Cannes Red Carpet Trend: Putting on the Ritz

Edited by Amanda Gabriele

We are well into the fifth day of Cannes Film Festival 2012, and the red carpet is alive with celebrities in couture. So far, we’ve seen the black ball gown make numerous appearances at premieres and parties, an elegant choice for the French festival. Now it’s time for these style stars to put on the ritz. Sequins and beading have been trending on the Cannes red carpet these last fews days, and you know we can’t resist a diva in sparkles. From the parties to the premieres, it’s all about the glitz and the glamour.

Andrej Pejic Struts Down the Aisle, Carine Rotifeld’s Mag Getting a Doc and Galliano Schiaparelli Rumors

Edited by Lester Brathwaite

- Always one to turn lemons into overpriced lemonade, Marc Jacobs is now selling T-shirts bearing his graffitied storefront for $689, to the chagrin of the graffiti artist, Kidult. [The Cut]

- Jessica Simpson can barely give her baby photos away. The new mother has sold them for a mere $800,000 to People, a paltry pittance compared to Jennifer Lopez‘s $6 million and even Matthew McCounaghey‘s $3 million. It’s a sad day when you can’t even pull that Wooderson dough. [WWD]

- Who needs someone to put a ring on it when you look this damn good? Male model and lithe lady Andrej Pejic graced the Rosa Clara runway during Barcelona Bridal Week, thus upstaging every other biological woman. [Styleite]

10 Fashion Feats and Fails at the Met Costume Institute Gala

Edited by Lester Brathwaite

The Metropolitan Museum of Art‘s annual Costume Institute Gala is tirelessly referred to as the Oscars of fashion and it certainly ranks as the industry’s glitziest and most glamorous night.  But unlike the Oscars red carpet, where actresses willfully play it safe for fear of a career-defining performance on the worst dressed list, at the Met Gala the balls are to the haute couture wall. This is Fashion with a capital effin’ F. Sometimes the results are truly stunning and other times they’re…how can I put this gently…god-awful. Let’s take a look back at the Met Gala’s greatest hits and misses.

Lady? She Was Born Privé: Armani Dressing Gaga for World Tour

Edited by Lester Brathwaite

It’s going to be a haute  year on the international pop superstar tour circuit. While Madonna will be wearing Jean Paul Gaultier and Givenchy by Riccardo Tisci on her upcoming MDNA tour, her monstrous mini-me Lady Gaga has turned to Giorgio Armani for her Born This Way Ball tour, kicking off April 27 in Seoul, Korea. 

Kanye to Keep Up with the Kardashians, Ashley Judd Takes on Her Haters and Stefano Pilati Armani Rumors

Edited by Lester Brathwaite

- Rooney Mara‘s changed her Dragon Tattoo girl ‘do thus rendering her completely unrecognizable/irrelevant. [Refinery29]

- The newest trend in male grooming: the man bikini wax. The Brazilian is the most popular so just try and get that image out of your head. [NYT]

- Clearly a fan of discretion, Kanye West is rumored to appear on the upcoming season of the cause of the downfall of western culture otherwise known as Keeping Up with the Kardashians thanks to noted mantrapper/current girlfriend Kim Kardashian. And some people have the audacity — the CHEEK — to think this is all just a marketing gimmick. To those people I say…good call. [Radar]

Style.com/Print’s 2nd Issue Emphasizes Fashion’s Individuals and Karl Lagerfeld’s Bitchiness

Edited by Lester Brathwaite

In the spirit of “Fashion Behind Closed Doors,” photographer Nick Waplington captured Nadja Bender backstage at the Lanvin show for the cover of Style.com/Print‘s second issue, hitting newsstands April 2. And since this season has been notably turbulent, the biannual mag made sure to emphasize this time around that “the fashion world is, above all, still about the individual people involved, especially the creativity and talent of the designers.”

The Art of Style: Jean-Michel Basquiat

Edited by Lester Brathwaite

Despite dying of a heroin overdose in 1988 at the de rigueur age of 27, the work of Jean-Michel Basquiat looms large in the modern art world. Originally a graffiti artist hailing from Brooklyn, that spirit of early hip-hop rebellion has been channeled/co-oped by Reebok in a line of kicks and apparel, but at the height of his success, Basquiat was better known for working in Armani suits — a status symbol of the 80s if there ever was one — often emerging in public with paint splattered all over them. Here are a few pointers on how you too can achieve that gentlemanly, laid-back art school dropout look.

Prada, Armani and Lauren Among Forbes Fashion Billionaires

Edited by Lester Brathwaite

Forbes Magazine, that wealth of celebrity-earnings knowledge, has published its 25th annual list of the world’s billionaires — all 1,226 of them. Their combined net worth is $4.26 trillion, or to put things in perspective: about a third of the U.S. national debt; or if they decided to break off and form their own country, Billionaire Island, the world’s fourth largest GDP. Besides Spanx founder Sara Blakely‘s debut, the fashion industry made a decent showing on the list with Miuccia Prada returning after a six-year absence.

INDIE NEWSROOM: Roberto Cavalli’s Spring Campaign Crammed with Supers…Barbie Kardashian and her Dream Sham Wedding…Blue Ivy Carter Supposedly Not the Only Baby Born This Weekend

Edited by Lester Brathwaite

- Daphne Groeneveld is stomping with the big girls now. The 17-year-old holds her own with superstar supermodels Naomi Campbell, Kristen McMenamy and Karen Elson – who are collectively 1,245 years old — for Roberto Cavalli‘s spring 2012 campaign, shot by Steven Meisel. [Vogue UK]

RED CARPET REPORT CARD: 2011 American Music Awards

Edited by Amanda Gabriele

To my surprise as I sleepily browsed my Twitter feed this morning, the 2011 American Music Awards were on last night. I couldn’t care less about the crappy music being awarded, so I immediately searched for disappointing red carpet photos. And to neither my nor anyone’s surprise, I found some pretty disappointing red carpet photos. But what’s an awards show without a Red Carpet Report Card commentary? Check out the gallery below of the best, worst and most snooze-worthy looks from last night.