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Category: Marc Jacobs

New York Fashion Week: Marc Jacobs gives new meaning to cheap chic

Marc

With the Lexington Avenue Armory bathed in red light and the mirrored runway fitted with tufted vinyl columns, it was looking like Marc Jacobs' recent collaboration with Playboy might spill over into his collection.
 
Jacobs teamed up with Playboy to create three $35 T-shirts, with proceeds going to Designers Against AIDS, and created a window display for Fashion Week at his Marc by Marc Jacobs boutique here, using vintage Playboy bunny costumes.
 
But though there were no actual Playboy bunnys or even bunny ears, the idea of porn and how it relates to what is real and what is fake, what is beautiful and what is vulgar, could have been in the back of Jacobs' mind when he dreamed up the dressed-up, 1940s-influenced looks made from both fine (fox fur, pony skin, guipure lace, cashmere, satin) and coarse materials (vinyl, plastic, polyester, cellophane).

After all, you can have the same philosophical discussion about fashion as you can about porn, especially in this era of cheap chic, when original designs and high-quality materials often lose out to the immediate gratification of knockoffs.

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What made the collection all the more interesting is that you couldn't really tell the difference between what was real and what wasn't -- you couldn't tell that the glistening poker-chip-sized sequins on those covetable straight skirts and shift dresses (above, left) were actually made of rubber, that the short-sleeve "fur" sweaters were actually densely embroidered sequins (above, right) and that many of the romantic blouses were cellophane (above, center).

There were knit sweaters and sweater dresses corseted to hug every curve, many of them with polka-dot detail. A bonded satin skirt was paired with a polyester shirt (below, left), a lace dress with cellophane jabot (below, right); and a sheared fox-fur jacket spliced with fake crocodile panels (below, center).

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Jacobs' technique and the strict silhouettes elevated all the materials. It was a beautiful, fanciful and wearable collection.

-- Booth Moore in New York

Marc Jacobs Fall-Winter 2011 runway photo gallery

Photos: Marc Jacobs AW 2011 runway collection. Credit: Jonas Gustavsson and Peter Stigter / For the Los Angeles Times


Your morning fashion and beauty report: The stars shine at BAFTA Awards

Aalba -- The Grammys and New York Fashion Week had a fashion competitor Sunday: the BAFTA Awards' red carpet. "The King's Speech" took home a cartload of awards, and the stars were elegant in a more understated way than the musical multitude at the Grammys. Emma Watson wore a pink, one-shoulder Valentino gown, Jessica Alba, left, was in a sapphire blue strapless by Atelier Versace and Amy Adams wore a beaded coral dress by Elie Saab. Jennifer Lawrence also chose sapphire in a gown by Stella McCartney, and Julianne Moore was in dark blue by Tom Ford. [People] [Telegraph] 

-- The longer skirts we're seeing on the New York runways may be a sign that the recession is over, says Harper's Bazaar editor Glenda Bailey. [NY Magazine]

-- "Twilight" star Kellan Lutz is the new celebrity frontman for Dylan George denim. [WWD] (subscription required)

-- Marc Jacobs is looking for someone new to handle its Twitter account and is conducting interviews via tweet. [Fashionista]

-- Meanwhile, Chanel is rumored to be considering partnering with fashion bloggers. [Fashionologie]

-- Something new from Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen: The pair are collaborating with Toms shoes. [WWD] (subscription required)

-- China is poised to become 44% of the world's luxury goods market by 2020, a new report says. [WWD] (subscription required)

-- Susan Denley

Photo: Jessica Alba at Sunday's BAFTA Awards. Credit: EPA

 


Gifts: A Valentine's Day present to have and to hold

LouisVuitton-M91474 
Here’s a hint, boys: This is not just any little bag. It combines three of any stylish girl’s larger-than-life obsessions — influential designer Marc Jacobs, edgy artist Stephen Sprouse and forever-fashionable leopard print. So if you’re in the dog house, you’re bound to score big points here.

With all the wild patterns on spring runways, what better time for Louis Vuitton to bring back the iconic, highly coveted Sprouse leopard print in the form of a chic, heart-shaped patent coin purse ($490, also in white and blue, at louisvuitton.com and the company’s Rodeo Drive store)? The golden brass chain trimmed in a matching heart charm is designed to clip into your bag (or possibly onto your beau, if he’s not behaving). But we trust that he is if you have your hands on this.

