The Luxe Chronicles

In Defense Of Luxury: Let's Not Throw the Baby Out With the Bath Water.

The current economic climate has given rise to all kinds of speculation about where the luxury industry will go next. Much of that speculation is, perhaps understandably, accompanied by a generous dose of schadenfreude . For instance, I just read an article in Newsweek entitled "Luxury Shame" and according to at least one expert , “(...) an ‘It’ handbag will become an embarrassment — a clear sign that you don’t have your own view of fashion (...)”. Not to nitpick or anything but as far back as the Great Depression, opulence has always gone under the radar during times of trouble and the death of the so-called 'It' bag was already universally proclaimed several seasons ago (but I digress). So, what exactly is the point of all this finger wagging?

The Perfect Antidote to the Economic Blues? The Perfect Pair of Red Shoes

 

Images courtesy of Net-A-Porter.

I've been searching for the perfect pair of red stilettos for a very, very, long time. I had the perfect pair of red sandals and the perfect pair of red ballet flats but the perfect pair of red stilettos had (until now) stubbornly eluded me. Stilettos make a powerful statement thanks to their shape - all sharp edges and sexiness. The color red makes an equally strong statement - loud, brash and sexy. When combined together, there is something about the color and the shape that I find can be somewhat overpowering. In other words, I was looking for a shoe that said 'stylishly sexy' rather than 'sartorially slutty'. I wasn't absolutely certain what the perfect pair of red stilettos would look like but I was confident I would know them when I saw them. Brian Atwood must have heard my silent prayers because he designed the perfect pair (to my mind). I found them on Net-A-Porter (of course). The heel is perfect, the height is perfect, the shape is perfect, the color is perfect. P-E-R-F-E-C-T!

L'Officiel's Diamond Give-Away: Devilishly Clever or Merely Desperate?

   

As everyone knows, the current economic downturn has hit print media particularly hard. Circulation and advertising pages have declined sharply resulting in industry-wide lay offs and severe budget cuts at even top publications as editors dig in their heels and try to weather the storm. This state of affairs is not likely to get better any time soon given that even top fashion and luxury brands have slashed their advertising budgets among other austerity measures.  What is a fashion publication to do under these trying circumstances? At least one fashion magazine is pulling out all the stops this holiday season. Venerable French fashion publication and my own personal fashion bible, l'Officiel has embedded three diamonds each worth 26,000 Euros ($34,000 USD) in three of the magazine's December issue. The three magazines have been placed in news stands somewhere in France. According to Passion Luxe, this may be a first in the history of print media. While I have no doubt this treasure hunt will sell some magazines in the short term, given the current economic climate, one can't help but sense a certain whiff of desperation. It also makes you wonder what they have in store for the January 09 issue.

Sincerely,

The Luxe Chronicles

Fashion & Beauty: Words from the Wise and Influential

In an industry obsessed with youth and beauty where the norm is for women to literally torture themselves in an attempt to reach an unattainable ideal, taking an explicit stand against Botox, plastic surgery and other radical anti-aging "treatments" is surprising to say the least. When such a stand is taken by a powerful tenor of the industry, I think we should all pay close attention. In this vein, I would like to share with you a few quotes by three of the fashion industry's most respected and influential members on the subject of aging.

Fashion: Congratulations to the 2008 British Fashion Council Laureates

Left to right: Stephen Jones confections from Marc Jacobs Spring/Summer 2009, Christian Dior Haute Couture Spring 2008 and John Galliano, Fall/Winter 2007 respectively. All photos courtesy of Style.com.

The 2008 British Fashion Council awards were handed out last night in London with top honors going to Luella Bartley named Designer of the Year. An Outstanding Achievement Award was given to milliner Stephen Jones for his contribution to British fashion. The list of other laureates are as follows:

Albertus Swanepoel: An Interview With the CFDA/Vogue Runner-Up

Albertus Swanepoel with model. Photo by Norman Jean Roy, courtesy of Style.com.

Last July, I posted an interview  with then-CFDA/Vogue Fund finalist Albertus Swanepoel. He had just been informed of his nomination and was quite simply flabbergasted. It wasn't that he lacked confidence in his millinery skills but rather hats, as he put it, were the 'orphan accessory' of fashion. Indeed, while his confections had graced the runways of top-level designers such as Marc Jacobs, Carolina Herrera and Proenza Schouler (to name but a few), his work was still a closely-held secret amongst designers looking for a finishing touch for their runway presentations. This is what makes his runner-up status so exquisitely sweet. He graciously accepted to submit to a follow-up interview for The Luxe Chronicles.

Luxury: The Party Is So Over.

The cold, hard light of day?

The announcement last week that certain blue-chip luxury brands were implementing modest price reductions in an effort to get the wealthy spending this holiday season couldn't help but remind me of the five stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. Let me explain. Not too long ago, industry leaders sought to reassure us that luxury would do just fine thanks to that elusive creature, the ultra-high net worth individual. These individuals were 'recession-proof' we were told and therefore they would continue to spend lavishly regardless of the state of the economy. We didn't realize it then but we may very well have been witnessing the first of the five stages of grief, denial.

Luxury: Karl Lagerfeld Designed Tribute Coin

I've long suspected that Karl Lagerfeld possessed a license to print money. Now I have proof .

Sincerely,

The Luxe Chronicles

'Tis The Season To Do Something For Others

   

Dear Readers:

Christmas is coming and all this doom and gloom over the state of the economy is probably having a pretty serious dampening effect on your holiday cheer. You know things are bad when even the very wealthy are reluctant to part with their money at Christmas. What if I were to tell you that I can suggest a fantastic way to do something good for others this holiday season and all that is required of you is to click on this little link? Would that cheer you up?

London's Fashion Expo: Helping Bridge the Divide Between Fashion Talent and Business Savvy

When you mention the word 'fashion', what usually comes to mind are images of preternaturally tall and beautiful women strutting across a catwalk wearing glamorous creations. It's a powerful image but a mere snippet of what the fashion industry actually entails. What your mind's eye doesn't see are the months, years even of endless toil accomplished under often very precarious economic conditions. As John Galliano pointed out during his keynote address at the CFDA/Vogue Fund Awards in New York earlier this week, fashion is first and foremost about hard work. When you consider that it takes a minimum of 3 to 5 years to establish a fashion label and build a brand, it's easy to understand why more than one talented designer has crashed and burned over the years for reasons unrelated to talent. That's precisely why I'm so excited to tell you about Fashion Expo .