Friday 7 August 2009

no more men

"fashion is going too fast, and identities are being too quickly mainstreamed by the whole fashion business."
- helmut lang

helmut lang menswear ss05

a source within the firm speculates on the future of the menswear division:
"it doesn't make sense anymore to make men's for helmut.  they haven't shown a formal collection in five years, and link theory (the japanese firm which bought the label in 2006) has a big retail plan for the company that's centred mostly on women's collections.  as a whole, the helmut brand has promise and we're optimistic, but men's is just not part of the picture any longer."

peta after alannah

“Dear Hill, IM(sic) GOING TO KILL YOU SERIOUSLY IF YOU DONT STOP YOUR(sic) DEAD. NO1 WANTS TO BUY YOUR SH-T, Sincerely ssssss ssssss.”
- a death threat received by australian designer alannah hill from an an activist on behalf of people for the ethical treatment of animals (peta)


the above-mentioned note arrived just a few weeks after peta members, dressed in skeleton costumes, staged a protest outside her flagship boutique in melbourne, protesting against her use of rabbit fur trim on five items in her new collection.  hill also says she’s been the target of an email bombardment campaign and has had to hire bodyguards to safeguard her security.  peter j, also known to the dutch as "the vegan streaker", was arrested this week for plotting to attack queen beatrix of the netherlands for her choice to wear fur.  the charges include one count of illegal possession of weapons.  do these people understand the hypocrisy in such acts?  no matter what your view, violence is never a solution.

Thursday 6 August 2009

russian roulette

"russia on its path has oftentimes discussed and overdiscussed what had happened earlier, instead of moving forward.  the result is always the same: it is very difficult to move forward when you're looking backward."
- mikhail khodorkovsky

chanel pre-fall 2009 paris-moscow campaign

one third of russia’s 42,000 clothing retailers will close by the end of this year after the economic crisis hurt spending, according to the head of the european fashion and textile export council. "retail failures and order cutbacks in russia mean companies in fashion-exporting nations such as germany will deliver less apparel for the winter season," said reinhard doepfer, who leads the brussels- and stuttgart-based industry group.  diesel, stella mccartney, reebok, plato and hugo boss have all closed stores in region.  the local franchisee for hong kong sportswear maker sprandi international ltd has also closed all 37 of its outlets in moscow and st petersburg after declaring bankruptcy this past may.  gross domestic product in russia shrank 9.8 percent in the first quarter - the worst contraction in 15 years - and average monthly wages dropped 5.2 percent in june.

good foundations

"we are very excited about this new brand which will have its own unique offering.  it’s time to give the sale customer a place she can call her own."
- natalie massenet on netaporter's little sister, theoutnet.com





net-a-porter has a few more suggestions for building a classic work wardrobe this fall.  update your boyfriend blazer, pencil skirt, shift dress and all-weather trench with a new shoe shape (shoots, brogues or thigh high leather - all accompanied by a hidden platform) and pops of colour/texture in the form of scarves and long necklaces.  the key is to build on the staples you already own and love by layering in fw09 trends.

Wednesday 5 August 2009

lv opens flagship in shenzhen

"is that weird, taking my louis vuitton bag camping?"
- jessica simpson

leighton meester at this year's costume institute spring gala at the metropolitan museum of art, new york

fan bingbing with yves carcelle, chairman and ceo of louis vuitton

madonna at this year's costume institute spring gala at the metropolitan museum of art, new york

li xiaolu

yao chen

louis vuitton opened in shenzhen's the mixc mall last month.  naturally, everybody wore lv to the occasion.  compared to their western counterparts at new york's met gala earlier this year, the chinese actresses kept their looks simple, sans matching leggings and bunny ears.  how chic were these outfits without all the madness?

happy birthday, barbie

"you know you've made it when you've been moulded in miniature plastic.  but you know what children do with barbie dolls - it's a bit scary actually."
- cate blanchett



colette has joined the ranks of vogue italia and new york fashion week in celebrating barbie's 50th anniversary this year with a limited edition barbie foosball table.  designed by chloé ruchon and produced by bonzini, the "barbie foot" retails for eur10,000.  worth every individually hand-crimped penny.

boobs and arms

a&f puts you in stitches

"exclusively at a&f - college tees. laugh your ass off. available in stores only."


just when you thought they had disappeared forever, abercrombie's cheeky college tees are back. although the website ships internationally, these are not available online. boohoo. need travelling friends again.

