A century of style.

A super cute commercial for the grand opening of the Westfield Stratford City shopping center in London entitled 100 Year / Style / East London. It's like an entire 20th century history class in under 2 minutes.

She's a total Monet.

I'm, like, totally buggin. A wish I never knew I had just came true. Now you too can see all of  Cher Horowitz's outfits in 60 seconds. God bless the internet.

{Video via Worn Fashion Journal }

Waiting for Mad Men Part 2: Lover Come Back.

Imagine Mad Med as a Rom Com. That's basically what you get with Lover Come Back.

Rock Hudson plays a pseudo-Don Draper ad man who gets accounts by taking clients boozing and to girlie shows. Doris Day is a perkier, better dressed Peggy Olson who is also in advertising but believes that hard work and letting the ideas speak for themselves. Of course in true romantic comedy form, hijinks ensue and they fall in love.

Doris Day's costumes are stunning. Lots of beautiful wiggle-skirted dresses with 3/4 length sleeved jackets in contrasting color and a mightily impressive hat collection. I mean, she may be an ad exec but she's also a wholesome, warm-hearted girl next door! And Rock Hudson in his slim grey suits is never hard on the eyes.

Added bonus: There's also a buxom red-head that could be a Joan, a bumbling boss that's a Woody Allen-esque Roger Sterling and an obnoxiously Southern client that is easily the owner of Lucky Strike.

Basically, Lover Come Back is Mad Men with this as the opening credits:

{Mad Men Opening Titles Re-Design from Paul Rogers on Vimeo}.

Lover Come Back (1961)

Starring: Rock Hudson, Doris Day and Tony Randall

Costume Designer: Irene

Aaaaarrrrgg! Pirate drawings.

I'm finally getting around to posting my sketches from last week's swashbuckling pirate themed drawing session.

I drive a scooter so I can't bring too much supplies with me when I go to these sessions. I can't really strap big paper tablets and an art board on my back, so I stick to 14"x17" paper or smaller and usually bring charcoal, water solvable graphite pencils and a water pen for blending.

{Swashbuckling pirate drawings by Hannah Greene }

W.E. - A new Windsor film.

{Images via Vanity Fair }

There is a gorgeous fashion editorial in the new Vanity Fair featuring the costumes from the film W.E. about the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. The costumes designer is Arianne Phillips, whose past work includes the fabulous films A Single Man, Walk the Line and Hedwig and the Angry Itch. When I saw these images I literelly gasped.

W.E. is about a modern day woman who is obsessed with the love story of Prince Edward and Wallis Simpson. The film switches between the 1930s and present day. Interestingly enough, this film is Madonna's directorial debut.

Say what you want about whose directing it, these costumes are so spot on and instantly capture the characters just in these photographs that I feel pretty confident the film will have just as much depth. It comes out in December and I already am looking forward to seeing it!

{Film still via Fashionista }

Naturally, this is how all young artists look.

I did some drawing today. Why yes I did in fact look as fabulous as these ladies while doing it. I'm surprised you need to even ask ;)

This Vogue fashion spread is from one of my favorite blogs, The Terrier and Lobster.

Steampunk sketches.

 Last week I went to the best thing ever - themed figure drawing. Better yet, I went on steampunk night!

I haven't been drawing for a couple of months now (curse you carpal tunnel!) so I'm a bit rusty. It definitely helps being around other people with fun costumes, props and music to get in the creative spirit. And how awesome that model?

INSPIRATION: Steampunk in film.

{Sketch by Hannah Greene }

I'll post the rest of my drawings from a steampunk figure drawing session I went to last week a little later. For now here's a collection of costumes from films that go along with that theme.

These films are actually more period-with-a-twist or fantasy than true steampunk, but that's what I really look to for inspiration when I'm in the mood for some industrial era nostalgia.

BE WARNED: Not all of these films are good (I'm looking at you, Wild Wild West). However, they're fun and definitely worth watching for the absolutely fabulous costume and production design.

P.S. 

I purposely did NOT include The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

No one should ever be subjected to sit through that movie, 

no matter how good it looks.

Wild Wild West (1999)

Costume Designer: Deborah L. Scott

Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004)

Costume Designer: Colleen Atwood

 

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)

Costume Designer: Norman Martien

Atlantis (2001)

Costumes & Wardrobe Department: Akeime Mitterlehner & Alison M. Schmidt 

 

Sleepy Hollow (1999)

Costume Designer: Colleen Atwood