Who's About To Take The Throne Over At Dior!!!

Fashion writer, Leah Chernikoff, tells us readers that...

"After months of speculation and rumors about who would replace John Galliano at Dior, the latest report from WWD has Marc Jacobs in talks to take over at the storied French house.



The news flies in the face of the most recent Dior rumors, which suggested that LVMH chair Bernard Arnault would install a lesser known designer at the helm. Of course, if Jacobs is appointed as creative director at Dior, he would vacate his post at Louis Vuitton, and a major reshuffling at LVMH would ensue. WWD is reporting that Phoebe Philo‘s massive success at Celine makes her the frontrunner to replace Jacobs at Louis Vuitton (not to fret, Philo-files, she will reportedly stay on as creative designer at Celine, too).



None of this is set in stone yet–neither Jacobs nor Dior have commented on the report and a source told WWD that “a deal with Jacobs is not assured, but that the American designer and Dior management are so far ‘excited’ about the prospect.” And while the rumors about Jacobs to Dior first surfaced on somewhat dubious Brazilian gossip site Glamurama, if it’s coming from fashion news bible WWD, and with such detail, the moves seems imminent. The article still mentions Givenchy designer Riccardo Tisci as a “dark horse” candidate though he was once rumored to be the top contender for the job.



With Louis Vuitton, Jacobs has proven that he can revive a brand, and with his own line, that he can set trends season after season. Above all, he always puts on a show (his last show for Vuitton saw models come out of old-timey hotel elevators, complete with doormen). WWD suggests that Jacobs’ star power could “eclipse Dior’s recent turmoil” which includes Galliano’s drama-filled firing after allegations of anti-Semitism and racism and subsequent trial.



Whatever happens, the spring shows next month in Paris will be that much more exciting to watch." - Fashionista.com

Dior's John Galliano gets questioned over racist remarks he made.

Amy Winehouse Lives On! And Not Just Her Musique...

Fashion writer, Leah Chernikoff, tells us readers that

"After Amy Winehouse’s tragic passing, we wondered about the fate of her collection with Fred Perry. She told Harper’s Bazaar back in October that she and Perry had designed through fall 2012 but when we asked Perry’s PR for comment they would only say that the collection was “on hold until we speak with Amy’s family and management” and would not comment further.



Perry has since spoken with Winehouse’s family and the label has announced plans to release the fall 2012 Amy Winhouse for Fred Perry collection and wholesale the spring 2012 collection, WWD is reporting.



“Amy was passionate and dedicated to the collaboration, and her signature style is clearly stamped across each piece,” Fred Perry said in a statement. Amy’s royalties and fees from the collections will be donated to the soon-to-be-created Amy Winehouse foundation and Fred Perry has said he will make a “seasonal donation” to the Foundation.”



In the same statement, Mitch Winehouse, Amy’s father, said “When Fred Perry came to us to ask what we would like to do with the new collection it was natural to continue…Amy loved working on both collections, and would want them to be made available. All the money we make and the donation that Fred Perry will give will go straight into to the Amy Winehouse Foundation, which we are setting up to help children and young people in her name.”



As celebrity design collabs go, Amy was extremely involved with her ’50s-influenced collection for the British high street retailer. “Amy gave crucial input on proportion, color and fit. The range clearly has Amy’s handwriting,” Perry’s marketing director, Richard Martin, told WWD last March. Take a look at her last collection for Perry here.



We look forward to seeing Winehouse’s posthumous collections for Perry and hope they’re sell-out successes. Will you buy a piece or two?" - Fashionista.com

Karl Lagerfeld's Entire Collection 4 Macy’s Has Been Unveiled!

According to Fashion writer, Leah Chernikoff,

"Finally, a look at Karl Lagerfeld‘s much-hyped capsule collection for Macy’s ‘Impulse’ department. Macy’s offered up a preview of the full line last night at a gallery space in SoHo wallpapered with black and white photos of the Kaiser looking awfully serious (as he usually does) and campaign images featuring the always-stunning Coco Rocha photographed by Lagerfeld in his library in Paris.

