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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 5:07 pm
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
Blasblog: Isaac, Meet Me In St. Louis
February 9, 2010 10:26 am
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
When The Saints Went Marching In
February 8, 2010 1:45 pm
Fashion Meets Football was the name of the party, and in some cases, it seemed as if it might’ve been a first meeting. “I was quizzing people on who’s playing,” reported host (and Style.com contributor) Darrell Hartman, “and one girl guessed the Idaho Indians.” No Indians this year—the only Indians in sports play baseball for Cleveland, and Idaho doesn’t have an NFL team—but a robust crowd of designers, PR types, stylists, and everyone else we’ll soon see in the NYFW bleachers crowded into Soho House last night to watch New Orleans best Indianapolis at the Super Bowl. Around the sets, a die-hard crew of actual fans—with fellow hosts Jeff Halmos and Sam Shipley front-and-center (pictured)—sat rapt and offered direction to those of us without the expertise to follow along. Vena Cava’s Lisa Mayock, for one, was well attired for the evening, in a vintage Escada blouse printed with linebackers, but confessed that her gridiron knowledge ended there. (We remembered she’s dressed the part before.) Still, the cheers were heartfelt when the underdog Saints came out on top. Not included in that final chorus: Dawson’s Creek (and, less famously but more relevantly, Varsity Blues) star James Van Der Beek, who we’ll crown the MUP for Most Unlikely Partygoer. Like the chicken wings, he’d been there, but had long since disappeared.
tags: Escada, James Van Der Beek, Jeff Halmos, Lisa Mayock, Sam Shipley
And Smoking, Presumably, Will Be Actually Verboten This Time
February 8, 2010 1:19 pm
“New Beatrice” prognosticating continues, of course, but for those interested in what the Inn’s former proprietor, Paul Sevigny, is actually working on, the details are coming out: His soon-to-open restaurant (with Lou Ceruzzi and Rose Bar owner Nur Khan) has a name (Kenmare), an address (98 Kenmare Street, the site of the old Civetta), a soft-open date (NYFW, natch), and, as of this morning, a chef: Joey Campanaro (pictured), whose tiny Grove Street restaurant, Little Owl, is packed night after night. (The guy also had a hand in kicking off the mini-burger “sliders” craze with the addictive, pecorino-laced version on the Owl menu.) Sevigny insists that it’ll be, contra Bea, a small neighborhood restaurant—you know, just like the next mom-and-pop joint with waiters’ uniforms by Chloë Sevigny.
tags: Beatrice Inn, Chloe Sevigny, Joey Camponaro, Kenmare, Lou Ceruzzi, Nur Khan, Paul Sevigny
Did We Just Find Out Marc Jacobs’ Valentine’s Day Plans?
February 8, 2010 12:19 pm
We’re still waiting on details about Marc Jacobs’ after-party, but his other half, Lorenzo Martone, is getting behind events left and right this New York fashion week. His PR and talent agency, ARC New York, is throwing a bash to end the week on the 18th, but before then he’s hosting a Butt magazine Valentine’s Day dance party with cover boy Kele Okereke that he promises will be full of “hot men.” It’s hot chicks, or more specifically, one hot chick named Iris Strubegger, who will be the draw at the dinner he’s hosting on February 12 at the Box for Ruffian designers Brian Wolk and Claude Morais. The catwalker stars alongside vintage Ruffian designs in a new short film, La Demimondaine, by director Sandro Suppnig, that will be screened post-repast.
tags: ARC New York, Brian Wolk, Claude MOrais, Iris Strubegger, Kele Okereke, Lorenzo Martone, Marc Jacobs, Ruffian
Blasblog: Party On!
February 8, 2010 10:05 am
Sure, by the looks of our fashion week preview, which is chock-full of new designers and late-night parties, it might seem that a few people have forgotten that we’re still in the midst of the Great Recession. That same amnesia might be said to be found in Celebrations: Lush Flowers, Opulent Tables, Dramatic Spaces, and Other Inspirations for Entertaining, renowned events guru Preston Bailey’s new book. The pages of the coffee-table volume are filled with all sorts of fabulous fêtes, from black-tie galas to the kinds of wedding and anniversary parties that cost more than a studio apartment in Soho. (Bailey’s own favorite? The last one in the book, for which he created a football field-sized bubble tent in the middle of the desert.) He’s quick to point out that the recession has, in fact, had an impact on his business: “Entertaining was definitely affected as much as other businesses, but what I’ve noticed is that what all my clients are looking for now is an intimate environment. Whether it’s on a large scale or a small scale, they want to make moments last longer, rather than just some over-the-top wow factor.” Ah, yes, sounds like the argument I heard from a few die-hard couture buyers last week in Paris: People still want to spend the money, but not necessarily look like they do. Preston agreed, saying his job is now to “transform spaces to look beautiful—which is not the same thing as extravagant.” But don’t worry, rubberneckers: There’s plenty of extravagance, as well as beauty, in his book.
