Milan fashion: Conservative looks are in

MILAN (AP) ― The winter fashion statement coming out of Milan this time has been decidedly conservative. Milan designers stuck to the classics in their menswear collections for next winter, presented during four days of previews that ended Tuesday, but sought to enhance the traditional with a focus on technology and details. Radical fashion choices were definitely out. Staples ― suits, double-breasted and pinstriped, as well as coats ― were the mainstays in any collection, coming in urban dark c

Jan. 16, 2013

The Shard pierces London’s skyline ― and skewers critics

LONDON (AFP) ― The Shard ― western Europe’s tallest skyscraper ― opens its viewing platform to the public on Feb. 1, giving unrivalled views over London and defiantly snubbing critics of the gigantic tower.The 310-meter Shard has been described as too tall, too futuristic, too likely to cast its shadow over London’s historic monuments ― and too costly at a time of austerity, even though 95 percent of its 450 million pounds ($727 million) cost has been financed by Qatar.William Matthews, project

Jan. 14, 2013

China developer ‘copies’ star architect’s design

BEIJING (AFP) ― Already famed for fake designer bags and pirated DVDs, imitation in China may have reached new heights with a set of towers that strongly resemble ones designed by renowned architect Zaha Hadid.A developer in the southwestern city of Chongqing is putting up buildings that share the distinctive round contours and white stripes of a 39-floor shopping and office complex conceived by the British-Iraqi designer and being built in Beijing.The magazine China Intellectual Property noted

Jan. 7, 2013

Maker of premium cashmere gets higher profile

LOS ANGELES ― When Greg Chait won the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Award in New York City last month, the man behind the Elder Statesman line of ultra-luxury cashmere knits ― think $5,525 blankets, $1,890 belted cardigan sweaters and $380 ski caps ― was practically unknown outside the fashion industry. And he was only slightly better known within it.“That’s because I don’t talk unless I have something to say,” Chait says, sitting behind the wooden table that doubles as a desk in his tiny West Hollywo

Jan. 2, 2013

H&M presents collaboration with Maison Martin Margiela

The Swedish fashion brand H&M will unveil a new collection in collaboration with the French fashion house Maison Martin Margiela at around 230 H&M stores worldwide including Seoul next Thursday. The collection will consist of iconic Maison Martin Margiela garments and accessories for men and women, presented in oversized coats, masculine shapes, deconstructive tailoring and clothes using trompe l’oeil to give optical illusion. “Maison Martin Margiela is one of the most important and influential

Nov. 7, 2012

Hanbok as art

The Korean traditional attire of hanbok will be showcased at an international fine art event next month in Miami. At the opening art show of Art Miami, 12 models in hanbok dresses, designed by Lee Hye-soon of the hanbok brand Damyeon, will be walking among the 500 guests, giving them a close look at their elegant lines and fabrics and sophisticated colors and patterns. “I am invited to showcase hanbok at the opening art show titled ‘Fashion is Art.’ I am happy with the title because it’s the phr

Nov. 6, 2012

Go sleek and smart

Designers created different images of a smart, city woman for the 2013 spring and summer season at Seoul Fashion Week last week. To represent a confident urban attitude, they took a structural and practical approach, adding color and soft details to prevent the urban looks from becoming either too strong or pedestrian. Inspired by vintage playing cards, Andy & Debb applied illustrations of the king, queen, jack, joker and ace of hearts to blouses, pant suits, jump suits and long dresses. A broad

Nov. 2, 2012

‘May Queen’ actress hits Paris catwalk in chocolate dress

 Actress Kim Yoo-jung walked the runway wearing a delicately decorated dress made of chocolate during a fashion show at the inauguration of the annual Salon du Chocolat in Paris on Tuesday.For the show, fashion designers and chocolatiers combined their creativity to design unique pieces of art including life-sized chocolate dresses such as a magnificently detailed milk chocolate robe that Kim wore for the closing stage.Stephane Bonnat, a chocolatier who created the dress in collaboration with de

Oct. 31, 2012

Seoul Fashion Week: Pushing boundaries of classic men’s fashion

A week of fashion shows for the 2013 spring and summer season kicked off with menswear collections shown on Monday and Tuesday at Seoul Fashion Week. Although womenswear shows command center stage, men’s shows are gaining momentum, slowly establishing a distinctive Korean style. “Menswear collections have evolved tremendously and established a Korean identity over the past years, which is still lacking in womenswear,” Elisa Pervinca Bellini, editor of Vogue Italy who has returned to SFW for the

Oct. 24, 2012

Toronto Fashion Week

The following are pictures taken from the Toronto Fashion Week.

Oct. 23, 2012

N.Y. stylist Field pushes Korean fashion

Famous fashion stylist Patricia Field, who served as a costume designer for “Sex and the City” and “The Devil Wears Prada,” hosted a Korean fashion event last Thursday in New York. The celebrated stylist attracted more than 200 people in the fashion industry to the event titled “K-fashion Sensation” held at Dream Hotel, a modern luxury hotel in Manhattan, and introduced Korean fashion brands by having models wear clothes designed by Korean brands such as Buckaroo and Morine Comte Marant.The even

Oct. 14, 2012

Brad Pitt becomes first male face of Chanel No.5

Brad Pitt is set to become the first male face of Chanel No.5, a role previously filled by such fellow Hollywood luminaries as Marilyn Monroe and Nicole Kidman.A new 30-second ad campaign for the iconic women‘s perfume is to be unveiled online via the French fashion house’s YouTube page at 8:00 am (0600 GMT) Friday and then on television later in the day.The decision to choose Pitt to head the campaign was announced back in May.After campaigns depicting actress Estella Warren as red riding-hood,

Oct. 12, 2012

Warhol Foundation takes on cosmetics with Nars

NEW YORK (AP) ― Francois Nars had Andy Warhol coffee table books in his living room and Yves Saint Laurent in his closet growing up in the ’70s in the south of France.“I always feel so terrible for the people who got born after that era because there was something really in the air that was unexplainable,’’ the makeup legend said, lounging in the lobby of a Midtown hotel for a recent interview. “There was something very, very free. Today, everything is so much more controlled and so much more pr

Oct. 10, 2012

Korean fashion captures eyes of the style capital

Korean fashion designers captured the eyes of the world’s fashion capital at a presentation held during the Paris Fashion Week spring/summer 2013 collections, which kicked off on Tuesday. Ten Korean designers showed their collections at Seoul’s 10 Soul event held at Ecole de Beaux-Arts, a prestigious art school in Paris, on Wednesday evening. A total of 30 models gave a live presentation against sculptural walls as a backdrop at the event attended by more than 700 people, including reporters and

Sept. 27, 2012