Sure, "Black Swan" has made ballet a motif of the moment, but for his Fall and Winter 2011 menswear collection, John Galliano sought inspiration from a ballet superstar of another era -- Rudolf Nureyev.

Down a runway so crowded with mirrors, ballet barres, steamer trunks and even a piano it could have been the set of a stage play, Galliano sent an equally theatrical collection that referenced key periods in the dancer's life, including his roots in Siberia, the rehearsal studio, his 1961 defection from the Soviet Union and finally his rock star status on the world stage in the 1970s.

That meant a parade of Russian émigrés in layered coats shaking baby powder snow from their immense fur hats, dancers clad in chunky knit cardigans, leg warmers and ballet-style T-shirts, slim-silhouette tailored suits (inspired by Irving Penn photographs) all in muted neutral tones, along with a few brightly colored outfits like the catwalk Cossack ensemble -- blousy purple trousers with vivid orange flowers paired with an embroidered shirt knotted at the waist, inspired by Nureyev's Tatar heritage.

Once you unpack all the steamer trunks of Galliano stagecraft, the collection doesn't seem to offer as much in the wearable realm for anyone who isn't bellying up to the ballet barre or readying for a sojurn to Siberia.

But that didn't keep it from being one of the most meorable runway shows of the week.

-- Adam Tschorn, reporting from Paris

Photos: Looks from the John Galliano Fall and Winter 2011 menswear collection shown Friday during Paris Fashion Week. Credit: Jonas Gustavsson & Peter Stigter / For The Times

This looks to be shaping up as the year of the royals. Prince William and Kate Middleton are due for the most anticipated wedding of the year in April; Prince Albert of Monaco plans to wed in July; Madonna is making a movie about Edward, Duke of Windsor and the woman who cost him the throne; and now John Galliano is referencing that very woman -- Wallis Warfield Simpson (pictured with her ex-king), who became the fashionable and formidable Duchess of Windsor -- in Dior's "pre-fall" collection. [WWD] (Subscription required.)   

There's plenty of room in the celebrity fashion pool for athletes as well as actresses and reality stars. Boston Celtics center Jermaine O’Neal is producing a line later this year, Le Jaunty, competing with Amar’e Stoudemire, who has a deal with Rachel Roy for both men's and women's clothes to be sold at Macy's. Come on in, guys. The water's fine! [WWD] 

When "American Idol" sweetheart Kellie Pickler wed songwriter Kyle Jacobs recently, she picked starlet favorite Badgley Mischka to design the white tulle ball gown. The dress' coolest feature? The full skirt could be snapped off for the reception to reveal a mini dress beneath. [People] [Updated 11 a.m. Jan. 13]

Golden Globe nominee Natalie Portman (who is also the new face of Miss Dior Cherie) covers February InStyle -- stylishly. [FabSugar]

In case you had doubts, hair does matter. Willow Smith has been nominated for two NAACP Image Awards for her music video celebrating self-esteem and diversity of looks, "Whip My Hair." Brother Jaden scored a nomination too, for his role in the film "The Karate Kid." [People]  

Olympic skater Johnny Weir seems to have mastered the art of the smoky eye -- and an altogether made-up look not seen on men since the French court of the 17th and 18th centuries. [BellaSugar]  

Katy Perry's new nail polish collaboration with OPI includes a reportedly amazing crackle topcoat, Black Shatter.  [BellaSugar]

Paris Hilton is still around: Terry Richardson shot her for the cover of Vogue Turkey. [The Cut]

And finally, good news for Canadian shoppers: Target is expanding northward, inking a deal with Zellers Inc. to open 100 to 150 stores in 2013 and 2014. Tweets Thursday morning showed some mixed reaction from Canadians ... but trust me, folks, you'll like it. [WWD] 

-- Susan Denley

[An earlier version of this post misspelled Kellie Pickler's first name as Kelly]

Photo: Wallis Simpson and Edward, Duke of Windsor shortly after their wedding in 1937. Credit: Sotheby's

