The Blonds; ‘Dye Blond’ Autumn / Winter 2012

‘The Blonds’ was founded in 2005 by Phillipe and David Blond. Since those humbling beginnings, the designer-duo have been thrust into the spotlight for the intricately embellished creations.

Their designs are not for the faint-hearted, The Blonds imbue confidence, femininity and raw emotion in each piece.

Having previously been treated to collections inspired by ‘Playboy‘ and an examination of the boundaries of gender attire in ‘Ladies & Gentlemen’, this season’s promise of ‘Dye Blond’ had me on the edge of my seat.

In this collection, The Blonds woman embodied biker chic, with inspiration derived from the animated film ‘Heavy Metal’.

A bold palette of metallics, blood-red and gothic black were balanced by embellished neutrals and glittering gold on the catwalk. Although it is difficult to peel one’s eyes away from the radical designs on the runway, this season’s choice of hair is definitely worth mentioning. Philippe and David opted to style their models with platinum blonde ponytails of exaggerated length, each emerging from the models’ motorbike helmets.

It is without doubt that the brand’s most famous clientele, including Rihanna, Nicki Minaj and Lady Gaga, will be begging their stylists to lay claim to several pieces in this collection.

MTV Video Music Awards 2011

The MTV Video Music Awards first began as a ceremony to rival the notorious Grammy Awards. The VMA’s first launched in 1984 at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Dan Aykroyd and Bette Midler were the evening’s hosts.

This year, the awards were held in the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles. Steven Friedman MTV President, publicly stated the company’s delight in returning to the City of Angels;

“We are thrilled to return to Los Angeles where the energy of the city will help power the creative spirit of the 28th annual VMAs. The city is the perfect backdrop for all the musical moments, mayhem and magic that make the VMAs such a notorious celebration.”

Selena Gomez is photographed wearing a gown by Julien Mac Donald, gold heels by Brian Atwood, Judith Leiber clutch with gold drop earrings and cuff by Lorraine Schwartz.

The televised event attracts a wide spectrum of viewers; those who anticipate the night’s vocal performances and others who salivate over the ensembles of the music realm’s brightest stars.

Adele, Beyoncé, Bruno Mars, Chris Brown, Lady Gaga, Lil Wayne, Pitbull and Cee-Lo Green each glided across the stage to perform the theme tunes to this summer. Whist, the mélange of routines, costumes and melodies utilised to honour the career of Britney Spears was particularly memorable.

Beyoncé chose the red carpet of the Video Music Awards as the moment to publicly announce that she and husband Jay-Z are expecting their first child.

Beyoncé is photographed wearing a burnt orange Lanvin gown from their Autumn 2011 collection with Lorraine Schwartz jewels to accessorise.

Beyoncé performed on stage in a sequined tuxedo jacket, white shirt and fitted pants all by Dolce & Gabbana.

Beyoncé’s former band mate, Kelly Rowland attended the awards in a feather and leather ensemble by Falguni & Shane Peacock with Christian Louboutin Lady Peep Spike heels to match.

Zoe Saldana continued the night’s Little Black Dress trend in a creation by Barbara Bui, the ensemble was accessorised with snake-skin heels also by Barbara Bui, a Lanvin clutch diamond earrings, diamond elephant ring, sapphire ring and gold / onyx bracelet all by Lorraine Schwartz.

Britney Spears was the night’s guest of honour and attended with boyfriend Jason Trawick. Spears was attired in a Moschino romper and low belt with Gina peep-toe calf  boots.

In her first public appearance since her marriage to Kris Humphries, Kim Kardashian chose an alluring sequined gown by Kaufmanfranco for the Video Music Awards.

Miley Cyrus exhibited a mixed print gown by Roberto Cavalli from the designers Pre-Fall 2011 Collection. The songstress paired the ensemble with a Lorraine Schwartz choker and Azzedine Alaia heels.

Demi Lovato attended the award show in a jewel encrusted dress with a plunging neckline by Mandalay.

Victoria Justice appeared on the red carpet in a jewel encrusted mini dress with Giuseppe Zanotti heels

Katie Holmes attending the music event in a halter dress by Azzedine Alaia and suede tan booties by Proenza Schouler.

Once again, Lady Gaga provided the audience with an unexpected form of attire. The New Yorker opened the show with a performance of her current single ‘You and I’ as her male alter-ego Jo Calderone.

Nicki Minaj is photographed wearing an Amato Couture corset, Shojotomo Japan shorts, Tsimori Chisato stockings, an Onch Movement ice cream necklace, Fifi and Romeo plastic cuffs and Duepunti rings. 

