Thom Browne Fall 2012

His Royal Highness, the Prince of Wales will kick off the sartorial weekend on June 14 with a reception at St. James’s Palace followed by the opening reception hosted by Topman that night. The following evening Ford will hold a dinner while Esquire and Mr. Porter have an event of their own.

On Saturday night, the 16th, Louis Vuitton and Spencer Hart will both host cocktail parties and everything will be wrapped up nicely on the 17th with a  Burberry event hosted by Christopher Bailey and a GQ dinner hosted by Calvin Klein.

As for the actual fashion, Hilfiger, Pringle of Scotland, Thom Browne, Belstaff, Jonathan Saunders, Christopher Kane, Joseph Abboud and Richard Nicoll among others will all hold presentations.

For the full schedule click here. [WWD, sub req'd]

They have until the VIP Gala on June 27th to finish, and will then be on display at the V&A Museum July 6-29, to later go on display at Selfridges. Harper’s Bazaar UK EIC Lucy Yeomans will then pen a book to commemorate the collaboration.

Which are you most excited about?

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

What grade did Ginnifer receive? Check out page two to find out.

In addition to a £200,000 cash prize — which translates roughly to $315,000 at current exchange rates and proves that the dollar is pretty much worthless —  Saunders will also receive mentoring from the BFC.

“I’m so happy about winning the fund,” Saunders said. “The last 12 months have been an exciting time for me and my team and I’m very proud of all their hard work. We have many exciting plans for the near future and this along with the support network provided by the BFC will enable us to achieve our goals.”

British Vogue EIC Alexandra Shulman added, “I am delighted that Jonathan has won this year’s award. His recent collections have shown that he is a designer who can provide beautiful clothes that women enjoy wearing and he is in a great position to build on his current success.” [Vogue UK]

Fashion Fund winner/certified hottie Henry Holland

Holland, Long, Gray and Katrantzou are in some great company as past winners of the Fashion Forward prize have included Jonathan Saunders, Christopher Kane, Erdem and Giles. Meanwhile, Long is the first menswear designer to snatch the prize and according to BFC CEO Caroline Rush, the time was ripe: ’Menswear in London will be put in the spotlight this year making now the perfect time to introduce a menswear prize to Fashion Forward.” [Vogue UK]

Fashion Fund winner/certified hottie Henry Holland

-Anna Wintour‘s biannual HJ to the industry, Fashion’s Night Out, will make an uncalled-for return next year to once again haunt the sartorial streets. [WWD]

-  Jonathan Saunders, Mary Katrantzou, Marios Schwab and Nicholas Kirkwood are among the finalists for next year’s British Fashion Council/Vogue Fashion Fund. [Vogue UK]

- Michael Kors IPO is listed at $20/share, which will probably be the least you’ll ever pay for a Michael Kors anything from here on out. [WWD]

- The First Family posed for a new family portrait and while it’s all cute and familial, we can clearly see Michelle‘s roots and homegirl could use a touch-up. [Just Jared]

- Vera Wang is getting in touch with her inner dude by outfitting some real dudes. While brides will wear her doomed David’s Bridal gowns to their weddings, their grooms will wear her new Men’s Warehouse tuxedos. And then everyone will go to the Olive Garden and cap the night off with a few PBRs. [WWD]

- While Vera slums it in the discount wholesale bin, Levi’s is classing their game up. The jeans giant will show at New York Fashion Week for the first time come February. Hopefully the CFDA will have cut whatever day said show is by then. [WWD]

2011 British Fashion Awards

Emerging Talent Award — Ready-to-Wear – Mary Katrantzou

Emerging Talent Award — Accessories: Tabitha Simmons

Emerging Talent Award — Menswear: Christopher Raeburn

Model: Stella Tennant

Designer Brand: Victoria Beckham

Menswear Designer: Kim Jones

British Style Award: Alexa Chung

Isabella Blow Award for Fashion Creator: Sam Gainsbury

Red Carpet Award: Stella McCartney

BFC Outstanding Achievement in Fashion: Sir Paul Smith

Accessory Designer: Charlotte Olympia

New Establishment: Christopher Kane

Designer of the Year: Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen

[Link Love: BFA / Vogue UK]

