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subscribe to style file blog via RSSPostcard From Hong Kong: 48 Hours With Rare Vintage’s Juliana Cairone
February 9, 2010
Rare Vintage owner Juliana Cairone (pictured) recently jetted off to Hong Kong to curate an exhibition for Lane Crawford’s flagship. Below, she reports on her first visit to the city, the best head massage worldwide, and the pains of wearing a cool few million on your neck.
48 hours in Hong Kong, 32 hours on the plane. But business class on Cathay Pacific eases that pain and gives me a good chance to catch up on films, like The Informant! with Matt Damon (loved his Michael Moore-sounding voiceover) and An Education, which is brilliant! So nice to see a film where the female lead is smart, funny, and engaging. There are too few smart roles for women in Hollywood. And now Carey Mulligan is a multi-nominee!
It’s dark when I arrive, so unfortunately I can’t see our approach to the famous (or infamous) Hong Kong Kai Tak International Airport, which is surrounded by mountains and Victoria Harbor. But frankly, once you’ve flown to St. Bart’s on a tiny plane (after flying over a mountain and landing on a short runway), then you’re really ready for anything.
I wake up in the morning at the “old” Mandarin Oriental Hotel, and I rush for a shampoo and blow-dry at the salon. I could have stayed there all day! It is the best head massage I have ever had, and between that and the jet-lag, I am so relaxed I can’t think how I’m supposed to focus on my interviews at Lane Crawford for The New Vintage exhibit I am curating at their flagship store. But when I arrive, I am really happy to see couture pieces from Rare Vintage mixed with jewelry from Vera Wang, Erickson Beamon, Miriam Haskell, and a new favorite, Shourouk. It made the couture pieces from the 1950’s through the 1990’s look edgy and modern, which is exactly my philosophy on how vintage should be worn.
And what do I learn today at Lane Crawford? That I could never be a celebrity. My lips actually quiver by the end of the day after so many interviews with the Hong Kong press and posing for photographers. I have a newfound respect for and awe of actors on press junkets.
tags: An Education, Carey Mulligan, Erickson Beamon, Hong Kong, Juliana Cairone, Lane Crawford, Matt Damon, Miriam Haskell, Rare Vintage, Shourouk, The Informant, Vera Wang
First Look: The YSL Manifesto Tote
February 9, 2010
YSL-philes may be lamenting that the new Chyc won’t arrive in time for fashion week, but here’s your first look at a bag that will: It’s Stefano Pilati’s tote for the sixth YSL Manifesto, which arrives in New York next Tuesday, February 16. Two thousand of them will be handed out—free of charge—in New York, followed by similar drops in Paris, London, Milan, Tokyo, Hong Kong, and, for the first time, Berlin. The newspaper-sized Manifesto inside has all the Inez and Vinoodh shots of Natalia Vodianova in the Spring 2010 collection, but we’re just as into the pixelated, strawberry-printed bag itself. Expect to see more than a few, crammed with invites, bottled water, and all the other fashion week sundries, on your trips from Milk to the tents.
For more information, visit www.yslmanifesto.com.
tags: Inez van Lamsweerde, Manifesto, Natalia Vodianova, Stefano Pilati, Vinoodh Matadin, YSL
What Made Balenciaga Balenciaga, And Other Intricacies of Spanish Fashion
February 9, 2010
In the annals of fashion history, certain countries (France, Italy, England, the U.S.) get their fair share of credit, and deservedly so. But the contributions of Spain are lesser known, even though the work of Spanish designers has been some of the most influential in history—think of Cristobal Balenciaga or the Lanvin couturier Antonio del Castillo. The new Geografía de la Moda Española gives them and their countrymen their due. Edited by Modesto Lomba, president of the Spanish Fashion Designers’ Association, and with a preface by Style.com’s Candy Pratts Price, the book pays tribute to the breadth of Spanish design and the ingenuity of Spanish designers, from the well enshrined (Mariano Fortuny) to the rising international stars (like Davidelfin’s David DelfÃn, or Juanjo Oliva, whose designs are pictured above). Style.com spoke to Lomba about the history and legacy of Iberian design.
Are there signatures of Spanish fashion?
