Jezebel: liberty of london

Kim Kardashian's Perfume "Truly...Speaks To My Fans" (What Does It Tell Them?!)

Sadie — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 11:30:00 EDT

Kim Kardashian, has, obviously, created a perfume. "The fragrance really captures who I am," she says ominously. [WWD]
Heather Mills continues her controversial career, launching a line of recycled, re-modelled, animal-friendly (good!) clothes (bad. Very, very bad.) [DailyMail]

Oh, this is good. Philip Simon Footwear Group has teamed up with, um, the U.S. Army, to launch a line of shoes and bags, presumably aimed at Army-strong youngsters. Says the company, seemingly without irony, "We want to create a footwear line that expresses and conveys the ideals of the U.S. Army, but in a fashionable way... The patriotic homage combined with bright accent colors and cool styles will appeal to consumers across the board." [WWD]
Gisele Bundchen's on the cover of September's Vogue India, and appears in a series of ensembles by Indian designers. Quoth the Brazilian bathing-suit queen, "I like the combination of traditional Indian clothing with an edge — and the fabrics and colours are beautiful." [ONTD]
Talking about covers, find Lily Allen on British Elle's October issue. We'd have given her September. Okay, maybe not. [Sassybella]
From WWD: "David Gandy's sculpted torso has joined Scarlett Johansson's voluptuous flesh in Dolce & Gabbana's beauty ads. Four athletic men in their skivvies are shooting hoops around model Stella Tennant in Saks Fifth Avenue's fall campaign. And the muscular limbs of Andrés Velencoso are peeking out from behind Christy Turlington's black leather wardrobe in Yves Saint Laurent's spots. Is it too soon to declare the return of the "himbo"?" Yes. It's always too soon. In fact, I prefer to believe that word doesn't exist. [WWD]
And he's back! Private equity group Permira Advisers LLP has written down its stake in Valentino Fashion Group - again. Out of the Valentino Red? [WWD]
Liberty of London is staying defiantly high-end: the iconic London store is teaming up with Hermès, who's running a six-week pop-up scarf and tie shop on the premises. [Telegraph]
Hopefully this is win-win; Hermès' quarterly earnings fell below expectation. [FT]
But! J. Crew's crew of adorable kids has done the trick: the prepsters beat Wall Street estimates for the quarter and only see things getting better. [The Street]
Contrary to rumor, lovable hair-meister Chris March is not suing Beyonce for ripping him off - just Thierry Mugler and Tancrede Prinz LLC, who apparently kept the March-intended monies Beyonce paid them for costume services rendered. "Chris continues to be a fan and great admirer of Beyonce who looks beautiful in everything she wears, especially Chris's costumes." [Blogging Project Runway]
Speaking of Project Runway: Daniel Vosovic launches a capsule collection in February, inspired by his love of gymnastics. "There is a whole fashion group of gays that go. For at least an hour and a half it's my therapy. When you see the 6-year-old girls walking by with their six-packs and chiseled triceps, it makes you want to be even better." [New York]
And speaking of exercise: trainer to Madge and Gwynnie, Tracy Anderson, will be giving some kind of rareified, Goop-approved (presumably) exercise demo during Fashion's Night Out, so. [New York]
Donatella Versace has brought Versus back form the dead, and the resurrected brand will premiere at Milan Fashion Week. Prediction: she will be tanned. [WWD]
As you already knew, Tim Gunn is a superhero! Marvel is introducing Loaded Gunn, a comic set at the "New York Museum of Fashion." [WWD]

Calvin Klein Models Too Sexy For Their Pants; Demi's Daughter Exploited By Bazaar?

