JessicaRulestheUniverse.com

Contrary to the popular assumption, the Pope does not wear Prada. (The public must have him confused with that other one.)

“L’Osservatore Romano, the Vatican newspaper, categorically denied reports today that (the Pope’s) shoes were a Prada product, saying this was “of course false”. According to Vatican sources the Pope’s shoes are made by a cobbler from Novara called Adriano Stefanelli, who makes them from calf or kid for the winter and nappa leather for the summer. Papal shoe repairs are carried out by Antonio Arellano, a Peruvian shoemaker in the Borgo, the medieval quarter next to St Peter’s. The article, on “Ratzinger’s Liturgical Vestments”, was written by Juan Manuel de Prada, the noted Spanish writer and author of The Tempest, who is not related to the fashion company. De Prada said that the image of the German-born Pope as concerned with “frivolity” was at odds with the truth, which was that he was a “simple and sober” man. Suggestions to the contrary were “stupid and banal”.”

Bangkok 2, originally uploaded by 160507.

From the Suan Lum night market in Bangkok, 160 baht (about 220 pesos). I didn’t haggle. Dammit why are their graphic tees wittier and cheaper than the stuff sold in  Manila? Why is Thailand clean? Why are their roads wide and smooth? Why does Bangkok work? And why, when you return to Manila and emerge at the airport, do you immediately feel a depression coming on?

Speaking of archaeological movies:
1. Here’s a good demonstration of the difference between television and cinema. What works in 30-minute episodes on the small screen cannot be stretched to 142 minutes on the big screen, no matter how many 80’s-style musical montages you throw in.
2. The TV show’s strength was in the writing. After all, its main character was a writer. The women could be silly, vindictive, self-absorbed bitches, but they were endearingly human. The movie’s producers were so engrossed in the clothes and accessories, they forgot to hire writers.
3. Sets a new standard in movie tie-in advertising: at least 5 obvious product placements per scene, and a product mention every five minutes. Not content with having a bag in every other scene, LVMH has apparently sponsored a character named Louise. Oh look, it’s like a Vogue photo spread. Wait, it IS a Vogue photo spread.
4. After the first hour, I began to hope someone would get mugged.
5. The cinematographer likes Big more than Carrie. Big was more interesting when he was a jerk.
6. Are those shoes, or stilts?
7. Looks like the distributors cut the movie to get a PG rating. The cuts are very badly done. One character’s pot belly is deleted entirely, so we don’t know what the hell they’re talking about. So the movie is even more “sanitized” than the version shown on cable.
8. The moral of the story is, If you try to pollute the New York Public Library with your frou-frou, something terrible will happen.
9. Noel: “The title should’ve been Sex and the City: The Final Crusade. If there’s a sequel it should be called Sex And The Pity. It’ll be about mercy sex.”

James Reyes, originally uploaded by 160507.

This is James Reyes’s mood board for his Fashion Watch Quartet collection, showing May 20 and 22, 4pm teatime at the Shangri-la Makati.

“The collection was inspired by music and images from the early 80’s. It was the time when music dictated fashion and MTV was our fashion magazine. It was the time when we dressed up like our favorite singers and Manila became seasonless (winter wear in the middle of summer). This was also the time when Japanese designers ruled the fashion world and clothes were brooding, conceptual and emotive. This was the time my interest in fashion and style was solidified.

“This collection is a visual journal of who I am as a designer. Since this is my first solo show, I’m treating it as sort of a re-introduction of my design sensibilities. It will show my design influences and the direction my fashion is going. What will be evident in my collection is my graphic design background. After years of working in an ad agency, graphic design never left my system. I will be showing black, white and gray pieces which for me, covers an entire spectrum of color. Working with these colors give me a sense of freedom to create new shapes and surface tensions. My interest in architecture will be seen in the streamlined shapes and forms I used in the patterns but still respecting the human form. Music is a big influence in all my collections. This time, New Wave music of the early 80’s gave me visions of a concrete metropolis filled with people rushing about in cold weather, the wind blowing their coats and scarves about, a huge rush hour crowd in black layers, steel structures of modern buildings, twinkling windows of skyscrapers instead of stars, fog, smog and urban decay.

“If this collection had a title, I’d probably call it Metropolis.”