Fall Winter 2010: A very thin model at Hervé Léger.

A few days into New York fashion week, and the models are looking scarily thin. I always felt that this was something we saw more of in New York, and so I really hope there will be some meatier flesh in London, Milan, and Paris. Model’s weight has been a major discussion point recently, and I am pretty torn on the subject. Although I feel that the whole size zero debate is blown out of proportion, and that the media should focus more on obesity, there are clearly some very scarily thin girls on the catwalks.

There’s been some really interesting points made in the press recently, starting with this quote featured in a VERY interesting The Daily Beast article about models and size. A former successful model was quoted as saying:

“Sure, we had to be skinny. I lived on Diet Coke and apples for two years. For the couture, we had to get up at 4 am to be sewn into the clothes and there was huge pressure to be thin. But I made a million dollars by the time I was 20, I bought a town house in Manhattan and put myself through Columbia. Does that make me a victim?”

This was a really interesting quote, putting a totally new perspective on starving models.

According to Fashionologie, Australian model Abbie Lee Kershaw “seems to feel similarly when asked what she thinks about the pressure to be ultra-thin: ‘That’s like asking a bodybuilder how they feel about the pressures to be incredibly muscly. An elite performer is always put under some sort of extreme pressure that the rest of society can argue, might not quite understand.’”

Fall Winter 2010: another very thin model at Victoria Beckham.

So after considering these two interesting quotes, how important do you think the size zero issue is? Are models to blame, or is Hollywood worse? I feel that celebrities have much more of an impact on young people than models do, as they tend to be much more in the public eye. Later on in the Daily Beast article, they explain that according to “Clinical Knowledge Summaries 2009, the statistics department of the British National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence, says that 19 out of one million women are diagnosed as anorexic, as opposed to 240,000 per million for obesity.” That statistic really confirmed my thoughts that under-eating is much smaller a problem than over-eating.

On the other hand, there was a really upsetting article in Page Six Magazine about Gemma Ward, another Australian model, who has recently put on 30 pounds and has been shunned by the industry. Apparently there are many teenage models, who are discarded once they experience the natural weight gain women go through when they grow breasts and hips.

Gemma Ward at the height of her fame.

I really don’t know where I stand on this subject. I do know that when I worked in Paris, samples sizes were in 4 and 6, never size 0. But I also worked with a lot of the Brazilian models, who were very curvy. I always thought a curvy size 4 model looks better than a stick thin size zero. I feel it is sad that some models feel such a pressure to stay thin, but at the same time, I believe it is part of the job. I was watching a program about skiers competing in moguls this weekend, and apparently their quads are four times the size of a normal person, and the damage they do to their knees is irreversible. They are guaranteed serious problems later in life, so how is that any different from starving yourself for a few years to make some money?

A more recent photo of Gemma Ward.

Forbes has a list of the top fifteen highest earning models, and many of them are curvy lingerie models (Gisele Bundchen, Adriana Lima, Alessandra Ambrosio are all Victoria’s Secret models, and they make up the top five with Kate Moss and Heidi Klum.) It goes to show that a hot, healthy body is going to earn you more millions than protruding hip bones.

One thing I would like to see is more models and celebrities endorsing fitness, which is beneficial for both the underweights and the overweights. I’d also like to see less deathly thin models on the catwalk, and more Gisele types. And, how about the media reduces their attacks on famous women for being too thin or too fat. That would be a good start.

Gemma Ward images source. Catwalk images from Style.com.

There’s been a lot in the press and blogosphere about the attention bloggers are getting, and whether bloggers have the right to be sitting front row at fashion shows and being recipients of free stuff.

It started off with an article in The Independent entitled “Fluff flies as fashion writers pick a cat fight with bloggers” which talked about the fact that many people in the industry can’t believe that bloggers are getting showered with free gifts, and that blogs “have turned into little more than mouthpieces for fashion brands, which are increasingly using bloggers to regurgitate their press releases.” (Read Kanye West’s hilarious and absolutely idiotic rant against bloggers here.)

Tavi’s hat that blocked everyone’s view. Image source.

Business of Fashion then wrote a good article about how the Independent interviewed many bloggers for the article, but failed to use any quotes from them and therefore the article was quite one-sided. There was also some other really good points made (as usual) by Imran Amed, editor of Business of Fashion, so I’d suggest you read both articles if you are at all interested in the subject. (Links here and here.) They also link to Grazia magazine’s outburst at Tavi, and her response. I don’t want to spend too much time on this but I’d like to have my say, so, here are some of my points.

