“It’s an incredible achievement and means that people are paying close attention to the brand [Dior] when it speaks,” said Alex Mendoza of Stylophane, a company that monitors crap figures like this. “They have an incredible brand and they are saying things that are bringing people back.”

Dior’s 12 posts during the month of January racked up around 13,000 likes each. Other luxury brands who are popular with the kids today include Chanel with an average 7,200 likes per post (lpp), social media juggernaut Burberry, which averaged about 6,800 lpp and The Art of Travel by Louis Vuitton, clocking in almost 4,400 lpp.

And for more in-depth info, take a gander at this handy dandy chart of the top 10 brands:

 [WWD]

- Karlie Kloss, movie star. Kloss’ rise to superstardom in the world of modeling means that Hollywood will begin knocking on her door, if they haven’t rammed it down already. Karlie may be following in the strides of other model-turned-actress Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and is eschewing the catwalk for the film studio.

- Maybe she’s born with it, maybe it’s a beauty contract. While the runway pays well for girls of Karlie’s stature, a beauty campaign can set a model on the catwalk to Easy Street for the rest of her life. Since snagging Estée Lauder, when’s the last time you saw Hilary Rhoda walk a show?

- Karlie Kloss, new creative director at Christian Dior. This may be a bit of a stretch, but the house does love them some Kloss. She hasn’t missed a step in a single Dior show — from couture to resort — in years and Bernard Arnault might want to just keep her around.

- Strike a pose, there’s nothing to it. As everyone knows, models making the cover of Vogue is as rare as a viable Republican candidate for the presidency. So what better reason to cancel on Fashion Week than to jet off to Paris for an exclusive shoot with Mario Testino for a star-making cover?

- Karlie Kloss DiCaprio. After she walked in the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, Leonardo DiCaprio was reportedly smitten with the leggy Ms. Kloss. He’s landed Gisele and Bar Refaeli, why not add the newest bright young thing to his collection of catwalkers?

What do you think — Where in the World if Karlie Kloss?

To read the rest of this article, visit Société Perrier.

A bold color like the deep glistening blue, Tuxedo, or matte, Blue Label 997 will keep your dark side prowling.

The deep blue green, Nirvana 704, calls for more of a calm outcry, and the Perfecto is suited for a subtle gray.

And since we know the Dior team is kind of crazy, the Psychedelic Orange 545 is truly a head trip.

- The bro-ing of America continues as men become more and more in touch with their inner lady. The latest development,
“Brotox.” Women are even getting in on the action, gifting their dudes with the gift of immobile foreheads. [HuffPo]

- Dolce & Gabbana caused outrage — and protests — among Hong Kong citizens after passing a ban on photos of the store’s window displays. The ban, however, was not enforced for foreign shoppers or Chinese nationals. [WSJ]

- The Vatican continues sweet-talking the gays with Pope Benedict claiming gay marriage basically signals the downfall of humanity. Joke’s on him, that happened after season one of the Jersey Shore. [Towleroad]

- It may be time for Barbie to start picking better friends. Doll versions of Kim, Khloe and Kourtney Kardashian – called Dash dolls after their miniature Kardashian-inspired clothing — will befriend Mattel’s golden girl this year. In addition to wearing the trashy leopard print jumpsuits synonymous with the family’s Dash Boutiques, the dolls will “reflect the girls’ measurements.” Meaning the Khloe doll will be played by Ken. [MTV]

Shot by Mikael Jansson, the 28-year-old actress gives another star turn in the spring ad campaign while bearing a striking resemblance to fellow Dior bag lady, Marion Cotillard. While Kunis claims she’s mostly a jeans and T-shirt kinda gal, she loves to feel feminine on the red carpet and with awards season gearing up, we can no doubt expect to see her in some Dior finery. Which is a shame. But let’s just hope she at least goes for the archival finery. [WWD]

“There have been on-and-off conversations about Dior,” the designer admitted. “I don’t know; maybe someday in the future, maybe years from now, I may end up going someplace else, maybe Dior. But right now I am at Vuitton, and all that matters to me is that that’s where I am and I’m going to keep doing my thing.”

