fashionologie

Derek Lam Brings Back the Color for Spring 2010

fashionologie — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 01:29:14 -0700

>> You would never guess that Derek Lam has recently had to address rumors of label mismanagement - he gave the Wall Street Journal a lengthy interview that could be seen as his way of responding in detail - because there was no storm in his Spring 2010 collection, only sunny, beachy lightness, an "ode to summer."

For his first time showing at the Tents, Lam decided to switch things up; he told Style.com: "I haven't done full-on color for a while, and it feels like the right moment now." He peppered a star motif throughout, studding wrap belts (one of which, unfortunately for Charlotte di Calypso, popped open halfway down the runway, leaving her to smile embarrassedly and hold her dress together the rest of the way), printed on dresses, centered in Dean Harris's earrings for the collection. And the finale was a set of pinup-style "deckside one pieces," not for swimming. Vogue's Elissa Santisi styled, Caroline Trentini made her season runway debut, and Lily Donaldson accompanied Lam for his bow, the two chatting and holding hands the entire time.

Derek Lam May Be Having Financial, Management Issues

fashionologie — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 10:54:27 -0700

>> Is Derek Lam this season's Peter Som? A "fashion industry insider" told Page Six that Lam has been losing $1 million a month, and his label will have lost between $12 million and $15 million by the end of the year: "It's only propped up by money coming from Italian investors."

Cash flow isn't the only issue Lam is reportedly having - according to the source, his CEO Jan Schlottman only showed up to work three times for the whole month of August. Schlottman, meanwhile, told Page Six that he only had 10 vacation days last month and always had his laptop. As for the finances, Schlottman says, "Everyone has had difficulty this year, but the actual [monthly] figure is far less than [the purported $1 million]."

UPDATE: Schlottman calls the entire Page Six item "untrue," and says that rumors been fueled because the label spent money on an ad campaign and a new store this year, causing an overall loss. [The Cut]

fashionologie — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 13:46:22 -0700

>> CFDA Publishes American Fashion Cookbook Full of Designer's Recipes -Food and fashion don't always go hand in hand, but the CFDA is trying to change that this month with the release of American Fashion Cookbook, a compilation of recipes, illustrations, and food-related quotes from over 100 American designers. No word on what foodies like Jason Wu or Peter Som contributed, but Derek Lam went with Yellowtail Crudo, Isaac Mizrahi submitted Mushroom Truffle Spaghetti, and Diane von Furstenberg, who says she's "never been a great cook," added a recipe for Saturday Night Chicken. Publisher Assouline has a preview of the first 30 or so pages. [Stylecaster, Amazon]

To Anna Wintour's Dismay, New York Fashion Week Continues to Get Bigger

fashionologie — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 12:54:27 -0700

>> The first official look at how Spring 2010 New York Fashion Week is shaping up will come Friday, when the first edition of the Fashion Calendar ships, but until then, we've got a few hints.

“There will be a lot more shows than last year," according to The Calendar's Ruth Finley, which means Anna Wintour won't be pleased. Last season, Anna said that "a lot of people before were having shows that simply shouldn’t have been having them," adding: "It’s much better to see them in the showroom or more of a low-key presentation. It’s more realistic." It seems like a number of designers didn't heed her advice - Finley says that this upcoming season, "There are a lot of new people [showing] you have never heard of."

And some you have heard of that are returning to the Tents »

fashionologie — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 16:42:53 -0700

>> ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL -Now seems to be the time to get into the ad game for young labels - Rodarte started up with a single ad in Fall 2008 and repeated for Spring 2009, Zac Posen recently released his own one-off ad for Spring 2009, and now Derek Lam is hopping on the idea train for Fall 2009. His first ever campaign, with Karmen Pedaru set against a beach simulated at Pier 59 in New York, symbolizes his philosophy that "this is not a moment to be scared or meek." Solve Sundbo did the photog honors Tuesday - outtake from the shoot above - and the final product, which hits August issues, is expected to be "bold and cinematic, with lush techno color." [WWD]

Predicting the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Awards

fashionologie — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 17:09:50 -0800

>> The CFDA has been busy lately, discussing the possibility of sponsoring sample sales for designers who don't have enough resources to do it on their own, commissioning books - including a fashion-related cookbook, and announcing an upcoming three-year partnership with Mattel. But Monday night, we'll learn which of the 2008 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund nominees will take home top honors, $200,000, and business advice, who will score one of the two runners-up titles and the $50,000 that comes with them, and who will try again next year.

The first award was given in 2004, with top honors going to Proenza Schouler; since then, Trovata (2005), Doo.Ri (2006), and Rogan (2007) have taken the top prize, and the likes of 3.1 Phillip Lim, Philip Crangi, Rodarte, Thakoon, Derek Lam, and Thom Browne have all been runners-up. Without doubt, the winner generally has name recognition - and is in favor at Vogue - but tends to not be the biggest name in the group (i.e. Rogan over Phillip Lim last year).

