Sabtu, 13 Oktober 2012

Beauty: The best grooming products for men


1. Re-charge black pepper body wash
Black peppercorn oil is just the thing to get the senses fired up on these chilly autumn mornings.
£18/300ml, Molton Brown,moltonbrown.co.uk
2. L'eau d'Issey Pour Homme Sport
Bergamot and grapefruit combine in this breath-of- fresh-air update on Issey Miyake's classic fragrance.
From £38.50/50ml, Issey Miyake, available nationwide
3. Dry skin foot cream
The end of summer doesn't mean feet should be neglected. Enriched with Fair Trade shea butter, this softening cream is a balm for tired soles.
£18.50/150ml, L'Occitane, 020-7907 0301
4. Revitalise+ moisturiser
This non-greasy formula is absorbed quickly so there's no excuse to miss out the most vital skin-care step.
£8.99/50ml, Dove Men+Care, available nationwide
5. Age Defense for Eyes
A multi-pronged attack against the signs of ageing, this lightweight cream reduces dark circles and strengthens the eye area.
£24/15ml, Clinique, 08700 342566
6. Sensitive Shave Cream
The towelling cloth that comes with this soothing, gently foaming cream will help achieve a closer shave by conditioning hairs and opening pores.
£12.25/100ml, Liz Earle, lizearle.com


Minggu, 07 Oktober 2012

theFashionSpot Brings Home OMMA Award for Website Excellence in Fashion and Beauty Category


LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Evolve Media Corp.’s theFashionSpot (TFS) (www.thefashionspot.com), the largest fashion-focused community and fashion editorial site on the web, was honored with the OMMA Award for Website Excellence in the Fashion/Beauty/Cosmetics category at the 2012 OMMA Awards on Monday, October 1st. The annual event, hosted by MediaPost in New York City, recognizes web publishers and developers for outstanding content, design and user interface.
theFashionSpot is one of the most respected sources for fashion on the web and is comprised of industry insiders, including designers, models, and fashionistas. Covering everything from fashion trends to celebrity style and behind the scene reporting of runway shows, TFS delivers the latest news from experts with exclusive access to events and coveted designers. The site’s thriving community is actively engaged in fashion-focused discussions and has generated over 8.5 million posts.
“theFashionSpot team is so honored to receive the prestigious OMMA Award,” said Mike Dodge, President of AtomicOnline, Evolve Media Corp.’s publishing division. “We are very proud of how far the site has come; what began as a tight-knit community of designers, stylists and fashionistas has grown into an award-winning fashion editorial destination that reaches 2.4 million beauty & style fans each month. We’ll continue to provide our community, as well as our marketers, with premium content on the latest styles, hottest events and exclusive industry buzz.”
About theFashionSpot:
Originating in July 2001, theFashionSpot (www.theFashionSpot.com) made a name for itself as an invitation only community of designers, stylists and fashionistas that dissected designer collections, celebrating some and skewering others. Building the largest fashion-focused community on the web, theFashionSpot.com has grown into a well-respected fashion editorial site with a strong and active community element. The site currently reaches 2.4 million unique visitors each month, with close to 70,000 registered members playing an active role in the site’s forum. It is that in-market participation and authenticity that makes theFashionSpot.com the largest fashion community site and attracts other sites such as ShoeBlog, My‘It’Things and FadedYouthBlog for cross-promotion, content syndication and ad sales. theFashionSpot is part of AtomicOnline (www.AtomicOnline.com), the publishing unit of Evolve Media (www.evolvemediacorp.com).
MediaPost Communications
MediaPost Communications is an integrated publishing and content company whose mission is to provide a complete array of resources for media, marketing and advertising professionals. MediaPost's annual OMMA Awards celebrate the year’s most innovative and brilliant online advertising creative, campaigns and web sites across 66 categories within three disciplines. The 2012 OMMA Awards winners were announced during the gala reception on October 1st at the conclusion of the first day of the OMMA Global Conference. www.mediapost.com/events