Yes, there are bloggers that are not always professional and maybe they don’t all deserve the spotlight they have, but if the public support them by reading their blogs, whose exactly is judging that they “don’t deserve?” Also, there are many very interesting, intelligent, or beautiful blogs out there, and they DO deserve the attention they are getting.

Susie Bubble from Style Bubble, a well-respected fashion blog. Image source.

How can magazine criticize bloggers for getting free stuff? The whole concept of a magazine is based on advertisers, if you can’t afford to advertise on their expensive glossy pages, they won’t talk about you. 90% of Vogue’s content is covering advertisers’ product, so those are the brands that can afford $25K per page. And I can guarantee you, the magazine staff gets TONS of free stuff, it’s disgusting how much. Magazine staff generally gets paid quite poorly, but the perks are well worth the low salaries. So if editors are allowed free stuff, why aren’t bloggers?

Plum Sykes, another Vogue-employed boring socialite. Image source.

But the main point I’d like to make is that the fashion industry is extremely critical, brutally unethical, and totally elitist. And the way that people make it to the top is highly unfair. Will someone find me a major fashion industry player who WAS NOT born into a rich family, or has famous parents? Because seriously, nearly everyone (aside from designers) in the industry comes from money and fame, and that’s how they get their break. I like that bloggers don’t have to be socialites or from a rich family to get their voice out into the industry.

There are some exceptions of course, and particularly in Britain, you can come from nothing and make it as a designer, but if you look at who is making it big in the fashion industry, most of them come from money or fame.

Lou Doillon. Image source.

Take Lou Doillon as an example. Famous mom (Jane Birkin) meant she got the chance to be famous herself. I worked on one of the Sonia Rykiel shows that was her first catwalk show, and I had to teach the girl how to walk! She had no clue what the hell she as doing, but everyone loved her because her mom was famous. She is pretty, but I’m sorry to say it, never was model material. But who cares, famous mom = you are famous too.

How about Stella McCartney, Jade Jagger, Leah Wood. The Rolling Stones and The Beatles offspring make up a fair percentage of famous people at the moment.

Carine Roitfeld, editor of French Vogue may have started as a model, but let’s not deny the fact that she is bourgeois through and through.

Tamara Mellon, CEO of Jimmy Choo, whom I respect, would have never gotten anywhere without Daddy’s£150K “loan” to start up a little company with her friend Jimmy Choo.

Nearly all the girls at Vogue have come from money, and you’re seriously looked down on if you aren’t.

I’m just flipping through January’s issue of US Vogue, and who is mentioned in the magazine? Sofia Coppola, talented, but would not have stood a chance without her last name. Vanessa Traina: famous for nothing except having Danielle Steel as a mother.

Check out Vogue’s masthead:

Anna Wintour: father was a newspaper editor, and rich.

Alexandra Kotur: grew up in a rich family and mother worked as an illustrator for Vogue.

Plum Sykes: came from a rich family in England.

Rosamond Bernier: Was friends with Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse when she grew up.

Marina Rust: great great granddaughter of Chicago department store magnate Marshall Field.

Tonne Goodman: husband is a Gimbel of the Gimbel’s department story family and the stepson of director Sydney Lumet.

The list could go on…and it’s the same at nearly all of the major glossy magazines. They are almost all socialites or from money.

Now, you don’t go into the fashion industry because you think it will be ethical and fair and nice. I am used to it, and I’ve learned to accept I’ll never be an editor of Vogue because my Dad isn’t famous and my mother is not a socialite, and I wasn’t a model when I was growing up. But the thing that ANNOYS the hell out of me is that all of these elitist journalists are getting in a huff because there are bloggers that aren’t socialites from wealthy families are getting attention and free stuff. Well, if the growth and popularity of the fashion bloggers means that the socialites are going to get less front-row seats at shows, and less free stuff, I am all for it.

I LOVE the idea of public opinion and readership numbers being the reason why someone gets attention, not because they’re rich so they got a job at Vogue.

