Jezebel: giles deacon

Lacroix Is Dead; Watch Out, Kelly Cutrone Is Coming

Jenna — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 11:30:00 EST

A French bankruptcy court has backed a plan that will cut 90% of Christian Lacroix's staff, and reduce the 22-year-old house to a licensing operation. [ToL]
None other than Simon Doonan is decorating the White House for Christmas. [NYTimes]

Speaking of the Obamas: Naeem Khan made not one but five dresses for Michelle Obama to consider for the state dinner last week. "It took 10 people three weeks to make the embroidery," says the Indian-born designer. The dresses were made in America, but the beading came from India. [W]
The point of this story seems to be: Rihanna has changed her style remarkably since she started entertaining us with song. [CNN]
Tiger Woods may still be wanted for questioning by the Florida Highway Patrol, but Nike is emphatically standing by their $40-million star. [WWD]
Kate Hudson loved the costumes in her movie Nine, set in 1960s Italy like its progenitor, 8 1/2, because the period fabulousness reminded her of watching her mother get dressed as a little girl. [UPI]
Catherine McNeil's Australian Vogue comeback cover is out. [Models.com]
Hey, everyone! This week is the week that all the major department stores expect to magically start reducing their prices as one! To a modest 30-40% off. (Just don't call it collusion!) Net-A-Porter went 30-50% off yesterday, so that $4,000 dress might now be $2,500, with tax, and Saks is starting its up to 40% off sale Thursday; hold on till after Christmas for steeper cuts. Stores laid in around 20% less stock than last year, in hopes of avoiding last fall's rash of below-cost markdowns. It appears they've been successful. [WWD]
"Whoever your mom is, people won't give you hundreds of thousands of dollars," says Vladimir Restoin Roitfeld, who was given $50,000 to mount his first art exhibition last February, and whose latest show, of Nicolas Pol's work, drew Jean-Paul Gaultier, Andre Balazs, Daphne Guinness, and, oh yeah, his mother Carine Roitfeld, to its opening. Young Vlad's secret? "We work extremely hard." [Bloomberg]
For I-D's 30th anniversary spring issue, Nick Knight will photograph 100 portraits of different fashion stars featured in its pages over the years — live, in front of an audience. His studio will be open to the public as an exhibition until December 20, and people will be able to watch shoots with, say, Kate Moss or Naomi Campbell, through a two-way mirror. Or live on the Internet, at Knight's showstudio.com. There's nothing that strikes us as less tedious than watching a month-long editorial fashion shoot, but someone might be into it. [WWD]
The Telegraph gets to the bottom of the mysteriously straight and non-neurotic fashion designer Giles Deacon. How come he's so successful, anyway? "Don't know. My parents weren't into fashion. I didn't have an eccentric granny who mixed lace mantillas with tweed. I never believe people who say that, anyway. 'Oh, my granny had great style.' I just like doing it and I enjoy working hard. I go to work at 10am and I'm still there at 8.30pm. We get the wine out then, but anyone who is successful and tells you they don't work hard is lying." [Telegraph]
Olivier Theyskens has a book on the way! Olivier Theyskens: The Other Side Of The Picture is due out from Assouline in February. He also might be involved in a new "retail concept," but neither he nor the company involved would comment. [WWD]
It's official: Bravo will begin airing the Kelly Cutrone reality television series we've all been waiting for, Kell On Earth, next February. As long as Ms. Cutrone keeps dropping f-bombs on live morning television, an audience for this shit is practically guaranteed. [UPI]
Peaches Geldof, Photoshopped within an inch of her life, is in a second campaign for the UK underwear brand Ultimo. The dividends of just happening upon that News Of The World photographer starkers continue to accrue. [Telegraph]
North Korean jeans made by a trio of Swedes who describe making contact with the communist regime as "like Facebook poking a country"? Is this a joke? [FWD]
Inez and Vinoodh shot the spring Lanvin men's wear ads this weekend in Paris, and rumor is they totally pulled a Juergen and put themselves in the shot. [WWD]

Jay-Z Raps About Wintour; Gaga & Marc Jacobs Do Comic Book

Margaret — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 11:30:00 EDT

Does Jay-Z reference Anna Wintour in his song "Empire State of Mind"? The line in question is: "caught up in the in crowd/now you're in-style/and in the winter gets cold en vogue with your skin out." [Fashion Week Daily]

