Victoria Beckham's Designer Dreams In The Bargain Bin

Sadie — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 11:30:00 EDT

Poor Posh. After the embarrassingly poor sales of her denim line and ensuing abandonment by retailers, we hear that her men's dVb line has been pushed back "until next year" by L.A. boutique Kitson. Plucky Posh is undaunted, having spoken of her desire to launch a couture line and show at New York's fashion week. dVb denies the line is floundering, claiming that "it is currently being manufactured but is likely to reach stores later than anticipated." [This Is London]
A man has confessed to the murder of Canadian model Diana O'Brien, whose body was found last week in Shanghai, where the 20-year-old was on a 3-month modeling contract. 18-year-old Chen Jun was arrested Friday morning in Anhui province; he apparently killed the model during an armed robbery of her apartment. [CNN]
Gwyneth Paltrow is really slacking in her obligations to Estee Lauder's new "Sensous" perfume, refusing to show for any of the hundred ridiculous promos the company's set up (opening the stock market, anyone?) and leaving the burden on the slender shoulders of co-pitchwomen Hilary Rhoda, Carolyn Murphy, and Elizabeth Hurley. Recriminations all around. [New York Magazine]

Seems the Nuclear Wintour has thawed for Obama: the fashionista was on the newly-published list of "major donors" to the Dem's campaign, indicating that she's raised fifty grand or more. [Neew York Times]
Wait, fashion, and bloggers...petty? Hard to believe, but it would seem that style sites Fashion Indie and Coutorture are engaged in the most ridiculous war of words (and pictures) ever. Says The Pipeline, "in our years of reading and writing for fashion blogs, this is as mad a skirmish as we've ever seen." [Pipeline]
The CEO of Overstock.com, that online retailer with all the insinuating "Big O" commercials, has decided not to sell fur through his sites. “You don’t have to think about it very much before you realize … you’re completely objectifying an animal when you say I’m going to wear it as a decorative object. That’s over the line for anyone who gives it any thought, I would think,' said Patrick Byrne, who's made waves in the past for his "battles against hedge funds." [Reuters]
Are low necklines responsible for Marks and Spencer's market slump? Some suggest that the chain's base of older folks has been alienated by attempts to appeal to a more youthful demographic. "The clothes are not suitable for our age group,' says one older lady. "The dresses are too low on top and they don't have sleeves. They just show too much cleavage and at our age we can't wear that sort of style."' [Independent]
Charity "Clothes Off Our Backs" latest fundraiser is selling off Rodo shoes. The twist/catch? Celebs like Kate Beckinsale, Cate Blanchett, Sheryl Crow, Kirsten Dunst, Zooey Deschanel and America Ferrera have each decorated a pair "as they chose." Apparently not everyone finds these words ominous: Pink's pair has already racked up $400 in bids; the heels Kristin Davis decorated have scored a more modest $170. [EOnline]
Next up for Target GO!: Purses by Monica Botkier, coming up next week, and a jewelry line by Dean Harris on 8/17. We've not had great luck with the designer accessories lines in the past, but hope springs eternal in the breast of Recessionistas. [The Budget Fashionista]
"Black is best when you're in court/The judge will be impressed!" That's Singin' In The Rain. This isThe Daily News on Christie Brinkley's courtroom choices :"The media-savvy former model - who's tried hard on the stand to argue she has been a perfect wife and mother - has picked crisp button-down shirts smoothed into sharp pencil skirts for her divorce trial against estranged husband Cook. Call it the Serious Woman's Uniform - and a smart wardrobe choice when you're up for a fight. "It's not threatening, that's the bottom line," says fashion commentator Mary Alice Stephenson. "The pencil skirt is a piece of clothing that all women respond to."" [Daily News]
New York consumer confidence at all-time low. [Crain's]
Super-scrawny menswear designer Hedi Slimane will be the cover model for the debut of Vogue Homme Japan. Said Kazuhiro Saito, editor in chief of Vogue Nippon and the new men's spin-off of Slimane's aesthetic, '"There were those very skinny, boyish male models. That works for Japanese guys."' [WWD]
The public asks Tim Gunn ten really asinine questions like, "What movie or TV cast has had the biggest impact on fashion?" He makes it work. [Time]

Kate Moss: Still The Face of Rimmel!