(One day I’ll tell you the story about a Vogue-ette I know who used to be completely normal and then suddenly developed a pout and a posh accent when she started working for Vogue. There are probably many stories like that…)

I saw these Gucci Spring Summer 2010 campaign images on Fashionologie this morning and I really love them. Which is surprising, since I am not a huge fan of Gucci since Frida Giannini came in as Creative Director (I love you Tom!) But this isn’t about the clothing, although some of it looks amazing, its more about the mood. And I think I love it because I am longing to travel, and I haven’t been on a plane since September and probably won’t be until March, which might be the longest I have gone without traveling since I was a teenager. Also, my week in a villa in Spain last summer seems like a hundred years ago, and I am dying for some sun.

Gucci Spring Summer 2010 with Natasha Poly shot by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott.

This dress looks amazing, maybe I am not giving Frida Giannini enough credit.

This is also an amazing dress and shoes.

What a fantastic photo.

That pool is calling me...

The details on the skirt look beautiful.

If I am tanned enough next summer (which is unlikely as I live in Vancouver) I might try some head to toe white looks.

I love the OTT handbag.

That shoe is amazing! This might need to be a Spring Summer splurge. Gonna check out the Gucci store when I am in London in March. It will probably be good news for my wallet, I am sure its already sold out.

I think I’ll spend the rest of my weekend drooling over villa porn, we are thinking of going to South Africa next Christmas, and we will be renting a villa in Cape Town with my family for a week or so. I am insisting on an infinity pool, its the only way to go.

Here is Part 3 of my summary of the last decade. Click for Part 1 and Part 2.

Building BRIC Countries. Brazil, Russia, India, and China have become new industry superpowers. Luxury brands are opening shop in these newly wealthy countries. China is reveling in its manufacturing powers and looking to bank in on creativity as well. Russian oligarchs own…almost everything. High street brands are opening all over India, with an estimated 700 million Indians living in cities by 2050 (Goldman Sachs.) And Brazil has the world’s 5th biggest population and a huge amount of natural resources.

Louis Vuitton’s Shanghai store under construction.

Too Fat and Too Thin are the words used at some point to describe almost all of the celebrities in the past ten years. With obesity rates rising globally, the blame shifted to the thin people, in particular the fashion industry.

Another distorted fashion image.

Socialising Change. How has society shifted in the past ten years?

A new language is born.

The Axis of Evil. Image source.

Twitter, tweets, tweeting, retweet, etc…

Swine Flu, Bird Flu, H1N1, the flu had many new names.

Image source.

There has been many goodbyes in the past ten years,including the Yellow Pages and the fax machine.

Green is the New Black, certainly when it comes to lifestyle. The words fairtrade, ethical, sustainable, and organic have become a part of our everyday vocabulary. How green are you?

Eating Locally

The Electric Car. Image source.

We all understand what this sign means now.

How many of you grow your own? with the help of your compost…of course.

And the garbage gets smaller as our waste gets redirected to compost and recycling. Image source.

Of course we all carry around reusable bags for our groceries… Image source.

And lets not forget, no trend is a real trend unless a giant American company manages to profit in some way. Here’s to the king of organic food.

When Fame Meant Talent. Our obsession with celebrities intensified in the past ten years, and fame became more achievable. Celebrities don’t just sing songs for us and act in our movies, they design our clothes, the model clothes in our magazines, they make perfumes, yoga clothes, hotels, and nightclubs. And anyone can be famous, land yourself a gig on a reality TV show, and you too can be the next big thing.

Big Brother: the source of way too many useless celebrities.

Gwen Stefani’s L.A.M.B. One of the few celebrity collections that has a teeny bit of credibility. But not much.

According to UK Vogue, putting a celebrity on your cover guarantees way more sales than using a model, The only exception being Kate Moss, who seems to be an exception to a lot of things.

Poor Paris. She is just…so uncool.

The Hills: I can proudly say I have never watch a whole episode of these ditzes and their boring life. Would it be possible to do a reality show about some people who are interesting, intelligent, AND talented? Or does that defeat the purpose?

The i-Generation. Remember when a blackberry was a fruit? Phones were used for calling people? Maps were used for finding your way? And you used a CD player to listen to music?

And… A few more people to sum up the decade.

Politicians these days have to ride bikes. Image source.

Celebrity chefs: some were cool, some made good good, and other were *?@*&%€ !!!! Above, Jamie Oliver.

“shoes, sex! cocktails, shoes, men, Manolo, shoes, sex! dildo, New York, shoes, Manhattan, shoes, sex! orgasm, shoes, shopping, dress, shoes, New York. And sex!” The Sex and the City girls (or should I say ladies?) certainly liberated the plus forty single woman.

