DIY Mini Knit Skirt
DIY Mini Knit Skirt
If you have some extra time on your hands, try making your own Mini Knit Skirt!!
Friday, April 27, 2012
Thursday, April 26, 2012
What’s in Store: Shopping Reports from Just-opened Maison Kitsuné and Fivestory
What’s in Store: Shopping Reports from Just-opened Maison Kitsuné and Fivestory
Photo (clockwise from left): Courtesy of Fivestory; Evan Sung; Clément Pascal (2)
“I am familiar with the fox,” confessed Shannon, an attorney shopping at the new Maison Kitsuné boutique last weekend. It’s the company’s first standalone outpost beyond its jewel-box flagship on Rue de Richelieu in Paris, and the animal in question, the brand’s irresistible symbol, is rendered in red, blue, and white and affixed discretely to many of Kitsuné’s gently twisted Gallic classics.
In the past week, two new shops opened in Manhattan—Kitsuné, a brand that is an indie-rock electronic music label as well as a fashion line, and Fivestory, which, despite its name, actually occupies two and a half floors of an Upper East Side townhouse. To celebrate this happy coincidence, Vogue.com spent a few sunny hours talking to New Yorkers out exploring the new venues.
At Kitsuné, Shannon contemplated a nubby, lightly gathered ecru silk skirt that she planned to wear with a crisp button-down or a black bustier, while Jasmine, a photo editor who works in the neighborhood but lives in Harlem, paged through a copy of Monocle, a global affairs magazine, on display. Jasmine said that she knew about Kitsune through their music remixes, but now that she was here she also liked the clothes, especially a sleeveless black frock with the air of a particularly sophisticated tennis dress. Meanwhile Nikki, in a pair of colorful Pierre Hardy sneakers that she customized with striped laces, said she has been captivated by the brand since September 2010, when Kitsune opened a pop-up in a truck parked outside Barneys. “It’s totally my style—kind of preppy with beautiful details,” she explained, then honed in on the same pleated black number Jasmine was coveting five minutes earlier.
About 40 blocks uptown on East Sixty-ninth Street, Fivestory, which has dramatic marble floors, and an eclectic selection of goods that includes striped orange Chinti and Parker cashmere pullovers, Loro Piana slippers trimmed with Rolling Stones mouths, and a porcelain ashtray printed with Warhol-esque portraits of Che Guevara, reminded Lulu, a student at FIT, of Browns in London. In the shoe department, Anna, sporting a trifecta of a Goyard purse, Van Cleef & Arpels Alhambra necklace, and Cartier Love bracelet, settled on a pair of ikat-print Carven sandals. What does she think of the store? “Well actually I came up here to check it out for my mom,” she admitted, fishing out her credit card and smiling at her new shoes. “She lives on the Upper West Side.”
Closer to home, Lisa, who resides a few blocks from the store, bought something too—an artfully stylized silvery Mexican necklace. “I like weird jewelry,” she admitted, pointing to the wooden pendant of impressive proportions that encircled her neck and that she said she had found at a street vendor. “I get so bored shopping in department stores,” she added. “This has a point of view and it’s edited. I hope it does well.”
“I am familiar with the fox,” confessed Shannon, an attorney shopping at the new Maison Kitsuné boutique last weekend. It’s the company’s first standalone outpost beyond its jewel-box flagship on Rue de Richelieu in Paris, and the animal in question, the brand’s irresistible symbol, is rendered in red, blue, and white and affixed discretely to many of Kitsuné’s gently twisted Gallic classics.
In the past week, two new shops opened in Manhattan—Kitsuné, a brand that is an indie-rock electronic music label as well as a fashion line, and Fivestory, which, despite its name, actually occupies two and a half floors of an Upper East Side townhouse. To celebrate this happy coincidence, Vogue.com spent a few sunny hours talking to New Yorkers out exploring the new venues.
