THE DREAMER'S ATELIER

THE BEGINNING OF AN ERA..

Now, if only you’d know how long it took me to get my hands on this issue of American Vogue. Because this is not just another magazine issue. It’s kind of historical really, in more ways than one. This precise November 1988 issue saw Anna Wintour at the top of the masthead as editor-in-chief, a position she’s been holding for almost 25 years now. Not only does it celebrate her inaugural newest tenure, it also features for the very first time a model (Michaela Bercu) wearing jeans. With a Christian Lacroix Haute Couture jacket no less. Ms. Wintour had (probably, maybe) no idea at the time that she would launch the phenomenal trading down style or democratisation of fashion as luxury experts like to call it. A total departure from the close-up cover shots we were used to back then. Bercu was photographed by the great Peter Lindbergh in the most candid manner possible with an impeccable wardrobe edited by one my favourite fashion editors, Carlyne Cerf de Dudzeele, who was the publication’s fashion director at the time. This cover says it all to me: a future that was predicted so acurately. I love how Michaela is wearing the jacket so effortlessly; to me this ensemble is what defines my vision of ‘chic’: an unusual combination of items that brings a breath of fresh air, paired with an ever-laid back, confident attitude.

I’ve been adamant to get this issue because of its status (in my eyes at least). But thank God for Ebay. After several months of grueling research, I had finally found it. Maybe I paid for it a little more than I should have but it was well worth it. After all, this is where it all started…