>> Sasha Pivovarova may have lost Miuccia's vote, but she gained Karl's. She both opened and closed the Chanel Cruise 2009 show last night, and Karl photographed her along with his favorite Brad Kroenig in the collection against the Miami sunset. No word on whether the photos are for the lookbook, an editorial, or an ad campaign, but regardless, Sasha's got the grace of the Lagerfeld.
» Kate Moss was spotted leaving the Topshop offices right behind Plum Sykes earlier today . . . I wonder if Plum is shadowing her for a Vogue article? [PopSugar]
»Harley Viera-Newton and Vanessa Traina have both signed with Elite [COACD, Elite Clips]
»IMG Models Liya, Lily, Miranda, Lara, Tanya, Daria, Sasha, Freja, and Hilary all stripped for collectible cards in the new issue of V (NSFW) [Chic Report]
»Coco Rocha has a new puppy which she refers to as "Miss Peekaboo" [MDX]
»Surprise: the outfits the Elle staffers wear on Stylista are exaggerated to look like "what a girl who works in fashion should look like" [Elle Tell All]
»J.Crew now has a $3,000 jacket for sale [Style File]
»A Marc Jacobs employee was busted for stealing $62,000 from the store he managed [NY Post]
>> Ali Michael recently went on The Today Show to talk about her struggles with weight as a model, and to promote an article on the same subject in the June/July 2008 issue of Teen Vogue, "Extreme Measures."
Within the article, she delves into more explicit detail about her eating habits — during last September's show season, she was eating "oatmeal with water for breakfast, a banana and a few grapes for lunch, and plain lettuce for dinner, maybe with piece of fish."
She lost her period, and "there was concern [her] ovaries had shut down." Her laxative use caused her digestive system to no longer function as it should, and now she has to take medication indefinitely. Even when she starting going to a nutritionist to improve her health, she was throwing up after meals in secret.
Finally, Ali "cracked" in January because the client who flew her in for a couture show canceled, saying she didn't have a "couture body." She focused on getting healthier and "put on a few pounds," but clients casting the February Paris shows told her she had "fat legs" and "huge ankles." She walked only one show — Yohji Yamamoto.
She says the Wall Street Journal article detailing her February show experience was a shock — she "never planned to go public." Surprising, since she is quoted in the WSJ article as saying of the Yamamoto show: "This show is special." But regardless, it will be interesting to see what happens with Ali and how the industry reacts, especially because she was so highly buzzed about before deciding to speak out.
*image: source
>> Are guns the new stars? Just a few days after Freja Beha debuted her new gun tat on the Dior cruise runway, Karl Lagerfeld goes and uses the motif in the Chanel Cruise 2009 heels. He was inspired by an image of a gun he saw somewhere, and gave the image to Chanel's shoe designer Laurence Decade, who used plexi to make the "Miami Vice" shoe. Especially amazing: the shoes aren't just for show — they will be stocked in store.
*images: source
>> Oh, interns. Hockey player Sean Avery just started his stint at Vogue on Monday, for which he's earning minimum wage — since when do interns get paid at Conde Nast? Causing even more waves is the talk that Avery may attend the couture shows next month along with the hardly-intern-status Anna Wintour, Andre Leon Talley, Hamish Bowles, and Sally Singer. Is he getting super special treatment, or is it for an upcoming Vogue or Men's Vogue feature?
Also on the intern front, Jezebel got a tip about why there are no more high school interns at Teen Vogue:
So last year, one of Teen Vogue's interns crashed the Met Ball in a dress she had borrowed without permission from the Teen Vogue fashion closet, and then [blogged] about all the celebrities she met and exactly what they said to her . . . and then [former Teen Vogue editor] Kimball Hastings lost his sh*t, obviously.
That would do it.
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>> I'm dying to see the the synchronized swimming performance that went down last night at the finale of the Chanel Cruise 2009 presentation, but only a short clip (below) has surfaced so far . . .
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>> In case you haven't got your fill of Rachel Zoe yet — her Bravo reality show hasn't even debuted — there's more. She's in the beginning stages of developing a licensed line of apparel, accessories, and undergarments under the Rachel Zoe brand. You know you love her. And she loves you, too.
