Illustrations

Martine Brand in Galerie Pien Rademakers! Until 20 July!!

Dear Frenchonista’s,

I hope you remember our previous posts about the lovely and talented illustrator Martine Brand. For those of you in Holland, her work can now be admired at the Galerie Pien Rademakers in Amsterdam until 20 July. Besides seeing the exposition, you will also have the chance to buy one of her illustrations at the gallery, so we urge you to go, because her illustrations are coveted by both fashionistas and designers.
When Samia went to see the exposition she literally got goosebumps and we both were so proud and honored to see our blog featured in one of her gorgeous books.

Martine lives in Paris and draws the world of fashion in an imaginative, dreamy and…well, gorgeous manner. She works for various famous fashion magazines such as Vogue and L’Officiel Italia and for clients such as Chanel, Piaget, Ferrari and Dolce & Gabbana. Samia met her in Amsterdam this year and loves her as a person just as much as she loves her work.

The Galerie Pien Rademakers is on Prinsengracht 570. Don’t miss it!

http://www.galeriepienrademakers.nl

xoxo Liza Brouwer for Frenchonista

RSS feed

Sylvia Toledano: The fairy tale continues…

Dear Frenchonista’s,

Samia met with her friend and role model Sylvia Toledano last week in Paris and they had an inspiring lunch date at Colette!
We got a delicious preview of Sylvia’s new collection and it is, as always, to die for. Samia and I each have a pair of favorite earrings on our wish list and….well…needless to say we love EVERYTHING, of course. The great thing with Sylvia’s jewelry and minaudieres is that you don’t need to buy new clothes to be the star of the party. One or a few of her pieces have the habit of making you shine and they combine so well!

Parisian illustrator and friend of Samia Angeline Melin surprised Sylvia by creating a wonderful new illustration in honor of her work, which we are posting here for you to see as well. It’s such a delight to hang out and work with talented AND kind women!

Check out these photos and if you want to order something, please be aware that you can email her. Her web shop will be open in the next months but she has many customers who find her without it, so no issue email her (email address on www.sylviatoledano.com).

Sylvia Toledano can be found on Facebook and she’s also on Twitter and Instagram (in fact famous blogger TheBlondSalad feautured her minaudieres collection on her instagram). She’s always featured on magazines like Vogue and spotted on stylish actresses…we’re super proud to own any of her pieces. Follow her on FB, Instagram and be inspired, again and again!

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sylvia-Toledano/145719682110600

http://instagram.com/sylvia_toledano

xoxo Liza Brouwer for Frenchonista

RSS feed

HAUTE COUTURE – By Martine Brand and Bruno Bisang.

Dear Frenchonista’s,

As you well know, we are inspired by fashion and most of all when there is a story behind it. Without a story, often there is no soul.
Samia always loved Martine’s illustrations and she actually noticed our post about Sylvia Toledano. Samia got into contact with Martine and since we at Frenchonista have a category for illustrations on our blog, we could not let this one pass!!

The story of Martine and Bruno is like a fairytale where two good forces meet: Fashion and Art. In this fairytale there’s no witch, no big bad wolf, but two amazing and sensitive people who were born artists and who recognized and enhanced each others talents. By cooperating they managed to create something very special, almost magical. And that’s how the book “Haute Couture” was born.

Martine Brand is a dutch (!) Illustrator, who used to be a fashion model and met photographer Bruno Bisang through her work. She became his muse and he encouraged and inspired her to develop her talents as an illustrator. He recognized her talent from the day they met. Together they decided to create the book “Haute Couture” that is for sale in all the most fashionable warehouses in the world. The book, containing highly inspirational fashion illustrations and photographs, is a must-have for your coffee table. It is published by Michel Haddi studio and distributed worldwide by Comag (a joint venture of Conde Nast and National Magazine Company).