No many artists can go mainstream and still be cool. Banksy = an exception.

Remember when Karl Lagerfeld was fat and carried a fan? Photo from Vogue France.

Not many celebrities can be filmed doing cocaine, not make any statements to the media, and then double their fees.

Three really annoying guys who were generally a nuisance to everyone.

Sex Wizards sells. Image source.

Best Looking Couple. Oops! That award goes to Brangelina. The Beckhams get the Most Annoying Couple.

Let’s also take a moment to think of the many tragedies suffered in the past ten years, particularly the tsunami victims, Hurricane Katrina victims, and everyone else killed in wars, terrorist attack, or from starvation. There was FAR too much of that in the past ten years.

Happy New Year everyone and here’s to a prosperous 2010!

All images from the brand’s or person’s website, except all catwalk images from style.com, unless otherwise noted.

Thanks to the Grahams for their help on this list!

Here is Part 2 of my summary of the last decade. Click here for Part 1.

New Blood in the fashion industry and on the catwalks. Images from Style.com

Christophe Decarnin for Balmain.

Tomas Maier for Bottega Veneta.

Christopher Bailey for Burberry Prorsum.

New designer Gareth Pugh.

Ricardo Tisci for Givenchy.

Alber Elbaz for Lanvin.

New designer Marios Schwab.

New designers Rodarte.

New designer Giambattista Valli.

Stefano Pilati for Yves Saint Laurent.

New designer Zac Posen.

Nicolas Ghesquière for Balenciaga.

And I am not forgetting Jonathon Saunders, Proenza Schouler,  Alexander Wang, Philip Lim, Richard Nicoll, and many others (including revivals of Halston and Ossie Clark.) In fact, when I was researching this post, I realised that in Fall 2002, Style.com showed 114 designers’ catwalk collection on their website. For Fall 2009 the number was up to 262.

A New Retail Perspective resulted in an shopping evolution, or revolution.

Dover Street Market in London.

Dover Street Market, considered one of the “best” stores in the world, opened on London’s Dover Street. Curated by Rei Kawakubo from Comme des Garcons, the store continues to innovate.

Primark’s first central London location had people queuing over an hour to buy £1 tights and £3 t-shirts. Dubbed “Primani”, the store continues to attract crowds and has not felt the recession as badly as most high street retailers.

A new retailing concept: The Pop-Up Store. A temporary retail space, opened for a short period of time, sometimes with a limited edition product. This one is a pop up for Louis Vuitton’s collaboration with Rei Kawakubo from Comme des Garcons for a collection of handbags.

Net A Porter changed the way consumers shop for luxury online.

ASOS (As Seen On Screen) started as a site selling copies of celebrities outfits, but as turned into one of the largest, most-successful multi-brand online retailers.

Gilt Groupe is one of the many discount luxury retailers thriving in the recession.

American Apparel sold basics tees with a new angle: using sleazy and sometimes pornographic images to sell a product made in the US in factories where workers had holiday and sick pay.

A Decade to be Forgotten. How many of these fashion trends do you look back on and smile, or cringe? (in no particular order…)

Kate Moss wearing gladiator sandals, first seen at Balenciaga.

Luxury denim, aka the $300 pair of jeans. These ones from Rock and Republic.

Lingerie becomes fashionable again, thanks to brands like Agent Provocateur.

I remember when there were one hour lineups outside the Birkenstock store.

Bling: a trend I definitely did not embrace.

Nu Rave. The worst trend of the 00s. What were they thinking? This look by Cassette Playa.

The IT bag: Chloe Paddington anyone?

and we certainly cant forget the Motorcycle bag by Balenciaga.

The new IT bag: The IT shoe. From top to bottom: Manolo Blahnik, Jimmy Choo, and Christian Louboutin. I think we have Sex and the City to thank for this.

On second thought, Crocs were definitely the worst trends of the 00s, with Nu Rave coming in a close second.

Not wearing pants. A Lady Gaga phenomenon, lets hope this one doesn’t last. Image source.

Leggings. These ones by American Apparel.

Boho, Hippie, Hobo, whatever. A look that kept on giving. Sienna Miller image from Dave Hogan/Getty Images.

Skinny jeans helped us to discover the muffin top. These ones by Topshop.

