First and foremost, I would just like to say how excited I am to start off 2011 with a bang and how privileged and honored I feel that my dear (and most stylish) friend Nancy has appointed me the voice of Covet Shop Blog!!
As Nancy mentioned in the previous post, we go way back and have seen it all: the good, the bad, the glam and the ugly of the fashion world…to say the least! I am excited to share with you our adventures and insider info – past, present and future, as we navigate the most amazing and thrilling world of fashion.
My first topic of conversation or shall I say blog entry came to me the other evening as I stumbled upon one of my favorite occurrences on the BBC channel: an old-school James Bond 007 marathon Sean Connery style (who in my humble opinion is and will forever be the ONLY 007).
The Original
I texted one of my besties, and might I add my only authentic British friend, Lucy, to tell her of this marathon. As a true Bond devotee, she informed me she was already watching. I pressed the ‘info’ button to find out what cinematographic excellence was in store for me and my significant other for the evening.
Luckily, it was three of my top five favorite Bond films ever made: Goldfinger (1964), Diamonds Are Forever (1971) and Dr. No (1962). All three films happen to star some of the all time most gorgeous and iconic sex symbols of the 20th Century. They are pretty much the entire reason why I started watching the films as a young girl because who wouldn’t want to look like a Bond Girl?
Let’s face it, the movies are basically all about Sean, the babes, the exoticism and the gadgets (at least for me). My number one priority being the babes…which leads me to the point of this entry: Bond Girl Style, or simply BGS.
Anyone who knows me or was in any of my illustration/portfolio classes at Parsons knows that I am OBSESSED with 60’s style – the make-up, fashion, clothing, hair – you name it! There is nothing better than a smokey eye and a pale lip (hello, my favorite lip color is Belle du Jour by NARS).
Smokey Eye and Pale Lip
I love the sex kittens of the 60’s and their sensual but demure style. I love mini skirts, pea coats, shifts, metallic brocade, lame, sexy pant suits and a good blouse – all things very 60’s and very BGS. I also like women to look like women, to have an unapologetic, unabashed attitude when it comes to their sex appeal and no problem using that appeal to their advantage. I like the fact that many of the Bond Girls illustrate that there is such a thing as “brains and beauty.” I mean, after all, I did attend a very progressive, all girls high school!
This is why I love Bond Girls and BGS. My favorite Bond Girls are the smartest ones, which are also usually the sexiest and always seem to end up with James, canoodling somewhere on a deserted island or jetting off to some exotic locale. I also absolutely love the sound of Shirley Bassey belting out the theme songs to Goldfinger and Diamonds Are Forever…such classics! And can’t forget about when Kayne sampled Diamonds Are Forever a few years back…great use of the Bond.
However, not every beauty has a brain. A signature of the Bond films are the token floozies (to use a retro word) in each and every film, which in most cases do not make it to the end of the film and have very limited screen time; they most always fall victim to 007’s enemies.
Another delightful and highly entertaining aspect of the Bond Girls, are their risque, tongue-in-cheek and quite often rather sexual names, such as “Plenty O’Toole.” Poor Plenty makes a brief appearance in Diamonds Are Forever, meeting James while he is playing craps in the casino. She later meets her fate of being thrown out the window of Bond’s hotel suite…however, luckily for Plenty there is a pool below.
"Plenty O'Toole"
One of my personal favorites and also one of the most iconic images (while rather morbid, but somehow still so glamorous) is that of Bond Girl Jill Masterson (played by British actress Shirley Eaton) painted from head to toe in gold paint. Jill meets an early demise, seemingly to have suffered from epidermal asphyxiation in Goldfinger and although she is not on the screen for long, she makes quite an impact. I guess I am not alone in that sentiment, as Shirley Eaton made the cover of LIFE in 1964 painted in character as Jill Masterson.
