Archive for June 2011

Shopping

Aritzia Soho is Officially Open, Plus a Sneak Peek at Fall

Aritzia‘s long-awaited first New York flagship is officially open for business and it is gigantic and full of very cute things you are going to want to buy. We stopped by for a little preview this morning and despite the boutique’s immense size and “metaphysical” theme, the store is comfortable, sleekly designed and, thankfully, not nearly as flashy as many of the stores that share its busy stretch of Broadway in SoHo.

The flagship, which is somewhere between Topshop and Zara in both size and location, has a more high-end boutique feel than its supposed competitors, as does the clothing. Aritzia‘s Madewell-esque focus on offering beautifully-designed clothes that are on trend, high quality and good value really shows in the brand’s spring collection; as well as fall, which I got to see up close this morning. I was particularly impressed by the coats and sweaters, which are all made with the best wools and cashmeres and yet are somehow ridiculously affordable. Right now, only Aritzia’s nine in-house lines are available, but soon you’ll be able to shop pieces from some of their favorite contemporary designers brands like Vena Cava, Acne and Vanessa Bruno. Click through for some of our favorite fall pieces. And don’t forget to stop by the store, located on the corner of Broadway & Spring.

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Fashion Is Fun

A Not-So-Ordinary Father’s Day Gift Guide

Father’s Day is June 19, meaning you have less than six days to get Dad that amazing gift. We’ve already shown you our favorite picks for moms, and dads deserve the same start treatment.

So, don’t settle for any old tie, click through our gift guide to find items worthy of a king.

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Reinaldo Lourenço Spring 2012: Diamonds (and Cats) are a Girl’s Best Friend

SAO PAULO–While Pedro Lourenço, Reinaldo Lourenço’s 19-year-old son might be getting all the international buzz lately, having shown two critically acclaimed collections in Paris last year, his father Reinaldo reigns as one of Brazil’s best and most well-known designers (so does his mom, Gloria Coelho, who shows today). In fact, Brazilians have been pretty bemused that I knew of Pedro Lourenço’s work but not his father’s.

After seeing Reinaldo Lourenço’s show yesterday, it’s easy to see where his teenage son got his skills. Called “Diamonds and Dogs,” Lourenço’s spring 2012 collection was a tribute to Liz Taylor. He was inspired, according to his line sheet, by “beasts and delicate waists, the enhancement of the sparkle diamonds, the America of baby boom, the sex appeal of the Golden Years, and fancy poodles, as a luxury accessory.” And while there was plenty of diamond-like sparkle (on sheer pinstriped blouses) and diamond shapes (comprising the skirts of floor-length gowns) and “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend” set the soundtrack, there sadly weren’t any dogs. Happily, though, there were cats, inspired by Taylor’s Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. The bra cups of pale pink and black evening wear were cat heads.

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Ad History

Image of the Day: Helena Bonham Carter Is Sick of Marc Jacobs

By Leah Chernikoff Wednesday, Jun 15, 2011 / 9:53 AM


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Reviews

Tufi Duek Spring 2012: Textured and Tribal

SAO PAULO–For Spring 2012 (yes, we’re already thinking about spring in Sao Paulo), designer Tufi Duek infused his collection with tribal motifs: metal bands around models’ arms and thighs framed quirky paneled mini dresses done in couch-upholstery-thick fabrics. Some dresses were printed and had flouncy skirts, while others were stark white and had cleaner shift-like silhouettes with contrast black seams to create chevron-esque patterns.

The collection verged on Pocahontas at times–models’ hair was styled pin straight and parted down the middle and leggings were laced up in leather–but it never crossed the line into over-the-top schtick. And despite the thick heavy fabrics, the collection had an overall light, fresh feel. Heavy beaded tunic tops were rendered delicate, held together with dainty straps across the back.

Take a look:

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Breaking [Dawn]: Carolina Herrera Confirmed as Bella Swan’s Wedding Dress Designer

Bella Swan and Edward Cullen’s pending big screen nuptials may not quite be at the level of the royal wedding in terms of all the fuss that surrounded its dress designer, but a comparable number of people will see it, and there has been speculation. Zac Posen swiftly denied rumors that he was the designer back in November. And somehow, InStyle got several designers, including Monique Lhuillier, Prabal Gurung and Erin Fetherston, to sketch dresses for the fictional soon-to-be vampire.

Rumors that Herrera would be the official Breaking Dawn wedding dress designer began Friday and Twilight saga production company Summit Entertainment confirmed this last night via Facebook and Twitter, so thousands of tweens probably found out before we did!

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Fashion Is Fun

Who Knew There Was This Much Coke in Fashion?

