In this short clip, you get at nice look at how Bobbi Brown created the makeup for the models in Rachel Roy's Fall 2009 presentation. Watch as she creates the soft brows and mixes the colors for the much talked about dark lips for the show. According to Bobbi, it was "basically a black lipstick with some hints of purple and violet."
photo by Robert Mitra, WWD
I am a huge fan of Twitter (Four accounts and counting - Anovelista Media, Revenge of the Curves, Anovelista.com and, of course, 55 Secret Street).
I don't know why I didn't think of this earlier but, if you are on Twitter and would like to get interesting tid-bits about the shows and the stuff you are not necessarily reading about on the blogs and news sites, "follow" the following people:
Lianne of The Makeup Girl - @TheMakeupGirl
Yuli of MyItThings - @YuliZ
Julia of All About The Pretty - @AATP
Erika of The Makeup Bag - @MakeupBag
Lauren of Second City Style - @SecondCityStyle
Amber of Beauty Blogging Junkie - @Fabulista
Carolyn of The Daily Obsession - @perfumed
Daneen of Spoiled Pretty - @spoiledpretty
Racked.com - @racked
Refinery 29 - @refinery29
Modelinia - @modelinia
The Moment - @themoment
Will the recession be a memory by the fall? You would think so by looking at the runways at New York Fashion Week, which began last Friday. No, I'm not there this time, but I wanted to show you some of my favorite looks so far and share a few articles that you mind find interesting.
One of my favorite writers at the New York Times, Guy Trebay, has several interesting articles related to this season's fashion week. The first was the widely discussed "Has the Obama Effect Come to Runway Casting," and the second, "Revealing New Layers of African Fashion," where he covered the African Fashion Collective show. The four featured designers were Stoned Cherrie by Nkhensani Nkosi of South Africa (that is Alek Wek in Stoned Cherrie above), Xuly Bet by Lamine Kouyate of Mali, Tiffany Amber of Nigeria and MOMO by Fati Asebuela, also of Nigeria. You can learn more about these designers at Ladybrille, a blog/magazine that specializes in African fashion.
Diane von Furstenberg Fall 2009
Did you know that Diane von Furstenberg has a blog? And that Diana Ross attended her show? My buddy Adrien Field of MyItThings snagged a backstage interview with her. She liked the pom-pom like hats, which were not my favorites, but I did enjoy the array of patterns from leopard, tapestry and geometric shapes on everything from wool dresses to skin-tight leather pants.
Carly Cushnie and Michelle Ochs (far left in their own designs which were also worn by models on the runway) graduated from Parsons together and showed their first collection at the Spring 2009 shows. Don't be surprised if you start seeing them everywhere in the near future.
The pinstripe slacks and floral print blouses? Meh. However bold, jewel-tones and the occasional ruffle are always a plus with me. I also really love the details here - the kneesocks, the knit caps. This (soon-to-be grad) schoolgirl also approves of the nerdy-chic glasses.
Some of the colorful fur jackets were a little out there for my taste, but the colorful jewel-toned dresses in orange, ruby and cobalt paired with black opaque tights and long leather gloves caught my eye at Thakoon.
Bold colors, delicate chiffon and outstanding embroidery marked Jason Wu's fairy tale inspired post Michelle Obama-hype collection. Several critics noted similiarities to Oscar de la Renta but also noted that the observation is not a bad thing. I think the collection is as elegant as it is approachable, even with the whimsical details like the tiaras on every other model. Nicely done.
White House social secretary Desiree Rogers saw Donna Karan, Thakoon and Carolina Herrera. She told WWD, "The fashions were amazing. I do like her work, but this collection was very different from what I have seen in the past. I particularly liked the dresses that were a classic silhouette but had a bell sleeve and were a little shorter, just below the knee. Those are easier to wear than the long ballgowns."
Most designers stuck to traditional runway shows and presentations in showrooms, galleries and other venues, but others are taking a different approach. Here is Halston's Fall 2009 collection, which was presented exclusively on video.
Jerome C. Rousseau holding his beautiful Medusa shoe from his Spring 2009 collection.
New York Fashion Week Fall 2009 gets underway next week, but yesterday I had a chance to get a sneak peak at the Fall 2009 shoe collection of Jerome C. Rousseau, a Los Angeles-based French-Canadian designer I met last September at the Spring shows.
Jerome is engaging and charming and yet, serious and focused at the same time. I have been a little under the weather this week - and it's freezing outside - so take it from me that he was worth the trek I made to Soho House to get a peak at his new collection which will be in stores in the fall. His Spring 2009 collection is now available in stores like Fred Segal Feet and it will be in Barneys by the end of the month.
A strappy suede look from Jerome C. Rousseau's Fall 2009 collection.
Nichelle Gainer: I loved the Spring 2009 collection, especially the Medusa. What was your inspiration for your Fall 2009 collection?
Jerome C. Rousseau: Do you know Kate Bush? The British singer?
Nichelle: Yes.
Jerome: I loved how she mixed Victoriana with an edgy late 70s romance. That's sort of how I see her. She was wearing all of these textures and patterns and that inspiration really shows up in the collection. I was also really inspired by Elli et Jacno, a French electro-pop band from the seventies.
Nichelle: How long have you been designing shoes?
Jerome: Just over ten years and I've had my own collection for nearly three years.
A shot I took of Jerome's Spring 2009 collection last September at New York Fashion Week.
Nichelle: Your Spring 2009 collection is sold at Fred Segal Feet in Los Angeles, Harvey Nichols in Dubai, Hong Kong and Riyadh) and will be available at Barneys (in-store only) by the end of the month. Do you have plans for your own store soon?
Jerome: A Jerome boutique would be great eventually but I'm a designer, and I am very passionate about what I'm doing.
Nichelle: Do you design clothes or will you do other accessories?
Jerome: No, just shoes. It is important to me to be a good designer and I love what I do.
Jerome with a few disco inspired boots from his Spring 2009 collection.
Nichelle: How do you measure success?
Jerome: Being happy with my collection and getting people excited and interested in my work. When things go well, it's better of course, but success is also working with people you respect and admire.
Pronunciation: a'näv-a-lista. Function: noun. A writer of novels, non-fiction and screenplays; entrepreneur; beauty junkie; history buff; foodie; fashionista; un-fashionista; bookworm; Christian; Lt. Uhura namesake; Oprah-holic; Coffee Fiend; Hopemonger; Newark-born, South Jersey-raised New Yorker;
Copyright 2009 Nichelle Gainer.