Earlier today it was reported that Michael Vick had resigned with Nike two years after the company dropped him when he was sent to prison for dogfighting. His agent said, "Mike has a long-standing, great relationship with Nike, and he looks forward to continuing that relationship." But, now Nike has released a statement saying it has not "contractual relationship" with Vick and it merely, "agreed to supply product to Michael Vick as we do a number of athletes who are not under contract with Nike." [AP]
Michel Phan of the ESSEC Business School, which runs the world's only luxury brand management MBA program, says luxury retailers in Asia need to focus more on service. He explains: "It's not enough to say 'Our brand is expensive, or known'. You have to make customers connect with your brand, especially during this crisis, when they're more reluctant to buy on the spur of the moment. You have to give people a good reason to buy." [Reuters]
Peter Copping, the new designer of Nina Ricci, says Ricci's romantic designs are in line with his personal taste and belief that customers want feminine clothes. In his previous job at Louis Vuitton, he says, "whenever we did more feminine-based collections, the sales were always incredible in the stores as opposed to the more austere or hard-edged things... Obviously, one has to find a way to make that contemporary, modern and fashionable." [WWD]
On Tuesday, Giles Deacon received an award from France's National Association for the Development of the Fashion Arts along with a grant of $233,470 that will finance his spring fashion show in Paris. [WWD]
Timberland has collaborated with Wyclef Jean to design a line of 16 boots. For every pair sold $2 will be donated to Yéle Haiti Foundation to support reforestation in Haiti. [WWD]
At the D&G runway show in Milan, the chief executives of Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, and Bergdorf Goodman were put in the second and third rows while the chief executive of Yoox.com was in the front row. Bloggers have been invited to New York shows for a few seasons, but Europe is just warming to fashion bloggers who write for sites like Bryanboy.com, JakandJil.com, and GaranceDore.fr. [WSJ]
Artist Brian Einersen created a Lady Gaga comic book that's selling at Marc Jacobs stores for $2. [Fashionista]
Gareth Pugh is considering doing a fast-fashion line. He says: "I have considered it. The offers have come in, and every time we get an offer, I mull it over. I'd like more people to have access to my clothes, but the timing hasn't been right, or the project hasn't been right, or some combination of both those things. The first time I was approached, I wasn't even producing the garments I was showing on the runway. I didn't have a factory. Everything I was making, I was making by hand. Doing a fast-fashion collection seemed a little premature." He says companies should, "Keep asking. And I'll keep thinking." [N.Y. Magazine]
Robert Lee Morris had to create toned down versions of his jewelry in during the recession in the early '90s, but now his more showy creations are becoming popular again. They were featured in several runway shows this fall and Henri Bendel will open a Robert Lee Morris boutique tomorrow. [N.Y. Times]
At a party celebrating Sundance Channel's new show Man Shops Globe about Anthropologie buyer at large, Keith Johnson introduced guests to his partner Glen Senk, who fell in love with him in grade school. "I moved next door to him, at age 9, and the first day I saw him, I fell in love with him," Senk said. "It was otherworldly. I felt sparks all over my body. Literally, I saw stars. He was the kindest, sweetest, most wonderful person. I feel like that 44 years later." Johnson said, "It took a few years to convince me... He didn't convince me until I was 12." [N.Y. Times]
Paolo Colonna, a partner in Permira, the European private equity firm that bought the Valentino Fashion Group, said that though the fund usually exits its private equity investments after four or five years, but, "The various [economic] crises will delay our exit. Still, we are patient money. This is a long-term deal for us. I don't see any urgency to sell at these low valuations." [NY Times]
Giorgio Armani has reorganized his company, expanding the board of directors and delegating more power to non-family members. He's been suffering with a bout of hepatitis for months and says his illness was worsened by working long hours for decades. The reorganization is raising questions about whether the brand can outlive Armani. [WSJ]
Pam Grier says, "I'm hoping the Smithsonian will call me for the dress from Foxy Brown. The blue one with the ruffles. I'm holding onto it. Call me, Smithsonian!" [Village Voice]

Betsey Wants To Be "Like Ralph!"; Beyonce, Mom Do Sasha Fierce For Deréon

TatianaTheAnonymousModel — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 12:30:00 EDT

Like many 66-year-olds we know, Betsey Johnson is eyeing retirement. "I should be retired. I'm basically screwing up because I'm not retired. I'd like to go in four days a month, something like that," says the designer.

