fashionologie

Victoria's Secret's New High-End Line, Alice Dellal's New Look, and Jessica Chastain's Oscar Phone Call

Christina Perez — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 07:14:57 PST

>> These stories and more - here, in our daily news roundup.

Victoria's Secret has launched its first high-end lingerie line, called The Victoria's Secret Designer Collection. Though it includes pieces that were shown during November's fashion show, the line had been kept top secret - until now. It's available at VictoriasSecret.com, and retails between $38 and $298. [WWD]

Speaking of lingerie, Bar Refaeli is the latest model to launch her own line of intimates. The label is called Under.me and will be available online in the UK for Valentine's Day. Priced from $7.50 to $25, Refaeli says the line is based on what "I like and find cute". [WWD]

Alice Dellal - the new face of Chanel's Boy Bag - has been looking a lot less "punk" lately. At the Chanel couture show (left), she wore a long skirt and a lace top. She kept her mismatched nails though. [Telegraph]

Also trying a new look: Lara Stone, who donned a coiffed brown wig and super-dark eyebrows to pose with actor Aaron Eckhart for Peter Lindbergh's lens. [Vogue]

Jessica Chastain found out about her Oscar nod while sitting front row at the Giorgio Armani Privé couture show in Paris. She was seated near Cameron Diaz and Roberta Armani, who congratulated her with a standing ovation. [People]

Amanda Brooks has announced her top 5 favorite trends for Spring. They include digital flower prints and single-sole shoes. [The Window]

Uh oh. Did H&M steal this artist's design? [Styleite]

The next hot beauty trend for men: Beards. They were all over the Fall 2012 Menswear runways. [The Cut]

The Best-Dressed of 2011

fashionologie — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 10:50:37 PST

>> As 2011 draws to a close, here's a look back at some of the most memorable ensembles of the year. Among the hits? Giovanna Battaglia in vintage Versace, Amanda Brookes in sparkling Derek Lam, Karlie Kloss in super-sexy Anthony Vaccarello - and so many more. From supermodels to street style stars, from Proenza to Pucci - see who made the cut and who wore what, here in our 2011 roundup.

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This Week's Best Dressed

fashionologie — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 17:34:06 PST

>> It's a week of double-timers: two Haider Ackermann looks, two Calvin Klein looks, and one model who appears twice. See who's wearing what - and where - in the slideshow.

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Christian Louboutin - and Friends - Fete 20 Years of Shoes with Barneys

fashionologie — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 10:38:59 PDT

>> Last night, Christian Louboutin joined up with Barneys to fete the launch of his eponymous book - as well as the 20th anniversary of his brand - in New York.

The designer's longtime friends (Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen), collaborators (Marchesa's Keren Craig), and design peers (Calvin Klein, who left with an autographed copy of the tome) showed up in support. As did more than a few fans - sporting their Louboutin heels, of course. "I'm wearing my very first pair from 1997," Amanda Brooks told Style.com of her strappy red sandals. "He gave them to me as a thank you because I used to work at the Gagosian Gallery, across from the Carlyle, and he would call me on my lunch break to come over and model the shoes for him."

Blake Lively, who made headlines a year ago for carting 40 pairs of Louboutins away from the designer's sample sale, also stopped by: "My first pair was basic black, and after that, it was love - now I have hundreds." Clearly the feeling is mutual - Louboutin whisked her off her feet and carried her away after the event.

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See Vanessa Traina's Full Maje Collection Lookbook

fashionologie — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 08:42:55 PDT

>> Last night, Vanessa Traina launched her 14-piece capsule collection for the French brand Maje at Barneys, which has the US exclusive. She wore a black tuxedo jacket and pant from the collection, and was joined by her sisters Samantha and Victoria Traina and close designer friends like Alexander Wang, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Joseph Altuzarra, and Proenza Schouler's Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez, most of whom followed her to a celebratory dinner down the street at Le Caprice.

The idea for the collection, which ranges from $150 to $490, came about while Traina was in fittings for the brand's campaign (which she's appeared in the past two seasons). She told Vogue.com: "Maje asked me to do their campaign a few seasons ago and we all got along really well. We met the day before the shoot to do fittings, and by the end of it, we’d put together the proposal for a collaboration."

Her ideas for the collection - inspired by "a lot of old '90s editorial," she told us - came easily: "I had a whole folder with me . . . working in the industry and doing consulting quite frequently, I knew what to expect from a design meeting, and I think it really helped Maje understand my vision right from the get-go."

