• the ROLE MODEL

Ozwald Boateng OBE

Ozwald Boateng could be the next James Bond if he wanted to.  Actually…Minus the MI5…

He’s tall, striking, ridiculously charismatic- okay he doesn’t have a scottish accent (Sean Connery being the one true Bond for me) but he does drive the latest Aston Martin DB9 and there’s ALWAYS a beautiful woman close by. Barely twenty when we first met, I’ve witnessed his meteoric rise to superstardom -from the very early days when he started selling his suits in Neal Street, Covent Garden.  He was the first tailor to ever produce a catwalk show -in PARIS-those were truly exciting days!! His appointment by LVMH president Bernard Arnault as Creative Director at GIVENCHY Menswear to his flagship store at 30 Savile Row the cornerstone of tradition!

It was a beautiful Summer morning in London when we headed just off Oxford Circus to meet Ozwald at his four story Townhouse.  Tallulah had me running up and down hundreds of stairs (learning first hand the need for the lift inside the townhouse!) as she was curious to explore both his children’s bedrooms that were situated at the very top-particularly his daughter Emilia’s room with all her beautiful girlie possessions!   We popped over to Ozwald’s local for lunch-the very posh Langham Hotel and afterwards Tallulah was showered with sweets and patisseries!   He is treated like a super star after all!  Tallulah and Ozwald were bewitched by one another- there was an immediate bond!  It took me back-I met Ozwald that very first week I arrived in London and I knew I was in very good hands!  We’ve had an amazing friendship over the years, we’ve bonded over our passion for Cinema - he was the first to pioneer fashion films in the industry-he’s directed several short films-one of my favorites No Boundaries you can see HERE.  He has an extremely powerful, positive influence as a close friend always encouraging one to follow their dreams- to never give up.  Not only a designer but also a visionary-he’s channelled this natural, positive energy into the charitable Made In Africa Foundation. Co-founded with his partner Chris Cleverly they believe infrastructure is the key to transforming the economy from a developing to emerging market. They are dedicated to bringing innovative ideas and capital to Africa, whilst also focusing on the first stage of funding for infrastructure.

First changing the way men dressed now helping to change the world we live in. Thank you my friend-here’s to your next 20 years!  

A Man’s Story A full length feature Documentary chronicling the highs and lows of the past 12 years of Ozwalds life will be released early 2012.  You can watch the trailer HERE.  You can see more of his work and films at his website HERE and follow him on his blog HERE.

• the ROLE MODEL

Duggie Fields

I could listen to my good friend the Iconic London Pop Artist Duggie Fields’ stories for hours. Whilst still at school in the early 60’s he would take the train from Borehamwood where he and his family were living at the time to London to see unknown bands such as The Rolling Stones and The Who in Jazz Clubs with less than 50 people in attendance!  This was before either band had record deals!!  He was close friends with Mickey Finn from T-REX and was Syd Barrett’s roomate for years! He was surrounded by the sound of Pink Floyd rehearsing in the flat daily! Can you imagine!  It was such an exciting time when Duggie made the move to London to attend the Chelsea School of Art- living just off the King’s Road where (quoted by the media) all the beautiful people were-Duggie included! His group included Ozzie Clark- fresh out of The Royal College Of Art-who was based in the trendiest shop in the King’s Road when London’s fashion scene exploded!  I’ve known Duggie since I was 19 when we would go clubbing together in London and while I was living in Earls Court Square very near to Duggie I would bring over homemade chicken soup when on some nights we just wanted to curl up and watch movies!  I was so happy Tallulah was finally able to meet him!  He let her draw in his studio on the floor surrounded by colorful pots of paint and was completely at ease even though she was drawing next to a painting in progress worth several thousand dollars!!  I was relieved when she decided to explore the Barbie doll sculpture in the adjoining room. After lunch we went for a walk through one of Duggie’s favorite haunts- Brompton Cemetery. Fanny Brawne and the Marchesa Luisa Casati are both buried here amongst other notables in this beautiful cemetery.  I was rather surprised I had not been before.  Artist, style Icon, recording artist- I am continuosly inspired by Duggie-he has just published a book Just Around The Corner -A sort of social diary-a love affair that was and continues to be the beautiful city of LONDON!  You can see more of Duggie’s work at DuggieFields.com.

Click HERE to view more pictures.

• the ROLE MODEL

Coco Rocha

It was evident on first meeting Coco (Tallulah in tow) how much she loves children. We spent the afternoon with her and her lovely husband James Conran at their beautiful midtown apartment that James interior designed. In the foyer there’s an original print-my favorite of Coco- that Steven Meisel had given to her as a wedding present! We ate a wonderful lunch, talked about how she got involved with the charity LakeyPAM and her and Tallulah played hide and seek-and I’m not exaggerating when I tell you that we couldn’t find Coco for close to 15 minutes! She was hiding in the bath tub with a pile of clothes on top of her!  She doesn’t do anything half heartedly.  Partnering with LakeyPAM she co-founded along with her close friend and model Behati Prinsloo Letter To Haiti.

Click HERE to view more pictures.

Below is an excerpt from Coco’s Trip to Haiti Diary.

I first saw the reports of the massive earthquake in Haiti a little over a year ago. I was sitting in an airport and I’ll never forget the shocking scenes of destruction, death and chaos. I knew I had to do something. Since then, I’ve been helping raise money in New York for a non-profit organization called LakayPAM (“my home”). It helps provide more than 500 orphans in Haiti with shelter, food, medical care and education.

Despite our success with fundraising events in New York, I still felt very distant and disconnected from the people and the children I was trying to help.  What I really wanted was to actually see the children of Haiti. My husband, James, and I started planning our trip. As I started gathering the toys I wanted to give to the children, I thought about what they really needed. It occurred to me that many of the orphans had lost so many people in their lives that what they probably needed most was the love of another human being. I decided to create a pen pal program to deliver these children messages of hope and love from other kids.

Haiti has to stay in our minds and hearts. If this trip proved one thing to me, it’s that the children still need us, and I will not give up.

James and Coco will be releasing a short film they have created about their experience in Haiti- you can watch the trailer HERE. Please read Coco’s diary in full HERE.