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.

zhang ziyi on marriage, family and success

"they (the press) are not willing to admit that i've also shed blood and tears and often paid dearly for my success.  this makes me feel extremely sad."

- zhang ziyi

zhang ziyi appears on the cover of china elle's august edition wearing the same louis vuitton magenta puff sleeve mini dress that madonna sported for the brand's fw09 campaign.  in her interview, she talks about her desire for a family but fear of marriage.  she is currently engaged to israeli billionaire vivi nevo but is rumoured to have postponed the wedding which is being planned on an island off the italian coast.  their union has caused much backlash in china - it remains to be seen what kind of reaction this latest revelation will elicit. 

anna in flats

"is that something we can change?  we have friends in the white house now."

- anna wintour on being told it is illegal to place restrictions on us retailers to stop them discounting clothes too early in the season

anna wintour in footwear sans heels??  yes, the us vogue editor-in-chief made a surprise appearance at the 2009 hampton designer showcase on saturday in a very casual pair of white slippers.  luv it.

lots and lots of leg - part II

“i live for meetings with men in suits. i love them because i know they had a really boring week and i walk in there with my orange velvet leggings and drop popcorn in my cleavage and then fish it out and eat it. i like that. i know i'm entertaining them, and i know that they know.”

- madonna

loro piana leggings

usd1,150

stella mccartney satin inset leggings

usd795

alice + olivia sequin leggings

usd298

leyendecker cut-out leggings

usd140

rock and republic valentina snake leggings

usd125

bergdorf goodman also have an extensive range of hosiery. pair yours with an animal print tee and cropped leather biker.

schumacher's surprise return

“for loyalty reasons to the team I cannot ignore this unfortunate situation,” the german said on his website. “but as the competitor I am, i also very much look forward to facing this challenge.”

- michael schumacher

i like to think that i know a thing or two about cars (compared to most girls) but would definitely not consider myself a formula one fan.  what really touched me about this story is schumacher's sense of team spirit.  he will step in to replace injured felipe massa until the brazilian is able to race again (there are seven races left in 2009).  massa, 28, left intensive care yesterday after suffering head and neck injuries five days ago at the hungarian grand prix.  schumacher, 40, retired in 2006 and has acted as a technical advisor to the ferrari team since then, helping with design.  in order to prove himself physically fit enough to return to the extremely demanding sport, he will need to undertake a special training programme.  the next race - the european grand prix - is scheduled for 23 august which the german will enter with a record of 91 wins from 248 grand prix.  although some have been quick to call this a marketing ploy, former F-1 team owner eddie jordan believes otherwise. "anyone who dismisses michael schumacher because of age is making a grave error.  he is a different breed.” now i just need a "team michael" tee....

fw09 trend reports

"if you are not in fashion, you are nobody."
- lord chesterfield

several fw09 trend reports were released this week:

topshop

lace-up boots

one-shoulder dresses

structured minis

sequins

trench coats

harem trousers

net-a-porter

global nomads

after hours

glossy dynasty

90's minimalism

boy oh boy

punk ranger

left bank

new bourgeousie

style

biker brigade

boudoir crossing

fourties and fabulous

party like it's 1983

ruch hour

smart investments

balmain mania

"i'm no model lady. a model's just an imitation of the real thing."

- mae west

kate moss in balmain fw09

george at asda "star trek" mini dress

67% viscose, 29% metal-effect fibre, 4% elastane; made in england

gbp16

balmain ss09 runway look #4

topshop studded tube dress by rare

sweetheart neckline, all-over criss-cross stud detail; machine washable

usd138

selita ebanks in balmain ss09

bebe sequin striped dress

square neck, padded shoulders, exposed back zipper; dry clean only

usd149

the real thing goes for thousands of pounds. the high street version definitely won't feel like couture but you will be able to afford the bangles, clutch and sparkly sandals aswell. with so many easily accessible copy-cats out there, leave the real mccoy to the celebs.. or diy!! at least until the markets improve.

"from tokyo to colette"

"japan's fast retailing (9983.T: quote, profile, research) posted 28 percent growth in nine-month operating profit on thursday, buoyed by robust sales at its uniqlo casual clothing chain, and lifted its full-year forecast for the third time.  the company represents one of the few bright spots among major domestic retailers, with uniqlo attracting price-conscious shoppers amid japan's worst recession since world war two."

- reuters tokyo (9 july 2009)

famed parisian boutique, colette, will house a small uniqlo concept store commencing 31 august, ahead of the mass-market label's opéra flagship unveiling later in the autumn.  it already opened a pop-up store in the marais district earlier this month.  a limited edition cashmere sweater with "from tokyo to colette" stitched on the front will be on offer.

a real deal

"jewellery takes people's minds of your wrinkles."

- sonja henie

j.crew jewelled garland earrings

hand-casted brass with hand-set glass stones; surgical steel posts

usd79.50

j.crew constellation locket

czech glass crystals on 18k shiny gold-plated brass; 32" chain

usd50

j.crew jewelled garland bracelet

hand-set glass stones interspersed with grosgrain bows; 7 1/2" length

usd95

j.crew pearl-cluster bracelet

12k gold-plated brass chain linking pearls and fireballs; 7 1/2" length

usd78

j.crew majesty stone bracelet

hand-cut glass stones on hand-casted brass chain; 7 1/2" length

usd78

j.crew is going upmarket with its new collection of "instant heirloom" jewellery. the styling is elegant and very old-school whilst the prices are extremely recession-friendly. one could even imagine them being used as wedding pieces....

lacroix lives!! - part II

"we have made an offer this morning (monday) before 10:00am.... it is only symbolic really." 

