Category Archives: BREAKING MODE

SIMONE ROCHA LONDON 2019

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Their head-held-high attitudes proved that Rocha’s collection of full-skirted belted coats and dresses isn’t meant only for girls.

Looking more closely at the clothes the organza see-through layers of trench coats, the bodices and bras caught in deshabille, the bloomers glimpsed in the back-views of skirts it was obvious that there was something deeper going on beneath the surface.

There was a something dark lurking within her research. The collection was an honoring of Rocha’s formative attachment to the work of Louise Bourgeois, whose themes in themselves were also a startlingly honest struggle between tenderness and sexuality, often expressed in fabrics and textiles. The spiderweb embroideries and prints Rocha used on her puffball coats and dresses were made in collaboration with the Louise Bourgeois Foundation. Continue reading →

BLACK FAKE FOR GUCCI CEO

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The Gucci ceo was in New York Wednesday evening for the Marvin Traub Lecture. What was meant to be an interview spanning his career and his tenure at Gucci became heavily dominated by talk of the fashion house’s recent faux pas a balaclava-style sweater that critics said evoked blackface.

“Gucci is often in the news for their extraordinary commercial success, but also for their commitments to communities around the world.
Explanation of what went wrong, telling the audience that the sweater was debuted at a February 2018 show, but “nothing happened” until it was recently linked to blackface on Twitter, which sparked the social media storm.

He admitted that when his team first told him about this, he didn’t know what they were talking about, which he puts down to ignorance on his behalf. Continue reading →

THE RETURN OF THE PANTHER

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Animal prints, like camo patterns, seem to be a style that will never completely wither away. They might go away for a while, come back unnoticed in subtle touches here and there, but eventually, they always resurface in full (visual) force. If the question comes up among editors or younger crowds, it is often mentioned that the look is overdone and not so subtle, by times associated with a style proudly boasted by lower and higher peripheries of a socio-economic spectrum. Continue reading →

JOSEPH ABBOUD N.Y FASHION WEEK

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Joseph Abboud (born May 5, 1950) is an American menswear fashion designer and author.Abboud was born in Boston, Massachusetts. The Abboud family was a working-class Lebanese Maronite Catholic family that started out in the South End of Boston, and later moved to Roslindale. Abboud’s father,Joseph worked in a candy factory and his mother, Lila, was a seamstress. He had one sister, Nancy Ash. On a trip to Australia, Abboud discovered that his great-grandfather had owned Australia’s largest canine-clothing company.

Abboud graduated from the University of Massachusetts-Boston in 1972, then studied at the Sorbonne in Paris, where he grew to love the sophisticated polish of European style. While in high school, he worked first for Thom McAn dyeing women’s shoes and then the Anderson-Little men’s store, where he sold suits. As a college student, he worked part-time at Louis Boston. Abboud stated: “Louis Boston was a huge part of my career. Continue reading →

COPENHAGEN FASHION WEEK

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The appeal of the Copenhagen fashion girl, often found riding a colorful bicycle and sporting pearl-encrusted hair clips, is here to stay.

Apart from charming the world with their flair for candy colors, cozy decorating and quirky accessories, the Danes mean business: Pioneers in the contemporary category, they are experts at offering trendy, fuss-free pieces at what they refer to as; honest price points. Now, they are ready to shift up a gear.

Sustainability in Denmark is less marketing ploy and more a way of life, so when Copenhagen Fashion Week’s newly appointed chief executive officer Cecilie Thorsmark laid out her ambitious plan of turning the three-day showcase into the most sustainable international fashion week, she found that local and international brands were quick to align with her mission.

British label Mother of Pearl opened Copenhagen Fashion Week, which ran from Jan. 29 to Feb. 1, with an intimate presentation of its seasonless, sustainably made range. Creative director Amy Powney said the growth of the brand in the Scandinavian market and customers; engagement with its sustainability mission encouraged her to get more involved. By showcasing a seasonless range, the idea was to make a statement that collections don’t need to be new to be exciting. Continue reading →

DOLCE & GABBANA KNOCKOFFS IN CHINATOWN

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In visiting a labyrinth of malls in Flushing, Queens New York City’s largest Chinatown we find various dresses imitating Dolce’s Sicilian-homemaker after-midnight attitude as well as knockoffs of its signature logo.

This just two months after remarks about Chinese culture were posted on social media by designer Stefano Gabbana that many Chinese found insulting and forced the abrupt cancellation of the brand’s fashion show planned in Shanghai. In the time since, blue-chip Chinese retailer Lane Crawford has dropped the label, while numerous high-profile Chinese celebrities have pledged to never again purchase or promote the brand. Continue reading →

SORBIER POETRY AND HAUTE COUTURE

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Poetry and Haute Couture are the highlights of Franck Sorbier presentation, the unique and exclusive Paris Fashion show and those who attended belong to the Paris intelligentsia.

The fashion poet, who is on the edge of exceptional creation, reinvents the Haute couture at  each collection, to the extent that large fashion companies such as Dior or Karl at Chanel’s copy the Fashion show process and has dictated to the other fashion designers.

Tenacity and passion can overcome any financial obstacles – to note that today Franck Sorbier is the only designer to realize himself his collection of Haute Couture, without having to call for dressmakers.

