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• 2009 fashion news - A Kinder, Gentler Christian Bale at the "Terminator Salvation" Premiere

  
  15 May 2009
  
  

  2009 fashion news - Natalie Mark and Sam Worthington arrive at the Film premiere of "Terminator Salvation"

  Los Angeles – Christian Bale was all smiles during his red carpet walk for the premiere of his latest action film "Terminator Salvation" held at Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood on Thursday, May 14. No sign of that angry actor who so famously went off on the film's director of photography; instead, he hugged his wife Sibi Blazic to his side and behaved.

  Perhaps that's because it isn't Bale who is getting all the attention for this fourth installment in "The Terminator" series that began way back in 1984. That honor goes to Australian actor Sam Worthington, who breaks out in a big way in the massive action flick.

  The former bricklayer from Perth is the man of the hour, as was obvious at the elaborate after party set up in a parking lot across Hollywood Boulevard. As spotlights swept the scene and massive robots loomed over the revelers, Worthington was mobbed by excited new fans. He hung on tight to girlfriend Natalie Mark, and seemed to take it all in stride.

  "I think I'm in a lucky position to be getting offered roles that I find interesting," said the 32-year-old actor who spent ten years working in Australian film, television, and theater before taking the leap to Hollywood. "I'm working with some very talented people and hopefully telling some good stories. And hopefully my work isn't going to let those people down."

  His co-stars on hand seemed happy with his performance as they did the meet-and-greet at the premiere. Moon Bloodgood, Jane Alexander, Anton Yelchin and Bryce Dallas Howard all made the star-studded scene, along with "Terminator" fans like Rose McGowan, Eric Dane, Anil Kapoor, Tyrese Gibson, Kathryn Morris, Brook Burke, Eric Mabius, and Kelly Osbourne.

  But despite the rumors swirling around the party, it turned out that California's governor and the original star of "The Terminator" Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife Maria Shriver did not make the premiere. They did, however send three of their children to the celebration. Katherine, Patrick, and Christopher Schwarzenegger represented the family, and watched their dad's robot character return to the role that made him a household name 25 years ago.

   

  (Yahoo fashion news)

• 2009 fashion news - Winona Ryder hasn't had surgery - she just eats salad

  
  15 May 2009
  

   

  The 'Stay Cool' actress, 37, has amazed fans with her line-free face but her make-up artist insists her youthful looks are all natural.

  Kim Collea said: "She hasn't aged and let me tell you, she has had absolutely nothing done.

  "She is a very healthy eater, and I think that is a big part of it. It sounds boring, but the girl eats a lot of salads. And you know those giant Big Gulps cups that most people fill with soda? She's got hers filled with water."

  Winona prefers a natural look and only opts for make-up in neutral tones.

  Kim added to People magazine: "When it comes to Noni, less is always more. With her I did a mix of Neutrogena, Chanel, and this stuff called Alison Raffaele which is a natural line. She likes everything to be natural. Her palette is all ivories, and beiges and very light browns."

  Kim is a big fan of her friend and client's style, in particular Winona's ability to accessorise.

  She added: "She has the most amazing handbags. Designers send them to her. They are beautiful."

   

  (Bgfashion fashion news)

• 2009 fashion news - A new bra boosts women's cleavage when they are aroused

  
  15 May 2009
  

  
  
  Slovenia-based Lisca lingerie's Smart Memory Bra alters its shape when the wearer's body temperature changes, pushing breasts closer together when a woman gets flushed after seeing someone attractive.
  
  Designer Suzana Gorisek said: "As a woman's body changes, so the size of the bra changes. That's the advantage of this bra."
  
  As soon as the wearer's temperature decreases the bra deflates.
  
  The underwear was invented when designers began working on a bra which would change shape depending on the weather, to ensure women always had perfectly-fitting lingerie.The cups boast expanding foam which is heat-sensitive.
  
  A company representative explained: "It's healthier than an ordinary bra because it will always provide the perfect fit."
  
  The piece has already been shown at a large lingerie exhibition in Paris, and is expected to cost around £25 when it goes on sale.
  
  The spokesman added: "We are still looking into distributors in all major European countries but we have had a lot of interest so far."
  
  Lisca is the biggest lingerie firm in eastern Europe.
  
  Earlier this week, underwear firm Triumph International showed off their new bra offering, which boasted a ticking clock on the front. The bra is designed for women who are looking for a husband, and the only way to stop the clock counting down is to slip an engagement ring into the mechanism. When the jewellery is put in place, the clock halts and Felix Mendelssohn's 'The Wedding March' begins to play. The bra is yet to go on sale.

  (Bgfashion fashion news)

• 2009 fashion news - Michelle Obama puts the ‘o’ in Boden

  
  14 May 2009
  
  

  Michelle Obama's Basso & Brooke top, specially customised Photo: GETTY IMAGES
  

  The original Basso & Brooke catwalk dress

  Michelle Obama is no stranger to mail order; her passion for the American giant of clothes- by- post, J.Crew, is well-documented.

  But, following her visit to the G20 summit in London, in April, America’s First Lady has caught the ‘Boden Bug’, the British mail order catalogue beloved of David Cameron and his wife, Samantha, and the Mayor of London, Boris, Johnson, among others.

  

  The original Basso & Brooke catwalk dress

  Boden is also a favourite mail order destination for the film actress, Angelina Jolie, when shopping for clothes for her six children.

  Boden’s press office confirmed today that Mrs Obama has ordered a copy of the British mail order firm’s current spring/summer fashion catalogue.

  Boden was launched by Johnnie Boden, an Old Etonian former stockbroker, in 1991 and rapidly built up a fan following generally categorised as ‘middle England’. The company launched its US website in 2002, and added its first US call center in Pennsylvania, last year.

