ALEXANDER WANG TO BALENCIAGA AND THE REST OF THE WEEK IN FASHION

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

This has been a huge fashion week... Here's all the news you need to know.

ALEXANDER WANG HEADS TO BALENCIAGA

The murmurs (read, Twitter frenzy) began yesterday but this morning- as Nicolas Ghesquière began his last day- it was confirmed by WWD that one of New York's most successful and best-loved young designers is heading to Paris to design at Balenciaga. Here's what the fashion industry thought...

Alexandra Shulman ‏@AShulman2

Vogue UK: Alexander Wang Named Balenciaga Creative Directorhttp://bit.ly/TxrCtm  Another fashion mystery solved. That's a big leap for Wang

susiebubble ‏@susiebubble

So the whispers have been confirmed Alexander Wang is to go to@BALENCIAGA - an astute business decision more than anything else

Melanie Rickey ‏@fashedatlarge

Big news in fashion land: Alexander Wang IS taking over at@BALENCIAGA. The brand will become less pious and more accessible..and so it goes

bryanboy ‏@bryanboy

Congratulations to Alexander Wang for the Balenciaga gig! A new era...

Alexander Wang is off to Balenciaga (image via wmagazine.com)

JW ANDERSON TO DESIGN FOR VERSUS

Following the end of Christopher Kane's work at Versus, it was announced on Wednesday that Jonathan (JW) Anderson will be the first young designer to collaborate with Versace's sister brand as they head in a new, digitally focussed direction. We'll get to see the result of the collaboration at a New York event in March or April 2013. JDubz and Versus have given us a hint of what's to come, releasing this fabulous image by Bruce Weber starring Stella Tennant, from 1996. This photo has apparently inspired the collection. Bring on the New White Jean.

JW Anderson's Versus inspiration (Image via fashionologe.com)

WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH CHRISTOPHER KANE?

So now we know that Kane won't be heading up Balenciaga, but has got more time on his hands thanks to the end of his Versus deal, there is increasing specualtion that he might be getting ready to take his own brand to the next level. He is rumoured to have held talks with PPR who were behind the expansions of Stella McCartney and Alexander McQueen's label. A Christopher Kane shop is something we would REALLY like to see. Watch this space...

SUZY MENKES

Whilst we all get our knickers in a twist about what the Balenciaga version of a Wang Rocco bag will look like, or what a Wang version of a Lariat will be, Suzy Menkes has been summing up the state of fashion now in her inimitable, concise and searing way. Her piece "Dirty Pretty Things" from today's New York Times is well-worth a read. Find out more about Menkes' approach to fashion and her career in this interview from AnOther.

Suzy Menkes has been guiding us through the current fashion upheaval (image via Anothermag.com)

J CREW OPENS IN LONDON

This is ridiculously exciting- J Crew is opening on Regent Street sometime next year- I've heard conflicting reports as to when. Some say March, some say "late 2013". I'll be saving my pennies judiciously. It's part of bigger expansion plans for the fashion meets preppy brand beloved of Michelle Obama.

J Crew SS13 shoes from this week's day 

JUSTINE PICARDIE'S NEW HARPER'S BAZAAR

Sienna Miller graces the cover of January's Harper's Bazaar, the first issue under the new editorship of Justine Picardie, find out more about the writer and journalist- who penned last year's brilliant Coco Chanel biography- in her interview with the Evening Standard. The magazine will be out to buy on Monday.

THE BRITISH FASHION AWARDS

Stella's jumpsuit attracted many admiring/envious comments (image via telegraph.co.uk)

Stella McCartney was the big winner at the British Fashion Awards on Tuesday evening, taking home Designer of the Year and Designer Brand of the Year. Here's the winners list in full and a few videos to give a taste of the proceedings. As with all the very best formal events, everything didn't quite go to plan, The Telegraph's Luke Leitch summarised the evening's gaffes and standout moments.

The BFA winners...

British Style brought to you by Vodafone: Alexa Chung

Outstanding Achievement in Fashion: Manolo Blahnik CBE

Emerging Talent Award – Ready-To-Wear: J.W. Anderson

Emerging Talent Award – Accessories: Sophie Hulme

Emerging Talent Award – Menswear: Jonathan Saunders

Special Recognition: Harold Tillman CBE

Red Carpet Award: Roksanda Ilincic

Accessory Designer: Nicholas Kirkwood

Designer Brand: Stella McCartney

Isabella Blow Award for Fashion Creator: Louise Wilson OBE

New Establishment: Erdem

Model: Cara Delevingne

Menswear Designer: Kim Jones for Louis Vuitton

Designer of the Year: Stella McCartney

                 

                 

                 

                 

VOGUE'S DOCUMENTARY

You've seen The September Issue, read Grace Coddington's book. Why not make it a hat trick with Vogue: The Editor's Eye, a totally fabulous looking new documentary which will look at how the stylists at Vogue, including Coddington, get those thrilling shoots which sum up fashion moments. If you have access to HBO then set a reminder for December 6th, if not then we shall have to patiently wait for a UK release date. Tell us now, please!