Maybe it was a decade of really bad shoes…. But unfortunately we still haven’t seen the end of the Ugg boot.

Wellington boots by Hunter. Remember when there were for farmers, not festivals?

If anyone had told me that a company would make millions buy selling velour jogging suits, I would have never believed them. Nauseating.

The Birth of the Recessionista and the credit crunch will probably be one of the defining events of the last decade, even though it took place at the end. The losers were the big luxury brands that didn’t have a strong brand identity, hedgefund managers, department stores, anyone selling cars or furniture, and the millions who ended up unemployed and homeless. The winners were the discount retailers, online retailers, anyone selling an education, and MacDonalds.

Susie Bubble as a Recessionista.

Catch Part 3 of 3 “Remembering the Noughties” posts tomorrow!

All images from the brand’s or person’s website, except all catwalk images from style.com, unless otherwise noted.

My friend Michaela pointed out to me recently that everyone has just sort of been ignoring the fact that we are about to enter a new decade. Well, I wouldn’t say it has been ignored, but I agree we aren’t really making a very big deal of it. Maybe we had millenium overload ten years ago, but no one can deny that a lot has happened since 2000.

I have been working on this post for a while, looking through other websites’ and newspapers’ “summaries of the decade” and trying to think what I felt was really important from the last ten years. I have combined it all under a few categories, and I am probably forgetting loads of important things, but here I go. Also, I don’t agree with Time Magazine, who has called the 00s “The Decade from Hell”, I prefer just using the term The Noughties. Nought means zero in British English. Maybe we can call it The Decade Nought to be Forgotten? Ok, that sounds cheesy. Lets just call it The Noughties.

It is a very long post, so I have broken it down into 3 parts. Here is Part 1. Enjoy!

The Politics of the Stars and Stripes really took over the world stage in the past ten years. First, the Americans had the disastrous Bush era, whose ignorance, terrible international relations, and poor leadership led to the US being the most hated country in the world. That pissed some people off so much that they flew planes into the World Trade Centre towers, which led to wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and very long line ups to get through security in airports. Things started to look up at the end of the decade, when Barack Obama was elected the first African American president of the United States. He hasn’t been around long enough for us to feel the effect of his good deeds, but it definitely brought hope to the world, and has calmed down their enemies… a little. And his wife is the best dressed first lady ever…she deserves mega kudos for showing off her arms, supporting young American designers, and wearing affordable clothing.

Yay!

These images from are from The Cut’s Michelle Obama Lookbook, they have been documenting all of her outfits. Definitely worth a look.

A Shift of Power took place in the fashion industry, as we saw established designers disappear, famous retirements, celebrities taking over the industry, and revived brands making headlines.

Valentino retires, and so we say goodbye to the man known for red dresses, animal prints, and perma tan.

Emanuel Ungaro also retired in 2004, which resulted in turmoil in the house for several years, leading up the current disastrous state which sees Lindsay Lohan as Artistic Director. The above images are from her first collection for the house, which was bought by only two stores.

Things are not looking good for Christian Lacroix, who has had to suspend his Haute Couture and Pret-a-porter because of financial difficulties.

The Ferre brand is also unstable, since the death of the founder, Gianfranco Ferre, in 2007. Image source.

And some very old brands have been reinvented…

Alber Elbaz is now the Creative Director behind Lanvin.

Nicolas Ghesquière is the Creative Director for Balenciaga.

and Christophe Decarnin is the Creative Director for Balmain.

Luxury Made Accessible by the high street retailers collaborating with big names. Owning a piece by Karl was no longer unattainable, as long as you were willing to wait in a line up.

H&M were the pioneers of the designer high street collaboration.

H&M designer collaborations. Clockwise from top left: Karl Lagerfeld, Stella McCartney, Viktor & Rolf, Matthew Williamson, Sonia Rykiel, Comme des Garcons, Jimmy Choo, and Roberto Cavalli.

Christopher Kane for Topshop, the famous crocodile print.

Target launched collections with McQ Alexander McQueen, Anna Sui and Rodarte (shown above.)

New Media changed the way we consumed news and information. Time Magazine summed it up in 2006 when they named “You” as person of the year. Web 2.0 changed the way we consumed the web, making users the new contributors. Google, Wikipedia, Facebook, and Myspace changed the way we searched, researched, communicated and socialized.

The computer screen was a mirror...

