SHELLEY VON STRUNCKEL ON ALEXANDER WANG AND BALENCIAGA

Guest Post by Shelley von Strunckel, introduced by Melanie Rickey Fashion Editor at Large

Helllooo. My approach to writing here doesn't fit with Blogging Rules 101,  so I didn't write about the fact I was pregnant, or that I broke my leg in three places just before giving birth to my little baby Horatio who has hair like Ken Dodd and can break hearts at five paces. Nevertheless, the above did all transpire and I have not been writing on FEAL since August. Needless to say, but say I will - I am now a new mother with a slight limp. How very fashion of me. The latter will change when my physiotherapist is done with me, but for now I have thoroughly enjoyed the steepest learning curve known to womankind and in tandem to that becoming professionally rusty through lack of application.

My return to work will be gradual and I will be back in full force for the next round of fashion weeks. Today, though, I would like to share an aspect of the work of the wonderfully clever and scarily insightful astrologer Shelley von Strunckel with you; namely her astrological profiles of those public figures currently in the full glare of the media spotlight. I visited Shelley not long after Horatio was born so she could tell me about how myself and my son's personalities will work together using our charts as navigating tool. I found it utterly fascinating.

Last week at dawn an email pinged in asking me if I could verify the real birthdate of Alexander Wang from two dates doing the rounds online. Having pinned down the actual date for her, Shelley then went on to create the below report on Mr Wang's personality and what is happening for him now. She also created one for Cristobal Balenciaga the founder of the house Wang now directs.

Thank-you Shelley, you are brilliant.

WANG

Alexander Wang (Image from marcelokrasilcic.blogspot.com)

Alexander Wang- December 26th 1983- Capricorn

Fashion is full of visionaries. But a visionary with a sound business sense is rarer. Alexander Wang has both. With the Sun and Mercury, key to his mind, in tough Capricorn in his birth chart, he understands that, fashion is a business that, without profits, won’t survive. Yet this is balanced by idealism. With inventive Uranus, restless Jupiter and Neptune, planet of vision all in easygoing yet inquisitive Sagittarius, Wang’s easygoing and somewhat androgynous style won’t just update Balenciaga, he’ll redefine this revered couture house – and, in turn, prepare that rarefied world for the next generation. More broadly, he’ll rethink the couture’s financial future by re-evaluating the license business, from scent to handbags. True, with the great teacher, Saturn, powerfully placed in his chart until well into 2014, it will be a steep learning curve. But judging by Wang’s chart, both he and Balenciaga will emerge the better for having gone through the process.

BALENCIAGA

Cristobal Balenciaga by Boris Lipnitzki (image from pleasurephoto.wordpress.com)

Cristóbal Balenciaga- January 21st 1895- Aquarius

Any discussion of Alexander Wang would necessarily require a look at the DNA of the house, in the form of the unique visionary that was Cristóbal Balenciaga. With the Sun, Mercury and the sensual Venus in Aquarius, a sign that’s said always to be twenty years ahead of its time, Balenciaga transcended the ordinary. He also anticipated the sculptural looks of the 60’s and 70’s. With three planets in witty Gemini, fashion was as much about the concept as the person wearing it. While this is miles away from Wang’s contemporary style, their charts share one thing in common. The planet of discipline, Saturn, in the serious yet sensitive Scorpio. This indicates both regard their work not as a mere job, but as a calling.  

A note from Shelley

Having worked with the individual charts of private clients for years, when I’d read about somebody in the news whose actions were exciting, interesting or just plain puzzling, I’d get curious about their chart. I’d research their birthdate and calculate their chart. A chart done for the exact day of birth can reveal amazing insights about the character behind any individual’s actions. This led to interpretations of the charts which have appeared in The Sunday Times, Evening Standard’s ES Magazine and currently in Tatler. And now, with a fashion focus, here in Fashion Editor at Large.

To contact me or to learn more about having your chart done, please contact info@shelleyvonstrunckel.com

And follow Shelley on twitter; @vonstrunckel