fashionologie

Chanel Rumored To Be Considering Blogger Brand Ambassadors; Rag & Bone, Too, Said To Be Pairing With Bloggers

fashionologie — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 14:11:35 PST

>> Blogger mania is not subsiding - Chanel, which named five it-girls (Jen Brill, Poppy Delevigne, Vanessa Traina, Leigh Lezark, and Caroline Sieber)
as beauty ambassadors in June 2009, is said to be mulling launching another, similar program - but with blogger ambassadors. Fashion Toast's Rumi Neely and Sea of Shoes's Jane Aldridge (who Chanel dressed for the Crillon Ball) are both said to have been contacted, but word is that the program is down the line a ways, as the luxury brand - which doesn't yet have an official Twitter - is wary of social media.

And speaking of brands pairing with bloggers - Rag & Bone, which had Abbey Lee Kershaw, Edita Vilkeviciute, Sasha Pivovarova, and Lily Aldridge shoot themselves for the brand's Spring 2011 ad campaign, reportedly has a second round of Spring 2011 ads forthcoming, for which bloggers like Neely and Bunny Bisous's Julia Frakes photographed themselves.

Rachel Comey Looks to Mickey Rourke for Her Fall 2011 Inspiration

fashionologie — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 07:36:15 PST

>> Rachel Comey's Fall 2011 collection didn't have any specific inspiration - "I was thinking of a woman who tries a little bit with her look, but it comes off in this nice, spontaneous light," she explained backstage, post-show. Unless you count Mickey Rourke, who Comey called out: "He's where I kind of uncovered that idea, I think. I was like, what makes him so charming? Because he's trying really hard, but it's in this way you appreciate."

Comey's Rourkian charmers came out in artfully mussed hair, shrunken sweaters, and cropped pants in bold zig zag or crosshatch patterns, finished with a slight flare at the hem. She even dabbled in an all-corduroy look: a blazer in cinnamon complemented by a full red skirt to match. The pants with pleats flaring at the ankle may be a hard sell, but the same can't be said for the footwear. For followers of Comey's cult of shoes (it seemed as though every blogger in town was front row - Susie Bubble, Fashion Toast's Rumi Neely, Julia Frakes, Hanneli Mustaparta, Bryanboy in an Afro wig . . .), there were zig zag heeled oxfords, green suede wedges, and even some pumps to choose from. And where was Comey headed, post-show? To relax with her son Bruno, born two months ago.

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Blogger Overload: Tavi Styles Again, Rumi Models, and Tommy Ton Makes Fashion Editorial Debut in Vogue Nippon October 2010

fashionologie — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 19:34:25 PDT

>> Needless to say, bloggers are keeping busy. Today alone, Hanneli Mustaparta hosted the Fashion's Night Out livestream alongside Andre Leon Talley, and it was announced that Tavi Gevinson would be styling part of Alice + Olivia's Spring 2011 presentation and Rumi Neely will model in Rebecca Minkoff's Spring 2011 presentation.

Tommy Ton, meanwhile, who has built quite the rapport with Vogue Nippon's fashion director-at-large, Anna Dello Russo - she recently invited him to her country home for a photo session - has taken the relationship professional. Ton thanked Dello Russo via Twitter for giving him his first-ever fashion editorial, published in Vogue Nippon's October 2010 issue (Ton has previously done a set of portraits of Tavi for Vogue Paris). The editorial, "A Renaissance of Style," which is styled by Dello Russo's assistant Aurora Sansone, features Ton's signature street-style-inspired shots - with plenty of shoe and bag close-ups - of Suzanne Diaz and Tatiana Cotliar. Take a look at his editorial debut, below.

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Sea of Shoes Blogger Designs for Urban Outfitters; Holt Renfrew Salutes Bloggers in Window Displays

fashionologie — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 16:50:30 PDT

>> The number of opportunities for fashion and style bloggers have exponentially grown this year; many scored coups in April, and this month they keep adding up. Sea of Shoes' Jane Aldridge designed six pairs of shoes for Urban Outfitters under the label J. Aldridge for Urban Outfitters, with the first three pairs hitting stores July 15 and the second three in December. Refinery29 and Teen Vogue have looks at the first set, which includes black studded gladiator heels ($98), black lace-up flats ($58), and knee-high peep-toe boots ($178), and as memory recalls marks the first design collaboration between a blogger and a major retailer - save perhaps Rumi Neely of Fashion Toast's upcoming pieces for RVCA.

