THE WEEK IN FASHION: MAY 14th-18th

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

Happy Friday fashion lovers. Welcome to this week's news round-up...

Donna Summer working the sequins in Thank God It's Friday (image from telegraph.co.uk)

We begin with farewells to the Queen of Disco, Donna Summer who died yesterday at just 63 years old. If you want to know why Summer's dance tunes were so seminal then you could do no better than to read Alex Needham's analysis for The Guardian. Of course, music and fashion so often go hand-in-hand and Donna Summer's psychedelic eye shadow, mega watt hair do and slinky gowns revved up the glamour vibe of her disco tunes. A true game changer.

Donna Summer, off duty but disco as ever (image from dailymail.co.uk)

May I suggest you listen to this mesmerising tune while you read the rest of the news?



In happier news, the Roitfeld dynasty this week welcomed its latest member, Romy Nicole Konjic. Carine Roitfeld's daughter Julia gave birth to her first baby with Swedish model Robert Konjic. And what more stylish way to have one's birth announced than via a tweet from Mr Derek Blasberg who tweeted on Wednesday 'Congratulations to proud Momma @RestoinRJulia! (And thus, the chicest grannie ever: Carine Roitfeld!) Can't wait to meet the beautiful baby!" It was later confirmed that the former French Vogue editor's new grandchild was a girl.  Might little Romy make her modelling debut in Granny's new magazine, set to be released in the Autumn?

Julia and Romy the bump in the latest iD (image from fashionologie.com)

British fashion stamps: Norman Hartnell (image from guardian.co.uk)

Ever since e-mail, tweeting, face booking and texting became our main modes of communication, the humble letter or post card has taken on a special, sort of nostalgic feeling. Now the Royal Mail is appealing to the scribe in fashionistas everywhere with their new collection of stamps celebrating post-war British fashion. The stamps include outfits by key British designers from the past 60 years including Ossie Clark, Vivienne Westwood and the Queen's favourite Hardy Amies. The stamps have been shot by acclaimed fashion photographer Sølve Sundsbø. You can buy the full set for a bargainous £6 here.

British fashion stamps: Alexander McQueen (image from guardian.co.uk)

British fashion stamps: Ossie Clark and Celia Birtwell (image from guardian.co.uk)

Congratulations to the brilliant Selfridges which was this week named the world's best department store by The Intercontinental Group of Department Stores. I feel like I'm going to be spending lots of time in Selfridges this summer as they have so many exciting celebrations in store for the Jubilee and Olympics. I went to the launch of Brittanica, an exhibition of dresses made from Vogue patterns from the early 50s with hats by Stephen Jones last week. That's on until 24th June. But there's plenty more to come... tea parties on the roof, crazy golf and a shop where you can buy everything the Queen has- her bag, her gloves, her dog (maybe?). Find out the details here.

A pic we took at the Britannica launch

When Vogue put Adele on the cover last year, there was considerable controversy about how a non-model sized person had been presented by the magazine. In fact, it seemed like there such a hoo-ha that the issue should surely have been a big seller. Well, no. Alexandra Shulman revealed in a talk this week that the Adele cover was actually one of the worst sellers ever. In fact, Shulman says she still can't tell which covers will be the most successful, despite twenty years at the helm.

An interesting new angle on the great skinny models debate this week, with a new study which suggests that if models resembled the target audience of the products they were advertising better, then consumers would  be more inclined to make a purchase. Ben Barry, who conducted the study, explained:

"My study found that women increased their purchase intentions by more than 200 percent when the models in the mock ads were their size. In the subgroup over size 6, women increased their purchase intentions by a dramatic 300 percent when they saw curvier models. Conversely, when women saw models who didn't reflect their size, they decreased their purchase intentions by 60 percent, and women over size 6 dropped their purchase intentions by 76 percent."

N.B These sizes refer to the American system so size 6 is size 10. 

Estee Lauder in 1961 (from smh.com.au)

There are plenty of family businesses started by one member and then handed from generation to generation to carry on the philosophy carved out by the founding member. One such company is Estee Lauder, now in the hands of Aerin, the granddaughter of the eponymous founder. However, Aerin has now decided to make a name for herself and is launching her own brand called simply, Aerin. She has long been involved at a high level at Estee Lauder but has now chosen to take inspiration from the brand's archives and gift it a modern twist with Aerin. She told WWD “It’s very much a lifestyle brand, which I think is very much how Estée started. It was always about lifestyle photography and an environment and a world. It’s not necessarily an age group — it’s a state of mind". Aerin will encompass not just beauty but jewellery and home products too. I'm looking forward to the book which will be published next Autumn. 