Shirley Eaton as Jill Masterson from Goldfinger
Back to the names…how did they ever get away with it in the 1960’s? It just goes to show you that the 60’s were in fact the decade of free love and sexual liberation. Personally, my favorite name (and I am sure most Bond connoisseurs would agree with me) and also one of my favorite Bond Girl characters (who has the most amazing BGS) would have to be “Pussy Galore” from again, you guessed it, Goldfinger (played by the actress Honor Blackman).
"Pussy Galore"
Pussy and her equally endowed, bombshellesque aviation crew are in on Goldfinger’s plan “Operation Grandslam” to break into Fort Knox and detonate a dirty bomb, until she is swayed by the charms of 007 and informs the CIA, foiling Goldfinger’s plan by replacing the deadly nerve gas with sleeping gas. She saves the day and ends up in the arms of 007 on a deserted island under the umbrella of an escape parachute, teaching us all that yes, you can have your cake and eat it too…
"Pussy Galore" and her crew
Here is a picture of Honor Blackman at the 1964 premiere of Goldfinger, clearly rocking true BGS in a pink satin, beaded gown with a large cut-out in the front to reveal gold lame, high waisted pants and boots underneath. True to her BGS school she has a cat eye and a pale lip, reminiscent of NARS Dolce Vita or Roman Holiday. Also note the one strategically painted “Goldfinger” on the hand she is flashing for the paparazzi…
Here are some more images of my favorite and cleverly named Bond Girls from the series…
Below we have the beautiful Jill St. John, who portrays a diamond smuggler in Diamonds Are Forever. Appropriately named “Tiffany Case,” after every girl’s favorite little blue box.
"Tiffany Case"
In true BGS she spends a better part of the movie in fabulous retro lingerie or half naked…
A seductress under a fur throw a la "Tiffany Case"
My favorite and probably the most recognizable Bond Girl has to be “Honey Ryder”, played by the gorgeous Swiss actress, Ursala Andress. Perhaps it is because I have an affinity towards blondes, being that I am one myself, but when she steps out of the water in that bikini in that famous scene from Dr. No. I cannot think of a better Bond bombshell or sexier women. Many have tried to replicate and emulate (Halle Berry, Mariah Carey etc.) Ursala in her retro, low slung bikini as she steps out of the ocean, but no one can beat the original.
"Honey Ryder"
And again…
Ursala in the famous bikini...
And finally a close up, or the “Honey” shot…true BGS
Honey's Glamour Shot
So my dear friends and Covet Shop readers, I hope you have learned a little bit about what it means to be a true Bond Girl and BGS. I personally believe that I was born in the wrong era/decade and always dreamed of being an old-school uber-glamorous Hollywood actress.
That dream has come and gone, so the least and best I can do to channel my inner BGS is to pay homage to the original Bond Girls by sharing this post with you. Each and every day I will try my best to emulate their impeccable style and take a piece out of their fashion book. A smokey eye, a pale lip and some fabulous Bond inspired wardrobe picks will bring me closer to my dream of BGS.
This my friends brings me full circle to where I began: my favorite website Covetshop.com. In true BGS I have selected a few items that I think would work for me or any girl out there trying to emulate BGS. I even think that 007 himself would undoubtedly approve.
I can see myself channeling “Pussy Galore” or “Tiffany Case” in this double breasted baby blue Miu Miu pea coat, plaid, low slung, belted Dolce & Gabanna trousers and carrying this retro Nancy Gonzalez crocodile bag…
Miu Miu Baby Blue Pea Coat
Dolce & Gabanna Low Slung Belted Trouser Pants
And finally the bag…
Nancy Gonzalez Crocodile Bag
On a final wardrobe note, I could definitely see many Bond Girls slinking around in this very retro, yet modern Yigal Azrouel gown, searching for their own 007…
Yigal Azrouel Slinky Evening Gown
I hope you all enjoyed my first post and thank you for letting me indulge my BGS fantasies with you…
I am off to go pull something decidedly delicious and Bondish from my own closet, head out on the town, have a few dirty martinis and try and get into some trouble of my own…until next time!!!
xoxo
BPT