We simply love Martine’s illustrations and would like to show you a few on our blog. The drawings are hovering somewhere between reality and dreamland, and that’s somewhere we all want to be!
Renowned Swiss photographer Bruno Bisang’s photography is true art. It’s not the classic fashion photography you see in most magazines. By looking at his photos you don’t just see the beauty of the model. It goes way beyond that, you really see the people, and there’s movement and emotion. No coincidence I just read in an interview that he was inspired by Italian neo-realism films of the 50s and 60s and no wonder that magazines like Vogue want to work with him and people like Claudia Schiffer, Naomi Campbell, Carla Bruni, Linda Evangalista, Helena Christensen, Karin Mulder, Monica Belluci and Yasmeen Ghauri chose to be photographed by him. The photographs and the illustrations go hand in hand, blend in with each other and tell us a story we want to read, with our eyes and mind, again and again.

You will definitely be able to find it at the Bijenkorf and we are honored to be able to tell you about it!

xoxo Liza Brouwer for Frenchonista

RSS feed

New Frenchonista Illustrations By Angeline Melin

New Hair cut, New Models, New Dog, New Life = New Illustration!

New Banner as well…

RSS feed

Beertje Van Beers- My Frenchonista Rose

Dear Frenchonista’s,

As you have been able to see, this is my week of expressing the love and gratitude I feel for Frenchonista’s nearest and dearest. Now the second surprise, for another much loved Frenchonista angel is ready as well (thank you, Clement Dezelus)!

I doubt that Beertje van Beers needs any introduction at all, but for those who are living outside of the Netherlands, I will do the honors. Not only is she a well known writer and a famous presenter, she’s also a fashion icon, gorgeous woman and one of my most active and enthusiastic ambassadors over the last year. I designed a gorgeous (and may I add very practical) clutch in her name, and her opinion means the world to me. When we met, we clicked instantly and, just as with Carolien, I feel super blessed to have her in my life and in my business. Don’t forget I am an expat and while many complain about the coldness of the Nordic cultures, I have been embraced with warmth by people who owed me absolutely nothing.

Beertje, my Frenchonista Rose, with this illustration, that captures your beauty, your humor and your intelligence, I’m letting you know: I love you and I hope you’ll remain a part of the Frenchonista family for ever and ever! I can’t even imagine what Frenchonista would have looked like without you and I will never forget all you did for me.

Love,
Samia

(text editing by Liza Brouwer)

Illustration: Clement Dezelus

http://www.clement-dezelus.com/

RSS feed

CAROLIEN SPOOR – MORE THAN A FASHION FRIENDSHIP

Dear Frenchonistas,

it all started almost a whole year ago, in September 2011, just before my first launch party. I was at the Grazia PC Catwalk, sniffing up the atmosphere and taking pictures for my Frenchonista in Amsterdam readers. I noticed a beautiful, elegant and stylish woman and asked her if I could take her picture for my blog. We got to talking and not only was she very charming, she was genuinely interested in what I was doing. I immediately invited her to my launch party and only then I discovered who she was: Dutch actress, singer and style icon Carolien Spoor. We all know how famous people are invited to lots of events, and herds of people continuously want to talk to them, so I was truly touched by her sincere interest in me and what I was doing.

The rest is history. Even before becoming my Frenchonista Ambassador she was acting like one, wearing my clutches at events, promoting them everywhere. She has been my (official ) ambassador now since the beginning of May and a friend since when we first met. Apart from the Carolien clutch I designed for her, we co-designed a gorgeous multifunctional dress and damn, does she wear it well!!

In interviews about Frenchonista, Carolien has often expressed her respect for the hard work I’ve been doing to make Frenchonista a success. Now it’s my turn:

Carolien, you are amazing and I love you not only for what you do but also and firstly for who you are. I don’t believe in coincidences, so I know we were meant to meet. As my ambassador and friend, I can now finally show you and the world (and believe me, I couldn’t wait, I’m SO excited about this) the Frenchonista illustration Clement Dezelus made. He has captured you and your elegance so well, I wish I could see your face when you’ll see it for the first time.

If we had champagne – and we will have some very soon, no doubt – I would say: Here’s to the best ambassador I could ever have wished for and to a true friend!

xoxo Samia

(text editing by Liza Brouwer)