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  • Posted 11/10/09 at 6:00 PM
  • Party Lines

Adam Lippes Had to Apologize to His Interns

Adam Lippes Had to Apologize to His Interns

Photo: Patrick McMullan

Adam Lippes told us recently, "it's rare to find an intern — especially one from a fashion school — that has good style." Last night at RVCA's opening of Nicolas Pol's "Martus Maw" exhibition, the designer revealed that the quote caused a bit of a kerfuffle in his office. "I had so much reverberation. What happened was, first a design assistant told me, then someone else in my business came to say that I should apologize to the interns! I was like, ‘I don’t mean THESE interns!’" he said. "I just meant, like, fashion students." He added that his current interns still seemed skeptical when he attempted to explain this, but then he continued, "Meanwhile, one of them is wearing silver boots up to here and is a guy. ‘Not you! Those boots are great.’ But it was fine." Lippes understands these kids are in a finding-themselves fashion phase. "Hey, everyone who commented on your article thought I looked dressed like shit. And across from the New School, I see how these kids dress — but it’s that time in your life when you should be experimenting, and it’s really a learning process." And, so there is peace in the house of Lippes, he added, "Some of my interns dress fantastically."

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 5:45 PM
  • Quotables
Tom Ford: Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé ‘Were So Evil’

"I don’t even remember much about my time at Yves Saint Laurent, though I do think some of my best collections were [there] — other than that black-and-white initial one. That one wasn’t very successful and wasn’t very good. But being at Yves Saint Laurent was such a negative experience for me even though the business boomed while I was there. Yves and his partner, Pierre Bergé, were so difficult and so evil and made my life such misery. I’d lived in France off and on and had always loved it. I went to college in France. It wasn’t until I started working in France that I began to dislike it. They would call the fiscal police, and they would show up at our offices. You are not able to work an employee more than 35 hours a week. They’re like Nazis, those police. They’d come marching in, and you had to let them in and they’d interview my secretary. And they can fine you and shut you down. Pierre was the one calling them. I’ve never talked about this on the record before, but it was an awful time for me. Pierre and Yves were just evil. So Yves Saint Laurent doesn’t exist for me." [Advocate]

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 5:30 PM
  • Self Improvement

Self’s Ad Pages Bolstered by Wal-Mart

Self got itself into kind of a mess this year when editor Lucy Danziger tried to convince the world that Photoshopping Kelly Clarkson skinnier for the September cover was empowering for womankind everywhere. But not only was it not empowering, it was the magazine's worst-selling issue of the year so far, according to WWD, pulling in only 220,000 copies. And September issues are supposed to be some of the top sellers of the year.

However, the magazine is getting back on track. The December cover with Amanda Peet looks lovely. Besides, she's skinny, so they oughtn't have to worry about any more weight-related Photoshopping controversies. Even better for the magazine, the January issue will carry the most ad pages for that month in twenty years. Ads in the beauty and automobile categories (new clients include Chevrolet and Alamo Rent-a-Car) are strong. And Wal-Mart kindly took out an eight-page insert. Sounds like the magazine is really hitting its stride.

BETTER 2010 [WWD]

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  • Posted 11/10/09 at 5:05 PM
  • Look of the Day

Carine Embraces the No-Pants Trend

Carine Embraces the No-Pants Trend

Photo: Patrick McMullan

Carine Roitfeld went sans pants at Nicolas Pol's "The Martus Maw" opening, presented by her son Vladimir Restoin Roitfield and RVCA last night.

If Carine goes without pants, does that make it okay?

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 4:40 PM
  • Beauty Marks

Texan Woman Fakes Cancer for Breast Implants; Shakira Fakes Dreadlocks

PLASTIC SURGERY
• A 24-year-old Texan woman posed as a cancer patient and raised $10,000 to support her fake-cancer needs (she even shaved her head). She used the money to get breast implants. She was arrested last week. [Lemondrop]

HAIR
• Do you like the fake, matted dreadlocks Shakira wore to the Rolling Stone cover celebration party last night? [Beauty Counter/Style.com]

Read more »

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 4:24 PM
  • Campaign Trail
The Sartorialist’s Campaign List Grows With Burberry

Burberry signed Scott Schuman of the Sartorialist to shoot images for its new Art of the Trench social networking site, his latest fashion campaign after DKNY and Saba Denim. The site itself shows on-the-street style pictures of various Burberry trenches and allows you to vote for ones you like (203 people liked this green army trench on the left). And the interactivity continues: You can also leave comments, which is helpful if you want to point out that this coat is the same one Emma Watson wore in the fall fashion campaign. [Official site]

