Jun 29

Fashion styles and colors are diverse as the American population. Designers Josette Golatt andWalter Wilson proved that recently at a fundraiser for Frisco Residents of Color.

But the message isn’t about color of skin. It’s all about the style.

“Just look at Josette,” said Susan Fallon, wife of city councilman Pat Fallon. “Josette is an elegant woman and her clothes reflect that elegance.”

Golatt is a resident of Frisco and Walter Wilson hails from Dallas. Both showed off their sense of style and play of color in fabric fitted and flowing.

Jun 29

‘Sex and the City’ stylist Patricia Field thinks “MC Hammer” pants are this season’s ultimate fashion statement.

Patricia - who has styled stars in movies such as ‘Confessions of a Shopaholic’ and ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ - says the baggy trousers are the perfect way to stand out in a crowd.

She said: “MC Hammer pants are a good place to start if you want to stand out. Or pants with stirrups. I’d definitely recommend investing in some harem pants too. Other than that, make sure you tap into the hardwear trend with a good hair accessory or hat.”

Meanwhile, Patricia has branded ‘Poker Face’ singer Lady Gaga and former Spice Girls star Victoria Beckham “style icons”.

She added to Britain’s Heat magazine: “They’re both very different in style and yet very similar. Lady Gaga is a pop star personified. Like Madonna before her, she has fun with her fashion and it’s all very showy and tongue in cheek.

“In the same way, Victoria’s created her own look that’s very glamorous. She definitely has her own way of putting outfits together that other people try to copy. They’re very different as style icons, but individually both very stylish in their own right.”

Jun 29

Three years ago Sacha Baron Cohen introduced us to Borat, now he’s about to unleash Bruno - a gay Austrian fashion designer.

The comedian’s alter-ego is in Australia for the premiere of his self-titled movie.

He pounced in wearing an outfit which could have been paying homage to Australian school uniform wearing rock band AC/DC.

But Bruno has never heard of them and the fashion designer says it’s unlikely he’d ever copy an Australian style.

“To be honest I’m a little bit disappointed,” he says. “I know that 150 years ago Britain sent all gays over here. I expected a bit more flair.”

Then he conceded he did approve of the style of just one Australian celebrity, Keith Urban. But clearly news never made it to Austria that Urban was actually born in Whangarei.

And it was in his hotel room, he claimed, that he spent the night with Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, whom he met last night on the television programme Rove.

He claimed he was late to today’s interview because he was still in bed with ‘his Ruddy’.

Bruno hopes that by the time his movie is released next month, people will realise fashion solves most of the world’s problems - pointing out suicide bombers never wear Marc Jacobs.

3 News

Jun 29

PARIS (AFP) – Days before turning 87, French fashion legend Pierre Cardin is stripping off a large part of his China empire and told AFP he was “going to sell everything I own.”

“It’s a question of age,” said the designer, who turns 87 on July 2.

Cardin said in a telephone interview that a deal would be signed “imminently” on the sale of his fashion (men, women, children) and accessories (belts and baggage) licences in China to two Chinese enterprises for 200 million euros (280 million dollars).

A Cardin spokesman identified the two firms as Jiangsheng Trading Company and Cardanro. He said Pierre Cardin currently has licences in 140 countries.

An astute businessman as well as a groundbreaking designer, Cardin invested in China as far back as 1978, one of the first foreigners to try the market.

The 32 licences due to be sold after two months of negotiations, he said, did not include Maxim’s food and restaurant interests and was not a wholesale sell-off of his brand.

Earlier on Monday, the group had denied a Chinese media report that it was preparing to sell off the overall brand.

“This is not about the sale of the Pierre Cardin group,” a spokesman told AFP. “The couturier is in talks with Chinese companies only on the sale of certain licences in China, as it was in the past for Japan for example.”

A newspaper in southern China, the Shenzhen Commercial Daily, had reported on Monday that the Jiansheng Trading Company in Guangdong province had offered 200 million euros (280 million dollars) to buy the brand and hoped to tie up a deal within a month.

The couturier, who said he has 500 to 600 licences worldwide, recalled that he had sold off licences in Japan some 15 years ago.