VALENTINO AT SOMERSET HOUSE

Valentino; Master of Couture opened this week at Somerset House, making the stately building beside the Thames the ultimate place to be this month, what with the Tim Walker exhibition, ice rink and Christmas Arcade. Be sure to book your ticket soon. In the meantime, get a taster of what's to come with the second and third installments of the documentary about the exhibition. I posted the first film a couple of weeks ago.

SAMPLE SALES GALORE

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

Yeh, yeh we should be spending money on socks for our Dads, nice smelling things for our Grannies etc. etc. but when they were scheduling Christmas, did no one ever think that this is the time of year when we want to be splashing our cash at designer sample sales? There are some real goodies on the horizon. Here are the details. Just don't blame us when you have nothing to put under the tree on Christmas day. At least you'll be wearing bargainous beautiful fashion...

ERDEM- Womenswear, Shoes and Accessories

Cash and Credit Card

Tuesday 4th December 8.30am – 8.00pm
Wednesday 5th December 8.30am – 5.00pm

The Future Gallery
5 Great Newport Street
London
WC2H 7HY

CHRISTOPHER KANE- Womenswear & Accessories from SS10 to SS12. Prices starting at £10.

Friday 30th November 12.30 – 8.00pm

The Mercer Street Studios
16 Mercer Street
WC2H 9QE

 J.W.ANDERSON- Womenswear, Menswear, Shoes & Accessories

Friday 30th November 4.00 – 8.00pm

37-75 Shacklewell Lane
Lighthouse Studios
Dalston
London
E8 2EB

BACK IN FASHION: THE CHIC NEW LEOPARD

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

The Old Leopard, as modelled by Bet Lynch (image via mirror.co.uk)

Poor leopard, has there ever been a print more ferociously maligned? The very mention of the L word provokes scrunched noses and cries of horror amongst many fashion aficionados who see the animal spots as the very antithesis of good taste, a print reserved for brash items which would never grace the backs of anyone with an iota of class. The completely iconic look of Coronation Street's most famous landlady, Bet Lynch, is a case in point. It's a strong identity which Julie Goodyear carved out for her character but one which more often ends up on some kind of hilarious list of style no-nos than as something to be emulated. However, that may be fashion snobbery speaking too soon because a visit to almost any high street store will show that there is always at least a smattering of leopard print items on offer, which means that leopard must sell however unhappy some fashion editors might be about that. We mustn't forget that leopard hasn't always had such a bad rep; Elizabeth Taylor and Marilyn Monroe did it in a super sexy way, of course, but it never tipped into Lynch tack territory.

Elizabeth Taylor does leopard (image via desperatelyseekingsparkle.com)

Christopher Kane AW12 (image via catwalking.com)

Now some big fashion players have stepped in to reverse the bad taste connotations of leopard. Catwalk wise, the image overhaul can be traced back to Gucci's AW12 show in which Frida Giannini showed several looks in jewel-hued devore, imprinted with those wild spots, and also to Christopher Kane's so-bad-it's-good shiny purple and red leopard Autumn/ Winter dresses and jackets. It was a stop point between traditional leopard vamp and it newly chic relative. Then came the Resort collections, which tell us a lot about we're really going to be wearing, the new classics to slot into our wardrobes. Phoebe Philo at Celine showed stark, panelled pieces comprised of one part coloured leather, one part  unbelievably unbrash leopard. Meanwhile, Stella McCartney went all out on head-toe-leopard coats, kimono tops and sporty trousers. There's a kind of fashion genius in this transformation but if leopard sells then that's as good an excuse as any for a designer to work with it in a challenging retail climate.

Celine Resort (style.com)

Mossy does leopard

Kenzo SS13 (image via Catwalking.com)

The leopard rebirth shows no sign of abating; Humberto Leon and Carol Lim at Kenzo drenched their leopard print with colour for SS13, a look which will surely go down a treat with the army of new fans they are fast accumulating. The new leopard was affirmed last week when Kate Moss wore the print top-to-toe at the signing of her new book. The key to making leopard chic again is shape, anything which is clingy or scanty won't work for the new mood. Think loose and bold. As always, accessories are a good way to do it too, again graphic is good.