Do your thing, girl! Jacobs went on to further explain his decision to stay with Vuitton and his general boredom with haute couture:

“The irony in all of this is that I don’t dream of doing anything else, or I didn’t. My greatest challenge is to do something better than we’ve done the season before. The idea of couture doesn’t hold that thing for me. It’s archaic – in my opinion. I mean, I am really interested in the craftsmanship behind couture. But I can explore all that in ready-to-wear. With couture, one dress each season is photographed by a couple of magazines; there’s no advertising; it reaches 20 customers. I don’t feel there is anything lacking in what we do. I get to work with these amazing craftsmen. Maybe not the same ateliers that would make a couture dress, but, again, we are not in a deficit for working with people who create beautiful things. I am not sure I ever looked at couture as this great opportunity.”

Jacobs, obviously doesn’t skimp on the candor in his Vogue  interview. Among the Dior revelations, Jacobs talks about his family — he hasn’t spoken to his mother, sister or younger brother in 20 years — and the illness that inspired him to go from slob to stud — ulcerative colitis — but it’s this little tidbit about his former drug use that really brings this story into a glorious landing: “Jacobs has been honest about his drug-use and addiction issues over the years. He says Naomi Campbell ’really helped me get sober.’”

You know you’re going down a dark road when Naomi Campbell is the light on the other end. [Vogue]

Kim counts Taylor as her “idol” and “icon,” so it comes as no surprise that the Big K would shell out some clams to have a piece of Liz in her life: “If you have a piece of jade, the energy goes into the piece and you absorb the energy,” Kardashian said via phone. “So I can feel Elizabeth in the piece.” Good for you, Kim, feeling up Elizabeth Taylor — but you’re going to need a lot more than one failed marriage if you’re going to “Keep Up” with that legacy.

Among the most popular items was a Christian Dior evening gown and matching clutch that fetched $362,500, over 60 times its estimated worth, and a Versace jacket featuring Taylor’s iconic face emblazoned in rhinestones all over it (#dead), which sold for $128,500.

The Gina Fratini wedding dress Liz wore for her second marriage to Richard Burton went for $62,500, while the yellow chiffon dress she wore to their first wedding was removed from auction at the last minute and will instead be donated to an institution. Two diamond and gold wedding bands from both Burton nuptials, however, were sold for $1 million — 125 times more than its estimated $8000 worth.

The big ticket item of the night was a  lithograph of Liz  by signed by Andy Warhol — “To Elizabeth, with much love”; estimated at $30,000 to $50,000, the painting sold for $662,500. The Liz Taylor auction continues tonight and into tomorrow, giving more reality TV stars and alleged socialites plenty opportunity to claim a piece of Taylor for her own. [Telgraph, Forbes, Bloomberg]

Pulled this way and that for a photoshoot by her overbearing manager, a gossipy makeup artist, a lascivious photographer and a fabulously turbaned stylist, Margaux finally loses her composure and throws both caution and a Dior handbag  to the wind. Best line, courtesy of that queen cosmetician:

“You know what this reminds me of, Demy? Remember? The Academy Awards! Oh my gosh, Margaux, you won’t believe this. I went in to put the eyeliner on Ms. You-Know-Who. Her glass eye pops out onto the makeup table. I’m totally serious. Rolls around in the dust, she picks it up, wets it in her mouth, pops it back in. Goes on to win the award. Doesn’t even hold a candle to You-Know-Who at the Emmys.”

See — schtick. Check out the film for a little ladylike afternoon delight.

Photo: Another Mag

Simons has been with Jil Sander since 2005 and his contract was recently extended for an unknown duration, meaning Dior will most likely have to buy him out of it. Should that prove easily said and done, Simons still won’t be able to produce a ready-to-wear collection by March, let alone a couture collection by January; therefore Bill Gaytten and the Dior atelier would continue to handle design duties in the mean time.

There might be an even bigger hurdle on the horizon, however, as Yves Saint Laurent reportedly has their eye on Simons as well. Stefano Pilati, if rumors are to be believed, is always on the verge of being fired and his contract expires in March. YSL hasn’t indicated whether they will extend Pilati’s deal or not, but considering that his role is a constant source of speculation, it’s hard to put much weight behind this.