Johnson is planning to hand over the reins to her second-in-command, Eric Sartori, after her show this September. But she'll stay involved. "I'll be a mega-consultant. I'll go in. I want to be like Ralph [Lauren]. Like, I always imagined the perfect life is like Ralph, where he goes in, and his wonderful expert crews show him work, and he goes, 'Love it, love it, love it, um, we'll just put that aside for the moment, love it, love it, hmmm.' You know what I mean? And be that — be the inspiration, the light at the end of the tunnel, the fairy godmother that comes down." [The Cut]
Two images from Karl Lagerfeld's Fall 2009 Chanel campaign, which he shot himself on his Vermont farm, have hit the Internet. The ads star Freja Beha Erichsen and Heidi Mount, and have a nice, old-fashioned, rural feel. Mount and Erichsen sort of look like stylish, Stepford Mennonites. [Fashionologie]
There's more solarized Madonna psychedelia at the other end of this link, if you are curious to just what extent the pop star has been airbrushed into doll-like plasticity by Pascal Dangin for the Fall 2009 Louis Vuitton campaign. [Design Scene]
Artist Marilyn Minter contributed a video of models sucking on multi-colored sparkly goo, titled "Green Pink Caviar," to Madonna's Sticky & Sweet tour. (You can watch part of it here if you're not actually going to see Madonna.) "She actually paid me a bunch of money," says Minter. [WWD]
Sasha Fierce for Deréon Back-To-School collection: It's happening. In any color you want, so long as it's black. [WWD]
A battery-powered, bugle-beaded light-up glove worn by Michael Jackson on tour in 1984 will go under the hammer on October 1. [Reuters]
On July 17, clothes from Giles Deacon's back catalog will be presented in four free catwalk shows at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. [Telegraph]
As J.Lo begat Glow, so Glow begat Glow After Dark, which begat Sunkissed Glow, which begat Miami Glow, which begat Still. Still begat in its turn Love At First Glow By J.Lo. Love At First Glow begat Deseo, which begat Live By Jennifer Lopez. Live begat Live Luxe. And this fall, Live Luxe shall beget My Glow By Jennifer Lopez. So there are ten generations of Jennifer Lopez Perfume, ten generations of perfume in her decade of Fame. The People saw and said it was Good. [People]
Naturally, pictures have emerged from Chanel Iman's "internship" at Teen Vogue. Turns out the model poked her head into the styling closet, like any fashion magpie, after a mid-afternoon go-see. And then she stayed and helped the other interns organize it for the whole rest of the day. She must have spent 1.5-2 hours there, stacking shoes! And she didn't even share any decent gossip. [TeenVogue]
Far more successful is Coco Rocha's E! Canada special on fashion week. The model buttonholed Heidi Klum for some television hosting advice. Heidi says: Eye contact, don't prepare or rehearse too much, and wear something short. [FWD]
Juergen Teller: "Everything is how you dress. Everything. I would never do some sort of stupid picture where everything is dark and you can't see the fabric or whatever, or crop something badly so you don't get the right impression of a garment. I did have my problems with fashion before, maybe. As a heterosexual man, I was always a bit embarrassed of being a fashion photographer and didn't have the confidence to describe myself that way. Now I do have the confidence. It's a weird thing to do, I know, but I just kind of got into it and I think I do it very well." [Independent]
Racked has photos of Leanne Marshall's Bluefly line. The tops and dresses were snapped right off the rack during the e-tailer's photo shoot, so it's a little hard to see exactly how boring they are. [Racked]
Not content with extending her jewelry line into an "equestrian"-inspired clothing range and a line of shoes and bags, Nicole Richie is also tackling maternity wear, for A Pea In The Pod. "It's her Bohemian style," said a spokesperson for the retailer's parent company. [WWD]
British fashion icon Zandra Rhodes has crashed her station wagon through the window of a hardware store in Texas. One person inside the store was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries; it's unclear whether any charges will be filed. [Telegraph]
Justin Timberlake and Trace Ayala unveiled the William Rast label they co-founded at Selfridges in London — and gave interviews that made no mention of the extremely talented designers, Johan and Marcella Lindeberg, who have made the line such a success. [UK Vogue]
American Apparel has been cited by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for allegedly employing an estimated 1,600 illegal workers. ICE believes that up to one third of the California-based clothier's workforce is in the country illegally. [WSJ]
H&M, Louis Vuitton, and Wal-Mart topped a survey of consumer brand valuation. Which means we love cheap stuff that looks expensive, expensive stuff that looks cheap, and cheap stuff that looks cheap? [WWD]
Crabtree & Evelyn has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the U.S. The company has 126 stores, and around 950 employees. Its stated hope is to close some of its stores and renegotiate its leases, but any business that loses $13.3 million in fiscal 2009 can't have a great outlook. [ToL]

