Fendi\'s Great Wall extravaganza
zhang ziyi,kate bosworth,fendi,karl lagerfeld,thandie newton
Fendi
Some people might say that once you\'ve seen one fashion show, you\'ve een them all. But not Fendi. The luxury Italian design brand, co-designed by Karl Lagerfeld and Silvia Venturini Fendi, staged a massive fashion show on the Great Wall of China, said to have cost in the realms of $10million. The show was an expanded version of the SS08 collection, already shown in Milan last September. The point? Apart from being an extravaganza - and fashion loves an extravaganza - extraordinaire, a Fendi chief executive said it was about "positioning Fendi for the next 50 years". In other words, it\'s about illustrating that Fendi is a brand of wealth and success and, as China opens up to the luxury goods market, a canny way of getting noticed over there. A crop of fashion press and glamorous faces, including Kate Bosworth, Thandie Newton and Julia Restoin-Roitfeld, attended, partying into the early hours at an open-air dinner party. Clearly there are still ways to stage a fashion show, but this one will certainly take some beating.
See who was there, click here
Cacharel appoints new design duo
cacharel
Cacharel
Cacharel has appointed Wakako Kishimoto and Mark Eley, British designers of
Eley Kishimoto, to design their ready-to-wear line. The French brand, founded in 1962, and known in particular for its Anaïs Anaïs perfume, recently parted ways with another British design pairing, Suzanne Clements and Inacio Ribeiro (who continue to design their Clements Ribeiro line), after seven years. In an interview with Women\'s Wear Daily, Kishimoto said, "We have a lot of sympathy for Cacharel. We want it to be fresh and go back to its roots. It should be joyful, but not overly flamboyant." Eley Kishimoto will continue to design for their own label, as well as commuting to Paris regularly, with their first Cacharel collection to be for AW08.
Anya Hindmarch is growing
handbag,Anya Hindmarch
Reese Witherspoon
Anya Hindmarch\'s bags have proved to be so popular - her I\'m Not A Plastic Bag bags now have their own knockoffs at Portobello market - that it makes sense the designer is to open two new flagship London stores in two of London\'s most tony areas. The Bond Street and Sloane Street boutiques, scheduled to be opened in time for the run-up to Christmas, will remain true to the Anya Hindmarch aesthetic, with Art Deco influences, and comfortable sofas for that all important decision we ladies must make when deciding which bag we wish to take home with us. In a statement, the designer said, "I\'m thrilled to have found two new stores that allow us to showcase our entire collection which has grown so much. Sloane Street has always been our home pitch and this prominent corner site is a wonderful new home. I am equally excited about joining Bond Street for the first time." With the likes of Reese Witherspoon, left, rarely seen without her Lautner bag of late, it can\'t be long before the Lautner will soon get its own knockoff - a form of flattery in its own right.
Anya Hindmarch, 118 Bond Street, London W1S 1EW. Tel: 020 7493 1628 - Opens 5 NovemberAnya Hindmarch, 157-158 Sloane Street, London SW1. Tel: 020 7730 0961 - Opens 1 December
Spooky swapshop
spooky,swapshop
Swap-a-rama
Every fashionista is familiar with the concept of a swap shop. Now here\'s one with a twist. East London swap shop Swap-a-rama Razzmatazz - who already host a monthly swap shop at east London restaurant and club Favela Chic (go to
www.myspace.com/swaparamarazzmatazz for more information) - will be hosting a swap shop party with a Halloween theme on 31 October, in collaboration with
Denim is Everything. Here\'s how it works. Turn up in your spookiest Halloween costume, drink cocktails and dance, and every time the klaxon sounds each reveller must swap an item of clothing with someone next to them. As the flyer says, "Don\'t wear anything you can\'t die without - devil knows what you\'ll be going to hell in!" So put in your fake fangs, your fluorescent contact lenses and your cake your face with Marilyn Manson make-up - it\'s time to do fashion, Halloween style!
Entry is free (although a £3 charge must be paid on departure).
Vintage chic
laura ashley,vintage
Laura Ashley
When
Laura Ashley introduced a capsule collection of original vintage prints to its stores last season, no one could have predicted it would sell like Krispy Kremes (remember the gorgeous triangle bikini?). So it comes as good news that the high street chain has gone one better and come up with another vintage-inspired line for this season. Available to buy from 28 October, the line includes dresses, separates, coats, knitwear and accessories. Using organic cotton, key pieces include a cute thistle-print smock top and a jumbo cord coat in burnt orange. A selection of printed headscarves and quilted cord bags are also available - the vintage-style prints fitting in perfectly with the \'70s trend which is everywhere this autumn.
Marc, Chloe et al
handbag,Selfridges,marc by marc jacobs
Karta
Autumn wouldn\'t be complete without a visit to
Selfridges. What\'s new in store this season? The new Accessories Hall, for starters. Opening next month, it will stock Europe\'s first
Marc by Marc Jacobs accessories shop, as well as the new accessories line from See by Chloe. On the clothing side, Karta, by Californian designer Judi Lambert, is new in store, with a collection of old school Hollywood glamour-inspired dresses. And if you\'re so fashion-forward that you\'re already bored of the autumn/winter collections, cruise collections from RM by Roland Mouret, Roberto Cavalli, Giles, Jonathan Saunders, Temperley and Dolce & Gabbana will be in store from the beginning of November.