At Kitsuné, Shannon contemplated a nubby, lightly gathered ecru silk skirt that she planned to wear with a crisp button-down or a black bustier, while Jasmine, a photo editor who works in the neighborhood but lives in Harlem, paged through a copy of Monocle, a global affairs magazine, on display. Jasmine said that she knew about Kitsune through their music remixes, but now that she was here she also liked the clothes, especially a sleeveless black frock with the air of a particularly sophisticated tennis dress. Meanwhile Nikki, in a pair of colorful Pierre Hardy sneakers that she customized with striped laces, said she has been captivated by the brand since September 2010, when Kitsune opened a pop-up in a truck parked outside Barneys. “It’s totally my style—kind of preppy with beautiful details,” she explained, then honed in on the same pleated black number Jasmine was coveting five minutes earlier.
About 40 blocks uptown on East Sixty-ninth Street, Fivestory, which has dramatic marble floors, and an eclectic selection of goods that includes striped orange Chinti and Parker cashmere pullovers, Loro Piana slippers trimmed with Rolling Stones mouths, and a porcelain ashtray printed with Warhol-esque portraits of Che Guevara, reminded Lulu, a student at FIT, of Browns in London. In the shoe department, Anna, sporting a trifecta of a Goyard purse, Van Cleef & Arpels Alhambra necklace, and Cartier Love bracelet, settled on a pair of ikat-print Carven sandals. What does she think of the store? “Well actually I came up here to check it out for my mom,” she admitted, fishing out her credit card and smiling at her new shoes. “She lives on the Upper West Side.”
Closer to home, Lisa, who resides a few blocks from the store, bought something too—an artfully stylized silvery Mexican necklace. “I like weird jewelry,” she admitted, pointing to the wooden pendant of impressive proportions that encircled her neck and that she said she had found at a street vendor. “I get so bored shopping in department stores,” she added. “This has a point of view and it’s edited. I hope it does well.”
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Silhouettes Tailored to Every Woman
Silhouettes Tailored to Every Woman
“SHE signed it for me — she is so cute! So sweet!” the designer Tadashi
Shoji gushed as he lovingly clutched a piece of paper to his chest. On
it was the original sketch he had made of the gown that the actress
Octavia Spencer had worn to the Academy Awards in February. Next to the
drawing of the gown,
an elaborately draped white sheath covered in sparkly beads, Ms.
Spencer had signed her name, along with the words: “Love you!”
Ms. Spencer would go on to take home an Oscar for her supporting role in
“The Help.” But even if she hadn’t, her dress would have been a winner
on Hollywood’s biggest night, landing her on many a best-dressed list.
In addition to its feminine elegance, the garment was praised for the
way it transformed Ms. Spencer’s voluptuous curves into more slimming
contours.
“She’s not a thin-thin girl, so I had to give the illusion of her as tall and thin,” said Mr. Shoji, 64.
The diminutive Japanese designer, whose close-cropped hair is speckled
with gray, was at his studio near downtown Los Angeles, sitting in a
Zen-like showroom that was minimally decorated with an orchid and
Japanese art. The only blast of color was Mr. Shoji himself, who was
wearing a cobalt blue cardigan and a pink polo shirt buttoned up to his
neck.
“And she is always conscious of her upper arms, so I wanted to hide
that,” he added of Ms. Spencer, taking a delicate sip of green tea that
had been delivered by two assistants who bowed ever so slightly as they
left the room.
CLICK here to read more!!
CLICK here to read more!!
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Friday, April 20, 2012
DIY: High Low Hem Skirt For Knits(Easy)
Pattern Making: How to Draft High-Low Hem Skirt Knit Fabrics
DIY: High Low Hem Skirt For Knits(Easy)
SPRING IS HERE!! So go ahead and make your own high-low skirt!!
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Animal House: Pet Logos Make a Fall Comeback
Animal House: Pet Logos Make a Fall Comeback
A zoo-load of animals were on the loose and prowling, motif-style, across crew necks and jackets on fall runways from Kenzo and Altuzarra to Prabal Gurung, Burberry, and Proenza Schouler. This isn’t the first time brands have adopted wildlife into their collections. Back in the early nineties, Hermès’s
horse and carriage, Polo Ralph Lauren’s pony, and Lacoste’s crocodile
roamed and skulked across polo shirts and tees setting one brand (or
breed) apart from another. And now these beastly distinctions offer
designers a playful approach to marking out their territory once more.
