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subscribe to style file blog via RSSThe Fruit Of Her Labors
May 3, 2012
Leslie Fremar is routinely voted one of the most powerful stylists in Hollywood—powerful enough, it seems, to get even star clients like Reese Witherspoon and Charlize Theron to wear Fruit of the Loom. The trick: She designed it herself. The new collection of Fremar’s line of French-seamed tees, sinuous tanks, long cardigans, and more launched yesterday at New York’s Beauty & Essex. The rationale for the line is simple: “There were cheap T-shirts, and then there were really expensive T-shirts, $200 T-shirts, $300 T-shirts,” she says. “I wanted to have the luxury of really soft cotton with a perfect fit that’s affordable”—but the possibilities are many. “I always like some casual element in whatever I’m wearing,” Fremar explains, “because I like to be comfortable.” Even at the most rarified of events? “Fruit of the Loom on the red carpet?” She pauses. “That’s great. If you want to wear a T-shirt with a ball skirt, I won’t say no.”
Leslie Fremar for Fruit of the Loom is now available at Bloomingdales, www.bloomingdales.com.
tags: Charlize Theron, Fruit of the Loom, Leslie Fremar, Reese Witherspoon
Anna Dello Russo Says Ciao To H&M, Another King Of Leon Finds His Model Queen, And More…
May 3, 2012
Having blown through just about every European fashion designer, H&M is now stocking its racks with European fashion editors. The retailer has tapped Anna Dello Russo for its next collaboration. Dello Russo will create accessories, largely in gold and turquoise, set to hit 140 H&M stores on October 4. [WWD]
Marrying models seems to run in the Followill familly. Kings of Leon bassist Jared Followill has confirmed his engagement to Click model Martha Patterson. Last year, his brother Caleb married Victoria’s Secret model Lily Aldridge; the two are expecting their first child this summer. [Vogue U.K.]
Cindy Crawford put her 10-year-old daughter Kaia’s modeling career on hold after the young model was photographed for a provocative Versace ad that Crawford wasn’t too happy about. But that didn’t stop Kaia from starring alongside her mother and grandmother in JCPenney’s Mother’s Day campaign video, “Things My Mom Gave Me.” [The Hollywood Reporter]
Collette Dinnigan will not be showing her collection at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia, but she will be taking a bow. The designer is slated to accept the fifth annual Fashion Laureate Award, following in the footsteps of Easton Pearson and Carla Zampatti. [The Australian]
tags: Anna dello Russo, Cindy Crawford, Collette Dinnigan, Fashion Laureate Award, H&M, Jared Followill, Kings of Leon, Lily Aldridge
FIT For The Fashion World
May 3, 2012
“These are the future Donna, Calvin, and Ralphs,” said Kate Betts in a video that played at the Fashion Institute of Technology’s 2012 graduate student runway show last night. Betts’ description of the design students went hand in hand with the show and its outright, optimistic title, “The Future of Fashion,” which drew a packed house of FIT faculty and fashion notables, including Dennis Basso, Josie Natori, and Rebecca Minkoff. Also on hand to support the students were some of the school’s famous alumni, designers Nanette Lepore and Calvin Klein. “It is such a pleasure to give back,” said Klein, who recently donated to the school a generous $2 million gift. FIT president Dr. Joyce Brown said the gift would sustain the school for the next decade.
“I was so struck in awe of the students and their ability to sew,” said Natori, who, along with nine other designers, served as an FIT mentor and critic throughout the spring semester. Standouts included Critic Award winner Mimi Prober and Jordan Randolph, whose black wool dress (pictured) with lace detail caught the eye of industry vets and their company CEOs. As for these students’ future in fashion, it’s looking quite bright.
tags: Calvin Klein, Dennis Basso, Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), Nanette Lepore, Rebecca Minkoff
Nicholas Kirkwood’s New Digs: 1,500 Square Feet Of Shoes And A Garden To Boot
May 2, 2012
Two days before the opening of his New York store—his first on U.S. soil—Nicholas Kirkwood is talking by phone from the space, which, from the sound of it, is still very much a construction site. The 1,500-square-foot store, with its white, gray, and beige palette and minimal decor, will have, he says, “a charming feeling. It’s all very easy on the eye. It’s hopefully a relaxing kind of shopping experience.” Behind him, a very loud horn blares. “A boat?” he wonders with a laugh. (The Hudson River is a block away.)
