fashionologie

Christian Dior Spring 2012 Couture

Christina Perez — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:41:20 PST

>> Bill Gaytten went for pure nostalgia at Dior's Spring 2012 couture show in Paris earlier today. "All the structure of iconic Dior, thanks to lots of fittings, but all of it see-through," Gaytten explained. And so, the house's New Look silhouettes were done up in layers of ultra-femme chiffon, organza, gauze, and - for a bit of tough-edged modernity - croc-stamped leather and checks. Frocks were full-skirted and nipped at the waist, or slim-lined with artfully folded pleats, while jackets wrapped in deep, off-the-shoulder vees. "It was the complete opposite to John Galliano-fantasy. It was very wearable," commented a Vogue UK editor who was at the show.

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Christian Dior Pre-Fall 2012

Christina Perez — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 12:13:34 PST

>> Bill Gaytten kept it classic for Pre-Fall 2012. Below-the-knee pencil skirts, peplum jackets, bell-shaped tulip skirts, and round-collar capes were offered up in lovely, pared-down versions - with just a dash of drama found in liquid-like vinyl and graphic plaid.

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Dior Taps Mila Kunis

Christina Perez — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 11:44:49 PST

>> Mila Kunis has been named the new face of Christian Dior. The actress - who also appeared on some of the top-selling magazine covers of 2011 - will front Dior's 2012 worldwide media plan, including the Spring ad campaign. Photographed by Mikael Jansson, the campaign will debut in China on January 15, and will hit the US January 29 when it appears in The New York Times. "Mila Kunis is a very talented young actress; she embodies the true modern woman." Delphine Arnault, deputy general manager at Dior told WWD. "We are looking forward to a long relationship with her."

Kunis agrees. "I find that Dior is an incredibly grounded house. I always thought what Dior does is so sophisticated, feminine and beautiful," the actress said. "They made me feel incredibly comfortable. I can’t say it was the hardest thing to do."

Kunis joins a long list of acclaimed actresses - Natalie Portman, Charlize Theron, Marrion Cotillard - who have served as the brand's models and ambassadors. "Christian Dior designed several costumes for the movies and maintained personal relationships with such actresses as Marlene Dietrich, Rita Hayworth, Ava Gardner, Sophia Loren, Marilyn Monroe, Liz Taylor and Grace Kelly," Arnault explained. "It is thus only natural for the house of Dior to continue to develop a very specific and personal relationship with actresses."

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Raf Simons May Be Dior's New Designer

fashionologie — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 07:39:28 PST

>> With Marc Jacobs out of the picture, Raf Simons - who recently came under consideration, alongside Jason Wu and Alexander Wang - has emerged as frontrunner for the Dior job.

According to WWD's sources, Dior is closing in on a contract with 43-year-old Simons, although the deal has yet to be concluded. Among the details that still need to be worked out: a start date (Simons, who has been at Jil Sander since 2005, reportedly just recently extended his contract with that house for an unknown duration) and when his first Dior collection would debut (likely not for Spring 2012 couture in January nor Fall 2012 in March).

Dior CEO Sidney Toledano is currently traveling in Asia and was not immediately reachable for comment, and Simons did not return phone calls.

Marc Jacobs-Dior Talks Halt; Alexander Wang, Raf Simons, and Jason Wu Now Being Considered

fashionologie — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 07:24:26 PST

>> Marc Jacobs, long the favorite to take over at Dior, may not be headed to the house after all. Talks between the two parties have once again halted, WWD reports, and Dior has stepped up both the pace and depth of negotiations with other designers - Alexander Wang, Raf Simons, and Jason Wu, in particular. Riccardo Tisci is also still in the mix, but given his strong momentum at Givenchy, is viewed as unlikely to be appointed.

Although last month, talks between Jacobs and Dior were said to be progressing - Bernard Arnault reportedly flew into Manhattan to meet with Jacobs - and there was no explosive breakdown, Arnault and Dior recently decided to move onto another scenario - in part because Jacobs requested that he take his Vuitton design team to Dior, which would leave Vuitton without creative support, and Phoebe Philo, the preferred candidate to take over at Vuitton, reportedly prefers to continue at Celine.

The Dior search is said to be focused on finding a designer - young or mature - with an affinity and respect for the brand's glamorous DNA, and a vision for taking it forward, post-Galliano. However, one source told WWD: “It is not impossible that [Arnault] resumes his talks with Marc.”

All the Resort 2012 Ad Campaigns, So Far

fashionologie — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 07:44:40 PDT

>> It's just about that time of year when Resort collections start hitting the stores, and the campaigns are starting to pour in. See Arizona Muse swing for Louis Vuitton, Jac Jagaciak go Brigitte Bardot under the guidance of Ellen von Unwerth's lens for Christian Dior, Natasha Poly grope a nude statue for Fendi, and Guinevere van Seenus's creepy turn for Miu Miu - all the Resort 2012 campaigns so far, in the slideshow.

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The Latest on Marc Jacobs and Dior - Talks Now Said to Be Progressing

fashionologie — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 10:17:42 PDT

>>At the end of last month, Sidney Toledano, president and CEO of Dior, said he expected to have news on Dior's new designer "in the next few weeks." Not a day later came reports that talks between Dior and the front runner for the position, Marc Jacobs, had been tough and at a standstill.

Now, however, WWD reports: "Negotiations with Marc Jacobs . . . to become Dior’s next couturier have been progressing, sources said this week. It is understood . . . Phoebe Philo remains the preferred candidate to succeed Jacobs at Vuitton, should the American designer conclude a deal with Dior."

Dior, which has now been without a creative director since March, reported that its revenues were up 17.6 percent in the third quarter - suggesting that the brand is more potent than the famous designer behind it.

Alexander Wang on the Dior Rumors, What He's Rolling Out Next

fashionologie — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 10:37:16 PDT

>> After recent rumors that LVMH could be interested in buying a stake in Alexander Wang (or that he is being considered for a design role at Christian Dior or Louis Vuitton), what does the designer have to say for himself on the matter? Nothing - he declined to respond - aside from a "nervous giggle," WWD reports.

Emphasizing his pride at growing a company without external financing, he didn't rule out the possibility of a future alliance: “I always take a meeting, and I always want to hear what people have to offer, but at the same time, I’ve been very content with focusing on our own brand. If I was to do something else, I would want to do something that would be completely different from me. Sometimes you don’t get to say all you want to say in your brand. When the right opportunity comes, it will present itself in a way that I’ll be inspired by it. But right now, it’s not like, ‘Oh I’m after that house, I want to do that.’”

Currently, he's focusing on expanding into new categories, like home lifestyle accessories, he said.

Kate Moss Walked For Louis Vuitton Again, at Her Own Request

fashionologie — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 10:27:32 PDT

>> Kate Moss, who closed the Louis Vuitton show last season while smoking a cigarette, was back on the Spring 2012 Vuitton runway today, again closing out the show. "She asked us to do the show," Marc Jacobs explained in an interview done right afterward. Surely, the brand was none too pleased - apparently more than 2,000 pairs of the fetish boots Moss wore in the Fall 2011 show (which retailed at $2,363) have been sold.

See Jacobs talk about the show in the video below - apparently, since the show revolved around a carousel, there was a carousel horse in the Vuitton office during fittings for all the models to pose on. And Jacobs says something that throws into question whether he really wants to head to Dior: “I could never do this anywhere else, do you know what I mean? Not only the Paris thing, but Vuitton, allows me."

Christian Dior Spring 2012

fashionologie — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 12:17:11 PDT

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