Hot stuff: the finest trends and buys for winter


The puffer
Take your inspiration from the ski slopes this winter and invest in a puffer. The quilted overcoat is having a resurgence; worn over a suit, it makes something uptown a little more downtown. French label Moncler is still the go-to brand for puffers and this season has collaborated with the British designer, Christopher Raeburn. His military-inspired take on cold-weather clothing is a masterclass in the trend. £215, Mauro Griffoni, thecorner.com
Paisley
A print that can be traced back thousands of years to its Persian roots clearly has staying power. On neck ties, pocket squares and shirts, the tear-drop motif continues to adorn menswear. And because it makes more of an impact than its sedate cousin plaid, a less-is-more approach when wearing this pattern is advisable. £5, topman.com
The roll neck
The humble roll neck is the only knit to wear with a suit this season. On the catwalk, Prada layered them under shirts for the ultimate in dandy refinement. If you do opt to wear one on its own, then avoid tucking it into your jeans or trousers. You want to be the epitome of Left Bank suave; not look as though you have unwittingly enrolled in the Simon Cowell school of dressing. £130, johnsmedley.com
Colour
Traditionally men only ever wear colour on the top half of their bodies, usually in the shape of a shirt or tie. But this season there's a veritable rainbow of jeans and chinos on offer. From raspberry and cerulean to forest-green, these vibrant hues will certainly let your legs do the talking. To anchor this flash of colour, simply team with neutral tops in greys and blacks.
Red: £145, Folk. Yellow: £145, Faconnable. Both from mrporter.com
The pinstripe
No longer just the uniform of bankers and city traders, pinstripe suiting is fashionable once again. This time, the cut of the suit is key to your sartorial success – gone is the bulky, shoulder-padded giant of the 1980s and instead a slimline version, be it single- or double-breasted, is left in its place. Dress down with a chambray shirt and bright-coloured, paisley-print tie. Power lunches optional.
Suit £425, shirt £79, reiss.co.uk
Jack Spade + Barbour
A collaboration between British heritage brand Barbour and American label Jack Spade was only ever going to yield satisfying results and the waxed canvas bags are a sight to behold. Choose from a tote, briefcase or pocket messenger, all lined with Barbour's signature check, so even the interiors of the bags are easy on the eyes, even if what you fill them with isn't. £290, jackspade.com
Amber delights
Winter's coming. What better way to indulge your olfactory senses than with a warming amber fragrance? Nearly two decades old and filled with complexity, Ambre Sultan is one of master perfumer Serge Luten's bestselling scents. £69 for 50ml, House of Fraser, nationwide
Monkstrap shoes
The monkstrap – a term which refers to the buckle on the side of the shoe – is perhaps the most versatile piece of footwear. Here's a shoe that can easily be worn with either a suit, jeans or shorts. This autumn, even wearing a suede version is a subtle and clever way of giving your favourite pair of jeans a confidence boost. £245, russellandbromley.co.uk