The Vogue family give us some more great covers this week. The French edition has chosen Gisele as their poster girl for the health issue which launches the health initiative agreed to by all the titles. The carefully placed sand marks clearly underlining the healthy but slim, fit and aspirational proportions of her posterior. The cover announces 'The Return of Curves".

Image from Fashionologie.com

The Italian titles focus on Africa with Ban Ki Moon gracing the cover of L'Uomo. I understand he's the UN Secretary General, and thus has a lot of influence when it comes to policies which might help African nations get out of debt cycles and corruption, but I'd like to have seen an actual African. 

Vogue Italia focuses on Africa (image from Guardian.co.uk)

Happy Birthday to Beyond Retro , the brilliant vintage empire which turns 10 this month. To celebrate, there is a series of gigs, talks and events. I'm hoping to make it to 'Flooded with little Joan Crawfords: Hollywood in London in the 1930s' at the Soho store tonight. Very generously, the Beyond Retro people are also hosting their first ever sale, and it's a goodie- 50% off everything. The sale is taking place over the weekend so make sure you get yourself down the Brick Lane store.

Simone Rocha at LFW AW12 (image from catwalking.com)

Simone Rocha was one of the highlights at February's London fashion week. So we'll be tuning in to SHOWstudio.com on Monday at 3pm to check out her interview on the site.

And finally, a King Karl video special to round off the working week.

The first is from Chanel and sees the designer talk about his Cruise collection which was shown at Versailles on Monday. Listen out for his thoughts on how Mademoiselle herself might have liked the offering....

And Cannes film festival is in full swing, but Lagerfeld's appearance in Jean Roch and Snoop Dog's new video puts our minds firmly in St Tropez. I adore Karl's role as the keeper of the gates to paradise/ St Tropez and the very retro cloudy, heavenly intro. 

THE WEEK IN FASHION: 14th-18th NOVEMBER

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

It's a case of fashion mirroring life this week as we bring you news of births and deaths and, er, rebirths. It's been pretty dramatic actually.

Tom Ford SS12

American Vogue has just released the very first pictures of Tom Ford's SS12 collection (photographed by the multitalented Mr Ford himself). The former Gucci designer had decreed that the designs he showcased in a highly exclusive catwalk show should not be seen until now to avoid people becoming bored of them before they were available to buy. However, he suffered something of a backlash when fashion editors including The Guardian's Jess Cartner-Morley and Le Figaro's Virginie Mouzat wrote negative reviews not only of the clothes but also of that approach to showing. Sarah Mower's interview with Ford, which is posted beneath the pictures, reveals that Ford will revert to intimate showroom presentations for his next collection, emphasising the necessity to explain each look in detail. Furthermore, Ford claims that he designs in response to what his customers want, hence all the flounced mini dresses. Now that we can see for ourselves, what are your thoughst?

Tom Ford SS12

Tom Ford SS12 (All images from American Vogue)

Evelyn, her husband Leonard and Estée (from WWD)

On Sunday, the sad news arrived that Evelyn Lauder, daughter in law of Estée, had died at the age of 75 from Ovarian Cancer, having suffered Breast Cancer in the past. Evelyn not only played an instrumental role in growing Estée Lauder from a small family business into one of the world's biggest beauty companies but she also made a profound contribution to raising awareness and funds for Breast Cancer Research. In 1989, she was diagnosed with the disease and went on to spearhead the Pink Ribbon campaign which has now become a widely recognised symbol of support. The fact that Evelyn's childhood was marred by her family's escape from Nazi-occupied Europe only makes her lifetime achievements more incredible. The New York Times' obituary has some fascinating insights into Evelyn's life.

The Lauder family. Evelyn is seated, hugged by her son. Estée is in the white hat (from WWD)

In happier news, it's time to congratulate Julia Restoin Roitfeld, daughter of Carine, who's expecting her first baby. Somehow we can't imagine Carine sitting down to knit booties or change a nappy quite yet but I think we can safely say that this could be the best dressed grandchild on the planet once it arrives in May. A day out with Grandma Roitfeld could involve anything from sitting FROW at fashion week to crawling around on a Chanel shoot... Lucky babes!