-- Ingrid Schmidt


Photo: Louis Vuitton

We know you can use gift ideas any time of year. Starting Monday, we'll give you some ideas inspired by Presidents' Day.


Your morning fashion and beauty report: Rumors swirl about Blake Lively and 'Sex and the City,' Jana Kramer goes country and Rodarte teams with Opening Ceremony

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There's lots of talk that "Gossip Girl's" Blake Lively -- a budding fashion icon -- may be the next Carrie Bradshaw and appear in a "Sex and the City" prequel. Rumors are unconfirmed at this writing. [Vogue UK]

Rodarte, fresh off helping design costumes for "Black Swan" and mounting a show at MOCA, is hooking up in a collaboration with equally cool Opening Ceremony. [WWD] (Subscription required.) 

Country style is coming on strong, as Adam Tschorn has written here. Now "One Tree Hill's" Jana Kramer has signed a deal with the Warner Music Nashville label and debuted her new country single, "I Won't Give Up," on the show. [People]

Fashion journalist Kate Betts, whose new book, "Everyday Icon: Michelle Obama and the Power of Style," has just been published, says that wearing accessible labels such as J. Crew makes the first lady seem real. [StyleList]   

Designer Tom Ford -- a renaissance man, for sure -- interviews Julianne Moore about turning 50 in the March issue of InStyle. [StyleList]

Marc by Marc Jacobs celebrates 10 years by reissuing merchandise in a New York pop-up store. [WWD] (Subscription required.) 

After a five-year hiatus, designer Cynthia Steffe is back with a new contemporary line, Cluny. [WWD] (Subscription required.)

For several seasons, women have been living in the "boyfriend" this, and the "boyfriend" that. Now Levi's debuts the "ex-girlfriend" jeans -- super-snug denims for men. [The Cut]

--Susan Denley

Photo: Blake Lively in a scene from "Gossip Girl." Credit: Giovanni Rufino / The CW


Your morning fashion and beauty report: Rain gear to help stay dry(ish), Stella McCartney to open in Vegas and another royal wedding in the offing!

Agene

Raining again. I love it. But I'd love it more if I could just watch from the window without ever going outside. Impossible. Fortunately, our Melissa Magsaysay has some tips on rain gear to help stay dry(ish) and look good at the same time -- kind of like Gene Kelly dancing and "Singing in the Rain."

Stella McCartney seems to be one of the busiest designers around. Now, on Thursday, she's opening her first Las Vegas store, just in time for the usual post-Christmas influx of visitors. It's a 2,900-square-foot space at the tony Crystals at CityCenter. [WWD] (Subscription required.)

There's another royal wedding on the horizon! This one isn't likely to get the buzz of THE royal wedding -- Prince William and Kate Middleton, in case you've been asleep --  but we're liking the trend. This time it's William's cousin, Zara Phillips, the daughter of his aunt Princess Anne, who announced her engagement to English rugby player Mike Tindall. The ring is described as a single solitaire diamond with pavé set diamonds on a split shank, set on a platinum band. No word yet on a date. [People] 

Usually we think of modeling as glamorous, but there is a downside. This is physical labor, after all, and labor in which the human being is decidedly secondary to the clothes on parade. A new alliance has formed aimed at offering protections to those in the trade. [WWD] (Subscription required.)  

Gisele Bundchen stars in Balenciaga's spring ad campaign, looking uncharacteristically androgynous, along with a very weirdly menacing male model, Yuri Pleskun, who wears ghoulish makeup and little else. [Telegraph]

Michelle Obama wore a Marc Jacobs sequined sheath from his fall 2010 runway collection at a recent White House function, marking a long-awaited (by some fashion observers) first matchup of the stylish first lady and the designer. [The Cut] 

Postscript to first item: While I've been writing this from my home office, my roof began to leak. Maybe staying inside on a rainy day isn't all it's cracked up to be. I'm about to give voice to my feelings ... and not exactly in the way Gene Kelly would!