Tuesday 4 August 2009

zara-licious

"the customer is the centre of our particular business model, which integrates design, manufacturing, distribution and sales through a wide network consisting of our own stores."
- zara website



check out zara's latest drop!! luv the shoulders, draping and thigh high boots. remember the balmain-alike sandals? bidding hasn't stopped yet!! you've been warned. get to a store near you, like, yesterday:
- ifc mall, central
- pacific place, admiralty
- times square, causeway bay
- harbour city, tsim sha tsui
- 1 austin road west, tsim sha tsui
- new town plaza, shatin

rain, rain, go away!!

another rachel zoe project

"style is what one creates.... glamour is a state of mind."
- rachel zoe, stylist to the stars


she doesn't just want to give you free fashion advice, she wants to sell you her own own-label collection (to be launched later this year).  if you must, sign up for your daily zoe report on rachelzoe.com.  kinda like reading adocchiare every morning.

naomi déjà vu

“i never diet.  i smoke.  i drink now and then.  i never work out.  i work very hard, and i am worth every cent.”
- naomi campbell


naomi campbell allegedly slapped italian photographer gaetano di giovanni on the sicilian island of lipari this week.  he claims, "first she hit with her bag, screaming at me and then she tried to slap me.  i managed to avoid her – but her nails still got my eye.  for a few seconds i could not see a thing.  i could hear that her bodyguards and her boyfriend were trying to drag her away." local police asserted "no complaint had been made" concerning the alleged attack.  a spokesperson for the supermodel, who has admitted several assaults in the past released the statement, "media reports that naomi campbell attacked a photographer in lipari, sicily, are completely untrue.  the photographer was seen following naomi on a small boat, taking photographs, the day after the alleged incident took place."

Monday 3 August 2009

Hüseyin Çağlayan

"i don't think it represented her, and I didn't think she worked hard enough. i even told her to her face."
- hussein chalayan on kate moss and her topshop collections


on being called "avant garde": "i hate that term. it's a real hindrance because i don't think it expresses what we're about. it makes it sound like we can't appeal to people or something, and it's absolutely rubbish."

on models turning designer: "if you have a really strong sense of style and people want to aspire to being like you, i can understand that. but if you really are doing it just because you think of yourself as a brand and you haven't had the training and you know nothing about clothes, it kind of demeans all the training designers have had."

the teen vogue handbook

“ask yourself, are you sure this world is for you?  and are you sure you are the right person to survive in this world—the world of fashion, a world with no rules, no laws?”
- karl lagerfeld in the teen vogue handbook

edited by amy astley, editor-in-chief, teen vogue
razorbill; on sale: 6 oct 2009; usd24.95; ages 12 & up; 9780670011308

finally, a book of answers.  how do i get an internship?  what should i major in at college?  should i attend design school?  and of course, the all-important, how did you get your job and how can i get it?  get the inside scoop straight from fashion professionals with the teen vogue handbook: an insider's guide to careers in fashion.  with superb photos, interviews with industry icons such as marc jacobs, bruce weber and patrick demarchelier, as well as six sections that include information from editors and assistants, the handbook will serve as the link between the style conscious girl and the seemingly impenetrable fashion world.  dymocks prince's building has the title on order - it will retail at hkd250 and be in store by the end of october.  reserve your copy now!! 

pagani zonda

"the constant efforts of horacio pagani and his team shows once again how art and engineering can be combined in the zonda cinque roadster."
- pagani zonda cinque press release






imagine my surprise after some very chill saturday night drinks when i spotted a pagani zonda casually parked downstairs from my mate's apartment.  the mid-engined sports car, produced by pagani in italy, debuted in 1999 and continues through the present, with production proceeding at roughly ten cars per year.  as of june 2009, only 106 zondas had been built, including test mules.  the zonda cinque (above) in its current form is a combination of the zonda F and zonda R, creating a road-going track day car with its mercedes amg v12 engine.  built at the repeated request of hong kong pagani dealer sps automotive performance (it was initially named the zonda SPS), only five were built at the cost of gbp1 million plus tax - all sold, street legal and delivered in june 2009.  featuring clutchless sequential gear change resulting in shifts now taking less than 100 milliseconds dropping its 0-62 mph down to 3.4 seconds, the cinque also has a revised form of carbon fibre which uses titanium to increase strength.  this revised bodywork creates 750 kg (1,653 lbs) of downfource at 300 km/h (186 mph) - pulling 1.45 gs when cornering.  nice.

all runway photographs care of style.com