fashionologie

Valentino Garavani to Launch Virtual Archives

fashionologie — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 14:18:53 PST

>> Next month, Valentino will open his archives to the world. Using 3D technology, the Valentino Garavani Virtual Musuem - found at Valentino-Garavani-Archives.org - catalogs over 300 dresses from Garavani's five decade-long career, including Julia Roberts's Oscar dress and the couture dress Jackie Kennedy wore to wed Aristotle Onassis.

The site, which officially launches Dec. 5, will also feature over 5,000 images and 95 fashion show videos. Giancarlo Giammetti, Garavani's longtime business partner, explains of the site's content: “Animated galleries show a life’s work, and key dresses have been photographed in 360 degrees. Click on them and they revolve to show every line and stitch. Click again and discover the history of the dress, who wore it where and when, see it in the amazing campaigns that we created for the collections in the late 1960s, 1970s, '80s, '90s . . . move through to other spaces leading off the sunlit courtyards under the Roman sky to new galleries full of photographs of friends, models, drawings, animations, videos.”

Garavani adds of the project: “I see it as part of my legacy. I am happy that thousands of students, young designers and fashion people will be able to see and study my work in every aspect of it, and in a manner easy and accessible for the younger generations. But it is also important to remember things of the past, to review the fashion that has shaped our lives. I would call it ‘Future Memory.’”

A preview video of the site, below.

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Fashion Descends on London For the Frieze Art Fair

fashionologie — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 08:37:59 PDT

>> On to the next: Not a week after Paris Fashion Week ended, fashion's attention has already been shifted to London, where the Frieze Art Fair gets under way today. Yesterday, designers Alber Elbaz and Phoebe Philo, art dealers Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld and Philo's husband, Max Wigram, plus Natalia Vodianova, Caroline Sieber, and Valentino Garavani were all spotted taking in the wares at the VIP preview.

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See (and Watch) Scenes from Natalia Vodianova's Fairy Tale-Themed Love Ball Bash

fashionologie — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 12:16:09 PDT

>> To close out the Fall 2011 couture season, Natalia Vodianova invited a who's who of fashion to her White Fairy Tale Love Ball last night, hosted at Valentino Garavani's Chateau de Wideville estate on the outskirts of Paris. Her goal? To raise money for her Naked Heart Foundation, which has already built 60 playgrounds in 44 Russian cities.

She succeeded in pulling in 2.3 million euros ($3.3 million) from the night, which included a fashion show featuring 45 custom dresses created by Olivier Theyskens, Alexander Wang, Stella McCartney, and every designer in between. Although the night's dress code called for white or silver gowns, Vodianova, for her part, wore a scarlet Little Red Riding Hood-inspired confection by Garavani himself - the first dress he has made since retiring in 2008. “I always wear red to my events,” Vodianova explained.

A video from the festivities, below.

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Karl Lagerfeld, Donatella Versace, and More React to Kate Middleton's Wedding Dress

fashionologie — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 05:45:54 PDT

>> Vera Wang was on CNN this morning, weighing in who she hoped designed Kate Middleton's dress; but, now that it's been revealed to be Alexander McQueen's Sarah Burton, how do Burton's other designing colleagues rate the dress? (And one can't help but wonder what Alexander McQueen would have thought of a partnership between his label and Middleton, given that he once famously wrote "I am a c*nt" in the lining of a jacket destined for Prince Charles.) But without further ado . . .

Karl Lagerfeld: “[Middleton] is very elegant. The dress is classic and goes very well in the Westminster decor. It almost reminds me of (Queen) Elizabeth’s wedding, the royal weddings in the '50s. The proportion of the train is good. The lace is very pretty. I like the veil a lot.”

Christian Lacroix: “I like the dress very much, simpler than expected: A combination just in between 1956 Grace Kelly and 1947 Queen Elizabeth dress. I love the modest veil with the Queen Mother’s '30s scroll tiara and balanced volume of the whole gown. She’s radiant; she never was so beautiful. And Prince William’s red Irish uniform is gorgeous.”

Hubert de Givenchy: “The dress is very simple and very nice. The veil is a little flat, but because she has such a lovely face, she can afford to wear it this way. She is very pretty.”

Peter Copping of Nina Ricci: “Very much in a royal tradition, reminiscent of Queen Elizabeth’s - and a little bit Grace Kelly. She looks happy, radiant, and natural.”

Donatella Versace: "Kate's dress was beautiful. She looked very regal."