-- Susan Denley

Photo: Gene Kelly at his finest in "Singing in the Rain."  Credit: American Cinematique 


Your morning fashion and beauty report: Barbara Walters' 10 most fascinating people include some fashion regulars

Ajlo
Barbara Walters named her 10 "most fascinating" people of the year in a television special Thursday night, and of the 10, quite a few are also regulars in All the Rage -- either for their great sense of style (Jennifer Lopez, Sandra Bullock), their outre style (Snooki, who was named as part of the "cast of 'Jersey Shore,' " which Walters counted as one entry) or the ability while still a teen to co-brand nail polish and perfumes. (You know who you are, Justin Bieber!) Two on the list we know we'll hear a lot more about in 2011: Kate Middleton and Sarah Palin. The other four -- Betty White, Gen. David Petraeus, LeBron James and Mark Zuckerberg -- we'll leave to other blogs. [People]

Actress Natalie Portman, expected to be an Oscar contender for "The Black Swan," was introduced Wednesday as the new face of Miss Dior Cherie. She met designer John Galliano later in the day at a party launching Dior's new flagship on New York's 57th Street. Leighton Meester, Amy Adams and Stavros Niarchos were among other attendees. [WWD]

Lady Gaga has signed on for MAC's Viva Glam campaign for the second year in a row. [People]

Swimsuit designer Sylvie Cachay, 33, was found dead in a hotel bathtub, with bruises on her neck and bite marks on her hand. Ex-boyfriend Nick Brooks, son of Oscar-winning composer Joseph Brooks, reportedly was being questioned by police. Cachay was the founder of the Syla swimsuit line. [New York Post]

Influential fashion designer Marc Jacobs, creative director for Louis Vuitton among other things, received the Trophée des Arts 2010 award, bestowed by the French Institute Alliance Française, in New York on Thursday night. Vogue's Anna Wintour and Alexa Chung, herself the recent recipient of a British Fashion Award, were in attendance. [Telegraph] 

Imagine a dress that shows where it has been touched. The “Science of Sequin” frock from the spring collection of Boudicca, the London-based label designed by Zowie Broach and Brian Kirkby, does just that. Run a hand over the sequins and they flip over, showing a different colored underside. Only six of the dresses were made. [T Magazine]  

Leonard Lauder accepted the Women's Wear Daily inaugural Beauty Business Visionary Award. [WWD] 

--Susan Denley

Photo: The fascinating Jennifer Lopez, at this year's Latin Grammy Awards. Credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images


Your morning fashion and beauty report: Odds are out on who will design Kate Middleton's wedding gown.

Prince William and Kate Middleton Kate Middleton is believed to be zeroing in on a dress designer to gown her for her pending wedding to Britain's Prince William. Oddsmakers are saying there's a 1 in 3 chance it will be Bruce Oldfield, a favorite of London society women who sometimes dressed Princess Diana. No comment from Oldfield. "Just speculation," said a spokesman for the prince. [WWD]

Long, long ago, women tried to hide pregnancies under the dowdiest of smocks. But now, thanks in no small part to stylish celebrities, ladies-in-waiting know they can dress beautifully (a trend the L.A. Times' Image section explored earlier this year). And all year, star moms-to-be such as Amy Adams, Christina Applegate, Claudia Schiffer, Alicia Keys and Ali Larter looked simply smashing. [People] 

William Rast's collaboration with Target is due to hit stores and the retailer's website Dec. 19. The collection of denim and leathers (priced from $17 to $200) is scheduled to be on sale through Jan. 22. [FabSugar], but we all know these covetable capsule collections have a history of being snapped up early. 

Melrose Place boutique Bird is reportedly closing its doors after nine years on the storied L.A. shopping street. The blockbuster sales begin now! [Mondette]

Oprah's makeup artist, Reggie Wells, has designed a new line of compacts for Hissyfit that he says will make putting on your face a foolproof process. The Clockpot line includes eye shadow, foundation and bronzer-blusher compacts, each fitted with five pans of hues in a clocklike circle. You simply move around the clock to create the look you're after. [StyleList]  

Haider Ackermann, whose new line for men created quite a stir, plans to discontinue it after the first collection. [WWD] (Subscription required.)

Marc Jacobs' long-awaited Tokyo flagship -- which already has won architecture awards for its striking design -- is about to open. [WWD] (Subscription required.)

-- Susan Denley

Photo: Kate Middleton with Prince William. Credit: Ben Stansall / AFP/Getty Images


Your morning fashion and beauty report: Iman debuts new fashion show on Bravo. Rachel Pally debuts new dress for Target.

Iman
Forget your upset over "Project Runway's" controversial season finale. Another fashion-related show debuts on Bravo on Tuesday. This one, "The Fashion Show: The Ultimate Collection," stars supermodel Iman as host, aided by designer Isaac Mizrahi and Harper's Bazaar features director Laura Brown. The concept has 12 designers competing by staging live fashion shows each week. Could be fun. [People]  

It's been 10 years since Marc by Marc Jacobs launched and to celebrate, the designer is reissuing a capsule collection of  "greatest hits" next spring. [WWD] (Suscription required.)

