Archive for February 2011

Beauty

Hannah Holman Talks Marc by Marc, Personal Style, and Her Very Own Jewelry Line at This Morning’s Daisy Eau So Fresh Launch

Unlike Steff, I’m not a model girl. I have my faves, but I’m not on Ford’s website every weekend searching for the latest faces on the board.

But I am a huge fan of Hannah Holman. We chose her as one of our favorite models to watch about a year ago, and soon enough she landed in campaigns for Alexander Wang and Marc by Marc Jacobs. And she’s got a supporter in Katie Grand, which always means good things.

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Reviews

Diesel Black Gold Fall 2011: Antique Yet Modern, Cool Yet Cozy

Timeworn yet timeless best encompasses Sophia Kokosalaki‘s collection for Diesel Black Gold this season. Set inside of the massive Pier 94, a maze of folding chairs whose occupants included Chace Crawford, Vanessa Hudgens, and Wyclef Jean, filled only a small portion of the stark concrete space.

The pieces were meant to look as if they had come to life out of a sepia photograph, and indeed the maroons, olive greens, navys, and neutrals all had a tinge of rust coloring to them.

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Reviews

J. Mendel Fall 2011: The Fur Files

Whether you’re a PETA sympathizer or collect vintage rabbit jackets by the dozen, you have to admit that designer Gilles Mendel knows his way around a fur coat. And there were plenty of bank-account-busting pieces Mendel’s high-end clientele will swoon over this season, with the focus on tribal body art motifs. It’s an unlikely inspiration for Mendel, to be sure, but it came across loud and clear in the mink overcoats carefully shaved into diagonal lines and circular curves so as to mimic aboriginal tattoos.

Many of the designer’s famous gowns picked up on the tribal vibe as well, with sheer sleeves that bore Maori-looking beadwork. Every look was shown with a super-long silk scarf dripping with embellishment and fringe–very Stevie Nicks chic–and the lovely boots (of Mendel’s own design!) made for nice finishing accents.

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  • Elana Fishman
  • Wednesday, Feb 16, 2011 / 12:00 PM
  • 0 Comments
Reviews

Vera Wang Fall 2011: Pleats are Swell

It’s day six of Fashion Week. Suddenly all of the shows are beginning to blur together and our grande coffee orders have been replaced by double shots of espresso. So this morning at Vera Wang, we could have almost dozed off waiting for the show to begin as a soundtrack of soothing violins played over the stereo. But we were deterred by the monstrous gilded gate that guarded the opening of the runway, a clear indication that we were about to see something good.

The collection, a take on the effortless American style of the 1930s mixed with the glamor of the English aristocracy of the same era, looked like it could have been the wardrobe for the Keira Knightley film, Atonement.

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Reviews

Tibi Fall 2011: 90s Casual by Day, Rococo Chic by Night

With a backdrop of metal-shuttered city storefronts, we anticipated a grittier Tibi collection this season. Like so many others this week, designer Amy Smilovic was inspired by the 90s, but she focused less on the grunge (although we saw some elements of it), and more on the sleekness and simplicity of the decade.

Daywear was just that with boy blazers, trousers, and basic frocks like sweater dresses accented only by hot pink slouch beanies and arm warmers.

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Trendspotting

Trendspotting: The Good Ol’ Red and Blue

By Steff Yotka Wednesday, Feb 16, 2011 / 11:30 AM


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Internships

Exposure PR Needs Interns in New York!

Exposure is an integrated communications agency looking for hardworking, enthusiastic interns that are eager to learn the inner workings of PR across the fashion and lifestyle industries.

Candidates must have great interpersonal and phone skills, be able to adapt to a fast paced working environment, be outgoing and enthusiastic, have a basic understanding of communications and the desire to learn more about the industry. Knowledge of Word, Excel and Photoshop are required.

