Save Fashion returns this week and if today’s Luella news is any indication, there’s still a lot of saving to be done in this fair industry of ours.
But what to buy?
Here’s advice straight from some of the participants:
—“I’d say the one must-have item from VC at Save Fashion is our leather leggings.
The color makes them more unique than your basic black leather leggings, and the price is pretty killer too. Also, they’re a surprisingly solid winter staple - really warm and cozy!” -Lisa Mayock, Vena Cava
—“The Egyptian dictionary dress is my favorite. It’s silk chiffon with hand written words from an Egyptian glossary written all over it. Definitely a conversation piece and it will leave you wanting to figure out what a lot of the words are.” -Sophie Buhai, Vena Cava
—“There will be lots of one-of-a-kind pieces straight from my shows. I would invest in one of the coats. Don’t let this weather fool you. I’m predicting a very very cold winter.” - Thuy Diep, Thuy
The Tribeca Film Festival hit Doha last week and my mom finally saw The September Issue.
She loved Grace, loved Raquel, and wanted to know if Thakoon ever did design for Mango, and if he didn’t, who did? The only other name we remember from Anna’s list, when she sat down with Oscar De La Renta, was Tracey Feith which, thank god, didn’t happen.
But this morning WWD suggested that Moises De La Renta, Oscar’s son, is up for the job. The Spanish brand’s staging their annual fashion show on Wednesday in Madrid’s Magic Box (built for their failed Olympic bid) and Moises is expected to attend. He’ll be among 600 other guests including Scarlett Johansson and Dree Hemingway.
Meanwhile, Thakoon does have a new job. He’s been appointed Creative Director of Tasaki, the Japanese jewelry line known for cultivating their own pearls. He says, “It is exciting to be working with fine jewelry as it will unquestionably feed into my overall creative process… My goal is to approach jewelry design in the same manner that I approach clothing: always move forward but respect the past.”
This past weekend, Teen Vogue hosted a Fashion University event for their readers who were eager to learn the ins and outs of the business.
Not only were they given the rare opportunity to visit the magazine’s editorial floor and famed fashion closet, but they also got the chance to sit down with designers like Richard Chai, Philip Crangi, and Thakoon Panichgul. In a discussion moderated by Amy Astley, Thakoon shared stories about his rise through the ranks of the industry and gave pointers to the many aspiring designers in the audience.
You may already know that his Fall 2005 presentation was the most buzzed-about of the season, or that his most famous customer is Michelle Obama. But here are some things you might not know about the designer. I definitely didn’t.
Last night Teen Vogue celebrated their super cute handbook with a little cocktail party at the Rose Bar at the Gramercy Park Hotel.
Amy Astley and her crew were of course all there in the cozy confines, with Amy’s kids and their friends taking over the pool table. The rest of the crowd out to toast the book included Vera Wang, Jenna Lyons, Thakoon, Keegan Singh, Eddie Borgo, Henry Holland, and Chanel Iman. All in all a very lovely party.
As far as EICs go, Amy’s definitely regarded as one of the nicest in the business. And she’s certainly built upon the Vogue brand in a great way since the launch of TV. Thanks to the book, she’s doing a little mini-tour of speaking engagements. Next up is Cali. So if you live in LA, we highly recommend turning out to see her when she heads west. There’s a signing at Book Soup on Sunset at 4 pm on the 18th. FIDM folks can catch her on the 19th at 10 and 11:30. And that evening, she’ll be speaking at Otis at 7pm. It’s free, but space is limited so click here to reserve a spot.
Go. Listen. Learn. It just might give you a leg up at your next interview.
So, I will admit I was kinda hoping for an Amanda Peet sighting at the Thakoon show, you know because she’s there like every season. But no dice on that front. Other than Ciara, it was actually a refreshingly celeb-free zone, considering how much attention the designer’s gotten since Mrs. O started sporting his wares.
This collection had me at the first print, though apparently in my excitement I did something to my camera setting that caused for some unseemly photos. Thank god for Style.com’s here. I loved how he mixed patterns I would never in a million years put together and made them look really freakin’ cool.
There was lots and lots and lots of blue, from turquoise to royal. When it comes to blues, I usually stick with navy, and only navy. But Thakoon may just have lured me into the sea tones for springtime.
And now I know I’m officially entering the crazy place because after typing that paragraph about blue, the only image now entering my head is Arrested Development’s Tobia Fünke taking a turn in Blue Man Group. I think I really need to get some sleep, stat.
Whitney Port, of The Hills and The City, has apparently “designed” a lipstick for Cargo. Of course, I recognize that there is PR value and it’s very lovely that a portion of the profits go to St. Jude’s. But really, I’ve always found these collaborations, if you can even call them that, rather dumb.