The turnover of the Pierre Cardin empire is estimated at six billion euros but several branches are in the red, according to French papers — restaurants, press, theatre.

“I don’t have to sell, it’s a question of age,” he said. “I’m going to sell Maxim’s, I’m going to sell Maxim’s textile, I’m going to sell everything I own.”

“Given that China offered to buy the brand, I’m starting with China.”

Cardin, who set up his couture house in 1949, said that if anyone wanted to buy the overall brand, excluding perfumes, it would cost “a billion euros.

In 2008, Pierre Cardin was ranked 71st with an estimated wealth of 500 million euros in a list of France’s wealthiest people released by Challenges magazine.

 

Jun 29

PARIS (AFP) – Paris rose up against fashion diktats and wardrobe conformism at the five-day whirl of men’s shows ending Monday, casting off suits and ties for classy comfort based on mixing, matching and layering.

The conventional two-piece business suit was almost nowhere to be seen at the 50-odd spring-summer 2010 catwalk presentations held in the capital of fashion, which began with Yves Saint Laurent and closed with Smalto.

Its emblematic accessory, the tie, likewise slipped off stage, popping up expectedly at longtime luxury tie-makers Hermes and Lanvin, but little shown elsewhere as designers instead opted for scarves, hats or glasses to liven up collections.

“The suit is no longer an outfit,” said the head of the powerful Couture Federation Didier Grumbach in Paris.

“Men’s clothes now are as inventive as those for women,” he told AFP. “More and more men are ready to take risks, there are plenty of things available other than the suit.”

With the luxury industry worried over the economic crisis, top designers mixed and matched jackets and pants with a plethora of waistcoats and even T-shirts, putting the accent on wearability and durability.

“We took our inspiration from the street, seeing what men want to wear,” said Lanvin’s highly-rated designer team, Dutchman Lucas Ossendrijver and Israeli Alber Elbaz.

“This collection is anti-uniform,” said Elbaz. “It is for men we know, men who love to dress.”

“One day you wear something classical, the next day a T-shirt, there is no uniform,” said Ossendrijver.

Likewise at Louis Vuitton, where singers Keziah Jones and The Black Eyed Peas hogged front row seats, designer Paul Helbers threw out designs inspired by New York City’s bike messengers that were cut for functionality, with jackets short and trousers rolled up for protection.

Sleeveless jackets, short jackets, waistcoats, low-slung pants and harem trousers were popular throughout the shows. Layering one’s clothes, with shirts, tunics or T-shirts poking out at different lengths below jackets, was also a regular theme.

Pants came in all lengths and shapes, as shorts, bermudas, above the ankle to show the shoe, rolled up, slim and baggy — but large and comfortable trousers seemed the flavour of the day.

France’s whacky Jean Paul Gaultier put testosterone sailor-types in wide pants with gender-bending bustiers, Kenzo’s explorers wore wide rumpled trousers for the Africa sun and even legendary British designer John Galliano sent his Napoleon Bonaparte-inspired models out in loose trousers.

In fact, years of skinny-silhouette domination seemed over this week when the style-setting house of Dior, always one of the most closely-watched shows, went for large rather than slim.

Men’s clothes, said Dior’s 33-year-old star Belgian designer, Kris Van Assche, need to be “more comfortable, soft and modern for today’s use.”

Like others, Van Assche paraded wide fluid trousers worn with layers of tank tops and shirts and went for models with muscles and physique, rather than the sapling-thin often androgynous men favoured by his predecessor Hedi Slimane.

“I think this season is a turning-point,” said consultant for the LVMH luxury group Jean-Jacques Picart.

“The designers clearly have become aware that it is harder to bring in the cash.”

