Desert Days With Willow Todd 🏜️ + Looks to Die For 🤎💛🧡 + Campaign Dreams 📸 + Québec’s Autumnal Palette 🍁
Happy November, Fashion Lovers and Friends!
Hope this finds you well and feeling especially stylish! Fall does that to me (makes me want to pay particular attention to my wardrobe). Does it do that to you, too?! I think it’s because there are more layers and, hence, more options to contemplate. Having said that, it always takes me a minute to find my stride, especially here in LA, where the weather seems like it’s going to be chilly when you start your day and then, poof, it’s 80 degrees. The layer whiplash is definitely part of style here, and after living here for more than a decade, I’m still not particularly good at it. I end up carrying my jackets around like arm candy most of the time, but that doesn’t mean I don’t start my day looking chic and layered up!
This month, I am extremely excited to share the photos I shot and styled of model and actress Willow Todd in Palm Springs. We worked together on a creative several years ago, so it was great to shoot with her again. I love the desert. It feels very much like a spiritual experience every time I visit. It’s also a spectacular backdrop for fashion shoots. The tonal colors of the desert brush and epic mountains look like paintings, and the big skies at sunrise take your breath away. I’ve spent quite a bit of time there over the years and have been scouting good spots along the way, so it’s wonderful to finally put it all together for this shoot. Thank you, Willow (and your mom!), for making the journey.
The styling is ’70s glam meets desert hues, a look I often gravitate toward. Of course, fashion is fantasy, and I suppose some part of me wishes to wear four-inch stilettos and a shiny, figure-hugging spandex gown. But truthfully, it wouldn’t suit me all that much, so I reserve it for styling on models, and that fills my bucket!
In this issue, I take a look at some very lust-worthy looks in the same vein as my shoot that might inspire you for upcoming events. I also share some iconic desert moments from cinema that helped pave the way, along with some iconic fashion campaigns shot in the desert.
This month, I went to Québec for a family wedding. It was Great Gatsby-themed and loads of fun! (Those Québecers sure know how to party and have style for days! Everybody brings their A-game. It’s really quite something.) Anyhow, in many ways, Palm Springs and Québec City are opposites, except that they share a very similar palette in the fall. Absolutely glorious.
In Lulala, I share some of my favorite outfits from my trip to Québec, along with a couple of looks from events in LA. I hope you enjoy!
I feel like things are about to get much lighter and brighter in the coming days. It’s been real. Here’s hoping this week brings change for the good.
Love & Style,
amyluxox
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🏜️🌵
Cover credits: Willow Todd/LA Models; photo and collage, @amyluxox.
Desert Days
I had the pleasure of shooting Willow Todd from LA Models for this story, and she’s such a trooper! We started shooting at 5 a.m. and wrapped by 10. The desert sun is so intense that you have to move fast! That’s one of the things I love about being a tiny team (me + model): I’m quick and nimble. For the styling, I started with the desert colors and glamorous vibe and built the story from there. It always comes together quickly for me once I have the vision.
For the full story and more images, visit my Instagram.
Cover credits: Willow Todd/LA Models; photo and collage, @amyluxox.
Lu’s List
As you all know, I dream of a red carpet life. I don’t want the fame, just the clothes and a suitable place to wear them. Don’t get me wrong, I do my best to bring it for events, parties, and girls’ trips, but there’s a certain level of dressing that really belongs on a red carpet. I sometimes get to dress people for them, which is definitely exciting and fills A bucket, but not really THE bucket. At various times in my career, I’ve even had the chance to experience a few myself, but those opportunities are becoming more infrequent these days. What is one to do? Throw more parties? Get invited to more galas?
I just finished watching The Diplomat and was so thrilled by all the black-tie events and parties that foreign diplomats get to attend. Maybe foreign policy should be my next adventure!
So Cinematic
There is something so cinematic and meaningful about a desert setting. It’s dry, vast, dangerous, and otherworldly. The perfect combination for cinema and fashion campaigns. You simply can’t recreate its epic scale. Below, I share some of my favorite images.
