FashionIndie » j. mendel

Get Our Favorite Oscar Looks for Less!

Amanda Gabriele — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 19:38:54 +0000

Although the awards show itself was fairly underwhelming last night, we’re always going gaga for the Oscars red carpet. If you’re wondering how to get some of your favorite looks from the 84th Annual Academy Awards for less, Unique Vintage has an impressive selection of red carpet-worthy dresses. Click for a gallery of our favorites after the jump.

Michelle Williams in Louis Vuitton

Sandra Bullock in Marchesa

Kristen Wiig in J. Mendel

Sarah Hyland in Alberta Ferretti

Kate Mara in Jack Guisso Couture

Missi Pyle in Valentina Delfino

Tina Fey in Carolina Herrera

Jessica Chastain in Alexander McQueen

Angelina Jolie in Atelier Versace

10 Sexiest Attempts at New York & London Fashion Week

Jessica Lapidos — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 18:15:18 +0000

Four words have damn near killed all sexiness on the runway: Downton Abbey. Mad Men. Actually, pattern mashing on hip padding with funny furry hats hasn’t helped. A barrage of wildly cool man-repelling looks sauntered down Fall 2012 runways, but sexy was rather difficult to locate. A straight man, who shall remain nameless, and I went through thousands of photos. Through a sea of “Eww”s and “Ugh”s and “I’d fire that designer”s, we found a handful of looks that qualify as sexy. Keep in mind, we mean sexy, not slutty, so all boob-bearing, thigh rising, skin tightening looks were overlooked. We’ll take curves that these designers presented, thank you. And while this Fall’s sexiest looks might not get your panties wet, they may just get your britches in a twist. And please, PLEASE if you’ve discovered a super sexy look that has escaped us, link us to it in the comments.

New York Fashion Week Elite Raid Celebrity Closets

Jessica Lapidos — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 22:14:40 +0000

Whilst daydreaming about the wardrobes of the Fashion Week Elite, we found ourselves wondering whose closets they, in turn, covet. Style icon Iris Apfel, budding designer & Eco Domani winner Titania Inglis, and front row celeb staple Kristin Chenoweth and stunning others let us peek inside their imagination at whose wardrobe they’d go all Winona Ryder on. Who wants in on Tom Ford‘s dressing suite? Who’d take on Daphne Guinness? Take a look.

This living legend would raid the closets of the sartorial legends before/beside her: Pauline de Rothschild and Millicent Rogers.

Backstage in the makeup chair at J. Mendel, AZ said she'd travel back in time to mingle with the French aristocracy and raid the closet of Marie Antoinette.

would sing her way through Nicole Richie's cavernously bohemian closest.

Noted Man Repeller would take a dip inside accessories queen Taylor Tomasi Hill's closet.

would peruse the wardrobe of Merisa Berenson with glamour in her eyes.

Blake Lively's on-screen mom wouldn't raid a closet, no, no. She'd rather just raid the showrooms of Son Jung Wan, Nanette Lepore & Alice + Olivia.

on the heels of an electronic fucksonic performance at Rad Hourani's after party the night before, Chase (L) tells FashionIndie he'd go climbing up the closet walls of Radiohead Thom Yorke. Meanwhile for Joey, after the party, it's R. Kelly's closet.

would get all kinds of handsy in Tom Ford's closet.

Bullett Magazine's Editor-in-Chief would kill for her pick of Grace Jones' wardrobe.

The designer behind Simply Intricate (ie: studded varsity jacket & pleated pants) covets the dreamy closet of Oscar PR Girl.

This Coco Chanelian celebrity stylist would tear through the wild closet of Gwen Stefani.

This hot young designer (and I) would raid the immaculate, immense, irreplaceable closet of the venerable Daphne Guinness.

Monika Sawicka is One Wild Woman for Tush Magazine

Amanda Gabriele — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 18:00:05 +0000

Decked out in leather, fur and head-to-toe animal print, Monika Sawicka stars in “Upper Wildside” for Tush Magazine‘s issue #28. Expertly captured by photographer Txema Yeste, black and white pictures deliver sullen cheekbones for miles in and a blurred line of where garments end and city begins. Bernat Buscato set the mood with Valentino, Burberry Prorsum and J. Mendel, some sheer enough to read a runny newspaper. The drama would be less without striking hair by Akki Shirakawa and nearly skeletal makeup by Tyron Machhausen.

