THE WEEK IN FASHION: OCTOBER 10th-14th

Posted by Fashion Junior at Large

The Week in Fashion is back after its fashion week hiatus - it simply wouldn't have been able to keep up with all the excitement but is now raring to go again, bringing you all you need to know each and every Friday. This week we bring you images from the Frieze Art Fair, gross feet and we congratulate Sarah Mower MBE, recognised for her Services to Fashion. 

SARAH MOWER MBE
While Sarah's journalism career is stellar, it was in fact her contribution to the NEWGEN program and role as Ambassador for Emerging Talent that earned her the MBE.It is worth noting Sarah has transformed the global reputation of London Fashion Week since 2004 when she decided as she says "to become a botherer, and get young talented recognised and supported". Young designers who have been talent-spotted and/or nurtured by Sarah almost always go on to great things. See Christopher Kane, Roksanda Ilincic, Erdem, Louise Gray, Holly Fulton, Meadham Kirchhoff, Jonathan Saunders, Richard Nicoll and so on... Onto the party now, hosted by Sarah and the British Fashion Council.

Sarah Mower MBE with Melanie Rickey (aka FashEd). Sarah is wearing a coat made for her by Christopher Kane straight from the runway of his SS12 show

Sarah's MBE (via @_lulukennedy)  

Sarah and Chris Kane

Sarah receives her MBE from The Queen at Buckingham Palace (Image from  metro.co.uk)

(To see the full set of photographs of the night go here)

Photographs: Christopher James

NOW ONTO FRIEZE ART FAIR...

Leila Lavari from StyleBop.com at Frieze in the Isabel Marant navajo cardigan everybody wants (Image from telegraph.co.uk)

On Wednesday, the Fash Ed and I both visited the Frieze Art Fair at various stages of the day. We came back having enjoyed the art, of course, but also buzzing with the fashion spying opportunities on offer, Rick Owens here, Maison Margiela there, Christopher Kane everywhere. I was very excited to spot Tracey Emin and see some of her latest work. The FashEd attended a brunch hosted by Cos in the Frame section which they sponsor, showcasing the work of up and coming artists. Here a few of her favourite pieces from the exhibit...

We're still getting over Dasha Zhukova's inaugural Garage magazine cover (the Damien Hirst peel away butterfly, lest you forget), and this week the girlfriend of Roman Abramovich has supported her man by wearing a quite beautiful Louis Vuitton outfit for the court battle between her boyfriend and fellow Russian billionaire Boris Berezovsky. If the case were judged solely on the fashionableness of the participants' ladies then Abramovich would still be in possession of his £3.2 million right now but as it stands there is a load of legal wrangling to be getting on with.

Dasha arrives at court in Vuitton (image from dailymail.co.uk)

 I did bring you the news that this was on the cards, but it has now been officially confirmed that next year's Met exhibit will be a comparison of the work of Miuccia Prada and Elsa Schiaparelli. To add further creative juices to the mix, Baz Luhrmann will be overseeing the retrospective. The opening gala will be co-hosted by Carey Mulligan who is currently working with Luhrmann on filming for The Great Gatsby. And, by the by, Tiffany will be providing all the jewels for the Gatsby movie. We feel a major fashion moment coming on.

The image which Baz Luhrmann released to announce Carey Mulligan's role as Daisy Buchanan (from deadline.com)

Alexander Wang has been on the peripheries of the fashion who'll-go-where-and-when saga for some time now since his name was thrown into the Dior hat. This week he told WWD:

“I always take a meeting and I always want to hear what people have to offer, but at the same time, I’ve been very content with focusing on our own brand,” he said. Wang said that if he took on an additional design gig, it would have to be something outside his comfort zone.
“If I was to do something else, I would want to do something that would be completely different from me,” he said, adding: “Sometimes you don’t get to say all you want to say in your brand.”

We could fill a book (has someone thought of doing that?!) with all the possibly relevant, yet probably irrelevant, comments we've heard in the past months but you never know.

Wang does his happy end of show bow back in 2010, now there are rumours he's moving beyond his own brand (image from harpersbazaar.com)

You have probably gathered that fashion month plays havoc with the skin, diets and general routines of all those that attend but today we ask you to take a moment to consider the humble feet of fashion show attendees and models alike. In Paris, the dust of the walk to the Tuileries has ruined the heavily invested in shoes of many a blogger/ photographer/ editor. This phenomenon was well documented on twitter, see exhibit A below. Models are no luckier; these shocking pictures of the feet of Sojourner Morrell, who walked in some of the biggest shows of the season from Marc Jacobs to Jonathan Saunders to Louis Vuitton, are one of the most extreme examples of the injuries which walking in sample heels every day for nearly a month can do. Any aspiring models, look away now...

The scourge of 'Tuileires feet' as tweeted by @candicelake

Ouch! (Image from refinery29.com)

Finally, much love for the new Sir Paul and Lady McCartney a.k.a Nancy Shevell who had a lovely looking wedding last Sunday. Fashion pundits have already said that the fact that the dress was designed by Paul's daughter Stella is the way we know this one will last; the last time Sir Paul got married, the bride did NOT wear McCartney. Sometimes a dress can speak a thousand words...

The official wedding portrait, captured by Mary McCartney (image from dailymail.co.uk)

THE WEEK IN FASHION: AUGUST 29th-SEPTEMBER 2nd

Posted by Fashion Junior at Large

Hello there, fashion lovers and welcome once again to our weekly round-up of all the goings-on this week.

