I will say, it’s refreshing to see a boob on the runway that doesn’t belong to a model. It seems in the past couple of years, and grossly intensifying last year, models have been clothed for the runway with nothing covering the breastesses. Whether it’s sheer, a loose knit, or nothing these looks are leaving models’ tits out for the world to see.

Congratulations to Gianni Moralo for putting himself on the map with this Fishlike Alien with a Literal Boob in the Center. Now he needs a bride who wants/is dealing with a uniboob.

*Gianni Moralo is not, nor ever was a comedian. Though I might not know, I don’t speak Italian. This is just hilarious.

TORONTO, ON - SEPTEMBER 10: Actress Elizabeth Olsen attends Fox Searchlight Pictures, Belvedere Vodka And Vanity Fair Celebrate "Martha Marcy May Marlene" And "The Descendants" during TIFF at Thompson Hotel on September 10, 2011 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Toby Canham/Getty Images for Vanity Fair)

- Lindsay Lohan continues to be employable, if only by German fashion houses you’ve never heard of/care about. This can’t go well, particularly considering the first sentence of the press release announcing Lilo’s participation in Philipp Plein‘s spring campaign: “Lindsay is a beautiful, highly acclaimed actress and model.” Who are we lying to Philipp Plein? [Styleite]

- Frida Gustavsson is GORGEOUS on Paolo Roversi‘s cover of Vogue Italia‘s Couture Supplement, giving us a little flapper chic and some serious face. [Fashion Gone Rogue]

- Designer Alice Temperley thinks London Fashion Week is better than New York Fashion Week and should be longer. Meanwhile, preaching to the choir, girlfriend. [Telegraph]

- Girls fall on the runway every season and, honestly, it’s always a highlight. But turns out taking a catwalk misstep could land a girl face down in unemployment. [Daily Mail]

- Which is why they should take a cue from the pros, like Liu Wen and Jourdan Dunn, who reveal how they traveresed the trricky runways of Jason Wu and Alexander Wang, respectively. [The Cut]

I listened to “Watch the Throne” last night, and have to say it’s a great record. What have I learned from what I’ve heard? You have to work in the fashion industry to understand anything they’re saying. Examples, from “Otis” alone:

“New watch alert, Hublot’s”

“Couture level flow, it’s never going on sale”

“Luxury rap, the Hermes of verses”

Okay, I guess those lyrics are pretty pedestrian, but still, makes us feel special fellas. What do you think of their first music video?

Following the announcement that Rihanna will be Vogue Italia‘s “Woman of the Year,” FashionIndie put together this retrospective from her last shoot with the Italian mag, with her  looking weirdly like Victoria Beckham for their September 2009 issue.The editorial shot by Steven Klein is entitled “Extreme Couture,” and we would expect nothing less from Rihanna. Bondage, sparkle pasties, pouring water out of back packs – it’s all there.

The new article from this year’s magazine calls her the “jewel in the crown of Jay-Z‘s stable” (Stable? Let’s not even get started on the fact that crowns and horses have nothing to do with each other), and also drops her full name, uddenly we’re glad that she went with her middle name. Two Robyn‘s with amazing music careers would just get a too confusing.

The magazine refers to her as an “independent, energetic fighting spirit” and claims that  ”she is currently the undisputed best contender to the role of queen of pop. You might wonder – wasn’t that supposed to be Lady Gaga‘s title? Not quite.” Them’s fighting words, Franca.

Strange article aside, Rihanna‘s black and white editorial from last year is still as fierce as she is, and we’re loving it.

For more info on these crimson creations, tweet at me @iamsamlim

@rihanna: My bad ci, did I 4get to tip u? #howrudeofme

[@LesFabian: Ouch. #bitch]

@rihanna: U gangsta huh? Haaa

@ciara: Trust me Rihanna you don’t want to see me on or off the stage.

@rihanna: Good luck with bookin that stage u speak of

[@LesFabian: Oh snap! #BURN]

@ciara: pure comedy…

[@LesFabian: #nocomeback]

@rihanna: Ciara baby, I love u girl! U hurt my feelings real bad on TV! I’m heartbroken! That’s y I retaliated this way! So sorry!