- louis petiet, head of bernard krief consultants told reuters about their bid of "not even" a few million euros for the couture house

sketch by christian lacroix for desdemona's costume in othello

in 2008, the company made a loss of eur10 million on revenues of eur30 million while orders for ss09 prêt-à-porter were down 35 percent, but there may be hope yet.  monday was the deadline for offers for the ailing label which will be evaluated in a court in september.  on the table at the moment are:

1. the borletti group (owner of la rinascente and printemps) - being considered as "serious"

2. bernard krief consultants (french management consultancy) - deemed "unsatisfactory"

3. two more bids of eur1 each - "rejected"

the final option is that of the falic group's aggressive restructuring plan which will see 90 percent of the house's workforce cut.

work it

"i'm not squeamish at all. as a child I dragged a dead squirrel home on my skateboard and cut it open and tried to look at its brain."

- jessica biel

jessica's got the row's lambskin colton jacket working for her be it shopping with friends or on the red carpet. very cool indeed.

the jo-bros work theirs too!!

lady gaga in jean charles de castelbajac

please stand up

"i don't always wear underwear.  when i'm in the heat, especially, i can't wear it.  like, if i'm wearing a flower dress, why do i have to wear underwear?"

- naomi campbell

ali larter

please remember to check your skirt length before you leave the house so that this does not happen to you.

coco cocoon

“cheryl cole if you’re reading this, I may not be as pretty as you but at least i write my own songs.”

- lily allen

lily allen for chanel coco cocoon

lily allen for chanel coco cocoon

chanel coco cocoon

nylon and lambskin (reversible) 

trolley, bowling bag and mini/maxi shoppers

tickle your fancy?  the collection is set to debut globally in chanel boutiques on 10 october, 2009.  unfortunately, it could not be confirmed whether hong kong would receive this line or not or at what price point they would be as the prince's building store had not even heard of it.

law and order

"the commission must do its part.... it must not rely on one vendor, it must not accept closed standards, and it must refuse to become locked into a particular technology – jeopardizing maintenance of full control over the information in its possession."

- neelie kroes

neelie kroes

european commissioner for competition

karl lagerfeld

head designer and creative director

chanel, fendi and karl lagerfeld

bernard arnault

chairman and ceo

lvmh sa, christian dior sa and groupe arnault sas

luxury goods makers moet hennessy louis vuitton sa and chanel sa may have won greater control over how web-based retailers sell their products thanks to some last minute lobbying over a draft european union regulation.  earlier proposals allowed ebay inc traders to sell unlimited quantities of of their goods on the internet which, they argued, would undermine expensive investments in brick-and-mortar operations located in upmarket areas and degrade brand image.  the revisions grant brand owners the right to dictate the ratio of offline vs online product offerings although not in states where a distribution system does not already exist (ie. in countries where there are no stores, ebay can sell as much as it wishes). “selective distribution, whether real or virtual, has always been fundamental for luxury brands,” andrea ciccoli, a fashion industry analyst for bain & co milan, said in an interview about an earlier version of the law. “not just anyone can sell products by chanel and prada in stores and there’s no reason why they should be able to on the web.  it would be like giving people a license to print money.” the latest version is scheduled for release today.

men, men, men.

"why are men in hong kong such wankers?"

- anita p nesse

single in the city

norwood-hamilton scale of male pattern baldness

read anita's explanation as to why hong kong women are turning bi-curious and gay.  hilarious but true.

sexy summer salad

"i don't have an mba but i'm street smart and employ good people."

- harlan goldstein summing up his entrepreneurial flair

buffalo mozzarella, vine-ripened tomatoes, rustic olives and basil dressing

hkd178

head over to tuscany by h for a perfect caprese salad.  the cheese was elastic and rubbery but not tough and had drops of creamy milk stored in minute dimples of its fabric.  yummy.

pregnant is the new black

"the sons of teen mothers are 13 percent more likely to end up in prison while teen daughters are 22 percent more likely to become teen mothers themselves."

- www.familyfirstaid.org

jourdan dunn, 19

heidi klum, 35, and husband, seal

karolina kurkova, 25, and fiancé, archie drury 

gisele bündchen, 29

adriana lima, 27

jourdan dunn, who won 2008's british fashion council's model award, is the latest catwalker to announce she is with child, joining victoria's secret angels heidi klum (expecting her fourth), karolina kurkova, giselle bündchen and adriana lima in skipping the september shows this year.  although dunn will not release the name of the father, she has said that they have been together for several years.  style broke the news by making fashion suggestions for the young londoner's five-and-a-half month growing bump.  despite only just starting out, natalia vodianova was also pregant early on in her career and claims that it in fact helped her get work.

diamonds and pearls

"the rarest things in the world, next to a spirit of discernment, are diamonds and pearls."

- jean de la bruyere

erickson beamon multi-strand pearl and crystal necklace

[close-up]

chanel classic flap bag in white cowhide

timeless accessories make easy companions for lazy sunday brunch.