So who will take all? »

Gemma Ward's Black Balloon: Coming Soon to a Theater Near You

fashionologie — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 17:01:04 -0700

»Gemma Ward's movie The Black Balloon is coming to "key US cities" in October [Variety]

»Bee Shaffer works out with a trainer at Equinox Soho [FWD]

»Diane von Furstenberg is using Andy Warhol prints in a capsule collection of swimsuits and coverups [Fashionista]

»Giorgio Armani has set off the animal rights activists in Italy [The Cut]

»Vogue Paris and Vogue UK like to use the same cover models, front and back [Fashionista]

»Derek Lam, Tod's still love Gwyneth Paltrow [PopSugar]

»Grey Ant, Spring & Clifton collaborate with Urban Outfitters [Nylon, Flickr]

»Behati Prinsloo shops where she's paid [FAD]

»Cindy Crawford hung on a yacht with George Clooney, her husband, and Bono in the south of France this weekend [PopSugar]

After an All-Black July, Vogue Italia May Be Backtracking for August

fashionologie — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 15:33:44 -0700

»Vogue Italia is rumored to have Linda Evangelista, Guinevere van Seenus, and Karen Elson lined up for their August 2008 issue [TI]

»Derek Lam sells a majority stake, is ready to go big [The Cut]

»Daphne Guinness is shooting with Steven Klein for the September 2008 Vogue Italia couture supplement [Chic Report]

»Tom Ford doesn't like people filming his new house being built [Fashionista]

»Vogue Paris' Geraldine Saglio! [The Sartorialist]

»Toccara Jones in Vogue Italia July 2008 [TFS]

»Oddly, Elie Tahari went with Erin Wasson and Terry Richardson for their Fall 2008 campaign [Fashionista, TFS]

»Style.com is expanding with a new beauty site [Fashionista]

»Lily Cole blogs? [Catwalk Queen]

»Edita Vilkeviciute for Fall 2008 Etro [TFS]

Anna Wintour: A Woman of Few Words

fashionologie — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 15:57:01 -0700

»Anna Wintour curtly addresses the likelihood of a Vogue reality series [The Cut]

»Topshop owner Sir Philip Green is already looking for more potential Topshop sites in Manhattan [WWD]

»Nicole Kidman: Confirmed for the July Vogue cover [FWD]

»Simon Doonan recounts his insulting comment to Andre Leon Talley at last week's CFDA Awards [NY Observer]

»Speaking of ALT, he confirmed that the Vogue caricature bought for him is currently being framed, and then will go in his office [WWD]

»Preview of Pringle, Derek Lam, Bill Blass, and Behnaz Sarafpour's Resort 2009 collections [WWD, WWD, WWD, WWD]

Michael Kors, Coco Rocha Uncover Fashion's Nasty Habits at CFDA Health Event

fashionologie — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 10:45:21 -0700

>> At last night's CFDA-hosted "Beauty of Health" discussion, Michael Kors, Coco Rocha, and casting agent James Scully all stepped up to the plate to address the waning weights of models.

Kors threw in a designer's perspective, suggesting that his peers should "stay away from child-size clothes unless [they're] designing for children," and pointing out that when designers offer such small sample sizes and celebrities starve themselves to fit into them, their super-skinny aesthetic has a far-reaching impact on the general female population. He also advised agents to only send the most suitable girls to castings: “Sending a girl when there's little chance of her being booked throws a 16-year-old into a tizzy. The odds of a girl being booked for my show and Rick Owens’s are slim.”

Next up to the podium was Coco Rocha, who just like Natalia Vodianova and Ali Michael before her, admitted that the job comes with some very unhealthy habits. Two years ago, she weighed 108 pounds (at 5'10"), and yet people were stilling telling her "you need to lose more weight. The look this year is anorexic. We don't want you to be anorexic, we just want you to look it." Even crazier, an agent once advised her to throw up after meals.

Eventually, she submitted to the pressure. "Last season I took diuretic pills. Once I took so many on an empty stomach that I was doubled over for hours. That's the last time I ever did something so terrible to my body." She asked designers to provide healthier food at their shows — "No one wants to be caught with that photo 'Model Eats Cake'" — and to make their fit models, and therefore their sample sizes, bigger — models are humiliated when zippers won't zip up at castings.

Finally, casting agent James Scully advised insiders to consider the weight of their words. "Let's stop treating models like greyhounds we plan to shoot after a race. We have to remember we are dealing with real people who have real feelings."

Francisco Costa, Georgina Chapman, Keren Craig, Donna Karan, Richard Chai, Marcus Wainwright, David Neville, Derek Lam, Doo-Ri Chung, Diane von Furstenberg, Phillip Lim, and Anna Wintour, plus several other Vogue editors, were all in attendance at the event — which leaves quite a few American designers unaccounted for. But as Michael Kors pointed out, designers aren't the only people responsible. "The next one we need to do is about skinny people who work in fashion: editors, buyers, stylists. That’s called ‘Why Does This Sample Fit Me?”

*images: source