[@LesFabian: How...sweet... #lyingherfaceoff]

@ciara: Rhi, u know its always been love since day 1! Doing shows and everything. You threw me off in that party! Apology accepted. Let’s chat in person.

[@LesFabian: Translation: Bitch, wait til I twist my fingers through that troll doll hair. #illcutabitch]

Things have calmed down dramatically since then, but whenever divas duel it out in the public arena, there is an inevitable choosing of sides and bitter argument over who’s better, blah, blah blah.

Well, since I live for these moments, I’ve decided the only logical way to determine who is the baddest bitch on the block (clearly not including Beyoncé who could blink and take out both of them) is to compare both RiRi’s and CiCi’s editorials from European Vogues…naturally.

Rihanna covered Vogue Italia‘s special couture supplement in 2009, shot by the incredible Steven Klein and styled by Patti Wilson:

Then last year, Givenchy creative director Riccardo Tisci styled Ciara for a Vogue Paris shoot with the dynamic duo of Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott.

For me, the answer is clear. Ciara’s editorial easily trumps Rihanna’s, achieving a poetic and sensual beauty that’s more effective than the hard, technical sexuality of the Klein shoot. Which is not to say that both spreads aren’t great, but Ciara possesses a grace and classic beauty that makes her actually look like a model and not just a moonlighting popstar in it for some free couture.

Plus, she totally gets extra points because Riccardo said this about her:

“Ciara is like a black Betty Page. A very refined hip hop queen. Although she is American, she has a sort of European class, a Parisian chic.”

Musing for Givenchy beats out openly stealing from David LaChappelle any day of the week.

As a stylist I  found so many great red carpet contenders. The pictures don’t do the collection justice because in person the dresses sparkle and have a beautiful shine and class to them.

Sylist Ann Caruso accessorizing the collection.

My absolute favorite piece has to be the emerald dress above.

At an age when many of us can’t even afford a couture gown let alone make one, Maxime Simoëns has joined the official Couture calendar. What’s even more impressive, he’s the first designer to do so without ever having staged a runway.  But before sending out his first painfully constructed garment down the Parisian runway this week, the young couturier shared his inspirations and insights with Style.com.

Your first interest was film. Why did you abandon it for fashion?

Starting from the age of five or six I was totally taken by James Dean, Charlie Chaplin, and Marilyn Monroe. Then I got to film school and found it too technical and scientific—all physics, math, chemistry. I wanted to express myself more concretely; I was thinking less about science and more about the narration of a heroine. Then came Madonna’s “Drowned” World Tour and I took one look at the costumes and silhouettes—and of course the corsets—by Jean Paul Gaultier, and I knew. I went home and started to draw. It totally threw my parents off because after ten years of talking about film I turned around and told them it was going to be fashion.

What happened once you arrived in Paris?

I attended the Chambre Syndicale, and I figured that since Gaultier was my inspiration my first internship should be there. It’s very complicated to get an internship there, so I knocked on all the doors I could, and then I hand-embroidered a letter on a corset that I made out of python and painted. It took my whole summer vacation—the corset, the packaging, everything. Mr. Gaultier never saw it, but his assistants did. It made the rounds in-house and that’s how I got my internship in the accessories department.

You also interned at Christian Dior and Balenciaga. What were the takeaways there?

I was an assistant stylist in the embroidery atelier at Dior. So much happens at the last minute that it was a lesson in working on a tight deadline. As an assistant stylist at Balenciaga I worked on inspirations and embroidery, especially prints. Once, two weeks before the show, we changed everything. It was sort of a liturgical theme, and then it was flowers. Working with Nicolas [Ghesquière] is great because he pushes everything to the limit.

How did the annual fashion and photography festival at Hyères become your launching pad?

Hyères is usually about a concept, but some journalists told me that my mini-collection of seven pieces had commercial potential. We presented at Hyères and found ourselves with orders for 600 pieces, which was enormous. I couldn’t work out of my apartment anymore; we had to really set up a house. Then, unexpectedly, the numbers doubled with the second collection. At the same time, Gossip Girl stylist Eric Daman was scouting for the Paris shoot and he liked the collection. It gave us great exposure, and we [Gossip Girl stars Blake Lively and Leighton Meester] hit it off.

