Yikes!

Image courtesy of Stylelite

"Earlier this week we reported Daphne Guinness's reasoning for stopping the Christie's Isabella Blow auction of Blow’s most prized belongings — most notably over 90 Alexander McQueen dresses. Guinness simply found it soon to commercialize her late best friends’ lives.

We wonder what Ms. Guinness would think of Selfridges recent window display in Manchester. The window display shows a recognizably Alexander McQueen design hanging from a flood light on some sort of industrial structure. And yes, the operative word in that sentence is “hanging.”

What on earth was the visual team at Selfridges thinking? Anything having McQueen’s name on it should still, at this point, be treated with the highest level of sensitivity. This display screams thoughtlessness and disrespect for the late designer whose tragic cause of death was suicide by hanging.

How long do you give it until the Selfridges team, tail between legs, realizes their err and disassembles the window display? We’re shooting for under a week."

source

I think that in all actuality, Selfridges did not intend to invoke the representation of Alexander McQueen's recent suicide by intentionally hanging his clothing on display.

Hooooowever, I think the display itself was done in poor taste, and somewhere, some little marketing moron is wondering how they didn't see this reaction coming...

RIP, McQueen. You were a fierce bitch, baby.

Street Style and Paris Fashion Week

I am currently obsessed with the following two blogs:

Beyond Boston Chic

Easy Paris

I love street style, particularly here. I frequently find myself doing double takes in this city, because Boston has a really unique sense of style. There's something about it that just grabs me: vaguely reminiscent of Jackie Kennedy, but just edgy enough to allow for a studded cuff, some insanely intricate chandeliers, or (be still my racing heart!) some gladiatrix stilettos. Many a late night ride on the T has resulted in me looking like a creeper, because women in amazing outfits get on and suddenly I'm staring at Girl #1's pink patent d'Orsay pumps or Girl #2's LBD.

But Paris...Paris is the creme de la creme, if you'll excuse the expression. It is AMAZING. There's something about fashion and the French that have always just gone hand-in-hand. It's nearly a universally accepted given that "chic" is in their blood. Everywhere you look, you see gorgeous women and men in the most unbelievable clothing. It's completely effortless and pulled together, and it is pure artistic brilliance.

Karen over at Where Did U Get That? has a fabulous street style blog that does a great job of capturing her unique sense of English funk. I'd love to run into her sometime and get a look up close. She's so damn cool.

Street blogs do a great job of finding the best looks on the street, and presenting them in a media that allows people to experience innovation in fashion. Not just anyone gets a pass to Paris Fashion Week, but anyone can read a blog and find inspiration in the attire of a complete stranger.

It certainly inspires me to dress myself up :)

Speaking of Paris Fashion Week, Valentino presented his 2010/2011 collection last night at Versailles. I honestly can't imagine a more impressive runway than the beautifully crafted Hall of Mirrors. Unfortunately, the collection itself left a lot to be desired, at least in my opinion. I found it to be drab, uninspired, and a little dated. I know fashion is cyclical, but the mid-60's wasn't really a great look for anyone; I'd suggest leaving that particular era alone.

But feel free to judge for yourself.

Galliano, however, killed it when he debuted Dior's collection on Sunday (video).

I love Galliano. No one this eccentric could do anything BUT make beautiful clothing. Love love love him.

Yeah, he's on a horse. He means business.

I'm really excited to see what comes down the runway when Chanel and Givenchy present their respective lines this coming week. I have the feeling I'll be wiping copious amounts of drool off my keyboard, but hey, what can ya do?

Luxury vs. Budget

Love luxury goods, but maybe not the price tag? Chances are, if you can google that latest fashion craving, you can find an equally nice, significantly cheaper alternative. As much as I love me some Givenchy, my bank account doesn't. And until teachers start making commissions, I'll just have to lust over my newest bag obsession from afar.


Luxury:

Givenchy Melancholia bag with studded shoulder strap in black leather
Buy it
$1,715.00

Splurge:

Matt and Nat vegan leather with chain strap
Buy it
$185.00

Budget:

BCBGenerations black studded purse with grommets
Buy it
$69.99

Crystal Renn: a Cautionary Tale, or just stretched too thin?

If you're not familiar with Crystal Renn, allow me to give a bit of background information first.

Crystal Renn started modeling at the age of 14, and very quickly fell into the abyss that is Body Dysmorphia Disorder (the self-perception of an imperfect body).

At the beginning of her caeer, her management famously told her to lose a third of her body weight, which she did. This drastic weight loss wreaked havoc on her physical and emotional health. Eventually, the stress of maintaining a model thin physique wore her down. She snapped and gained 70 lbs, remarketing herself as a "plus-size model" (a dirty word when the average plus-size model is still only a very average size 10) and wrote a book entitled Hungry: A Young Model's Appetite, Ambition, and Embrace of Curves.



She made a killing for herself as a plus-size model, posing in campaigns for Mango, Torrid, Heatherette, and Lane Bryant, as well as walking the runway for Jean-Paul Gaultier and Chanel. She even did four stints in Vogue (a magazine famous for it's campaign to eradicate the idea of average sized women). She was happy, successful in an industry that prizes thinness above everything else, and raking in the dough. This is a woman who knew how to market and capitalize on her curves.

Until this.

And very recently, Crystal Renn appeared in a photoshoot for photographer Nicholas Routzen's campaign for children and the arts.

Looking like this:

Photo: Nicholas Routzen

I could offer my own opinions on Crystal's drastic weight loss, but this quote from the article says it better than I could:

"Normally stories about a famous woman's weight fluctuations — damned if they lose, damned if they gain — just seem unfair. It's unsettling to read the same kind of things about Crystal Renn, too, but sadly, a model's career is so traditionally tied to her size and shape that if she is losing weight, it might affect her bookings. While Renn's curves are what made her successful, models are traditionally rewarded for being thin. It's unclear whether a plus-size model as famous as Renn would likewise be rewarded for weight loss, but hopefully she has no reason to try. It would be nice for any model's weight fluctuations, no matter what size she makes it big at, to not dramatically affect her work, and for stories like these not to be stories."

Looking at these photos, I do worry that Crystal Renn is actively destroying the causes of her success. It's normal for weight to fluctuate, and obviously it's good for your health to lose some weight when you're a bigger person. But to alter your body so drastically, in so short a period of time, when it's the reason why you've gained so much cred and clout, calls into question not only your intentions, but the state of your health as well.

Clearly, I don't know Crystal Renn personally, so it's a bit unfair of me to call her judgment into question. I don't know what caused this drastic weight loss. I just find it disconcerting.