“It’s important to have something instantly recognizable,” believes Jason Wu, whose owl, named Ms. Wu, graces his accessories line. “It’s whimsical,” he shrugs. “And that carries over into the construction of the garments—I want there to be a lighthearted side as well.” Derek Lam, who uses a sculptural metal ram’s head (a nod to his astrological sign, Aries) to identify his bags and shoes, agrees: “I’m not a fan of making my name a noticeable element,” he shrugs. “The ram’s head is graphic and bold, but I like to think it’s discreetly conceptual, too; a clever wink rather than an in-your-face emblem of usual commercial branding.”
This recent migration on fall’s runways could arguably be traced back to Balenciaga and Givenchy’s pre-fall collections last year, when Nicolas Ghesquière unleashed a German shepherd, and Riccardo Tisci a growling Rottweiler onto sweaters. Then later that fall, Givenchy released a family of panthers to lurk on pencil skirts, jackets, and oversize sweaters. But Lam is quick to point out that animal logos, by way of astrological significance, were also embraced by Chanel and Anne Klein: “They both used a lion’s head to represent their work—they were Leos!”
Branding benefits aside, some designers put their usage down to nothing more than one-off inspirations. Proenza Schouler claimed a pheasant motif because, say designers Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez, it added “something graphic and figurative to the mix.” Prabal Gurung, who featured a cow skull encased in a circle of foliage, admitted to being attracted to the mystery of Georgia O’Keeffe’s work, and Altuzarra who featured horses on an intarsia knit was merely mesmerized by Paul Goble’s illustrations that fitted with the “equestrian streak that went through the fall collection.”
But for their second season at the helm of Kenzo, designers Carol Lim and Humberto Leon reintroduced the storied house’s famed tiger motif to recapture some of that traditional sense of seventies animal magic: “It’s an iconic image for the brand; it symbolizes the strength of the jungle that Kenzo Takada introduced to Paris in 1969,” says Leon. “There’ll be other friends joining in the seasons to come,” he promises. “The tiger motif is just the beginning.”
CLICK to see slideshow!!
“It’s important to have something instantly recognizable,” believes Jason Wu, whose owl, named Ms. Wu, graces his accessories line. “It’s whimsical,” he shrugs. “And that carries over into the construction of the garments—I want there to be a lighthearted side as well.” Derek Lam, who uses a sculptural metal ram’s head (a nod to his astrological sign, Aries) to identify his bags and shoes, agrees: “I’m not a fan of making my name a noticeable element,” he shrugs. “The ram’s head is graphic and bold, but I like to think it’s discreetly conceptual, too; a clever wink rather than an in-your-face emblem of usual commercial branding.”
This recent migration on fall’s runways could arguably be traced back to Balenciaga and Givenchy’s pre-fall collections last year, when Nicolas Ghesquière unleashed a German shepherd, and Riccardo Tisci a growling Rottweiler onto sweaters. Then later that fall, Givenchy released a family of panthers to lurk on pencil skirts, jackets, and oversize sweaters. But Lam is quick to point out that animal logos, by way of astrological significance, were also embraced by Chanel and Anne Klein: “They both used a lion’s head to represent their work—they were Leos!”
Branding benefits aside, some designers put their usage down to nothing more than one-off inspirations. Proenza Schouler claimed a pheasant motif because, say designers Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez, it added “something graphic and figurative to the mix.” Prabal Gurung, who featured a cow skull encased in a circle of foliage, admitted to being attracted to the mystery of Georgia O’Keeffe’s work, and Altuzarra who featured horses on an intarsia knit was merely mesmerized by Paul Goble’s illustrations that fitted with the “equestrian streak that went through the fall collection.”