Sadie — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 11:00:00 EDT

Rumors are flying that Kate Moss has been replaced as the face of Rimmel after singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor was seen filming spots for the makeup line. Rimmel denies the reports, claiming that they're just one big happy family: "The girls will all represent different looks. With these girls varied backgrounds in music, acting and modeling - and their very different looks, it's hoped they will broaden the appeal of Rimmel London around the world." Phew! "Murder on the Dancefloor" may be an all time fave, but Kate/Rimmel is sacrosanct. [ElleUK]
Blind item alert! "Which autocratic fashion designer dropped out of sight for several months last year after a face-lift went wrong? The surgeon cut a nerve in his neck, and he needed rehabilitation to move his face properly..." Hm, autocratic and freaky-looking? Doesn't narrow it down much. [NY Post]

Canadian Model Diana O'Brien has died mysteriously in Shanghai in what police have ruled a homicide. "She kept getting jobs to go to clubs to promote whiskey that just involved dancing on podiums. She was sort of hoping for a fashion show or anything that was more model-related. She thought that was pretty ridiculous," friend Melanie Callas told the newspaper." [UPI]
Despite its rep as show business for ugly people, politics is the latest source for fashion models. France is swooning over the Bruni-Sarkos, while Louis Vuitton had Gorby shill in front of the Berlin Wall. Simon Doonan, for his part, is con. “When powerful women start using glamour and style, things usually end in tears. Marie Antoinette—hello!” warns Simon Doonan, the outspoken creative director of Barneys New York. “If they start shilling for fashion houses, then I will go live in Patagonia. [Political figures] should strive to be unremarkable and uninteresting in their style choices.” [W]
Valentino names Wendy Kahn as new CEO. [VogueUK]
Okay, if I had fourteen grand for every pair of heels that broke in a subway grate...! I don't, but a Manchester woman has won seven thousand pounds from the company that made the $70 "faulty heel" that snapped on first wear, causing the 20-year-old to break her ankle. Quoth she, " As I was walking down the tram platform the shoe snapped and I went over on it. It was really painful but I didn't want to ruin the night for everyone so we went on to the first bar.I began to feel better after a couple of drinks. But then the next thing I knew I'd passed out and was in the back of an ambulance.' The plaintiff says the injury forced her to quit a waitressing job and drop off of several sports teams. The ruling could open the floodgates for many such cases about which, as a heel-wearer, I am ambivalent. [Daily Mail]
Retailers offer employees carpool and mass transit incentives. Guessing not the glamorous life at least some of said employees envisioned. [WWD]
Chinese designer Qui Hao has won the prestigious Woolmark competition. (That's the one YSL famously beat out Lagerfeld for in the early 50s.) [New York Magazine]
ANTM Cycle 6 winner Dani Evans is the face of Tory Burch. [New York Magazine]
Women, repeat after me: we do not need to base our lives on television shows. Gossip Girl apparently has a major impact on young women's spending: "Fans stride into boutiques bearing magazine tear sheets that feature members of the cast and ask for their exact outfits. Or they order scoop-neck tops and hobo bags by following e-commerce links from the show’s Web site." [New York Times]
Economic woes impact NY textile shows. [WWD]
The founder of Zappos is depressingly young. Although the story's actually about his company's customer service. [Business Week]
Most boring infant in world orders Brooks Brothers catalogue. Sort of. [AdAge]
JC Penney inspired by The Breakfast Club. [Business Week]
Target opens its first Manhattan store. [Fashionista]
Wait for it: a bra for your ass. The brum. "British zoologist Desmond Morris' famous theory on the appeal of cleavage (I have a few theories of my own) is that it's a sexual signifier of the cleft of the buttocks, known in less refined circles as the ass crack. Traditionally considered an unattractive sign of sloppiness, plumber's butt is no longer a blue-collar syndrome, but naughty tease on par with the greatest sideboob. Anal cleavage has gained popularity this century with the rise of low-cut jeans (or should I say descent), the emergence of the whale tale, and most recently, posterior-revealing lingerie. Assless panties, if you will. Seven years ago, The Sun declared that "ass is the new tits," and this new breed of underwear finally proves them right." [BlackBook]
Rock and Republic's new (rockin?) makeup line. [WWD]

Jezebel: diana o'brien

Victoria Beckham's Designer Dreams In The Bargain Bin

Kate Moss: Still The Face of Rimmel!