Jun 21

yesterday won four of the nine awards at the ARISE Africa Fashion Awards held inside the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The Nigerian designers, who received the awards at an impressive ceremony held to mark the end of eight days of glittering showcasing of world class clothes made by Africans from about 20 countries, include Tiffany Amber, Ituen Basi, and Eyola. Oluchi Onweagba-Hollandis from Nigeria also won the Model of the Year award.
Tiffany Amber won the Designer of the Year award alongside David Tlale of South Africa while Ituen Basi won the Award for Innovation, while Eyola won the Most Promising Designer award with Heni of South Africa.
Other winners are Christie Brown of Ghana ( Emerging Designer award), Maponya Mall of Soweto in South Africa (Fashion Business award), Anglo Gold and Susan Hayes of South Africa (Fashion Creative award), Kluk CDGT of South Africa (Africa Red Carpet Award) and Ajuma, a model from Kenya wjho won the Africa Fashion Week Model award.
The event was witnessed by fashionistas from across Africa, Europe and America, including former First Lady of France, Mrs. Cecilia Attias, who came with her new husband, Richard.
Attias, who is the president and founder of Cecilia Attias Foundation, in her keynote address at the event, said the role of women in developing the economy of nations is so significant that development planners and other organisations must focus on helping to empower the womenfolk.
She noted that all the issues which draw women back from fully participating in economic development must be focused on and that her Foundation was set up to address such issues. 
She said her foundation was ready to collaborate with other NGOs across Africa to  help the women  overcome problems of underdevelopment.
Chairman and editor-in-chief of THISDAY newspapers and ARISE Magazine, the main sponsor of the ARISE Africa Fashion Show, Mr. Nduka Obaigbena, told the audience that the show and the awards were aimed at projecting Africa to the world through culture and to foster positive collaboration among Africans in this direction.    
The main act of the award ceremony was the perfomance by popular musician, Robert Kelly, otherwise known as R.Kelly. His performance sent the audience on ecstatic mood as the young and old stood up dancing and singing along with him for the 30 minutes he was dishing out different numbers from his past albums.
Kelly, who will perform again next week in Suncity, South Africa under the auspices of ARISE magazine was later presented with the award of Special Friend of Africa by Obaigbena.

Jun 21
I have my parchement ceremony next week and I’m really dreading it.  am quite busty (32e) and have blonde hair and fair skin.

hi, sorry, forgive me I dont know what a parchement ceremony is, can you explain it to me so I can get a better idea of what sort of day it is? I’m guessing it’s something you’ll need to be dressy or at least pretty smart for anyway, not just a jeans and vest day.

the busty thing - are you top heavy or are you curvy/hourglass - do you have the hips or bum to balance you out?

do you like pattern or plain, and do you have a favourite colour?
accessories can help detract from areas you dont like (boobs) and put focus on bits you like like some chunky bangles or a hat…. or fabulous shoes if you have good legs. what is your favourite/best feature?

Jun 21

It’s usually during these summer months that the Thai fashionistas indulge in the first (though not main) leg of the fashion week event before immersing themselves in the full-blown fashion jamboree later in the year.

However, you can never hope to have it all every year. Last Saturday, we had a one-night-only fashion and music blowout, “Elle Fashion for Life 2009″, a new incarnation that replaces the summer fashion week. This, perhaps, reflects a means to attest the dreams and glamorous fantasy of the Thai fashion scene in the time of recession.

Despite participation from eight leading fashion houses - each dispatching onto the runway key pieces from their latest collection - “Elle Fashion for Life 2009″ may fall short of expectations for those expecting an across-the-board fashion week. “This is not a fashion week. It’s completely a different thing,” said Elle Thailand’s editor-in-chief Kullawit Laosuksri of this new brainchild. “Our idea is to use fashion, which is what we’re good at, together with music, which has been an inspiration for people in all periods, to unleash a power that’s strong enough to evoke social change, hence, ‘Elle Fashion for Life’. The event involved participation from top artists and leading designers.”

Revenue from ticket and premium goods sales, as well as part of the revenue from sponsors will go to the Positive Partnerships Programme (PPP), under the Population and Community Development Association by Meechai Viravaidya, to help promote opportunities for those with HIV/Aids.

With this new approach to fashion and music, the event received as much expectation as any previous fashion week, with slightly more curiosity and scepticism. All questions were answered and expectations fulfilled, when the first look from Headquarter was unveiled against the backdrop of Carabao’s Made in Thailand. You don’t need that much time to familiarise yourself with this mode of cultural hybrid. The format is easy to digest: You have bands performing a set of a few songs during which a fashion brand presents their collection of only about 15 outfits, alternated with a solo performance of one song and a bit of emcee talk to remind the delighted audiences of the good cause they came here for.