  It is now a £168 million turnover business with more than one million mail order and internet customers world wide.

  The ‘Boden Bug’ is evidence of a growing interest by Michelle Obama’s in the Brit Look, to supplement her passion for surprising and eclectic fashion choices.

  At the ‘Evening of Poetry, Music and The Spoken Word’ , held in the East Room of the White House on May 12th, the First Lady was wearing a Swarovski crystal-beaded top, by the London based duo, Basso & Brooke.

  It is unclear whether Mrs Obama herself or her stylist ‘customized’ the piece because it was originally designed as a dress, but had been shortened to be worn with cropped white trousers.

  The-off-the-shoulder was a personal touch which gave the top the open 'Michelle O.' factor. The first lady bought the Basso & Brooke dress from her favourite Chicago boutique, Ikram.

  Earlier this year, Mrs Obama chose a dress by the young Scottish designer, Jonathan Saunders, to wear for an Alvin Ailey dance performance at the Kennedy Centre, in Washington, accessorising it with a necklace by another young Brit talent, Richard Nicoll.

  The American First Lady’s ‘across-the-pond’ style initiative is being echoed by her counterpart at Number Ten Downing Street.

  Earlier this week, Sarah Brown, the Prime Minister’s wife, accessorized a dress by the London dressmaker Britt Litner, with a striking, organic choker from American label, Banana Republic.

   

  (Telegraph fashion news)

• 2009 fashion news - Italian festival of beaty and hair-style

  
  14 May 2009
  

  The International Exhibition of Hairdressing, Beauty, Make-up, Perfumery and Fashion ITALIAN FESTIVAL OF BEAUTY has two editions – spring and autumn.

  The participants in the salon are manufacturers and dealers of professional hair-care products and accessories; beauty companies; suppliers of equipment and devices for hairdresser's and beautician's.

  From 1 to 4 November the Fairground is a place for fashion catwalk shows and demonstrations of coiffeurs and hairdressers. They make the festival attractive both for the trade visitors and the general public.

  The National hairdressing and make-up competition is held within the frame of the Italian Festival of Beauty.

   

  (Bgfashion fashion news)

• 2009 fashion news - Stella McCartney: "Style it your way. Create a unique look."

  
  14 May 2009
  

  The British designer insists it is fine to follow the latest trends, but warns fashion lovers must give their clothing a twist to ensure they stand out form the crowd.

  She said: "Style it your way. Add accessories, roll up a sleeve or turn up a collar. Create a unique look. Mix a couple of pieces with your own existing wardrobe.

  "Choose a statement piece by wearing the prints or embroidered pieces alone to give them breathing space."

  The mother-of-three also believes it is essential to mix new clothes with old to spice up outfits.

  She told Britain's Glamour magazine: "Combine old with new. I'll wear an embroidered jacket with my husband's old Fruit of the Loom T-shirt."

  Stella was recently named the world's most influential designer.

  The 37-year-old beauty - who has designed clothes for Chloe, Gucci as well as her own Stella McCartney label - was the only representative from the fashion industry in TIME magazine's annual 100 influential people list.

   

  (Bgfashion fashion news)

• 2009 bikinis fashion - Urban Outfitters collaborates with Burberry and Pistol Panties

  
  13 May 2009
  
  

  Thomas Burberry (left) and Pistol Panties bikinis from a collection at Urban Outfitters

  Luxury British brand Thomas Burberry and super kitsch swimwear giants Pistol Panties have joined forces with retro high street favourite Urban Outfitters to create exclusive swimwear designs for the forthcoming summer season.

  Pistol Panties designer Deborah Fleming, who first launched her collection in Selfridges three years ago, has created a young and sporty look that is reminiscent of roller-skating girls, and a retro street style in gorgeous prints with the statement ‘Pistol Panties’ beads that read across the lower back (priced at £69 and range from sizes 8-14), while Thomas Burberry's take on the nautical trend this season has influenced their fun yet stylish bikini. The design, which focuses on a navy backdrop emblazoned with white anchors, is designer-led yet cost-effective at only £44 a set (available in sizes XS, S, M, L).

  The designs, which have just arrived in store, are quirky yet nostalgic and are a fun alternative to monochrome prints and one-piece suits.

  Urban Outfitters are set to continue their designer collaborations throughout the year with more designs filtering in to their autumn/winter collections by diffusion lines such as Vivienne Westwood’s Anglomania and See by Chloé.

   

  (Telegraph fashion news)

• 2009 luxury handicraft fashion - hand luggage and summer fashion

  
  13 May 2009
  

  Goodbye to excess and bling and the caseful of too much stuff you won't wear anyway. Hello to buying less but better, says Adriaane Pielou, and travelling with only hand luggage.
  
  What count now are the qualities that endure: exquisite craftsmanship, classic styling, sound provenance. We still love glamour and all things luxurious – it’s just that our taste has turned to individuality and authenticity, to beautifully-made items designed to give lasting pleasure. And now that we’ve all been made painfully aware of our global inter-connectedness, if we can extend a helping hand to the people still keeping old crafts alive as we indulge our taste for alluring one-offs, then so much the better – for all of us.

  1. Go-anywhere rouleau-neck dress by Maje, £199, from Fenwick, England’s last family-owned department store chain (with two Mr Fenwicks, rather à la Grace Brothers, still at the London branch). The store will also mail-order any item; New Bond St, London W1 (020 7629 9161)

  Traditional Sardinian bag

  Handmade from wool and recycled cotton using traditional techniques, £130, from Antonello

  Beaded wooden necklace

  Crafted by Nairobi slumdwellers, £70

  A classic watch

  To go with everything – and worth handing down – £3,300, from Chanel, New Bond Street, London W1 (0207 499 0005)

  Silk eye masks

  Woven in Rajasthan and stuffed with frankincense incense made by Benedictine monks at Prinknash Abbey, £45, from Devotion Trading (020 8675 7069)

  Optomo Pico pocket projector

  A mobile-sized pocket cinema with tiny tripod, connects with your phone to project photos and videos up to 60 square inches, £250, from Harrods, as above.