[Fashion Gone Rogue]

Kristen Stewart Dons a Typically Messy Hairdo at the Breaking Dawn Premiere

Amanda Gabriele — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 20:47:20 +0000

Kristen Stewart stepped out on the red carpet last night for the premiere of The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 in a sequined J. Mendel Spring 2012 gown. Although she was working that thigh high slit, her makeup was a little too heavy for the event. It’s a good thing Fekkai Celebrity Stylist Adir Abergel was able to tame her typically messy, matted-down mane. See how to get the look after the jump.

Inspiration: Adir was inspired to create an up-do that felt like Kristen’s usual tousled, messy hair style with a touch of rockabilly class. The outcome was equally edgy and romantic.

How To Get the Look: Adir began by applying Fekkai Bouffant Lifting and Texturizing Spray Gel to the roots of the hair to build texture. He then applied Fekkai Oceanique Tousled Wave Spray throughout the rest of the hair and rough dried it to create a beachy base for the up-do. Adir then took random pieces and created standard braids, fishtail braids and twists throughout the hair in various sizes, leaving the very top of the hair loose. He then took all of the hair, except the loose bit, and knotted and twisted it to create an up-do. Hairpins gave the illusion of a very undone look. To finalize, Adir backcombed the front of the hair to add volume, pushed it back and pinned it in place. He secured the look by spraying with Fekkai Sheer Hold Hairspray.

Questions about the up-do seen here? Ask me on Twitter @CrystlMeatballs.

Through a Lens Fashionably: Fashion Week by Richard Guaty

Lester Brathwaite — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 16:44:14 +0000

Richard Guaty was doing double-duty for FashionIndie and our sister site Lookbooks during Fashion Week: getting yelled at by Lindsay Lohan; sneaking backstage and getting yelled at by producers; missing deadlines and getting yelled at by me. In short, he put in werq. But the results are more than worth it! Check out some of the amazing shots Richard captured around town:

For more great NYFW pics hop on over to Guaty Galleries on Lookbooks! And we recently convinced Richard to whore himself out via Twitter and Tumblr, so make sure to follow him @RichardGuaty and guatygalleries.tumblr.com, respectively.

Sebastian Sauve strikes a pose

Models in silhouette

Pedicab from hell

Me yelling in Chanel Iman's face

Anna and Nicki

Models boogying down backstage

Tobias Sorensen, be still my heart

Diane von Furstenberg and Barry Diller

Karlie Kloss

Anna Wintour and Patrick Demarchelier

Rachel Zoe

Karolina Kurkova

Gilles Mendel

Fashion Wars: Lincoln Center v. Milk Studios

Lester Brathwaite — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 13:27:05 +0000

Ever since Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week moved from the tents at Bryant Park to the metaphorical tents at Lincoln Center, more and more designers have opted instead of external sites to hold their fashion shows. One of the most popular venues, Milk Studios, is now in direct competition with Lincoln Center for both sponsors and designers.

Milk is now represented by Creative Artists Agency and has brought on Lexus and American Express as sponsors in addition to original partner MAC Cosmetics. This partnership has also gone through some changes and beginning this Fashion Week MAC & Milk shows will be under the name of Made.

Lincoln Center on the other hand has IMG, Mercedes-Benz and Maybelline, as well as AmEx with MAC also providing make-up for many a MBFW show.

While Made focuses on emerging designers and does not charge to rent their space — MAC is the exclusive make-up provider leaving models and music on the bill — Lincoln Center caters to more high-profile designers, who in addition to paying for the venue also have to dig deep for models, hair, music and makeup. And these are just a few of the differences:

Number of Shows:

Made – 35

MBFW – 98 (81 on-site, 17 off)

Sponsors:

Made – MAC, American Express and Lexus

MBFW - DHL, Maybelline New York, American Express, TRESemmé, W Hotels Worldwide, Fiber One Bars, ideeli, Fiji Water, AriZona Beverages

Designers:

Made - Sophie Theallet, Cushnie Et Ochs, Peter Som, Erin by Erin Fetherston, Billy Reid, Simon Spurr, Ohne Titel, Jeremy Scott, Nahm

MBFW - BCBG Max Azria, Tommy Hilfiger, Nicole Miller, Cynthia Rowley, Derek Lam, Tracy Reese, L.A.M.B., Diane von Furstenberg, Betsey Johnson, Tory Burch, Badgley Mischka, Vera Wang, Diesel, Michael Kors, Nanette Lepore, J.Mendel, Milly by Michelle Smith, Anna Sui, Elie Tahari

With Fashion Week just around the corner and all those sponsorship dollars, designer reputations and AmEx black cards floating around, the stage is set for a good ole-fashioned walk-off between Milk Studios and Lincoln Center. [WWD]

RED CARPET REPORT CARD: Kristen Wiig in J. Mendel

Amanda Gabriele — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 11:54:49 +0000

In this edition of Red Carpet Report Card, Kristen Wiig will be graded on her J. Mendel Resort 2011 look worn to the 2011 Glamour Women of the Year Awards in London. See how she looked after the jump.

