fashion low down

South Korean fashion designer Andre Kim has died at the age of 74. – Associated Press

Goldman Sachs thinks you should invest in … jeggings. See, you guys? Fashion really is a good investment. – Village Voice

Textile innovators are working on new fabrics that change color when you sweat. Wait, is that like Hypercolor T-shirts? Those were awesome. – Wall Street Journal

A mentally disabled man was conned into buying $300 worth of skincare products from a mall kiosk employee, who later refused to let him return the unopened items. – Consumerist

Bon Appetit will have a cafe inside Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall during Fashion Week this year. Hmmm, where have we heard that food is fashionable before? – Shut Up Foodies

Shopbop sells a lot of cute clothes. However, they also sell a lot of really busted ones, including one we linked to here. – The Frisky

What if The Expendables had an all-female cast instead of the other way around? Would people rally behind a cast of female action stars? – Esquire

Post from: TheGloss

After living here for a while, you sometimes forget how many amazing people live and work in New York City. When we walked into City Hall for the Fashion’s Night Out kick-off press conference today, we went through security with Lisa Mayock from Vena Cava.

Then, we saw Anna Wintour walking ahead of us and Alex Wang suddenly appeared behind us. A few minutes later Marc Jacobs, Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez walked in. After we were seated inside the press conference room, the following people (in addition to the aforementioned) surrounded the podium: Prabal Gurung, Zac Posen, Phillip Lim, Tracy Reese, Kenneth Cole, Donna Karan, Carolina Herrera, Tommy Hilfiger, Thakoon Panichgul, Marcus Wainwright from Rag & Bone, Francisco Costa, Vera Wang, Tory Burch, Steven Kolb, Linda Fargo, the Mayor…and after a few moments, we noticed tiny Mary-Kate Olsen peeking her head out behind Marc.

Then, unfortunately, we died and are thus unable to report anything else about Fashion’s Night Out.

Just kidding – sort of. We tried our best to focus our attention on what Mayor Bloomberg, NYC & Company CEO George Fertitta and Saks, Inc. CEO Steve Sadove had to say about “New York City” and “The Fashion Industry” in between trying to get a better look at MK’s outfit and monitoring Anna’s facial expressions. Here’s what we got:

• Bloomberg said of the designers standing behind him, whom he called the “definition of trendsetters”: “If they say boot cut pants are back in style, then boot cut pants are back in style.”

• In New York City, there are 175,000 jobs in the $10 billion retail and fashion industries.
• He got really metaphorical when discussing the CFDA fashion incubator, saying something about “sewing the seeds for the next generation of young designers.”
• Saks, Inc. CEO Steve Sadove said the whole idea for Fashion’s Night Out happened when he got a call from Anna about how we were in the depths of a recession and she was so worried about the fashion industry and what could they do to help revive it, etc. He then said that after Fashion’s Night Out, retail sales actually improved and, direct quote, he “started to see people smile again.”
• We were beginning to worry that the only people we were going to hear from were CEOs in suits until Marc, wearing a kilt and the shiniest earrings we’ve ever seen, took to the podium. Yay!
• He kept it short and sweet, telling a story of how it took him an hour to walk the couple blocks from his office to his Mercer Street store on last year’s Fashion’s Night Out because people kept stopping to talk to him on the way. Instead of being annoyed, he loved it. He was happy to see people getting off their computers and going out and interacting with each other because that’s what he’s always loved about New York.
• Then, the Mayor asked if anyone had any questions to ask him about the fashion industry. Immediately, someone asked him some ridiculous question about the city’s use of oil and energy that was not remotely relevant. The mayor smiled and gave a vague, slightly sarcastic answer and asked if anyone had any questions that have to do with fashion. Everyone smiled and laughed (including Anna).
• Someone did ask about the future of the garment district. Bloomberg basically said that if a designer needs huge machinery or needs to produce a million t-shirts in a short amount of time, New York City is not the place to do it. But if you’re looking for talent, expertise, intelligence and artistic ability, this (NYC) is the place to find it. He then said that there are 500,000 people in New York whose jobs are “classified as manufacturing,” though we’re assuming most of those are involved with industries other than fashion and retail.
• Overall, everyone sounded very enthusiastic about and supportive of the fashion industry and Fashion’s Night Out and making sure New York City remains the world’s fashion capital.

In other Fashion’s Night Out news, there are 950 participants currently registered to hold events throughout the five boroughs, already surpassing the participation level of last year’s event.

NYC & Company, the city’s marketing, tourism and partnership organization, has worked with more than 40 hotels to create packages for the month of September, offering exclusive FNO deals to travelers.