tags: Preston Bailey
Blasblog: Let’s Go To The Video
February 5, 2010 1:39 pm
When Pegah Anvarian founded Archive, her new, L.A.-based label, this year, she did what more and more designers are doing to promote it—skip the lookbook and go straight to the video. Of course, to do it right, Anvarian needed an accomplished photographer for behind the camera and an international It girl to set in front of it. In this case, the former took care of the latter: Lensman Andrew MacPherson asked his friend Lady Amanda Harlech if he could put the talents of her daughter, Tallulah, to good use. “I’ve photographed Tallulah several times over the years, and was excited to have the chance to capture her strength in a moving portrait,” he says of this video, which shows off the debut Archive collection. “I wanted this to be entirely a reflection of the present.” And how did the younger Harlech—no stranger to the camera, having appeared in one of Karl Lagerfeld’s films for Chanel and trained as an actress to boot—like the convergence of fashion and film? “It’s great that this is happening. People within the fashion industry have such an innate cinematic eye, especially since film is often a reference for designers. The two industries go hand in hand,” she said. But, with filming taking her all the way out to Los Angeles, there were some perks beside further on-camera training. “It was fun, especially since I had just come from a chilly English countryside. Thank God for California sunshine!”
tags: Andrew MacPherson, Archive, Lady Amanda Harlech, Pegah Anvarian, Tallulah Harlech
An Evening Out With The Laurens
February 4, 2010 5:45 pm
Like uncle, like nephew? The sartorial eye seems to run, no surprise, in the Lauren family. At Greg Lauren’s art installation Counter Couture at the French Institute, the L.A.-based designer and artist has mocked up a sort of combination workroom-showroom probably not too different from his famous uncle Ralph’s—the key difference being that all the clothes here are made out of Japanese paper.
“From a young age, I’ve noticed the way a pocket flap fades, or wrinkles when it’s washed,” Lauren explained of his meticulous creations (pictured). “I’d been introduced to certain icons of style through clothing,” whether that was army uniforms, the perfect suit, or nautical gear, he continued. “I was taught to love all these different male archetypes. And at a certain point, I wanted to understand why that was, as opposed to trying to aspire to be someone else,” he added. Hence his art, not to mention his designs, which (like the frayed, oversized black cardigan he was wearing at the opening) are more bohemian than most of what’s come out of the RL workshop.
Speaking of, where was that paterfamilias? “I think he was going to the theater tonight,” shrugged Dylan Lauren, who came by to greet her cousin (and his wife, actress Elizabeth Berkley) before heading downtown to meet brother David at a Haiti fundraiser at their dad’s Soho store. Ralph’s brother, Jerry Lauren, couldn’t be persuaded to join them. “That one’s for the kids only,” he winked.
tags: David Lauren, Dylan Lauren, Elizabeth Berkley, Greg Lauren, Jerry Lauren, Ralph Lauren
Elie Tahari, The CFDA Do Right By Humanity
February 4, 2010 10:32 am
It was chilly in New York last night, but the welcome couldn’t have been warmer at Diane von Furstenberg’s studio for Gohar Rajabzadeh, the first-ever winner of the CFDA’s Liz Claiborne Scholarship (pictured, left, with DVF and Art Ortenberg, Claiborne’s husband and business partner). Rajabzadeh, a senior at the Miami International University of Art & Design, is of Persian descent and grew up in Sweden. Inspired by both places, her designs are all about easy sportswear and outerwear, and she, fittingly, cites Liz Claiborne as a major influence. “I also love texture and playing with fabric. The one piece I think everyone should have is a great coat with a big hood and deep pockets.”
The deep-pocket appreciator now has a deep-pocketed benefactor. The $25,000 scholarship prize is endowed by Ortenberg in his late wife’s memory. “There’s nothing like being accepted by your peers,” the dapper Ortenberg told the crowd. “There were 20 finalists, but Gohar stood out.” The judging panel—which included Van Lupu, Dana Buchman, Andrew Rosen, Vena Cava’s Sophie Buhai and Lisa Mayock, Victoria Bartlett, and Ortenberg himself—agreed. “For a young designer, this is like winning the lottery,” said Elie Tahari. But there’s more than mere money at stake. “To support young designers is just a great thing for humanity,” he added. What could be warmer than that?
tags: Art Ortenberg, CFDA, Diane von Furstenberg, Elie Tahari, Gohar Rajabzadeh, Liz Claiborne
Blasblog: A Perfect 10?
February 1, 2010 4:52 pm
When I started contributing to 10 magazine, founder Sophia Neophitou—who does double duty as the fashion director of Harper’s Bazaar U.K.—laid down one ground rule: no celebrity coverage. (Which, as you can imagine, was something that took me a while to wrap my head around.) So I was a little surprised when 10’s editorial team told me the cover girl and guy for their tenth anniversary edition. Not just any celebrities, but arguably two of the world’s biggest celebrities—a his-and-hers set, David and Victoria Beckham.
But the high-fashion glossy, luckily, isn’t going tabloid, as the previously unreleased images above show. “This was a totally organic decision that began with a conversation between myself and Victoria purely from a fashion angle,” Neophitou told me. “We had a very long conversation about her giving herself to me in terms of editorial context and what I wanted to do. She agreed that for this project she would give herself in a purely editorial way, as opposed to in a celebrity context.” I guess that’s a long way of saying she pushed Posh past her all-too-familiar oversized sunnies, sky-high stilettos, and paparazzi pout. And looking at the Neophitou-styled shots, lensed by Cedric Buchet, she did. “We wanted to create images that were less predictable,” Neophitou continues. “I wanted to create a vulnerability and a sensuality and an honesty.” Color me pleasantly surprised—and already eager to see what 10 will do for its 20th.
tags: 10 Magazine, Cedric Buchet, David Beckham, Sophia Neophitou, Victoria Beckham