This image of bloggers Bryanboy and Tommy Ton (from Jak & Jil Blog) sitting front row at the Dolce and Gabanna Spring Summer 2010 show with Anna Wintour, Hamish Bowles, Suzy Menkes and other big player fashion journalists showed that blogging was being taken seriously in the fashion industry.

Scoot Schulman’s street style blog, The Sartorialist, is known for his well-chosen photographs of men and women of all ages on the streets of the world’s fashion capitals.

Websites like Vogue’s Style.com has allowed us to view fashion catwalk images hours after the runway show itself, changing the way we consume fashion. Years ago, fashionistas would wait until the magazines published the new season’s collections, usually months after the show itself. Now we see the shows immediately after they happen, and hear about them on Twitter as they are happening.

Catch Part 2 of 3 “Remembering the Noughties” posts tomorrow!

All images from the brand’s or person’s website, except all catwalk images from style.com, unless otherwise noted.

Everyone seems to be getting excited about the upcoming Spring Summer 2010 advertising campaigns. I guess in fashion terms that is something to get excited about, however I rarely get worked up about an advertising campaign unless there is something amazing going on.

I have always been obsessed with these Versace campaigns shot by Steven Meisel. The models are Amber Valleta and Georgina Grenville, and it was for Autumn Winter 2000. I am also very excited that I found the entire series today on this Russian photography site, they are quite large versions, and I like to have a record of great fashion things like this.

This campaign was turned into a small exhibition, and there are a few reasons why it was so well received. The models, although young and beautiful, are styled to look old, which is very unusual in fashion. The way they sit, their hair, makeup, everything, makes them look much older than they are. Also, they are staring straight into the camera, which is a bit eerie. The Beverly Hills mansion where these photos were taken must have been a locations scout’s dream, it is so perfect for the clothing. Someone pointed out to me that in nearly all the photos the models were smoking cigarettes, which were then airbrushed out. Take a look, you can see their fingers are in the right position. If you spend a few seconds looking into each photo, you can appreciate how amazing theses shots are, they are a bit weird, but fabulous. This is definitely my favourite fashion advertising campaign ever.

Here are some of the Spring Summer 2010 campaigns, which will start to come out in the January magazines, and make a full appearance by March. I got all the images from Refinery 29, except the Dolce and Gabbana ones, which were published in Italian Vogue.

Here’s Lara Stone for Louis Vuitton. She is the model of the moment, and has just replaced Madonna, who starred in the campaigns last season. I am looking forward to seeing this in more detail.

Louis Vuitton Spring Summer 2010: Lara Stone shot by Steven Meisel

Everyone was surprised by this Akris campaign with Daphne Guinness. The heiress is known for her amazing, eclectic style and her haute couture collection, and she is loved by so many designers. It was a surprise that she chose to work with Akris, a little-known brand.

Akris Spring Summer 2010: Daphne Guinness shot by Steven Klein

This Gucci ad looks amazing and I want to be next to that swimming pool right now.

Gucci Spring Summer 2010: Natasha Poly and Ryan Kennedy shot by Mert & Marcus

Marc Jacobs’ campaigns, always shot by Juergen Teller, are often slightly unusual. He is the only designer whose campaign involves taking five $1500 handbags, throwing them in the dirt, and then putting Sofia Coppola next to them. So it is no surprise that his next campaign has a model with her foot in a toilet.

Marc Jacobs Spring Summer 2010: Jamie Bouchert shot by Juergen Teller

The Lanvin campaign looks pretty cool, as does everything from the Lanvin label at the moment.

Lanvin Spring Summer 2010: Jamie Bouchert shot by Steven Meisel

I think this Dolce & Gabbana ad, featuring Madonna washing the dishes and doing other very “Italian Mamma” looking things, looks great. I am surprised how many times she can be reinvented.

Dolce & Gabbana Spring Summer 2010: Madonna shot by Steven Meisel

I have been meaning to comment on this for some time, but I have quite a big pile of blog drafts piling up, which I am hoping to clear by the end of the holidays.

So, Martin Margiela has left the house he founded. Maison Martin Margiela was founded in 1988, and since 2002 it has been majority owned by Diesel, the Italian group which also owns Viktor & Rolf, and of course the denim brand Diesel. I won’t go on too much about the history and the acquisition, and if you are interested you can read all about it in this great article from the New York Times, but I will say that in the time that Diesel took part ownership of Maison Martin Margiela, their sales went from €15 million to €70 million.