On August 16, a full list of event details will be available on nyc.gov (or check our own lists here and here for a sneak peak)

Tickets for “Fashion’s Night Out: The Show” will go on sale to the public on Thursday, August 19 through the Lincoln Center Box Office, starting at a very reasonable $25.

British model Lily Cole hosted Gatwick Fashion Week. You might be asking yourself, “Where is Gatwick? What country is that in?” However, you should know that Gatwick (unlike, say, Milan or Paris or New York) is not a town. It is an airport. It is like the LaGuardia Airport of London. And for some reason, it has its own Fashion Week. No brand name designers are participating in the event, which seems to be more of a PR push than anything else, although the “proceeds” will be going to charity. So far all that has really happened is Lily Cole was there and got a bunch of pictures of herself taken, and some people won some model search contest. Oh, and it sounds like some stylist is doing makeovers for passengers. I know that my redeye flights back from London it’s so much more fun trying to sleep when I’m wearing makeup and have blown-out hair.

Post from: TheGloss

Finally, the Mercedes Benz New York Fashion Week schedule for Spring/Summer 2011 is up! NYFW is from Thursday, September 9th to Thursday, September 16th. As you know, NYFW will no longer be at the Bryant Park Tents and has officially moved to Lincoln Center. Super excited for the Fashion’s Night Out first-ever runway show, hopefully I’ll get invited! There’s also a lot of shows I’m anticipating, some of which are not listed because they are off site. Stay tuned for more info forthcoming…

Which show(s) are you anticipating? Check out the full schedule after the jump…

Read the rest of Mercedes Benz New York Fashion Week Schedule | Spring 2011

© retrogurl for nitro:licious - fashion, trends, h&m, shopping, sneakers & lifestyle...who's got flava?, 2010. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us

Today I’m furiously typing away as there are some big things coming up in the next week… well tomorrow actually. Tomorrow I head down to Mountain View to give a Google Talk mostly for my involvement with Independent Fashion Bloggers. And then, next week I’m off to Blogher. It’s all kind of nerve wracking as I’m pretty much all in the moment 99% of the time, taking a look at everything that I’ve experienced over the last three years and talking about it, is kind of crazy. Tomorrow I’m wearing the dress I bought from Norwegian Wood.. Ever since I wrote about the new collection, I knew I had to have this dress. I haven’t properly styled it here, as really, that presentation isn’t going to write it self.

GStyle, Google Offices, Mountain View July 29th

It’s a huge honor to be invited there,Google has got to be one of the most innovative companies in the world.  The fact that they are taking interest in fashion online is one of the best validators a blogger can ask for. For all these years bloggers have been in a strange place, between a world that does not embrace technology (fashion) and a world that does not embrace fashion (techies). Fashion/Clothing/Shopping  did not even make a subject bloggers blog about in Technorati’s 2009 State of the Bloggosphere which indicates just how small we are. And 2009 was the year people said blogging hit the mainstream. Hopefully, they’ll post the video on the Google Talks YouTubechannel, but until then, wish me luck!

Blogher Conference NYC, August 6th 1:15-2:30 pm

Quite possibly the largest and most influential women’s blogging network, the Blogher Conference is something that everyone should keep an eye on. What’s been going on in the Mommy Blog sector is also happening here in Fashion Blogging and there is a lot of cross over between the two. The panel I will be speaking on Passions: This Year Fashion is Serious Business with Sarah Conley from Style IT and Nichelle Pace from STYLEMOM we’ll talk about what’s it like to be a fashion blogger.

I really hope you can make it!

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This is the last of my Hong Kong photo diary, hope you guys enjoyed it all! Since I started my first post with the red couch, I thought it would be fun to end it with the same one. I had an amazing time in Hong Kong, so much that I almost didn’t want to come back. Although HK was super hot and humid during the time I visited and it rained a lot but that didn’t change a thing, I just love HK so much. I never realized how popular World Cup was until last month, may be because it’s not such a big thing in the states.

One of the unexpected events I’ve experienced in HK was World Cup. Everybody’s day revolved around World Cup, it was that serious lols. Malls and local joints that has cable TV were full of people sitting and standing watching the match, whether it was outdoor on indoor it was so packed. I also had the best Coke I’ve ever had in HK, “twist open for a blast of ice…” seriously, the Coke turns to slush! Have you guys tried it before? And I just gotta say HK’s night view is breathtaking, no wonder it’s called ???? (Pearl of Asia). I miss my friends, food and shopping there already, hopefully I’ll be back soon!