The 45 piece collection is comprised of flirty dresses–some feminine and floral, others crisper and more severe–thick tweedy separates (shorts and vests) and faux leather jackets. The simpler black and white dresses with sharp white collars stood out (they seemed the most Chanel-like) but my prediction is that the soft slouchy tees printed with Lagerfeld’s image, priced at $49, will fly off the racks.

“To me Macy’s is the perfect department store in the US where everybody can find what they’re looking for without ruining their budget,” Lagerfeld said in a release. The collection is priced between $50 to $170 and goes on sale at 235 Macy’s across the nation and on macys.com on August 31 (set a reminder).

Take a look. Do you love it? Do you hate it? Will you be camping outside Macy’s on August 30 wearing a necklace like this (yes someone was really wearing that at the preview, it’s by Yazbukey)?"

Andrej Pejic Continures To Shine!

One of our favorite fashion writer's, Leah Chernikoff, tipped us off on the incomparable model of the minute, Andrej Pejic's latest ventures.

"Model of the moment Andrej Pejic has landed yet another gig: he’s stepped off the runway and gone back behind the camera to model the look book for indie New York label MadeMe.



Pejic just walked in both mens and womenswear in the same show at Sao Paulo fashion week, closing Lino Villaventura’s spring show like the supermodel he’s fast becoming. He’s modeled for Jean Paul Gaultier and Marc by Marc Jacobs but, as MadeMe’s designer Erin Magee found out, he’s not above modeling for a super small New York label. (In fact, he showed up a half hour early to the shoot.)



Magee, 31, has been in fashion for nine years. She got her start working for Louis Vuitton’s Kim Jones when he was at Umbro and still works full time managing production for Supreme. She’s been designing MadeMe, her passion project, on the side for the past four years (it’s sold at OAK and Colette). This year’s fall collection is comprised of just four pieces and Magee knew that Pejic had to be the one to model them.



“The clothes I make are quite androgynous anyway,” said Magee. “I do mens styles in a feminine fit so he was the perfect model for me.”



Magee even said she styled Pejic less feminine than he’d styled himself when he walked in for the shoot. “I think he dresses on his own a lot more feminine then i had him in the look book,” she said. “I just wanted to keep him natural and keep people guessing about him and the clothes–make them think, ‘Is this for women or is this for men?’”



So does Magee keep you guessing? Take a look at MadeMe’s fall collection, modeled by Pejic, shot at the Bowery hotel."

Andrej Pejic's Double-Duty Work. Struts Like A Woman & Moves Like A Gentleman

Favorite fashion writer of ours, Leah Chernikoff, says that...

"Outside the fashion world, folks aren’t quite sure what to make of androgynous male model Andrej Pejic. Borders and Barnes & Nobles censored his topless cover for Dossier Journal, and men’s mag FHM appallingly referred to him as a “thing” when listing the in-demand model as number 98 on their “Hot 100 Women” list.



Thankfully, within the fashion world, Pejic is accepted and in demand. He’s served as muse to Jean Paul Gaultier, landed Marc by Marc Jacob’s spring campaign, and been featured in numerous high fashion editorials. Last night, at Brazilian designer Lino Villaventura’s spring 2012 show in Sao Paulo, he proved he is also a catwalk star. Pejic walked twice: first in menswear, and then he closed the show in women’s evening wear–holding the packed room rapt as he vogued at the end of the runway. From my seat below the photographer’s pit, I could see that Pejic was trembling a bit even as he nailed pose after pose at the end of the runway. Watch Pejic do his thing." -Fashionista

Meet Israeli-Native, NYC-based designer Nili Lotan

The always informative, fashion writer, Leah Chernikoff has the following to share in a recent article she wrote...