Meanwhile, there’s no time frame for Simons’ appointment, and Dior — of course — has neither confirmed or denied these reports. But of all the names bandied about since John Galliano‘s dismissal earlier this year, Raf Simons is one of the strongest and most viable, don’t you think? [WWD]

“The Great Designers” will also be accompanied by the book The Great Designers: Fashion’s Hall of Fame from A to Z, highlighting 500 of the museum’s masterworks by 100 of the 20th- and 21st-century’s most important designers. Publishing in April 2012, the book will include an essay by museum curator Valerie Steele on the history of fashion museums and exhibits,  along with short bios on the 100 designers. Click through the gallery for some of the designs featured and to keep you occupied until you can make your way to the FIT Museum to see them in person. [WWD, FIT]

Given to French businesses with highly specialized knowledge, the honor was bestowed on the 15 workers of the atelier, each with over a decade of experience in couture techniques. As for Galliano himself, he’s no doubt happy for his atelier and not at all bitter.

Not. At. All. [WWD]

Through the concrete and brick columned hall of the CFDA Incubator, past glass doors with names like Bibhu Mohapatra, House of Waris and Prabal Gurung etched upon them, sits a room on the end that houses the studio of a French expat with a beautiful concept. Alice Ritter works seemingly solitary in a tidy, brightly lit room with a towering cubic bookshelf, a sewing machine and inspiration all around. Her style rings from the authenticity of growing up in the late 70s in France, where Yves Saint Laurent was god and high power glossies were sacred. Having studied economics, she created a fashion lab within her home with her Brooklynite husband to pursue her true art of design. Poring over books and dissecting vintage clothing lead to her creating an aesthetic that is uniquely hers. 

What are your three fashion books you recommend to an aspiring fashion designer?

Oh! This Madeleine Vionnet book I’ve had for a long time, I know it by heart.  Madeleine Vionnet is such an inspiration. It was just so modern what she did, and she invented a new way to drape fabric and to drape the woman’s body. She not as famous as Gabrielle Chanel or Christian Dior. I mean she’s famous amongst fashion people and she’s more influential for me.

This Balenciaga book is beautiful not just because I’m fascinated with Balenciaga, but the book its self is just a beautiful object, the way its printed, paper. Its really good. He was very forward thinking  He was like a sculptor almost.

Fashion Design 1850-1895 is a good one. It’s a classic. It’s a very well curated collection of clothes, and their details. It’s an endless source of inspiration. And a really good way to learn about costume and this sort of fashion.

To read the rest of the interview, click on over to LOOKBOOKS.com!

The Fashion for Action sale is going on at The Altman Building 135 West 18th Street, (between 6th and 7th avenues) from November 17-19th.

Over 950 pieces of fine and costume jewelry, accessories, and decorative objects will be available for perusal and possible purchase – from Chanel, Christian Dior, and Cartier jewels; to handbags and shoes from Christian Louboutin, Fendi, Louis Vuitton, and Prada. Though of course that’s just the tip of the diamond-encrusted iceberg.

The full collection goes on view November 18, but a preview is available through Christies and e-tailer Moda Operandi. Then come Decmber 3, interested parties can begin to register for the auction itself.

So this holiday season, show that you really care with a gift from the vaults of Hollywood royalty. And instead of wrapping said gift and placing it under the tree —  storm into the room Christmas morning, rip off a pair of diamond earrings, plunk them in front of the giftee and breathlessly say, “These have always brought me luck.” Then clutch your figurative pearls and disappear as mysteriously as you came. It’s what Liz would have wanted. [Hint Mag]

The caveat that broke the camel’s back was Jacobs’ insistence on taking his Louis Vuitton team with him to Dior, leaving Vuitton — LVMH’s cash cow — without a heel to stand on. To make matters worse, Arnault had wanted Céline‘s Phoebe Philo to replace Marc at Vuitton should he move to Dior, but Philo is happy where she is — outfitting Kanye West in billowy blouses.

So with Jacobs more or less off the table, LVMH has reportedly approached Alexander Wang, Jason Wu and Jil Sander‘s Raf Simons; though out of the three Simons would seem the most likely choice, that is unless Dior plans on eschewing breathtaking gowns and impeccably-crafted ladysuits for sweatpants and cocktail dresses.

Then there is Givenchy‘s Riccardo Tisci, whose name has been bandied about since Gallianogate got into full swing. But he — along with Lanvin‘s Alber Elbaz, Alexander McQueen‘s Sarah Burton and Balenciaga‘s Nicolas Ghesquière – has turned down the Dior deal, citing brand loyalty.