I love what Lancôme does in their Pout-à-Porter series with designers like Peter Som and Thakoon. And I can’t wait to see the new Chris Benz shade and find out who won the naming contest! These are literally tied to the runway looks of these designers. In fact, they’re actually used on the models in the show. There’s a context and a point behind the shades.
But I personally could care less when someone like Whitney or Tinsley (that Dior Beauty Ambassador thing still boggles my mind) point at a shade of pink and throws her name on it.
The only movie that’s made me laugh harder than The September Issue this year is The Hangover.
Anna Wintour is funny; my mascara is smudged from tears of laughter. The film may start out with Anna saying that fashion’s picked on because people are bitter they aren’t a cool kid, but she only gets more human from there and by the end you might even want to hug her.
Grace Coddington is, as reported, the real star of the movie. Her inner turmoil over the changing industry and her role in Anna’s history plays out on screen and one can’t help but sympathize with her as Anna cancels more and more of her shoots.
The movie travels from New York to Paris for couture to London for a meeting with Mario Testino to Rome for Sienna’s shoot and back to New York to close the issue and present it to Si Newhouse. In Paris, we cringed when Anna shut Stefano Pilati down; in London we laughed at Mario’s grandly cinematic ideas and in Rome we admired Sienna’s energy and Sally Singer’s patience.
But Lancôme is partnering with the darling designer for the next shade in their Pout-à-Porter series. Past collaborations include ones with Behnaz Sarafpour, Thakoon, Proenza Schouler, and Peter Som.
This time around the cosmetics company is giving all you guys a chance to help name the shade (which will be worn by models at Chris’ show in September.)
If you win, you’ll also snag a $500 gift certificate and a bunch of the lipsticks which is a very good thing as all the others have sold out almost immediately. One of the Proenza Pinks even sold for over $120 on eBay!
Just head over to Chris’s Facebook fan page to post your suggestion by 5 pm EST on July 12th.
I watched last week’s episode of The Fashion Show (slightly annoying, but will suffice until Project Runway’s triumphant return) over the weekend and I was stopped cold by Lidia’s unfortunate red eyeshadow.
Red shadow’s been done well both editorially and on the runway - Nars’ Diane Kendal did a fantastic reddish-brown smoky eye for Thakoon’s AW09 show - but we’ve never seen it work well in real life. I think it would require a darker skin tone because on Lidia’s pale face it came off looking more rash-like than avant-garde.
Recently, a few notable brands have launched shadows in the grenadine color family and I am seriously at a loss to think of who, besides a makeup artist, would actually purchase the hues. I just can’t see this look parading down the streets without causing some worried glances or frantic calls to the CDC.
But maybe I’m just missing something. Is there a successful way to translate this trend from the runway to real life?
Thakoon’s prints are dear to any fashion lover’s heart - so it took about a half a second for Teen Vogue super intern Elana to spot these Lauren Moffat rip-offs at Barneys this morning.
The co-op brand took the navy, forest green and white striped pattern from Thakoon’s Spring Summer 08 collection and threw them on a couple of different pieces including a billowy dress and knee-length skirt.
Everything about the prints are the same from the varying width of the stripes to the color blocking - as Elana so eloquently put it, “holy Thakoon rip-off, Batman!”
Did Lauren wait a few seasons hoping no one would notice?
While we’ve always like the idea of capes, their structure has always been a little baffling. Even Britt, who wears hers no matter what her roommates say, finds the awkwardness of where to put your arms (no sleeves? Pseudo sleeves?) and temperature gauging for outside wear (50 degrees? Less? More?) to be a deterrent from sporting the witch-like frock.
But we think it’s about time for us to get over our fear if the Fall runways are any indication of what’s to come (and aren’t they always?). From Marc Jacobs’ bright yellow belted version, to Thakoon’s militaristic button down, we think it could be the right time to have some fun with our outerwear.
It might a good idea to start with something a little less intimidating, like Paul Smith’s simpler version. Or you could go all out and embrace the cape for what it is - a stylized version of the blanket, or, the original Snuggie - and throw it on top of your otherwise normal outfit with aplomb.
So, would you wear a cape? Or is this a look better left to Count Dracula impersonators?
New York Fashion Week may have been sparse with retro hair and makeup looks, but that didn’t stop designers from having some serious nail nostalgia.
Ruffian, Thakoon, ThreeAsfour and FORM all went retro for their runway manicures, taking inspiration from a look featured in a 1936 issue of Vogue. The original look consisted of a coral nail bed and bare moon, but nail artists for CND updated the old idea using blacks, whites and reds for a look that was both classically mod and slightly futuristic.