Spanish designers have been using traditional elements as inspirations—the whole image of the torero, the bullfighter, or the folk elements of the region. But so have some international designers. Spanish fashion has a lot of history to support it, but fashion today is global. So Spanish fashion is influenced not only by its own history but also by other modern designers throughout the world. To go out of Spain is also important, but to have that basis of Spanish history, and the roots of Spanish design, makes it easier to be truly international.
The book is called Geografía de la Moda Española—The Geography of Spanish Fashion. Are there significant regional differences throughout Spain, in terms of style?
Spain is very diverse. If you go, for example, to the south, designs are more ornamented; in the north, they are much simpler. That’s one of the reasons why Balenciaga favored such clean, linear design—it was, in part, because of where in Spain he was. Right now, the runway in Cibeles, in Madrid, that’s the one that represents the whole aesthetic of Spain. The runway in Barcelona is much more regional; it’s representing Cataluña. Right now, if, for example, a journalist wants to know what’s going on, it would be Madrid, and not Barcelona.
Are there areas where Spanish design is ahead of its international counterparts?
One of the things that might differentiate Spanish fashion from other leading countries is that, if you take somewhere like Italy, they’re focusing more on the big corporations and the big fashion brands. Spain is focusing more on the young talent. That support allows them to be more creative, really to explode their own creativity.
tags: Antonio del Castillo, Candy Pratts Price, Cristobal Balenciaga, Davidelfin, Geografia de la Moda Espanola, Juanjo Oliva, Mariano Fortuny, Modesto Lomba
Jeremy Scott Gets Shipshape
February 9, 2010
As it turns out, Band of Outsiders isn’t the only label feeling nautical. Jeremy Scott is on the boat wave (sorry), too: He’s created a limited-edition shirt for an upcoming exhibition of interiors from the thirties transatlantic ocean liner the S.S. Normandie at the South Street Seaport Museum. The ship included a dining room to seat 700—complete with glass columns by Lalique, which is also contributing a limited-edition ring for the exhibit—a winter garden and aviary, and Art Deco fittings and furnishings by Hermès, Jean Patou, and Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann. In its day, the ship ferried Hemingway (Ernest, not Dree), Dietrich, Disney, Dalí, and even the von Trapp family between Paris and New York. As a guy who’s shown in Paris and, now this season, is returning to New York, Scott knows a thing or two about intercontinental travel. His Deco dame-inspired tee may not have been fancy enough for a first-class dinner on the old Normandie, but it’ll more than do you for the CDG-JFK flight—or, in Jeremy’s current case, one from LAX.
$30, available beginning February 15 at the South Street Seaport Museum, 12 Fulton St., NYC, (212) 748-8733, www.southstreetseaportmuseum.org; Decodence: Legendary Interiors and Illustrious Travelers Aboard the S.S. Normandie runs at the museum from February 25 through January 2011.
tags: Emile-Jacques Ruhlmann, Hermes, Jean Patou, Jeremy Scott, Lalique, S.S. Normandie, Seaport Museum
They’re On A Boat
February 9, 2010
Name that designer: “I thought it would be kind of hilarious to pair a cougar with two younger dudes and see what kind of story would come out of it.”
tags: Band of Outsiders, Dave Franco, Donald Glover, James Franco, Leslie Mann
How To Keep Warm This Fashion Week, Louis’ Able Bodies, And More…
February 9, 2010
WWD checks in with a few key influencers to hear their fashion week plans, schemes, and strategies. Our favorite question? How to stay warm during NYFW. Our favorite answer? Model Hannah Holman’s (pictured): “Snogging.” [WWD]
The latest designer to jump on the show-streaming bandwagon: Calvin Klein, which will stream its men’s and women’s Collection shows on Sunday the 14th and Thursday the 18th, respectively. [WWD]
LV celebrates gorgeous bodies, enviable looks…and, uh, they’re cars. The label has announced that it will present its second annual Louis Vuitton Classic Awards later this month at the BMW Museum in Munich. The winners: a ‘38 Alfa-Romeo and the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics system. [Vogue U.K.]