If he isn’t able to relax just yet, it’s easy to believe relief is coming soon. Kirkwood is arguably the most exciting new footwear designer of the last few years, and his New York location is poised to be a major new outpost for his brand. The store is designed to emphasize space: “I like the idea of doing something else that you can kind of walk around and explore it,” he says. “It kind of has a gallery-esque feeling, without being quite as cold as a gallery.” (The reference is apt; the new, downtown site of the Whitney Museum will be just across the street when it opens. “That’s going to be absolutely fantastic,” he says.)
The store will sell the full Kirkwood collection, as well as a selection of collaborations with other designers, including Peter Pilotto, Erdem, and Paco Rabanne, at the opening; other collaborations, like the shoes he makes for Prabal Gurung, will eventually arrive. Just outside, and visible through the back windows, is a garden. “The luxury of having a garden in New York is quite special,” he says. For the opening, Cecilia Dean and Anne Christensen will host a private tea party; customer events will likely follow.
The store debuts with an opening party on Friday night, once every tile and display is in place. Is Kirkwood swinging a hammer himself, a reporter wonders? “I might do,” Kirkwood deadpans, “if they don’t hurry up.”
Nicholas Kirkwood opens Friday, May 4, at 807 Washington St., NYC, www.nicholaskirkwood.com.
tags: Anne Christensen, Cecilia Dean, Erdem, Nicholas Kirkwood, Peter Pilotto, Prabal Gurung
Toasting The Artist Who Saved The Standard From Itself
May 2, 2012
Multimedia artist Marco Brambilla’s (pictured) work is very familiar to a certain partygoing set. He’s the man behind the trippy elevator video, Civilization, that plays on the long ride to the 18th floor of the Standard hotel. “I’ve seen Marco’s work too many times going up to Boom Boom Room,” Waris Ahluwalia admitted last night a private dinner to fête the artist’s latest exhibition, RPM, at the hotel’s High Line Room and Terrace. “I know every scene and every bouncing breast.”
It almost wasn’t to be. “We originally had a lame concept for the elevators: gold bricks to convey that we were the ‘gold standard’ of hotels,” André Balazs said in a toast. The audience—which included Cecilia Dean, Marina Abramovic, Jacqueline Schnabel, Dustin Yellin, and Casey Neistat—groaned. “It was a terrible idea.”
When the lights dimmed, the guests dutifully put on red stereoscopic shades they had been given to watch the psychedelic 3-D video, featuring a continuous loop of racing clips from the Monza Grand Prix processed with archived Ferrari photos and set to the sound of roaring Formula One engines. Midway through the screening, a rowdier set spilled in. The group, including Theophilus London, had come from the OHWOW fête taking place just upstairs to check out what Brambilla had created. “I wanted to capture the feeling of euphoria and danger, which are equally present in the mental state of a driver during a race,” the artist explained. Luckily, cabs were the preferred mode of transport home.
tags: Casey Neistat, Cecilia Dean, Civilization, Dustin Yellin, Jacqueline Schnabel, Marco Brambilla, Marina Abramovic, RPM, Theophilus London, Waris Ahluwalia
Balmain Gets Social; Ryan McGinley On His Exhibitions, Opening Tonight; Outtakes From Marilyn Monroe’s Last On-Set Photo Shoot, And More…
May 2, 2012
Balmain wants to be your friend. The French brand launched Facebook and Twitter accounts today in an effort to be less “closed to the consumer,” according to Balmain CEO Emmanuel Diemoz. The brand’s 25-year-old creative director, Olivier Rousteing, tells WWD, “It’s an experience. I will reply, and be the first to check it and see if there are a lot of ‘likes.’ ” [WWD]
What films top Emmanuelle Alt’s favorites list? The Paris Vogue‘ editor in chief recently revealed the 15 French films that made the cut exclusively on Vogue.fr—and if you hadn’t already guessed, Michel Hazanavicius’ The Artist made the list. [Vogue.fr]
CNNCTD+, the creative agency run by DJ Roman Grandinetti and Bibi Cornejo Borthwick (the daughter of designer Maria Cornejo), has commissioned 100 of its favorite people to record bits and pieces of their daily lives for a special NYC audio diary. Participants include the likes of Cindy Sherman, Santigold, and André Saraiva, who chose to recite French poetry on girlfriend Annabelle Dexter-Jones’ voicemail. Awwww. [Nowness]
