MATERIAL GIRL, MYSTICAL WORLD: ANYA HINDMARCH

Luxury and laughter are the hallmark of Taurus Anya Hindmarch. Here’s a peek into the colorful world of this week’s Material Girl…

Fashion designer Anya Hindmarch in a blue coat featured on Thenuminous.net

Award for Best Fashion Marketing Campaign, In The Cosmos, Ever, goes hands down to Anya Hindmarch. Her What Planet Are You On? microsite invites consumers to enter their name and birth details, and then delivers a totally in-depth reading along with all kinds of cute details – like your birth flower, Native American Zodiac sign, celebrity birthday twins, and even the number of seconds you’re been inhabiting your current human suit.

It was actually launched last summer to promote the brand’s SS14 collection, but it’s still live and still totally addictive! And, in our eyes, it cemented Anya’s status as one of the coolest chicks in the industry. Remember, this is also the woman behind the iconic canvas ‘I Am Not A Plastic Bag’ tote, which was launched in 2007 to highlight the importance of sustainability in fashion – talk about ahead of the game!

anya hindmarch smiley face wink sticker charlotte stockdale thenuminous.net
‘Wink’ sticker, $45

Anya’s latest project is equally uplifting – a super cute collection of leather ‘stickers,’ which she’s produced in partnership with super stylist Charlotte Stockdale. The idea is you pick your sticker(s), and use them to ‘sticker-up’ anything you like – from your purse to your gratitude journal – while the smily face (see above) is also featured throughout the current SS15 accessories collection.

Anya, for services to astro-geeks everywhere, and for making the world of high fashion an altogether happier place, we salute you!

:: M A T E R I A L  G I R L ::

My label
If not vintage, and I know I’m biased, but I love the Brits! Erdem, Stella McCartney…I also have a rather brilliant blouse from House of Holland. I smile every time I see it.

Erdem SS15 collection featured on thenuminous.net
Erdem SS15

My shoes
Flats by Tabitha Simmons, heels by Gianvito Rossi, but ideally sneakers – Adidas Stan Smiths or Common Projects.

Sneakers by Common Projects
Sneakers by Common Projects

My fragrance
A perfume from 400-year-old scent shop Madini.

My jewels
My wedding ring.

My pampering
Sunday mornings in my bright blue bed, with the newspapers and a big mug of tea.

Lip Tease mug by Reiko Kaneko
Lip Tease mug by Reiko Kaneko

My home
London! With my husband and five (yes!) almost grown up kids.

My food
My husband’s roast chicken.

:: M Y S T I C A L  W O R L D ::

My awakening
A brisk walk around Battersea Park with a girlfriend.

My sign
Taurus.

Taurus drop earrings by Valentino
Taurus drop earrings by Valentino

My mantra
Fire yourself every evening and come back the next morning as your replacement!

My healer
Wine! But truly, laughter. At work we laugh every day, it’s our fuel – laughter and cake.

Vegan gluten-free carrot cake by The Hardihood
Vegan gluten-free carrot cake by The Hardihood

My reading
Sadly, being truthful, my email.

My transformation
I had been CEO and Creative Director of Anya Hindmarch since we started over 20 years ago, and a few years ago I fired myself as (and hired a brilliant new CEO!) so I could focus more on the creative side, which is what I love so much. I’m now Chairman and Creative Director. I’m OBSESSED with craftsmanship, and the magical process that happens behind the scenes when making beautiful things. It’s the reason I do what I do.

Have A Nice Day tote, Anya Hindmarch SS15
Have A Nice Day tote, Anya Hindmarch SS15

My mission
Happy parents make for happy kids. Brilliant advice from my mother in law. And I stand by it.

Shop the new Anya Hindmarch sticker collection at www.anyahindmarch.com/stickers

FASHION DESIGNER TAROT: THE CARDS ON THE CATWALK

Woah, Fashion Week fun alert! Welcome to Fashion Designer Tarot, in which Vix (a.k.a. the New Age Hipster) imagines a card for six of our favourite catwalk characters…

:: MARC JACOBS – SIX OF CUPS ::

Marc Jacobs cruise collection 2015 featured on TheNuminous.net

Marc Jacobs embodies the Six of Cups like nobody’s business, which is interesting really because I always see this as the giving and receiving card, small business in a small town card. Marc is very clearly NOT small business these days, and in fact, being born in NYC it’s possible he hasn’t spent much time in small towns at all. But still he embodies an industrious work ethic, and having checked out his latest offerings with my third eye, the romantic notion of small town America he often returns to can be seen in full effect. His signature cartoonish motifs, military stylings and perfume bottles adorned with daisies just scream: “get me out of the big city and back to the back of beyond!” I’m pretty sure in his next life, MJ is coming back as a farmer.