Of all the trends that popped up last week during New York Fashion Week (so much more on that later), the one that took us by surprise most was the use of fur by designers who’d never designed with animal skins in the past.
We’re not really sure what this means - has fur become more acceptable? Is it a backlash against “restrained” times? - but consider this: Fall 09 was the first time in ages that PETA didn’t protest at the Tents.
In fact, the PETA presence was much less this time around, which makes us wonder, has fur won the battle?
This afternoon, at Thakoon, I was almost swept up in Andre’s vampiric cape.
Black, lined in red, he glamorously threw it over his shoulder on his way backstage which made me giggle which made Bill Cunningham snap my picture which made me gasp and almost trip into the Eyebeam.
Inside, my eyes zoomed to the mass of red hair in the middle of the aisle - Coco Rocha kissing Grace Coddington hello. Grace joined Anna in the front row while all the other Vogue-ttes, sat second row which is kind of confusing with people like Derek Blasberg, Jessica Joffe and Olivia Chantecaille in the front. Whose view matters more?
Anyway, Thakoon sent out a collection of impeccably tailored dresses, capes and trousers topped off with furs colored like a parrot. The clothes were considerably younger than seasons past, especially the prom-like tulle and sequin dress Jourdan wore to close the show. There were at least two Balmain inspired looks and disco ball shoes. Michelle Obama might have difficulty choosing a first lady appropriate outfit from this selection.
But how much would you love to see her in one of those colorful fur hats?
While some may be antsy about the upcoming awards season, we, as always, are more concerned with the results of the upcoming buying season. So here’s a taste of the more notable additions you can expect on Net-a-Porter for your Spring 09 at-home shopping:
- Adam
- Christopher Kane
- Etro
- Eugenia Kim (Who, incidentally, just named one of her hats the “Faran”, which may or may not be related to our founding editor)
- Jason Wu
- Jil Sander
- Kova & T
- Loeffler Randall
- Philip Crangi
- Preen Line (Preen’s more affordable secondary line)
- Steven Alan
- Thakoon
- Victoria Beckham
- Vivienne Westwood Gold Label
- Yves Saint Laurent (no word on whether that’ll include Pilati’s new Edition Soir collection)
In a recent interview with Thakoon Panichgul on Style.com, we learn a few things:
1. He really wants to dress Christy Turlington
2. His line for Target is supposed to be like “Resort”
3. And most importantly: The Thakoon Addition line, which should launch before the summer, is not a diffusion line, but more of a place for Thakoon to “store ideas”.
Translation: It’s the just-as-good stuff he thinks up while designing his runway narrative, and so it’ll cost just as much as his regular line, and will be sold only where Thakoon is already sold.
So those of us still looking for a $200 Thakoon dress will have to wait for the T by Thakoon line, should it ever happen.
While most smaller labels are scaling back their Fashion Week presence, Doo.Ri’s charging ahead with her eponymous brand, launching a secondary line to hit stores next Fall.
She hasn’t picked a name yet, but expect a lot less evening jersey, and more leather jackets/leggings and tees - the first year will mostly include more casual versions of Doo.Ri’s “greatest hits”, with dresses at $200 and leather jackets around $500.
Zac Posen recently announced his own bridge line, and Thakoon will soon launch Thakoon Addition just before summer and winter next year, which will also be based off of his “most popular” designs (let’s see if some of his Target creations - December 28th! - make it into the remix).
On a related note, if more designers decide to come out with their own versions of of CD box sets, where will they go with their designs once the hard times (that probably require instant hits to ensure that people keep buying rather than experimentation that could possibly fail) are over and people want fresh and new again?
The fashion industry’s been kind of obsessed with this election.
Everyone gasped when Michelle wore Thakoon, then again when she wore J.Crew. Everyone panicked when Palin spent $150,000 at Saks and Neiman’s and everyone cringed when she wore knee-high boots.
Sonia Rykiel and Jean de Castelbjac sent Obama dresses down their Spring runway, Nicole Farhi sprinkled her looks with Obama pins and Stella McCartney left personal notes encouraging her runway audience to “V.O.T.E. Obama.”
And now, with four days to go, Zac Posen’s making his message loud and clear. So far, we love his outfit best.
That rumor we spread about Mark Fast doing a line for Topshop? It's true. And it's in last week's Sunday Telegraph magazine which means it was true before we even said anything and we've had it in our lap since... Read More
Meet Blue Logan, if you haven't already. A couple of years ago a friend dragged the soft-spoken Brit to a show at London Fashion Week, Aquascutum he thinks, and he started to draw the models as they walked down the... Read More
Save Fashion returns this week and if today’s Luella news is any indication, there’s still a lot of saving to be done in this fair industry of ours. 