So the question still remains — and frankly, the question is getting really tiresome — who will take the reins at Christian Dior? However, by the time someone is announced, the question might be, who the hell cares? [WWD]

Photos: Zimbio

Link Love: Vogue.com

Photo: StyleBistro

A third generation nose, Cavallier-Belletrud has lent his award-winning nostrils to Issey Miyake‘s L’Eau d’Issey, Dior‘s Addict, Stella McCartney‘s Stella, Lancôme‘s Poeme and YSL‘s Cinema. Work on the new LV scent is slated to being in January 2012 so enjoy your rare, nearly extinct, flowers while you can. [Telegraph]

*Kate Middleton‘s Alexander McQueen was a late addition and Rubenstein had to cut one of the dresses to keep the list to 100. So it was sayonara Nancy Reagan and her white one-shoulder inauguration ball gown. Michelle Obama‘s Jason Wu, however, remained in tact. [WWD, sub req'd]

Photos via Musings of a Muse

Having mastered the art of social media — they’re #1 on Facebook with nearly 9 million “Likes” and #2 on Twitter — Burberry continues to find innovative ways to engage consumers such as a live-streaming Tweetwalk, where looks from London Fashion Week were Tweeted before they hit the runway. They also scored well in e-commerce and mobile commerce thanks to its global site relaunch, landing the over 150-year-old British label the top spot on the L2 index and the official label of “Genius.”

Kate Spade was a newcomer to the index but their blend of smart e-commerce and a strong mobile and social presence skyrocketed the brand to the #2 spot. Storied houses Chanel and Christian Dior, on the other hand, seem to be resting on their luxury laurels earning only “Average” L2 IQs.

Prada and Hermès started running with the bad girls in school, smoking in the bathroom and dating college boys instead of working on their social media and as a result their IQs plummeted from “Gifted” in 2009 to “Challenged” in 2011. And to make matters worse, Prada was cited as the “biggest digital disappointment in luxury.” Yikes, wait til your father hears about this….

But in their defense, Europe might just have a harder learning curve. Ten of the top fifteen brands in the L2 index were American and on average American brands have a higher digital IQ than their Euro counterparts. Finally, somewhere the U.S. excels in something besides obesity and sluttiness.

The top 10 list is as follows:

1. Burberry: Digital births an icon: Proof that digital investments translate to shareholder value.

2. Kate Spade: Top social media score; Index newcomer did not get memo that heritage is necessary to be iconic digitally.

3. Coach: New York native continues to woo the blogosphere and registers top scores for site experience.

3. Gucci: Gucci Connects dots and delivers with shoppable video and recent Tumblr launch

5. Dolce & Gabbana: Global site relaunch threads needle of edgy and effective.

5. Tory Burch: Facebook store leads fashion F-commerce (r)evolution.

7. Ralph Lauren: New York Times iPad app takeover transforms brand into rich media publisher.

8. Hugo Boss: Top mobile scores and interactive YouTube channel venture differentiate the brand online.

9. Louis Vuitton: Embracing the spirit of travel with Amble app; Leads on Foursquare.

10. Michael Kors: Destination: Kors. Evolving brand into an online lifestyle.

[Luxury Lab, Telegraph]

Photo: Style.com's Photo Wall

“I could never do this anywhere else, do you know what I mean? Not just the Paris thing, but Vuitton, allows me,” Jacobs enthusiastically told the Daily Telegraph after the show. The Telegraph also reports that the negotiations between Jacobs and Dior may have hit the proverbial wall — again —  thanks to the designer’s insistence that his entire LV team come with him.

Meanwhile, the Financial Times‘ Vanessa Friedman seems to think that Christian Dior’s collaboration with German contemporary artist Anselm Reyle — the luxury house’s first — on a line of accessories is a sign that Jacobs is indeed on his way to Dior. “As it happens, the driving force behind the Dior/Reyle partnership was Delphine Arnault…deputy general manager of Dior Couture [who] is also reportedly one of the most vocal proponents of moving Mr Jacobs to Dior, an eventuality that is looking more and more likely.”

The Dior announcement is weeks away, according to Sidney Toledano and he wants us all to just hold our horses and show a little patience. But dammit it’s 2011, no one has an attention span longer than a gnat and patience is so last millennium. Just rehire John Galliano and stop boring me. [Daily Telegraph, Financial Times]

All photos from Style.com.