Jacko's Sparkly Concert Costume; Anna Read What You Wrote About Her On Facebook

TatianaTheAnonymousModel — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 11:30:00 EDT

Michael Jackson has settled on a costume for his upcoming tour: an ensemble made entirely from Swarovski crystals. His wardrobe uses 300,000 of the sparklers. Of course, this is the man who once wore a gold-plated jacket. [WWD]

Meanwhile at Glastonbury, the band Florence and the Machine had its outfits designed specially by Topshop. [Telegraph]
Anna Wintour is said to have instructed Vogue petty officers to create sockpuppet accounts on Facebook to monitor fan page comments about The September Issue. [P6]
Bucking the trend of British fashion designers returning to London Fashion Week for its anniversary, Giles Deacon has announced he'll show his Spring 2010 collection in Paris. [WWD]
Eva Green read what you wrote about her on the Internet, but unlike Anna, she just doesn't care! "I want to wear something that I wouldn't wear every day, I like to be a bit eccentric and I know lots of people say 'Oh my god blah' but I don't care, I want to have my style, I like to try something new," said the actress, who also pines for Topshop when she's in France. [Mirror]
50 Cent unveiled his new fragrance, Power, at a private party in New York. While unspecific about its target audience ("Everyone human...breathing...") he did manage to shove a journalist out of his path. The way she writes it, she didn't seem to mind. Power indeed. [The Cut]
This week sees the official previews of two dark, "intellectual" fashion ranges, heavy on the strange shapes and deconstruction, and costing around $300-$600. One is by Juicy Couture ("There is...one pair of very expensive leather leggings", but we knew that already). The other is by Comme des Garçons. Odd! [Racked] [Racked]
Council of Fashion Designers of America menswear award winner Band of Outsiders' Scott Sternberg (who tied for the award with Calvin Klein's Italo Zucchelli) was good enough to answer some of W magazine's questions. To "Waverly Inn or Monkey Bar?" he sagely responded: "No." Asked, "Jon or Kate?" Sternberg said: "Who?" Also, Paris Hilton better not ever ask to borrow his clothes. We like him even more now. [W]
Christy Turlington, who bagged the spring campaign, too, is coming back this fall as the face of Bally. Mario Sorrenti shot the ads. A number of fashion houses have made the choice to stick with their spring casting choices for fall. Versace re-shot Gisele in virtually the same position and dress as before, and Louis Vuitton re-hired Madonna. [WWD]
Bar Refaeli is now the new face of Garnier Fructis. [SassyBella]
Speaking of, L'Oréal has been found guilty of racial discrimination in French court. To market its Fructis shampoo in supermarkets, the beauty giant hired a sales staff — and was caught giving instructions in writing to a temp agency to employ only white women aged 18-22 who wear a French size 38-42. L'Oréal and the temp agency, Adecco, each have to pay fines and damages of €60,000. [Times of London]
Models of color did not fare well at Milan menswear week. Even reliably diverse clients, like DSquared2 (which last year used an all-black cast) had virtually no faces of color on their runways. Check out these pictures to see the practically all-white casts for yourself. [FashionBombDaily]
An Australian retail chain called Diva has ripped off a wide variety of jewelry by indie designers. [ShanaLogic]
Let me say this again: Male modeling is just like modeling for women. Only even more poorly paid. (This article quotes 500 Euros to several thousand Euros as a typical rate for men who work the shows in Europe — and says that it's lower than what women models get. Why do reporters never keep in mind who they're asking? In this case, it's a pair of twins who started out by booking campaigns for Dolce & Gabbana. Nothing about their experience of the industry is average.) [Telegraph]
Project Runway's Leanne Marshall wrote on her personal blog that she was unhappy with a business opportunity gone sour — but one which it was too late to pull the plug on. Discontent with retail partner Bluefly is the only logical conclusion. [Racked]
Ex-model and PR whiz Carlos Souza has returned to the house of Valentino to try and repair its damaged reputation. Since Valentino's departure, the brand has suffered through the embarrassing ousting of the talented successor Alessandra Facchinetti, and lackluster collections designed since then by two of Valentino's former assistants. [FWD]
Vena Cava now has a blog. [Viva Vena Cava]
Philippe Starck has launched a new clothing line, which he describes as "non-photogenic." It's made of waterproof cashmere and designed to last a long time, which is still enough to prick our interest. [UnBeige]
Dress Barn announced plans to buy Tween Brands Inc., which operates the Limited Too and Justice. [WSJ]
Nike, which cut 5% of its global workforce, some 1,750 jobs in May, saw sales for the fourth quarter decline to $341.4 million, from $490.5 million the year before. Orders for the next few month are also down 12%. [AP]
Troubled Jones Apparel Group is betting on the Asian market. It just bought a 15% stake in the Hong Kong-based retail distribution group GRI, upping its total stake in the company to 25%. [WWD]
H&M's sales are up by 6.4% in the quarter just ended. Revenue climbed 23%. [WSJ]
Uniqlo is talking about buying the Gap. [Independent]
The company that owns Lacoste has chosen the former head of the European supermarket chain Carrefour to lead the brand. [WWD]

