Get Your (Fashion) Game On

I like playing games just as much as the next fashion addict and now I finally have a few games that speak to my fashion senses and competitive ways. Here are 2 of my favorites!

Clue Juicy Couture - You've been summonded by her Majesty Juicy Couture for an exclusive Fashion show "preview" of the new spring line only to arrive and find that an essential part of the new Juicy Line is missing! Is it an act of sabotage? You must discover WHAT couture item in the line was stolen, WHO took it, and WHERE the item is hidden before the fashion show begins the next day! Do you have the sweet smarts to solve the crime of couture and save the show? 

Sephora Monopoly - If you love cosmetics then check out the Sephora edition of Monopoly. You'll go to jail for back hair days, advance to win shopping sprees and pay for products with Beauty Bucks. Love. 

CBS Plans Fashion Night Out Documentary

CBS will soon begin filming an hour-long documentary about the next Fashion’s Night Out which will take place in September of 2010. Footage will include a look behind-the-scenes at the preparations and the logistics that go into planning the event, plus coverage of the event itself once in September. The program will air on CBS on Wednesday, Sept. 15th, at 8 p.m. Set your TIVO now!

Fashion’s Night Out was launched by the Council of Fashion Designers of America, Vogue and NYC & Co. to help stimulate retail and the fashion industry during the recession.

“When discussions began, it became clear that Fashion’s Night Out really was this fascinating event. While the country was bailing out everybody on Wall Street, nobody was really looking at fashion, retail and design, which constitutes a huge portion of the population,” CBS producer Susan Zirinksy told Women’s Wear Daily, “To be able to increase the visibility of an event like this on a national level is tremendous, because even though it already launched globally, I feel this will give people ideas for their own cities.” (Mike McGinn, are you listening?)

According to a Fashion’s Night Out statement, the program will look “beyond the glamour to the real-life implications at stake” by focusing “on the individuals working in all parts of the industry, from salespeople to design staff, for whom the vibrancy of the fashion business is a question of economic survival.”

Spring 2010 Shopping List

The clouds are parting and it's almost time for spring which inevitably means: spring shopping!!! Here's a shopping list of key trends from a recent Fashion Group International Spring '10 trend event.

Craftsmanship- Draping, ruffling, ruching, pleating, etc. These forms of fabric manipulation were all part of the new interest in craftsmanship. Even cashmere was shown in crinkled form at some of the shows.  

Born in the USA- Denim made a strong statement at the Spring 10 shows at Ralph Lauren, Jean Paul Gaultier, and D&G. It was even seen in the form of a denim fanny pack at D&G.  

Military, Utility, Sport- Epaulettes are key in this trend. From Dior’s trench jackets to Balmain’s Military Inspired Casual Jackets. The whole concept of “Tough Clothes for Tough Times” was seen on many runways including workshirts, leather t-shirts, functional leather dresses, multi-pocketed jackets, and cargos.  

Lingerie- Underwear is now outerwear for Spring 10 as seen at Gaultier, Dolce & Gabbana and Bottega Veneta.  

Transparency- The sheer trend is still in. Chiffon, Tulle, Lace and Netting were big at many shows including Chanel, Valentino, Jil Sander and Sonja Rykiel.  

Color- Neutrals are big for spring including khakis, shades of ivory, and nudes. Pop colors for spring include teal and coral red.  

Graphic Prints- Animal prints, tribal prints, engineered prints, florals, stripes, checks and ink blots were all runway-ready for Spring 10.  

Volume- Bigger is better is the key to the season. Oversized dresses, relaxed pants, full skirts and oversized details. But this trend is also in contrast to the tight, bondage looks seen at Emanuel Ungaro, or the tight, narrow leather pants seen at Balenciaga.  

Any Length Goes- There are many lengths for spring 10 when it comes to skirts and dresses from micro mini leather skirts as seen at Versace, to mid-thigh dresses, or dresses that hang mid-calf. Shorts are also the new minis. Shorts were all over the runway from dressy to casual.  

Hair & Make-Up- There are 2 main looks for Spring 10. Either important eyes and disappearing lips, OR important lips and disappearing eyes/eyebrows. Dior had models in red lips, dramatic eyes and perfectly coifed hair inspired by January Jones of “Mad Men”.  