M. Louis Vuitton

Louis Vuitton was born a thousand years ago in 1821 and established his company in 1854 after coming to Paris with only a few francs in his pocket at the age of 14. Typical rags to riches story. After Vuitton died, his son Georges expanded the company and started the world’s first designer label, introducing the now iconic LV mongram in the process.

To commemorate 150 years of luxury, author Stephanie Bonvicini began her research on Louis Vuitton: A French Saga. Initially she had the full cooperation of LVMH, but when the question arose of Vuitton’s activities from 1930 to 1945, they used the old “the files were destroyed in a fire” excuse.

Which always means Nazi-sympathizing. Anyone with undocumented activities between those years is usually a Nazi. Or dead.

Undeterred, Bonvicini dug through some historical archives and found that Louis Vuitton was the only store allowed to stay open in Vichy, where fantastically-mustachioed French general Philippe Pétain had established his puppet government backed by the Nazi government, the Vichy regime. Other shops, including Van Cleef & Arpels, had been shut down.

Interviewing surviving members of the Vuitton family, Bonvicini discovered that Gaston, Louis’ grandson and then-head of the company, had instructed his son Henry to forge an alliance with Pétain to keep the business alive. Compromise was a general practice among fashion houses during WWII — both Dior and Chanel whored themselves out to preserve French couture — but Vuitton ended up, rather humiliatingly, producing some 2500 busts of Pétain and other artifacts glorifying his grand mustache, as part of that compromise.

According to Bonvicini, ”Part of the collaboration was due to the family’s obsession with the survival of the company, and part down to the fact that there was a certain sympathy with the regime’s rightwing views.” Henry, for his part, was among the first Frenchmen to be decorated by the Vichy regime for his patriotic (?) efforts.

After these facts came to light, LVMH, who had previously promised to throw their full support behind Bonvicini’s book, turned a blind eye to it, claiming the author “exaggerated the Vichy episode”: ”This is ancient history. The book covers a period when it was family-run and long before it became part of LVMH. We are diverse, tolerant and all the things a modern company should be.”

Well, of all the Nazi-loving going on in fashion history, this is perhaps the most tame. After all, it’s not like Hitler came to any of the Vuitton family weddings. I mean, seriously, the Guinness family took that shit to a whole other level.  [Guardian]

Friends in Reich Places: Diana Mitford with Hitler

Daphne’s grandparents, Diana Mitford* and Sir Oswald Mosley, were fascists till the very end. Diana went to Germany in 1934 to visit her younger sister, Unity. There they attended the first Nuremberg rally and the following year, Unity introduced Diana to Hitler, with whom she was very good friends. Diana also chummed it up with the Führer, who in 1936, generously provided a Mercedes-Benz to chauffeur her to the Berlin Olympics.

That same year, Diana married British aristocrat and founder of the British Union of Fascists, Oswald Mosley  – after abandoning first husband Byron Guinness for him – at the home of the Nazi’s Minister of Propaganda, Joseph Goebbels with Hitler in attendance. I wonder if the bride wore Christian Dior or if she just wrapped herself in a giant Swastika and called it a day?

Life was just peachy for the Grandparents Guinness until over lunch in 1939, Hitler confided in Diana that war was inevitable. In September of that year, Britain declared war on Germany, prompting Unity Mitford to shoot herself in the head. Daphne wondered aloud, in her brilliant profile in The New Yorker, ”Why didn’t Unity shoot Hitler instead of herself? Then we’d be descended from heroes instead of from villains.” Unity survived the suicide attempt but doctors thought it too dangerous to remove the bullet and she subsequently died of meningitis caused by the cerebral swelling around it in 1948.

In 1940, Oswald was arrested, along with other English fascists, and the British Union of Fascists was outlawed. After the birth of her fourth son, Diana was also arrested and interned in London’s Holloway Prison for women. The couple was initially held separately, but thanks to Winston Churchill‘s intervention — Churchill seems to have intervened a lot on behalf of the Nazis — both Diana and Oswald spent their time locked up together at Holloway. Oswald fell ill during their imprisonment and the Mosleys were released from there in November 1943, to spend the rest of the war under house arrest.

