HARPER'S BAZAAR
02 August 2010

 

 

Harper's Bazaar

Harper's Bazaar

Harper's Bazaar

My gorgeous friend Elle Macpherson on the cover of this months Harper's Bazaar magazine.

 

This month in Harper's Bazaar magazine 'Personal Style'...

By Katrina Israel.

This model turned designer's look mingles boho-luxe with timeless designer classics.

Looking at Gail Elliott, dressed in a self-designed Little Joe Woman pink slip dress with crochet detailing, it's easy to imagine where the inspiration for her new collection came from. Elliott, stretched out on a rustic wooden couch in her Bondi penthouse, looks as exotic and beautiful as her inspiration, bohemian queen Talitha Getty, did back in th '60s in Marrakesh. The Getty-style piles of wooden beads and string bracelets are there, too, along with the floaty dress, the olive skin and tousled brown hair.

"I'd describe our new collection as modern boho-luxe in Morocco", says Elliott of the S/s 10-11 Little Joe Woman line, which she recently showcased for the first time at Rosemount Australian Fashion Week.

These days the model turned designer might have switched from the runway to behind-the-scenes, but that's not to say she's forgotten all those mind-blowing fashion moments. "I still remember when the five 'supers', Cindy, Christy, Naomi, Linda and Claudia, walked down the runway at the Versace A/W 91-92 show in Milan singing to Michael's Freedom", she says of that iconic fashion moment in 1991. "We were all standing backstage watching the monitor, waiting to follow them out for the show's finale; we were jumping up and down with excitement as they walked arm-in-arm, looking extraordinarily beautiful. I watched as Gianni and Donatella (Versace) hugged one another and cried...it was a very powerful moment".

She might be based beachside, but Elliott hasn't left the jet-set lifestyle completely behind. The striking beauty, who's part English, Portuguese and Indian, still speaks to Cindy and Christy, and keeps a house in the Hamptons, all while running her fashion empire from Sydney's Double Bay with her Australian husband, businessman Joe Coffey.

We walk through the airy Bondi penthouse into her walk-through closet, which houses part of her collection of Azzedine Alaia. "I probably have about 175 pieces from when I used to work with him in the early '90s", she says.

Given that Elliott has been dressed by many of the world's greatest image-makers, how does she put an outfit together? "I approach getting dressed like playing dress-ups, so I enjoy it", she explains. "I think if your wardrobe is full of amazing, quality pieces it takes the pressure off. I think that's why I started designing".

As far as accessories go, she loves Balenciaga and Hermes handbags, along with Jimmy Choo footwear. Her signature jewellery pieces are a platinum and diamond Tiffany cross ("the first gift my husband ever gave me") and a diamond ring ("a 10-year wedding anniversary present").

When it comes to unwinding, home is definitely where the heart is. "I relax by cooking, with a nice glass of pinot noir, or lying in the hammock on our deck reading a great book", she says. "I love the evolution of my life and am so happy to be exactly where Iam right now".

 

 

Posted by Gail Elliott

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