Diet Coke has recently launched a fashion channel in connection with Yahoo! UK & Ireland called Style It Light, a site with as much focus on the promotion of Diet Coke (or Coca Cola Light) as it is the fashion news that makes up its content. This venture should come as no surprise. The brand has been integrating itself – rather successfully–into the world of fashion for quite some time. Arguably the most chic of carbonated drinks, Coca Cola has sent redesigned bottles by Donatella Versace and Angela Missoni down a Milan runway, has been the focus of recycled interior decorating, and collaborated on several occasions with Karl Lagerfeld.

Sponsored endeavors aside, we have noticed Coca Cola’s involvement with fashion in another important role–that of the editorial accessory. Models have been posing with Coca Cola bottles and cans for photogs just as long as they’ve been drinking it.

Though perhaps easily overlooked due to the Coca Cola symbol’s ubiquitous nature, when you notice it once, they seem to show up everywhere. Take a look at some of the brand’s editorial highlights.

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  • Dana Kruspe
  • Tuesday, Jun 14, 2011 / 6:00 PM
  • Comments ()
Beauty

Chanel’s Celeb Manicurist Talks Trends, Tricks, and Scoring Sold-Out Colors

Tom Bachik is probably the last guy you’d think would land a gig with Chanel as their first-ever celebrity manicurist. Let’s just address the obvious stereotypes first and say: he’s straight, married, and has three kids. He’s also very resourceful, turning his skill as a graphic artist into a pretty lucrative profession.

After getting sick of the whole starving artist thing (he used to airbrush graphics onto motorcycles and helmets), and at the urging of his pregnant wife, he enrolled in cosmetology school after hearing that manicurists could make six figures a year. He won a nail art competition early in his career, and started attracting a celebrity clientele. That turned into editorial gigs with magazines and stints on designer runways. Then Chanel came knocking. Here’s what Tom had to tell us about his life as Chanel’s celeb manicurist, the trends he’s seeing, and what celebs want:

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Sao Paulo Fashion Week

Samuel Cirnansck Kicks Off Sao Paulo Fashion Week With Brides in Bondage

SAO PAULO–Envelope-pushing Brazilian designer Samuel Cirnansck closed the first day of Sao Paulo fashion week yesterday with a show to remember. He picked up where Marc Jacobs for Louis Vuitton left off (in a manner of speaking), incorporating bondage and fetish into his spring collection. Where Marc handcuffed his girls to Louis Vuitton bags, Cirnansck put horse bit gags in his models’ mouths (he handcuffed them and bound them with rope, too) and they looked more uncomfortable than models usually look (which is pretty uncomfortable).

A newbie to the world of Brazilian design, I learned this is apparently par for the course for Cirnansck. His line sheet informed me that “once again” the designer had “entered the world of fetish to make his collection.” The effect of his models walking in beautifully draped full-skirted Baroque wedding dresses done in ivory silk and lace and embroidery while bound and gagged was certainly impacting. His models turned in profile at the end of the runway, arching their backs to emphasize their bindings. A statement on the restricting effects of marriage on women? Maybe. A stunt for shock value? Absolutely. And it worked–I won’t soon forget his show.

Take a look at Samuel Cirnansck’s bound brides.

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How I'm Making It

How I’m Making It: The Hellers

If there is one thing I’ve learned from Dania and Yoram Heller, whose trunk show we co-hosted this past weekend, it’s that there is no one right way to run a clothing brand. In fact, the brother/sister team seem to reject most traditional ways of doing things in favor of what suits their unique circumstances and vision–and somehow, it works. Their first and biggest unique circumstance? Dania lives, designs and produces everything in Tel Aviv while Yoram lives, and does everything else, in Los Angeles. The two of them came together this weekend to show New York their latest collection and talk to us about how they’re making it.

How did you decide to work together?

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Resort 2012 New York

Look Book: Opening Ceremony Resort 2012

As if Opening Ceremony wasn’t already the coolest of the cool, they made their first foray into resort with a line inspired by the chic dressed-down style of summer music festivals. The lookbook, shot by Tim Barber, debuted yesterday on their website and features the ethereal beauty Camille Rowe. With button downs, little floral skirts, both fitted and floating dresses and comfy sweaters, there’s a piece for every hole (or craving) in your wardrobe.

They took an outdoorsy approach to their prints, which were designed by the store’s in-house art department using a palette of acid green, deep coral, midnight blue and charcoal. Tiny blossoms are scattered across the fabrics to mimic windswept fields of wildflowers and, in a homage to the Year of the Rabbit, there are some soft-as-a-bunny sweaters adorned with patches of fur and a few bunny-shaped barrettes in the model’s hair.

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Beauty

Chris Benz x Lancome + Saks = A Gift With Purchase You Actually Want

Gift-with-purchase is a beloved tactic of the beauty industry to get you to shell out an extra $15 to get that generic makeup pouch you don’t really need, filled with samples that don’t go with your complexion at all.

Lancôme is raising the bar a bit this month by collaborating with Chris Benz on a gift-with-purchase that will make you seek out the Lancôme counter even if you don’t need a new Juicy Tube yet.

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