Is that how the couture connection came about?

Didier Grumbach [president of the Fédération Française de la Couture] had encouraged me to participate in Couture week, but I wasn’t sure at first because couture seemed to me a bit old-fashioned. In the end I decided to do it because it wasn’t about aligning with an old image, it was about a new vision of couture. The timing is perfect because ready-to-wear arrives in stores a week later.

What is your take on couture?

For me it’s not about made-to-measure. It’s more about normalized sizing with French creativity and quality. There’s a whole French generation emerging that’s interested in preserving that tradition. Since we took over Lacroix’s old atelier, we have artisanal know-how to back us up and the capacity to deliver quickly. Those two factors make [creating couture] feasible. The idea with our atelier is to support the young coalition and help consolidate the new generation of French couture.

Who are this season’s heroines?

There’s a Sofia Coppola inspiration for both parts of the collection. The first, which I call “Cherry Blossom Girl,” is dedicated to sacrificial heroines like the teenage ones in Virgin Suicides, but with glamour, geometry, and elegance. The second part is called “This, Madame, Is Paris,” which is inspired by Marie Antoinette. For my first Couture show I wanted a theme that was very French, so I chose the absolute icon.

How do you render an icon of excess in neo-minimalist times?

Instead of panniers and frills I worked a lot on fabric, in mille-feuilles and prints. One print is black marble; another is lace transformed into jacquard that is slightly industrial; and another is a pixelated version of a painting the Queen commissioned for the Petit Trianon. Then you get to a heavier jacquard that I created from droplets of blood Photoshopped and reworked in color, thread by thread. But even if her end was somber, we focused on the lighter, iconic side of things—handmade flowers in leather, white gowns embroidered with stones. And there’s a chain theme to invoke the idea of being chained to one’s destiny.

Has Sofia Coppola seen the collection?

No, but she’s invited!

Link Love: Style.com

What made you want to start designing?
I never thought I would pursue a career in fashion. I originally did not have formal and technical training, I didn’t go to FIT. I went to school for fine arts, so I always assumed I’d do something in that realm but didn’t know what that would be. But then I started making my own clothing and got some really great feedback. My pieces developed quick notoriety because of their eccentricity and experimental appeal. It led me to start branding the label and making custom dresses. I realized my passion and that creating clothing was my art. It is what I wanted to do, but I did not want to work traditionally and looked at clothing as wearable art. Although I taught myself about the fashion industry as a business, as far as being a designer, I am first and foremost an artist before anything else – an artist with a fashion business.

Photographer, Robin Souma. Models, Mollie Stein & Vincent Fanwick. Mollie in House wife dress

You started out reworking vintage clothing? Do you still take a lot of inspiration from vintage fashion for your line? Is the line still costumesque?

From what was once an ‘inspiration collection’ of crazy altered vintage clothing, a handful of these pieces were later reworked to create a RTW collection which is consistent with my conceptual ideas yet is more universally wearable. It creates an attainable outlet for girls to dress up in their everyday lives that I thought the fashion world was lacking. I am inspired by vintage but now use new fabrics that are re-orderable.

Photographer, Robin Souma. Model, Flor wearing the Doll Dress

In your bio, it says you pay a lot of attention to the “magic of childhood dress up.” Were you a super girly girl as a child or did you have some tomboy in you? Did you play with Barbies?

I did have Barbies, I loved them, but I wasn’t super girly. I always went against the grain. All of my girlfriends loved pink but I loved purple. But I like pink now and feel it can be extra cute and feminine, but in my collection, there are dark details too. I think it’s more about dress-up and reconnecting to the characters which inspire the dresses and the idea of adding fun to the wardrobe in everyday life. You can explore dress-up in a more grown-up and sophisticated way by wearing Lolli Popitt.

Photographer, Robin Souma. Model, Erin Lucas wearing the Eggplant Flora Fairy Dress

I love your housewife dresses! When you design your collections, do you keep specific people, like the housewife, in mind or are they imaginary, inspirational characters?

The housewife dress is just a satirical piece created for runway.  These dresses are kind of poking at society’s idealistic housewife since they are really short & sexy.

What are some of your other styles?