Katy Perry collected the most amount of ‘moon men’ last night with three awards in total including the prestigious ‘Video of the Year’. Perry attended the ceremony with her husband Russell Brand and exhibited four different ensembles at the event.

Perry graced the red carpet in an Atelier Versace Autumn 2011 mini dress with Jimmy Choo ‘Beak’ sandals and Lorraine Schwartz’s pink gold and diamond ‘Happy’ bracelet.

Katy Perry presented an award in the show wearing a purple lace Tom Ford gown, the songstress’ purple-hue hair was the perfect accompaniment. 

Finally, Katy Perry collected her award in a Christian Dior Autumn 2011 Couture ensemble paired with a yellow Philip Treacy had and multi-coloured wedges by Giuseppe Zanotti.

For the California Girl’s fourth ensemble, in the press room at the end of the show, Perry wore the ‘Breaking Records’ dress designed by Johnny Wujek for Furne One and Giuseppe Zanotti heels. 

Video of the Year: Firework - Katy Perry

Best Female Video: Born This Way - Lady Gaga

Best Male Video: U Smile - Justin Bieber

Best Hip-Hop Video: Superbass - Nicki Minaj

Best Pop Video: Til The World Ends - Britney Spears

Best Rock Video: Walk - Foo Fighters

Best Collaboration: E.T. - Katy Perry Ft. Kanye West

Best New Artist: Yonkers – Tyler, The Creator

Best Video With A Message: Born This Way - Lady Gaga

Best Art Direction: Rolling in the Deep - Adele

Best Choreography: Run This World (Girls)  - Beyoncé

Best Cinematography: Rolling in the Deep - Adele

Best Direction: Rolling in the Deep - Adele

Best Editing: Rolling in the Deep - Adele

Best Special Effects: E.T. - Katy Perry Ft. Kanye West

Ausländer Spring 2012: Andrej Pejic & Rick Genest

Image: Ausländer

Brazilian fashion label, Ausländer first chose Andrej Pejic and Rick ‘Zombie Boy’ Genest, to exhibit their Spring 2012 collection, on the Rio catwalk in June of this year.

Fashion Rio

The fashionable love affair has continued with the release of Ausländer’s campaign for their Spring 2012 collection. The campaign is constructed solely around Pejic and Genest in the line’s simple fitted attire.

Image: Ausländer

 Ricardo Bräutigam is at the helm of the label, his choice of campaign protagonists proving to be hugely successful. The glossy images were photographed by Marcelo Krasilcic with styling by Antonio Frajado and José Camarano.

Image: Ausländer

Once again, Pejic utilises his androgynous qualities to flirt with the boundaries of gender-based attire. In each shot, Pejic exudes confidence and seemless elegance when transitioning between menswear and womenswear.

Image: Ausländer

At merely nineteen years old, Andrej Pejic was scouted during his school years in Melbourne, Australia.

In January of this year, Pejic paraded down the catwalk for both Menswear and Womenswear for Jean-Paul Gaultier and also showcased his talents for Marc Jacobs in the designer’s Menswear show.

Image: Ausländer

In April Pejic was awarded the eleventh rank on the models.com Top 50 Male Models List and also received the 98th rank on FHM Magazine’s 100 Sexiest Women in the World in 2011.

Thus far in his career, Andrej Pejic has worked alongside fashionable greats such as photographers Mert Alas and Marcus Pigott, Steven Meisel and Jeurgen Teller.

Image: Ausländer

Rick Genest was bestowed with the name of ‘Zombie Boy’ by the media and his legion of fans. Genest was first scouted by Thierry Mugler‘s, Nicola Formichetti on Facebook.

Genest’s launch to fashionable society occurred when he opened Thierry Mugler’s Menswear Autumn / Winter 2011 Fashion Show. This was the first show with Formichetti as the design house’s creative director.

Image: Ausländer

The model’s career has spanned the domains of print, catwalk and music television with a prominent cameo role in Lady Gaga‘s video for ‘Born This Way’.

Thus far, Rick Genest has collaborated with Mariano Vivanco, Steven Klein and appeared in editorials for I-D Magazine, Vogue Hommes Japan and GQ Style.

Image: Ausländer

Fashionable Food

Social etiquette demands that one does not play with his / her food, merely eat it politely with a closed mouth and suitable cutlery.

Linus Morales, a Swedish photographer, has defied society’s demands to create iconic fashion images and logos, using the medium of food. With sausage, he creates Chanel links, using fried fish fingers the Fendi logo is captured whilst steak and toast replicate the Gucci and Louis Vuitton prints.

Food and fashion have had a requited relationship for a long period of time. Few can forget Lady GaGa’s dress made entirely of meat by Franc Fernandez. However, Morales’ portrayal of fashion in food, is of a more subtle tone and is an entertaining piece of artwork.