But Aren't Makeup Ads About Making Women Feel Bad So They Buy Dumb Products?

TatianaTheAnonymousModel — Wed, 13 May 2009 11:30:00 EDT

Freida Pinto and Evangeline Lilly are new faces of L'Oreal. To mark the occasion, Lilly said she's proud "to represent a brand whose ambition is to...contribute to the fulfilment [sic] and well-being of everyone." [PRNewswire]

After long construction delays, cash-strapped Roberto Cavalli has opened his $30 million designer night club in Dubai. The floors are black quartz, and Swarovski crystals dangle from the ceilings, for that pre-recession look. [WWD]
Designer Hussein Chalayan, for his part, sees the future, and it looks like you wearing his ugly sneakers for Puma. [Dazed Digital]
The pop star Estelle, who recently designed a handbag, now wants a shoe line. [WWD]
Giles Deacon is expanding his business. A new manufacturing deal with Italy's Castor Srl will allow his label to reach more than 120 stores worldwide, compared with his current 38, and to do pre-season collections. [Elle UK]
Pharrell Williams, and Takashi Murakami. Making art, together. [WWD]
Sophie Dahl, who recently published her first cookbook, is rumored to be in talks to present a food show for the BBC. [Metro UK]
The Elle Decor of cokey hipster creatives, The Selby, shot Julia Restoin-Roitfeld's New York apartment. Look only if you can stomach a designer shoe collection with a total sticker price in the tens of thousands before noon. [The Selby]
Christian Siriano, who has made Heidi Klum some clothes to wear during her fourth pregnancy, demonstrates the way not to talk about a high-profile client after the fact: "I think she's trying to cover it a little this time. She's getting older and wants to be more sophisticated, not casual. She's trying to keep it a little quiet." Klum's trainer, David Kirsch, shows the proper deference and positivity: "Why should she do anything differently? She had a beautiful body all throughout her pregnancies. She's very disciplined and dialed in to being healthy." [People]
Sessilee Lopez credits last July's all-black issue of Italian Vogue, which featured her on one of its four covers, with "resurrecting" her career. [The Cut]
Topshop is on the hunt for more retail locations in Manhattan. [NY Observer]
Competitor H&M is making its latest designer collaboration, with Brit Matthew Williamson, available in more of its stores than ever before. The Swedish chain has 1,700 stores worldwide, and Williamson's summer collection will be stocked in 1,600 of them when it launches this Thursday — compared with the 200 stores that previous collaborations with designers like Karl Lagerfeld and Stella McCartney had reached. [WSJ]
The H&M line is also Williamson's first foray into men's wear — something he might continue under his own label, if the mass-market collection goes over well. [WWD]
Rick Ross wore a pair of Louis Vuitton sunglasses on the May cover of XXL magazine — and promptly received a letter from the company informing him they were counterfeit. "Louis Vuitton did not grant permission to Mr. Ross or to whoever did make the sunglasses to use our trademarks," wrote a miffed company spokesperson. Ross says the glasses are real, but that he had an L.A. jeweler add 14 karat gold accents to them. Which befits a style named "The Millionaire." [WWD]
Macy's, ever neighborly, expands its inventory whenever a competitor within its ambit fails, in order to lure the bankrupt chain's former customers. [WSJ]
Nordstrom is being sued by a group of former employees who allege that the company stole their sales commissions. When an item is returned by a Nordstrom customer, the commission originally paid the salesperson is deducted from that worker's salary — but thanks to Nordstrom's lenient return policy, in practice this policy means that items bought, and commission accordingly paid, months earlier can suddenly be rescinded. Nordstrom settled a racial harassment lawsuit with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for $292,500 last month. [Fashionista]
eBay has won the lawsuit brought against it by L'Oreal, meaning the auction giant has no legal responsibility for counterfeit products sold through its site. [WWD]
Liz Claiborne reported a loss of $91.4 million in the first quarter of this year. This was much steeper than analysts had expected, and the company's share price fell. [Reuters]
If you want to fly like Superman, this leotard worn by Christopher Reeve — with reinforced slits for wires — might get you started. [Mirror]