 

:: VIVIENNE WESTWOOD – THE TOWER ::

Vivienne Westwood ad campaign featured on TheNuminous.net

Vivienne Westwood was the original 1970’s punk, and there’s no card in the Tarot more punk than The Tower! The Tower comes up in readings when everything you’ve built, everything you believe, and everything you trust no longer serves you, and needs to change – now! Just as the punks wanted to break the chains and see the tower of fascism fall, mixing fashion and politics is as natural to Vivienne as pairing tea with cake. Appearing as herself in risque advertising shoots and using every opportunity in front of a camera to push her stance on climate change, Viv continues to shake up and shock the tower of the fashion world well into her seventies.

 

:: STELLA MCCARTNEY – ACE OF CUPS ::

Stella McCartney ss15 featured on TheNuminous.netStella McCartney’s classically feminine vibe can only really relate to the suit of cups. The cups cards help us to dive deep into our emotions, discovering all the gems that lie beneath, and helping us to harness our water energy rather than wind up an emotional wreck. Stella has most definitely got a hold of her own cups, making the Ace of Cups the perfect card for her. Her collection for SS15 is overflowing with gorgeous deep ocean blues, shimmering sunlight on sea metallics and beautiful flowing dresses the colour of breaking waves. And Stella appears to be balancing out her water energy with air this season too. Birds bask on the backs of deep blue cardigans, perfect for keeping you warm by the lake on a chilly evening out beneath the stars.

 

:: KARL LAGERFELD – THE HIEROPHANT :: 

Karl Lagerfeld by aleXsandro Palombo featured on TheNuminous.netLe Lagerfeld is basically the self-appointed Pope of the Church of Fashion. In Tarot we can relate these kinds of characters to The Hierophant card – supposedly the landline between you and your God, and Karl has the God of style on speed dial! The Hierophant is never ‘wrong’ about anything. He never admits to his mistakes, because he doesn’t make any! Pastor Karl has been involved in numerous controversies; calling Adele ‘fat’, saying he didn’t like Pippa Middleton’s face, oh, and don’t even get me started on his opinions about the use of animals on the catwalk. But he thinks all these things are totes fine, and unfortunately so do many of his black leather clad congregation.

 

:: DONATELLA VERSACE – THE CHARIOT ::

Versace ready-to-wear ss15 featured on TheNuminous.net
With the gold Medusa as her emblem, Donatella Versace is soooo the Chariot card. But the Chariot isn’t only about fancy Greek footwear and Swarovski bling. This card reminds us that in order to get moving in our lives we have to balance both light and dark. We need to give and receive – allow our sphinx to pull, but steer them where we want to go, right? Donatella takes 2000-year-old Grecian drapery and makes it relevant. She adds golden talismans to ward off evil spirits as you stroll around the mall, and reminds us that every new season in the fashion world is just another pause in the cycle. Nothing is new, and yet everything is new. And this is what keeps the wheels of Versace’s Chariot moving forward.

 

:: ALEXANDER WANG – THE MOON :: 

Alexander Wang rtw ss15 featured on TheNuminous.netMystery, intuition,  stillness, the quiet power within. These are all aspects of The Moon, the Tarot card that depicts Alexander Wang to a tea. A white leaf tea with no sugar, no milk and no sweetener. Wang’s stark, monochrome designs embody the power and beauty of a full Moon on a cloudless night. Of course, there are also brief flares of colour – perhaps blue for a passing comet, or a dash of metallic silver for a falling star. If you’re looking for the perfect wardrobe this season to help you dress like the Moon cycles, then Alexander has you covered.

THE FASHION WEEK ZODIAC WHEEL: DESIGNERS BY SIGN

The creations of our most iconic fashion designers always reflect the traits of their sign – so what part of the Fashion Week Zodiac Wheel speaks to the fashionista in you?

ARIES: MARC JACOBS

**DARING ** SELF-CONFIDENT ** TREND-SETTING ** EGOTISTICAL ** ATHLETIC ** STRONG **
One of fashion’s true thought leaders, with the show that closes New York Fashion Week Marc Jacobs is pretty much the only designer out of NYC with the power to set trends (not just capitalise massively on them). He also turned high fashion on its head when he invented grunge, and famously spends two hours a day in the gym honing that athletic Aries physique.

TAURUS: DONATELLA VERSACE

Atelier Versace Couture 2014

**SENSUOUS ** AESTHETIC ** MATERIALISTIC ** LOYAL ** LUXURY-LOVING ** RELIABLE  **
The ultimate material girl, Donatella’s vision never wavers – women have red carpets to walk down, and damnit she’s going to give them the glamazon gowns to do it in. When her brother Gianni (a flamboyant Sagittarius) was brutally gunned down in 1997, the Versace family knew they could rely on determined Taurus Donatella to follow in his diamante-studded, gold leaf inlaid footsteps.

GEMINI: HENRY HOLLAND

House of Holland AW07

**ORIGINAL ** COMMUNICATIVE ** QUICK-WITTED ** VERSATILE ** IMITATIVE **
As the sign that rules communication, is it any wonder that Gemini Henry Holland launched his House of Holland label with a line of cheeky slogan t-shirts? This set the tone for a playful streak that runs through every collection – the “House” in question also including his legion celebrity friends / fans always crowding out the frow at his shows.

