Alber Elbaz Brings Out His Jokes for London Lanvin Opening March 27, 2009 11:34 am >> In honor of Lanvin's first London store, Alber Elbaz — who is apparently on a post-show, protein-only diet — flew in to give a guided tour of his Spring 2009 collection. During the day, there was a "girls only" policy, but at night, the ladies — Alexandra Shulman, Yasmin Le Bon, Anouck Lepere — were joined by the menfolk — Jefferson Hack, Juergen Teller, Jonathan Newhouse. Microphone in hand, Elbaz had the audience "in stitches," according to WWD, as he cracked jokes while presenting: “I dress women.
Alaia Wasn't Good Enough for Dior, But Naomi Campbell Lived With Him February 24, 2009 4:13 pm >> He may be one of the lesser knowns of a design generation that includes Valentino Garavani, Yves Saint Laurent, Karl Lagerfeld, and Giorgio Armani, but at 68, Azzedine Alaia has carved out a niche of his own. Like Armani, Alaia owns his business, allowing him to design his way — as Stephanie Seymour, who spoke with the designer for March 2009 Interview puts it — "usually very late at night with an old film playing in the background." More elusive than Marc Jacobs but more forthcoming than Martin Margiela, a window into Alaia's world is always a treat; More from Seymour and the man she refers to as "Papa":
Alaia was fired from Christian Dior after five days.