Prabal Gurung: “I thought it was pretty and appropriate. A high-profile wedding like this is not the place for making a crazy fashion moment. It sounds like an oxymoron but it was a personal moment in a very public place. The dress clearly said she’s a modern girl and of this generation. It was not McQueen at its theatrical sense but McQueen in its quiet but beautiful sense. I loved the bustle and how her silk tulle veil was moving softly in the wind.”

Jason Wu: “I thought Catherine’s dress looked stunning. The details were very well done and I loved the emphasis on craftsmanship and the use of British talent. Her choice to pay tribute to Alexander McQueen was both touching and exciting.”

Viktor & Rolf: “Kate’s dress was simply elegant. Her hair down was a beautiful and natural touch, and the tiara was stunning. She looked as at ease as humanly possible and was radiant. Our compliments.”

Diane von Furstenberg: “The dress was beautiful. I think she is irresistible, she is so beautiful. I am happy it was McQueen. It was absolutely the right thing to do. They made [the dress] simple, so it wasn’t costumey but a beautiful evening gown. I was happy for Sarah, happy for the Met, and happy for McQueen."

Tory Burch: “Kate looked stunning. Choosing Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen reflects Kate’s modern aesthetic and style, but the handmade lace details and craftsmanship are a great nod to British tradition. The lace, the clean lines of the dress, Queen Elizabeth’s tiara - every detail was stunning.”

Donna Karan: “The dress was extremely elegant. For me, it wasn’t so much about the dress though, it was all about her. She was the most beautiful bride in the world.”

Francisco Costa: “Kate’s dress had a classic elegance with a modern edge. The superb detailing really characterized Sarah’s expert hand.”

Oscar de la Renta: “She looked absolutely ravishing. She looked like a bride should look and she handled herself tremendously. And they look like a much loving couple. I am happy to see fresh blood coming into the family. It was a very traditional, beautiful dress which it needed to be for that kind of wedding. Most of all she devastated with her charm. Listen, she will wear anything and will look ravishing.”

Valentino: “I loved the dress . . . it was very simple and young even if a hint of Grace Kelly's dress spoke of 1950s! I loved the flounce on the back of the skirt and the little decoration all around the short veil. I loved the choice of the tiara: simple, pretty, very right for the dress and for her attitude . . . it was used almost as an hairpiece to keep the hair and the veil, not as a heavy decoration. Compared to the famous Diana’s dress, Diana’s was a dress of a fairy-tale princess . . . still a dress everybody remembers. Kate’s one is a very pretty, modern dress that will be copied everywhere but lacks that fairy-tale element. Today most of the new princesses are young, modern, nonroyal women who have clear ideas, independence from stiff protocol . . . they want to be themselves and not anymore a symbol of the crown.”

Reed Krakoff: “I thought the dress was very modern. It bridged the gap between modern and youthful, and was respectful to the position she is in. It didn’t look to traditional or expected though. I particularly liked the neckline. It was more youthful than I expected. The fact that the bodice was fitted and formfitting was great, because she is a beautiful young woman and it accentuated that.”

A Look at Hollywood Beauty Icon, the Bold Elizabeth Taylor

fashionologie — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 13:34:38 PDT

>> Elizabeth Taylor, she of the violet eyes, plunging necklines, and ostentatious jewelry, passed away this morning at 79. She first broke onto the scene at 12, in the 1944 film National Velvet; she became the highest-paid actress of the time when she accepted $1 million in 1960 to play Cleopatra; and her White Diamonds perfume, launched in 1991, remains a bestseller. But aside from all that, she was a Hollywood icon - the "beauty incarnate" to Marilyn Monroe's sex goddess, Grace Kelly's ice queen, and Audrey Hepburn's eternal gamine, as the New York Times put it.

Although she wasn't known as a fashion icon, she did have her moments: the strapless white gown covered in daisies Edith Head designed for Taylor in 1951's A Place in the Sun inspired the most popular prom dress that year, and the white dress she wore in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof was licensed by its costume designer, Helen Rose, and sold in the thousands.

Valentino, who dressed Taylor in 1991 for her eighth wedding, said: “Liz is a very faithful friend. She can be the most extraordinarily beautiful woman. But what makes her a big star in my eyes is that she is like everyone else. She puts on weight, she loses it. She has depression, faces health problems just like everyone. It’s why she is a lasting personality.” A look back at some of Taylor's iconic moments, in the gallery.