Julia with boyfriend and baby daddy, Robert Konjic (image from thevoguediaries.com)

Versace Couture SS09 (images from audreysworld.blogspot.com)

 This week has, let's admit it, been rather dominated by the launch of Versace's collection for H&M. Just a couple of days before the brand went high street, it was announced that they would be swinging right back the other way in January with the re-introduction of a couture show. It's set to take place on January 23rd, the first day of the couture week. WWD points out that Versace has still been doing couture during its seven year absence from the schedule, opting to keep to more discreet appointments. I guess now that the world is buzzing with Versace frenzy, it's a good time to capitalise on keeping up the momentum. I can't imagine we'll see the queues we saw yesterday though!

Versace Couture SS09

Marc Jacobs' SS12 London press day had to be cancelled yesterday after the collection was stolen during its journey from Paris. Some have pointed the finger at counterfeiters who might be out to copy the collection.  Or could it be a sneaky ploy by Dior HQ to harangue Jacobs into becoming their Head Designer? Whoever the culprits are, one thing's for sure- they will be easily identified by their translucent flapper dresses and general 'thirties meets future' vibe. No word of a reward for information as yet...

Missing: Have you seen this Marc Jacobs SS12? (Image from www.lloyd-evans.com)

The best ad campaigns are the ones which get everyone talking; Benetton have certainly achieved that this week with their latest set of images which depict world-famous figures kissing one another. If you can see the lighter side of the world's current woes then these are very entertaining. However, the Vatican were not in a humorous mood about the image which shows the Pope in embrace with Mohammed Ahmed al-Tayeb, an Egyptian Grand Sheik. The Guardian reports that Fr Federico Lombardi said: "We must express the firmest protest for this absolutely unacceptable use of the image of the Holy Father, manipulated and exploited in a publicity campaign with commercial ends. This shows a grave lack of respect for the pope, an offence to the feelings of believers, a clear demonstration of how publicity can violate the basic rules of respect for people by attracting attention with provocation." There is a deeper message to Benetton's images though; they support Unhate which is campaigning for a world free from hate culture, what's to object to about that?

The Pope with Mohammed Ahmed al-Tayeb

Angela Merkel and Nicholas Sarcozy get cosy (Images from dailymail.co.uk)

 On Sunday, the surprise news emerged that Tamara Mellon would be leaving her role at Jimmy Choo, the company she has ushered from small time cobbler to one of the world's best known accessories brands. On Sunday evening, there was an impeccably timed advert for Jimmy Choo perfume during X Factor which starred Mellon herself. A firm reminder to those in the industry that she knows exactly how to play the game. Speculation that Mellon will be launching her own name brand before too long is already mounting. The fashion world's eyes are sure to be closely watching how Jimmy Choo and Tamara Mellon get on without one another. Lisa Armstrong is sure that we should expect plenty more from Mellon...

Mellon starring in Jimmy Choo's perfume campaign (image from nytimes.com)

In case you hadn't noticed, Lady Gaga has been in the UK this week and while she's here she has been taking advantage of the opportunity to showcase designs by some of London's finest. It must have been love at first sight for Gaga and the Roksanda Ilincic dress which she was seen out and about in just an hour after it was sent to her on Wednesday! She's also worn two outfits from Osman Yousefzada's SS12 collection and a look from Simone Rocha's first standalone collection which comprised a beautiful array of trapped lace pieces. It looks like Gaga has developed her look recently after parting from her long time stylist and collaborator Laurieann Gibson earlier this month. Here at FEAL, we're loving the Gaga London look, long may it continue!

Gaga in Simone Rocha (image from graziadaily.co.uk)

In Osman (image from telegraph.co.uk)

In Roksanda Ilincic (image from telegraph.co.uk)

Sample Sale Alert! Next Friday 25th November, Mawi jewellers will be having a massive sample sale with up to 80% off usual prices. It'll be at MAWI STUDIO, 2, Nimrod Passage, London. N1 4BU from 9am to 8pm. Just in time for Christmas!

This necklace will be reduced from £810 to £300

This L'Wren Scott dress is $999 from $2145; in ££ that's about £500.... not bad. Gilt.com

Last night the FashEd had dinner with Kevin Ryan and Alexandra Wilkis Wilson the founder and co-founder of the hugely successful American flash sale site gilt.com at the Savoy. The occasion was the firm making its discounted stock available for UK and European shipping for the first time. Think of the site as TK Maxx online, but whereas TK Maxx run their shops with a less is more approach, Gilt.com is a slick package, and trying to make discounted luxury feel sexy and special.


Joining the site is free, and once a UK member you can log on every day at 5pm to gain access to 20 flash sales. What fun. Today’s bargains come from, among others, L’Wren Scott. You have to but in $$ but with the current exchange rate, this is a good thing! We would encourage you to join now at Gilt.com.