Holt Renfrew, too, loves bloggers »

coutorture — Thu, 28 May 2009 11:56:28 PDT

Rumi Neely Of Fashion Toast Featured In Revolve's Styleguide

Every season online retailer, Revolve, asks an it-girl or well known stylist to curate a look book for their Styleguide section. This Spring 2009 Rumi Neely of the blog Fashion Toast is featured--no doubt thanks to her specialty of concocting looks that mix 'high and low' price points. In the Revolve Styleguide Neely chooses her favorite pieces: crop tops, black booties and little dresses, giving shoppers the ability to pick up the look at the click of a button.

Facehunter, Fashion Toast, and BunnyBisous Bloggers Convert Posts Into Further Industry Opportunities

fashionologie — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 17:42:41 PDT

>> Streetstyle photographers Garance Dore, Scott Schuman of The Sartorialist, and Tommy Ton of Jak & Jil have all turned their blogs into further industry opportunities - Garance now shoots editorials for the likes of Glamour Italy and guest blogs for Vogue.fr, Scott has photographed two seasons worth of DKNY Jeans campaigns and has a compilation book coming out in September, and Tommy did the Spring 2009 Lane Crawford campaign. And style blogger Susanna Lau's time on Style Bubble allowed her to transition from digital media planner at an ad agency to commissing editor of Dazed & Confused's DazedDigital.com.

In the past week or so, a handful of other fashion bloggers have seen their blog time become currency for further opportunities: Yvan Rodic of Facehunter just announced a compilation book of his streetstyle photography is coming out in early 2010. Julia Frakes of BunnyBisous and Paper's Fashion Schmasion is doing some lookbook time - first in Rachel Antonoff's Fall 2009 set and yesterday, she apparently shot the Chloe Sevigny for Opening Ceremony lookbook, complete with '90s hair; the last round of which Chloe starred in herself. And finally, Rumi Neely of Fashion Toast just signed with Next, is appearing in RVCA's campaign, and has further upcoming editorials and styling work already in the pipeline.

Guillaume Henry on Carven's Upcoming First Fashion Show and the Brand's Next Step

fashionologie — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 06:17:23 PST

>> In the course of four days, Guillaume Henry has made a whirlwind tour of personal appearances at Barneys in three different cities - San Francisco, Chicago, and then finally, New York yesterday - marking his first personal appearances in the United States since joining Carven as creative director in 2009. A former assistant to Riccardo Tisci, Henry is heading into his fourth collection for the brand - which for the first time, he will show during Paris Fashion Week in March. In between toasts from trunk show host Alexa Chung and chats with supporters like Sally Singer and new Barneys fashion director Amanda Brooks, we caught up with Henry to pick his brain.

Heard you just made your first trip to California! How was it?

I loved it there. It was super quick, so I definitely have to come back. The weather was amazing, the people were super friendly and supportive. San Francisco is a city with the good vibrations of a village. It’s fresh.

How long are you here in New York?

I arrived about three hours ago, and I’m leaving tomorrow morning. Quickest trip ever.

What's the first thing you plan to do when you get back home to Paris?

I have to go to the fabric fair. It started yesterday, and I’m going to be there for only one day, so I have one day to choose fabrics for next Summer’s collection. That’s something I’m going to have to do quick.

Any hints on the Fall 2011 collection?

I’m kind of superstitious, so I don’t talk about the Fall collection until it’s finished. I’m still working on it, and we’re going to show it in Paris in the beginning of March. We’re going to do a show - it’s the first time we’re going to put on a show. It’s not a proper show - you won’t expect girls on the catwalk, walking fast, but we’re definitely going do to it during fashion week. [It will be] a presentation - intimate, it’s all about intimacy. For me, we have to be close to the people, definitely.

What do you think is the next step for the brand, aside from a show?

We’re going to up our shoe line and our bag line - slowly, because it’s a real business. And I hope we’re going to relaunch perfumes, because Carven in the ‘50s was super famous for the perfumes. That’s something I would love to do, because it’s the smell of a collection, the smell of a house. I hope maybe in one year [we will relaunch perfumes]. And for next winter [Fall 2011] we will have lots of new shoes and bags - it’s going to be a proper line. And we’re going to be doing some of the shoes in collaboration with Robert Clergerie, the French shoemaker - it’s going to be a nice marriage.

Do you ever speak with Carven’s founder, Carmen de Tommaso?

