A friend found this dress on Bebe’s website the other day. Since then, I think I’ve gone through all the proper stages of grief.
It might look like a disturbing coincidence to some, but I splurged on the Valentino Red original on Net-a-Porter last month and Bebe’s copy kind of breaks my heart. They’ve captured the idea: black tube shape with lace on the neck and ruched sleeves. The pattern on the lace even looks the same, though I guess their factory couldn’t handle the tiny details like the outline of the collar or the delicate ribbons.
I take some solace in the difference of quality, the dresses hang differently even online, but I don’t understand why they can’t take the ideas - lace, black, ruffles - and make something on trend that’s not an exact copy.
I’m still obsessed with the Alexander Wang corset dress from his pre-fall collection - the one that’s made the rounds from Rihanna to Julia Restoin-Roitfeld, and sold out almost as quickly as the Coco Duffel.
So is Bebe. They’ve created an exact copy of the dress for their upcoming Holiday line.
I spotted this impostor as soon as I opened my November issue of Elle. My heart broke a little bit when I saw this ad sprawled across two whole pages. I know I shouldn’t be surprised, since Bebe’s garnered quite the reputation for their ‘designer-inspired’ clothing, but there is nothing “inspired” about this.
I’ve come to really enjoy browsing Bebe’s website for a daily dose of designer knock offs. They’re so lazy that they don’t even bother tweaking their designs in the slightest (minus cheap fabrics).
I’d grown used to their love of the sexier runway bits: sky-high Gucci heels and skintight Balmain minis, but I couldn’t have been more shocked to find this AW09 Prada dress, complete with AW09 Prada hair in their embarrassing online magazine.
There are so few women who can even pull off the original; I’m terrified to see what happens when it’s available to the masses.
The thing about Balmain’s party dresses is that if they weren’t made quite so skillfully out of of such exquisite fabrics and crystals etc., they’d run the risk of looking downright trashy.
Christophe Decarnin’s perfected the tight sexy thing and made it work among the fashion crowd because, well, it’s so well done—which makes the girl look and feel the same. And isn’t that the point of looking hot on a night out?
Because even if you rock this Bebe knock off with its spot on asymmetrical hemline and triangular zig zags, you’re not going to look like Anja Rubik at the Met Ball. However, if you buy something that’s not supposed to look like something else inexpensively copied, something for well under $179, you just might look better than Anja.
Though you probably know that.
Also, while we’re on the subject of Bebe, these are heart-breaking.
She’s shocked and appalled at these pretty ballsy Stella McCartney knock-offs. The mesh basket sandals are this season’s hit and Bebe made sure their imitation hit floors in time for summer.
They’ve included three separate sections of mesh and the elastic heel band (which actually looks painfully uncomfortable in patent leather). And they’ve matched the heel height at 4 1/2 inches, placing both on angular platforms.
What’s different? Bebe thought they’d one up Stella and make their platform gold, which takes the shoe from sexy to tacky (a word we never use, but deem necessary on this occasion) in half a step.
Here’s a sentence we never thought we’d write: ELLE, Elite Model Management, Look Model Agency and Bebe are teaming up.
They’re in need of a new It-girl.
You can apply here - and there will be 600 semi-finalists, so we think you have a pretty good shot.
Those semi-finalists have to go to an in-store photo shoot in either New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Miami, or San Francisco. One girl will be chosen from each city and flown to LA for two nights, given a Bebe outfit, $250 and a photo shoot.
The winning It-girl gets a six month contract with Elite and Look, $1000 cash, $1000 worth of Bebe, a Bebe photo shoot and a chance to be featured in ELLE.
We’re not sure what kind of It-girl that makes you, but here’s an idea: You’d be following in the steps of former Bebe faces, like Mischa Barton…
“Besides, clubwear is the kind of thing you want to be disposable so you can dance, drink, and leave it in a ball on your bedroom floor at the end of the night. Which means you might as well buy Bebe.” - Booth Moore, on why she thinks Gucci continues to look much cheaper than it costs, in the LA Times.
Everyone was up in arms over Bebe’s Louis Vuitton rip-off last month.
They’ve officially entered the realm of designer shoe rip-offs, though they’re not very good at it. Their “France” shoe was an embarrassment to the Louis version - unless adding and subtracting details and changing the proportions is their attempt to thwart us.
Either way, it’s easy to see where they got the inspiration for their caged heel. You can’t buy the platform, peep-toe stiletto online yet, but we found it here and in stores.
The original, the Spring Summer YSL, is so much cooler not because it’s YSL, but because the caged heel so perfectly mirrors the leather cage pattern over the foot. Not to mention it lacks the front platform that kind of pushes the shoe from sexy to hooker.
If Bebe wants into the world of rip-offs, they’re going to have to do better than this.
CNN reports some rather disconcerting information:
General Growth Properties, the second largest mall operator in the country, may file for bankruptcy soon. GGP is responsible for the operation of around 200 malls in the US, including the Paramus Park Mall right outside of the city.
If the company does end up tanking, then a.) another mall operator will buy up its old malls and everything will be normal for the shoppers and retail workers, or b.) their malls will cease to exist, since GGP isn’t the only mall operator facing tough times.
We have no idea where most people in suburbs would shop if the malls started to shut down, but then again, we guess nobody’s really shopping. But what about the countless people who’ve worked in retail all their lives? If their local mall disappears, will their local Target (if they have one) get flooded with thousands of job applications?
Our advice (which we never thought we’d give): If you live near a mall, go shop. As long as it’s not at the Bebe, please.
Ever since Gucci sent these studded heels (left) down the runway, they’ve been showing up all over the place - editorials, store displays and on the feet of off-duty models. So it was only a matter of time before somebody stole the design. First up: Jeffery Campbell (right).
Between the criss-crossing black straps and gold studs, we really can’t see much of a difference except that Campbell’s look considerably cheaper and uglier - the thinner straps and overloaded gold studs really don’t measure up to the original’s pared down, sleeker look.
But they might go ok with all those gypsy (read: Gucci) rayon dresses currently being sold everywhere from Bebe to Forever 21..
— HAYLEY PHELAN
Here’s an interesting fashion week tidbit - if you can handle any more -Tara Subkoff is playing artistic director for FORM’s Spring 09 show.
The actress/designer/party girl is in charge of the “feel, quality and experience” of the runway - so unless she’s picking the music and doing the lighting, we’re pretty sure artistic director is just fancy for stylist.
And to make things more interesting, Jerry Tam, the Project-Runway-rejected designer behind FORM, was one of Subkoff’s interns way back when Imitation of Christ was the coolest thing around. (The thought of one day bossing around our former bosses gives us a thrill).
As for the show, the collection’s inspired by the Rococco movement, which is a long way from Subkoff’s latest escapades at Bebe.
Well, the boys at creative agency Hart + Larsson are back to their old tricks again, this time with a series of videos entitled El Lobo Rojo (which means “The Red Wolf”).
They’re kind of funny, kind of weird webisodes that come out every Tuesday and Thursday (they’ve already got six of them) this summer. They’ve obviously taken inspiration from The Office and we think The IT Crowd, but they also poke at fashion throughout the whole thing.
Check out Episode 5, at left, to see the protagonist, Phil St. Millay act out a Bebe ad with his co-worker, Michelle.
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Dear Fashionista,