Jun 21

Australian fashion designers appear to be bowing to international pressure to use size zero models, according to fashion industry insiders.

A leaked letter by British Vogue editor Alexandra Shulman, in which she revealed rail-thin models are now frequently retouched to look larger, this week reignited the weight debate in the UK.

Her claims that the world’s leading designers were pushing ever-thinner models into fashion magazines by only supplying them with size zero samples hit the mark with her Australian Vogue counterpart Kirstie Clements.

‘Some of the international designers’ samples look like dolls clothes when they arrive,’ she told News Ltd.

‘We shouldn’t have to starve to fit the clothes. The clothes should fit us.’

Vogue Australia online editor Damien Woolnough said Australian designers were following suit, and models were shrinking to doll-size proportions.

‘International designers pretty much lead the way for Australian designers as well,’ Woolnough told AAP.

‘There does seem to be a general very thin focus coming from a lot of designers at the moment.’

Last year, Australian model Stephanie Carta was pulled from a fashion week show by her own agent over concerns about her thinness.

Woolnough said the supermodels of the past, such as Elle Macpherson, might struggle to find work if they were starting out in the industry now.

‘You look at the height of the so-called supermodel era with Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelista and Christy Turlington and you even wonder whether, if they were just launching themselves at the moment, whether they’d even make it on the catwalk because they seem to have more curves,’ Woolnough said.

A sensitive issue in the fashion world, many local designers declined to comment or failed to respond when asked for their opinions on the issue.

Priscilla Leighton Clark, owner of Priscilla’s Modelling Agency and judge on Australia’s Next Top Model, believes Australians will resist the size zero pressure, thanks to our preference for sporty, athletic-looking bodies.

‘Being too skinny in Australia is the same as being, you know, obese,’ she said.

‘If a girl is too thin in Sydney say, most the editors of the good magazines will go you know what, we really love her but she’s too thin. Tell her to put on some weight, to look a bit healthier and then we’ll use her’.

‘I just think that often overseas it just gets way out of control,’ she said.’

Jun 21

pressure to use size zero models, according to fashion industry insiders.

 

A leaked letter by British Vogue editor Alexandra Shulman, in which she revealed rail-thin models are now frequently retouched to look larger, this week reignited the weight debate in the UK.

Her claims that the world’s leading designers were pushing ever-thinner models into fashion magazines by only supplying them with size zero samples hit the mark with her Australian Vogue counterpart Kirstie Clements.

“Some of the international designers’ samples look like dolls clothes when they arrive,” she told News Ltd.

“We shouldn’t have to starve to fit the clothes. The clothes should fit us.”

Vogue Australia online editor Damien Woolnough said Australian designers were following suit, and models were shrinking to doll-size proportions.

“International designers pretty much lead the way for Australian designers as well,” Woolnough told AAP.

“There does seem to be a general very thin focus coming from a lot of designers at the moment.”

Last year, Australian model Stephanie Carta was pulled from a fashion week show by her own agent over concerns about her thinness.

Woolnough said the supermodels of the past, such as Elle Macpherson, might struggle to find work if they were starting out in the industry now.

“You look at the height of the so-called supermodel era with Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelista and Christy Turlington and you even wonder whether, if they were just launching themselves at the moment, whether they’d even make it on the catwalk because they seem to have more curves,” Woolnough said.

A sensitive issue in the fashion world, many local designers declined to comment or failed to respond when asked for their opinions on the issue.

Priscilla Leighton Clark, owner of Priscilla’s Modelling Agency and judge on Australia’s Next Top Model, believes Australians will resist the size zero pressure, thanks to our preference for sporty, athletic-looking bodies.

“Being too skinny in Australia is the same as being, you know, obese,” she said.

“If a girl is too thin in Sydney say, most the editors of the good magazines will go `you know what, we really love her but she’s too thin. Tell her to put on some weight, to look a bit healthier and then we’ll use her’.

“I just think that often overseas it just gets way out of control,” she said.”

AAP