The Luxe Chronicles

Luxury: China - E.U. Politics or Something More?

Luxury brands have long claimed that any substandard products that may arise in the course of production are immediately destroyed to preserve the brand's image and reputation for exacting standards of quality. This is why I'm intrigued by a piece in today's Telegraph detailing Chinese claims of widespread problems with imported European designer clothes produced outside of China (Yes, I know. Ironic isn't it?).

Fashion for Relief: Your Chance to Help Haiti.

Almost exactly two months ago, print, television and online media was saturated with coverage of the devastating earthquake that hit the tiny, impoverished island of Haiti. Heartbreaking images of human suffering amidst mountains of rubble, stories of miraculous survival and heroic efforts to rescue the too few souls lucky enough to have escaped death were everywhere - you couldn't avoid it if you tried. Today, you would be hard pressed to find any coverage relating to the earthquake's aftermath with one exception: Fashion for Relief.

Fashion: You Had Me at the First Bowler Hat Monsieur Gaultier

I don't know about you but growing up, I watched my fair share of old re-runs of The Avengers (or Chapeau melon et bottes de cuir if your watched it dubbed in French). It was therefore a total and utter treat to see the Emma Peel-inspired collection unveiled by Jean Paul Gaultier for Hermes this week in Paris.

Fashion: A Delicious Parody of Style Blogs

I love parody. I especially love it when the authors hit their target with the precision of Olympic caliber marksmen. This is precisely what the authors of P-et-P Blog have achieved with their clever idea: a parody of the self-conscious (some might say self-absorbed) blogs of twenty-somethings who spend far too much time photographing themselves under every angle imaginable in their favorite outfits. While a handful of these blogs might actually have offered a fresh take on fashion at their inception, for the most part, they've become ubiquitous, tired and contrived. In other words, the genre was just ripe to be parodied. And so they have! I highly recommend you check out the P-et-P Blog for a good laugh! Enjoy (I know I did).

Sincerely,

The Luxe Chronicles

Social Media: Thierry Mugler is Out of Control.

I've long felt that while slow to embrace the social media revolution, once firmly on board, the luxury industry would impress us all with their creativity and innovation. Granted, it's been a long wait. But one project, born from the fertile mind of reclusive French designer Thierry Mugler, has me feeling rather optimistic.

Luxury: The Revenge of Fur. The Failure of PETA.

It started during New York Fashion Week this past February and it is still going strong on this side of the pond this week. Fur. It's everywhere. More importantly, it's on the runways not only of established designers with a track record for incorporating fur into their collections (Oscar de la Renta, Fendi, etc.) but younger designers as well (Thakoon Panchigul, Quentin Veron, etc.). Why?

Women Are Dominating Mobile Social Networking. Are Brands Listening?

I just read some rather interesting statistics about women and social media. Contrary to popular perceptions, it is women between the ages of 25 to 54 who dominate the mobile social networking scene not teenagers. Women are not only dominating social networking but they're dominating social gaming as well - a domain long thought to be the stomping ground of boys and men. A survey carried out across the U.S. and the U.K. found that more than half (55%) of social gamers are women with an average age of 43. Not teenage boys, not men but mature, grown-up women.

Fashion: An Open Letter to Christopher Bailey

Dear Mr. Bailey:

I would like to congratulate you on your Fall/Winter 2010 collection for Burberry. It is quite simply gorgeous. Kudos to you for that. I also admire your graceful embrace of social media. This said, I do have a bone to pick with you.

Fashion: Bloggers Behaving Badly?

"I’ve got huge respect for Sarah Brown but I was given this seat." "You tell'em Carmel!"

Once upon a time, many, many years ago, it was customary for women to seek style guidance from a small number of fashion publications. Names like Vogue and Harper's Bazaar immediately inspired confidence and women everywhere on both sides of the pond and beyond willingly submitted to their fashion dictates. These magazines were run by powerful editors who travelled each season to Paris and brought back with them the latest word on hemlines, silhouettes and "the season's must haves". Then a little thing called Web 2.0 came along and suddenly a ragtag bunch of complete "nobodies" with an internet connection upset the established order of things with their blogs and their tweets. Suddenly, magazine editors are viewing couture through the ornate hat of a teenage blogger. Quelle horreur!!

Fashion: Celebrity Fueled Consumption and the Rise of "Wag" Culture

On a cold, rainy evening last week in London, I made my way to the London College of Fashion campus off of Oxford Street to see a short film and attend a panel discussion on the topic of celebrity fueled consumption. The film entitled "Dress Up" was written, produced and directed by the intrepid Kate Battrick of Make Do Style and Fashion and Film blogs.