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>> The very same gunmetal sequined blazer that Karl Lagerfeld wore to the Costume Institute Gala earlier this month has reappeared in no less than three out of 74 of the Chanel Resort 2009 looks — one female, two male.
*image: source
»Agyness Deyn was photographed by Ryan McGinley jumping nude off a second floor fire escape for Pop magazine (NSFW) [The Sun]
»Rogan Gregory likes his veal [The Fashion Informer]
»Karl Lagerfeld likes his Brad Kroenig [The Cut]
»Irina Lazareanu and Milagros Schmoll: "Shiny, happy models wearing hats" [The Sartorialist]
»Tom Ford, still feeling the Gucci burn? "Basically I took everything that had Gucci written on it and threw it out. That's how [my closet] evolved. [Chic Report]
»RIP: Model Heather Stohler, who appeared in several Calvin Klein ads with Kate Moss, died in a fire over the weekend [TMZ]
»Fun illustrations of models by illustrator Coco, who works with Nylon often [Nylon]
>> Pollini is looking to go from little buzz to lots of buzz just like that: They've tapped two very closely watched up-and-comers, Jonathan Saunders and Nicholas Kirkwood, to take over the reins starting with the brand's Spring 2009 collection in September.
Jonathan Saunders will act as the chief designer and creative director for ready-to-wear and licensed products, taking over from Rifat Ozbek, who has been at Pollini for four years. Nicholas Kirkwood has been named accessories director, serving as design director of Pollini shoes and fashion coordinator for Pollini handbags. These changes come with efforts to reposition the brand — so keep your eyes peeled.
Also in the works is an entirely new advertising campaign beginning this Fall — Pollini has tapped photographer Craig McDean and cult favorite graphic design studio M/M (Paris), which has worked with Stella McCartney and Balenciaga on their ad campaigns. Iris Strubuegger, who appears in the new issue of V Magazine, is rumored to be the lucky model.
*image: source
>> Although Agyness Deyn says she carries her limited edition Gretsch Americana guitar on her back everywhere she goes, now she has even more reason to put it to good use. After duetting on a single recently, she's decided to form a band called . . . wait for it . . . "Gene Jacket."
The guitar was a surprise gift from her boyfriend, Josh Hubbard of The Paddingtons, and its artwork goes well with her mad cap style: "I love the whole Wild West thing. It reminds me of a Sailor Jerry tattoo."
*image: source
In Christian Lacroix Haute Couture, Blindness Premiere; Cannes Film Festival, May 14.
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>> Lady Amanda Harlech has done time as John Galliano's muse and is currently Karl Lagerfeld's right-hand woman. Will her daughter, Tallulah, follow suit?
She was introduced to Galliano on Monday night, and is now down in Miami with her mom, where she attended the Chanel-hosted VIP dinner last night . . .
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>> Buzz around cruise shows may be a new thing, but as Karl Lagerfeld prepares to debut the Chanel resort collection in Miami later today, rumors are running rampant — Naomi Campbell walking the runway?!
Tonight's show will feature 60 looks — and it looks like at least one of those looks will feature "the Anna Wintour shoulder." When Karl was giving an interview about the cruise collection, he was interrupted by the arrival of Iekeliene Stange in a black and peach satin dress, which he pointed out featured "the Anna Wintour shoulder — it is like the things she had at the Met. It was invented for her."
In case enhanced shoulders aren't enough show for you, the presentation is rumored to end with 18 synchronized swimmers, 8 of which are in Lagerfeld-designed swimsuits emblazoned with a letter. After a pool performance, they will spell out Chanel as a finale, as a nod to The Raleigh Hotel venue, which hosted several Esther Williams movies.
*image: source
>> The end of the saga nears: After all the hubbub about where Nina Garcia was going post-fashion director status at Elle, it looks like she decided to stick at the magazine for a little longer.
Before hopping over to fashion directorship at Marie Claire in September, Nina has accepted the short-term editor at large position offered to her at Elle, which will run through September 1 and allow her to remain the magazine's judge on Project Runway for the upcoming fifth season. That way, everyone's happy: Nina gets her judge spot, Elle has a kosher sponsorship, and all is well in the world of PR.
Meanwhile, Nina's also coming out with a follow-up in August to her Little Black Book of Style — entitled The One Hundred, it details the 100 wardrobe must-haves every woman needs to own (although they need to update that last line of the cover).