The resultant pieces are simple, primarily silk or lace, and sans color. In fact, minus one white silk maxi dress, they're all in black. "I wear black quite, quite often," Traina explains. "Because this was a one-time collaboration, I really wanted to do something wearable and [focus on] really great separates that fit into your wardrobe. And black goes with everything, so I really just kind of went with that." She told Vogue.com, "Although I must admit, I haven’t worn anything outside of my bedroom yet."

The collection also provided Traina with her first opportunity to design a shoe: "I mean, I've worked with Joseph Altuzarra and people on their collection from head to toe, so I've kind of worked with a shoe, but he [Altuzarra] really does the crux of it, so yeah, it's the first time. It's really cool because we initially started with doing a flat, and then I just thought it would be cool if we stuck a heel on it. So it's just a sandal design."

Even though she now has more extensive design experience, Traina says the collection is a one-time thing: "I really see myself more as a stylist, and I work as a stylist and do consulting. I was really grateful for this opportunity, it was really fun to do something like this, but I think the direction that I'm going in right now with styling is really what I'm passionate about, [and] is really what I love personally."

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Carine Roitfeld's New Fashion Project Not With Tom Ford; Alexander Wang Awarded $50,000

fashionologie — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 11:44:41 PST

Carine Roitfeld's new project has nothing to do with Tom Ford, she says: "A long time he’s my friend, but I don’t want to go back, so I want to look in front of me … Because I did ten years with Tom, then ten years for Vogue Paris. Now I want to do something new. I don’t want to go back. But he’s one of my best friends, Tom" [The Cut]
Alexander Wang was just named GQ's Best New Menswear Designer, for which he will receive $50,000 [GQ]
Karl Lagerfeld is selling his six-floor, never-lived-in Gramercy Park apartment (which he bought in 2006 for $6.575 million because he "thought he’d move here and retire here," according to a source) for $5.5 million [NY Post]
19-year-old Ukrainian model Juju Ivanyuk, who opened for Celine and Alexander McQueen last season, was chosen by Prada and Miu Miu casting director Russell Marsh to open and close the BCBG show yesterday (left) [The Cut]
Grace Coddington's memoir has stalled - "It's slow going," she says - because her co-writer Jay Fielden is settling into his new job as Town & Country editor [NY Post]
Alexander McQueen's sales continue to grow, a year after the founding designer's death [Vogue UK]
Which New York shows is Anna Wintour looking forward to? "I’m always looking forward to seeing the young designers in New York, Proenza Schouler, Rodarte, Alexander Wang - all the designers that came out of the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund. And Olivier Theyskens' first show for Theory. That’s obviously very exciting" [NY Times]
Reed Krakoff cut his invitation list by 120 this season [@jimshi809]
Net-a-Porter is now putting out a print magazine; the first issue features Alexa Chung on the cover [Fashionista]
A preview of the new Lizzie Fortunato Jewels collection, which in addition to the signature bib necklaces includes woven belts and leopard print pony hair satchels for Fall 2011 [The Moment]
According to The Lake and the Stars's Maayan Zilberman, who cast plus size models like Alyona Osmanova and Inga Eiriksdottir in her Fall 2011 show today: "Agencies are horrified we're putting girls from plus division in with [skinny girls], and some agents said flat out they wouldn't put their 'good girls' with plus sized models" [@Refinery29, @jezebeljenna]
New Barneys fashion director Amanda Brooks wore flats to the shows yesterday because her doctor told her to [The Window]
Androgynous male model Andrej Pejic has been cast in Yoana Baraschi's Feb. 13 show [Fashionetc.]

Fashion Week Chatter - Abbey Lee Kershaw Skipping New York Shows; A Bryanboy TV Pilot for Bravo?

fashionologie — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 11:18:41 PST

