Falling into fall...

...so, the summer was amazing, inspirational, quiet, thoughtful, lovely...I spent 7 weeks in Paris. I enjoyed teaching high school students from all over the world and wished that I had blogged more about our class time and excursions. For the most part, they were bright, interested and quote wordily. I took them to exhibits on Madame Grès and Hussein Chalayan and a retrospective on Yves Saint Laurent. We had a lovely shopping time at Colette followed by lunch at Angelina. We studied the history of fashion, conceptual design, draping, the Japanese and Belgians and did photo shoots. I am already planning for next summer.

Aside from teaching, Creed, Zelda and I had a perfect little apartment on the rue Saint Martin. I would take them to the Pompidou in the morning before it opened and they would run up and down the cobble stoned incline. On rainy days, we could ride the escalators in the museum and on sunny days we would leave our 'quartier' and travel around town to different parks and monuments - the twins always arguing as to whether we should take the bus or the métro. In the evening, a friend or two would stop by and we would share a cheap bottle of rosé. The one I preferred this summer was called "Mythique" and seemed quite referential.

Each day was filled with inspiration - a gravestone covered by moss at Père Lachaise, the swirl of red wine in the bottom of my glass, the rain sweeping through Beaubourg as we sought refuge in the terrace of a café. But now, here I am back in Austin. It has been three weeks since our return and I have already presented a 10 piece collection for the finale of the Austin Fashion Awards. I am rebranding Blackmail and expanding my work space. Next week, we'll head to Marfa where I'll have a trunk show at the lovely home of a friend and do a desert photo shoot of my fall designs thus far.

And then on Tuesday, November 1st, I will present 14. - my fall/winter 2011-12 collection. I design for the moment, I design for the time; not for the season to come, trends to follow, or for huge orders to be placed. I'll make one for the runway, and maybe another one or two for the show. I can make one in your size - just ask me.

See you this fall.