"Israeli-born NYC-based designer Nili Lotan has been quietly churning out simple, stark, elegant designs since she launched her eponymous label in 2003. But it’s hard to stay under the radar when J.Crew CEO Mickey Drexler stops by your showroom and wants to collaborate. Lotan teamed up with the specialty retailer to produce a very small capsule collection of relaxed basics including a perfect striped boyfriend sweater that sold out immediately.

We talked to Lotan to find out how she landed that plum collaboration, how her background in Israel and time in the air force has influenced her design, and if she would ever consider putting on a runway show.

1. How did the collaboration with J.Crew come about? How did you marry your aesthetics together and when will that amazing boyfriend sweater be back in stock?
I was introduced to Mickey Drexler and he came to see my collection at the showroom and it sparked his interest. Mickey loved what he saw and suggested the collaboration. He introduced me to Marissa Webb [J.Crew head of women's design] who together with the rest of Mickey’s team picked the pieces out of my collection that they loved. The striped boyfriend sweater should be available again in mid July!

2. How did you get into fashion? And how does your background–for example, your time in the Israeli airforce–inform your design?
I’ve always been interested in art and beauty and after my military service chose to study fashion design in Tel Aviv. Right after I graduated I moved to New York City. I am not sure that my air force experience influenced my design. I do know that being in the air force as well as all my other references of growing up in Israel has effected me as a person and influenced my sense of color and design.

3. You’ve worked for big labels like Ralph Lauren and Nautica–what made you decide to go out on your own?
The decision to start my own label was a very spontaneous act. After many years of designing other people’s vision I guess it was time to create my own. The line is doing great and is recognized and appreciated by many stores as well as women all over the world that share the same taste and aesthetics. I am very happy and feel incredibly accomplished.

4. Why don’t you put on fashion shows (any more)?
Till now I didn’t feel it was necessary. I might change my mind in the future. It might enhance the brand recognition.

5. There are a lot of great designers that come out of the Middle East (Israel and Lebanon especially)–what is it about that area that makes good design? What’s the design scene like in Israel?
I am not sure it has to do with where we come from although where we come from informs our aesthetics. Out of all middle eastern countries, Israel and Lebanon are the most progressive and open minded to art and fashion in general.

6. You produce everything in NYC. Why is that important to you? Have you seen changes in the garment district since being in NYC?
After traveling overseas for 20 some years and executing the design and production overseas [for other companies] I find developing the design and production in New York more efficient. It is much easier to control all aspects of creation and the results are more accurate and true to my vision and quality. With the quantities that I produce now it make sense. The garment district is certainly going through an evolution but I haven’t seen major changes yet. I’m still loyal to and work with the same factories I started with.

7. Is this your first design collaboration? Would you do another?
Yes, this is my first collaboration. The J.Crew collaboration was an organic one it was not a strategy. Who knows what the future will bring?

"Promo video for Fashion Designer Nili Lotan to promote her new store in Tribeca, NY."



"Behind the scenes with photographer Taghi Naderzad for Nili Lotan."

Uh-Oh, Never Silence The Truth Kiddas

According to one of our favorite fashion writer's, Leah Chernikoff, "

Back in February, Vogue took a lot of crap for publishing a puffy swoony profile of Syria’s first lady, Asma al-Assad. And rightly so–the gushy piece by Joan Juliet Buck, “Asma al-Assad: A Rose in the Desert,” which ran in Vogue‘s March issue, ignored Syria’s abysmal human rights record and that al-Assad’s husband, Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, is, to quote the Atlantic‘s Max Fisher, “an anti-American autocrat.”

Shortly after the piece was published, Fisher got in touch with Vogue senior editor Chris Knutsen, the story’s editor, to get his rationale for the profile that painted Syria in such a glowing light. (Buck described Asma al-Assad as “glamorous, young, and very chic–the freshest and most magnetic of first ladies,” and said of her husband that he is “a precise man who takes photographs and talks lovingly about his first computer.”) At the time, Knutsen stood by Buck’s story and Vogue‘s decision to publish it, saying “We felt that a personal interview with Syria’s first lady would hold strong interest for our readers…The piece was not meant in any way to be a referendum on the al-Assad regime. It was a profile of the first lady.”