Vivienne Westwood Cuts First Record At 67!

Sadie — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 11:30:00 EDT

Punk queen Vivienne Westwood is releasing her first album! Well, sort of. "Conceptualised, compiled and art-directed by the designer personally, the album - which is being released by Mercury Records - features 16 of the favourite songs of fashion's grande dame, which, in typical Westwood style, are anything but predicable; think Last Night Was Made For Love by Billy Fury alongside Tchaikovsky's Waltz of the Flowers." [VogueUK]
The fact that Christina Aguilera seems so totally stable these days doesn't bode well for her new fragrance, "Inspire." Aguilera says the scent "is a natural extension of herself." But who wants to smell like happily-married mom without a substance abuse problem these days? [USA Today]
It's official! Debbie Phelps has signed an endorsement deal with Chico's! [WSJ]
Kate Moss returns to the catwalk after four years! Again: Well, sorta. "Kate grabbed a top hat and cane to join Beth Ditto of The Gossip in the show which was hosted by Scissor Sisters' singer Ana Matronic, and attended by a cheering posse of the model's friends including boyfriend Jamie Hince." [This Is London]

"Even as you read this, New York Fashion Week, debuting the spring 2009 collections, is unfurling on the Bryant Park runways, all but oblivious to the fact that most Americans are too busy choosing between food and fuel to worry about foulards versus fan pleats." [Village Voice]
Menswear designer takes a page from Italian Vogue: "Carlos Campos is showing his first women's collection Monday during Fashion Week, and he's just announced he'll use only black models in the runway show at the Altman Building." Great, but ultimately can't using a mix of models just become standard? [NY Mag]
Does footwear herald changes in Republicanland? "Mrs. Bush opted for comfortable, unexciting slingbacks while Mrs. McCain went with considerably higher, coquettish black peep-toe pumps." Palin, of course, favors Ferrari-red heels. [Observer]
In other sartorial convention news, conservatives, unsurprisingly, dress conservatively. "No untamed hair, no rumpled, loose-fitting skirts and trousers made from varying blends of linen, hemp and flax. On men, no shirttails hanging out or low-slung, baggy shorts and pants." [StarTribune]
In Britain, meanwhile, female politicians stay resolutely dowdy. [Telegraph]
Lauren Conrad: down but not out! The plucky polymath has some fall designs back up on her site. [OhNoTheyDidn't]
Designer Yigral Azrouel branches into condoms: “Having grown up with five sisters, causes related to women’s health and wellness are close to my heart. I love being able to apply my passion for design to raise awareness for Planned Parenthood®. My business is largely founded on designing for women, so it is really about taking that mindset and applying it to a product like PROPER ATTIRE® to figure out what appeals to a woman." I guess they've given up on condoms appealing to men. [NY Mag]
We're mad at Target for dropping Isaac Mizrahi, but maybe he'll jazz up Liz Claiborne? [WWD]
Ethically-produced jeans have made the leap from worthy to wearable. [Guardian]
Yet another college comes to its senses: UNC drops out of Victoria's Secret college line. [USNews]
Check it: the Gisele for Max Factor ads. [People]
More deets on the Vena Cava/Via Spiga collab! [Sassybella]
We bring peace to the Middle East! And by "peace" I mean "Payless Shoes." [WSJ]
Calvin Klein's successor Francisco Costa: “I never thought of filling anybody’s shoes...That was never a consideration. Calvin did what he did. Am I Calvin? Absolutely not. Am I respecting the label? Yes. Am I doing what I am supposed to do? I think I am. Am I respecting myself? Yes. Am I having fun? Yes. Do I like being here? I love being here." [WWD]
Is he responsible for CK's astronomical growth? [WWD]
We all know how designers love playing editor! (see: Tom Ford.) "For Elle's October issue, The London Issue, four British designers have created their ultimate Elle covers." They include Luella Bartley, Giles Deacon, Gareth Pugh, and Matthew Williamson. [ElleUK]