Daphne was close to both her grands, remembering “fascinating conversations around the dinner table about books, politics, art, whatever” with her grandfather. She did, however, try to get to the heart of her grandmother’s fascination with Hitler: “I said, ‘Granny, it just can’t be right,’ and she just said, ‘He didn’t photograph well.’ She said he was very, very funny.” True to form, Diana Mitford was a Nazi-lover til the day she died. Among her personal effects discovered after her death was a diamond swastika. No word if Daphne was bequeathed it in the will. [Jezebel]

*Besides Daphne, Diana’s fashionable descendants include models Stella Tennant and Tom Guinness. 

Christian Dior — alongside Pierre Balmain — worked for Parisian couturier Lucien Lelong during World War II and ensured that Nazi wives were the chicest anti-Semites of the Third Reich. Unlike Boss, who was an early co-signer to the Nazi party — Dior’s involvement was a move to preserve the tradition of Haute Couture, with Lelong being quoted as saying ”You can impose anything upon by force, but Paris couture cannot be uprooted, neither as a whole or in any part. Either it stays in Paris or it does not exist.”

Meanwhile, Dior’s sister, Catherine was a member of the French Resistance and was deported to the Buchenwald concentration camp, the memory of which was invoked at the fall 2011 Dior show by CEO Sidney Toledano as he addressed the audience following Galliano’s dismissal. Catherine was released in May of 1945 and two years later, Dior revolutionized womenswear with his acclaimed “New Look,” liberating women by giving them back their “sparkle and joyfulness,” to paraphrase Toledano.

One woman who was perhaps a little too liberated was Francoise Dior, Dior’s whackadoo neo-Nazi niece who openly professed her love for all things Kampf in a 1963 video that went viral during Gallianogate. In said video, Franny extolled the virtues of “defending the race” and keeping the bloodline “pure’; words she would put into action by attacking British synagogues and sticker-bombing Swastikas at the British Embassy in France.

- Ben & Jerry’s took a trip back to the nineties when Saturday Night Live was even less relevant than it is now for their newest flavor, Schweddy Balls. [Ben & Jerry's]

- And speaking of the nineties, this week marks the 20th anniversary of Nirvana‘s groundbreaking Nevermind album, the cover of which was actually a fluke, according to photog Kirk Weddle. But to celebrate the iconic image of a chubby little baby floating naked underwater, Rock Paper Photo is giving away an 11X14 print through their Facebook page.

- Franca Sozzani struck a match then proceeded to blow Marc Jacobs‘ spot up at a celebration for Louis Vuitton re: his dealings with Dior. [NYT]

- Ricky’s bowed to the outcry against its “Anna Rexia” costume by pulling it from its shelves because apparently a skeleton over an LBD with a tape measure as a belt is NOT hilarious. It’s always a sad day when a cheap eating disorder joke goes down the drain. Along with my lunch. [Jezebel]

- Don’t worry, kids, Wal-Mart isn’t going to ruin New York. That happened about 10 years ago when New York banned smoking in bars. [Racked]

- Marlon Texeira takes his clothes off for breast cancer. Problem solved. [Image Amplified]

The exhibit was curated by LOVE magazine editrix/Marc’s stylist for both his eponymous line and Vuitton since 2003, Katie Grand, who insists that it is not a retrospective; rather, she “put clothes together as I would for a shoot.” Hence a mixing and matching of looks from different collections helmed by Jacobs since 1998.

These 30 looks are modeled on mannequins, some bearing the iconic Vuitton Speedy bag as heads, while others — painted orange and pink and covered in Louis Vuitton graffiti designed by frequent Jacobs collaborator Stephen Sprouse — are frozen in editorial-ready poses.

The Art of Fashion coincides with the opening of Milan Fashion Week and the brand’s new store in Via Montenapoleone 2. It does not, however, have anything to do with those pesky rumors that Marc is moving to Dior, since, according to Grand, they started working on The Art of Fashion in January.

It’s nice to know Grand and Jacobs took some time out from plotting the downfall of London Fashion Week to put together this lovely exhibit. If you’re in Milan, you can catch Louis Vuitton: The Art of Fashion‘s very limited engagement through October 9th. [WWD]

Hats: An Anthology by Stephen Jones began as a collaboration between the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and Stephen Jones, legendary milliner who has collaborated with Christian Dior, Marc Jacobs and Comme des Garçons among others.  The exhibition had over 350,000 visitors in London and Australia and now travels to the Bard Graduate Center in New York for its first U.S. presentation.