But for their second season at the helm of Kenzo, designers Carol Lim and Humberto Leon reintroduced the storied house’s famed tiger motif to recapture some of that traditional sense of seventies animal magic: “It’s an iconic image for the brand; it symbolizes the strength of the jungle that Kenzo Takada introduced to Paris in 1969,” says Leon. “There’ll be other friends joining in the seasons to come,” he promises. “The tiger motif is just the beginning.”
CLICK to see slideshow!!
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Need It Now: Jason Wu/Canvas Collaboration
Need It Now: Jason Wu/Canvas Collaboration
“It feels like I’m just filling in the pieces of the puzzle,” says Jason Wu
of his new furniture line with Canvas. “I never thought of myself as
being limited to fashion. I’m a designer and if you have a vision you
can apply that to anything.” And so he did. What began over a cup of
coffee has turned into a fitting collaboration with one of New York’s
most buzzed-about home furnishings brands. More than a year since that
first prophetic conversation, the hotly anticipated capsule collection
hits stores today.
“I wanted to mix the DNA of Jason Wu and Canvas together,” explains Wu who, together with Canvas’s founder, Andrew Corrie, created an eight-piece collection that includes hand-dyed linen upholstery, metal casegoods (a first for Canvas), and hand-blown glass accessories. “Jason has a spectacular taste level and an eye for detail which lends a wonderfully glamorous feel to everything,” notes Corrie.
In creating the line, the duo drew inspiration from Art Deco designers like Jacques Adnet and the restraint of mid-century Danish style. And in the most literal translation of the Jason Wu brand, throw pillows have been embroidered with his signature handmade lace motif. Other pieces boast patinated bronze medallions, rounded cross bars, and a hand-waxed finish over vintage blackened metal. The proportions are subtle and complemented by textural materials and solid construction with each piece made by local craftsmen in the United States.
To those on the outside it might seem like an unlikely pairing, but for Wu it was a no-brainer. “I’ve always loved the rustic, slightly worn style of Canvas and that element of an artisanal hand,” he says. “It’s so inherently chic.”
CLICK here to see more images!!
“I wanted to mix the DNA of Jason Wu and Canvas together,” explains Wu who, together with Canvas’s founder, Andrew Corrie, created an eight-piece collection that includes hand-dyed linen upholstery, metal casegoods (a first for Canvas), and hand-blown glass accessories. “Jason has a spectacular taste level and an eye for detail which lends a wonderfully glamorous feel to everything,” notes Corrie.
In creating the line, the duo drew inspiration from Art Deco designers like Jacques Adnet and the restraint of mid-century Danish style. And in the most literal translation of the Jason Wu brand, throw pillows have been embroidered with his signature handmade lace motif. Other pieces boast patinated bronze medallions, rounded cross bars, and a hand-waxed finish over vintage blackened metal. The proportions are subtle and complemented by textural materials and solid construction with each piece made by local craftsmen in the United States.
To those on the outside it might seem like an unlikely pairing, but for Wu it was a no-brainer. “I’ve always loved the rustic, slightly worn style of Canvas and that element of an artisanal hand,” he says. “It’s so inherently chic.”
CLICK here to see more images!!
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Friday, April 13, 2012
3.1 Phillip Lim / Fall 2012 RTW
3.1 Phillip Lim / Fall 2012 RTW
Phillip Lim’s
overarching infatuation with women’s over-stimulated modern-day lives,
which he adroitly addressed for pre-fall with superhero undertones,
didn’t turn out to be a one-season-only tribute. From within a dimly lit
warehouse inside Highline Stages on Monday, where a smoke machine sent
clouds swirling skyward, Lim transported onlookers back to that neo-noir
comic-book underworld. But as the clouds parted, it was anything other
than caped crusaders who swooped down the runway. Rather, it was models
dressed in the type of graphic, fuss-free pieces that have stealthily
become his signature—slim-fitting pants and boxy cropped or elongated
blazers (outlined here with panels of black to give an illusionary,
shadow-like effect to the otherwise white ensembles)—and which could be
rendered appropriate for any easily distracted city-habitué with her
adrenaline perpetually pumping on fight-or-flight mode.
