Oscars Find that Everything That Glitters is Now Really Really Expensive!:
“With gold at an all-time high, the price of each gilded Oscar to be presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Feb. 24 has jumped to a record $500 from $400 last year, academy spokeswoman Teni Melidonian said . . . The 8 1/2-pound Oscar depicts a knight holding a sword and standing atop a reel of film. It is made from pewter that is plated in successive layers of copper, nickel, silver and gold, and then lacquered and buffed. The finished piece is bolted to a 2-inch high black, nickel-coated brass base.”
British Designers Blame Lack of Factories for Inability to Compete:
“A decades-long decline in British manufacturing is back in the limelight with the launch of government-funded research to find out if, despite acclaim, young designers like Marios Schwab are at a terminal disadvantage to French and Italian rivals because they don’t have a factory on their doorstep.”
I blame wonky British designers (I mean, really!):
Chinese High-End Consumers Choose Quality Over Luxury Branding:
“The survey appears to debunk a long-held myth about Chinese consumers’ obsessions with flaunting the familiar luxury logos to boost their social status; at least in the case of the top spenders surveyed by MasterCard Worldwide, consumers overwhelmingly attribute their choice of favorite brands to be driven by quality concerns, offered by 92.7% of respondents, far ahead of other considerations such as brand recognition, which nonetheless scores a high 68.3%, or fashion design, with 58.5%. Unconventionally, 48% also put down environmental friendliness as a key criterion.”
Givenchy Turns Teeny-Bop for New Fragrance Campaign:
“(Justin Timberlake) has been officially announced as the new face of Parfums Givenchy’s all-new men’s fragrance that will be unveiled this fall . . . The president of the French perfume brand Alain Lorenzo confirms the earlier reports regarding their endorser as saying, ‘Beyond his huge celebrity appeal, we chose Justin Timberlake because he is a world recognized trendsetter who redefines modern elegance.’”
Someone must have changed the definition of “elegance” when I wasn’t looking:
La Coquette Reports on the New Gucci Flagship Store in NYC:
“The store is really underlining the heritage of Gucci, emphasizing that they came from trunk-making, craftsmanship. They’re highlighting old pieces from their archives in a sort of in-store museum downstairs. Frida is using old fabrics for inspiration. Everyone loves quality. As opposed to a stronger sexy image during the Tom Ford era, the heritage/quality line appeals to our most noble human tendencies, which seems to be the way to go when our economy isn’t doing well. ‘Tom Ford who?’ — Susie, Betsy and I said those exact words after the tour.”
Modesty Is The New Scandulous:
“Modesty has been creeping back into vogue for some time. It’s a development not without benefits. The bare midriff, the evocatively named muffin top, the de rigueur paparazzi shot of a knickerless celebrity emerging from a car, now look very old hat. Covering up could be a really scandalous new tactic for the publicity-hungry celeb.”
Vogue’s Anna Wintour Sparks Chaos, Resentment Among Italian Designers:
“Anna Wintour, the editor of American Vogue, said she had requested Armani, Versace and Dolce & Gabbana to shift their shows so that she could return to America before Paris Fashion Week begins next Tuesday. As a result, a logjam of catwalk shows at the beginning of the week caused havoc . . . ‘Instead of one week’s worth of shows, most of the important ones were crammed into three days,’ said Marina Garzoni, the founder of Fashion and Technology, a fashion consultant . . . Roberto Cavalli blamed the fashion editors. He said: ‘If we take our advertising out of their newspapers, you’ll see that they’ll come here not just for one day of Italian fashion but for all ten.’”