   

  (Telegraph fashion news)

• 2009 models news - Paulina Porizkova say she was fired by 'Top Model'

  
  13 May 2009
  

  

  2009 models news  - In this May 4, 2009 file photo, model Paulina Porizkova arrives at the Metropolitan Museum

  NEW YORK – Paulina Porizkova got a pink slip from "America's Next Top Model." That's what the model-actress said Tuesday night on CBS' "The Late Late Show," dropping this bombshell to host Craig Ferguson: "Do you know why I'm in Los Angeles, besides seeing you? ... Because I'm looking for a job. Because I was fired by `America's Next Top Model' on my birthday."

  Porizkova, who turned 44 on April 9, joined the judges' panel of the popular model-scouting series last year. Wednesday night's 12th season finale on the CW network marks her final appearance.

  According to Porizkova, the firing happened over the phone.

  "Just to be fair here, the reason I was told I was fired was because ... it seemed that `America's Next Top Model' had gotten too fat and they needed to cut some fat — and the fat was me," she explained to Ferguson.

  Porizkova judged the crop of `Top Model' wannabes alongside fashion insiders J. Alexander, Nigel Barker and the show's creator and host, Tyra Banks.

  Show representatives Jeff Tobler and Chelsea Hettrick declined to comment beyond confirming Porizkova's departure. The supermodel's publicist, Meghan Prophet, did not return a phone call regarding Tuesday's announcement.

  Porizkova joked that her "gigantic huge ego" might have contributed to her untimely reality-show elimination. That prompted Ferguson to ponder whether there was rivalry between her and Banks.

  Getting serious, she added: "I really believe that they just felt like they didn't need me, which, of course, they don't."

   

  (Yahoo fashion news)

• 2009 Annual American Image Awards - Norma Kamali, Barbie Honored at AAFA American Image Awards

  
  13 May 2009
  

  

  2009 fashion news – Norma Kamali and Dennis Basso attend the 2009 Annual American Image Awards presented by the American

  New York – She may not be a real person, but 50 years later she's still a fashion maverick: Barbie. She was just one of the honorees at the American Apparel and Footwear Association's 31st annual American Image awards, held in New York on Tuesday, May 12.

  The AAFA honored Barbie along with real-life fashion luminaries and companies including Norma Kamali, Lily Pulitzer, Gilbert Harrison, Wolverine Worldwide, Inc. and QVC.

  Hosted by Stay London, presenters Isaac Mizrahi, Carson Kressley and Hal Rubenstein mingled with guests that included designer Dennis Basso, Dylan Lauren and Countess LuAnn de Lesseps, who donned casual spring looks for the red carpet.

  Kamali, who received the designer of the year award, wore one of her signature parachute skirts and gold jewelry.

  CEO and President Blake W. Krueger accepted the lifestyle branding award on behalf of US footwear brand Wolverine Worldwide, Inc., which celebrated its 125th anniversary last year, producing brands such as Hush Puppies, Patagonia footwear and Harley-Davidson footwear.

  AAFA named QVC received the retailer of the year award, while founder and chairman of Financo, Inc. was honored with the lifetime achievement award and Lily Pulitzer received the "Spirit of a Woman" award.

  The AAFA sponsors the annual awards ceremony to benefit the Educational Foundation of FIT. Past honorees have included Diane von Furstenberg, Betsey Johnson and Simon Doonan of Barneys New York.

  (Yahoo fashion news)

• 2009 fashion news - Pregnant Heidi Klum is obsessed with black maternity clothes

  
  13 May 2009
  
  The model has asked Christian Siriano - who won the fourth season of 'Project Runway', the fashion TV show she presents - to make her a variety of pieces in the dark hue.

  Christian explained: "She's all about black. We made her some pieces from my Fierce Mama Maternity line and she wanted everything in black. I think she's trying to cover it a little this time. She's getting older and wants to be more sophisticated, not casual. She's trying to keep it a little quiet."

  Heidi - who already raises three children with husband Seal - recently revealed her pregnancy style secrets, claiming her changing shape would not stop her from dressing sexily.

  The model said: "I love to be creative and find cute things in between maternity and non-maternity. It's about finding good shapes. Cool tops. Right now for example, I love the skinny pants and blousier tops, and then when I get bigger, I like to bring the form back to the body. Then I like to show it off."

  When she can't decide what to wear, Heidi always turns to a pair of black Balenciaga jeans which are low cut so sit underneath her tummy.

  Heidi's trainer has spoken about her attitude to fitness while she is expecting, claiming she is intent of keeping in shape.

  David Kirsch told People magazine: "Why should she do anything differently? Heidi had a beautiful body all throughout her pregnancies. She's very disciplined and dialed in to being healthy."

   

  (Bgfashion fashion news)

• 2009 fashion news - Claudia Schiffer was terrified her career was over when she first got pregnant

  
  13 May 2009
  

  The German supermodel - who has six-year-old son Caspar and four-year-old daughter Clementine with husband Matthew Vaughn - took a break from modelling after discovering she was expecting, but worried she would find it hard to return to work.

  She said: "People forget that when you're pregnant you can't work, so you've sort of gone. When I started modelling again, someone said to me, 'Oh I thought you'd given up.' But it's not like other jobs where you can just continue. You have to stop because you literally can't fit into any clothes. You can't travel anymore. It was a sudden realisation of, 'Oh my God, what am I going to do?' "

  Claudia also admitted she initially found motherhood very lonely because she had moved to England and didn't many friends.