Accessory Designer winner Charlotte Olympia

Hilary Alexander

Victoria Beckham

Vicks, Marc Jacobs and Kate Moss

Sarah Burton

Alexa Chung won the Brit Style Award for the 2nd year in a row

Erdem, Patrick Grant and Vick Becks

Model of the Year nominee Georgia May Jagger

The Kanes, Christopher and sister/business partner Tammy

Stella McCartney

Model of the Year nominee, Kristen McMenamy

Kate Moss

BFFs, Kate Moss and Stella McCartney

Emerging Talent - Menswear winner Christopher Raeburn

Vogue UK EIC Alexandra Shulman with Beckham

Emerging Talent - Accessories winner Tabitha Simmons

Model of the Year, Stella Tennant

Matthew Williamson

Photos: Out Magazine

Andrej Pejic

Brad Goreski

Tim Gunn

Marios Schwab and Jonathan Saunders

Nicolas Ripoll

Peter Som

Nicola Formichetti

Jack Calhoun, President of Banana Republic

Gareth Pugh

Models on Todd Lynn's Spring 2012 runway / Style.com

According to Carole White, founder of Premier Model Management and not the biggest Naomi Campbell fan, ”We’re not just talking about one or two big girls. Jacobs had numerous models holding on options right up until the day of his show meaning they all stayed in New York just in case they got cast.”

White goes on to say, ”Gucci demanded that girls fly to Milan on Saturday to meet Frida to see if she would consider them for her show, which meant Saturday got trashed. Then the girls were expected to fly straight back to London, and if Gucci were interested, fly back to Milan again on Sunday for another round of casting, then for fittings on Monday. Only a tiny fraction of them realistically have a shot at being in that show — we all know it will be full of mega girls. I find it insulting that a designer like Frida thinks London is so insignificant that she would do that.”

For agents and models alike, Gucci and Jacobs are major gets, but that leaves the already packed London schedule of designers feeling like fashion’s bastard step-children. A source at Todd Lynn claims to have “lost 10 out of 19 girls,” with agents calling them in the middle of the night to pull their girls and some models not even showing up for fittings because they’ve flown off to Milan.

Also not helping matters is LOVE magazine editor Katie Grand — damn you Katie Grand — who styled for Jacobs and also styled for the London-based designer Giles Deacon. Grand demanded a five-hour call time — which one “fashion insider” calls ”unnecessary, absurd, selfish and wrong,” citing Paris’ strict two-hour limit — thus monopolizing any girls left in town after Burberry.

Amidst fears that London Fashion Week may be squeezed out all together, the British Fashion Council is beginning to feel the heat. The BFC is being accused of mismanaging the show calendar and for not standing up to the organizers behind the  New York and Milan fashion weeks.

Meanwhile, CEO of the BFC, Caroline Rush, insists that something is being done. She’s not particularly clear what that something is, but the Council has “invested time in developing direct relationships with model agencies to better understand their challenges and encourage them to send more internationally-recognised catwalk models to London. This season, the models at designers such as Jonathan Saunders, Erdem, Christopher Kane and Tom Ford have been of a global standard.”

Well, for those handful of shows, good for you. But for everyone else suffering at the model-grabbing claws of New York and Milan: damn you, Caroline Rush. [Telegraph]

Models on Todd Lynn's Spring 2012 runway / Style.com

11. University of Delaware Newark, DE

Campus Tour: The smallest state also has a small design program that is focused on quality garment making from every angle. The program follows a garment through its entire lifecycle, from the creative design and tailoring, to a focus on sustainably producing goods on both small and large scale in a socially and environmentally minded manner. An entirely student run fashion magazine, UDress, and fashion shows exist outside of class, working to show and pull fashion out of this college driven town.

Programs: Apparel Design, Merchandising, Sustainability

Student Body: 16,500

Tuition:  $27,000

Star Alumni: Well, me. And a fierce force that is the backbone of the garment industry.

Alexander McQueen

BEVERLY HILLS, CA - JANUARY 16: Actress Catherine Zeta-Jones arrives at the 68th Annual Golden Globe Awards held at The Beverly Hilton hotel on January 16, 2011 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Jason Merritt/Getty Images)

attends the "Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty" Costume Institute Gala at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 2, 2011 in New York City.

Rick Owens

Alber Elbaz

Credit: Fashion Lover

“I am delighted that Christopher has won the second BFC/Vogue Designer Fashion Fund Award,” British Vogue editor Alexandra Shulman said. “The shortlist was very strong and we were impressed by the level of talent which was inspiring. Christopher and Tammy have worked immensely hard and it is wonderful to see a designer with his vision and commitment rewarded.”