Joseph Altuzarra has paired with denim duo Current/Elliott for six denim styles, set to debut on his Fall 2011 runway - and Vogue has a preview (left) [Vogue.com]
New Barneys fashion director Amanda Brooks was mum last night on the subject of her new position, saying that it was only her second day, but she has started Twittering for Barneys and says she plans to attend as many New York fashion shows as she can [Harper's Bazaar]
Zac Posen is keeping his Z Spoke collection appointments very low key this season: "Last season was for the media. This one is for the customers and retailers" [@meenalmistry]
Jason Wu is livestreaming his Feb. 11 show on Bergdorf Goodman's website, where some Fall items will be for sale as pre-orders on Feb. 16 [Christina Binkley]
Marc Jacobs is forgoing a Fashion Week party, instead feting the 10th anniversary of Marc by Marc Jacobs with a Valentine's Day "semiformal" [@jimshi809]
Peep Lauren Santo Domingo on the March 2011 cover of Town & Country, attended by the headline: "Meet the next Mrs. Astor" [@jimshi809]
Bryanboy has done videos of his fashion escapades before, but this fashion week, he's doing a 24-hour livestream of himself for Kanon Organic Vodka, which promises to "give viewers a first hand look into what it’s like to rub elbows with fashion’s elite." He's got a video preview up on his site, and it goes live beginning at 9 am on Feb. 16 at kanonvodka.com [Bryanboy]
There are also reports that Bryanboy is shooting a pilot during New York Fashion Week with the producers of America's Next Top Model that "Bravo is supposedly very interested in" [The Cut]
Tumblr is putting 24 bloggers up in a hotel for New York Fashion Week, has secured invites for them to more than a dozen shows - including big shows like Carolina Herrera and Oscar de la Renta - and set up events for them like breakfast with Nina Garcia, a private brunch at Lucky editor Brandon Holley's apartment, and a meeting with Oscar de la Renta prior to his show to talk his new collection [WSJ, The Cut]
Abbey Lee Kershaw is reportedly skipping New York Fashion Week, for a "personal music project" in London with "my band" - Our Mountain, the band of Kershaw's boyfriend, Matthew Hutchinson, which she's performed with before. She is, however, set to head to Milan and Paris Fashion Weeks [Frockwriter]
Alexander Wang cut his front row seats in half this season, thanks to a new seating configuration; he's also hosting an intimate party on Feb. 15 to mark his store's opening [@meenalmistry, @jimshi809]

Barneys CEO Mark Lee Explains His Choice of Amanda Brooks as Fashion Director

fashionologie — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 13:33:15 PST

>> Vogue contributor Amanda Brooks was named Barneys' new fashion director, vice president succeeding Julie Gilhart last Friday and she starts in the role on Monday without much retail experience in her pocket (she was most recently director of fashion at William Morris Endeavor Entertainment, and in the past, a creative director at Hogan and Tuleh). But, when Barneys CEO Mark Lee was asked about his decision to hire Brooks and Dennis Freedman, former longtime W creative director, who also doesn't have a strong retail background, Cathy Horyn reports: "Mr. Lee said that Ms. Brooks brought a diverse background, as an editor, stylist and brand developer, to her post. 'We didn’t need more retail help,' he said. As for Mr. Freedman, Mr. Lee said, 'Great creativity is hard to find,' and that Barneys can benefit from Mr. Freedman’s ideas and knowledge of the worlds of art, design and architecture." [On the Runway]

Barneys Appoints Amanda Brooks as Women’s Fashion Director, Vice President

Chi Diem Chau — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 14:44:48 PST

>> After much speculation regarding who would be crowned Barneys' fashion director, the retailer has finally announced its golden girl: Amanda Brooks. “I have long admired Amanda and her effortless blend of luxury and individual style. Her unique perspective on fashion mirrors what Barneys represents and we feel very fortunate to have her join the team,” said Daniella Vitale, chief merchant and executive vice president of Barneys. Brooks, who most recently was director of William Morris Endeavor Entertainment, and in the past, former creative director at Hogan and Tuleh while writing for Vogue, Men’s Vogue, and The New York Times, will officially begin her time at Barneys as the Women's Fashion Director, VP starting February 7.

Will the CFDA's Health Discussion Tonight Make a Difference?

fashionologie — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 15:42:12 PDT

>> Tonight is the night the CFDA convenes to hear president Diane von Furstenberg, Michael Kors, and Coco Rocha wax philosophical on "The Beauty of Health: How the fashion industry can make a difference."

The event's expected attendees "include Donna Karan, Francisco Costa, Nicole Miller, Tory Burch, Doo-Ri Chung, Amanda Brooks and Michael Vollbracht." I hope that's only a smattering of who actually attends, considering the lengthy list of CFDA members, because if it's not, how does the CFDA ever expect to make any headway when no one's ready to make a change?

*images: source