  She told Britain's Hello! magazine: "I'd just got married and moved to London and hardly knew anyone. All my friends were in Paris, New York or Germany and suddenly I had to start everything from scratch. I didn't really know London. So I started to explore. When you have a baby and they go to nursery, you start to meet lots of new people and suddenly this whole new world opens up.

  "Years later I'm able to look back and think, 'That was a tough time.' But I've got all my friends and life is where I want it to be, so it's lovely now."

   

  (Bgfashion fashion news)

• 2009 Swimwear Bikini Fashion Trends for young girls

  
  12 May 2009
  

  If you have a well-built and beautiful body, any kind of a swimming suit would fit you, but imagine how much attention you will get, if you show up on the beach in an attractive model of the fashion designers' latest collections. Swimming suits with one shoulder-strap are a hit this year, as well as full-body swimming suits with lots of complicated cuts and various shapes.

  

  

  Bright colours are very modern, but swimming suits in black or black and white look very refined. Among the key trends is also the usage of metallic materials.

  

  

  In many of the world's leading brands' offers we can see a combination of all current trends of the season.

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  As an impressive addition to the swimming suit many brands offer dresses, shawls and mantles from sheer fabrics.

  

  

  Always combine the swimming suit with the appropriate accessories - jewelry, beach bag, sun glasses. Don't forget that the better you look, the better you feel. We wish you an unforgettable and full of pleasant emotions summer!

  

  

  

  

   

  (Bgfashion fashion news)

• 2009 Bags fashion trends

  
  12 May 2009
  

  Fashion trends for bags in the new season

  Every bag and every woman should have something exclusively.
  
  That's why next 4 months your bag should be original and stylish.
  
  Bags are different: bright, strict, mood, official, expensive or cheep, daily. Exchange them in the way you cloth.
  
  This season is modern to take bag in hand. The strap is only for decoration.
  
  Other trends were bring from the previous season.

  

   

  

  

   

  (Bgfashion fashion news)

• 2009 Shoe fashion trends - Shoe trends spring - summer 2009

  
  12 May 2009
  

  On the fashion catwalks for season spring - summer 2009 in the designer's collections were shown so much new proposals in construction and architecture of shoes that participants could stay only speechless!
  
  One of these curious and rarely appropriate shoots become unusual platform, which was shown in any style by many designers. Feature these platforms in distinction of usual ones not entirely copy feet line but finishes in the half, like someone wanted to make it more refined and cut the "redundant".

   

  

  

  

  

   

  (Bgfashion fashion news)

• 2009 fashion news - Roma Fashion - beauty and magic of gipsy culture

  
  12 May 2009
  

  On 8 May in Sofia was held the fashion show ROMA FASHION. Original gipsy music and poetry accompanied the event.

  Inspired by the gipsy aesthetics, designers from Bulgaria and abroad presented their creations, showing the romance of the "gipsy style" in contemporary fashion. The show included models of designers from Bulgaria, Finland, Romania, Argentina, Macedonia etc.

  
  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

   

   

  (Bgfashion fashion news)

• 2009 Diamonds fashion trends - Diamonds - The best friends of the girls

  
  12 May 2009
  

  As you can guess, it’s all about diamonds. This well-known, playful song of Marilyn Monroe became a symbol of the eternal striving of women to refinement, richness and luxury. Touching to the magic stone is a unique feeling, the look like goes deep down in one hypnotic and endless beauty. The diamond is considered as a standard of richness, power and prosperity.

  The word „diamond” comes from the Greek word “adamas” that means unconquerable, indestructible. The diamond is the hardest natural material in the world. Although its availability is quite limited, it comes from the carbon – one of the most widespread elements in nature. The atoms of the carbon are combined with short, stable connections in three-dimensional system. But the diamonds aren’t the same taken alone. There are a number of factors that define the price and the value - transparency, fluorescence, destructibility and way of reflection of the light. Among the transparency stage the diamonds vary from entirely transparent to entirely mat. The most quality and pure diamonds are used for the producing of jewels and the others diamonds with low quality are used mostly in the industry. The stones that after grinding and polishing don’t shine are called „death diamonds”. After ultra-violet treatment the diamonds eliminate light. It can be blue, violet, sometimes yellow, green or orange.

  The most famous diamond fields are in India, Brazil, South Africa and Canada. At the end of 19th century in South Africa burst the so-called „diamond fever”. The history shows that the fever is provoked from one of the most famous diamonds „The star of South Africa” that weight 83,5 carats.

  The most famous diamonds

  „The star of South Africa”	„Hope”
  “Cullinan”

  Hollywood diamonds
  If you aren’t sure in the love of your candidate-husband, so a proposal for marriage, accompanied with diamond ring could turn the balance in his interest. The diamonds are the most often presents from and for Hollywood stars, entrepreneurs and generally people that belong to the category „VIP”. This maybe is an attempt to be proved the idea that with money can be bought diamonds and respectively – „love”.

  Brad Pitt personally was invented the model of the wedding rings with diamonds, but unfortunately this wasn’t enough to stay together with Jennifer Aniston.

  

  The director Guy Ritchie adds something by himself to the ring with which he proposes marriage to Madonna – platinum hoop just under the ring and three big stones that symbolize their family.

  The engagement ring of the young Jessica Simpson is with 4-carat diamond in the shape of pear, together with another two stones, strongly supported with the platinum.

  Except for ornament and style, the diamond can be used as one quite successful investment. At first place the diamond is an investment with international recognition, after that it is lasting and traditional investment.

  It is found to be that the diamonds can be not only ornaments, but also a good investment. The diamond surely will distinguish you from the others; it will make you unique and stylish. We don’t have to mention the additional self-confidence that it will bring you inevitably.