As one who prides himself on utilitarian functionality, this was far from any excuse for Lim to fall prey to clichéd notions of body-consciousness (the closest he got to Catwoman’s closet was a chicly tailored black and nude satin jumpsuit embedded with a curving trompe l’oeil bustier). Nor did he allude to anything resembling an aggressive spirit; instead he headed in quite the opposite direction. A sumptuously soft shearling biker jacket in serene forest green, snow-white scuba-bonded jackets paired with high-waisted jodhpurs, and soot-black caped sweaters dense enough to guard against the chilly temperatures that editors have been contending with this past week all proved that while protection was clearly a considered theme, the effect was quiet, feminine, and of course, relentlessly practical.
But seriousness aside, there were playful elements too. Lim illuminated a largely monochromatic palette with accents of pumpkin, aubergine, and prune, and further lightened the mood with a return to delicate, ethereal layering—the type where the designer encases opaque fabrics (like his organza knee-length shorts) in transparent sheaths cut from an opposing silhouette (for instance here he chose a diaphanous chiffon pencil skirt). That feeling extended to the accessories too, as in the case of one diminutive gilt-leather purse zipped comfortably inside a far larger, clear plastic clutch. This was a collection that, rather than opting for shock value, played to Lim’s time-honored strengths. “We run through clothes so fast nowadays,” said the designer of these closet-keepers. “I wanted to make clothes available, but at the same time preserve and protect them.”
As one who prides himself on utilitarian functionality, this was far from any excuse for Lim to fall prey to clichéd notions of body-consciousness (the closest he got to Catwoman’s closet was a chicly tailored black and nude satin jumpsuit embedded with a curving trompe l’oeil bustier). Nor did he allude to anything resembling an aggressive spirit; instead he headed in quite the opposite direction. A sumptuously soft shearling biker jacket in serene forest green, snow-white scuba-bonded jackets paired with high-waisted jodhpurs, and soot-black caped sweaters dense enough to guard against the chilly temperatures that editors have been contending with this past week all proved that while protection was clearly a considered theme, the effect was quiet, feminine, and of course, relentlessly practical.
But seriousness aside, there were playful elements too. Lim illuminated a largely monochromatic palette with accents of pumpkin, aubergine, and prune, and further lightened the mood with a return to delicate, ethereal layering—the type where the designer encases opaque fabrics (like his organza knee-length shorts) in transparent sheaths cut from an opposing silhouette (for instance here he chose a diaphanous chiffon pencil skirt). That feeling extended to the accessories too, as in the case of one diminutive gilt-leather purse zipped comfortably inside a far larger, clear plastic clutch. This was a collection that, rather than opting for shock value, played to Lim’s time-honored strengths. “We run through clothes so fast nowadays,” said the designer of these closet-keepers. “I wanted to make clothes available, but at the same time preserve and protect them.”
CLICK to see slideshow!!
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Animal House: Pet Logos Make a Fall Comeback
Animal House: Pet Logos Make a Fall Comeback
A zoo-load of animals were on the loose and prowling, motif-style, across crew necks and jackets on fall runways from Kenzo and Altuzarra to Prabal Gurung, Burberry, and Proenza Schouler. This isn’t the first time brands have adopted wildlife into their collections. Back in the early nineties, Hermès’s
horse and carriage, Polo Ralph Lauren’s pony, and Lacoste’s crocodile
roamed and skulked across polo shirts and tees setting one brand (or
breed) apart from another. And now these beastly distinctions offer
designers a playful approach to marking out their territory once more.