CANCER: VERA WANG

Vera Wang Bridal SS14

**DEVOTIONAL ** DOMESTIC ** EMOTIONAL ** TRADITIONAL ** NOSTALGIC ** FAMILIAL**
Who else but Cancer Vera Wang could have cornered the market for high fashion bridal gowns? Wang’s name has become synonymous with the kind of wedding that fairy tales are made of – having dressed everyone from Mariah Carey to Victoria Beckham for their big day. As Cancer also rules the home (and by default, wedding gift lists?),  it makes sense that she expanded into homeware in 2002.

LEO: JEREMY SCOTT

Jeremy Scott SS14

** PLAYFUL ** CHILDLIKE ** ENTERTAINING ** DRAMATIC ** HUMOROUS ** FUN-LOVING **
The eternal club-kid, Leo Jeremy Scott refuses to grow up and get serious. This is the man who invented a pair of sneakers with a teddy bear’s head where the tongue should be, FFS. And he walks the walk. His own outfits are as outrageous as his you-cannot-be-serious creations, while in his case the lion’s mane is his signature (sometimes peroxide blonde) quiff / mohawk.

VIRGO: STELLA MCCARTNEY

Stella McCartney SS14

** PERFECTIONIST ** RESERVED ** INTELLIGENT ** PRACTICAL ** DETAIL-ORIENTED ** NEAT **
Smart women love Stella’s less-is-more, demure-yet-doin’ it approach, and, as a health-conscious, righteous Virgo, she’s as  known for her staunch vegetarianism as her catwalk prowess. Hello seriously discerning women paying astronomical sums for pleather bags and shoes. Consistently hailed as a designer who serves the needs of “real women,” she also has a penchant for virginal white.

LIBRA: DONNA KARAN

Donna Karan Urban Zen

** BALANCED ** SOCIALLY AWARE ** GRACEFUL ** REFINED ** RELATIONSHIP-ORIENTED **
Before Donna Karan came along with her ‘Essentials’ line in 1985 – seven easy pieces that could be mixed and matched to create the perfectly balanced work-life wardrobe – there were suits and there were leisure suits and there wasn’t much in between.  She was also being true to her Libra roots when she launched her Urban Zen foundation, selling thousand dollar shirts to aid indigenous cultures and support holistic wellness studies.

SCORPIO: RICK OWENS

Rick Owens menswear FW09

**INTENSE ** SEXUAL ** MYSTERIOUS ** AGGRESSIVE ** TRANSFORMATIVE ** FORCEFUL **
Who else but Rick Ownes would you wear to a high fashion sex party in the backstreets of Berlin? Not only is his all-black aesthetic directly out of some futuristic occult situation (I mean, he has a diffusion line called DRKSHDW), his bondage-inspired creations have the power to totally transform the body of the wearer. And, openly bi, you just know he and his wife Michele Lamy are into some kinky shiz.

SAGITTARIUS: JOHN GALLIANO

** OUTGOING ** EXPANSIVE ** BLUNT ** FORTUNATE ** PROFESSOR ** MORAL **
Outspoken to, ahem, a fault, it’s still unclear where disgraced designer John Galliano will settle following the antisemitic outburst that got him sacked from the top spot at Dior in 2011. After a guest slot at Oscar de le Renta (brokered by none other than Anna Wintour, hello resourceful Scorpio fashion fairy godmother) for AW13, rumors are circulating that he make take up a teaching post at Parsons.

CAPRICORN: DIANE VON FURSTENBURG

** PRACTICAL ** BUSINESSLIKE ** AMBITIOUS ** AUTHORITATIVE ** FOCUSSED ** REALISTIC **
Where would working women the world over be without Capricorn DVF and her iconic wrap dress?? The consummate fashion mogul, when she launched her company in 1970 her decision to “be someone of my own, and not just a plain little girl who got married” made her a figurehead for fashionable feminists. A walking talking brand in her own right she was even named President of the CFDA in 2006.

AQUARIUS: MARY QUANT

** INNOVATIVE ** REBELLIOUS ** INDIVIDUAL ** LIBERAL ** AWAKENING ** FREE **
Nobody but Aquarius Mary Quant could have invented the mini-skirt, and in doing so single-handedly created a uniform for the 1960s women’s lib movement. Although she always handed the credit to her customers; “It was the girls on the King’s Road who invented the mini. I was making easy, youthful, simple clothes, in which you could move, in which you could run and jump, and we would make them the length the customer wanted. I wore them very short and the customers would say, ‘Shorter, shorter.'”

PISCES: ALEXANDER MCQUEEN

**IMAGINATIVE ** FANTASTICAL ** CREATIVE ** VISIONARY ** OTHERWORLDLY ** MYSTIC **
May we all bow down to the memory of Pisces Alexander McQueen, a true fashion visionary whose beautiful, fantastical creations seemed like they were beamed onto the catwalk from another dimension. Taking skulls and religious iconography as his motifs, his work was entirely impractical, darkend by an obsession with the realm beyond the veil, and utterly, achingly, beautiful.