submerging from your world and back into my bliss, a day rolled into one is burning on my lips

I can’t believe I never put two and two together – but the model of one of my all-time favorite Esquire covers (under the art director of George Lois) was none other than Warhol superstar Susan Bottomly. Susan was featured as “The New American Woman: through at 21” in the February 1967 issue as the glammy girl sticking out of a rusty trash can. Of the infamous image, Lois said “So I had her with her tush in the garbage can. I gotta tell you, some women hated it, but plenty of them were laughing their asses off. My wife said that she went to a beauty parlor that week, the month when it came out, and they hung it in the beauty parlor and the women were laughing their heads off.”

The cover article for which Bottomly posed for was heavily revised to fit the statement-making image – “The article described a pseudotypical Los Angeles woman, prone to suicide, sexually jaded, hooked on pills and astrologically obsessed, who was supposed to be the wave of the future for all American women coming into their early 20s,” explained a Time article from 1967.

The image comes from a 1966 photo session that Susan (who was by then Andy Warhol's partying partner-in-crime and dubbed "International Velvet") posed for with Warhol, by legendary photographer Carl Fischer. 

Title: from " As If By Magic" (La Roux)

you got me heels over head

Earlier today, I was doing some casually internet-stalking (as I so normally do) and I found a photograph of Edie Sedgwick on tumblr that really reminded me of a previous photo I'd seen of her. It wasn't just the peroxide blonde cropped 'do or the painted eyes or even the monochrome-minimalist wear that she so rocked that triggered my memory - it was her pose. 

Hoisting her lower body up in the air, allowing her dancer legs to be shown off to the nth degree, was Edie's go-to pose in a lot of modeling as well as Factory shots. There's a light-heartedness to these photos, and that's how I like to think of Edie - a free-spirited young woman, happy enough with her life to kick up her legs and have a laugh. 

(*sidenote: my yoga instructor says that this is a really good position to practice, especially if you want to strengthen your back*) 

How to be like Edie Sedgwick

With a life as quick and bright as a shooting star, Edie Sedgwick has become an icon of the sixties underground for her style, beauty, warmth, and her troubled personal life. Quite arguably Warhol's most famous superstar, Edie was the subject of numerous songs, books, and a biopic with a cult-like following (she also inadvertently was a central part of the lawsuit Bob Dylan filed as a result of Factory Girl's implication of his role in her death). In addition to the legions of girls who copied "her fog, her amphetamine, and her pearls" during the 1960s, Edie has inspired many modern-day gals. Taking style cues from Sedgwick is not just Factory Girl star Sienna Miller, but also the likes of Nicole Richie, Mary-Kate Olsen, Samaire Armstrong, Lindsay Lohan, the late Brittany Murphy (I wrote a post about Edie and Brittany a few months ago), and many other young girls who look smashing wearing black tights en lieu of pants. I myself have been a devoted fan of Edie for many years, and I offer my abbreviated guide to Sedgwick-dom to any (and every) one fascinated with the first "poor little rich girl":

Edie's Wardrobe:

• Black opaque tights
• Fur coats (in a variety of different kinds: mink, leopard, monkey, fox, etc.)
• Black leotards (to wear to dance class)
• Black-and-white striped anything - tee shirts, sweaters, tank tops
• Boatneck shirts (especially black-and-white striped boatnecks!)
• Sleeveless shift dresses in metallics, monochrome prints, and a variety of different materials (Edie had a Betsey Johnson-designed shift dress made out of vinyl when Edie was the spokesmodel for Betsey's line Paraphernalia)
• White v-neck tee shirts
• Black mohair turtleneck with long sleeves
• Tight, short miniskirts

Her Accessories:

• Shoulder-duster earrings (Check out Steve Sasco Designs for exact replicas of Edie's earrings. Sasco was jewelry designer for Factory Girl - I can vouch for his designs; I own several pairs and they are exquisite)
• Black undergarments (rocked onscreen by Edie during Poor Little Rich Girl and Beauty No. 2)
• Black ballet flats
• Black high heels (slingbacks, etc.)
• Fishnet tights
• Long chain necklaces to layer with one another
• Black rosary necklace
• Brown leather rhino from Abercrombie and Fitch
• Hats (newsboy caps, wide-brimmed felt hats, fur cloche hats)
• Her two perfumes of choice were by fashion house Rochas: Fracas, and Femme (seen in Poor Little Rich Girl)