Phoebe Philo, creative director of Celine, was named designer of the year at the British Fashion Awards on Tuesday. Alexa Chung (above, left, with Taylor Momsen at a previous event) nabbed the award for British Style, and Alexander McQueen was recognized for Outstanding Achievement in Fashion Design. Other winners were Mulberry, for designer brand; Nicholas Kirkwood for accessory designer; Patrick Grant of E. Tautz for menswear designer; Meadham Kirchhoff for emerging talent in ready-to-wear; and Husam El Odeh for emerging talent, accessories.  Nicola Formichetti won the Isabella Blow Award for Fashion Creator. This year, two new awards were added: Naomi Campbell won the Special Recognition Award for her 25-year career, and Burberry walked off with the Digital Innovation Award. [WWD]

Please, Barbie, no, not the Meat Dress! Hard as it is for me -- a lover of Barbie and hater of the Meat Dress -- to imagine, there was the supermodel doll decked out in several Lady Gaga looks from 2010, including the most infamous.  We owe it all to Entertainment Weekly, which set up a photo gallery online with the doll styled as the outre entertainer. (They used dental floss to keep the meat booties from falling off Barbie's tiny feet.) 

Fashion "It" girl Blake Lively and Karl Lagerfeld seem to have a mutual admiration going on and Tuesday it was announced that the "Gossip Girl" star will appear in a new Chanel advertising campaign. [FabSugar]

John Galliano, in New York for the reopening of Dior's flagship on 57th Street, loves the diversity of today's fashion, is a little dubious about online shopping and says never, ever take a friend with you on a serious shopping trip. "Because she's only shopping for herself...the last person she's thinking of is you," he tells fashion writer Bridget Foley. [WWD]

Speaking of openings, Donna Karan is opening her Collections store at the upscale Crystals at CityCenter in Las Vegas any minute now. [WWD] (Subscription required.) 

Vera Wang plans to launch a cosmetics line at Kohl's. [WWD] (Subscription required.)

--Susan Denley

Photo: Alexa Chung, left, with actress Taylor Momsen. Credit: Michael Buckner/Getty Images for Mercedes Benz.

-- It's Black Friday and chances are if you're a dedicated shopper you've been at the mall for hours already. But if you pause for a break or you're still figuring out where to shop, FabSugar has a guide to tons of sales and bargains.

-- Kate Moss, shown above in a photo shot by Craig McDean in 1996,  has been collaborating with James Danziger, of Danziger Projects, on curating a portfolio of 11 images of her by 11 of her favorite photographers. The result is being exhibited for the first time at the Pulse art fair in Miami Dec. 2-5. The images include shots by Chuck Close, Juergen Teller and Annie Leibovitz. A limited edition of 30 portfolios will be for sale starting at $75,000. [TMagazine]

-- Cordelia de Castellane, the woman behind the CdeC brand, and cousin Segolene Gallienne have launched a couple of new mother-child scents in Paris. “Very important baby and (Mummy),” and “Brume de Doudou (Comfort Mist)," mix bergamot with a hint of musk. Prices start at around $50 for 50 milliliters. [WWD]

-- Estee Lauder, Bulgari and Emporio Armani are all starting new ventures in China. [WWD] 

-- Dior creative director John Galliano designed the Christmas tree that will grace the lobby at Claridge's in London through Jan. 5. The Under the Sea tree is described as "a dazzling design of aquatic delights, with giant seahorses and colourful jellyfish swimming amongst sparkling corals and silver leaves." [Telegraph]

-- Coming in January to a retailer near you: four new shimmery metallic polishes from Nicole by OPI. [StyleList]

-- Susan Denley

Photo: Kate Moss modeling Helmut Lang in 1996. Credit: Craig McDean / Metropolitan Museum of Art

 

For his namesake collection at Paris Fashion Week, John Galliano's muse was haute huckster Maria Lani and his stage the gorgeous Opéra Comique.

Lani is an amusing character from the 1920s Paris art scene, who persuaded every great artist -- 50 in all, including Henri Matisse and Jean Cocteau -- to paint her, under the pretext that their work would appear in a film.

Of course, she really wasn't an actress, and there was no film. She sold the paintings, fled to the U.S. and disappeared.

It's just the kind of story Galliano loves, and each piece in his knockout collection channeled this mysterious seductress, with full trousers veiled in black tulle, as well as a shadowy sheer organza trench exposing lacy underthings.