Credit: Fashion Lover

Kane is also the head designer for Donatella Versace‘s Versus label.

LINK LOVE: Vogue UK

Credit: Fashion Lover

LINK LOVE: Refinery 29

LINK LOVE: http://twitter.com/NETAPORTER/statuses/9525095612

Images via Style.

Christopher Kane, Jonathan Saunders, Pringle of Scotland, Graeme Armour, Louise Gray, Holly Fulton, Laura Lees and Graeme Black were all nominees up for this prestigious award (previously won by Alexander McQueen)…everyone agreed that the award was well deserved!

LINKAGE: Fashionista via Vogue UK

The hype continues, as Topshop/Topman prepares to open at 478 Broadway (April 2 at 11am, to be exact!)

WWD got a sneak peek at the British retailer’s first U.S. location.

The structure of the new “four-level, 40,000-square-foot space” mimics Topshop’s flagship store in London.

It looks great now (right down to the shoe lounge!), but imagine how it’ll look at the end of the first business day. I wonder if they’ll be able to keep the Kate Moss and Jonathan Saunders collections in stock?

GALLERY: Topshop Soho.

Roberto Cavalli for H&M

Jonathan Saunders for Target

Comme des Garcons for H&M

We’ve all seen the clothing and accessory quality at Target and H&M. Cheap fabrics. Plastic or malleable metal buttons. Torn seams. Awkward fitting. Yes, occasionally you do find that specific piece that looks great on you and others expect you paid a heap of money for, but we all know how rare that can be. 

So, with all of these recent designer collaborations with what i’ll call “cheaper stores,” what exactly is their point? Are designers simply trying to make their typically expensive clothing lines more affordable for the fashion conscious crowd? Have Target and H&M paid the designers a hefty sum just so they can attach a brand-name to their usually generic clothing? More importantly, are the labels all that important?  We already know that the brand-loving fashionistas are going to strip shelves clean on the November 13th release of the Comme des Garcons by H&M line, regardless of price or quality, just for the sake of the label. But do other fashionable buyers even care?

People who love fashion for the sake of fashion usually buy because they like the piece, not the brand. And even if they happen to be brand chasers, who honestly wants to buy a collaboration of their favorite designer if it doesn’t even correlate that particular label’s aesthetic? 

If you ask my opinion, I would rather pay the money for the high quality and unique garments of a specific designer. The fact that it is cheap doesn’t matter because it is 9 times out of 10 exactly that, cheap. And don’t forget, If Jonathan Saunders is selling his bold geometric sweater dress at Target, everyone who’s anyone in the Target vicinity will own it. Before you know it, the whole world is going to be one huge common, unflattering, poorly stitched ball of Jonathan Saunders sympathy for people who can’t afford his real stuff. 

“Maybe the next trend is stay the same. Yves Saint Laurent did essentially the same collection for eight seasons in a row. I like that idea. I think, on some level, we could all use a break.”

Thanks Fashionologie via Style

Today in New York Target opens four Bullseye Bodegas, their version of pop-up shops.

Open today thru Monday, from 10am to 10pm, the Bodegas will not only mark the city with kitschy red and white decor (they’re even a little Pop Art-y), but also debut Jonathan Saunders,’ Anya Hindmarch’s, and Sigerson Morrison’s new collections for the retailer.

Target Bullseye Bodega Locations:
Midtown – 101 West 57th Street at 6th Ave.
Union Square – 813 Broadway between 11th and 12th Sts.
Soho – 489 Broome Street between Wooster and West Broadway
West Broadway East Village – 325 Bowery at 2nd Ave.

Images from WWD.

The clothing hits stores this October but thanks to NYLON we have this sneak peak, and may I say, I think this will be the first time I will stand in line at Target…

Jonathan Saunders is the newest designer to participate in Target’s Go International. The program, which is designed to deliver the latest styles to female shoppers, has included designers such as Luella Bartley and Rogan Gregory. Richard Chai’s collection is currently available in stores; Saunder’s will launch in October. The discounter also started a limited-edition designer accessories program. For the fall/winter it will include handbag collections by Monica Botkier and Anya Hindmarch, jewelry by Dean Harris and shoes by Kari Sigerson and Miranda Morrison.

Thanks Forbes

British sportswear brand Gola has jumped in on the collaboration game with an exclusive collection with indie favorite Jonathan Saunders.  The look is very classic (aka must have and wearable) and coincides with Saunders current Spring 2008 collection.  You can pick up the collection at asos.com.