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The Edge of Boring

Lady GaGa is synonymous with perfectionism, high quality and stimulating story lines ,when it comes to the music videos she releases. Many, such as ‘Alejandro’, have been controversial for their use of religious iconography or sexual nature.

During the interval for last night’s episode of ‘So You Think You Can Dance’, GaGa’s latest video, ‘The Edge of Glory’, was premiered. For once, Lady GaGa is without background dancers and male protagonists, to aid the telling of the melody’s story line. A rigid saxophonist is the songstress’ only accompaniment in the video.

‘The Edge of Glory’, is a disappointment for both cinematic and fashionable reasons. The video shoot is based on one street location with close-ups focused on a window balcony, doorstep and fire escape. The five-minute footage takes place over one evening but there is no plot to the video and leaves the audience questioning why GaGa is merely gyrating and continually ascending / descending a fire escape and a typical street. There seems little which could be defined as ‘glorious’ on her set.

Within the video for ‘Judas’ alone, she exhibited pieces from Christian Lacroix, Haus of GaGa, Thierry Mugler and Raquel Allegra. Lady GaGa has recently declared that she will wear nothing but Versace for the next two months. Her strange statement was rooted in proof with the release of her latest video. The ‘Haus of GaGa’ directed shoot, displays the New Yorker in one outfit alone – an ensemble from Gianni Versace’s last collection with the design house. With such a huge personal interest in style and all things designer, I was on the edge of grieving at Lady GaGa’s lack of fashion in ‘The Edge of Glory’.

I wish Lady GaGa had left us in suspense for a while longer, teasing out the release for ‘The Edge of Glory’. This would have allowed her to create a video, of a similar standard to previous releases such as ‘Judas’ or ‘Telephone’.

Of course, many of Lady GaGa’s little monsters, are enamored and admire the video’s uniqueness – in comparison to others in her back catalogue. Personally, it’s free of inspiring fashion and action, two elements which I have come to expect from the American icon.

Donatella Versace released a statement proclaiming her love for Lady GaGa and her choice of Versace for ‘The Edge of Glory’.

“I am greatly honored that Lady Gaga chose to wear a Versace Vintage look throughout her Edge of Glory video. I am a great fan of hers and I believe that my brother Gianni would have appreciated her talent. Like him, Lady Gaga is unafraid to push boundaries and she has created an original vocabulary by merging fashion, music, theatre and art. For me, this video represents a wonderful tribute to anyone who is unafraid to take chances.”

- Donatella Versace

Oh My GaGa!

With an ensemble made entirely from meat and platform shoes which measure twenty-four inches, the world has quickly learned to expect the unexpected when it comes to Lady GaGa. The songstress is infamous for displaying to the world a confident, passionate persona who loves and lives for music, fashion and her fans.

Spex Magazine, a Berlin based rock and pop culture magazine, recently unveiled the cover for their July / August issue. The cover stars a natural and almost unrecognisable Lady GaGa. GaGa, with an arresting stare into the camera, is free of the wigs, costumes and theatrical make-up which she often hides behind.

The shoot was photographed by Wolfgang Timmins. For me, he captured Stephanie Germanotta rather than Lady GaGa. A young lady who, when the layers of fame and fortune are peeled back, is as insecure or unsure of self, as most are of themselves.

 ’When I wake up in the morning, I feel just like any other insecure 24-year old girl. Then I say, ‘Bitch, you’re Lady Gaga, you get up and walk the walk today.’

- Lady GaGa

The CFDA Awards Go GaGa!

“The Council of Fashion Designers of America, Inc, is a not-for-profit trade association that leads industry-wide initiatives and whose membership consists of more than 370 of America’s foremost womenswear, menswear, jewelry, and accessory designers.” (CFDA,2011)

The CDFA Fashion Awards were held last night in the Lincoln Centre, New York. Celebrities, icons and designers walked the red carpet in the most luxurious and showcasing designs. Lady GaGa, Marc Jacobs, Arthur Elgort, Hilary Alexander and Hal Rubenstein were just some of the industry’s biggest names who were in receipt of an award last night.

Lady GaGa, dressed in Thierry Mugler, was honoured at the event with the ‘Fashion Icon Award’. Nicola Formichetti, Mugler’s creative director is also Lady GaGa’s stylist and is responsible for many of the songstress’ most iconic looks.

GaGa was accompanied to the event by her younger sibling Natali Germanotta. During her speech GaGa vocalised her love of fashion, she explained that “fashion made me feel like a star before I was”. With her turquoise hair and platform booties, GaGa left critics in no doubt of her status as a fashion icon.