 Accessories- Belts are big (and little). Flats are back. Platforms are in (but at less dangerous heights) and the kitten heel was big (as seen at Missoni, Marni and Louis Vuitton). Clutches were seen in bright colors and sheer socks with sandals were seen on multiple runways.

William Rast Unveils Footwear

Just a month after unveiling an eyewear collection in partnership with Viva International Group, William Rast introduced a collection of footwear as part of it's Fall NY Fashion Week presentation. The collection compliments the clothing in the fall line and styles include boots and wedges with price points between $248-$449.

"We felt that footwear was natural for us," says William Rast CEO Colin Dyne. He estimated that non-apparel items including eyewear, shoes and eventually handbags could encompass 50-70% of the brands revenue in the future.

And as far as growth is concerned, William Rast plans to open 40-50 stores in the next 3 years across the U.S. including Dallas, San Diego and Miami.

British GQ Announces Kurt Geiger Collaboration

OMG, yes, it’s true. My fave footwear designer Kurt Geiger has recently announced a special promotion with GQ Magazine which will put special giftcards into the March issues of GQ. The cards will come pre-loaded with £15 to spend in any Kurt Geiger boutique in England. In addition, ten randomly selected cards have been pre-loaded with £1000.

GQ is currently the only menswear mag to produce an annual shoe guide, The Ultimate GQ Guide to Shoes, in association with Kurt Geiger. Rounding up the best footwear, from the big designers to the High Street, GQ selects the must-have investments, picks socks with real appeal, and interviews today's most influential designers. The supplement also highlights some of the most significant designer collaborations, where Britain's traditional shoemakers have joined forces with cool fashion houses to come up with interesting projects.

Dylan Jones, Editor of GQ, commented on the partnership with Kurt Geiger, "Whether you top up the card and gift it on, or spend it on yourself, there's no excuse not to indulge in some serious shoe shopping,” said GQ Editor, Dylan Jones.

About Kurt Geiger
Kurt Geiger is Europe's largest luxury shoe retailer with five own label brands – Kurt Geiger, KG by Kurt Geiger, Carvela, Solea and Fashionistas – and over 70 luxury brands in its portfolio, including Gucci, Prada, Christian Louboutin, Jimmy Choo, Dolce & Gabbana, Paul Smith and Church's.

About GQ
GQ is the UK's biggest selling quality men's magazine. Part of the Condé Nast stable - who also publish titles Vogue, Wired, Glamour and Vanity Fair. The magazine is recognized as the authority on men's fashion and style.

Noteworthy Fashion News

• Miu Miu plans to open a Shanghai boutique in April. The boutique will be opened in the American-owned Shanghai Center which currently houses brands including Salvatore Ferragamo, Marc Jacobs and Stefano Ricci. Tom Ford is rumored to also be eyeing a space in the same shopping complex. Miu Miu opened it’s first China location last year in Shenzhen. 
  

• The Sonia Rykiel Pour H&M collection will hit stores February 20th. Items include dresses for $39.95, tunics for $49.95, sweaters for $49, and blazers for $69.95. There will also be mini versions of the women’s styles available in girls sizes 8 months to 8 years. 
  

• Women have thousands of beauty sites to turn to for products and now men finally have one too! Bellevue based Drugstore.com recently launched a health and grooming site called “At His Best”.com. The product mix blends drugstore and department store brands on everything from shampoo, to skincare and shaving products. 
  

• Forever 21 is buying out old Mervyn’s store locations to open new, expanded stores that encompass 85,000+ square feet of retail selling space. The larger store format will allow Forever 21 to expand select categories including lingerie, swimwear, shoes and even plus-size merchandise. The first large store format to open will be in Los Cerritos, California and include Forever 21’s first ever children’s wear collection. The chain plans to open at least 30 more large concept stores at various locations including Times Square and Las Vegas. 
  

• Reebok has partnered with Emporio Armani to launch a co-branded collection titled EA7. The line made it’s debut at Armani’s Fall fashion show in Milan and will be available in July for retail sale at Emporio Armani boutiques and select Reebok concept store locations. 