Who says a leopard can't change its spots?

Rebecca Taylor at Matches £475

Christopher Kane at Matches £1,105

Diane Von Furstenberg at Stylebop £257

LFW SS13: FIVE CHRISTOPHER KANE OBSESSIONS

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large and Kasia Hastings

Christopher Kane, the Brit boy who can do no wrong, wowed once again this afternoon with an offbeat concoction of pretty pastels and dangerous D.I.Y. Kane incorporated nuts, bolts and spikes as well as every Dad's favourite duct tape but there were also lovely bows and delightful beads. There was a slim, silver mirrored catwalk at the same location as yesterday's ACNE show plus the sleekest ponytails ever. Until 3/4 of the way through, we thought it might all be bright whites and candy floss colours, then BAM- a badass biker. Then back to loveliness before the final two looks which were all fragile pieces of lace patched on with blacker than black gaffa. Only at Chris Kane. 

Five hours later and we're still obsessing over...

1. HELL'S ANGELS LEATHER JACKET

2. MAJOR BEADING

3. WHITE DENIM (J BRAND COLLAB)

4. DUCT TAPE MASTERPIECE

5. NUT & BOLT SHOES

Image from Jane Keltner deValle, Senior Fashion Director, ‏‪Teen Vogue.

AW12 TREND INSIGHT: COMICS IN FASHION

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

After yesterday's post, you know all about how comic book art is playing out in Autumn/Winter trends but the relationship between the oft-geeky world of comics and fashion is not a new one. In fact, I've found out that if you look hard enough (and consult the right experts) then there are plenty of examples of fashion and comic art interplay out there. I spoke to John Dunning a hugely knowledgable comic book enthusiast and author of the graphic novel "Salem Brownstone"- find out more about that by watching this really cool video. I love his approach to talking about comics and fashion. After giving me a trillion leads on the best things to look at-it all started with Anna Sui's Olive Oyl- he told me "I have a HUUUUUGE bugbear about how shit fashion in comics usually is as it is drawn by men who often haven't even met a girl before". That comment puts into context how niche within a niche fashionable comics are. Plenty of designers have used the medium as a fun way to build their brand and create great ad campaigns. Joh also senses big changes, "If you look at comics from the 70s and 80s, the girls look really unrealistic but that has really evolved in recent years". It helps that more girls are getting involved in the comic world with John citing Gail Simone as a major player. Here are FEAL's fashionable comic picks, with a little help from the very kind Mr Dunning.

1. PARIS

The ultimate fashion graphic novel is the recently published Paris by Erika Raven and Maarten Vande Wiele. It's not a straightforward fashion love-in but more of a dark look at what happens when three girls- Faith, Hope and Chastity- arrive in the French capital hoping to take the world by storm and become models. Expect a very clever send up of the murkier sides of planet fashion and beauty.

Page 16 of Paris with fashion credits

2. PETIT MAL AND FASHEMATICS

The FashEd has worked with Trust Fun, an Australian collective who have developed-among other interests- a speciality in creating fashion themed comics. They published Petit Mal in conjuction with their brilliant blog Fashematics -an online space where they develop absurd but completely bang-on equations to pick apart catwalk looks. For example, omelette + Wonder Woman = Chanel Resort '12. Fashematics also spurned a comic series which managed to get a little close to the mark when it unwittingly put a zombiefied version of John Galliano on the cover just weeks before the former Dior designer's fall from grace. One member of the gang, Shane Sakkeus, told Dazed Digital “Petit Mal barely scratches the surface of the hilarity of the fashion world! If one were to draw a line to express the funniness, it would stretch to the moon and back”. The group moved into amazingly printed scarves, bags and robes but seemed to have dropped off the radar in the last year or so with no more merchandise, Facebook updates or blog posts- very sad! It seems that the group are persuing their own projects with Mark Vassallo styling for key Oz designers and Jonathan Zawada getting involved in Japan's CQ store.

John Galliano on Fashematical mag (image from fashematics.com)

Petit Mal images from (tags.thepop.com)

3. JAMES JEAN AND PRADA

Back in 2007, Prada enlisted the help of comic book cover artist James Jean (he worked on the Fables series) to bring some ethereal illustrated beauty to their SS08 collection- remember those silk printed tunics and fairy adorned handbags? If Miuccia endorses it, so the world follows.

James Jean for Prada (image from comic212.net)

4. PAUL POPE

Paul Pope is an alternative comic book artist who has a huge scope of work which ranges from reinventing Batman for the future to working with DKNY and Diesel. There's an obvious attraction for brands like these in working with someone like Pope who is a key player in the avant-garde, underground cool culture which their consumers are part of, or aspire to be involved in.