First up, this is practically ancient news now but Beyoncé is pregnant! She chose the VMA awards and a Dolce and Gabbana tuxedo to reveal the news. As her performance ended and she undid her jacket to show off her bump (encased in stretchy waistbanded trousers!), twitter records were broken with 8,900 tweets being posted per second.

Sequins and stretchy waitstband, oh the glamour (image from nymag.com)

While we're in congratulatory mood, we must mention the Venetian wedding of Sofia Coppola and Thomas Mars. The acclaimed director looked a vision of lilac loveliness in her Alaia dress- a lesson in offbeat bridal if ever there were one. 

Sofia Coppola with new husband Thomas Mars (Images from stylefrizz.com)

The cover of Dasha Zhukova's debut issue of Garage magazine (via The Guardian)

When launching a new magazine, one needs to get it talked about. Everyone knows that. However, in my memory no-one has done it quite like this before. The cover is a naked girl with a Damien Hirst butterfly sticker covering her parts.  "Peel slowly and see," reads the cover line. And when you do, there is her labia tattooed with a butterfly, its abdomen formed by her pudendal cleft," reported the Guardian today.

The Guardian continues: "Titled Butterfly Divided, it is one of a series of tattoos by famous artists (all men, sigh), including the Chapman Brothers and Jeff Koons, inked onto volunteers (Hirst's "canvas" is 23-year-old Londoner, Shauna Taylor). The works play on notions of who owns the art and what it's worth, while referencing tattooing's popularity reaching saturation point. Asked why she agreed to the tattoo, Taylor answered: "Not one single person can ever say they gave birth through a Damien Hirst piece of art. I can [if I ever give birth]." !!!!  Its not everyday you read a quote like that.

The real Wallis Simpson in the late 1930s

We tipped you off a little while ago about Wallis Simpson as a key style reference for FW11.Yesterday, Madonna's highly anticipated film exploring the life of the American socialite (played by Andrea Riseborough) had its premiere at the Venice Film Festival. While the film itself has received mixed reviews, the costumes, by Arianne Phillips, have been declared an indubitable success. Another very valid reason for a cinema trip is the appearence of James D'Arcy who cuts quite a dash as Edward. Madonna looked rather fab in her custom Vionnet gown, while Andrea was clearly so fed up of her Wallis look (close to the body, tailored, streamlined) that she decided to go for Princess-y froth in Dior couture. 

Andrea Riseborough in Dior (telegraph.co.uk)

Madonna in custom Vionnet with matchy sunnies. I love these colours (telegraph.co.uk)

As we gear up for the beginning of the Fashion Week season, we are happy to learn that Helmut Lang, purveyors of minimal luxe-grunge, are to show for the first time since 2007. Though we have to say, that just for minute there, we thought that the man himself Mr Helmut Lang, still one of the most influential designers that ever breathed despite the fact he retired to the Hamptons in 2005, was coming back to New York fashion week. That really would be something.

Anyway, the show will take place in New York on 10th September and will also be shown live on HelmutLang.com. In other New York Fashion Week related news, due to Hurricane Irene, Marc Jacobs has pushed back his show to 8.30pm on 15th September which is just hours before London kicks off. Not good for London Fashion Week at all. There are going to be some very jet-lagged fashion people zombie-ing about the first few days of London.

Helmut Lang Resort 2012 (Style.com)

Do you love Valentino? Do you love musicals? If the answer was yes to either of those then you will be happy to hear that there are plans for 'Valentino- The Musical', we kid you not! We thoroughly enjoyed the documentary, 'The Last Emperor' which followed the Italian design veteran in the lead-up to his retirement, but a musical? We are reserving judgement.

Valentino in publicity shots for The Last Emperor (Image from www.cbc.ca)

It's Friday and not so long since pay day, therefore there is no excuse not to pop into Topshop Oxford Circus to peruse Susie Lau's Edited selection which launches today. Her choices represent her personal highlights of Topshop's current offering and will be available for two weeks in the special Edited area of the store; a bit of a haven from the mad rush of frenzied shoppers. Topshop's Manchester store also has an Edited space so you can see Susie's picks if you're near there too. For an insight into her favourite books, music and some of the looks she has put together, take a look at Topshop's very own blog.

Susie Style Bubble modelling her Topshop Edited choices. Gorgeous! (Image courtesy of Topshop)

I'm currently on a bit of a roll with coffee table book buying, even though I don't have a coffee table.Anyway, Carine Roifeld's Irreverant is sure to  be an addition to the pile when it's released on October 18th. In the meantime, some teaser images have been released. It looks to us like this is an amalgamation of all Ms. Roitfeld's souvenirs and highlights from her time as Editor-in-Chief of French Vogue, an absolute treat for the those hungry for insider snippets from the closeted world of high fashion.

Dear Carine (Image from telegraph.co.uk)

Young Carine (Image from telegraph.co.uk)

 'The Great Gatsby' which is described by The Times on the back cover of my copy as 'a timeless evocation of the allure, corruption and carelessness of wealth', is having a bit of a moment. Kate Moss is known to be a great fan; her recent wedding took inspiration from the world depicted by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Next week, Baz Luhrmann will begin filming his version with a stellar cast including Leonardo DiCaprio, Carey Mulligan, Tobey Maguire and, reportedly, Gemma Ward. No doubt it will be a beauty with Kate Moss first in line to watch.

Robert Redford and Mia Farrow in The Great Gatsby film in 1974

And finally, we are still loving the Lanvin film we shared with you earlier in the week. By the looks of Twitter, many of you are a bit addicted too. Well, this film, The Wanderer, shot for Dior Homme by Willy Vandeperre is the antithesis, but just as worthy of a look. It's a bit dark, very atmospheric and very cool.