And the complete Sonia Rykiel for H&M looks—and prices—have hit the Web. The pieces start at $5.95 and top out at $69.95. [The Cut]
tags: BMW, Calvin Klein, H&M, Hannah Holman, Louis Vuitton, Sonia Rykiel
Blasblog: Isaac, Meet Me In St. Louis
February 9, 2010
Being a writer, not a day goes by when someone in my Midwestern family doesn’t give me an unsolicited tip or story idea. Why don’t I write about those cute twins down the street, or Mississippi River style, or the fashion shows in Osage Beach? (Yes, despite there not being an ocean in central Missouri, there is still a beach. And, apparently, fashion shows.) But over the winter holidays, Aunt Mary gave me a good lead for once: Isaac Mizrahi was making a pilgrimage to my beloved hometown to make his directorial debut for the Opera Theatre of St. Louis with his very own production of Stephen Sondheim’s A Little Night Music, opening on June 6.
“I have been thinking about doing this production since I was 13 and I saw it on Broadway!” Mizrahi said in a recent chat, all the while—as I swelled with pride—praising “St. Louie”! Directing was the next logical step for the full-time fashion designer, who has already designed sets and costumes for other productions and even performed a one-man show Off Broadway in 2000. “This is my first time directing, but it feels like something I’ve been doing forever,” Mizrahi explained, adding that his fashion gigs aren’t too dissimilar to what he does backstage. “There are surely some similarities: sticking to your guns, learning how to listen to people—but then you just have to make it happen!” While he’s mum on the specifics he’s been working on for the past two years, he did offer up some sketches (pictured) and some projections. He’s envisioning some elements out of A Midsummer Night’s Dream: the woods, the color green, and the whimsy of characters like Shakespeare’s Mustard Seed and Pease Blossom, all of which seems appropriate for Sondheim’s fairy-tale Sweden, where, as the lyrics have it, the sun doesn’t set. Toward the end of our chat, we both remembered this little commitment he has on February 18: his fashion show. Isn’t he a wee bit stressed out at the moment? “I’m not really that busy,” he joked. “I like to be inspired, to complete ideas—maybe that’s why I don’t feel busy. I feel motivated.” Then, after a laugh, he smiled: “I would be busier if I had to deny myself opportunities like this.” Denial, too, is a full-time job.
tags: A Little Night Music, Isaac Mizrahi, Shakespeare, St. Louis, Stephen Sondheim
Style.com Feels The Love
February 8, 2010
How’s this for a Love letter? To coincide with its already much discussed third issue—yes, that would be the one with the naked supermodel covers—the U.K.-based glossy has filmed a video valentine featuring a few good (half-naked) women. Created by visual effects artist James Lima (who also worked on a little movie called Avatar) and the mag’s own Katie Grand, this project aims to redefine the fashion film as we know it.
Style.com is thrilled to be premiering the full video this Valentine’s Day, February 14. In the meantime, here’s a brief trailer to whet your appetite (fashion fans will be pleased to note that the few clothes that do appear on screen are all by Prada).
tags: Avatar, James Lima, Katie Grand, LOVE
On Our Radar: Bulgari Parentesi Leather Necklace
February 8, 2010
I love Bulgari’s Parentesi collection, but diamond-encrusted high jewels are a little heavy for every day. (They’re also a little out of my reach, but that’s neither here nor there.) This new leather necklace, on the other hand, is cool, young, and fresh. It reminds me of army tags, so it’ll layer beautifully with my military-inspired pieces, and it comes in red, white, black, and camel. The smaller size (pictured) is $350, meaning it’s an indulgence but not an unreasonable one—husband, if you’re reading this, take the hint.
Bulgari Parentesi leather necklace, $350, available at Bulgari, NYC, (212) 315-9700, www.bulgari.com.
Yea, Nay, Or Eh: Carey Mulligan’s Photo Finish
February 8, 2010
One of the photographic-print looks from Miuccia Prada’s Spring show has been at the top of our must-buy list—along with a pair of her swishy-crystal Lucite sandals, might we add—but we’re not surprised that the kitschy prints haven’t yet been embraced by Hollywood A-listers. Technicolor beaches and lounging vacationers are hard to pull off, and the lure of the more conventional-skewing Best-Dressed List is hard to resist. So kudos to Carey Mulligan for having the guts to rock this playful frock at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival this weekend. We think her gamine looks perfectly suit Prada’s latest collection. What do you think? Does Mulligan shine here, or are you too busy staring at the beachgoers on her skirt?
tags: Carey Mulligan, Prada
