8 posts tagged "Chateau Marmont"
Designer Diary: Olivier Rousteing’s Postcard from L.A.
Last week, Balmain’s Olivier Rousteing took a trip to L.A. In addition to exploring the city and enjoying the sunshine, the designer attended a fete in his honor at the Chateau Marmont and had a fitting with his Met Ball date, Kate Bosworth. Here, Rousteing shares the details of his L.A. adventure exclusively with Style.com.
L.A. is such a fascinating city, and this trip was the first time I really got to enjoy it. I love L.A.’s light, its energy, and the cultural diversity. It has such a strong and unique character. Angelinos have a genuine approach to fashion that’s so different from that of Parisians or New Yorkers. They can be so casual but so glamorous at the same time. It was a very inspiring trip.
Off a long flight and into the California sunshine. Love the sight of palm trees!
A special desert at Polo Lounge after having dinner with Aurélie Bidermann and Laure Heriard Dubreuil at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Continue Reading “Designer Diary: Olivier Rousteing’s Postcard from L.A.” »
Vena Cava: One Part L.A., One Part New York
Though a bout with the stomach flu kept her partner Lisa Mayock sidelined, Vena Cava’s Sophie Buhai (pictured, left) was delighted to celebrate her own return home to Los Angeles last night among friends and muses. Hosted by GenArt, the party marked the launch of their Fall collection at Barneys and their strong ongoing working relationship with the retailer. “We really see Vena Cava as being half L.A. and half NY; it’s part of the brand DNA,” Buhai explained of the design duo’s new dynamic now that she lives in Los Angeles and Mayock remains in New York. “We’ve been exposed to different environments, and when we come together to design, they come together and meld in an interesting way.”
Set against the backdrop of Chateau Marmont’s Bungalow 1, a subtle reference to the designer’s neo-noir-inspired Fall collection, guests including Malin Akerman, Into the Gloss’ Emily Weiss, Cher Coulter, and Sophia Bush caught a poolside performance from St. Vincent’s Annie Clark (pictured, right), for which Vena Cava designed an exclusive T-shirt. And while there was an exciting emphasis on the brand’s SoCal heritage (both Buhai and Mayock are L.A. natives), Busy Philipps reflected that their resonance is a result of their ability to draw from both coasts. “I have this older Vena Cava LBD that is very simple but has some great detail that sets it apart, which is the reason I keep going back to it again and again,” Phillips said. “It’s the only dress that my friend Michelle [Williams], who lives in Brooklyn, and I both own and both wear.”
Mulberry’s Splashy Bash
Though L.A.’s consistently warm weather didn’t turn out for Mulberry’s party at the Chateau Marmont last night, a host of Hollywood starlets dedicated to the Brit brand, including Kate Bosworth, Gia Coppola, and Nathalie Love, more than did their part to set the scene for the poolside bash.
In between chatting with Bosworth, Mulberry’s Emma Hill observed that city’s importance to the brand. “We always really build the collection when we’re here,” she explained of the many trips she takes out West each year, which are soon to increase when they open a store in L.A. some time next year. “It’s always a film that kicks off every season, so I screen a film with my team and then we come here and go digging for vintage at the Rose Bowl [Flea Market].”
Nearby, Harley Viera-Newton discussed her current music project with the line. “Their collections are so music-driven, so I’m working with them on this whole music channel on their Web site that they’re developing to go along with their collections,” Viera-Newton said. And as if on cue—and in signature Mulberry fashion—the night capped off with an outdoor set by Lana del Rey.
Two Vampires And A Jonas Brother Walk Into The Chateau Marmont. It’s Not A Joke—Just A Spurr Dinner
On what may well be considered the homestretch leading up to the June 6 CFDA Awards, Menswear Designer of the Year nominee Simon Spurr headed out west to mingle with a different sort of industry crowd. At a dinner in his honor, hosted by the recently launched Mr Porter (the 12-week-old brother site to Net-a-Porter), a collection of well-heeled gents descended on the Hollywood-heavy scene at the Chateau Marmont for dinner.
“It’s nice to have a designer who actually cares to send you the right size, who you can call up on the phone, and who wants to see you look good in their suits and represent their brand well,” said a loyal Kellan Lutz, reigning king of the Young Hollywood scene. (He’s also of the sturdily built type somewhat more popular in film than in fashion—but Spurr, unlike some of his contemporaries, has never catered exclusively to the sylphs.) Back from filming Breaking Dawn, the finale to the vampyric Twilight saga, the actor joined Dermot Mulroney, True Blood‘s Stephen Moyer, newcomers Xavier Samuel and Colin Egglesfield, and Joe Jonas, who seemed eager to wear more of Spurr’s designs. “I’m taking a break from my brothers right now and launching my solo career, so I am sure there will be plenty of opportunities to wear one of Simon’s suits in near future,” he told Style.com. “I love that they’re a little bit different.”
For his part, Spurr was there to celebrate his partnership with Mr Porter—his biggest retail partner to date—while also courting his most photographed fans, many of whom first wore Spurr’s suits on-set. “We haven’t actually won any award…to date,” he was quick to point out of his many nominations and accolades, “but as cliché as it sounds, I really do think being nominated is enough.” Noticing a bigger sell-through and an uptick in editorial coverage, Spurr seems poised on a slow-and-steady growth pattern, while hinting that womenswear could be on the horizon. But for now, “hopefully all this will give us the opportunity to become the next generation of American menswear.”
Friends And Fans Convene At Loden Dager’s New L.A. Digs
Loden Dager’s Paul Marlow and Alex Galan were in L.A. for the city’s fledgling fashion week this Saturday, but it wasn’t to stage a full-scale show or meet the press. “It’s about friends,” Galan said at the New York-based brand’s new West Coast showroom, in the front room of a Sunset Boulevard printing studio. And friends, in this case, meant the Like’s Tennessee Thomas, Glee costume designer Lou Eyrich, and David Arquette (left, with Marlow). “What we’re doing here is not open to the public,” Galan continued. In other words, this isn’t Loden Dager’s first retail store. Rather, the showroom will hopefully help to expand the presence of the brand at West Coast stores, though it will host rotating art exhibitions in the coming months. (Art books will also be wholesaled there; Galan daylights at D.A.P., Distributed Art Publishers.)
But “about friends” might be the subtitle to the Loden Dager story. The brand has grown largely through word of mouth as industry insiders and in-the-know types let pals and acquaintances in on the secret. That secret is one that’s been spreading faster these past few seasons—last year, LD was a finalist for the Vogue/CFDA Fashion Fund. “That was the most fun experience you can have in fashion—the feeling of camaraderie you get to feel getting to know all of these amazing designers,” Galan said.
That award came with a trip to L.A., one that gelled nicely with the Loden Dager aesthetic. (“L.A. is much more casual [than New York],” said Marlow, who designs the line with Oliver Helden, “and a big portion of our line is dressy casual.”) It also gave the designers a chance to make some new friends—including those in high places. “I just fell in love with the Sunset Tower the last time I was here,” Galan said. “The maître d’, Dimitri, I’m obsessed with him. He was like, ‘You and your friends are cool.’ That idea that you’ll have all of these very rich, I’m sure Russian mafia people waiting for a table, and he’ll be like, ‘I got you a table’—it’s amazing. I love the way that culture works here. New York is a bit tougher about that kind of thing.”