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 4:15 PM
  • Party Lines

Glamour to Feature More Plus-Size Models, But With Clothes

Glamour to Feature More Plus-Size Models, But With Clothes

Photo: Patrick McMullan

Michelle Obama appears on one of five December covers of Glamour, and even sent her regards via video at the magazine’s big Women of the Year awards gala at Carnegie Hall last night. So did Glamour style her for the photo shoot, or did the fashion-forward Michelle Obama insist on choosing her own clothing? Editor Cindi Leive laughed when we asked at the post-awards dinner and said the clothes were all Michelle. "The lucky thing is, she’s pretty good at picking out clothes from her own closet," Leive told us. Leive says Obama knew it was a holiday cover celebrating women of achievement, and that she is savvy enough to pick something camera-appropriate. “This was not a jeans and tank top moment, but beyond that, she chose something that she thought would work for the occasion, and she was, I think, a thousand percent right,” she said. Fashion risk-taker Rihanna, who appears on another of Glamour’s December covers (there are five), also had plenty of input on her shoot. “I don’t think anyone tells Rihanna what to wear,” Leive said.

About those plus-size models. »

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 3:40 PM
  • Tastemakers

Victor Osborne Wants More Men in Hats (and Possibly Heels)

Victor Osborne Wants More Men in Hats (and Possibly Heels)

Photo: Melissa Hom

At only 26 years old, milliner Victor Osborne has developed quite a following. Not only have his bowlers and fedoras graced the pages of several fashion magazines, but he also opened a new retail shop on the Lower East Side this past summer. The store’s open layout includes an atelier toward the back, where Osborne can often be found creating his luxury hats on traditional blocks. With an upcoming collaboration for Opening Ceremony’s spring line and custom pieces for Rihanna in Italian Vogue and Michelle Williams in Vogue, Victor Osborne is bringing hats back to the mainstream. We sat down with him to discuss his cinematic inspiration, bargain hunting at Beacon’s Closet, and how every man should take some fashion risks.

Read more »

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 3:10 PM
  • MObama Watch
Michelle Obama Is Wearing Pearls Today

Michelle Obama arrived at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland today wearing all black with a simple single strand of pearls. See the full look in the Michelle Obama Look Book.

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 2:35 PM
  • When Jews Get the Shaft

Galliano’s Christmas Tree Won’t Have Bras All Over It

Behold the sketch of the Christmas tree John Galliano's designing for Claridge's in London. We thought he might dangle lingerie all over it since that's what he's been obsessed with lately. But no — the tree will just be naked and look like a giant fancy house plant more than a tree. [Grazia UK]

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  • Posted 11/10/09 at 2:00 PM
  • Body Issues
Robin Givhan: Skinny Male Models Aren’t As Controversial As Skinny Female Models

NPR recently aired a segment with Robin Givhan and Glamour editor-in-chief Cindi Leive about whether the fashion industry should embrace fantasy or reality, which was really an excuse to talk about skinny models some more. Givhan noted, "I don’t think the average man looks at a male model who has the body type of a 12-year-old and thinks I need to stay at the gym and cut back on my meals to achieve that." Which is exactly where the controversy stems from for women. [BlackBook]

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 1:25 PM
  • Fashion Calendar

Tomorrow’s Events and Sales: 70 Percent Off Tibi; 85 Percent Off Elie Tahari

EVENTS
TONIGHT
• Meet Elle style director Kate Lanphear and preview the Armani Exchange holiday collection. With any Armani Exchange purchase of $100 or more, shoppers are invited to customize their own A/X Pima T-shirt alongside a stylist. Hors d’oeuvre and drinks will be served. RSVP to RSVP@armaniexchange.com. Armani Exchange, 129 Fifth Ave., at 10th St. (212-254-7230); 6–8.

SALES
STARTING TOMORROW
• Womenswear, swimwear, and denim are up to 75 percent off at the Shoshanna and Anlo fall sample sale. Spring dresses are $150 (originally $350), tops are $100 (originally $250), and jeans are $75 (originally $200). Through 11/12. Shoshanna Showroom, 23 W. 39th St., nr. Seventh Ave., Ste. 422 (212-719-3601); W (10–6:30), Th (10–5:30).

