Rihanna poses for a good cause
rihanna,h & m
Rihanna for H&M Fashion Agains AIDS
Rihanna does sound like a nice sort: as well as letting us stand under her umbrella, she\'s put her lovely mug up as the face of H&M\'s Fashion Against AIDS campaign. The Swedish high street chain has pulled together a group of designers and famous faces to create a line of clothing, which will be available from February 2008, raising money and awareness for HIV/AIDS. The collection comprises T-shirts, tank tops and hoodies, all featuring a print or slogan, such as Katharine Hamnett\'s \'Use a condom!\' mantra. To prove its cool, the line will also be on sale at
Colette in Paris. "I love that
H&M is providing a fashionable and easy way for young people all over the world to get involved in this worthy cause", said Rihanna in a statement. With prices ranging from £7.99 to £19.99, that umbrella is frankly looking very tempting...
Mulberry\'s a shoe-in
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Jonathan Kelsey
Mulberry is turning into one of the coolest labels around. Not content with hiring uber-stylist Katie Grand as Creative Director last autumn, a press release has landed on the Handbag fashion desk informing us that hotshot British cobbler Jonathan Kelsey has been hired to design a line of women\'s footwear for them for Autumn / Winter 2008. The collection will comprise of five styles: Riding Boot, Ankle Boot, Shoe Boot, Pump, and Lace-Up, in shades of plum, coffee and grey. According to Mulberry CEO Lisa Montague, the one-off shoe collection could lead to something more permanant: "We loved Jonathan\'s Autumn / Winter 2007 collection and thought his energy and design ethos would be an excellent fit for our brand. We are currently committed to Autumn / Winter 2008 and Spring / Summer 2009, and, if things go well, we\'d like to further develop footwear in the future."
Jonathan Kelsey shoe, left, Spring / Summer 2008 collection, at Harvey Nichols
Freud on film
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Bella Freud
As we sit waiting in an overcrowded and stuffy venue for another show to start, fashion editors often speculate whether it\'s time the fanfare that is the catwalk be laid to rest. When anyone can access pictures from a show hours after it\'s happened (on websites such as Handbag.com) why, we ask, do we go to all the bother?
Bella Freud is the first to set what could be a new trend. The British designer, who recently quit as the creative force behind revamped label BIBA, will be showing her next solo collection, Demonstration, via film. The three-minute short has been directed by legendary Brit director Stephen Frears (Dangerous Liaisons, The Queen), with a voiceover by writer Hanif Kureshi explaining each outfit. With any luck the idea will catch on...
Lily, Lacroix, and a rain cape
Lily Cole,christian lacroix
Christian Lacroix for La Redoute
Lily Cole, most recently seen in the widely-panned high school romp St Trinians, has reprised her role as the face of Christian Lacroix for
La Redoute. The French catalogue and online company has hired couture designer Lacroix (who currently has a fabulous exhibition showing at the
Fashion and Textiles Museum in Paris) for a second time to create a line of affordable pieces evocative of his joyful, colourful ethos. Make sure you check out the jagged-heel chunky shoes, and the black and green checked cape - perfect for keeping off the rain whilst cycling on a Velib. Available online from 25 January.
Pyjama room
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Pyjama Room
Get Kate\'s cotton basics!
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Kate Hudson
It\'s no secret that Americans produce the softest and most covetable cotton tees (think C&C California and James Perse, to name but a few), and now we\'ve just been given another reaseon to love them all the more: Park Vogel, a four year old Los Angeles-based label, has recently launched its website,
parkvogel.com, allowing Californian cotton-lovers everywhere to stock up on t-shirts, vests and dresses among other pieces. Designers Vanessa Vogel and Julie Park have created a cult following among the coolly casual style set, including Kate Hudson,
left, Scarlett Johansson, and Charlize Theron, not least because the brand\'s environmentally friendly Swiss cotton is knitted by one of the few textile mills in the world which implement recycling and energy saving programs.
Hot fashion rumours
louis vuitton,jonathan saunders,giambattista valli
Jonathan Saunders
Could Jonathan Saunders be going mass-market? The British designer, who will be showing his Autumn / Winter 2008 collection in New York, is rumoured to be following in the footsteps of Alice Temperley and Erin Featherstone by designing a line for American wallet-friendly chain Target. Isaac Mizrahi, meanwhile, is leaving Target to join that other bastion of affordable American fashion, Liz Claiborne. And speaking of design appointments, Giambattista Valli, a designer known for his exquisite couture confections, has been appointed as creative director at ski-wear label Moncler, taking over from Alessandra Facchinetti, who will be taking over at Valentino when the designer retires next month. Phew! As if that wasn\'t all, another rumour doing the rounds is that grizzly rocker Keith Richards is to pose for Louis Vuitton. Now that is something we would like to see.
Left: Jonathan Saunders, Spring / Summer 2008
Kate\'s birthday redux
Kate Moss,Chanel
Kate Moss
So Kate Moss turned 34 last Wednesday, 16 January. She wore a Chanel dress to the party - which took place at the Dorchester Hotel - with what looks like Terry de Havilland snakeskin platforms. She also had a gold star painted over one eye, similar to those decorating her frock. But what\'s this? Isn\'t her hair and dress very similar to the look she rocked for her The Beautiful and Damned-themed party four years ago at Claridges? That must have been one great party...