The Lolli Cupcake dresses are the brand’s trademark. They’re girlie, fun and cute, which all describe the line. We call the feathered dresses “Fairy Dresses.” The psychedelic pieces are 60s mod styles and the “Doll” pieces often have a lot of lace and embellishments.

Cupcake Dress and Doll Dress

Lolli Popitt is for “daring who like to stand out in a crowd.” Could you walk me through the ideal day-in-the-life of a Lolli girl? What does she do? Who does she meet?

If wearing one of our couture pieces, a Lolli girl should probably by prepared to meet and talk to anyone because she is bound to get attention. These dresses are conversation pieces, so she must be daring to wear them. But when wearing our RTW pieces, a perfect Lolli candidate is confident and just wants to have fun with her wardrobe.

When I wear the crazier stuff, I think I kind of become a performance artist. I think the clothes can bring out a personality that you may not have known you had.

So, you don’t always have to be a fashion risk-taker to wear Lolli Popitt? Does the Lolli Girl ever dress down?

Although the line is risky and avant-garde, that is not our entire collection. The line IS wearable. The really crazy stuff is just an over-the-top and accentuated take on our conceptual ideas. But the garments are wearable. They can also be worn every day without the commitment to that non-stop attention that our couture yields.

Black chantilly lace Doll Dress

I noticed a lot of your designs feature inner-wear as outer-wear – corsets, bras, bustiers. What inspired you to focus on this trend for Lolli Popitt?

The feathered bras are technically lingerie, but you can wear them out. You can wear them alone with jeans or a skirt, but I think they look best accompanying something. They are fancy and functional. They can be worn underneath a button down (revealing the feathers) as well as over a slip with a skirt to make them fancier. Musicians have worn them to red carpet events and in their music videos.

The lace lingerie shorts were originally created to go under the dresses that we put down the runway, but we then realized that they compliment the clothing really well.

Photographer, Robin Souma. Model, Erin Lucas wearing Feather Fairy bra &Crystal Knuckles jewelry

Where do you find inspiration? Who are your style icons? What other designers and artists do you look up to?

I was inspired by performance artists like Leigh Bowery, who literally was his art. He dressed-up eccentrically every day for all to see. Joanna Frueh, an artist/writer who studied the correlation between femininity, sexuality and  beauty in everyday life. Twiggy’s signature dresses have inspired my psychedelic pieces.

Recently, I have been dressing musician, Neon Hitch, an incredibly unique performer whose daring and organic style embodies the ideals of both of my lines, especially the Crystal Knuckles jewelry.

My aunt, Carole Feuerman, a well-known photo-realist sculptor, is one of my biggest idols. Learning from her has helped me see how I could create a foundation to turn art into a business.

Psychedelic Mod shorts & cut out bra set

Your Crystal Knuckles jewelry line looks amazing. How did you get started designing jewelry and what is the inspiration behind the pieces?

I’ve always collected crystals. My aunt would give me a crystal whenever I saw her while growing up. My initial collection was started using those stones, the ones that I had from my aunt. I owned several over-sized rings which I loved and thought that using natural crystals to create jewelry would be a really unique idea. In fact, in gemology you’re supposed to have a crystal on you at all times because they are said to bring healing and protective powers. The rings will be featured on Ideeli.com and we are currently in contact with Henri Bendel, Barney’s & Scoop NYC. I will keep you posted on what’s to come!

Amethyst - Photographer, Andrew Werner

Azurite/Malachite - Photographer, Andrew Werner

Artist Neon Hitch wearing Crystal Knuckles

Uma Thurman wearing Crystal Knuckles

You can learn more about Lolli Popitt here.

Photographer, Robin Souma. Model, Flor wearing the Doll Dress

Cupcake Dress and Doll Dress

Black chantilly lace Doll Dress

Photographer, Robin Souma. Model, Erin Lucas wearing Feather Fairy bra &Crystal Knuckles jewelry

Psychedelic Mod shorts & cut out bra set

Amethyst - Photographer, Andrew Werner

Azurite/Malachite - Photographer, Andrew Werner

Artist Neon Hitch wears Crystal Knuckles rings & Lolli Popitt clothes religiously

Uma Thurman wearing Crystal Knuckles

Shop WILDFOX HERE and let us know what you bought!