There was also a painterly quality to much of what was on the runway, such as a fuchsia lace cardigan with butterfly appliques, and a black raincoat with an asymmetrical, ruffled hem and bright pink flowers across the front.

For evening, bias-cut gowns were covered in metallic embroidery, feathers or looped fringe. Some models had glittery, metallic-painted coifs, which I'm dying to try to duplicate for Halloween. But how?

After the show, when I saw one of the models on the street outside, I asked her. She said, in what sounded like a Russian accent, "You just get spray and spray it." Easy as that, huh?

Anyway, the show was a sumptuous visual feast from start to finish, when a shower of gold glitter rained down on Galliano taking his bow.

His unending flair for the theatrical often makes me wonder why he's not more of a player in Hollywood, either in the red-carpet dressing game or in the movie business itself.

With his help, maybe this Maria Lani story could make it to the big screen after all.

-- Booth Moore in Paris

John Galliano spring-summer 2011 runway collection photo gallery

Photos: Looks from the John Galliano spring-summer 2011 runway collection shown during Paris Fashion Week. Credit: Jonas Gustavsson & Peter Stigter / For The Times

 

Jenna Lyons, above, executive creative director at J. Crew, has been named president as well. [WWD] (Subscription required)

Celebrities keep turning up in dresses from Victoria Beckham's 2010 spring/summer collection. [Telegraph]

The Tobe Report, a trend forecasting firm, is back among the trendy, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Another model has a few things to say about her image ... and being sidelined for being a size ... four! [Huffington Post] ... And Jean Paul Gaultier has cast plus-size model Crystal Renn as the face of a new advertising campaign. [Vogue UK]

Adidas has selected Stella McCartney to be creative director for the uniforms that British athletes will wear at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. [Vogue UK]

Stylelist reports that Penelope Cruz has wed Javier Bardem in a dress by Christian Dior designer John Galliano.

And, finally, guess who looks good in sailor pants? January Jones, that's who! Of course, she'd look good in anything. [Fab Sugar]

-- Alice Short

Photo credit: Perry Hagopian

 

John Galliano debuts a couture collection for Dior. [Telegraph]

Can't get enough of Bruce Willis? Anticipating next month's release of "The Expendables"? To tide you over, get a whiff of Willis' new fragrance line. [WWD, subscription required]

Serena Williams stars in a photo spread in the August issue of Harper's Bazaar. [StyleList]

The blogosphere continues to muse on model Crystal Renn: Is she losing weight ... or what? [New York Magazine/The Cut]

Do these bridesmaids make me look fat? ... One-third of (engaged) British women who were surveyed said they would ask an overweight friend to be a bridesmaid to make them look better. [Telegraph]

And if you cannot read enough about the stars of "Jersey Shore," we'd like to point out that Jennifer "J. Woww" Farley debuted a line of clothing in Las Vegas over the holiday. Its name? Filthy Couture. [People StyleWatch]

If you, like many of us, look at your hair in the morning and wonder if it is suffering the effects of too much coloring, processing, blow-drying, etc., one beauty editor has a suggestion: Home hair glaze. [Allure]

-- Alice Short

Photo: A model presents a creation by British fashion designer John Galliano as part of the Christian Dior Fall-Winter 2010-2011 Haute Couture collection in Paris. Credit: Associated Press

 

John Galliano used silent film stars Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton as the jumping-off point for a Spring/Summer 2011 menswear collection that played with volume and silhouette; oversized/undersized pieces; generous drop-crotch shorts and baggy trousers paired with reworked versions of bomber jackets, trench coats and pea coats and under-sized tuxedo jackets and field coats.

Galliano took a side junket to the beaches of Lido, which gave us belted shorts; three-quarter-length pants; light, gauzy tank tops; and a bold graphic beachwear print on underwear and silk robes. (At least it looked

We always knew those shoes were dangerous. Lady Gaga took a tumble at Heathrow Airport wearing 12-inch platform boots that weren't too different from these she's wearing onstage. No one seems to be sympathetic. [ABC]

Tres chic English "revolutionary" John Galliano was awarded the French Legion of Honor in a quiet ceremony Wednesday night. [WWD] (Subscription required.)