Paul Pope's work for DKNY (image from blog.youworkforthem.com)

Diesel celebrated SS07 fashion week in New York by commissioning Pope to create silk screen manga-like installations for their windows rather than the usual mannequins. The characters were all decked out for their adventures in Diesel looks. 

Paul Pope working on his Diesel screens (from comicsbeat.com)

5. DAN CLOWES

John could not praise the work of Clowes enough, telling me "the final panel of Ice Haven (Clowes 2005 graphic novel) is just amazing. I'm still trying to live up to it". In 2000, a strip from Clowes' Ghost World was used as an ad for Comme des Garcons. I think this might be my favourite- it's so simple yet says so much. John calls it "Goosebumps". Ghost World was made into a film in 2001 starring Scarlett Johannsson, her first ever film.

Dan Clowes for Comme des Garcon (image from Joh Dunning)

Finally, John has let FEAL have a sneak peak at Dead Cheerleader- a comic which he is working on with illustrator Fay Dalton who seems to be one of those rare (in John's words!) comic enthusiasts who lists fashion as a main inspiration.  John and Fay may or may not realise this, but Dead Cheerleader goes perfectly with the dark girl goth which is simmering around AW12. As soon as I saw the images I thought of Christopher Kane and his references to the shiny fabric they line coffins with. 

Christopher Kane AW12- very Dead Cheerleader (image from catwalking.com)

PORT ELIOT: A FASHION DOLL'S TEA PARTY HOSTED BY SARAH MOWER

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

Rare is the festival where there is a corner so civilised that it is worthy to play host to the treasured childhood dolls of fashion's great and good. Port Eliot house is nestled at the bottom of the valley where the festival takes place and is open throughout to offer festival goers an antedote to tent and field based activities.  Thus, its Dining Room was the ideal setting for an auspicious gathering of Barbies, Sindys, Kens and traditional dolls owned and much loved by the likes of Viktor&Rolf, Simone Rocha and Lady Amanda Harlech. There are few with the cachet to persuade designers and fashion luminaries to allow their treasured possessions to go on a little trip to the country but luckily Sarah Mower, who came up with the whole idea and is the festival's fashion curator, and LOVE magazine editor Alex Fury were on hand to prise the dolls from their owners' hands for a few days of tea partying. 

It seems almost obvious that a fashion designer might begin their career making clothes for dolls. After all, our childhood toys are what we use to act out our fantasies of adulthood, giving them the lives and looks which we on some level aspire to- I remember that I would ensure all my dolls had nicely plaited hair and pretty party dresses before lining them up in neat rows in my bed to be taught by me in the role of teacher or to go on imaginary trips to the zoo (my brother's farmyard animal collection) and model in fashion shows. For an aspiring designer, the doll is an ideal canvas to begin on- take Erdem Moralioglu who was "violently jealous" of his twin Sara's Skipper Barbie, which had "a flatter chest and bigger shoulders" than the Barbie Bride Sara previously had. Erdem kidnapped Skipper Barbie whilst his sister was at Brownies and "got hold of this cheap-y blue polyester , and fashioned a circle skirt from it and put it over her head", he then got his Mum to help him make a strapless bustier- "very Spring/Summer". Whether that has anything to do with the fact that he's now a very successful fashion designer is anyone's guess.

The" cheap polyester" dress which Erdem made when he was five, and a dress
 from his AW12 collection in Barbie size.  

Many of the stories which Sarah, Alex and their team of curators (Jess Dubeck and Ben Evans) unearthed as they collected designers' dolls were far more extraordinary than them simply being childhood toys. In fact, this tea party was such an insight that I reckon the V&A would be mad not to hound Sarah and Alex until they agreed to host the same tea party, or even an expanded version, as an exhibition in the capital so that even more people could realise that the power of the doll is far more than a mere plaything. These are some of my favourite stories....

CHRISTOPHER KANE

The line-up of Chris Kane Barbies is a mini retrospective of his work to date. That's because a member of Chris's team recreates a look from each season in Barbie form as a record of the collection. They do it rather speedily too because Resort '13 already has its own outfit (far left). 