Models: Jennifer Pugh, Naty Chanbanenko, Daria Zhemkova

Styling: Emily Faulstich, Kimberley Gordon, Meredith Leyerzaph

Hair: Marki Shkreli

Styling: Emily Faulstich, Kimberley Gordon, Meredith Leyerzaph

Photographer: Emir Eralp

Couture – “Calling something ‘couture’ doesn’t make it hand-sewn or high class.” No, it certainly doesn’t, that’s why you should just call it Trash, then call it a day.

Statement outfits - “Does your clothing speak louder than words?” My clothing is usually screaming; if not for attention, at least for spare change. And though these creations make a statement, they also raise numerous questions, hence a Dubious outfit.

Smoldering – “O.K., your makeup is hot. Your outfit is hotter. You are about to combust. We get it.” I’ve actually never heard/seen anyone use this term when not referring to coals or an STD, but I’ll trust the Times (this once) and suggest we toss a match on that smoldering outfit and make it Flaming (which is usually reserved for the gays).

Fashionista – “The word has gone from describing a class of urban style-conscientious sophisticates to becoming a lazy and cheap byword for anyone with a modicum of taste.” Let’s not forget the further cheapening of the word after it was co-opted by a certain bargain-priced chain of department stores. Let’s just do away with the term all together since it’s lost all reverence and use it ironically to describe…oh, I don’t know…Maxxinistas.

Geek-chic -” In 2010, anyone who sported thick-framed glasses, cardigans and T-shirts with nerdy references was instantly labeled ‘geek-chic.’” I love geeks as much as the next gal, but their purported style is basically that of an old man. So let’s call a spade a spade and rename this trend Geriatric-chic, Geriatrique for short.

D.I.Y. fashion – “It’s not always necessary to knit your own mittens.” Unless you actually have a talent for sewing or construction, you’re not fooling anyone and this is just plain old Laziness.

Well-edited - “This replaced ‘curated’ to describe any collection chosen with a sharp eye.” Why not go a step further and use specific editors; whose sharp eye best described this collection? Well-Wintoured? Well-Coddingtoned? Well-Leon Tallied? Well-Sozzanied? Well-Roitfeld’d? Okay, maybe not the last one…

Mash-up: “Used to describe looks that blend multiple influences…” though not all looks blend their influences well. Those particular mash-ups are just a Hot Tranny Mess.

Hopefully these and other terms will catch on and peter out so quickly that words will no longer be used to describe fashion and we’ll reserve a series of grunts, facial expressions and elaborate movements to replace them.

Oh my god, your outfit is so *wild flailing arms followed by feigned dry heaving*!

Photo/Link Love: NY Times

Photographed by Maciek Kobielski and styled by Anya Ziourova, Anna dons pieces from the likes of Chanel, Givenchy and Dior Haute Couture among dark horses.

I’m pretty sure these are one time use dresses!

(credit: Ami Goodheart of SOTO Production)

The Juicy Couture brand is undergoing a transformation for the upco… Read more..

LINK LOVE:Juicy Couture Expands with Glam

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Juicy Couture

Available at all retailers September 2010.

LINK LOVE:Juicy Couture Releases New Fragrance

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LINK LOVE:Romantic Death

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Filed under: Fashion Tagged: Dior, Fashion, Haute Couture, Paris

LINK LOVE:Dior Haute Couture Paris Show Fall 2010

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After the Dior F/W 2010 Couture Show, Musée Rodin, Paris. Photo Olivier Zahm

LINK LOVE:After the Dior F/W 2010 Couture Show, Musée Rodin, Paris. Photo…

Dior F/W 2010 Couture Show

Photo Olivier Zahm

Click to see more pictures

LINK LOVE:Dior F/W 2010 Couture Show

Click to see…

Ricardo Tisci's Fall Couture collection for Givenchy showed absolute
technical skill, and the utmost attention to detail.  Each look was
ornate, perfectly complemented by the baroque architecture of the
Givenchy studio, where the collection was shown this season.  The only
colors present were those of flesh, because Tisci's inspiration came
from the human skeleton for this season.

