Marc Jacobs showed a new direction for Louis Vuitton at Paris Fashion Week. The fall 2010 ready to wear collection featured women -- as opposed to girls -- as models. Adriana Lima, Bar Refaeli, Elle MacPherson and Laetitia Casta all walked the runway and showed actual curves and cleavage while doing it. Now there's something you don't normally see at Paris Fashion Week. Marc let the hemlines down, way down, and showed perfectly cut skirted suits with a 50s feel and a modern cut, many with cleavage baring tops which brought to mind a young Sophia Loren. He paired the low cut tops with a simple pony tail to keep the look classic and elegant.
There were fabulous handbags and some really beautifully cut coats, as well. The color palette was dark, with many black, grey, navy and brown pieces. There were no pants in the collection at all, which he said is a bit old fashioned, but he likes it. So do we. Marc looked quite handsome; he took a bow in a perfectly tailored grey suit which had prominent shoulders. Take a look:
Marc Jacobs showed a truly lovely collection at New York fashion week. His Fall 2010 ready to wear collection featured a pale palette of subdued colors. Marc says his inspiration was from many sources, including past collections, as well as decades from the 1920s to the 1970s -- but no 1980s. "Pretty" "gentle" and "stylish" is what he was going for and what he delivered. From flowing, elegant pantsuits to a hot black sequin cocktail number, this collection is very pretty indeed. The pieces are also quite flattering and are sure to sell quite well. Take a look:
Remember the Louis Vuitton bunny ears from the fall 2009 collection that Madonna wore to the Met Ball? Well, Strategist editor Janet Ozzard and The Cut's Amina Akhtar decided to do a little field test of the bunny ears to see what New Yorkers thought of them. With a little help tying the bunny ears into their hair, the set out for a leisurely stroll to get some man on the street reactions. Our favorite reactions are the adorable little girls who shrieked when they saw grown women wearing bunny ears. They then proceeded to demonstrate the correct hopping technique. Take a look:
Model Lara Stone will be the face of Louis Vuitton's next campaign. Vogue UKreports that Louis Vuitton artistic director Marc Jacobs says they picked Lara Stone because they wanted a "modern, iconic, sexy beauty."
"Because the collection loosely took its cues from the idea of the New Age traveller, we decided to create a green, outdoorsy set that would evoke a spirit of peace and love. To model the clothes, we wanted a modern, iconic, sexy beauty... It had to be Lara Stone," explains Louis Vuitton artistic director Marc Jacobs.
Madonna was the face of Louis Vuitton's last two campaigns.
Marc Jacobs Only Goes to the CFDA Because Anna Wintour Makes Him
Marc Jacobs revealed some interesting tidbits at the WWD CEO conference. Marc really hates going to the Council of Fashion Designers of America Awards. He has won a number of the awards, but he just doesn't like award shows in general. He doesn't even watch the Oscars, the Tonys or the Golden Globes. In fact, the only reason he goes every year because Anna Wintour makes him.
That partly explains his ambivalence about the Council of Fashion Designers of America and its annual awards. Speculating about why he has not won in the women's wear category for several years, he remarked, "Because they're stupid! No, it's not true. I'm really not this egomaniacal monster that you might think I am. My team and I, we've gone to the CFDA awards year after year after year, and we always feel we've done the best collection. That's not to say there aren't other great collections....I don't believe in these prizes. I don't watch the Academy Awards or the Emmys or the Tonys. I only go to the CFDAs because if I don't go, Anna Wintour calls up and says, 'You have to go because you're part of the American fashion industry, da da da da da,' and you can't say no to her. So you sit through this thing as everyone tells you you're going to get it, and then you don't get it, and then everyone tells you it should have been you. You're like, whatever. You go home empty handed one more time, and it's fine. We have nine of them," including from years when they were perhaps not as well deserved, he said.
That is just too funny. You know that he gets that call every year from Anna making him go to the awards show. Marc also talked about Lindsay Lohan and Victoria Beckham.
Asked to name the next Ralph or Donna, he declined, saying many young people have talent and passion, then mentioned Alexander Wang. When a question about celebrity designers came up, Jacobs noted Lindsay Lohan's failure at Ungaro, but complimented Victoria Beckham. "She is someone who has always wanted to design clothes. She knows the body, she loves it and she's working her ass off," he said. "It's too easy to say nobody who’s celebrated for something else shouldn't do fashion."
As for the CFDA, Marc said that it is different now that it was when he was much younger when he had problems with the organization. Now it gives grants to young designers who would never get a chance to show their talents in the current economic climate.
Video: Marc Jacobs and Anna Suit Talk Fashion, Quiz Each Other on Trivia
Style.con asked CFDA International Award and the Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award winners Anna Sui and Marc Jacobs to sit down to lunch at Il Cantinori and have a chat. The two designers talk about how the New York fashion scene has changed since they were young and how they feel about winning lifetime achievement awards while they are still in the prime of their careers. They also quiz each other on personal trivia -- Anna appears to be the winner in the trivia contest. Take a look:
Marc Jacobs Reissues Protect the Skin You're In Tees
The Clones reports that Marc Jacobs is reissuing some of his "Protect the Skin You're In" tees. Chloe Sevigny is posing in the t-shirt above. Other celebrities that posed for the shirts include Victoria Beckham, Heidi Klum, Dita Von Teese, Doutzen Kroes and Erin Wasson.