Ermenegildo Zegna, the maker of fine menswear that is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, is steeped in tradition, but will be up-to-the-minute when it launches an e-commerce site, scheduled to be up and running Dec. 9. [WWD] (Subscription required.)

And the anniversary celebrations just keep on coming: to mark the 150th birthday of Italy's flag, 24 Italian fashion houses have designed reinterpretations of the tri-color. Their works are on display as part of a bigger exhibit, "Ommagio al Tricolore" at the Vittoriano museum in Rome until Jan. 6. [WWD] 

Not sure how we missed this, but Eva Longoria Parker, hosting MTV's EMAs in Madrid on Sunday, went through numerous costume changes....including a hilarious riff on Lady Gaga's attention-grabbing meat dress. The laughing Parker dressed as a ham. The kind on your dining table, not the kind seeking attention onstage. [PeopleEnEspanol]

Designer Rachel Pally has done a wear-anywhere dress for Target, which sells for $80 at the retailer's Red Hot Shop. The full-skirted plum frock has a tie neck that can be worn five different ways. [FabSugar] and [All The Rage]

If there is a wedding in your future, you might want to check out Vera Wang's fall trunk show this week in Los Angeles. It's scheduled to run Thursday through Saturday on Melrose Avenue in West Hollywood, by appointment only. Call (323) 602-0174. [StyleSectionLA]

-- Susan Denley

Photo: Iman at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute Gala in 2009. Credit: Peter Kramer/Associated Press.


Your morning fashion and beauty report: The Olsens add handbags. Marc Jacobs adds books. And Lady Gaga adds some spark to GQ Italia cover.

Ashley

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, already proven designers with three successful lines, will add handbags and eventually shoes to their luxury line, The Row. Look for the bags to hit stores next fall. [People]  

The Victoria's Secret fashion show taping is about a week away; a video of one of the casting calls has surfaced, and although some of the models have been named, speculation roils about who else will make the final cut. [Fashionologie] 

Women's Wear Daily has been doing all kinds of things to celebrate its centennial this year, not the least of which was publishing a special collectible edition, which hit newsstands Nov 1. On Tuesday night, WWD had its official anniversary party in New York, attended by almost every designer in town, models, socialites and even Henry and Nancy Kissinger. [WWD]

Sustainable denim? Levi's plans to launch a line in January, Water<Less, that will use water-saving washing and finishing techniques. [WWD] (Subscription required.) 

Book Marc, one of the latest concepts by always inventive designer Marc Jacobs, has taken over the old Marc by Marc Jacobs Accessories space on Melrose in Los Angeles. The transformation was lightning quick and probably inspired by the success of Book Marc's initial store, which opened in New York in September. The shop offers an upscale mix of readable material, such as coffee table design tomes, out-of-print and limited editions and poetry, along with Marc Jacobs' branded book bags and other paraphernalia. [Mondette]

What's Lady Gaga wearing now? (We knew you'd want to know.) She's on the cover of this month's GQ Italia, wearing a metal bra that looks to be shooting sparks. [Fashion Indie]

Alexander McQueen's prints for fall 2010 make their way to some rather colorful handbags. [Purse Blog]

Twiggy, an icon of modeling last century, is strutting her stuff at age 61 in a new Marcs & Spencer holiday ad, re-creating Madonna's famous Vogue video. [StyleList]

-- Susan Denley

Photo: Ashley, left, and Mary-Kate Olsen. Credit: Frazer Harrison / Getty Images


Marc Jacobs and Lanvin launch jazzy new e-commerce sites

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It's taken the designer fashion world a minute to figure out how to cut out the middle man (retailers) by selling their products directly to customers on their own websites. Without compromising any precious cachet, that is.

But with the launch of souped-up websites from both Lanvin and Marc Jacobs this week, it's game-on for e-commerce in the high-fashion sphere.

Marc Jacobs' new site, which was created by digital commerce agency Createthe Group, features video game-style interaction.

Plug in the URL and you're greeted by a friendly, tattooed avatar beckoning you to come inside a virtual store. Once inside, you can roll over items on the shelves to get product names and prices, or choose from a menu of collections: Little Marc (kids), Marc by Marc Jacobs and Marc Jacobs Collection. Inside each collection, more hipster salespeople take you into the different sections of the store to see the items.