 He also referred to Frida
Kahlo for inspiration, he told Tim Blanks. Tisci incorporated small
skeletal elements into zippers or even a belt.  The skeletal form was
seen throughout the collection, through the similar shape of each look.
 With each collection, whether couture or ready to wear, Ricardo Tisci
has proved himself a true couturier through his strict attention to each
piece of the garment and the look of the collection as a whole. ???????

LINK LOVE:Givenchy Fall 2010 Couture

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Eu não tenho como escrever algo similar; por isso mesmo indico a perfeição do post de Susie Lau. Ela discorre sobre a falta de fotos das costas das roupas em desfiles e lookbooks. Perfeita e divina – como sempre. Se não conhece o blog, recomendo!

LINK LOVE:meu amor por Susie – my love for Susie

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The Best Red Dress – Tip of the Day

If you can’t find a nail polish and lipstick to match your best red dress, go for a shade of lipstick slightly darker than the nail color, or vice versa (depending on your outfit) but in the same hue. They will complement each other, and you don’t run the risk of looking “mismatched”.

Check out The Best Red Dress tomorrow when we review a dress by Alice Couture! There’s a sneak peak below!

See you gals tomorrow!

www.thebestreddress.com

LINK LOVE:Tip of the Day – The Best Red Dress

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Jean Paul Gaultier was enchanted with Chloé Mortaud while judging the Miss France pageant, and asked her to walk in his Spring 2010 Couture show.

LINK LOVE: Style

What is there not to love about Elie Saab, he makes the perfect couture dress, mixing luxurious fabrics such as silk and chiffon with added touches of pearl beading and embroidered lace.

Find more photos like this on ENVY. THE FASHION NETWORK

Usually, couture means you have to present at least 35 pieces, making this collection fall short by more than 20 looks, but nonetheless, it’s exactly the Margiela we’re used to and a bit of what we’d expect Gaga to wear to the beach.

Find more photos like this on ENVY. THE FASHION NETWORK

LINK LOVE: NY Mag

Imagine going all the way to Paris for the Christian Dior Couture show and having to view the line through 13 year old blogger Tavi’s giant feather bow.

Twitter Photo by Grazia_Live

Today’s tutorial features a look from Christian Lacroix’s Fall Couture show, which we felt would get the praise of Justin Tranter…totally want to see him rock this!

Tutorial:
-Start with a blank canvas or very light make-up, this look is all about the elaborate eyes so you don’t want to distract from them with bright lipstick or heavy blush
-With a black eyeliner, lightly line the bottom and top creases and go over it again with liquid eye liner for a bold look

-Next, trace your eyes with green eyeliner and sweep out at both corners

-Lastly, use shadow to darken the creases, highlight the green with a lighter color or shimmery shadow and complete the look with a quick swipe of mascara over top lashes

*Also, instead of green you can try other colors.  Purple usually brings out brown eyes, Gold illuminates hazel eyes and for Blue or Green eyes blues and greens are best!

LOVE LOVE LOVE!

GALLERY: RUNWAY RUNDOWN: Jean Paul Gaultier Couture Fall 2009

Thanks Fashionologie!

It’s that time again where big name designers tantalize us with flawless couture, forcing us to the shallows of wishing we were trust fund babies and had the means to rock haute Dior. Despite the fact that the recession has dictated the death of luxury, some of us still dream of flaunting a Birkin Bag and owning real Yves Saint Laurent cage heels. 

I applaud this ballsy individual who decided to carry a “couture” Chanel purse, constructed from a paper bag, a permanent marker and a chain. Although I really dig the sloppily drawn logo, you could get really creative and actually design your own luxury paper bag purse. And if you’re really into it, laminate it for multiple uses! 

I’m not the best sketcher. I can barely paint. My sewing skills aren’t the best. But this DYI, this I can do. This I will do. 

Thanks Fashion Copious!

GALLERY: RUNWAY RUNDOWN: Maison Martin Margiela Couture Fall 2009

Thanks NY Mag!

John Galliano sent the models at the Christian Dior Couture show 1/2 dressed. Rescission friendly idea, shock tactic or laziness? You decide. 

SOURCE: Cut Blog and Style

Karl talks Chanel with some random news station. I just love the idea of pants in Haute Couture.