Designs by Philip Treacy, Chanel and Yohji Yamamoto are displayed, as well as hats worn by Sarah Jessica Parker, Madonna and Mick Jagger, and avid collectors like Isabella Blow. The exhibition includes Jones’ curated collection of couture headwear along with special loans found only in the U.S., including Babe Ruth’s baseball cap and a top hat worn by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Ungaro CEO and American brand turnaround specialist, Jeffry Aronsson seems optimistic about losing their leader, “We are all here to serve the brand in a modern way. I make new discoveries every day about the talent within these walls.”

Will they make a star of an assistant designer? Let’s see who shines in Paris.

Meanwhile, Giles is onto furthering his own brand. I smell bags, shoes, makeup, perfume, the whole regalia in the coming seasons.

Link Love: WWD

Photo: Style.com

Color Palette: A confectionery collage of bold brights featuring  magenta, teal, pomegranate, apricot, sherbert, citron and marigold.

Mood: Dior Haute Couture (during the late-Galliano era) on a budget meets a lady from Shanghai

Statement Pieces: I openly gasped at a rose brocade gown, seen above, though the color  may be a little more Candyland than couture

Front Row: Audrina Partridge who’s from some TV show I refuse to even pretend to care about and singer/homewrecker Leann Rimes

Runway Music: “Add Ends” – When Saints Go Machine; “Thanks for Nothing” – Danton Eeprom

“It was incredibly glamorous and fantastic. I don’t think I’ll experience something like that again in my lifetime,” said the Oscar-winner of filming the commercial, which debuted Sunday night at www.dior.com.

Adding to the surreal glamour are digital recreations of the late Grace Kelly, Marlene Dietrich and Marilyn Monroe. The three movie legends just happen to be hanging out backstage of the Dior show when Theron storms in, every inch the movie star — giant sunglasses and all — throwing her purse at the first person, place or thing she sees. Then she’s stripped, be-gowned and thrown down the runway to Gossip‘s “Heavy Cross.”

In other words, it’s pretty fucking epic. Click through to the next page to take a look at the mini movie and let us know what you think! [WWD, Telegraph]

The exhibit will launch Milan Fashion Week next month and will run from Sept. 22 to Oct. 9. A retrospective like this flames the rumours that he will more from Vuitton to Dior.

So are you excited for this?

Miuccia Prada and Elsa Schiaparelli are reportedly the focus of the Costume Institute’s next exhibit in the spring. Schiaparelli, who is as important to Italian fashion as Gabrielle Chanel is to French fashion, had a groundbreaking and innovative line between the two world wars but was unable to adapt in the wake of Christian Dior’s New Look.

While Prada is obviously one of the most successful and influential women working in fashion today and is also of Italian descent. No doubt the Institute’s curator, Andrew Bolton, will draw some parallels between the two women’s lives and careers. But for now, the Met is remaining mum on the matter. [WWD]

No big deal, right? John Galliano, the disgraced former designer of Christian Dior who has yet to grant an inerview or do anything really public aside from his very public court case, posing with supermodel Kate Moss, who steadfastly stayed true to her longtime friend by wearing the wedding gown he designed for her. In Vogue.

Once again, no big deal.

Dior has been without a creative director since that little incident with John Galliano — you know, the anti-Semitism and the firing and the rehab and the court case — since March.

Arnault, chairman of LVMH — which also owns Marc Jacobs International — had initially planned on hiring Jacobs for Dior back in the 90s, but that idea was vetoed by Dior’s then president Francois Baufume. Instead, Galliano was hired from Givenchy to Dior and Jacobs signed on as Vuitton’s artistic director in 1997.

“Had I hired Marc Jacobs for Dior and John Galliano for Louis Vuitton, it would not have worked as well for both brands, even though both designers are geniuses of their own,” Arnault told WWD in 2003.

Meetings are scheduled for this week in Paris between Dior and Marc Jacobs’ legal representatives while the designer prepares for New York Fashion Week. Robert Duffy, Jacobs’ longtime business partner, is also reported to be integral to the deal, despite currently having legal troubles of his own.

Should Jacobs move to Dior, Phoebe Philo is said to be on tap to replace him at Louis Vuitton, while maintaining her current role at Céline.

