Archive for February 2011

Fashion Week

Astrid Andersen Wants to Make Cropped Men’s Puffer Jackets Happen

COPENHAGEN–Astrid Andersen is a Danish menswear designer whose collections are very literally inspired by American athletic and street wear. From the mid to late ’90s.

A graduate student from London’s Royal College of Art, Andersen showed her second collection this week at Copenhagen Fashion Week, set to a hip hop track played on the piano. Though Andersen is white and blond (as is most of Denmark), her models, with the exception of one, were all black, their hair parted and razored into styles most recently seen on Kid n’ Play. And these boys were jacked.

She showed animal print velour track suits (all unzipped to reveal massive pecs and washboard abs), cropped hooded puffer jackets in bright neons with elbow length puffer gloves to match, mesh sports jerseys (also cropped). Some of the models carried basketballs in gold chain sacks. The show was totally over the top, not to mention completely unexpected, but we heard that Opening Ceremony has picked up some of the collection. Men, will you wear cropped puffer jackets?

Check out the full collection.
All photos: Copenhagen Fashion Week®

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Entertainment

MTV Pulls Plug on Lauren Conrad’s New Reality Show Because It Was “Too High Brow”

MTV, the network that made Lauren Conrad a star, has confirmed they will not air her new reality show, which focused on her forthcoming contemporary line, Paper Crown.

“We decided not to go ahead with the show,” David Janollari, Head of Programming for MTV, told EW.com. “She did do a pilot. There were talks about whether we could somehow manage to put together a special based on that footage but that’s also a big question mark based on her interest in that and the finances…It was a great attempt but it just didn’t feel like a perfect fit for us now.”

It’s news that seems to have come to a shock to Conrad, who talked up the show in her Teen Vogue cover story a few months ago, saying it was inspired by The September Issue. “The Hills was shot with three or four cameras; things like entrances and exits were reshot; and if there were sound issues, we were asked to repeat what we just said,” Conard said. “This show is going to have a smaller crew, and they’ll just be following us around. It’s going to have a rougher feel, but I think the end result is going to be more true.”

Seems MTV wanted more Hills and less R.J. Cutler. Conrad has issued the following statement regarding MTV’s decision to kill the show:

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Fashion Is Fun

Pre-Fashion Week Mad Libs: Tracy Reese!

By Steff Yotka Friday, Feb 4, 2011 / 6:00 PM

Tracy Reese always puts out a pretty, happy, and best of all, wearable, collection. We can’t wait to see what she does this season. xo, F

People We Like

Matchbook: A New Online Magazine For Those of Us Who Miss Blueprint

The success of Lonny, the online-only shelter magazine created by a bunch of out-of-work Domino staffers after the magazine closed, is well-documented.

Undoubtedly inspired by Lonny, college friends and co-founders Katie Armour and Jane Lilly Warren decided to launch Matchbook–www.matchbookmag.com–a online lifestyle mag geared toward the girl who listens to She and Him, wears Kate Spade sparkly flats and desperately, desperately misses Blueprint magazine.

Katie, the editorial director, is the lovely blogger behind The Neo-Traditionalist and has also contributed to Lonny. Jane, the creative director, spent the last two years on the creative team at J.P. Morgan’s private bank.

We recently chatted with Matchbook‘s masterminds on the who, what, and why of this particular mag.

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Shopping Guide

Our First-Ever Shopping Guide: Toronto!

We know there are a gazillion shopping guides on the web, but truthfully, none of them give us what we want. So instead of looking to others, we’ve decided to launch a series of city guides ourselves. First up? Toronto. Which city would you like to see profiled next? Email us on tips@fashionista.com.

In the 1920s, New Yorkers (and Chicagoans and Detroiters) came to Canada to get their supply of booze. Gangsters like Meyer Lansky, Lucky Luciano and Al Capone made their names, and their millions, with whiskey from the Great White North.

A century later, the flow has reversed, and it’s no longer barrels of Canadian Club, but bundles of clothing, making its way across the border. Canadian shops are importing the very best of fashion, and not just from their Southern neighbor, but from the most progressive houses that France, Italy, Scandinavia and Japan have on offer. And they’re looking inwards as well—farming local talent, and curating one of North America’s finest and most eclectic vintage bazaars.

Toronto natives Hayley Phelan and John Ortved give us the most from North America’s least known fashion capital.

