KARLOVSKI COLLECTION

Karl shared the first images of his new jewellery collection with Swarovski. The collection is divided into three groups: Ikonic, with a rock-chic aesthetic; Klassic Karl, inspired by Lagerfeld’s famous cat Choupette; and Essentials, made up of classic key pieces.

Items include personalized charms, ear jackets, pearls, chains and studs encrusted with Swarovski crystals, finished with gold plating, rose gold plating and rhodium plating.

The collection will be launched in Europe, the Middle East, Asia and the US this fall, with retail prices ranging from €50 to €250.

MODEL AT 60 YEAR OLD

If you thought that fashion and silver hair could not coexist, you were wrong. The new face for American Apparel  is a beautiful 60 year old with grey hair and a royal posture.

No surgery and Photoshop touch-ups, Jacky O’Shaughnessy, an actress,was chosen as a testimonial for the brand exactly for her natural elegance (she admitted that she was spotted during a dinner) thus bringing to a global level the scouting work started by Ari Seth Cohen with his blog Advanced Style. Continue reading

LUXURY A PARADOX !

luxuryparadoxThe modern luxury industry rests on a paradox-but is thriving nonetheless. At the Trang Tien Ptaza shopping mall in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, some days you have couples in wedding dress and costume who come and pose for photos in front of the fashion brand shop windows like Salvator Ferragamo, Louis Vuitton and/or Gucci offering the sort of backdrop for romance more usually provided by the sea or the mountains. The women are not wearing Ferragamo Vara pumps’ with their distinctive bows, or toting Vuitton subtly monogrammed handbags. Continue reading

FETISH CHIC

ALEJust when you thought that you had seen it all on the catwalks, here comes a new trend, and in this case a rather catwalk challenging one for models… fetishes & bondage!

Now, we all know that music has a huge impact on fashion and ‘vice’ versa. As arts, they both feed from each other. Have you seen the latest video of Rihanna: ‘S&M’ yet? Seen Gaga’s latest shoes?

Well fashion seems to have also taken its fetish toys out of the secret drawer and it is now proudly and unapologetically preaching its love affair with fetishes.

From the very upper crust of fashion: Louis Vuitton, Herve Leger, and so on… to the trendy “cool kids” from London, to Continue reading

THE PRAGUE SPRING 2016

MARTINA2Having studied chemistry in Prague, the now London-based designer, Martina Spetlova, decided to continue her education at the prestigious Central St Martins. During her studies, she worked with Jeremy Scott and John Galliano whilst also setting up a woman’s artisan centre in Pakistan.

She won a number of awards including Chloe Textile Award, recipient of L’Oreal professional bursary, finalist of ITS9 and talent for White competition in Italy.

Any woman who appreciates craftamanship, high quality and who wants to stand out from the norm. My work has been described as unashamedly Continue reading

MASSENET A PORTER

NatalieMassenetAfter returning from a vacation, Net-a-Porter founder Natalie Massenet tendered her resignation from the online fashion retailer ahead of a planned merger with Italian rival Yoox. According to someone, she leaves with more than 100 million pounds ($153 million) after selling shares in Net-a-Porter. Massenet and Yoox declined to provide an immediate comment.

Yoox agreed to buy Net-a-Porter from Cie. Financiere Richemont SA in March. The all-stock deal, which is expected to close this month, will create the world’s largest online luxury-goods retailer. Massenet was to be chairman of the combined entity and Yoox founder Federico Marchetti its chief executive officer. Continue reading

SILLY FASHION STUDENT

BLONDESELLY2As key Opinion Leaders, when the times of the collections come, we ask for invitations to the shows. Unfortunately we have been receiving for the last 6 years the same formated email from “students” having an internship at LVMH. Besides those emails are full of mistakes.

We wonder why such companies employ qualified people and ask students to do their jobs. Maybe those communication Managers are not paid enough to fulfill their job and it is a way to claim for a better salary. besides those groups try to make us believe that they invest 100% of their benefits in France. In fact, the sad reality it is that they employ stagiaires to do the jobs to avoid recruiting qualified employees.

If it carries on like that, we will soon see ‘stagiaires’ replacing models, staff, General Manager and so on….. It is true that LVMH cannot really be considered Continue reading

HERMES REAL LUXURY

Hermes3French luxury goods maker Hermès posted a 20 percent rise in first-half operating income in line with expectations, helped by strong tourist demand in Japan, the United States and Europe.

The brand known for its silk scarves and Birkin bags costing several thousand euros reiterated on Friday that its operating margin for the full year would be lower than in 2014 due to currency fluctuations.