   

  (Bgfashion fashion news)

• 2009 fashion news - Haute couture guide to Paris

  
  11 May 2009
  

  2009 fashion news - No one knows Paris like the illustrator David Downton. Here he reveals his insider’s guide to the most fashionable – and utterly fabulous – haunts.

  

  Buildings such as the Grand Palais add a magical dimension to fashion shows Photo: AFP
  

  The Palais Garnier opera house provides another spectacular setting for a show

  To quote Cole Porter, “You may know Paris, but you don’t know Paree”. Or, at least, you may not know it in January and July, when the couture circus hits town. Once discreet, black-tie presentations just for clients – no paparazzi, no celebrities – the haute couture shows have evolved in recent years into unapologetic displays of ego and excess, underpinned by astonishing craftsmanship, reckless creativity and a celebration of beauty in extremis.

  So far, the current financial Armageddon doesn’t appear to have impacted on the rarefied world of haute couture, but it may be quite a while before we see anything to equal the flights of fantasy of a decade or so ago. No one who witnessed John Galliano’s Marchesa Casati collection for Dior in 1997, for example, is likely to forget it. Commandeering the glorious Palais Garnier, Paris’s Second Empire opera house, the show was a dazzling rebuke to a cynical, seen-it-all age.

  

  The Palais Garnier opera house provides another spectacular setting for a show

  An audience of 1,500 gathered in the grand foyer and snacked on Ladurée macaroons while a tango orchestra played and “maharajahs” sporting diamonds as big as the Ritz served champagne at petal-strewn tables. All this before the show. Then, as lightning flashed and thunder rolled, model and house muse Suzanne von Aichinger ran up the marble staircase in a black crinoline so vast that, as she sped through the foyer, it swung to left and right, shattering champagne glasses as she went. “I’ve just seen The Lion King on Broadway,” announced a breathless Dominic Dunne, the American social commentator, after the show. “It has absolutely nothing on this!”

  The use of the Opéra Garnier is significant. Unlike London and New York, where fashion shows are staged mostly in clusters of corporate tents, the city of Paris plays a pivotal role in couture’s magic-lantern show. Its buildings – from the grandest (Versailles, the Grand Palais, the Jeu de Paume, the Rodin Museum and the Louvre) to the most utilitarian (the Gare d’Austerlitz, the Ecôle Berthier, even a municipal swimming pool in the 16th) provide a magical extra dimension and, at times, a welcome distraction.

  There are still echoes of a more genteel time. Karl Lagerfeld occasionally returns to the Chanel headquarters in the Rue Cambon, staging shows so intimate (not to say cramped) that exasperated photographers frantically signal to the front row to keep their footwear out of shot. The advantage, of course, is that you get to see the extraordinary workmanship that is couture’s raison d’être. But there are disadvantages, too. I once watched in mute horror as a pen that had been balancing on my sketchbook disappeared into the rustling folds of a passing skirt. Although not officially on the couture schedule (there are strict rules about these things), Alber Elbaz of Lanvin has upped the exclusivity ante recently by taking a salon at the Hôtel Crillon and personally talking a dozen or so members of the press corps through his collection. “I was thinking,” he mused, as a model appeared in a sparkling Stetson, “of Liza Minnelli, shopping in a supermarket.” A happier, calmer world it would be if Elbaz’ potent charm were bottled and spritzed through airport lounges and on to city trading floors.

  Over the last decade the schedules have thinned as Saint Laurent, Ungaro, Balmain and Mugler, among others, have closed their couture ateliers. But make no mistake, fashion is everywhere. The great museums stage blockbuster exhibitions to coincide with the couture calendar (Christian Lacroix, Valentino and Richard Avedon have all featured recently), and shops, from the ever-hip boutique Colette to the discreetly elegant bookshop Calignani, are “dressed” for the occasion.

  Beyond the catwalk, the action is focused on the hotels, bars and cafes where deals are done, careers made and collections dissected. The grand old palaces, the

  Ritz, the Crillon, the Meurice, and to a lesser extent the Bristol, the Plaza Athénée and the Four Seasons George V, attract the top fashion editors, visiting celebrities and those rare birds of fashion, clients. The Hôtel Costes hosts a younger, hipper crowd. Jacques Garcia designed this sumptuously theatrical boutique hotel seemingly as a crash-pad for Napoleon III. The superiority and surliness of the female waiting staff, supermodels manqué, however, is legendary. If you happen to be dining with a genuine supermodel, expect already grudging service to curdle into a battle of wills.

  Flowers are everywhere in Paris, and at couture time they become a form of currency. Vast bowers decorate shows and shop openings, and special clients receive special arrangements from designers. (If you are not one of the favoured few receiving tributes from John, Karl and Giorgio, you can always fill your hotel room yourself and fake the cards – I know people who have done it.) And Christian Lacroix’s shows climax with a blizzard of carnations as the music swells and the designer and his bride take their valedictory promenade.

  “In Paris, half the population lives off fashion, while the other half lives for it,” noted the social commentator Emmeline Raymond a century ago. It is still true today.

  Getting onto “the list” and into one of the big six shows – Chanel, Dior, Lacroix, Armani, Givenchy and Valentino – can be a tricky proposition. Of course it helps if you are, to use a technical term, fabulous. Or at least fabulously famous, beautiful, wealthy or connected. If you are the editor of a fabulous magazine, or a model-size Oscar nominee planning a summer wedding, shows may be held or schedules reshuffled to suit.

  But whether you fit into any of the above categories or not, it is still possible to visit Paris, enjoy one of the world’s most beautiful cities, and rejoice in fashion’s passing parade. Overleaf we tell you how.