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Reviews

Betsey Johnson Fall 2011: Valentine’s Day Bash

In the moments preceding a Betsey Johnson show, it seems to be that the only thing to talk about is how excited you are for the Betsey Johnson show. I was lucky enough to be able to snag a seat next to Heather of the hysterically witty duo The Fug Girls, and the only topics we managed to cover pre-runway were our current states of hunger, Joe Boxer (the personage, not the garment), and the sheer joy and happiness that only Betsey Johnson can provide.

This season Betsey took on Victorian Goths, showing her models in black bob wigs wearing corseted dress coats and plaid numbers that, when sold in stores, will be utterly wearable. This portion of the show was literally doused with animal print in sheer unitard form, which, let’s be honest, is pretty darn great. The layering effect produced gave the looks added dimension, some of the later velvet dresses looked almost Galliano-esque.

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Reviews

Victoria Beckham Fall 2011 Review and Video: The 100th Dress and Beyond

Fashionista contributor Long Nguyen is the co-founder/style director of Flaunt.

Over two years ago when I got an email about scheduling an early morning appointment to view a small collection of dresses by Victoria Beckham, I didn’t respond. I assumed it was just another celebrity gimmick at a time when there seemed to be an endless supply of musicians and actors launching one fashion collection or another. But three seasons ago, out of curiosity, I went on my first excursion to an Upper East Side townhouse where Ms. Beckham introduced herself to the very small group, shook our hands to welcome each of us, then sat among us to narrate the collection as models emerged from an adjencent room.

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  • Long Nguyen
  • Wednesday, Feb 16, 2011 / 10:51 AM
  • 6 Comments
Dennis Basso RF11 1308
Reviews

Dennis Basso Fall 2011: Fur-ocious

If you think fur is morally reprehensible or just tacky, I’d advise you to avert your eyes ASAP and move on to the next post. Lynx, kidassia (long goat hair), fox, broadtail, chinchilla, and alligator all made appearances at the Dennis Basso show. Dennis Basso is, first and foremost, a furrier.

And let me tell you, his rabid fans were eating it up. I was in Aspen over the holidays this year and saw firsthand at his store there the amount of adoration that this man’s wares produce. He has groupies. And they were out in full force at Lincoln Center to support his fall collection.

There were so many “moments” in the show:

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Reviews

Marc by Marc Jacobs Fall 2011: A Love Story

If Monday night’s Marc Jacobs runway can be likened to an asylum, then Tuesday’s Marc x Marc catwalk was a prep school. A 1972 prep school. It was all very Love Story, but not just Ali McGraw’s character. Ryan O’Neil was in there too, as was the bookish, quirky girl who mightn’t have actually existed in the screenplay, but was most definitely admiring the football hero from afar.

My favorite looks for the ladies were the suits, which are available in a variety of fabrics, from corduroy to velvet to tweed. A menswear inspired tweed overcoat also struck my fancy, as did a blouse with a mini capelet draping the shoulders. (That silhouette has been everywhere this season–and I love it.)

But of course the clothes were great–is Marc by Marc ever not on point?

What I really couldn’t stop thinking about was the brand itself, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year.

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Look Book

Lauren Conrad’s New Line, Paper Crown: The Complete Look Book

After MTV dropped Lauren Conrad’s reality show for being “too high brow,” Conrad lost a lot of potential publicity for her forthcoming contemporary line, Paper Crown. The show was to follow the making of Paper Crown, a la The September Issue (not The Hills). We wondered what would become of Conrad’s Paper Crown without the help of MTV, but a fall 2011 landed in our inbox late last night, so it looks like the collection will be in stores come fall.

The collection is sweet, just like Conrad, and we could picture her in every piece–which, considering her sizable fan base, is a very good thing. Judging from the look book, Conrad’s first attempt at a contemporary priced collection is a vast improvement from her lackluster collections for Kohl’s. It reminds us a little of Elizabeth and James only skewed younger. Paper Crown features on-trend basics like leather shorts, silk blouses in blush tones, slouchy blazers, tight cocktail dresses, tiered ruffled maxi dresses (a Conrad staple) and short, flouncy, belted dresses.

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