Maison Martin Margiela has been quite an important brand for me, particularly when I am lecturing to fashion students (one of my many fashion-related jobs.) This was the brand that helped me define the level of my students. If they all knew the brand, I knew it was going to be a good group. If 30% knew the brand, I knew there would be a few strong ones leading the rest. If 10% or less had heard of Margiela, I knew I was in trouble.

Anyway, I am sure not all of my readers are familiar with Maison Martin Margiela, so I am going to do a little facts list. It is by no means exhaustive, I am going by memory (so feel free to correct any mistakes people) and I am not a Margiela expert, but here we go.

FACT 1: He is from Belgium, and considered to be the “seventh” member of the Antwerp Six. The Antwerp Six were six Belgium fashion designers that graduated from Antwerp’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts (a super prestigious fashion design school) in the 80s, and then proceeded to drive to London in a van to show off their wares. That was their big breakthrough.  The Antwerp Six is Walter Van Beirendonck, Ann Demeulemeester, Dries van Noten, Dirk Van Saene, Dirk Bikkembergs, and Marina Yee. Thanks to them, and Margiela, the Belgian fashion designers got a reputation for being quite avant-garde, a reputation they still have.

Some cool Maison Martin Margiela sandal boots.

Toys by Maison Martin Margiela. They love white.

FACT 2: No one sees him. He doesn’t do personal appearances, and he never meets journalists. Even Carine Roitfeld, editor of French Vogue, has never seen him. I thought it was very funny the other day when someone said that he was spotted looking for a house in West Hollywood. That would imply someone has seen him…

Some menswear. I sort of imagine he looks something like the guy in the centre.

FACT 3: He never referred to himself as “I”. It was always “Maison Martin Margiela is doing this…” or “We are doing this…” instead of “I am doing this…”

This was a really famous Aids t-shirt they did. The text was printed straight onto the shirt, so some was on the front, and some was on the inside of the back.

The Aids t-shirt hanging.

FACT 4: His clothes don’t have the brand name on the label, and his shops don’t have the name on the outside (aside from the one in LA.)

Maison Martin Margiela clothing label.

The Hong Kong store.

The Paris store.

The sign above the London store.

FACT 5: He is known for recycling garments.

An outfit made from lots of old pairs of jeans.

FACT 6: He only communicates by fax (although I am not sure if this is still the case, since hardly anyone has a fax machine anymore. Except for my Mom.)

Another couture outfit.

FACT 7: His fashion shows involve a running commentary about the clothing, and all of his staff wear white lab coats.

One of the staff showing a men's vest.

FACT 8: He often costs his garments based on the number of hours spent making them. Which makes a €5000 jacket actually seem reasonably priced. It is really interesting to see the time involved in making a couture garment. Yes, it is expensive, but at least you know that it is because the garment actually takes a lot of time to make.

This picture came from Diane Pernet's A Shaded View On Fashion (another one of my favorite blogs.) She included the following caption: "Travel Jacket: 53 hours to construct/5330 Euros The jacket is cut from a zipped nylon travel garment bag. What I loved was the breakdown: 'The hours of work necessary for the creation in question includes: the preparation, the finishing and the quality control but exclude the research of raw material, technical control, necessary treatment (cleaning, softening, dying, etc.) and the fittings. Travel Jacket - February. ' "

Here are a few more of his garments.

Great Shoulders.

The famous wig jacket.

Some of the store's shelving.

And look at how cool his landing page is.

Anyway, he has left the company, and Renzo Rosso, the creator of Diesel, has decided not to replace him. Apparently the creative team of 20 something people are strong enough to continue designing without the need of a creative director. This is a very interesting move, and I think it is the right idea.

Replacing a Creative Director, especially the founder of the brand, is very difficult. There have been a lot of problems with Gianfranco Ferre, Emanuel Ungaro, and Versace, all of which have suffered as brands since their namesake founder has left. There has been a lot of speculation in the news lately about what will happen with Chanel, Ralph Lauren, Giorgio Armani, and Oscar de la Renta, because they all have creative directors in their seventies. Chanel has been quoted as saying “Karl Lagerfeld is the creative director of Chanel and enjoys a long-term contract which is absolutely not put into question. His succession is not on the agenda,” but that is just not credible, they must have some sort of plan in place, because lets face it, at 76, chances are he won’t be able to continue in his role for much longer. I won’t even begin to express the fear in my heart about the succession of Karl Lagerfeld, there is simply no one who can replace him.