   

  (Telegraph fashion news)

• 2009 fashion news - Women with bigger breasts already pay a heavy price

  
  10 May 2009
  

  2009 fashion news -No one takes you seriously when you tell them that your chest is a massive pain in the rear, or rather, back, says Bryony Gordon.

  

  Women with large breasts shouldn't have to pay more for their underwear

  Women with larger than average busts always moan, don't they? They stand there, with their hands on their womanly hips, their cleavages eclipsing their tiny waists, whingeing because God was kind enough to bestow upon them the kind of bosom that renders men powerless with lust and women speechless with envy.

  "It's really awful, actually. I get terrible back pain" – at this point they will stick their hands on their lower backs for effect, thus heaving their breasts into your face – "and I can never find a bra that fits, or doesn't look like a piece of building equipment or surgical dressing. Also, people just stare at them all the time. It's as if I'm not a person – I'm just a giant pair of boobs."

  But now the big-breasted brigade have another reason to complain: Marks and Spencer is refusing to end its practice of charging an extra £2 for bras over a DD cup. Proving the gravity of the situation, a Facebook group has been set up. Busts 4 Justice has more than 8,000 members, who will presumably dress their chests in superhero costumes and storm the M&S headquarters, or carry out a mass burning of their criminally expensive undergarments.

  The group's co-founder, Beckie Williams – a 34E, apparently – argues that just as fat people don't have to spend extra on larger clothes, so women with bigger breasts should not have to pay more for bras. M&S claims that the engineering and materials required to create these feats of structural, supportive magnificence more than justifies the extra cost. Asda, meanwhile, has declared all‑out war, and announced that their bras will be one price fits all.

  "People may joke about it, but bras are a sensitive subject," said Ms Williams this week. "It just shows how much of an emotional issue having big boobs is for a lot of women."

  Titter, titter. Actually, she has a point, though she is making it entirely in the wrong way – because every time a woman with a large bust moans about it, those in front of her usually switch off and focus on her chest. Without going into detail, I am one of the aforementioned whingeing females, and there is not a man or woman in the world who will take you seriously when you tell them that your chest is a massive pain in the rear, or rather, back. They just think: "Breasts, breasts, glorious breasts" and become so hypnotised that you wonder whether you could cure them of their 40 a-day habit.

  Unfortunately, I fear the best way for Beckie Williams to get justice for bigger busts is to squeeze hers into an M&S design, storm into Stuart Rose's office and smile sweetly at him. Tragic, but probably true.

  On the subject of big boobs, my thoughts naturally turn to Silvio Berlusconi. He employed a former topless model as his minister for equal opportunities, phoned adult chat lines to carry out a pre-election opinion poll and told a doctor working with the victims of Italy's recent earthquake that she could resuscitate him any time. Now his wife is divorcing him. He is a laughing stock across the globe – but less so in Britain, where putting a topless model and an ageing pervert into government would probably be something of an improvement.

  Meanwhile, in the real world – ie Twitter – a list of the social network's most influential "Tweeters" has been released. Jonathan Ross has topped it. Downing Street has only just beaten Phillip Schofield. P Diddy, Britney Spears and Ross's wife are well ahead of Al Gore. Hillary Clinton is left trailing in the wake of Miley Cyrus and 50 Cent. Liam Gallagher and Lily Allen beat Joe Biden hands down. A mirror on the changing face of the world, if ever there was one.

   

  (Telegraph fashion news)

• 2009 fashion news - Kate Silverton: now it's her turn to make the news

  
  09 May 2009
  
  

  Kate Silverton, pictured with her fiance, Mike Heron Photo: PA

  Women who are newly in love or freshly engaged have a particular smile: at once proud but private, involuntary but adolescent – and slightly embarrassing in its flagrance. Kate Silverton is smiling it now, as she describes how her boyfriend of three years, former Royal Marine Mike Heron, got down on one knee during a weekend trip to Rome six weeks ago.

  "I was crying, and I just kept saying 'Can you do it again, please? I want to be able to savour the moment.' So he ended up proposing about three times. The ring wasn't finished," she runs on, those Disney cheeks colouring a little, "but he had made me one out of paper with a Byronesque poem written out inside. It was the perfect size for my finger – so that was quite special."

  Before she said yes, there was something the 38-year-old BBC Breakfast presenter felt she needed to ask. When an ovarian cyst burst while she was covering the Labour Party conference in 1999, Silverton was forced to have life-threatening surgery.

  "I still don't know whether I can have children or not," she says, "and I wanted to make sure that Mike still wanted to go through with it knowing that was a risk, but he just said: 'You are the person I want to be with, and whatever happens we will deal with it together.'

  "We've spoken a bit about adoption, if that does become necessary further down the line, but" – she brightens, in a reference to her pregnant predecessor Sian Williams – "fingers crossed that lucky sofa is going to do its work."

  Today, in the Library bar of the Lanesborough Hotel, her long, unruly limbs are encased in J Brand jeans, a classic Anne Fontaine white shirt and Reiss gilet. Beneath the table she is breaking in sparkly high-heeled pumps. "They're a size nine," she grimaces, with the same relaxed, instantly intimate attitude she shares on screen with co-host Bill Turnbull. I had heard that she was offered £50,000 to sell her wedding pictures to OK magazine. Would she succumb?

  "It was very nice to be asked," she says with her characteristic unselfconscious giggle, "but even posing for photographs makes me cringe. It's such an intimate thing, and I don't have a problem with people doing it. But, no, it wouldn't feel right to me. There is this trade-off when you are in the public eye but it has to be at the level you are comfortable with."

  Observing her in the febrile female state brought on by recent events is all the more compelling because Silverton isn't a smelling-salts kind of girl. As well known for her action-woman status as she is for reading the news, she has been "ultimate whitewater rafting" (that's without the raft), scoured the scrublands of Kenya for big cats, completed four triathlons and, in 2006, badgered her bosses into sending her to Iraq, where – as a former student of Arabic and Middle-Eastern history – she scored an exclusive interview with the Commander of British troops in Southern Iraq, Major General Richard Shirreff.