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  • Hayley Phelan and John Ortved
  • Friday, Feb 4, 2011 / 4:54 PM
  • 14 Comments
Streetwalker

Street Style: Siena is that Rare Cross Between Hippie and Goth

Name: Siena

Age: 21

Occupation: Manager of Veda

How would you describe your style? A cross between Hippie and Goth. I like to mix prints and different shades of the same color.

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Shopping

Rafe Gives You More Bag for Your Buck With Nine West

If Rafe Totengco’s first Nine West collection looks more luxe than you’d expect, it should come as no surprise. It’s design. Totengco, who was recently appointed creative director of handbags at Nine West, shared his inspiration for the collection.

“”I wanted to make everything look good,” said Rafe at the line’s preview yesterday. Mission accomplished. Totengco turned out an elegant collection that included plush fur-trimmed totes and vintage-inspired frame bags, each of which clock in at $99 or less.

Fashionista: Who do you think the Nine West woman is?
Rafe: A lot of people buy the shoes, but now if we can get her to buy the bag.

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  • Zandile Blay
  • Friday, Feb 4, 2011 / 3:15 PM
  • 0 Comments

A Review of the Fashion Coverage in The Daily, Rupert Murdoch’s iPad Newspaper

I was skeptical of The Daily, Rupert Murdoch’s new iPad-only daily newspaper. And I still am. (Read this piece to understand why.)

But regardless of my personal feelings towards this new information source, I’ve still been reading it for the last three days. And I’ll admit it–my other half and I will probably buy the 99 cent subscription after the pay wall goes up in a couple of weeks. I love reading free and easy papers like AM New York on the train, and reading it on the iPad is a heck of a lot less intrusive.

Like any other paper, there’s an Arts & Life section, featuring two fashion pieces thus far.

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Retail

Barneys is No Longer Selling Prada Handbags and Ready-to-Wear

Forget about fashion directors and window dressers. The biggest news coming out of Barneys since CEO Mark Lee came aboard is that the luxury retailer is dropping Prada handbags and women’s ready-to-wear from its stores. Update: We’ve heard from a source within Barneys that the real reason for the break up is not because of Barneys being unhappy with Prada, but because of a disagreement about leasing. (Prada wanted to lease its space in the store like it does at other department stores; Barneys doesn’t do that.) And that the decision was made before Lee even got to Barneys.

The Prada handbags section will be replaced by Valextra, a handbag line that’s exclusive to Barneys. (We’re sure you’ve heard of it–they’ve been shilling it like crazy for the past couple of years.) The store will still carry Prada men’s ready-to-wear and Prada shoes for both sexes.

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Fashion News Roundup

Fashion News Roundup: Manish Arora in at Paco Rabanne, Kate Spade London, and Cindy Crawford Goes Back to the Glossies

Manish Arora + Paco Rabanne: New Delhi-based designer Manish Arora is the new creative director of Paco Rabanne. {WWD, subscription required}

Kate Spade Hops Across the Pond: Kate Spade, whose creative director Deborah Lloyd is British, will set up its first permanent UK store later on this year. {Liberty London Girl}

LVMH Wants to Play Nice With Hermes Bernard Arnault says, again, that he wants to remain a “peaceful” investor in Hermes. Uhuh. {NY Times}

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Tom Ford to Show in London

The hottest ticket at London Fashion Week?

Undoubtedly the Tom Ford presentation, which his PRs have confirmed is really happening.

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Beauty

Ayla, the Shopping Site Devoted to Natural Skin Care, Launches

Does the world need another beauty e-commerce site? Dara Kennedy, a Harvard MBA and full-on skin care junkie, thinks so. Dara worked in beauty for a good chunk of her career before becoming an entrepreneur. She worked at Interbrand, was on the founding team of Living Proof, helped Marcia Kilgore launch Soap & Glory Cosmetics, and launched four product lines for Elizabeth Arden. So she knows the market well.

Her site, Ayla, will have a soft launch this Monday, February 7. The focus is entirely skin care. Dara is a certified yoga instructor and passionate about natural products. However, she also puts efficacy high on the priority list. “Sometimes the naturals work and sometimes they don’t,” she told me. Therefore, you’ll find naturals and organics next to clinical formulas that are still safe.

At launch, the site will offer Luzern, Peter Thomas Roth, Naturopathica, and the UK’s The Organic Pharmacy–which is an online exclusive for Ayla and quite a coup for the site–among others.

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