The Banana Blog: first things first

I must have been in middle school when I first found out about Elsa Schiaparelli. My Aunt Gladys was visiting from Canada and my family took a trip to the Art Museum (you know the one Rocky ran up) and saw the SHOCKING exhibit- showcasing the surreal designs of Schaiparelli. I fell in fashion love. Who wouldn't? At the time I was always at the craft store picking up supplies for some odd little project, for example: my little bird barrettes. I found these cute little birds, super glued them to some clips and wore them in my hair until they fell apart. People thought it was weird, oh they made sure to tell me. But I didn't care- it was totally avant guard for my uptight suburban school.

Anyways back to topic, Italian designer Schaiaparelli (1890-1973) pushed the boundaries of fashion for her time. She designed not just ready to wear and dresses, but accessories such as shoe hats and insect jewelry. She collaborated with surrealist artists such as Dali, Jean Cocteau and Alberto Giacometti to translate their collective vision into a tangible garment. Her inspiration came from many places and ideas such as transformation or metamorphosis, the circus, the bold attitude of the theater, human anatomy, food and anything unusual.