Since March, Dior has approached a number of designers to replace Galliano including Lanvin‘s Alber Elbaz, Balenciaga‘s Nicolas Ghesquière, Alexander McQueen‘s Sarah Burton, Haider Ackermann and Hedi Slimane. Elbaz, Ghesquière and Burton have allegedly withdrawn themselves from the running due to their strong personal commitments to their respective brands, while talks with Ackermann and Slimane proved fruitless.

Then, of course, there is Givenchy’s Riccardo Tisci whose name has been bandied about as frontrunner for months now and who is a favorite of Delphine Arnault, deputy managing director at Dior. Where Tisci stands in all this is uncertain, but do you think Marc Jacobs is what Christian Dior needs right now? [WWD]

Natalie looks forever stunning in Diorskin, her complexion noticeably unmarred, unlike the reputation of the Gal from Gibraltar. While Portman said she would “not be associated with Mr. Galliano in any way,” now that he’s been unceremoniously kicked to the curb, her love affair with Christian Dior seems like it will continue uninterrupted. [Harper's Bazaar UK]

Patricia Field Chiquita Shoes $3,000 – I’m writing this as a dead woman after seeing how fantastically gorgeous these are.

“His look is an extremely conscious metaphor for his philosophy of fashion and life: Here, watch as I bring together the old, in my tall eighteenth-century collar and bizarre powdered hair, with the new, as seen in my ponytail and $2,500 Agatha leather pants, ‘the most expensive leather pants in the world,’ he declares, with a laugh exactly like Count Chocula’s in its length and ridiculousness.”

—on Karl Lagerfeld and how to craft a professional image
from Karl Lagerfeld, Boy Prince of Fashion, Vanessa Grigoriadis

From Benjamin Kanarek Blog

My expectations for the last Haute Couture Fashion Week shown in Paris at the beginning of July, was not of the kind that I thought would leave a lasting impression. The Fashion Designers Showing in the Official Haute Couture schedule is shrinking from one season to the next. I would love to see a revamping of the Couture Fashion Weeks in Paris. Luckily, there were some rays of light coming through the heavy cast of clouds to brighten up my day and the confirmation of a heavy trend: the arrival of the coat-dress for the winter season.

The Good News…

Giambattista Valli presented his first Couture Collection in Paris. It is always good news to see a new comer in the Haute Couture official Schedule reinforcing the statement that Couture has a raison d’être (reason to exist). The collection is quite complete from day wear with the coat-dress, the must of the season, cocktail dresses and evening gowns. The Giambasttista Valli clients are with no doubt feminin and chic, bringing a bit of a 60′s retro feel with beige, coral, animal-printed mousselines, beige ostrich-feathers and red dresses with Valentino influences.

Iris van Herpen was invited to present a retrospective of her poetic experimental work from her “Crystallization Collection”. She worked around a concept of the transformation of liquid into crystals. The volumes and materials are more about art performances and sculptures than wearable outfits like a skeleton dress to a water spray mini-dress. Her work is very organically inspired and reminds me of Alexander McQueen or Hussein Chalayan’s most conceptual work. I see a great potential in this young fashion designer, but would like to see how she transcribes her research into commercially viable clothing.

Continue Reading Here

Most Sublime and Divine

Couture at its finest, eliciting emotions rarely experienced outside of a gay bar’s men’s bathroom.

Givenchy

His Tiger Beat-esque Vanity Fair cover is the worst(-selling) issue of VF in 12 years and his  covers for People and Teen Vogue performed well below their averages. Has a cure finally been found for the dreaded Bieber Fever? [WWD]

- Coco Rocha blogged about her move to Wilhelmina. [Modelina]

- Chloë Sevigny is so cool she’s uncool. And being so uncool, she’s the coolest person ever. [Refinery29]

- Seems like I’m not the only one who was less than enthused about Dior’s Fall 2011 Haute Couture show. [Styleite]

- Despite knowing and liking John Galliano “a lot,” Tom Ford is adamant about not being a racist. [Fashionista]

- And despite styling last January’s V Magazine‘s “Size Issue,” Mugler‘s creative director and Lady Gaga‘s stylist, Nicola Formichetti does not care to work with the fats. Speaking to W:  “I was only used to dressing models and skinny kids. And I turned up and it was, like, three fat guys. I just left. That was the last time I tried to work with fat people.” I once had the same reaction at a Dairy Queen. [Jezebel]