The others draw their collection and then give what they have conceived to dressmakers named in France “petites mains”. I must say that it is very sad not to even participate in the manufacture of its creations and being able to feel the material in his hands. Continue reading →

VUITTON A BILLION EURO BABY

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LVMH reported fourth-quarter sales of 13.7 billion euros, painting a picture of resilience and offering a measure of reassurance to investors fretting about Chinese luxury consumption as economic uncertainty looms. Profit from recurring operations for the full year hit a new milestone, jumping 21 percent to top the 10 billion euro mark and meeting analyst forecasts. Continue reading →

COPENHAGEN FASHION WEEK 2019

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Running Jan. 29 to Feb. 1, the first edition under Thorsmark’s aegis, and the second since the event became an entity independent of the Global Fashion Agenda (formerly the Danish Fashion Institute), will host 26 runway shows and five presentations during the four-day event, the final being dedicated to the capital’s trade shows, CIFF and Revolver.

Copenhagen Fashion Week is fast approaching, and has its sights firmly set on becoming Europe’s most sustainable fashion week under the new leadership of CEO Cecilie Thorsmark. Continue reading →

NANA AND BROOKE

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Ghostly couture silhouettes designed by Nana Aganovich and Brooke Taylor, the duo behind Aganovich, seemed eerier still once set against the backdrop of a carpenter’s workshop.

The Parisian atelier to the sound of pigeons cooing while models slowly navigated their way along the machines, surrounded by wood planks and various hardware. The label’s second couture collection explored the story of a woman on a journey:

The models’ faces were constricted by veils, with the occasional addition of fake locks of hair piled on top of their heads. White billowing silhouettes were pitted against yellow plaid suits, a Victorian gown followed a jacket with a structured waist, and a delicate feather-rimmed skirt was given a hard edge when paired with leather boots held up by safety pins. Continue reading →

GUO PEI DRAGON-NISSIMO

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Guo Pei took to the temple, allowing her imagination to roam a spiritual safe haven of palatial proportions. With elaborate craftsmanship as the driving force, the designer offered a wide-ranging futuristic and Gothic-infused lineup, part warrior princess, part illustrious queen.

An unusual experiment with waders came at the start of the show, covered in golden-hued dragons and hanging open at the thigh to reveal a pair of bright blue HotPants. On top, more skin, with tasseled shoulder armor leaving an exposed bellybutton.

The complexity of her pieces can be overwhelming, even if they’re sent down the runway at a snail’s pace affording time for a good look. Models were perched on towering platform shoes  architectural pieces, too, like the garments.

Her dragons were everywhere, hailing from the Han dynasty, which had them slim and masterful at transforming themselves as was the clothing.

In an example of her East-meets-West aesthetic, Guo embellished a colorful tweed with large, randomly placed rhinestones, and used it to build one of the wider pieces, overlaying a body-fitting bustier.

Continue reading →

BRUNO SIALELLI NEW DESINER AT LANVIN

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Lanvin has appointed Bruno Sialelli artistic director, signaling new direction for the historic French house. “His singular and very personal vision, his audacity, his culture, his energy and ability to build a strong creative team definitely convinced us,” said Lanvin chief executive officer Jean-Philippe Hecquet.

The Fosun Fashion Group-owned label cited the designer’s “youthful translation” of its storied heritage along with his ability to navigate between men’s and women’s wear among reasons for settling on the designer in a process that involved an “incredible array” of candidates for the position.The former Loewe men’s wear designer worked under the direction of J.W. Anderson. He has also worked at Balenciaga, with Nicolas Ghesquière and Alexander Wang, as well as Acne Studios, where he was the senior designer for women’s wear, and Paco Rabanne. Continue reading →

JACQUEMUS PARIS 2019

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After launching men’s wear on a beach in the South of France last June, Simon Porte Jacquemus, is back to Paris. His new headquarters is four times bigger and he is entering a transitional phase as the brand grows. 69 Quai de Valmy, 75010 Paris

Simon Porte Jacquemus grew up in the countryside in Provence. He comes from a family of farmers and when he was a kid, he was fascinated by his dungarees which looked like a uniform. Continue reading →

VUITTON SMOKES MARIJUANA IN PARIS

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It is bingo for Bernard Arnault. He has bet on a new afro-american designer, Virgil Abloh. Yesterday he attended with his two sons at the front row. During the show there was a smell of marijuana. He was a choc between two worlds, as if a family of Boston was meeting an afro-american of Harlem. The mix gave a stunning collection. Continue reading →

CEO BUT ALSO NEW HUSBAND

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Tory Burch and Pierre-Yves Roussel have joined forces at work and at home. Tory Burch (née Robinson; born June 17, 1966) is an American fashion designer, businesswomant.

On Tuesday Tory Burch named Pierre-Yves Roussel, a former LVMH Moët Hennessey Louis Vuitton executive, as her chief executive, moving herself into the role of chief creative officer and executive chairman. That Mr. Roussel also happens to be her new husband (they were married in November after becoming engaged in 2016) is both par for the course in the industry and something of a redesign.

And while Ms. Burch has been both C.E.O. and designer since founding her brand in 2004, increasingly conventional wisdom has it that it is better for a leader to focus on one area than try to be all things to all parts of their brand (see: Christopher Bailey and his brief experiment with being both chief creative officer and C.E.O. of Burberry). Continue reading →