As expected, Hermès kept its medium-term goal of increasing annual sales at constant exchange rates by 8 percent.

Half-year results from other luxury companies such as LVMH and Gucci owner Kering published last month have been stronger than expected, driven in part by Asian shoppers in big European Continue reading

FENDI RESORT 2016

KRISTEN STEWART

1E62CDF6Kristen Stewart looked like a retro ’50s fashionista while filming an untitled Woody Allen project in Los Angeles. In the same time Kristen Stewart, who has appeared in campaigns for Chanel and is regularly front-row at its shows, is to appear in a film being made for the French house’s next Métiers d’Arts show, scheduled for Dec. 1 in Rome.

Sitting in the director’s chair, Karl Lagerfeld wrapped the two-day shoot at Luc Besson’s studio in Paris last month, and conceived the intriguing storyline: A fictional, behind-the-scenes look at a yet-to-be-made biopic about founder Gabrielle Chanel.

Lagerfeld said Stewart, best known for the “Twilight” series and her recent turn in Continue reading

FRANCK SORBIER ‘THE DREAMER’

dreamerFranck Sorbier’s fashion shows are always a exceptional and magic moment. In 2013, the poet, Franck Sorbier, has choosen to reinterpret the tale of “Peau d’Ane”. There is some Magic in the Telling … “Discovering the Dreamer of Franck Sorbier”.

Haute Couture is a land that imagination forgot. Many will speak of it as legend or as fantasy or even as mythology. And that is perfectly fine. We have no objection. However, Haute Couture is a real fact of life.

And, as you cross the Bridge of Belief, as you imagine yourself lifting out of the logic and out of the reason of the consensus reality, moving beyond time and space and beyond time-space, you can find that that land is and has been forgotten by the imagination. Continue reading

DEPP IMPACT

deepThis season, Karl Lagerfeld has not been hesitating to make a media stunt at Chanel campaigns for “Eyeswear”. Lily Rose Depp (daughter of Vanessa Paradis and Johnny Depp) will be his muse. So far very little publicized, the 16 year old enters into the world of fashion.

Fashion loves more than any other society to celebrate a certain aristocracy of success and beauty. It is therefore not uncommon for the “little sisters” and “daughters” to become the egeries of brands or magazines which expect to exploit their famous name to increase their visibility. Continue reading

GUCCI BRAND

GUCCIGucci, the flagship brand of French luxury and sportswear group Kering, posted a 4.6 percent rise in underlying second-quarter sales on Monday, marking a much sooner-than-expected rebound under its new creative and management duo.

Kering Finance Director Jean-Marc Duplaix said the brand had benefited from strong demand from Chinese tourists in Japan and Western Europe, while Gucci’s sales in China were boosted by discounted sales of its previous designer’s collections.

Kering’s first-half operating profit fell 5.4 percent to 773.2 million euros ($859 million), which Duplaix said was partly due to significant investment in marketing and communications at recovering sports brand Puma. Continue reading

BALENCIAGA ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN’S

balenciaga2The new Balenciaga Fall/Winter 2015 menswear campaign features talented vocalist Sam Smith, shot by Josh Olins. Music by Andy Stott.

The ads are dark and seductive with black and white imagery. Sam Smith has never looked better and is barely recognizable in a tailored black blazer and peacoat. It looks like he is trapped inside a Balenciaga world and can’t get out. I can see a priest. By the way Balenciaga is a Religious brand fot the afficionados indeed.

ONLY FOR THE RICHES

Collierchane2lAfter the Haute Couture fashion week in Paris, the French luxury brand has unveiled its latest collection of Haute Jewelry. Chanel propose, ‘Les Talismans’. These gorgeous creations are available this month in Chanel stores.

The house of Chanel is known for creating symbolic pieces, such as lucky charms and talismans, that were dear to Gabrielle Chanel, and this year, magnificent creations inspired by the idea of the mythical and magical protective powers of the talisman have been crafted in the Chanel workshops. Continue reading

FRANCK SORBIER 2016

SORBIER2016
Franck, at the summit of the Haute Couture world , an angel flies over the Hébertot Theater, a constellation of billions stars and immaculate snowflakes fell on the scene.

Franck Sorbier is the soul of the French Haute Couture. He gives the best of France in terms of creation and Craftsmanship.

The mountain “Sorbier” reveals the talent in its purest and points the way to what should be the Haute Couture in a French fashion house.

This collection, dedicated to Jacques Mouclier, shows how Franck Sorbier and the company have a great heart and the heart never lies. Continue reading