Kristen will be rated on the below categories, five being the highest and 1 being the lowest.

Fit: 4

Appropriateness: 5

Trendiness: 4

Styling: 5

Hair: 4

Makeup: 5

Pose: 4

Confidence: 5

Wow Kristen Wiig cleans up damn well. She looks radiant in this color with her classically styled makeup and hair. When you can look this beautiful while making people laugh, you can own the world.

Bookclubbin’: American Fashion Travel by CFDA

Amanda Gabriele — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 20:52:09 +0000

“Life is a journey, and every trip is an adventure,” Diane von Furstenberg says in the opening of her forward for American Fashion Travel (Assouline 2011). Written by the Council of Fashion Designers of America, this colorful and easy to digest travel memoir follows designers on the go to their favorite destinations and recalls some of their favorite jet-setting memories.

“For me, traveling is a regular thing, but always a privilege and an extraordinary experience,” Furstenberg says. This mentality is what makes American Fashion Travel so down to earth. From the shores of Montauk to Bondi Beach or snow-covered mountains of Colorado or Switzerland, no destination is too big or small to make an impact on someone’s life. When flipping through the colorful pages and reading handwritten answers by CFDA designers, you’ll discover places you too have been and destinations foreign to you. Some prefer cars and others planes. The ideal vacation could include the spa or a hike to the top of a volcano. But when reading this book, you must remember that surprises are the best part of traveling.

“With every trip comes the unexpected, and that becomes part of your experience when you travel,’ Furstenberg says. “You have to be very open and spontaneous and ready to change your plans.”

Here are a few of our favorite travel memoirs from the book:

What owning this book says about you: I love to travel but live vicariously through others when I can’t make it out of town.

What your dinner guests will say upon seeing this book on your coffee table: What a colorful book. I want to go everywhere!

How this book will make your fashion brain grow: Learning where designers gather inspiration from around the world will help you better understand the creative process and how they translate experience into fashion. Plus, you will for sure be inspired to travel and gain your own worldliness and insight.

If you like this, you’ll love: 1000 Places to See Before You Die: A Traveler’s Life List by Patricia Schultz

Red Carpet Report Card: Sophia Bush in Oliver Tolentino

Amanda Gabriele — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 16:57:21 +0000

Awards season is upon us, which means dozens of celebrities will be getting a Red Carpet Report Card. Whose will be fridge-worthy and which celebs will be hiding from their parents? Only time will tell. There are lots of parties to kick off the season, so let’s take a look at Sophia Bush in Oliver Tolentino at Audi & J. Mendel Celebrate the Kick-Off of Golden Globes Week.

This eco-friendly frock from designer Oliver Tolentino is made of “Pina” or pineapple fiber, “abaca” lining and fresh water pearls. I really like this dress and it fits her well, but it looks a little old for her the way it’s styled. Check out this (terrible quality) photo of the dress on the runway:

If Sophia would have done something more exciting with her hair and carried a different, perhaps brighter bag, I would have given her an A. But she looks lovely and sophisticated, so I give her a:

Nice work! Many will walk the Red Carpet but few will receive passing grades on their Report Card.

LINK LOVE: Oliver Tolentino

< > at Cecconi's Restaurant on January 9, 2011 in Los Angeles, California.

WOMAN: J. Mendel Spring 2011

Amanda Gabriele — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 02:02:53 +0000

This is how a lady should dress. The J. Mendel spring 2011 collection is so utterly lovely, it makes me want to float on clouds all day. The ethereal pleats matched with those rich fur shawls make every dress in this line to die for. See more…

LINK LOVE: Knight Cat

RUNWAY RUNDOWN: J. Mendel, Pre-Fall 09

Marissa Moshell, Student — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 21:30:00 +0000

Opening the forum for the Pre-Fall ’09 collection, models for J. Mendel have hit the streets. The new line is a collection of dresses, jackets, skirts, shirts, and a ton more of your favorite creations. Each J. Mendel piece is very clean-cut and graced with a touch of sophistication. The elegance, enhanced by the color use and materials for each piece, never fails to give the designs the best sense of confidence yet.

GALLERY: J. Mendel, Pre-Fall 09