New head designer for Balmain, the next Fashion Star comes to NBC, more Asians models for upcoming runway shows, Beyonce and Naomi Campbell caught with the same Gucci number, MET Gala dresses confirmed, Dads the original hipsters much more on today's fashion files!
1. Balmain just announced that Olivier Rousteing will replace Christophe Decarnin as the label's head designer, confirming rumors. Rousteing has been in charge of Balmain's womenswear design studio since he joined the label in 2009, following a five-year stint at Roberto Cavalli. [TheCut]
2. NBC's getting a new reality shown called Fashion Star. Hosted by Elle Macpherson it focus on everyday clothing, starting from lingerie, all the way to denim. [Racked]
3. Met Gala dresses are being chosen! Model Britt Maren, will be wearing a dress from Nicole Richie's House of Harlow 1960 line, while model Elettra Wiedemann will wear a custom Prabal Gurung dress. Masking the oozing excitement, Nicole exclaims, "It's pretty major." [Glamour]
4. Asian Models will grace the runways in 2011. Long gone are the days when Asians add a sprinkle of diversity to fashion. Today, they are becoming the front runners of designer collections. Liu Wen reigns as the face of Estee Lauder, spring 2011. [NYM]
5. China is having a high-fashion moment! With a budding upper-class in China, comes a budding desire for luxury, in the form of fashion. Designers Hermès and Burberry are following suit. Burberry plans to expand from 57 to 100 stores within five years, while Hermès has launched its own China-specific sub-brand, Shang Xia. [TheGuardian]
6. Double cover trouble! While Beyonce graced us with her timeless up-do and golden lip hue on the cover of L'Officiel's 60th Anniversary issue wearing a gold, fringed Gucci number last March, Naomi Campbell put her exotic, long-dark locks on display in this June issue of Vogue Japan. Who do you think wore it better? [HuffPost]
7. Cindy Crawford on Vogue. Again. Yep, she's done it again. The supermodel super vixen graces the cover of Vogue's Mexico May issue. Although she recently said, "she feels like an outsider," in the modeling, she looks nothing of the sort in this smoldering, hot cover. Since her debut in the 90's Cindy Crawford has made her mark in the modeling industry. [Fashionista]
8. Anna Dello Russo expresses her love for stylish and quirky fruit hats. She also compares skill in style and fashion risks to tennis, explaining " “It’s like playing tennis. If you don’t practice, you never have this kind of stretch. It’s not about one shot. Everyday you need to try. And then you will smash!” [Styleite]
9. Behind the Scenes from PaperMag's Beautiful People shoot. Behind the scenes from Paper's Whitney Spaner interviews with the magazine's selected Beautiful People. [Papermag]
Joan Smalls: Behind the Scenes at Our 2011 Beautiful People Shoot With PAPERTV from PAPER Magazine on Vimeo.
10. That Chinatown bag off you want could cost you as much a the real thing. If police catch you buying a Marc Jacob's knock off could cost $1k in fines. [NYP]
11.) Design your own Vans. Beloved by "hipsters" and the artistically-inclined, Van's shoewear is leaving the designs to their consumers in their second annual Custom Culture Contest. [Refinery29]
12.) The Elizabeth and James showroom pairs the perfect, trendy, closet-must-haves to complete your Spring 2011 wardrobe. The good folks over at Stylecaster organized 15 spring looks using some of Elizabeth & James' essential pieces. [Stylecaster]
13.) Dad: The Original Hipster! Sticking with the notion that styles have the tendency to repeat themselves, Refinery29 celebrates the current generation of dads, who were the originators of the hipster style, back in the 70's. [Refinery29]
14. Whoo hoo! Alice and Olivia are opening a 1200 square feet store at 755 Madison Avenue, between 65th and 66th street. It should be opened by April 30. Its the second outpost of the brand after its original home on 40th Street at Bryant Park. [Lucky]
15. A Katie we can all relate to? Katie Holmes looks pretty and peaceful in her new Ann Taylor ads. [Katie Holmes Daily]
16. So standard sizes don't actually exist. Recent findings have revealed that the same size 4 maybe and 6 or 8 in another. Surely this has baffled women over the years and added to their misunderstanding over thier waistline and size dimensions. [NYTimes]
17. Muammar El-Qaddafi apparently thinks of himself as a style icon. The Libyan dictator not only wants to remain in power but wants an exhibit of his "legendary" wardrobe at the MET. [T magazine]