• NY Fashion week ends on Thursday with and London Fashion Week begins on Friday. Click here for a London fashion week schedule. Click here for a recap of the Fall 2010 trends from NY Fashion Week. 

Joe's Jeans to Open Outlets

Joe's Jeans plans to open 9 outlet locations in various Simon's Premium Outlet Centers across the country.  "Pursuing company-owned outlet stores allows us to control our off-price distribution," Joe's Jeans President and CEO Marc Crossman told Women's Wear Daily in a recent interview. The outlet locations will push the total number of Joe's Jean stores to 15. Outlet store locations include Las Vegas, Seattle, Carlsbad, Cabazon, Wrentham, Houston, Leesburg, Dawsonville, and Cincinnati.

During the 2009 fiscal year Joe's Jeans reported an annual income of $80.1 million. Company officials contributed the overall success to the introduction of unisex woven shirts which retail for $98 and the popularity of Joe's Jean denim leggings which retail for $100.

Fall 2010 Trends

Just this past week Seattle’s Fashion Group International did a presentation of Spring 2010 trends so that members of the fashion industry and shoppers alike could recap the trends in anticipation of the upcoming shopping season. Now the fashion industry is showing Fall ’10 collections and it’s interesting to see the carry over between Fall 2009 and the transition of Spring 2010. Many items from last fall have carried over with updates to this fall and on that same note, many items from Spring 2010 (which were inevitably carried over from Fall 2009) now make a recurring appearance for Fall 2010.

Leather and trench coats were among the key items for Spring 2010 and the trend was carried over into fall at Charlotte Ronson’s show when she showed a combination of the two in a beautiful leather trench coat.

Black and white themes as seen in Spring 2010 will continue to be popular for fall as seen at BCBG Max Azria.

And from head to toe at Helmut Lang.

A fall favorite- chunky sweaters were a major part of the Rag & Bone Collection from the traditional button-up to vests, gloves, dresses, and skirts.

Loving the collar detail as seen at Helmut Lang.

All over prints are still all over the runway for Fall 2010. Nicole Miller opted for an all-over print mini dress in a black, white and grey color story.

Helmut Lang played with graphic prints in this pretty dress with a beautiful drape.

A mismatch of prints is also a popular trend for Fall from plaids to stripes and florals. Charlotte Ronson paired a striped shirt with floral harem pants.

A total mismatch as seen at Peter Som.

Military influences are still important as seen in Fall 2009 and Spring 2010. Charlotte Ronson tapped the trend with a khaki camp shirt for day.

Rag & Bone opted for camo military jacket.

And Vivienne Tam chose a belted military-inspired jacket.

Followed by this rendition at Philosophy paired with a sheer glittery skirt.

Not usually considered a fall item, shorts were seen on the runway for Fall 2010 in the form of black dress shorts with a bow belt detail paired with a turtle neck and a grey overcoat also at Charlotte Ronson.

Or paired with tights and a top hat as seen at Alice + Olivia.

Fall is ripe for Special Occasion gowns and Jason Wu opted for playful romance in this Alice in Wonderland inspired gown. I love the length and the volume.

Or for a heavy dose of drama how about this beautiful Christian Siriano silk gown.

Tomorrow’s shows include Zac Posen, Carolina Herrera, Jill Stuart, Tracy Reese, Donna Karan and Perry Ellis. Stay tuned for more!

*All photos are from Style.com

Net-A-Porter Relaunches Wedding Boutique

On February 16th, Net-a-Porter.com will relaunch it's full-service wedding boutique, which is back by popular demand. Bridal offerings will feature gowns by Lanvin, Stella McCartney and Valentino, custom shoes by Alexander McQueen, Christian Louboutin and Jimmy Choo, plus designer attire for members of the bridal party and wedding guests. Same-day delivery service will be available for customers in London and New York via messenger service. Buying Director Holli Rogers describes it as a “one-stop-shop for busy brides-to-be."