> Hong Kong 2010 Photo Diary – Part 1
> Hong Kong 2010 Photo Diary – Part 2
> Hong Kong 2010 Photo Diary – Part 3

Read the rest of Hong Kong 2010 Photo Diary – Part 4

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Plastic surgery is on the rise among women of color. Obviously, plastic surgeons think this is good news. – BellaSugar

Science says that what happens to your brain during a breakup is the same thing that happens when you stop doing cocaine. I knew I shouldn’t have quit boys and drugs in the same week. – The Frisky

Copenhagen’s Fashion Week will boast the world’s longest runway. Oh, good, more opportunities for models to faceplant. – Fashionista

Pamela Anderson does not think it’s cool that Janet Jackson is featured in ads for fur company Blackglama. Somewhere in here there’s a “fur flying” joke. – Styleite

CBS is holding a contest to find the “world’s No. 1 fashion fan.” The winner will score tickets to Fashion’s Night Out and other cool swag. – ET Online

After customer complaints, Cover Girl’s concealer is now available in darker tones. – Real Style Network

Post from: TheGloss

Photo by Peter Ash Lee

If you’re a city hosting a fashion week and you’re not New York, London, Milan or Paris, you need something to make yourself stand out. For Copenhagen, that thing is the longest catwalk in the world.

Copenhagen’s fashion week, which runs from August 11-15, will culminate with a fashion show on what is being called the “World’s Greatest Catwalk.” Strøget, the pedestrian street that runs through the center of the city, will be transformed into a mile-long catwalk, down which 220 models will walk. The models will wear designs from over 500 Scandinavian brands. Also the runway will be pink.

The show will rival (or best) the Fashion’s Night Out runway extravaganza, which purports to be the biggest fashion show ever staged in NYC, featuring over 200 models on the runway.

Denmarks’ own Helena Christensen is the “patroness” of the week, but won’t walk on the “World’s Greatest Catwalk.” Supermodels don’t walk mile-long runways apparently.

Yesterday was the last day of Miami’s Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Swim. We happen to live in a city where the opportunities to don a swimsuit are few and far between, which is presumably why this five-day event is held in a place like Miami, where swimsuits are de riguer.

Our lack of swimsuit-wearing opportunities means we don’t need very many, which also means we get to be extra choosy when picking them out. Or, it means realizing while packing last-minute for an impromptu trip to the Hamptons that you don’t own a swimsuit and running into Old Navy on 34th on your way to the train to buy the first one you see in your size. This is not ideal, so in the interest of being prepared for either situation, we look, with several grains of salt, to Miami Fashion Week.

Miami is not a place that most would consider to be on the forefront of fashion. Sure, there are some well-dressed people and amazing stores like The Webster; but a hefty portion of Miami’s residents appear to live by a “less is more” fashion philosophy, and not always in a good way. Miami also happens to be the backdrop for the upcoming season of Jersey Shore. However, if there is one fashion-related thing that Miami might have some expertise on, it’s swimwear.

As Lauren pointed out, swimsuits are a big profit-generator. According to market research firm NPD, women’s swimwear sales in the last fiscal year totaled $4.3 billion. This can mean designers are, understandably, more concerned with making something that will sell than making something innovative or statement-making that might appeal more to fashion people.

That being said, while there was a lot of sameness happening on the Miami runways, there were a few lines that stood out to us. From Ed Hardy to the Kardashians to Lorenzo Martone, here is a roundup of the trends that came out of Miami Swim, some of which we actually really liked.

At times, fashion can be difficult. It can be temperamental, confusing and subversive in ways both good and bad, and when you get into the upper echelons of the style world, not all good clothes are pretty. In fact, that’s probably one of the biggest misconceptions about the fashion industry from those on the outside looking in – fashion is often not about being traditionally pretty.

Sometimes, though, it is. Elie Saab is a reliable purveyor of the beautiful and sparkly, and he certainly didn’t fail to bring the glamour with his Fall/Winter 2010 Haute Couture collection. With a palette ranging from scarlet to baby blue, Saab explored the various and sundry ways to make a woman feel like a million bucks.

His goals may not be as high-brow (or pretentious, depending on how you look at it) as someone like Karl Lagerfeld, but he hit his mark admirably with everything from cocktail dresses to a stunning, couture-traditional wedding gown to end the show. I’d be amazed if every last one of these looks didn’t end up on a high-profile red carpet sometime in the next year.

Who do you think will wear them? One of the gold numbers in particular screams “Angelina Jolie” to me.

Photos via Style.com.