• Patricia Field and Baileys Irish Cream are pairing up to launch the Baileys Holiday Shoe Store to benefit the Clothes Off Our Back charity. Designer shoes from L.A.M.B., Barbara Bui, Sergio Rossi, and more are $75 apiece (originally $300 to $1,200). Through 11/13. 421 W. Broadway, nr. Spring St.; W–F (11–7).

Read more »

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 12:50 PM
  • Buyer's Guide

Miss Lonelyhearts Delivers Sweet Accessories With a Coy Edge

Handbag designer Jenny Yuen's first stand-alone store has a come-hither, feminine feel, from the built-in wood-and-leather bench with "boy toy" carved into the side for dutiful boyfriends-in-waiting to the stacks of vintage romance novels lining the shelves. After designing for Jill Stuart, Twinkle by Wenlan, Gap, and J.Crew, the Parsons grad launched her own line of bags in fall 2007, a small collection with nostalgic names like Dear Diary and Past Curfew. She called her label Miss Lonelyhearts, after a Dear Abby–style advice columnist in a thirties book. After six months of renovations, Yuen turned this former Lower East Side video store — "It looked like it had been bombed," she says, wincing — into a homey boutique, with golden floral-print wallpaper, leafy potted plants, and her pair of Shiba Inu puppies, Pablo and Georgie, greeting shoppers at the door. The colorful lambskin and calfskin bags are produced in limited quantities of 25 to 100 per style, with a few new designs added each season. Yuen has also expanded into womenswear, offering gauzy lingerie-inspired dresses, leather vests, and high-waisted denim. Jewelry from Brooklyn-based designers Digby & Iona and I Like You as a Friend are scattered throughout the store, from bejeweled ax pendants to engraved guitar picks. Click ahead to check out the stock.

Miss Lonelyhearts, 250 Broome St., nr. Orchard St. (212-253-0560); T–Su (noon–7)

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 12:15 PM
  • Just Pants

Lady Gaga’s ‘Bad Romance’ Video Includes Razor-Blade Sunglasses, Supermodels [Updated]

Lady Gaga's fashion-monster evolution has included face masks, hair sculptures, Muppets, disco sticks, and zippering her eye shut. For her next video for "Bad Romance," she explores the freaky, fabulous world of razor blades, which she used to make sunglasses. MTV reports:

"I wanted to design a pair for some of the toughest chicks and some of my girlfriends — don't do this at home! — they used to keep razor blades in the side of their mouths," she explained. "That tough female spirit is something that I want to project. It's meant to be, 'This is my shield, this is my weapon, this is my inner sense of fame, this is my monster.'"


She adds:

"There's this one shot in the video where I get kidnapped by supermodels. I'm washing away my sins and they shove vodka down my throat to drug me up before they sell me off to the Russian mafia."


But what's in it for the Russian mafia? Putting her in a cage and forcing her to be normal on cue? (You know homegirl goes to bed in sweats.) See a preview of the supermodels in a clip from the video, which premieres in full on Monday. Update: The full video is out! And Gaga wears spring 2010 Alexander McQueen. Enjoy.

Read more »

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 11:40 AM
  • Party Lines

Jean Paul Gaultier Enjoys His Accidental Exhibitionism at the Standard

Jean Paul Gaultier Enjoys His Accidental Exhibitionism at the Standard

Photo: Patrick McMullan

Jean Paul Gaultier said his new Target collection will still "shock parents, shock teachers," as is his way. "What I am doing [for Target] is still Gaultier, very Jean Paul Gaultier, it's in my style. But it's different — clothes for more people and less expensive and more affordable, but still modern. It's nice. It's an element of surprise they want, so that's good," Gaultier said last night at the opening of artist Nicolas Pol's "Martus Maw" exhibit, curated by Vladimir Restoin Roitfeld. Gaultier is primarily in town to work in the Target offices, but wants to get around town and enjoy himself, too. "I want to see movies — Precious, and the one with Jim Carrey — A Christmas Carol. I want to see that. It looks really funny and with a lot of ideas and quite like dreaming." Jean Paul Gaultier likes Christmas movies? "Well ... yes, I love them," he admitted. His favorite Christmas film, rest assured, is still a melancholy French one: "Who Shot Father Christmas, of course." Gaultier's also been an accidental exhibitionist in New York. "You know, I'm in the hotel, what is the name of it — the Standard. So, I am in the bedroom where it is an exhibitionist event!" he said. "I did not know that, so I did exhibition without knowing what I was doing. I did not know people could see. But, nobody was looking. It's quite hilarious, it's excellent."