You can find the tees in the special items section on MarcJacobs.com. You have to find the shirts by scrolling to the right. Marc Jacobs has lumped different types of products together on his website in a manner that makes it difficult to find things. As of this writing, the only shirt we could find online after scrolling around for a while was the Heidi Klum one. The shirts can also be found at Marc Jacobs' stores. The shirts costs $35. Proceeds from the sale of the shirts will benefit NYU Cancer Institute at NYU Langone Medical Center.
Marc Jacobs' Spring/Summer 2010 collection for Louis Vuitton featured models in giant Afros, low-heeled PVC clog/sandals with fur growing out of them, denim hot pants, leggings and giant fake coonskin accessories. Designer Marc explained to Hilary Alexander of The Telegraph that it was all about "street clothes, embracing the hippie-cyber, tribal-punk world." The woman in the show is a New Age Traveler, whose clothing references African, Navajo, Old West and many other traditions. Take a look:
The show was streamed on Facebook and much is being made of the fact that this collection is for "the Facebook generation." Presumably, that means that Louis Vuitton is aiming squarely at the twenty-something crowd with the collection, in an attempt to keep the brand hip and youthful. That impression is reinforced by the comments made by Louis Vuitton CEO Yves Carcelle, who told The New York Times that this collection was just a taste of what will be for sale next spring, "But it is a good way to get to the social network generation."
It is a common misconception that "young" people are on Facebook. According to the latest research, Facebook users are anything but "young" -- as marketers define the term. 41.1% of the users on Facebook are over the age of 34 and the fastest growing demographic on the site is the 45 and older crowd. This is hardly the group that is likely to rush out to buy giant afros, furry sandals and neon bright coonskin tails with which to accessorize their LV handbags.
Alexander McQueen is much savvier about this kind of thing. He live streamed his Paris show off his website, which allowed six million users all over the world to view it without having to deal with Facebook. It was so popular the site crashed temporarily before the web team got it up again (you can view the show in its entirety here).
Video: Lady Gaga Live at the Marc Jacobs After Party
Lady Gaga performs "Poker Face" live at the after party for Marc Jacobs' spring/summer 2010 collection shown at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at the
Hiro Ballroom in New York City on Monday. Gaga sounds so fabulous when she does acoustic. She's a natural entertainer. And the red lace catsuit doesn't hurt either. Take a look:
Marc Jacobs' Spring/Summer 2010 was all about escape, only instead of escaping to the 80s as he did for his fall 2009 collection, Marc says the collection features an escape to the world of the theater: ballet, dance, and the like. He wanted the models to look as if they had just finished a show and went out still wearing a bit of their costumes. The makeup and hair was extreme, with goth, romantic and Kabuki references. The overall effect was youthful, feminine and quite over the top. Take a look:
The Marc Jacobs show pulled in the biggest celebrities seen at Fashion Week. Madonna and Lady Gaga were both there to support Marc and they actually finally met face to face backstage. Marc sent all his models out wearing flats instead of high heels. Some of the models didn't seem to know how to walk in flats and it took awhile to get their strides right. Perez Hilton decided to stir up some trouble by telling the Associated Press that he knows for sure that Lady Gaga is actually a man because he's seen her private parts. Take a look:
First Look at Madonna for Louis Vuitton Fall 2009 Campaign
Here's a first look at the fabulous new Louis Vuitton campaign for Fall 2009 featuring Madonna. Madonna poses as a mannequin while showing off a Louis Vuitton handbag, fingerless gloves and the Marc Jacobs bunny ears she wore to the Costume Institute Gala.
Marc Jacobs Designs Back to School Capsule Collection
Marc Jacobs has designed a back-to-school capsule collection for young girls that will go on sale August 1st at Bloomingdale's. The collection is called "Don't Miss the Marc." NBC New York says all the items are under $200, with most items retailing for less than $100.
The Cut has more photographs of the collection here.
Designers Wear Their Designs For CFDA Journal Photo Shoot
In this year's 2009 CFDA Journal photographer Craig McDean and stylist Karl Templer made designers pose for photos wearing their own designs. Pictured above Jason Wu wears one of his dresses over a suit. Marc Jacobs is pictured on the right wearing his rabbit ears that were most recently worn by Madonna. It's a clever idea. The Cut has a couple more photos of Alex Wang and Rodarte sisters Kate and Laura Mulleav here.
Marc Jacobs is launching
a new fragrance named Lola.
The new women's fragrance is due out in the fall and brings a whole new personality to the party. "Where Daisy is more innocent and sweet, Lola is more sensual — the name conjures up a flirtatious, warm spirit," said the designer in a phone interview Wednesday. "It was the first thing that came to my mind, and I was very insistent with Coty that this had to be the concept. It just felt natural in contrast to Daisy."
Where Daisy Marc Jacobs — which was launched in 2007 and helped catapult the designer's fragrance house to worldwide prominence — works its girlish charm, Lola is intended to be the confident and slightly vampy older sister, the designer added.
The distinction was particularly important to Jacobs, who sees fragrance as an integral part of a person's style. "Fragrance is just as important as accessories, bags and shoes are," said Jacobs. "Not only does it help set a mood, it's a luxury you can have no matter what your size or height or wallet. I'm happy to keep offering more choices. I know I like to rotate fragrances depending on my mood."
Lola, which Jacobs developed with Calice Becker of Givaudan and Ann Gottlieb, opens with pink peppercorn, pear d'anjou and ruby red grapefruit. Its heart is of fuchsia peony, rose and geranium, and the drydown is of vanilla, tonka bean and creamy musk.
Bloomingdale's will carry the fragrance exclusively for one month starting in August. After August, the fragrance will be available at major department and specialty stores and go global.