Pastimes:

• Sketching portraits of horses
• Listening to the Everly Brothers while ordering orange juice and coffee, applying makeup, getting dressed, and explaining how she spent her entire inheritance in six months (a la Poor Little Rich Girl)
• Posing for the pages of Vogue
• Hanging out at the Factory
• Burning down rooms in the Chelsea
• Dancing, dancing, dancing

Acquaintances:

• Betsey Johnson
• Bob Dylan and Bob Neuwirth
• Andy Warhol
• Brigid Berlin
• Baby Jane Holzer
• The Velvet Underground
• Mick Jagger
• Ultra Violet
• Chuck Wein
• Sally Kirkland
• Bibbe Hansen
• Salvador Dali
• Judy Garland
• Diana Vreeland

Hangouts:

• The silver Factory
• Santa Barbara ranch
• Silver Hill Hospital
• The Chelsea Hotel
• Max's Kansas City

Pearls of Wisdom:

• "I think drugs are like strawberries and peaches."
• "I'd like to turn the whole world on just for a moment. Just for a moment."
• "I'll have to put more earrings on. I bet that someone could analyze me and tell my condition by my earrings."
• "I know a lot of rich people and they're all pigs."
• "I really like good, beautiful clothes. I love the space, Courreges things. I love Rudi Gernreich. I hate to go through seventeen buttons. I'm nervous enough going someplace."
• "Speed is the ultimate, all-time high. That first rush - wow! Just that burning, searing, soaring sense of perfection. There's no way to explain it unless you've been through it."
• "I'm greedy. I'd like to keep most of it for myself and a few others, a few of my friends. Keep that superlative high just on the cusp of each day so that I radiate sunshine."
• "Wherever I've gone I've been quite notorious. And quite innocently so."
• "I lived a very isolated life. When you start at twenty, you have a lot of nonsense to work out of your system."
• "I had fun, but I really didn't have anyone I particularly loved. And I still don't, except for loving friends, but I mean I haven't been in love with anyone in years and years. But I have a certain amount of faith that it'll come."
• "I made a mask out of my face because I didn't realize I was quite beautiful. God blessed me so. I practically destroyed it. I had to wear heavy black eyelashes like bat wings, and dark lines under my eyes, and cut all my hair off, my long dark hair. Cut it off and stripped it silver and blonde. All those little maneuvers I did out of things that were happening in my life that upset me."
• "You care enough, that you want your life to be fulfilled in a living way. Not in a painting way, not in a writing way ... You really do want it to be involved in living, corresponding with other living objects, moving, changing, that kind of thing."
• "They say use it, channel it. Do it, like there will be a sign, be an artist, you're so creative, do anything, you've got to do it, use it. Then, things like, and you've got to collect yourself too. I mean, you know, make your hair more about yourself, self-respect. But I mean, ridiculous."
• [About a dream she had] "It's like my having to walk down thousands and thousands of white marble stairs ... and nothing but a very very blue sky, very blue, like ... Yes, and I'd have to walk down them forever. I never thought about going up ... I don't know, don't you think that must mean something? It never occurred to me to turn around, I mean, why didn't I think that way? This was after I had the car accident."
• "It's sort of like a mockery, in a way of reality because they think everything is smiles and sweetness and flowers where there is something bitter to taste. And to pretend there isn't is foolish. I mean the ones that wander around and know, at the same time, and yet wear flowers, and they deserve to wear flowers. And they've earned their smile. You can tell by people's eyes."

candy came from out on the island, she was everybody's darling, but she never lost her head, even when she was giving head

Born in 1944 to an alcoholic father and a bookkeeper mother in Queens, New York, James Lawrence Slattery was reborn in two decades later as the Warhol muse Candy Darling.