TatianaTheAnonymousModel — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 11:30:00 EDT

It seems Calvin Klein put up a billboard in SoHo which some find a little too sexy. We sure hope this kerfuffle ("It's borderline pornographic!") and all the media coverage of it doesn't hurt the company's denim sales! [NYDN]

"Nothing will be the same again, it would be illusory to think it will be the same again," now that we're in a recession, said Bernard Arnault, chairman and chief executive of LVMH. "In the most developed countries, customers will want exceptional brands. In developing countries, customers will increasingly adopt consumption models of developed countries." Funny, that actually sounds familiar! [WWD]
Watch out for more from model/heiress Lydia Hearst: She was in one independent film, The Last International Playboy, which is a title that every time I read it makes me briefly confused about whether the movie is an adaptation of The Playboy of the Western World, but in any case, for Lydia, the fame train has not yet reached the end of its line. "This is hopefully just the beginning," Hearst said at the premiere. "I'm a model, but you can expect a lot more from me soon." [WWD]
Phoebe Philo's resort collection for Celine, her first, was given a rave review by Cathy Horyn at the New York Times. "The central thing to know about her Celine clothes, which are terrific for a number of reasons, is that they reflect an every-day style. By that I mean they are clothes you want to wear every day, whether you work in an office or a gallery, part-time or at home. They answer the questions many women have about wanting to look good at work — appropriate — while still looking relaxed and casual. I'm not sure what Celine really means to American women, and I don't really care, but I thought it interesting that Ms. Philo focused on sportswear — not dresses, not ball gowns, not girlish, what-do-I-do-with-this-now separates. She makes one of the strongest sportswear statements we've seen in some time...It looked right for now, a reprieve from the Balmainia of ultra minidresses and chunky little boots." [On The Runway]
We shudder to think what this collab might look like: Ronnie Wood and Liberty of London. Leather, black eyeliner, and...floral prints? Oh, wait, the apparel and accessories lines will be based around the Stone's "choice quotations" and art. That sounds so much better. [WWD]
A more successful pairing might be Loomstate and Keds, which reaches Barneys Coop stores and Barneys.com today. Loomstate redesigned five laceless classic Keds with its prints on 100% organic cotton uppers and linings, the insoles are recycled, the eyelets are nickel-free, and the shoe boxes are recycled. Each pair runs $75. [WWD]
Is this Tom Ford sounding penitent? "That whole obsession with youth, with new, new, new — it's giving us clothes no one can wear. As for the business model that I followed at Gucci — the new this, the It that, the let's get it on a celebrity and shoot her in front of a logo, it was getting old then. Now it's really old." [Times of London]
Michael Kors and Heidi Klum, already a familiar duo from evening television, are behind this year's Breast Cancer Research Foundation/Saks Fifth Avenue Key to the Cure fundraiser. Kors has designed a t-shirt that will retail at $40 at Saks, and Klum will model the top for print advertisements. Saks will donate $500,000 to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, and 2% of the shirt sales, up to $250,000, to other local and national breast cancer charities. [WWD]
O.M.G., everybody: since 1997, Old Navy has sold t-shirts with an American flag on them and the current year at the bargain price of $5, in honor of making money around the 4th of July holiday. But this year, Wal-Mart's private label Faded Glory has a flag t-shirt with the year on it, and it only costs $3! How are we ever going to choose a retailer to affirm our patriotism now? [NYTimes]
Clever boy that Jason Wu. For his pre-fall collection, the designer created six different pieces for five top stores: Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Jeffrey. Letting everyone get slightly different versions of the same thing keeps the consumer shopping and might go some way to thwarting the race-to-the-bottom effect of discounting. He's doing the same thing for Spring. [WWD]
Realizing perhaps that in offering 15-year-old Tallulah Belle (Bruce and Demi's daughter) an internship they had in fact violated employment laws, Harper's Bazaar would like to clarify that the youngster is not, in fact, an "intern," but a "guest" of the magazine. Who comes to work every day to shadow the editors. Right. [Daily Express]
The first pan-African fashion week kicked off in Johannesburg, featuring 50 designers from as far away as Sierra Leone and Nigeria. [Reuters]
A recent vogue for bobcat fur may be hurting bobcat populations in the Western states. Nevada, New Meico, and Wyoming all have long trapping seasons for the cats, and no limits on how many may be killed. Their popularity with designers has caused prices to surge to around $500 a pelt. [AP]
Selma Weiser, the 84-year-old founder of legendary Manhattan boutique Charivari, died of heart failure on Friday in her home on the Upper West Side. In the 60s, 70s and 80s, Weiser was among the very first to bring designers such as Claude Montana, Yohji Yamamoto, Issey Miyake, Giorgio Armani, and Thierry Mugler to an American audience. She also gave Marc Jacobs a job as a shop assistant when he was 15. [WWD]
Someone named Scott Amron — apparently an electrical engineer/designer/inventor, and someone unaware of LVMH's aggressive policing of its intellectual property — had the bright idea to sell "Luis Vuitton" [sic] band-aids made of perforated leather. We sense the descent of lawyers in 3, 2, 1... [AmronExptl]
Natalie Massenet, founder of Net-A-Porter, and Christopher Bailey, creative director of Burberry, were named MBEs at Buckingham Palace this weekend. [WWD]