Credits Clockwise:
Samantha, Charlotte, Carrie and Miranda in Sex and the City 2 (Abu Dhabi, 2010). ©Warner Bros
Sophia Loren in Legend of the Lost (Libya, 1957). ©Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images
Felicia in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (Australian Outback,1994). ©NFSA
Collage, @amyluxox.
Campaign Heaven
The infinite shades of brown, immense landscapes, and endless skies make the desert the perfect backdrop for fashion. All the greats have used it, and here are a few of my favorites.
Credits Clockwise By Column From Left To Right:
Zimmerman Spring RTW 2024, ©Benny Horne.
Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2004, ©Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott.
Balenciaga Fall 2019, ©Jean-Pierre Attal.
Roberto Cavalli Autumn/Winter 2007,©Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott.
Calvin Klein Fall 2018, ©Willy Vanderperre.
Collage, @amyluxox.
Québec — Autumn Paradise
I highly recommend visiting Québec if you have the chance, especially in the fall. The colors are breathtaking, and the culture and food are warm and inviting. Make sure you try all the desserts. They are absolutely worth it!
Here are a few of my highlights.
Clockwise from top left:
Fairy Forest
The beautiful fall leaves! It’s hard to capture the magic of the colors, but it’s truly a sight to see. There’s a little forest close to my in-laws’ home (a park by Canadian standards, a wild forest by my big-city standards), and when you walk in, the forest floor is covered in a rainbow of fallen leaves that feels just magical. It’s like a little fairyland. Apparently, the colors were even more spectacular the week before, so if you go, plan accordingly!
Olive & Gourmando is one of my favorite lunch spots in Montreal. The food is next-level comfort food, and the cozy atmosphere warms the soul, particularly on a chilly fall day.
Stairway to Heaven
When I first saw this staircase a few years ago, I wanted to return home immediately and redecorate my life. I absolutely love the bold yellow and floral wallpaper combination. I even sourced the wallpaper (House of Hackney) but ultimately decided to opt for a more subdued floral that wouldn’t lead to my divorce. 😂 Every time I pass the lovely little bakery, La Midinette, on Île d’Orléans, I stop to appreciate the decor and buy a baguette.
I Don’t Even Like Donuts
But when they have caramel and popcorn on top, one must try, right?! And this one was delicious!
The food is really good across the board in Québec. As a culture, they really invest time and care in celebrating cuisine. But it’s the sweet treats (anything caramel, maple, fudge, sugar pie, or ice cream) that take the cake for me. It’s just too good to pass up!
These donuts are from an adorable little café called La Folle Tablée, just outside Québec City.
Collage and images, @amyluxox.
Lulala
Although I generally try to highlight looks that tie in with each newsletter’s theme, I didn’t have the chance to wear any sequins in the desert this month. When I was there shooting, I was in work mode, which equates to jeans and a T-shirt at best. But I did have a few fun events that gave me a chance to dress up!
Clockwise from top left: I wore a black bouclé Self-Portrait dress and Sophia Websterheels for my friend Luisa’s birthday party in Fountain Valley. For dinner at CityWalk with my mom friends, I topped off my most-loved uniform (Aritzia leggings, a silk cami, and a cropped sweater) with a Self-Portrait trench and Loeffler Randall boots. I also included my favorite Wilfred brown sweater and matching trousers (it also matches the leaves perfectly🍁), which I wore to Café Smith in Québec City—the best café ever! And finally, my version of a Great Gatsby look for a wedding in Québec: a sequined Parker dress, a long fringed vest from Reformation, and Miu Miu heels. I picked up the faux-fur stole at Nordstrom to pull everything together, but the rest was already in my closet. :)
Collage and images, @amyluxox.
Wise Words
‘Art is how we decorate space, music is how we decorate time.’
-Jean-Michel Basquait
I love the idea that both art and music have the power to transform something ordinary into something that makes us feel. Art gives us something beautiful to look at; music fills space with feeling. Both invite us to experience the world in a more beautiful way. Perhaps that is what makes creativity so special: it changes the way we feel within the world.
✨🧡✨