“It’s important to have something instantly recognizable,” believes Jason Wu, whose owl, named Ms. Wu, graces his accessories line. “It’s whimsical,” he shrugs. “And that carries over into the construction of the garments—I want there to be a lighthearted side as well.” Derek Lam, who uses a sculptural metal ram’s head (a nod to his astrological sign, Aries) to identify his bags and shoes, agrees: “I’m not a fan of making my name a noticeable element,” he shrugs. “The ram’s head is graphic and bold, but I like to think it’s discreetly conceptual, too; a clever wink rather than an in-your-face emblem of usual commercial branding.”
This recent migration on fall’s runways could arguably be traced back to Balenciaga and Givenchy’s pre-fall collections last year, when Nicolas Ghesquière unleashed a German shepherd, and Riccardo Tisci a growling Rottweiler onto sweaters. Then later that fall, Givenchy released a family of panthers to lurk on pencil skirts, jackets, and oversize sweaters. But Lam is quick to point out that animal logos, by way of astrological significance, were also embraced by Chanel and Anne Klein: “They both used a lion’s head to represent their work—they were Leos!”
CLICK to read more and see more images!!
“It’s important to have something instantly recognizable,” believes Jason Wu, whose owl, named Ms. Wu, graces his accessories line. “It’s whimsical,” he shrugs. “And that carries over into the construction of the garments—I want there to be a lighthearted side as well.” Derek Lam, who uses a sculptural metal ram’s head (a nod to his astrological sign, Aries) to identify his bags and shoes, agrees: “I’m not a fan of making my name a noticeable element,” he shrugs. “The ram’s head is graphic and bold, but I like to think it’s discreetly conceptual, too; a clever wink rather than an in-your-face emblem of usual commercial branding.”
This recent migration on fall’s runways could arguably be traced back to Balenciaga and Givenchy’s pre-fall collections last year, when Nicolas Ghesquière unleashed a German shepherd, and Riccardo Tisci a growling Rottweiler onto sweaters. Then later that fall, Givenchy released a family of panthers to lurk on pencil skirts, jackets, and oversize sweaters. But Lam is quick to point out that animal logos, by way of astrological significance, were also embraced by Chanel and Anne Klein: “They both used a lion’s head to represent their work—they were Leos!”
CLICK to read more and see more images!!
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
From Night to Day: Lingerie-Inspired Dressing for Spring
From Night to Day: Lingerie-Inspired Dressing for Spring
Spring 2012 runway looks (from left): Jason Wu, Dolce & Gabbana, Prada, Proenza Schouler
This season, dreams about leaving the house in only your underwear or
addressing an audience in just your skivvies will not seem nightmarish:
Simply imagine those pieces are printed with Dolce & Gabbana’s red peppers, or a graphic design from Proenza Schouler.
With so many chic, pretty ways to wear bustiers, cropped tops, and
short-shorts this spring, unmentionables are anything but hush-hush,
and, if paired with suiting and simple staples, they can be appropriate
even in an office setting.
Rethinking lingerie-inspired pieces for daytime is a matter of
mindset: View these silhouettes and lengths as layering pieces rather
than items to be hidden. For instance, a pretty Prada ruffled bralet from the house’s hot-rod spring collection
is not designed to be worn under a sweater, or seen exclusively at the
beach, it is conceived for displaying under an open embellished jacket.
Of course, you can button up the Prada coat to reveal only a peek of
pastel silk; flaunting these pieces is possible without crossing into a
state of dishabille. “I don’t know when the bustier got a bad rap,” Moda
Operandi fashion director Roopal Patel says, advising
professional women to look at layering with lingerie as a new kind of
power dressing. “You can wear a blazer buttoned up and show just the
bustline of the bustier—that’s where the intrigue is,” Patel says.
Adding a lingerie layer can also bring a look seamlessly from day to
night: Simply remove the button-down shirt or a buttoned-up blazer and
wear the bustier with a statement necklace for a new approach to
evening.
CLICK here to read more and see more images!!
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Monday, April 9, 2012
DIY Beaded Scalloped Peter Pan Collar
DIY Beaded Scalloped Peter Pan Collar
Welcome back from SPRING BREAK!!
Why not start out the week with a little inspiration?
Try making your own beaded scalloped Peter Pan Collar!
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