All the bells and whistles make for a charming, user-friendly experience. But it's all pretty useless if the item you want isn't on the site; the company decided to feature a curated selection of items from each collection -- no doubt to keep certain things deliciously unattainable. Women's ready-to-wear, for instance, has a total of three items hanging from its virtual rack.

Lanvin's new site is miles more straightforward. And though here, too, the entire collection isn't represented, there's enough merch to make it feel like a real e-commerce site. Items are accessible by product category: gifts, new arrivals, women and men. Click on a category, and you're delivered to a familiar, Bluefly.com-style product page.

But both sites deliver when it comes to extras, boasting newsy sections and current runway video. Lanvin's site also includes sketches from designer Alber Elbaz and video of him discussing the forthcoming H&M collection.

Under the "World of Marc Jacobs" tab on the Marc Jacobs site are videos of featured employees; travel photos chronicling the jaunts of Jacobs and business partner Robert Duffy; videos of runway shows dating back to 2008; and a video of the Marc Jacobs parade float that set sail during the Provincetown Carnival in Massachusetts last year.

-- Emili Vesilind

Illustrations: Sketches from Alber Elbaz on the Lanvin website. Credit: Lanvin


Your morning fashion and beauty report: Lady Gaga gets political, and dresses the part, as she rallies against 'don't ask, don't tell'

Gaga

Lady Gaga got serious Monday and dressed for political success at a rally in Maine. No "meat" dresses, lobster-claw shoes or cockscomb of feathers towering from her head. Instead, she wore a conservative suit and polka-dot tie with large smart-girl glasses perched on her nose. She argued before a crowd estimated at 2,000 that the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy should be struck down, to allow gay servicemen and women to be open about their sexuality. She has long been a supporter of gay rights and went to Maine because the state's two senators might prove key in a vote on a bill pending in Congress that could repeal the policy. [Los Angeles Times] 

"L'Amour Fou," the documentary love story about the relationship between couturier Yves Saint Laurent and businessman Pierre Berge that won accolades at the Toronto Film Festival, premiered in Paris and will open in French cinemas on Wednesday. [WWD]

Marc Jacobs launched a playful e-commerce website. [WWD] (Subscription required.)

Vivienne Westwood's packed show at London Fashion Week revealed fun, young clothes for spring, while Sienna Miller's collection drew from the 1950s. [Wall Street Journal]

Graffiti artist Claw Money has designed a line of tees, sweats and leggings called Clawmingdale's, a lighthearted spoof of Bloomingdale's (think of its iconic brown bag made into sweat pants.) [FabSugar]

Stella McCartney, prepping to design gear for the 2012 Olympics, launched her first menswear collection, with Adidas. [Vogue UK]

-- Susan Denley

Photo: Lady Gaga addresses the Maine rally.  Credit: Joel Page / Reuters


The makeup at Marc Jacobs: Glossy green eyes and matte lips

Marc Jacobs runway looks Marc Jacobs' spring-summer 2011 collection may have channeled Jodi Foster in "Taxi Driver," but the show's lead makeup artist, François Nars, homed in on another iconic look from the '70s when it came to designing the face.

"The look is very reminiscent of Anjelica Huston in the 1970s -- bleached Image013  brows and deep eyes," said Nars in a press statement. "I wanted them to look like iconic models from the '70s but with a modern approach. Marc had ideas of what he wanted the makeup to look like -- mimicking the colors of the collection but not matching exactly."

The statement here was deep, smoldering eyes and orange-tinged lips. Nars used Night Porter eyeshadow on the lids, along with an olive-green color from the Nouveau Monde Duo eyeshadow palette, which is a new product for spring 2011. Lashes were pumped way up with Larger than Life volumizing mascara.

The adobe-colored lips were a mix of Volga pure matte lipstick, African Queen lip liner and an eyeliner color called Mambo. Matte lips are a big beauty trend for fall, and judging from the look on Jacobs' spring runway, they may continue to be popular, just in brighter shades.

For the cheeks, Nars used his signature Orgasm blush. Its peachy-gold glow seems tailor made for Jacobs' collection, which is filled with vivid shades of orange, gold, brown and purple.

-- Melissa Magsaysay

Photos: Looks from the Marc Jacobs spring-summer 2011 runway show. Credit: Nars Cosmetics

 




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