Anna Wintour Is Worried About The Models

Jennifer — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 12:30:00 EDT

Anna Wintour claims she is very concerned about how "pale and thin" the models look nowadays. Don't worry, Anna, next to you they look vibrant and full of color! [WWD, 4th item]
Here's your public service announcement of the day: The ingredient 1,4-Dioxane, which is found in many organic beauty and cleaning products, has been found to be carcinogenic. Go de-green your home now. Just don't mix any ammonia with chlorine in the process! [WWD, sub req'd]
"You could say the baseball cap comes from a jockey cap worn by a Russian princess in the 1760s," says milliner Nasir Mazhar. [Vogue UK]
Designer Giles Deacon says if he wasn't a designer he would be a zookeeper. [Independent]
Ghanian businessman Kwabena Osei Bonsu making handbags from plastic litter he finds strewn throughout Accra. We don't normally endorse "handbag designer" as a profession, but that's kind of cool. I wonder if you could make handbags out of "space junk"? [Independent]

Whoah USB port engagement rings; I totally want one. For my right hand of course. [Chic Report]
Oh phew: Hermes profits are up. [WWD, sub req'd]
MAC and Heatherette: Doing a makeup line together. Oh, Lydia Hearst is going to be all over this shit. [WWD, sub req'd]
Former Chloe designer Phoebe Philo is apparently itching for a new design gig. [WWD, 2nd item]
And 6267 designers Tommaso Aquilano and Roberto Rimondi are rumored to be taking over the reins at Gianfranco Ferre. [WWD, 5th item]
Ossie Clark's widow Celia Birtwell is designing a limited-edition capsule collection for...Express. Uh, yeah, that'll save your languishing business, Express. [WWD, sub req'd]
OMG the suspense is killing us; Will Carla Bruni wear Chanel or Dior when visiting UK PM Gordon Brown and his wife with new husband French president Nicolas Sarkozy next week? [WWD, 3rd item]
Hot deal alert: A $3,509 python skin laptop bag. [Chic Report]

Tim Gunn Wants To Check Out Your Ass

Jennifer — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 10:00:00 EDT

In his latest adventure as Liz Clairborne Chief Creative Officer/media love object, Tim Gunn is going on a 6-city tour sponsored by Glamour to showcase Claiborne's new denim line and help women try on jeans and find the "perfect" ones. (Denim: novel, right?) We've always believed all this talk about "perfect" denim is a lie but we'd give that all up just to have Tim Gunn pat our ass. [WWD, sub req'd]
Marc Jacobs's show for Louis Vuitton — which he also designs; it's so hard to find talent these days! — is Sunday evening and the waiting masses have learned that there is some sort of trashy romance novel theme to the show. We smell literary product placement! [WWD, 3rd item]
David Lynch has tips for wearing those Louboutins he shot so tortuously for an upcoming advertising campaign? Meditation. Because, like, if you just sit Indian style and rub your temples all day you won't notice the pain in your feet. [WWD, 3rd item]
The latest round of Gap's Product (Red) campaign will include images featuring Anne Hathaway. Because nothing screams "impoverished African children" like Anne Hathaway! [MediaPost]

Deciding it isn't enough to be irrelevant once a month in a disposable medium, Harper's Bazaar has decided to publish a book of style rules. Precisely zero people are waiting in earnest! [WWD, last item]
Name-checking them in her breakout single "Lip Gloss" paid off! Lil' Mama is doing in-store performances for L'Oreal. [WWD, 2nd item]
Who are the London fashion thieves? Following break-ins at the Luella, Marc Jacobs, Roger Vivier stores and Christopher Kane's studio, the brand spankin' new FrostFrench flagship store (helmed by Jude Law's ex, Sadie Frost) was also burglarized last night. Hey wait a second, isn't Jude Law in that new jewel thief movie Sleuth? Hmmm.... [Vogue UK]
We still get kinda sad when legends sell out: Lacroix for Evian. Sigh. [Fashion Week Daily]
Karl Lagerfeld quote of the day: "All my contracts are for life, so I am like a death row inmate." [Fashion Week Daily]
Gisele: Likes animals! [Sassybella]