But good luck trying to find that story on Vogue.com today (you get this lovely image and error message instead). Gawker noticed that the fashion bible’s site has “disappeared” the controversial piece, which would seem to imply that the mag had second thoughts about the story after all. Gawker continues, “since Vogue published an exquisitely timed fawning profile of the…first lady of Syria Asma al-Assad in February, her husband has presided over the murder of more than 300 demonstrators and jailed more than 10,000 political prisoners in a bloody crackdown. Now Asma has fled to England and Vogue has tossed the profile down the memory hole.” And if you thought that the article’s disappearance was just standard turnover for the site, other pieces from that same issue are still live."

Tsk Tsk Tsk Vogue magazine! You should've investigated and done a better with your research on this one. If you ever have an article that is in danger of being taken down (that is there's a difference between having a voice to be heard, and having a voice to hurt), that means you've hit the bullseye because your being thought provoking but yet you've vanished and scurried along with the once published story as well. Stand behind everything you preach and write a follow-up if need be. Never back down.

Uh-Oh, Never Silence The Truth Kiddas

According to one of our favorite fashion writer's, Leah Chernikoff, "

Back in February, Vogue took a lot of crap for publishing a puffy swoony profile of Syria’s first lady, Asma al-Assad. And rightly so–the gushy piece by Joan Juliet Buck, “Asma al-Assad: A Rose in the Desert,” which ran in Vogue‘s March issue, ignored Syria’s abysmal human rights record and that al-Assad’s husband, Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, is, to quote the Atlantic‘s Max Fisher, “an anti-American autocrat.”

Shortly after the piece was published, Fisher got in touch with Vogue senior editor Chris Knutsen, the story’s editor, to get his rationale for the profile that painted Syria in such a glowing light. (Buck described Asma al-Assad as “glamorous, young, and very chic–the freshest and most magnetic of first ladies,” and said of her husband that he is “a precise man who takes photographs and talks lovingly about his first computer.”) At the time, Knutsen stood by Buck’s story and Vogue‘s decision to publish it, saying “We felt that a personal interview with Syria’s first lady would hold strong interest for our readers…The piece was not meant in any way to be a referendum on the al-Assad regime. It was a profile of the first lady.”

But good luck trying to find that story on Vogue.com today (you get this lovely image and error message instead). Gawker noticed that the fashion bible’s site has “disappeared” the controversial piece, which would seem to imply that the mag had second thoughts about the story after all. Gawker continues, “since Vogue published an exquisitely timed fawning profile of the…first lady of Syria Asma al-Assad in February, her husband has presided over the murder of more than 300 demonstrators and jailed more than 10,000 political prisoners in a bloody crackdown. Now Asma has fled to England and Vogue has tossed the profile down the memory hole.” And if you thought that the article’s disappearance was just standard turnover for the site, other pieces from that same issue are still live."

Tsk Tsk Tsk Vogue magazine! You should've investigated and done a better with your research on this one. If you ever have an article that is in danger of being taken down (that is there's a difference between having a voice to be heard, and having a voice to hurt), that means you've hit the bullseye because your being thought provoking but yet you've vanished and scurried along with the once published story as well. Stand behind everything you preach and write a follow-up if need be. Never back down.

If You Can Afford It, Get Your Tiffany and Co.’s New Locks Collection Now

Whats more reason than to fall in love with a new sparkling and shiny lock piece from the latest lock collection at Tiffany and Co? (Well besides a pair of mesh diamond earrings in 18k gold). I think Audrey Hepburn would've agreed with me when I say, nothing! Right below, we have a first look at the behind the scenes footage of the iconic brand’s latest collection.