Coco Chanel once said, rather famously, “Before you leave the house, take a look in the mirror and take one thing off.” Assumedly she was referring to accessories – to leaving behind, say, one strand of pearls or maybe going a little more minimal on the headwear. One doens’t imagine Coco removing her pants, doing one last quick spin in front of the mirror, and nodding in approval to herself before heading out the door. When it comes to a photoshoot, though, and in particular a sensual one, removing one key item of clothing can be more devastatingly sexy than being stark naked. Much of Tak Takei’s shoot for the latest issue of Bambi Magazine is styled in this way: a sheer top that looks like it might usually warrant a bra; a jacket worn with nothing underneath; a tartan pencil skirt worn with jewellery and no top at all. Credit stylist Bhoranie Selde for working partial states of dress to maximum effect. Click the thumbnails for full pictures: Glistening skin by makeup artist Pamela Sue Icochea and wet hair styled by Erol Karadag give model Katja a dishevelment that goes hand in hand with being semi-dressed. Under throws of soft light, Takei’s lens captures it all beautifully. View the full shoot at the gallery, and be sure to check out all of Bambi issue XVII here.