ALBER ELBAZ

It was Alber Elbaz's story which sparked Sarah's idea to host a Fashion Doll's Tea party. And it doesn't even involve dolls but a distinct lack thereof. Elbaz's family were too poor to afford toys for him and so he took the ingenious approach of dressing the figures on the family's chess board. Elbaz describes how he would "use my Father's silver cigarette paper, and use flowers and sequins, and stick hair on their heads with a piece of chewing gum". Decades later, Elbaz has an endless supply of real-life dolls in the form of Lanvin customers and models but has also created the Miss Lanvin dolls which perhaps go some way to making up for his doll-free childhood. The chess set which appeared at the tea party is one he recreated especially for Port Eliot. The process made Elbaz reflect on his chess piece dressing and he remarks in the tea party notes "It made me think: maybe the best creativity comes out of lacking resources". I think it also shows that when something is innate- like his desire to dress and design- there will always be a way around it.

JASON WU

Jason Wu's doll connection is probably the strongest of them all and he probably wouldn't be where he is today if it weren't for his love of doll dressing. He describes how "at the age of sixteen, while at boarding school in Connecticut, I decided to call the president of Integrity toys offering them my sketches, astonishingly they offered me a job designing for their fashion dolls. A year later, I was named Creative Director, then partner. Both positions I still hold today and am extremely proud of". In fact, Wu has financed his label through the money he makes designing for Integrity, meaning that without dolly fashion, he may not be doing real lady fashion now. 

SARAH BURTON AT ALEXANDER MCQUEEN

A doll version of a piece from Lee McQueen's final, posthumous collection

The dolls sent by McQueen's Sarah Burton do not have so much of a childhood resonance but represent a key stage in house's design process which began with the Plato's Atlantis collection of SS10. Each season, McQueen's famously tailored and complex shapes are engineered in doll form before being scaled up when perfect to human size. This reminded of the way that Vionnet would do all her groundwork on mini mannequins. It's not a practise unique to Burton and her team, but the dolls looked like works of art in their own right, especially as the paper dresses they have were printed with the patterns which would eventually make up the final dress. 

Lulu Kennedy's rabbits, Paul and Amanda, would be entertained by Lulu and her little brother dressed as pirates or gypsies for hours on end.

Giles Deacon sent dolls he made, dressed in miniature versions of dresses from his AW12 collection...

Simone Rocha's doll attends the tea party, complete with scars from being thrown down banisters by her loving owner.

Tallulah Harlech's Barbie with her Mother Lady Amanda's dolls

Sarah Mower at one of the first doll's parties she curated 

With such a prestigious group of dollies in attendance, this had to be a truly spectacular party. So set designer Michael Howells, who also curated the flower show at the festival and has decorated the house's chandeliers with feathers and dried flowers, scattered sweeties amid sets of doll's china to create the perfect backdrop for proceedings. The pièce de résistance was the doll's house which Sarah Mower spotted in the window of the Trinity Hospice charity shop in Kensington.

Sarah sent us this photo of (left to right) Hannah Lambert (her assistant),
Jingle-Jangle James, Meggie and designer Louise Gray beside the main table at the tea party

And Sarah couldn't get away with not inviting her very own doll. She sits, dressed in a paisley dress and knitted knickers made by Sarah's fashion loving grandmother, Maisie- the doll is named after her.  Maisie sits centre stage with Tammy Kane's (sister and business partner of Christopher) doll who is called Toni Bonnie Bella- Tammy has recently had a baby called Bonnie, perhaps named after the doll?

SUMMER SAMPLE SALE EXCITEMENT!

Posted by Melanie Rickey, Fashion Editor at Large

OK, its hot and its payday week. What better reason do you need than to go buy some amazing summer fashion? I've got a reason: sample sales. The five best possible sample sales EVER in my humble opinion are on this week in London.

UPDATE:... TODAY 10am-7pm....Zadig and Voltaire at 182 Westbourne Grove, W11 2RH


Here they are:

MCQUEEN 

ALEXANDER MCQUEEN: Tues 29th May (12-9pm), 30th May (10am- 9pm), 31st May (10am-9pm) and 1st June (10am-8pm) at TheWestminster Rooms, The Old Sessions House, 22 Clerkenwell Green, EC1R 0NA

KANE 

CHRISTOPHER KANE: 31st May at The Mercer Street Studios, WC2E 9QE with prices starting at £5. 

ERDEM

ERDEM: Tues 29 May (9am-8pm) & Wed 30th May (9am-6pm) at Future Gallery, Covent Garden. AW11 & previous seasons + accessories

J.W 

J.W ANDERSON: June 1, 5-9pm, 73-75 Shacklewell Lane, Studio A007, E8. Cash only.

Oh and one for luck: 

JOSEPH: 

Tues 29th May (10am-9pm) and Weds 30th May (10am-8pm) at The Music Rooms 29, South Molton Lane- Alaia, Lanvin, Balenciaga, Givenchy, Celine and more at 80% off!!!!