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 11:05 AM
  • Twi-hards
PETA Recruits Naked 19-Year-Old Twilight Girl

Twilight actress Christian Serratos renounces "wearing carcass[es]" in a new ad for PETA's "rather go naked than wear fur" campaign. We know very little of Twilight other than its Power over Tweens, and we don't at all like that PETA makes its point by getting a naked 19-year-old to risk scraping her bare rump on a tree trunk. Especially because we have no guarantees that those crazy YouTube Twilight people won't shoot footage of themselves running naked through the forest. [OK!]

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 10:30 AM
  • Loose Threads

DVF Deposits Dresses With Ikram Goldman; Heidi Klum for Ann Taylor

DVF Deposits Dresses With Ikram Goldman; Heidi Klum for Ann Taylor

Photo: Courtesy of Ann Taylor

• When Diane Von Furstenberg was in Chicago last week, she dropped off some dresses with Ikram Goldman, Michelle Obama's unofficial stylist. Perhaps we'll see the First Lady in more DVF soon? [WWD]

• Oprah hearts Prabal Gurung. She wears a custom gown of his on the December cover of O, the Oprah Magazine. [PrabalGurung/Twitter]

• Japanese jewelry firm Tasaki, which is known for its pearls, named Thakoon Panichgul its new creative director. His first collection for the company will debut in February. [Style File/Style.com]

Heidi Klum stars in the holiday campaign for Ann Taylor. [Celebrity Dirty Laundry]

Michael Kors likes it when 10-year-olds follow him around. »

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 09:45 AM
  • Eff the Recession

Luella Loses Financial Backers

Luella, spring 2010.

Luella, spring 2010.Photo: Imaxtree

British label Luella has ceased trading. Its financial backer, a subsidiary of Club 21, has decided not to invest further in the label. Designer Luella Bartley, who won the British Fashion Council's 2008 Designer of the Year award, said in a statement that she has a "number of options" to consider for future financing. However, her troubles don't stop with Club 21 — orders for her spring 2010 collection won't be shipped after ready-to-wear producer Carla Carini abruptly shuttered last month. "[I]t is upsetting not to be able to protect jobs in this difficult economic climate," added Bartley, whose spring 2010 collection received glowing reviews. In the meantime, Bartley and her team are working as creative consultants to Liberty, helping with Christmas decorations. Just goes to show — one day you're the designer of the year, the next you're trying to figure out how to best drape tinsel. This economy is a real bitch.

Luella Ceases Trading [WWD]

  • Posted 11/10/09 at 09:00 AM
  • Best Bets

Best Bet: Lend a Hand

Best Bet: Lend a Hand

Photo: Courtesy of Tommy HIlfiger

There's nothing worse than having cold hands as the weather chills, but the right pair of gloves can change all that. Tommy Hilfiger's Ella gloves come in bright red and are made from a buttery soft leather that allows fingers to move freely. For ultimate warmth, the cherry-colored gloves are lined with downy beige cashmere, making this the comfiest pair around. With a pretty bow detail at the wrist, these gloves will keep hands looking and feeling their best all season long.

Cashmere Lined Leather Gloves, $78 at Tommy Hilfiger Fifth Avenue, 681 Fifth Ave., nr. 54th St.; 212-223-1824.

11/09/09

  • Posted 11/9/09 at 6:30 PM
  • Save Versace

Will Donatella Leave Versace?

Will Donatella Leave Versace?

Photo: Getty Images

Dana Thomas details in Newsweek how Versace became a bit of a mess after the death of Gianni. It used to rake in over $1 billion in sales, but now makes less than half of that. Run by the family since its inception, Donatella and Santo were reportedly resistant to changes that might have helped them adapt to new times and new economies. Thomas reiterates previous reports about ex-CEO Giancarlo Di Risio leaving the label abruptly earlier this year (after a five-year reign) over disputes with Donatella about cutting back her lavish lifestyle. (He apparently began trying to meddle in the creative side of things, which ultimately was the last straw for Donatella.)

Even when the family was slammed with an inheritance-tax bill that required them to take out a five-year, $100 million bond, the Versaces couldn't let go of their material things.

"There was zero expense control in the company, and the lifestyle was absolutely, positively insane," says the Versace source. "When the earnings went down, the lifestyle didn't."


But with the label bleeding money and readying to lay off 350 workers, the family has made concessions. Last year they sold their Lake Como estate, which is said to have devastated Donatella.

Many insiders think the family should get lost. »

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