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Designers Tom Ford, Georgina Chapman and More Make Appearances at the Oscar Festivities

fashionologie — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 11:44:43 PST

>> Designers are well-represented at the Academy Awards when it comes to gowns, but a few made the pilgrimage to Los Angeles themselves to have their own Oscars red carpet moment. Georgina Chapman, Valentino Garavani, and Tara Subkoff made an awards appearance, while Diane von Furstenberg, Carolina Herrera, Jason Wu, Tom Ford and the like hobnobbed later at Vanity Fair's after party.

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The Many Oscar Looks of Host Anne Hathaway

fashionologie — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 18:23:02 PST

>> With Rachel Zoe styling her behind the scenes, Oscars host Anne Hathaway is said to be wearing up to seven dresses over the span of the awards. So far, she's done the red carpet in vintage Valentino couture and kicked the ceremony off in Givenchy couture. What might she wear next? Watch this spot, we'll update with every dress change.

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Valentino Designers Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli "Loved" Working with Fired Designer Alessandra Facchinetti

fashionologie — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 11:50:24 PST

>> According to Valentino CEO Stefano Sassi, if the brand's numbers stay strong through Christmas, it will be in the black again for the first time since the London-based private equity group Permira bought it in 2007.

When Sassi joined the company in 2006, to say that the company was without structure or fiscal discipline is an understatement, he told WSJ. Of Giancarlo Giammetti, Valentino Garavani's longtime business partner, Sassi said: "He is a fox, but also he was dangerous. He was a great communicator and he created an exclusive image, but if you compare what Armani was doing at the same age, now he was an entrepreneur.”

When Garavani retired in 2008, he had for years been only putting effort into the couture collection and the ready-to-wear runway shows. An accessories line - which now accounts for half the brand’s total revenue - didn't exist until 2000, and he left others to the pre-collections, which now make up 75 percent of sales.

When Alessandra Facchinetti took over after Garavani's retirement, she was critically acclaimed, but Sassi says that only 28 percent of her Fall 2008 collection sold at full price. And: “She was interested in one variable. We had 25 variables. And the more the critics talked about her genius, the less she listened [to management].”

Current Valentino creative directors, Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli, were the brand's accessories designers at the time and say they didn't angle to take the head job after Garavani's retirement. “We loved working with [Facchinetti],” Chiuri told WSJ.

But they took over after Facchinetti was fired at the end of 2008 and have brought a younger slant to the brand: their runway shows are mostly day wear, as opposed to Garavani's mostly evening wear. And they've brought positive momentum to the brand: sales were up 10 percent for the first six months of 2010, and store traffic is up 15 percent.

As for Garavani, who attended the most recent show in October and gave a standing ovation? Sassi says his presence is a mixed blessing: “Yes, you want the founder’s approval, but you also want to show that you are forging your own way. Do you want people to think he is OK with the things you’re doing? Yes. But do you want them to think that it is business as usual? I’m not sure.”

fashionologie — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 13:29:45 PDT

>> Valentino: The Last Emperor To Hit DVD Sept. 8 -Matt Tyrnauer's documentary Valentino: The Last Emperor, comes out on DVD just before New York Fashion Week kicks off on Sept. 8 and promises a slew of bonus features, including clips of preparations for a party at Valentino's French estate; a ski vacation in Gstaad; a peek into Valentino's Fifth Avenue home in New York as he gets ready for the Costume Institute Gala; and a look at Valentino's couture seamstresses in action. [FWD]

Valentino Sticks to the Yacht at Cannes

fashionologie — Thu, 21 May 2009 17:17:46 PDT

>> Valentino made headlines earlier this week for his reaction to the fashion on the Costume Institute Gala red carpet - he shook his head, muttered "no, no, no," and wiggled his finger, adding: "I think now all the girls look very ugly. I saw the pictures of the Metropolitan gala evening [in New York] last week and I never saw something more ugly, all the girls have their legs out with the most terrible proportions."

He also told the Guardian that he has "so many ideas I could design a collection in two days but don't miss it at all" - now that he's retired he "tr[ies] to have a good time." Although he hasn't made any red carpet appearances, his yacht has been spotted docked in Cannes - wonder what he has to say about all the Cannes fashion?

Or maybe instead of joining the parties in Cannes, his idea of fun now is staying in his yacht and having a meal cooked by partner Giancarlo Giammetti's chef, Pablo - in her GOOP newsletter this week, Gwyneth Paltrow raves over "GG, as he is affectionately known" and his chef's "rustic Italian food to die for . . . that can get me over there on the darkest and rainiest of London nights."