>> After Chanel's bow bootie, flowy skirted Spring 2009 ad teaser appeared earlier this month, the big reveal is finally here, and Resort 2008 face Heidi Mount is continuing her house reign. It's a fitting choice, since she opened and closed the Spring 2009 show. The campaign also gives us our first look at the interior of Karl Lagerfeld's newly purchased Vermont home, though unfortunately it looks like it was photographed pre-furniture installation. *image: source
In an interview with German weekly De Zeit this week, Karl admits that even he is tightening his belt: "I have moved to a smaller house in Paris, and I don't fancy having so much staff now."
It's "very Emily Dickinson . . . In fact it's almost Puritanical. For me it's a new form of modesty."
But don't get carried away with the cost-cutting — he still needs some staff.
"The chambermaid, chauffeur and chef are still musts . . . around the clock."
And the Humvees, he's got to have those.
"I have three of them. Two here in Paris and one in Monte Carlo. The Hummer is like a tank and gives me a feeling of security. I don't want to drive at the same level as the others." *image: source
>> Henry Holland first burst onto the scene back in 2006 when he got Giles Deacon to wear a t-shirt that read "UHU Gareth Pugh" for his runway bow — Gareth reciprocated soon after by wearing Holland's "Get Your Freak on Giles Deacon" shirt.
In the time since, fashion iconograhy has proliferated on t-shirts. Deer Dana launched tees with cartoon renderings of Hamish Bowles, Andre Leon Talley, and Agyness Deyn, and just last week, Diane von Furstenberg graphic designer Chris Sauve launched the "Save Anna" graphic campaign — "take this graphic and make a t-shirt" — after rumors of Wintour's demise.
Holland is finally switching it up from the trademark slogan tees; He's done cartoon renderings of nude John Galliano, Donatella Versace, Karl Lagerfeld, and of course close friend Agyness Deyn — with flowers appropriately placed, Karl's a Chanel camellia. There are more designers involved — Luella Bartley included — and all approved Henry's graphics, which are going on t-shirts, to arrive in stores next year. *image: source
>> ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL—If Karl Lagerfeld is playing the tease, he's doing a good job of it. Just yesterday, we were talking about how the face of Spring 2009 Chanel hadn't yet been announced, and this first ad pops up, with only a shod foot visible. Some are playing a rousing game of guess-whose-foot, but the stockings and loose dress don't leave many clues . . . [TFS]
>> There's still no word on who is doing the honors for Chanel's mainline Spring 2009 ad campaign that was shot at Karl Lagerfeld's house in Vermont, but some peripheral roles have been handed out. Jerry Hall will take over Chanel handbag duties from Christy Turlington in a new campaign inspired by Colette's Cheri, the novel exploring the affair between a woman and a much younger man, which is coincidentially also an upcoming film by The Queen's Stephen Frears.
And those who are hoping Sasha Pivovarova will nab the Chanel Spring 2009 campaign, there's still hope. She's definitely still a Karl favorite — he shot the Pre-Fall Paris-Moscow collection on her in Paris a couple of weeks ago — lookbook or campaign, it's undetermined — and then she wore Chanel couture to the Vogue China Icons ceremony in Beijing on Saturday (above). *image: source
>> A couple of days ago, we got to see the teaser for the ten minute silent film Karl Lagerfeld produced to introduce his extravagant Chanel Paris-Moscow show. Now, the full-fledged directorial debut is available, with Edita Vilkeviciute as a lounging, smoking, staring Coco Chanel, and other assorted members of Karl's entourage in the supporting roles. Karl takes the opportunity to poke fun at Chanel's rival Poiret — "What is that horror you're wearing?" — and there's another humorous moment involving a deliveryman and some hat boxes, but generally speaking, he should stick to the clothes.
>> The economy doesn't seem to have touched Louis Vuitton or Chanel one bit. While some major American designers are cutting back their advertising and looking at runway alternatives, Vuitton is keeping their Spring 2009 media placement and ad budget on par with one year ago — a budget analysts have estimated to be more than $250 million annually.
And Chanel? Well, Karl just staged a full runway show — plus movie — for a Pre-Fall collection, when most designers do a presentation at most. Chanel's pre-Fall — in this case, Paris-Moscow — collection was established to showcase the skills of the house's couture ateliers, so the extravagance goes without saying. The dresses may be expensive, but Karl waved off any mention of the economy: "These dresses come out in six or seven months from now, and the world may have changed by then." And the annual tradition which has carried through Paris, New York, Tokyo, Monte Carlo, London, and this year Moscow will continue on next year in another emerging market: Shanghai. *image: source, source
>> Theten minute silent film Karl Lagerfeld directed to accompany his Chanel Paris-Moscow collection won't debut on the Chanel website until Dec. 5, but until then, we've got the teaser — almost two minutes worth of blurry, black-and-white, old movie fun.
>> Tom Ford is currently filming his directorial debut, and Wednesday, Karl Lagerfeld will show his own directorial debut, based on Coco Chanel's early years. Unlike Tom's feature film, Karl's film is only ten minutes — a length more fitting to kick off the showing of Chanel's Paris-Moscow collection in Paris. The presentation was originally supposed to take place in Moscow, but Karl changed his mind after Russian customs "wanted to have the clothes three weeks in advance, which means we wouldn't have been ready and the situation seemed risky, so we cancelled."
Shot in a Paris studio in two days, Karl's film is inspired by Mack Sennett's flickering black-and-white silent slapstick movies with "spliced in newsreel footage of WWI because I think it's interesting to juxtapose fashion with the horrible images of the trenches." Rather than cast extras — "they don't know how to touch the clothes" — Karl looked within his own posse to fill positions — muse Amanda Harlech and daughter Tallulah Ormsby-Gore as customer and model, Brad Kroenig as Chanel lover Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich, and bodyguard Sebastien Jondeau as a Russian general. For the role of Chanel, Karl went with Lithuanian model Edita Vilkeviciute — in character in the film stills below. *image: source
>> INSIDER WIRE—Karl Lagerfeld is famous for his hundreds of iPods (among other things), and he's even designed a Fendi trunk specifically for the storage of multiple iPods. For his personal storage needs, however, he commisioned a bespoke trunk from Louis Vuitton — one that costs tens of thousands of dollars — to carry 20 iPods plus their accessories, with his initials stamped near the handle. [Luxist]
fashionologie is the musings of a twenty-something American girl who wishes she could have a Freaky Friday incident and switch bodies with Carine Roitfeld.
>> Karl Lagerfeld may have just recently 
>> ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL —If Karl Lagerfeld is playing the tease, he's doing a good job of it. Just yesterday, we were talking about how 
>> There's still no word on 
>> INSIDER WIRE —Karl Lagerfeld is famous for 