Bob Geldof's Non Drug-Abusing Daughter May Or May Not Get A Fashion Line

Sadie — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 11:30:00 EDT

First, word was that annoying Brit It Pixie Geldof (sister of Peaches… naturally) was turning designer. "Pixie, 17, has just been offered an estimated £80,000 deal with high street chain New Look to design and model an eight piece fashion range." [Boldface ours.] [Mirror]
But before we could even get properly irritated, we saw this: "Rumours are flying this morning that Pixie Geldof has signed an £80,000 deal to design a collection for New Look. However we can confirm that she has not signed a deal with the high street giant. We spoke to New Look this morning who told us, ' we admire Pixie's style very much and she is definitely someone we would like to work with in the near future', but a deal has not as of yet been signed." [ElleUK]
More on Jessica Simpson's inexplicable dress line. [WWD]
Michael Kors loves Mad Men: "Mad Men" is undeniably stylish—those super graphic titles, the Bernard Herrmann-esque score, the lighting…and then, obviously, I mean, the clothes. The show is like your terribly chic friend who was valedictorian. It gets you on every level." [Style.com]

The horror! The horror! Pantyhose for men! (well, frumpy ones.) [Random Good Stuff]
L'Oreal USA names new Luxury Products Chief [WWD]
Apparently the Olympics have influenced this summer's "sporty style." [Fashionista]
So, let's say Alexander McQueen collaborated with Puma. Well, the results would be exactly as ridiculous as you might have guessed! "The Puma AMQ line has most recently created a chocolate-brown crocodile leather kick that manages to combine urban style (note the high-top build) with high fashion — plus a little bit of a jungle vibe mixed in. "There is a part of me that is very couture, and a part of me that is very street," the designer explains." They're $3K, of course. [BlackBook.]
The official word is that, rumors to the contrary, Peter Som was sticking with his man, Bill Blass. [Conde Nast Portfolio]
But what about this, from Fashionista? "After only three collections, Peter Som has submitted his resignation at Bill Blass. Perhaps he can't handle the stress of designing more than one collection? Let's face it, he's no Marc or Karl.Word is management at Nexcen is keen on keeping him on board, at least in name, until they can sell the brand." [Fashionista]
And if Elle UK is wrong? I don't wanna be right! [ElleUK]
Breaking:Peter Som has left Bill Blass. [WWD]
Gisele Bunchen and beau Tom Brady slash asking prices on their NYC property listings! No, we still can't afford them. [WSJ]
And speaking of expensive stuff, Burberry expands its obnoxious but still kinda cute (who doesn't like little English children?!) kids' line. "Best sellers include trench coats and dresses that match the design of the men's and womenswear collections (and the campaign sweetly mirrors that of the main collections, which this season features Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and Sam Riley); back to school sales alone have boosted profits no end, with the mini quilted coats for both boys and girls having sold out within a week." [VogueUK]
So, WWD100, which ranks designers by recognizability, makes TOMMY HILFIGER #1! Over THE KAISER, PEOPLE! [Breitbart]
Recession? We didn't hear you - we were wearing our diamond-encrusted ear buds. "DEOS Diamond [www.deos-diamond.com] ear phone covers fit that bill nicely—the collection of covers, which come with colored, clear, or black VS-quality diamonds set into titanium—are designed by Allison Lee Zeiss (an alum of Vera Wang's fine jewelry line) and cost between $3,500 and $40,000, depending on the number and color of diamonds. The sparkly little sleeves slide onto the standard white Apple ear buds to add instant glam to phone or pod." [Style.com]
Or maybe I was blinded by my jeweled contacts. [New York Magazine]
Christian Lacroix: the creative millionaire's choice. [Dazed Digital]
Speaking of awesomeness, the Nanette Lepore boutique at Bloomingdale's has this rad high-tech mirror that allows you to 'virtually try on' clothes, superimposing the digital images over your reflection. Obviously the effect is kinda paper doll and you have no idea what you'd actually look like in the clothes, but...cool, no? [The Life Files]
Banana Republic shouts repeatedly that it is a "lifetsyle brand," goes higher-end. Here's a good point a friend made to me when J.Crew went all high-end: "if you had that kind of money, why spend it at J. Crew?" Ditto, Banana. [WWD]
Patyka's Biokaliftin launches (really expensive) organic cosmceuticals. [Style.com]
Designers "give back." [ElleUK]
Anglophiles holla back: Liberty of London now online! [ElleUK]