Artist Ryan McGinley is set to open dual exhibitions, Animals and Grids, tonight at the two NYC Team Gallery locations. If it’s anything like his last opening (”3,000 people showed and the police shut it down,” he says), then it’s sure to be a rock star affair. During an interview with the team at Opening Ceremony, he admitted, “I don’t consider myself a rock star but I take advice from them. Mick Jagger once told me, ‘Anything worth doing is worth overdoing.’ ” Wise words. [OC Blog]
Vanity Fair’s June issue will certainly not go unnoticed. The magazine features outtakes of Marilyn Monroe’s last on-set photo shoot with photographer Lawrence Schiller, who photographed the bombshell in the nude, and also reveals a strong rivalry between Monroe and the late Elizabeth Taylor. [The Hollywood Reporter]
tags: Balmain, Bibi Cornejo Borthwick, DJ Roman Grandinetti, Elizabeth Taylor, Emmanuel Diemoz, Emmanuelle Alt, Lawrence Schiller, Maria Cornejo, Marilyn Monroe, Michel Hazanavicius, NYC Team Gallery, Olivier Rousteing, Ryan McGinley, The Artist, Vanity Fair
Peter Pilotto To Show At Pitti W
May 2, 2012
June’s Pitti fairs got a little richer this morning: Pitti Immagine announced this morning that Peter Pilotto will be the womenswear guest designer at the tenth edition of Pitti W this June. “We were looking for a modern approach to feminine elegance that is constant, profound, and has the ability to think about itself,” Pitti Immagine’s Lapo Cianchi explains of the decision to select Peter Pilotto, designed by Pilotto and partner Christopher De Vos. The duo will show their pre-collection at the fair.
Parris, London
May 2, 2012
The English designer Louisa Parris has proper Brit credentials—the clipped accent, the Central Saint Martins degree—but her designs are as inspired by San Francisco, the city she called home for several years before returning to London, as by her native turf.
Parris studied womenswear at Saint Martins, but when a job at Apple beckoned her then-boyfriend/now-husband, she made for the Golden State. In San Francisco, Parris worked on an eveningwear collection, which would eventually win the Styles International Award at Gen Art in New York. But when producing her evening pieces became more than she could manage on anything but a private, by-commission basis, she turned her attention to something smaller: scarves.
“My first love has always been doing the gowns and the eveningwear,” Parris explained by phone from London. (She still creates them for private clients.) “But what’s been so fantastic about doing the scarves is that I have complete control. They support the gowns. To me, they’re like small paintings.” Continue reading ›
tags: Colette, Louisa Parris
Lucky In L.A.
May 1, 2012
“Bloggers have changed the fashion industry.” So opined Lucky editor in chief Brandon Holley, and that’s the guiding wisdom behind her magazine’s FABB Fashion and Beauty Blogger conference. The third annual conference took place yesterday, but for the first time, Holley chose L.A. as its home. “There’s a really neat intersection between fashion, bloggers, and celebrity; L.A. is kind of the center,” she explained. Proving her point were the the panelists set to speak: L.A.-based bloggers including WhoWhatWear’s Katherine Power and HelloGiggles’ Sophia Rossi; online-savvy celebrities like Jessica Alba (pictured), Cat Deeley, and Elizabeth Banks; fashion businesspeople like J Brand’s Jeff Rudes; and Hollywood insiders such as Mad Men costume designer Janie Bryant and Easy A screenwriter Will Gluck.
How did the day’s speakers see the change that blogs have wrought? Celebrity stylist-turned-A.L.C. designer Andrea Lieberman suggested that they’ve brought the stars down-to-earth—and in so doing, made them relatable to millions. Casual shots of celebrities on their off-hours, tirelessly chronicled by celeb-focused blogs, have “as much of an impact on fashion and style and image as the red carpet does.”
Continue reading ›
tags: Andrea Lieberman, Brandon Holley, Cat Deeley, Elizabeth Banks, FABB Fashion and Beauty Blogger, Jessica Alba, Katherine Power, Sophia Rossi
On Our Radar: Mitchel Primrose
May 1, 2012
Crocodile was everywhere on the Fall runways. No great surprise, then, to find that the forward-thinking types attending Sydney fashion week are early adopters; Tommy Ton spotted Christine Centenera, for example, wearing a croc choker.
It reminded me of several similar pieces from the latest Mitchel Primrose accessory collection. The Los Angeles-based designer launched his line in 2010, but it was only during Spring 2012, when he introduced exotic skins, that the collection ($163 to $995) really took off. The exotic-skin cuffs and chokers with 24 karat gold plated brass all caught my eye, especially in alligator. They’ll be at Code C in Sunset Plaza, Calif., this fall.
Code C, 8641 Sunset Boulevard, West Hollywood.
tags: Christine Centenera, Mitchel Primrose, Sydney fashion week, Tommy Ton