Growing up in Long Island, Candy developed a deep affection for classic Hollywood actresses like Kim Novak, Marilyn Monroe, Jean Harlow, and Joan Bennett. It was the influence of these women that contributed to the Candy Darling persona in years to come. She started dressing as a girl during her teenage years, ultimately revealing herself to her mother after rumors arose about her attendance at a local gay bar. Her mother would later say of the transformation, "I knew then ... that I couldn't stop Jimmy. Candy was too beautiful and talented."

With the blessing of her mother, Candy began frequenting the Greenwich Village set of hipsters and artists. In the process of forming her identity as a female, Candy went through a series of names, starting with Hope Slattery around 1964, before moving on to Hope Dahl, Candy Dahl, before settling on Candy Darling.

In 1967, she met Andy Warhol at an after-hours club in the city called The Tenth of Always. With her look that was a throwback to classic starlets of the silver screen, Andy knew that Candy represented the ultimate Hollywood fantasy. With her breathy voice reminiscent of Marilyn Monroe and her platinum locks, Candy was beautiful. Unlike her 'sisters' Jackie Curtis and Holly Woodlawn, Candy was never in "drag" - she always just was herself. And she was glamorous.

Candy was cast in Warhol's films "Flesh" and "Women in Revolt," along with good friends Holly Woodlawn and Jackie Curtis. She also was cast by friend Tennessee Williams in his premiere production of the play "Small Craft Warnings." She acted on the stage once again in the first of three Jackie Curtis plays she would be in called "Glamour, Glory and Gold" with Robert De Niro. The other two plays were "Heaven Grand in Amber Orbit," and "Vain Victory: The Vicissitudes of the Damned." She continued her acting career with parts in "Klute" with Jane Fonda, whom she befriended and frequented the Factory, and "Mortadella" with Sophia Loren. She was in the running for the main role as "Myra Breckenridge," which ultimately went to Raquel Welch, before traveling to Vienna in 1971 to act in two features for director Werner Schroeter.

In 1974, Candy died of leukemia, a result of hormone pills she took increase her female form. Her funeral was attended by huge crowds. Guests included Gloria Swanson, who was remembered for saluting Candy's coffin, and Julie Newmar, who wrote a touching eulogy to her late friend: "Candy was a genius ... Hers was an extraordinarily high achievement. Her skin was so flawless, her behavior not limpid but liquid, the movement of her hands exquisite." After her death, The New York Times dedicated the front page to her obituary and her memory.

In addition to the great friendships she had with many legendary artists and thinkers, Candy served as muse to the art world as well. She was immortalized in two songs written by Lou Reed - "Walk on the Wild Side" and "Candy Says." Two books composed of her writings were published posthumously in the 1990s.

while mona lisa and mad hatters, sons of bankers, sons of lawyers, turn around and say "good morning" to the night

I've always loved hats. Even as a little girl, I never considered my outfit to be complete until I had put on my glitter plastic heels and some variation of a hat on my head. I rocked bonnets (during my hairless toddler days), berets, top hats, newsboy caps, and turbans. I was the suburban five-year-old equivalent of Little Edie of Grey Gardens. Perhaps my love of hats had something to do with my early obsession with The Secret World of Alex Mack, where the main character seemed to have a bevy of hats in her possession (she could also turn into a silver puddle on command, but that's another story). Or perhaps it was a genetic trait inherited from my former hippie mother, who has boxes of polaroids from her younger years where she was sporting all sorts of eccentric accessories atop her cranium.

My favorite style is the wide-brimmed hat. There is something quite alluring about a wide-brimmed hat - it adds an element of bohemian mystery to one's look. Unfortunately, due to my deceptively large head, I cannot wear most store purchased hats. So I will take solace in these photos of several lovely ladies from the past and present:

Mia Farrow is photographed in full Daisy Buchanan costume, including a white afternoon summer hat with dried flowers and lace, on the set of The Great Gatsby.

