations, the places we that are must be visited in our life. I've often stumbled across posts like this and decided to make my own list of interesting places to visit. These are my dream places, the places that attract me very much. I think our world has lot's of wonderful places, worth of visiting, but if I could choose 10, I'd make this list of places to visit before you die:

1. Sri Lanka

"Sri Lanka could be described as one of the most beautiful islands around the world. There is strong evidence that human civilization has existed in this tiny island nation for over 2000 years now. Those who love examining ancient worlds, the serenity of nature and going through the excitement of life will always want to be part of Sri Lanka holidays... "

This is my dream destination. From the early childhood I was reading fairy tales about Sri Lanka and I was dreaming about visiting this miracle place. For me it is very special. It is called the Pearl of the Indian Ocean. It's culture, nature, people, history - everything is so so attractive and positive. I can talk about Sri Lanka for hours, but you should better visit once to see everything on your own:

2. Kyoto, Japan

"Among posters, calendars or pamphlets printed by Japanese travelagencies, Kyoto gardens became truly “The cover face” of Japan…Anyway, you visit these gardens, you can find your own “relaxing place” in Kyoto, but enjoying evening garden relax in the middle of Kyoto is one of the most beautiful experience you can get in this city…"

Japanese culture is so special and inimitable. It combines influences from Asia, Europe and North America. And Kyoto is a cultural capital of Japan. With an astonishing 1600 Buddhist temples, 400 Shinto shrines, a trio of palaces, and dozens of gardens and museums, Kyoto is Japan's cultural treasure house. Do I need to add anything? So I'm adding Kyoto to my list ofplaces to visit before you die, because it's the place with the brightest culture ever.

3. Las Vegas, US

Las Vegas looks the way you'd imagine heaven must look at night. ~Chuck Palahniuk

Las Vegas, the Entertainment Capital of the world. I cannot miss it:)

I'm not a big fan of gambling, but I'm very attracted with it's atmosphere. The Oasis in a desert, with active, 24-hours per day, non-stop party life. This is really exciting. Beauty, fun, parties, casinos... Lol:) Las Vegas wins it's place of honour in my list.

4. Venice, Italy

“This was Venice, the flattering and suspect beauty - this city, half fairy tale and half tourist trap, in whose insalubrious air the arts once rankly and voluptuously blossomed, where composers have been inspired to lulling tones of somniferous eroticism.”

The land of romance! Stunning culture, unique beauty! The City of Venice was founded more than 1,500 years ago on 117 different islands. Venice is without doubt one of the most popular places in the world! What can be more romantic than ride the gondola and admire the beauty if this place! Even more, you can find in Venice lots of cultural and architectural sights - libraries, museums, palaces, chrches and bridges... I can't imagine my life without visiting Venice,and you?

5. Paris, France

"If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast."

Paris, the home of world art and fashion. The city of romance. A place with amazing history and gorgeous architecture. The dream of tourists and lovers. Here you can visit the Louvre museum and the Centre Pompidou, kiss on the Eiffel Tower , admire the beauty of the palace of Versailles and of course have and extreme fun in the Disneyland. Oh! Dream place, I'm coming)))

6. India

"If there is one place on the face of earth where all the dreams of living men have found a home from the very earliest days when man began the dream of existence, it is India!" ~ Romaine Rolland

India, the heart of the Earth. The land of ancient history, rich culture and religion, warmhearted people and beautiful nature. Don't you want to visit sensual Khajuraho, inspirational Bodh Gaya, gorgeous Taj Mahal, or sunny and relaxing Goa beaches? India is a dream of traveler. This is a destination of my heart.

7. Rio, Brazil

"Carnival was incredible, albeit intense, 5 days of partying with a little sleep thrown in. After Carnival it was time to see some sights... First thing was to experience the world famous Ipanema and Copcabana beaches. Rio is such a unique city, it has beautiful beaches, a huge metropolitan area, and rugged terrain."

Rio de Janeiro, the feast of joy and happiness. Rio is the city of colors,samba and carnivals. Visit Rio when it is a festival time and you will get an unforgettable experience. This charming and beautiful place will stay forever in your heart.

8. Hawaii

"Hawaii is a Paradise - and I can never cease proclaiming it; but I must append one word of qualification: Hawaii is a Paradise for the well-to-do."

Aloha Island. "Aloha" translates as peace, joy, attraction, sharing happiness of being together, wish of love and happiness etc. As for me, it is the best way to greet people. Also, Hawaii is famous for it's beautiful beaches, rich and exciting flora and fauna. This is a Paradise island and it is definitely worth of visiting.

9.Cairo, Egypt

"Egypt is a land of contrasts, surprises and wonderment and it's really hard to convey the experience..."

One of the most ancient cities. It was founded in 969 AD. Today Cairo is the Arabs World largest city. It's name means the "the triumphant" . This place is a great attraction for tourists from all over the world. Cairo is the mix ofancient history and culture and modern civilization. If your dream was to visitpyramids, Sphinx, learn more about ancient Egypt history, Cairo should be added to your must-visit places list.

10. Lhasa, Tibet

“There is an old Tibetan saying: wherever you feel at home, you are at home. If your surroundings are pleasant, you are at home.” ~ Tenzin Gyatso, The 14th Dalai Lama

Lhasa, the holy city, the roof of the world or the place of the Gods. This city, despite of Chinese presence still attracts and mystifies. Lhasa was the fortress and the seat of Dalai Lama, the leader of Tibet. Today it's a museum, because of Chinese occupation of Tibet. Still lot's of tourists dream to visit Lhasa to feel the holiness of this magical place.

I'm glad if you are inspired with this list and already packing your luggage, but if you disagree with me, please - mention your "must-visit" places - maybe you will inspire me too;) And I'll be happy to add your place to our list!