Fabulous Thursdays: Fashion Heroes

Quite a while back I watched one part of the series called "The Day Before" and I remembered being fascinated by fashion legend, Diane Von Furstenberg, her persona blew me away-so confident, alluring and also a brilliant business woman. Inventor of the wrap dress, Diane has seen her business soar in the 70's, crash in the 80's and also rise significantly with an impressive comeback.

One of my favourite things she has ever said has to be about her looks and not giving in to plastic surgery. Earlier this year, following a ski accident left her with a broken nose and fractured face, DVF said, "If I ever had any desire to have plastic surgery...I know for sure, I would not want it. I was so terrified that I would lose my old face," adding, "I don't want anybody else's face. I don't want a younger face. I just want my old face back." Don't cha just love her? At 64, she is still a total rock star.

DVF back in the 70's

Diane’s 10 Rules to Live by (from Elle Magazine)

• Trust yourself. “The secret to feeling attractive, and to being attractive, is the confidence that comes from knowing who you are and what you believe in.”

• Accept the passage of time. “The older you get, the more you should learn to love life and appreciate the beauty that comes with age.”

• Document your days. “Carry a camera and create an inspiring visual diary of your life.”

• Your suitcase symbolizes your life. “The best way to know a woman is to open her luggage. If she knows how to pack well, it means she understands , and cherishes, how to live a simplified life.”

• Fashionable friends. “Choose fashions that make you happy. I hope the clothes I design will become my clients’ best friends. That way, when they open their closets, they will always encounter someone special.”

• Dress your personality. “Always choose styles that also accentuate your personality. Don’t use fashion to try and project a different persona. Authenticity is key.”

• Use your feminine power. “My mother taught me that being a woman is a privilege because the world revolves around us! It is a precious gift, and its power should be used in a subtle and respectful way.”

• Your handbag is your guide. “Before leaving home, check your agenda and organize your bag according to what you have to do that day. Keeping everything in order makes life easier.”

• Indulge yourself. “If you are like me, and don’t want to resort to Botox, book regular massages. I’m sure it helps to keep everything firm and in it’s place!”

• Lead a balanced life. “The best regimen is to keep moving! Never stop working, travelling and seeking adventure. Drink plenty of water, limit alcohol and sugar and get to your yoga class!”

Another major inspiration, is Marilyn Monroe... I really enjoyed Jennifers post on 'Beautiful Misfit' via i know, right? Oh, and she totally she cracks me up in a huge way, but don't be surprised if you learn something new from her posts too.

Loving these rare Marilyn Monroe photographs via time.com circa 1950
& Marilyn Quotes

image above via I know, right?

"Everyone's a star and deserves the right to twinkle."

"Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius and it's better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring."

"Keep smiling, because life is a beautiful thing and there's so much to smile about."

"If you're gonna be two-faced at least make one of them pretty."

My other hero: Natalie Massenet

There are a few people in life that I totally respect and am simply in awe of, depending what their speciality is & what they do. One of my heroes in life was my late Grandmother (aka Billy Por - por por is Chinese for yiayia/grandma-no idea where the Billy bit came from but it just stuck) and my hero du jour? - Natalie Massenet, the woman who founded Net-a-porter.com, global e-tailer selling luxury fashion, is an internet extraordinaire and power business woman has just sold her retail business for an approximate £50 million! Go lady!



Natalie Massenet rocks on so many levels, setting up and launching Net-a-porter.com whilst pregnant - that's insane right? The business went from strength to Superman style strength, with a growth turn over of 47.8% in 2009 and profits soaring at a whopping 234%!

Formally a fashion journalist with killer buyer & business instinct, she bought in designer collections selling them online, thus changing the way women shop forever. The gap in the market 10 years ago for designer brands (exports from the US) and buying online was virtually non-existent back then.
Net-a-porter is pretty much genius, selling to women who are way to busy to hit the shops, mums at home, women who don't live near a major city and don't have time, women who can't get their mitts on the 'must-have' item featured in Vogue and celebrities who basically want to shop in private, blowing an average of £7k per shop. Not bad i say.

The website has a really clean, easy to use format along with magazine style guides, fashion tips, must-haves, speedy delivery service, get the look "Dress-me" fashion guides - imagine ASOS.com but with luxe fashion. This kind of format and input has spurred many high street retailers to do pretty much the same thing, I always get my newsletters and style guides delivered to my inbox weekly from high street to online fashion boutiques, but there is so much more drool-worthy items on Net-a-porter, seriously in the words of Rachel Zoe, "I-Die"!

Although Natalie has sold the website to luxury Group (i personally thought it would eventually be sold to LVMH) Richemont, she will continue to remain actively involved in the business re-investing some £15 million into the business.

Not only has she succeeded in creating the most amazing and powerful luxury fashion e-tailer, she also understands "chic-onomics", launching a sister site in 2009 (my fave, credit friendly fashion site) - The Outnet.com which features and sells last season's high fashion at discounted prices - what's not to love here?

This is what she has to say about The Outnet:
"Great fashion won't disappear – it will go to the Outnet and we are delighted to create a vibrant, fun and edited destination for the global sale shopper to call her own."

My fave Natalie quotes?

Believe in yourself: "My dad taught me never to be afraid of what's on the other side of the mountain."

Innovate: "If we come up with an idea and someone says it's never been done before, that's when we get going."

Disregard your doubters: "There were a lot of unimaginative private-equity people who said that women would never shop online. I think about those people a lot. I'm sure their wives are having Net-a-Porter bags delivered to their homes every day."

She's pretty brilliant, What next Natalie? We're waiting...

Ref & images via Daily Mail, The Telegraph, Vogue, Drapers & Net-a-porter