Burberry Goes 3D

Burberry will stream it’s fall 2010 runway show live on February 23rd in 3D in five major cities including New York, Paris, Tokyo, Los Angeles and Dubai. Burberry chief creative officer Christopher Bailey has arranged customizes screening spaces for select guests to view the runway show. This will be the first time a brand has broadcast live simultaneous events in 3D worldwide. Burberry will also stream the runway show live in 2D on live.burberry.com and allow viewers to comment on the show in real-time using their Facebook and Twitter accounts.

Burberry is expected to finish the 2009 fiscal year with sales of $285-$386 million. Stacey Cartwright, Burberry’s CEO said in an interview with WWD that marketing strategies including the London Fashion Week Show back in September and the launch of the Art Of the Trench Website has helped to drive company sales. The Art of the Trench website collates photographs of people from all around the world wearing Burberry's range of trench coats and allows viewers to comment and rate the images. The site has had over 5 million page views since it’s launch in November and this has helped drive traffic to the company's stores.

NY Fashion Weeks Starts Thursday

New York Fashion Week starts on Thursday and I can't wait to see what's in store for Fall 2010. 

Here's a run down of the Fashion Week Schedule:

Thursday, February 11th

• BCBG Max Azria
• Ports 1961
• La Perla
• Richard Chai

Friday, February 12th

• Michael Angel
• Christian Sirano
• Nicole Miller
• Charlotte Ronson

Saturday, February 13th

• Lacoste
• Georges Chakra
• Adam
• Twinkle by Wenlan
• Irina Shabayeva

Sunday, February 14th

• Lela Rose
• Luca Luca
• DKNY
• Rebecca Taylor
• Calvin Klein- Mens Collection
• DVF
• Y-3

Monday, February 15th

• Zac Posen
• Carolina Herrera
• Jill Stuart
• Tracy Reese
• Donna Karan
• Perry Ellis

Tuesday, February 16th

• Elie Tahari
• Badgley Mishka
• Max Azria
• Thuy
• Narcisco Rodriguez

Wednesday, February 17th

• Tory Burch
• Michael Kors
• Nanette Lepore
• 3.1 Phillip Lim
• Anna Sui

Thursday, February 18th 

• Ralph Lauren
• Issac Mizrahi
• Calvin Klein- Womens Collection
• J.Mendel
• Tommy Hilfiger

Fashion News: Parsons Launches MFA

This fall Parsons School of Design is launching a Master of Fine Arts program in Fashion Design and Society. “These new degree programs represent our school’s commitment to provide talented fashion students with the professional training and contextual understanding they need in order to excel today and in the future,” said Joel Towers, the Dean of Education at Parsons. The 2-year program aims to develop the next generation of fashion industry leaders and students will incorporate areas including film, photography, research and critical theory into their studies.

"Today, it is not enough for designers to possess strong design talent,” designer Donna Karan told Women’s Wear Daily. As a former Parsons alum she knows first-hand what it takes to succeed in the industry and the challenges designers may be faced with, “In order to succeed, you need a singular creative vision as well as a strong understanding of the economic, social, technological and cultural issues that influence fashion. The M.F.A. in Fashion Design and Society program was established to give young designers these advanced skills — no school is better positioned than Parsons to provide this holistic approach to design education.” 


For more information on the MFA program click here. 

Teen Vogue Launches iphone App

If you love fashion you have to check out Teen Vogue’s new fashion app, Haute Spot. The app allows users to scroll through clothing and accessories chosen by editors, save and share favorites, and publish personalized look-books. The app also has it’s own in social network that allows users to instantly share photos of their favorite outfits, celeb fashions, trends and “on the street” looks.


“We know our readers embrace digital technology as their primary means of communication - - and that they covet the latest fashions – so, the idea of an app that allows them to engage and share is a natural progression for our brand,” exclaimed Laura McEwen, Teen Vogue Publisher. “With the new app, Teen Vogue extends its brand beyond the printed page and caters to a vibrant audience of young women who are fashion forward, digitally savvy and fully engaged in social media.”

Additionally, to complement the iPhone app, Teen Vogue has created a Haute Spot Facebook application so girls can view their friends’ look-books and interact with the app’s content regardless of whether they have access to the app on an iPhone or iPod touch.

The app is available for download at the iTunes stores for $1.99.