Stress, Health Problems Factors In Fashion Model's Suicide

Sadie — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 11:00:00 EDT

Kazakh model Ruslana Korshunova jumped to her death from her Manhattan apartment in an apparent suicide Saturday. The 20-year-old had been featured on the cover of Vogue and walked for Marc Jacobs, Nina Ricci and DKNY. [CNN]
Friends say Korshunova had been suffering from health problems and personal stress. [New York Post]
And in a shocking show of ghoulishness ('poor taste' doesn't begin to approach this one), Fox News has aired footage of her body. [Huffington Post]
Oy vey.Real World producers sign on for Project Runway. Bring on the hot tub. [Variety]

First seeing-eye cats guiding dogs, now designers collaborating! What's next, peace in the Middle East? [The Independent]
Tom Ford seeks to do the impossible: "“For this project, I wanted to reinvent patchouli . . . I loved the idea of mixing patchouli with white florals. We used patchouli orpur, which takes out some of the darker, smoky notes of patchouli. We mixed that with peony, bergamot, and jasmine,” says he of his new, Erykah-Badu-faced "White Patchouli." [Oh No They Didn't]
Family to take Clarins private. [WWD]
In a post-Sharon-Stone world: the future of Dior. [Financial Times]
Bella Freud: "I wish people would take more notice of what's going on in Palestine because if they knew the level of suffering of the Palestinian people, they would be outraged and appalled. People would demand that something should be done." [The Independent]
Gellin' like Magellan' is apparently complete nonsense. [Los Angeles Times]
Twiggy's daughter is staying off the runway. [Mail on Sunday]
Kaiser Karl: the ultimate arbiter. [Guardian]
A day after her sentencing, Naomi Campbell —surprise! — hits the catwalk. Um, in a men's show. [Los Angeles Times]
Liberty of London opens first boutique. [WWD]
Recessionistas take note: virtual H&M opens in new, depressing Sims world. [Los Angeles Times]
So, that hair extension Kate Moss lost? You can buy it on eBay. [Sassybella]
In a match made in...an insane asylum, Master P relaunches his line exclusively for Wal-Mart. [Reuters]
Green cosmetics take it to the fields. [New York Times]
Sit tight for today's Ebay knockoff ruling! [Breitbart]
Old-school Converse goes high-tech with new interactive marketing. [Adweek]
Oh, that should make the Queen happy. Kate Middleton, aka "Prince Williams maybe-fiancee" is a maybe-model. [Daily Express]
Molly Ringwalg gets the fashion-icon props she deserves! [Los Angeles Times]
Oh, and I guess Helene Rochas qualifies too. [W]
Recession? What recession? Fabulously wealthy keeps the good times rolling for Paris couture. [WWD]