Sienna Miller with her then-beau (and now again current-beau) Jude Law on set of their film Alfie in a fantastically floppy hat. Though I'm personally not a fan of the film itself, Sienna's role as Nikki, a mentally unstable party girl, made me fall in love with Miss Miller.

Like mother, like daughter: Lisa Bonet and her equally as fashionable spawn Zoe Kravitz stroll the streets of New York in two fantastic head-toppers.

With the perfect hat on top of your head, any moment can seem beautifully romantic. Photographer Sarah Moon captures a lovely moment for the 1972 Pirelli calendar.

The fantastic Kate Moss is seen in a wide-brimmed fedora and her signature unkempt hairstyle.

Mischa Barton, who cites Marianne Faithfull and Anita Pallenberg as her main style idols, is photographed for Nylon magazine in an early 1970s-inspired shoot.

In artfully-applied hair and makeup, Jean Shrimpton looks the epitome of chic in a black turtleneck and black hat.

A large hat enthusiast, Marianne Faithfull doubles up on wide-brimmed hats to complete her classic bohemian look.

Wearing several Hollywood It-Girl staples, Vanessa Hudgens walks the Los Angeles streets in an American Apparel hat and Balenciaga motorcycle bag.

Born and bred in Hollywood, actress Tina Aumont looks adorable in her tan felt hat, brown suede vest, and purple top, paired with her signature kohl-rimmed eyes.

French model Vanessa Paradis looks bohemian chic in her wide-brimmed hat and ivory lace top.

The late Francoise Dorleac strikes a pose in a wide-brimmed hat and large knit shirt.

Maria Schneider looks seventies chic with costar Marlon Brando on set of Last Tango in Paris.

Muse to extravagant hat designer Philip Treacy, the late Isabella Blow is captured in her typical eccentrically chic style.

Edie Sedgwick fills every bit her role as a style icon in a black straw hat and Mongolian fur coat during her Ciao! Manhattan.

Zooey Deschanel looks precious in her 1930s-inspired hat.

Brigitte Bardot poses for the camera in a floppy felt hat and her signature sex kitten makeup.

Anna Karina looks fab in her feminine tailored suit and hat during the mid-1960s.

Paris-born model Charlotte Martin, former flame of Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page, looks hippie chic in a floppy hat adorned with dried flowers.

hey babe, what's in your eyes?

A (relatively) subtle sixties eye makeup look - just a simple black line across the upper lashes.

Penelope Tree rocking gold chains and spidery eyelashes.

That darling, daring Audrey Hepburn in a promotional shot for How to Steal a Million.

Jean Shrimpton on the cover of Beauty by Vogue.

Twiggy showing the camera how she applies her legendary eye makeup.

Ultra glamorous model Marissa Berenson poses with tassels in her hair and electric green eye shadow and baby pink blush.

Peggy Moffitt manages to apply eye makeup that upstages this wild Rudi Gernreich print.

Flower child Sharon Tate sports her heavy Valley of the Dolls-era eye makeup along with a purple caftan and hippie staple, a paisley head band.

Edie Sedgwick, known for her legendarily luxurious eye makeup application, poses in the latest sixties baubles.

Yé-yé superstar France Gall looks the essence of badass cool in thick winged eyeliner and a cloud of smoke.

A model from the mid-sixties recreates a peacock feather in an elaborate blend of eye shadows.

Peggy Moffitt, shown here applying her iconic lash paint.

Supermodel Veruschka photographed for Vogue in light lipstick and heavy eyes.

Gorgeous Twiggy shows up the final product of her makeup madness.

Edie Sedgwick successor Susan 'International Velvet' Bottomly sports eye makeup very similar to the Factory Girl herself.

Elizabeth Taylor in her role as Cleopatra, the film that single-handedly started the elaborate eye makeup craze of the sixties.

A model sporting a more classic evening look, complete with lace decals on the eyelids.

Jayne Mansfield, seen reapplying her already over-the-top makeup, in the mid-sixties.

Marissa Berenson, seen again in gorgeous eye-catching makeup.

Liza Minnelli in her Academy-Awarding role in Cabaret.

The most glamorous hippie I've ever seen.