Louis Vuitton and Donna Karan are both launching sophisticated, elegant ad campaigns. And the models are actually wearing clothes! [WWD]

Katie Holmes dishes on her "classics with a twist" clothing line. [People]

Another royal wedding is in the offing ... and here at All the Rage, we just can't wait to see the clothes! We'll have a year to anticipate: Prince Albert of Monaco announced his wedding to former South African swimmer Charlene Wittstock will take place next summer. [People]

Make life simple: Designer Vanessa Vogel can help with her Vogel10. Each month she introduces 10 items --- seven articles of clothing she designs and three jewelry pieces from others -- to mix and match. Perfect for summer packing. [Mondette]

Nicole Richie is eye-catching in tribal jewelry, and you can be too. There are a lot of great pieces out there. [FabSugar]

The reportedly most expensive bespoke men's suit ever made is on sale in Britain for about $900,000. It's cashmere and wool studded with diamonds. Only three have been made, and one is already sold, so you better hurry if you're interested! [Telegraph] 

-- Susan Denley

Photo: Lady Gaga  Credit: Christopher Polk/Getty Images

Some of fashion's top designers boast undeniably cartoonish elements to their personas (paging Donatella Versace). And now we get to see them in all their animated glory.

Elle España (Spain) magazine ran a riotous spread this month in collaboration with Disney artists -- depicting some of fashion's top dogs as classic Disney characters.

At Dior, John Galliano seems to be in a creative rut, slapping a hokey new theme on old clothes season after season.
 
For fall, he went with libertine equestrian, which added jodhpurs and kinky thigh-high boots to the usual mix of checked coats, hourglass-shaped jackets, bias-cut silk dresses and lacy underthings.
Much of it was forgettable.

Galliano seems to be stuck in the past, unaware that in this most wired era of all time, women don't want style dictated to them by a designer standing on a pedestal. They want to make the connections themselves.

--Booth Moore, reporting from Paris

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Photos: The Christian Dior fall 2010 runway in Paris. Credit: Peter Stigter and Jonas Gustavsson / For The Times

 
Probably in no small measure to the recent Robert Downey Jr.-Jude Law movie, John Galliano took his inspiration for his Fall/Winter 2010 collection from Sherlock Holmes, and the result was more like three mini collections (or acts might be more appropriate) mining what his show notes described as "the polarized extremes of his psyche," which turned out to be sleuthin', fightin' and smokin' opium.

The first act found the traditional Sherlock Holmes silhouette -- layered military- and hunting-inspired pieces in wools and tweeds (and, of course, the obligatory deerstalker cap) and a smoked PVC raincoat that captured the essence of the swirling fog of the London nighttime streetscape.

But the real standouts were Galliano's subversive, updated take on the perfect British gentleman in the light of day; trim, sharply tailored, double-breasted wide lapel, three-piece suits, shirts cuffed and starched. The buttoned up, tightly wrapped feeling of keeping other parts of one's psyche suppressed was telegraphed more overtly by the models who accessorized their dress shirt and tie ensembles with man corsets over top.

In his show notes, Galliano cited the bare-knuckle Muay Thai style of martial arts as inspiration, and it was pure fight club fashion that wouldn't look out of place in the modern-day world of mixed martial arts; some fleeced jersey pieces as short and skintight as traditional jockey shorts, others in nearly knee length billowy silk, many with corset-like lacing detail and all in pops of vibrant reds, yellows, purples and greens, as well as longer silk trousers and kimono-like robes abounding with dragons and other Oriental imagery.

In the third "act," east meets west and the influences of the first two combine in Galliano's opium den of cross-pollination. Traditional wool suit jackets were paired with floral-patterned silks and lapels embroidered with emerald, amethyst and jet. 

Ever the showman, after the models' final spin down the runway, the designer appeared behind a giant magnifying glass at the top of the stage. On cue, red flames burst out of the runway and six feet into the air. As they subsided, he walked to the end of the runway and they blasted to life again.

Based on the evidence presented, is it safe to proclaim that John Galliano's Fall/Winter runway is indeed, literally as well as figuratively, "so hot right now"?

It's elementary, my dear Watson.

-- Adam Tschorn reporting from Paris

Photos: Credit: Jonas Gustavsson / For the Los Angeles Times.

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