No dawn, no day, I'm always in this twilight, in the shadow of your heart

I have long admired Daphne Guiness for her confidence and exuberant styling. She inspires me with her fearless attitude to fashion and accessorising; where many people follow the old motto of Coco Chanel to remove one item of jewellery before leaving the house, Daphne just adds extra, but never in a careless manner. As extravagant as her outfits may be they are never costume, never affected. Each look she puts together is distinctly HER. I had previously thought that she could rise in my esteem no further than when she stepped out wearing THOSE Alexander McQueen 'Armadillo' heels- but today, on my morning internet browse, I came across a cover and editorial spread which knocked the breath out of my lungs.
Enter Daphne Guiness, as photographed by Steven Klein for the September issue of Vogue Italia 2008. A vision. An inspiration. A goddess.

OMG. the headpiece!! I love the rich dark plum hue of her lips and the sculpted cheekbones. I love that for this cover shot they have taken the stereotypical image of a woman on a beach and transformed it entirely. Daphne is not one to sit on a sandy beach. No. She sits on a gothic, wrought iron sun-lounger on a hard, rocky beach and stares right into your eyes in a confrontational manner. She is not afraid to look at you. She is not afraid to be looked at.

Daphne is renowned for wearing large, full-finger jewellery, but the mass of metal which surrounds her fingers here make her look skeletal- if in a Damien Hirst kind of way. I love the set up with the dead seagull lying with her- its like a macabre still life, a memento mori- yet strangely peaceful.  The soft lighting adds warmth and makes her look as if she is resting like a gothic sleeping beauty.

I love that, once again here, they have inverted the traditional 'descending a staircase' theme and switched it around and so the attention is placed on Daphne's back and the detail of her gown- an unusually soft look, but one that is counterbalanced by the female model in black tie in the foreground and the blazing figure in the picture frame in the background.

Daphne as a film noir spy- a cross between Kim Basinger in LA Confidential and Daryl Hannah in Kill Bill part II. I love the upward tilted camera angle here-it gives Daphne greater power in the shot.

Like a virgin? Even in white with a sheer embroidered skirt Daphne's attitude shines through to make her the dominant force in the photo- forget about the half-naked wet male, Daphne is in control.

This look is the most traditional Daphne outfit- heavily embellished, highly structured, full-length black. I love the set up with her reflection viewed from a side angle. The inclusion of the ape and Daphne's expression makes me think of one of the final lines from King Kong spoken by the director Carl Denham: "T'was beauty killed the beast..."