With regards to Maison Martin Margiela, we can now only wait to see what happens. Critics have complained that the collections have been lacking for several seasons, apparently since he unofficially left the brand. But I agree that a replacement may only make things worse. I also believe that if this does work, Renzo Rosso will be setting a precedent, and many others will follow. If you can’t replace a great Creative Director, then don’t.

Sorry to anyone whose photo I didn’t credit. Most images came from www.martinmargiela.com and www.style.com but if I used your image without proper credit, please get in touch and I will remove it or credit it.

I love the new photos of Lara Stone in the Spring Summer 2010 Eres campaign. Lets start with Eres, one of the beautiful lingerie brands in the world. I have always favored brands that don’t tailor their products to well-endowed women, which is generally the case with Agent Provocateur and other sexy brands. Eres, and several French brands, make product for french women, which usually means smaller cup sizes. Eres makes the most beautiful basics, so amazing you wouldn’t really need any fancy lingerie if you had a wardrobe full of Eres.

Here are some images from the lingerie collection, from the Eres website:

I have never been one to follow the model gossip, it is just not something I am that interested in. I used to know all the top girls when I worked in Paris at Sonia Rykiel, because we used to cast them for our shows. That was the time of the Brazilians, like Gisele, Fernanda, Mariana, and Ana Claudia, Mario Testino was shooting them all oiled and sexy in the sun, and none of them were size zeros. They all looked amazing, tanned, and very healthy. Now with the whole size zero debate going crazy, I suppose Lara Stone definitely stands out. She is a size 4, which is big by model standards. The industry is going crazy for her, Carine Roitfeld dedicated a whole issue of French Vogue to her, but the sad thing is, she is still feeling pressure to get thin. According to Elle UK, she said “I don’t want to be the fat one anymore, so, I have just started doing Pilates every morning, then going to the gym, running, and swimming.”

Some images of Lara Stone on the catwalk from www.style.com

This image has been getting a lot of attention this week, its the cover of the next issue of Love magazine, with Lara Stone, shot by Mert and Marcus. Everyone is saying she has fabulous breasts, and I won’t deny that. The crazy thing is that this is a body that is considered big by model standards. Who wouldn’t dream of having a body like hers?

I bet Helmut Newton would have loved to shoot her. He is my favourite fashion photographer of all time and he is definitely one of the few photographers that can photograph women in the nude but still make them look uncompromising and powerful.

Helmut Newton's Big Nudes

Anyway, I won’t go on about this for much longer, but I do have a few points to make about size zero and obesity, which I will discuss in a post later this month. Meanwhile, here are the Lara Stone for Eres images. She is beautiful and makes their swimwear look fantastic.

I love the way the French view their fashion industry, they treasure it as a part of their culture, heritage, and a huge part of their economy. I think that is why French fashion is the best (yes, I said it, the best) because the French government and the French people appreciate that fashion is part of why France is famous, and they cherish, protect, and value their industry.

Take as an example counterfeits. Now, the French government knows that that they need to protect their luxury industry as it is a vital part of their economy, therefore in France, you can be fined 10,000 Euros on the spot if you are found to be carrying a counterfeit bag or watch. OK, it is rarely enforced, but the fact that the law exists says a lot. (Did you know that Louis Vuitton employs a team of over 10 people to combat counterfeits in France alone? They train airport officials to spot fake monogram bags arriving into the country. )The French courts have been very supportive of Christian Lacroix (although the company has not managed to be saved completely) as they appreciate that the loss of such an iconic couture brand is a loss to French culture as a whole.

When was the last time the Canadian government made some attempt to nurture the Canadian fashion industry? The only thing I have heard about is drastic cuts to Arts Funding, which certainly is not going to help. Perhaps a bit of government intervention would be a good thing, it certainly hasn’t done any harm to the UK, where an increase in funding and support to the British Fashion Council in recent years has seen London Fashion Week and London designers being taken a lot more seriously on the international stage.

Anyway, another fun way for France to show their support and appreciation to their wonderful fashion brands and designers is this postage stamp, created by Alber Elbaz to celebrate the 120 year anniversary of Lanvin. It is so fun and fabulous.

Image taken from WWD.