Jumat, 05 Oktober 2012

The Anatomy of Lady Gaga's High-Fashion Feud with a New York Times Critic


After lowering herself over a champagne bucket in the name of performance art last month, Lady Gaga lent her artistic services to the high-fashion world during a recent Thierry Mugler runway presentation in Paris. The Grammy winner re-wrote and re-recorded lyrics to her single "Cake Like Lady Gaga" specifically so that the song could be used as the soundtrack to Mugler's Spring 2013 collection debut. In the runway remix, Gaga digitally lowers her voice to sound like a man, mentions her recent weight gain, and makes a dig at New York Times fashion critic Cathy Horyn, Gaga's sparring partner in an ongoing feud. For those unfamiliar with said feud, fashion, and provocative runway slang, read ahead for a loose translation of the lyrics, some history on the feud, and a video of the controversial presentation.
The lyrics (which can be heard in the video of the runway show, below) read: "Mugler's show, I'm Lady Gaga. Bad bitches gonna walk the runway, walk bitches like Lady Gaga." Easy enough. "Bad bitches" equals "fierce models."
Gaga adds, "Ortenberg, you can suck my dick, walk bitch, you ain't Lady Gaga." Ortenberg is Horyn's boyfriend, Liz Claiborne founder Art Ortenberg, who once wrote in to Women's Wear Daily in defense of his girlfriend. In the same message, he also advised Gaga to "grow up."
Gaga adds again, "Nicopanda got style, trick, Cathy Horyn your style ain't dick. Walk a mile in these foot-high heels, I run in these you ain't running shit. You chew beef, I wear meat - I'm getting fat and so is my bank. From a sold-out world tour, bitch." Per The Hollywood Reporter, Nicopanda is an online gaming character created by Gaga's designer friend Nicola Formichetti to model his virtual fashions. "I'm getting fat" likely refers to her semi-controversial weight gain. The world tour is her recent "Born This Way Ball."
The feud either began when Horyn publicly railed against Donatella Versace for lending Lady Gaga pieces from the Versace archive for her Edge of Glory video -- ("Be choosier, Ms. Versace," Horyn wrote at the time) -- or when Lady Gaga stole Horyn's boyfriend, Horyn retaliated by feeding Gaga high-calorie nutrition bars she swore were diet, and then Gaga re-retaliated by releasing an incriminating burn book at school. Sadly for Horyn, this is not the critic's only fashion feud in Paris this week: she was not invited to the Saint Laurent show by designer Hedi Slimane. After viewing video of the presentation, Horyn wrote in her New York Times review that "Mr. Slimane's clothes lacked a new fashion spirit."

Top 10 Trends: Milan Fashion Week Spring 2013

Top 10 Trends: Paris Fashion Week Spring 2013


RETRO VISION
A number of designers paid tribute to decades past, from major mod moments at Louis Vuitton, seventies rockers at Saint Laurent and Isabel Marant, pop icons of the eighties at Jean Paul Gaultier, and supermodels of the nineties at Balmain.
Photo: Louis Vuitton

Sabtu, 01 September 2012

Emma Watson names her all-time favourite outfits


Barely-teen starlets Chloe Moretz, Hailee Steinfeld and Kiernan Shipka might have made wearing school uniform one day and Chanel Haute Couture the next de rigueur for the five-foot-and-under population in Hollywood, but that hasn't always been the case.
It's no secret that when an young Emma Watson promoted the Harry Potter films which have brought her huge wealth and fortune, she used to rely on her stepmother's cast-offs to tread the red carpet. Undoubtedly style lows, the actress has now admitted that wearing "things that were just far too big for me too" are also up their on her 'rather forget' list.
So what is worth celebrating about her now very grown-up wardrobe, which includes elegant and occasionally risqué numbers by Valentino, Burberry and Marchesa?
"My all-time favourites are probably the white Alexander McQueen dress I wore to the Empire Awards and the vintage Ossie Clark dress I found in a shop around the corner from my house..." the 22-year-old tells the new issue of Glamour , which she covers to promoter her new film, The Perks of Being a Wallflower .
Left: Watson In Ossie Clark in 2009 and wearing white McQueen the year before. Photos: GETTY
Unlike the aforementioned Steinfelds and Shipkas, Watson was the ripe old age of 18 when she debuted in said McQueen, wowing the crowds at The National Movie Awards in London in a romantic white gown with draped sleeves and a silver, crystal-embellished bust. And as for the grey, plunging neckline Ossie Clark gown she wore to the Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince premiere in London's Leicester Square in 2009, we're glad to hear the memories sustained from that evening are good ones; torrential rain and a gust of wind revealed her flesh-coloured undergarments to the world.
Luckily, Watson has taken it all in her rather down-to-earth stride: "it helps that I've accepted my body shape more as I've got older" she concludes.