As with most fashion events the invitees yearn to be dubbed the night’s best dressed. The nominees for this year’s event (according to me) are; Liv Tyler, Lucy Liu, Naomi Watts and Mary-Kate & Ashley Olsen.

Liv Tyler (left) attended on the arm of Proenza Schouler , the designer duo won the night’s most coveted prize; ‘Womenswear Designer of the Year’.

 

Lucy Liu (right) was a glamorous guest dressed in a lace / feather gown by Monique Lhuillier.

Naomi Watts (left) glittered in her gold Calvin Klein Collection gown.

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen (right) once again proved their designing talents modelling creations from The Row with Mary-Kate adorning her dress with a gold Chanel sequined jacket (as seen in Vogue UK). The matching handbags were a nice touch too!

 

The Weekly Playlist #2

This week has been pretty hectic and involved a lot of travelling between my hometown and Dublin. One advantage was that it gave me numerous opportunities to listen to my music catalogue and pick tracks for this week’s playlist. Again this week there’s a mix of genres within the list and the improved weather definitely influenced an upbeat backing track for the playlist.

1. Lady GaGa – Hair

‘Hair’ is the fourth track released on YouTube by Lady GaGa from the ‘Born This Way‘ album. The track has an 80′s vibe and encourages the audience to be as free as their hair. The fast tempo and drum backbeat are the perfect ingredients for a summer hit. GaGa’s little monsters have come out in their droves to purchase the album. The online retailer Amazon has recorded a loss of nearly $3 million as they had been selling the album on offer at 99cents whilst paying Universal Records $9 for the privilege.

2. Her Majesty & The Wolves – Goodbye, Goodnight

‘Goodbye, Goodnight’ is a recent find of mine. It occurred completely by accident when trawling through music videos online. It has since become one of my favourite tracks. At first sight the band seems unknown but the lead singer is in fact Kimberly Wyatt from The Pussycat Dolls. Kimberly also appeared as a judge on the British television show ‘Got to Dance’. Wyatt also featured on the chorus of Aggro Santos‘ hit ‘Candy’. Her Majesty & The Wolves will be performing at Oxegen this summer – it’s one set which I am very much looking forward to.

3. Ghostface Killah, Mark Ronson & Nate Dogg – Ooh Wee (Explicit)

‘Ooh Wee’ featured on the official soundtrack for the film ‘Honey’ which debuted Jessica Alba as both a reputable actress and dancer. Ghostface and Nate Dogg provide smooth rhymes and a chorus that you will learn within seconds. For me, nothing says summer like a Mark Ronson hit. The trumpet, horns and brass orchestration only compliment the moods that sunshine brings. In the coming weeks the sequel ‘Honey 2′ will hit the silver screen, that soundtrack has a lot to compete with.

4. Nicki Minaj – Girls Fall Like Dominoes (Explicit)

Nicki Minaj, a controversial artist amongst the music industry. Much like Marmite, you either love her or you hate her. Me, I am completely obsessed. Her latest track features a chorus previous released by ‘The Big Pink’ simply entitled ‘Dominoes’. From the album ‘Pink Friday’, Minaj has attempted to create an anthem for the ladies, calling out the female race from the four corners of the earth. One of the most iconic aspects of the track is that Minaj lists off several of her famous acquaintances. She mentions icons such as Lil Wayne, Drake, Madonna, Donatella Versace, Beyoncé, Grace Jones, the Kardashian sisters, M.I.A, Ciara and even Angelina Jolie. Lady GaGa proved the potency and value of product placement in her music videos, it seems Nicki is proving the effectiveness of enlisting your comrades within lyrics.

5. The Smiths – This Charming Man

The most archaic song on this week’s playlist remains to be one of my favourites. This track pre-dates my own birth but it is true, the music of the past inspires that of the future. Morrisey leads The Smiths in one of their most well known tracks which is essential for every music library this summer. The Smiths received a great wave of popularity when mentioned by Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt in the indie film ‘500 Days of Summer’. ‘This Charming Man’ will get everyone in the mood for the festivals and activities during the summer sunshine. It is an excellent choice when one’s palette is no longer appeased by the sweetness the popular music genre often has to offer.

Enjoy the sunshine and as always recommendations for next week’s Playlist are most welcome!

Thought Of The Day…

“Fashion fades, only style remains the same”

                                                        – Coco Chanel

Embracing style and encouraging it in others is not something which can only be learned, from the fashionable pathways of London, Paris, New York, Milan nor Tokyo.

Style is a unique, creative art form which persuades the individual to take a leap of faith in their decisions and choices.

Together, fashion and style ameliorate one’s confidence and aspirations, allowing he / she to flourish into the person they ought to be.

‘Fashion’ by Lady GaGa (The Fame & Confessions of a Shopaholic OST)