  "I'm aching to go back out there," she declares. "Mike is in Afghanistan at the moment and we spend the whole time on Skype or running up these extortionate phone bills ... I've always felt that I have a natural affinity with army people. And I like army men, who appreciate women for being women, but also enjoy sitting down and discussing politics with them. And the adrenaline ..." she tails off wistfully.

  Silverton, I suspect, is the girl who knew what to do with dock leaves on school camping trips. One of three girls born to Terry Silverton, a black-cab driver turned hypnotherapist, and his wife, Patricia (now Kate's manager), in Waltham Abbey, Essex, the presenter admits to having been "a Girl Guide and head girl. I was a tomboy then and in many respects still feel like one now."

  Taught to target-shoot from a young age, she got her first magnum at the age of 14, but it wasn't until she watched the Nicaragua-based film Under Fire that she began to harbour fantasies of becoming a journalist. "I adored people like Kate Adie and Ranulph Fiennes, but it seemed like this far off ambition." So, instead, after completing a psychology degree at Durham, she took a job in investment banking before switching careers, taking a menial job at BBC Look North and working her way up from there.

  Ferociously loyal to the BBC (she turned down Natasha Kaplinsky's £1 million Five News job), she deflects any leading questions artfully ("You'll always get an element of the autocutie stuff but I've never seen any instances of sexism in my career, and were I put into a position simply because I was a woman I would just think 'OK, I want to break out of this' "), and is sanguine about the reality of working in such a brutally competitive world.

  "My attitude is that if I'm good enough, I'll get the job. We've got really strong women at the BBC: Sophie Raworth, Emily Maitlis, Sian Williams – all great role models. We've all earned our stripes: you just don't get by being thick and you shouldn't have to wave a flag to say that." Not when others will do that for you: even the critic Rod Liddle, not prone to gushing, once said of Silverton: "There are plenty of very stupid women at the BBC but Kate isn't one of them."

  Many, however, might disagree with her view of ageism in the industry. "I don't know any women who think that television is ageist," she says. "I still like to think that it goes on merit, but it's a visual medium and whether we like it or not it does depend on us looking a certain way – and that goes for men, too.

  "I know of men who feel that they have been sidelined for younger and thinner men, so it is always going to be very subjective. And it comes down to whether people like you being on television or not. Still, I do love the fact that in America you see these very glamorous older women, and it's nice to think that that might happen when I'm old and wrinkly. But basically we are in a very privileged position and so we just crack on and do our job – no complaints this end."

  Despite the often antagonising combination of looks, ambition and brains, Silverton seems to have escaped scandal (although an ex, she says, "did recently call and ask whether I had any naked photographs I could send him as the News of the World had been on offering him money") and the vitriol that many of her counterparts attract.

  "It's not for me to say," she says carefully when I ask her why she thinks this is. "But I was shopping the other day and this lady came up to me and said 'I like you: you're real.' And I thought that was a really nice compliment. I do try to make sure that if I mess up, I'm honest about it and apologise."

  The only two instances anyone could cite of Silverton "messing up" on air were wardrobe-related. "I've had two 'shirtgates' now," she laughs, referring to the yellow and turquoise number and busy, brown-patterned smock top that prompted a flurry of emails from delicate BBC viewers.

  "I still wear that Chloé blouse," she says of the smock top, "because I don't want to wear boring clothes and you just can't sit there thinking about whether someone is going to like your outfit or not. It's about being strong enough to think 'well I do like it'. Oh, and that Chloé shirt may just get another outing!" she adds, narrowing her eyes.

  With a new property series, Propertywatch, on the way, a wedding to organise for later in the year and a marital home to buy, can Silverton envisage cooling her pace?

  "I can't ever see myself not working but I might have to slow down," she says. "I couldn't do what I'm doing with a baby.

  "People talk about 'having it all', but it depends what your definition of that is. The psychiatrist Oliver James asks whether we are here to have or to be: we get caught up in this frenetic world, and forget about experiencing life."

   

  (Telegraph fashion news)

• 2009 fashion news - Chanel No 5: enduring love

  
  07 May 2009
  

  Launched in 1921, Chanel No 5 remains the most coveted perfume on the market, its position still unchallenged nearly nine decades later.

  

  Photo: Illustration by Richard Gray

  Certain scents have had their moments: Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche is emblematic of the 1970s; Obsession, by Calvin Klein, the 1980s. But no fragrance engenders total recall like Chanel No 5. We know the box. We know the bottle. We know the scent. And in a business where 600 new perfumes hit the beauty counters each year, this is no mean feat.

  In perfumery, No 5 is affectionately known as le monstre – a bottle of it is sold every 55 seconds somewhere in the world. That said, the scent is impossible to summarise in a note. 'Powdery’ and 'vanilla-y’ are as close as most get to a description. Chandler Burr, the New York Times perfume critic, describes it conceptually (and brilliantly) as 'like a bank of hot searchlights washing the powdered stars at a movie premiere in Cannes on a dry summer night’. But that still doesn’t capture the actual smell. And the reason this is so hard to do is that No 5 is an abstract scent, the world’s first. Before it most women wore single-note florals (rose, violet and gardenia), traditional smells in whimsical bottles that Coco Chanel felt did nothing to promote the fragrance inside. In fact she was dismissive about perfume altogether, believing it to be nothing more than a slightly repugnant mask for body odour. Then she met the nose Ernest Beaux.