Yeah! She’s 102 years old today, but I met her twice. The first time it was eight years ago. I did a contest, and actually the funny thing is I got the first prize. At the end of the day, when she offered me the prize, she said to me, ‘You have to understand now that I am your grandmother in the business.’ I couldn’t expect at that time that a few years later I would design [her] collection. And I met her two years ago at her 100^th birthday, and she was super nice - an old lady, but super nice.

Does she like the collection?

I have no idea. I hope that if she looks at it, she would find the DNA of the brand, because I really respect what she did with it.

What other shows are you looking forward to this season?

I’m looking at everything; I’m super interested in the job that I do, so I do have to look at everybody’s work and consider what’s happening. Commercially, I do have to consider what’s the reality in the streets, so I’m a real observer.

Who embodies the Carven woman for you?

I guess I hope Carven is a super democratic brand, so anybody would feel herself in our clothes. We’ve got girls like Rihanna wearing our clothes, girls like Emma Watson, Gwyneth Paltrow, Demi Moore . . . older actresses, as well. I really believe that there’s no real small market about Carven. I would love to dress Natalie Portman, and I would love to dress older actresses as well - like Susan Sarandon - so it’s not a question of age.

CFDA Hosts Parties Two Nights in a Row - A Design Challenge at Anna Wintour's House and a Book Launch

fashionologie — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 14:52:53 PDT

>> The CFDA has had a busy last couple of nights. The 2010 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalists, which include Eddie Borgo, Pamela Love, Joseph Altuzarra, and Christian Cota, gathered at Anna Wintour's house on Wednesday night with their model muses for the design challenge cocktail party, which this year required a look for a working woman, inspired by Ann Taylor. Photos of the event can be seen here, and a video of the the finalists presenting to this year's judges can be seen here.

And last night, designers like Francisco Costa - with Bianca Jagger on his arm, Subversive Jewelry's Justin Giunta, Peter Som, and Yigal Azrouel braved the torrential rain to toast the CFDA and Assouline's latest tome, American Fashion Designers at Home. CFDA president Diane von Furstenberg didn't make it - she's been temporarily bedridden with a cold - but plans are already in place for the next CFDA and Assouline collaboration: American Fashion: Designers on the Go, due out in Spring 2011, which will encompass travel guide tips, suggestions, and personal photos of favorite vacation places from designers.

CFDA Inducts 26 New Members for 2010, Including L'Wren Scott and Sophie Theallet

fashionologie — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 11:20:18 PDT

>> Wednesday evening, Vera Wang moved almost all of the furniture out of her vast Park Avenue apartment to toast this year's 26 new CFDA inductees. “It may not be as big as Donna Karan’s loft, but I can fit you all in,” Wang said of her duplex, which she estimated was hosting 300 guests. Tommy Hilfiger and wife Dee Ocleppo were impressed, however - The Cut caught them exclaiming: “It's amazing. The kitchen is sick. Our kitchen is like, a tenth of that size. That's like a restaurant kitchen.”

The new members include: Waris Ahluwalia - who said of the honor, “I feel like I almost should put this on my passport as my fashion visa. It's nice to make this baby official!", Steven Alan, Lisa Axelson of Ann Taylor, Lubov Azria, Shane Baum of Baumvision, Vicki Beamon and Karen Erickson of Erickson Beamon, George Esquivel, Robert Geller, Gary Graham, Ulrich Grimm of Calvin Klein, Sang A Im-Propp, Anthony Keegan of Commonwealth Utilities, Adam Kimmel, Nikki Kule of Kule, Kimberly McDonald, Rebecca Minkoff, Bibhu Mohapatra, Juan Carlos Obando, Monique Péan, Monica Rich Kosann, Pamella Roland, Robert Rodriguez, L'Wren Scott, Shelly Steffee, and Sophie Theallet, who just moved into a new office space.

fashionologie — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:10:53 PDT

>> Comings and Goings: Layoffs at W, Julia Frakes Signed at Next -W editorial director Patrick McCarthy vowed that the magazine wouldn't be cutting its twelve-month run in half, but the same doesn't go for his staff: features director James Reginato, who has been working with W since the early nineties, has left the magazine; more layoffs are expected next week. Next Model Management, meanwhile, is starting to carve out a fashion blogger portfolio - they signed Fashion Toast's Rumi Neely to their LA branch in April, and just announced representation of BunnyBISOUS's Julia Frakes in New York. [FWD, Next]