  They were introduced by her lover, the Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich. Beaux had been a perfumer to the Russian court and, like Pavlovich (who had played a part in the murder of Rasputin), he now lived in exile in Biarritz. He was already an accomplished nose – his creations included a cologne, Bouquet de Napoleon, and the mysterious Bouquet de Catherine – and he liked to experiment. Inspired by this, Mademoiselle Chanel commissioned him, recognising the potential to reinvent scent, just as she had women’s fashion.

  Her perfume was to be 'un parfum de femme, à l’odeur de femme (the scent/smell of a woman)’. And while it could be floral, it was to be a synthetic composition that was not like anything else. Beaux acknowledged that any scent that represented the couturier should be pioneering – Chanel had, after all, changed the face of fashion with her simple alternative to the decorative Edwardian wardrobe; so she would expect a scent that broke boundaries. Having experimented with aldehydes, synthetic floral notes – as other perfumers had been doing since the 19th century – Beaux knew they would make a perfect top note, as they give an abstract impression of flowers. When you smell No 5 you don’t just get a hit of rose or another exact aroma, you smell a figurative floral composition; but the genius of it is you know that rose is in there somewhere. It is this 'mysterious sensation’, as Christopher Sheldrake, Chanel’s director of research and development, describes it, that is part of No 5’s allure. He maintains its enduring appeal is down to 'an enormous amount of good taste and good luck on the part of Chanel and Beaux’.

  Beaux was the first to stabilise the aldehydic molecules in scent; and, as he found, as well as giving perfume an elusive quality they brought the real notes alive and made them sing. He said the impact they had on No 5 was like 'lemon juice on strawberries’ – the 'strawberries’ being principally the perfume’s heart notes May rose and jasmine. To the aldehydic top note Beaux also added ylang ylang from the Comoro Islands and neroli, and No5’s base notes sandalwood and Bourbon vanilla.

  The name (said to have been chosen because it was the fifth sample Beaux presented to Chanel, and which she knew would be timeless because a number needs no translation), and the simple bottle, a brilliant foil to the fanciful ones around it and tweaked only slightly since it was first designed, are recognisable parts of contemporary culture. Andy Warhol made No 5 a subject for one of his screen prints, which Chanel reproduced as a limited-edition box in 1982 – a resourcefulness visible throughout No 5’s existence.

  Great pains have been taken to ensure that No 5 smells the same now as it did when it launched in 1921, not the norm in contemporary perfumery. Many classics have been 'edited’ in the name of modernity – fixed when they were not broken – forever losing what made them magnificent. Not No 5. While Chanel has created new interpretations of No 5 to meet changes in fashion and habits – most recently, in 2008, the lighter No 5 Eau Première by Jacques Polge – no adjustments have been made to the original (the rose extract is still harvested by the same family farm that Chanel bought to maintain aroma continuity).

  This week (on May 5, the day No 5 debuted in 1921), the nlatest inventive campaign – a romantic film directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet and starring Audrey Tautou – was released online (Tautou is also starring as Coco Chanel in the forthcoming film of Chanel’s life). Stills of the three-minute ad had been popping up on networking sites such as Bebo weeks before the launch, but Chanel went with the flow, acknowledging that it introduces No 5 to an audience – and perhaps a younger one.

  Smart, but not surprising, given how No 5 has always led the way, reinventing itself through the world it rules like a queen bee. It is quite a performance, and the show gets better and better.

   

  (Telegraph fashion news)

• 2009 fashion news - Nicolle Meyer: muse of Guy Bourdin

  
  07 May 2009
  
  

  Nicolle Meyer by Guy Bourdin Photo: Guy Bourdin

  “This is Nicolle...the phantom of Guy Bourdin. Nicolle was an integral part of his vision. She was his canvas. She comes and goes, appears and disappears - always different but always the same. She gave Mr. Bourdin the freedom to dream and think”, writes Lanvin’s designer Alber Elbaz in the introduction of my book “Guy Bourdin: A Message For You”. Alber’s words perfectly sum up the role of the model as muse. When I started modelling for the avant-garde photographer Guy Bourdin in 1977, I had no idea I would be considered his.

  I posed for Guy between 1977-1980. This coincided with the disco years and the glamorization of excess in society. Guy synthesized all that surrounded him, taking everything in and sending images back with a high octane, preternatural, über-glamorous look. He invited me to partake in this beautiful yet bizarre dream world. Whether straddling a glowing light bulb in my lap, dripping nail polish “blood” from my lips, or twisting my dancer’s body in physically demanding poses, I was happy to be a player in his fantasies. I loved the theatrics, his quest for perfection, his resourcefulness in achieving each image. Even though I was only 17-years-old when I started working with him - and a complete novice at that - I intuitively understood what his demands were and trusted him implicitly. Acting out the unconventional never fazed me.

  The synergy between model, photographer and designer can be seen in the groundbreaking campaigns Guy produced with French couturier Charles Jourdan, in which I appeared thirty times. The campaigns were controversial due to their explicit content but highly successful (the Bourdin/Jourdan collaboration lasted for 14 years). One of my favourites was an image where I’m squatting in black tights and stilettos, which Guy had slipped into the window of those now obsolete hotel message reminder envelopes. I became “A Message For You” courtesy of the Fontainebleau Hotel. The image was so smart, humorous and surreal.

  Of course notions of beauty change and morph with time. Guy’s take on beauty was a very particular one. His oft-cryptic pictorial narratives revolutionised and pushed the limits of commercial photography. He blurred the line between fashion photography and fine art photography, influencing the works of photographers today like Mert Alas & Marcus Piggott and David LaChapelle. I’m privileged to have posed for such an inspiring man and, through his genius and creativity, played a part in our ever evolving visual culture.

  • Unseen Guy Bourdin, The Wapping Project, Wapping Hydraulic Power Station, London E1; 020 7680 2080

   

  (Telegraph fashion news)