#then again it’s Karl lagerfeld chanel so that’s what was expected

[evansbby]

me looking at all the met outfits: 😐

[gasstationlady]

tom holland’s school of manifestation | a charles leclerc social media au

pairing: charles leclerc x supermodel!reader

charles has a big crush on world renowned supermodel, y/n l/n. who would’ve thought she’d return the feelings.

notes: very much travis kelce x taylor swift inspired. faceclaim is yasmin wijnaldum! btw i try to improve with each post (like how i write/pace the story) so if you have any suggestions, pls (veryvery kindly) tell me!! :))

disclaimer: SORRY FOR TYPOS. GOOGLE TRANSLATE (and from american high school lol) FRENCH. KYM ILLMAN MENTIONED LOL. none of the information in this social media au is factual. i do use old photos of charlotte and charles, and usually i don't like to include pictures of their ex or current gfs in these fics (only bc i want to keep it as imaginative as possible and i feel like adding them kinda gives you a reality check while reading LOL) so lmk your opinions on that!

masterlist

voguemagazine

liked by yourusername, charles_leclerc and 854,487 others

voguemagazine Since beginning modeling at the age of 14, Y/N L/N has cemented herself as the most influential supermodel of all time. As of 2023, she is now the world’s highest paid model surpassing Kendall Jenner who previously led the list. Throughout her career, she has made 39 appearances on international Vogue covers.

Tap the link in our bio to read the full profile. Photographed by @/leannafitz, Written by Phil Stevenson, Styled by @/sheri_simmons, Vogue, February 2023.

View all 942 comments

user MOTHER IS MOTHERING

user omg as someone who has been a fan since she began in 2011, i’m so proud of her 😭

user she's the definition of perfection

user LOL ariana (charles), what are you doing here

↳ user his little crush on her is soo cute 😩

↳ user he’s just like us fr lmaoo

user her walk is legendary like it reminds me so much of naomi

user i was gonna say she’s the model of our generation but that’s wrong. she’s actually the top model of all time 😩😩😩

user i’m glad to see a non-nepo baby be on top of the list

↳ user no literally like no shade to bella, kendall, and them but y/n had to fight tooth and nail to be here

↳ user frrr bc most of the nepo baby models are great, don’t get me wrong. however, they were allowed to make mistakes during their career in order to improve. y/n was not privileged enough to have that. like ppl don’t understand the insane expectations that were placed on her ever since she entered the industry, but she exceeded those expectations every. single. time. and that’s why she deserves this title

user she’s so beautiful

user i would die for y/n

user nothing could describe the amount of affection i have for this woman omfg

charleslc_updates

42,077 likes

charleslc_updates Charles and Arthur talking about Y/N L/N (again lol) in a recent interview 👀

View all 396 comments

user lmaoooooo relatable

user omg i'm new to f1 but i've always been a y/n stan i'm freaakkkinng out but wdym again??

↳ user lmaooo charles is always trying to bring up y/n

user the leclerc brothers 🥰🥰

user it was so cute to see the both of them in one video

user this man fr blushed AHAH cute

user i get it charles i too have the biggest crush on y/n

↳ user lol literally like get in line dude

↳ user back of the line bucko

user i've never seen a man so down bad for someone he's never met

user y/n what are you doing girl if you don't want him ILL DO IT

user @/yourusername

↳ user LMAO YESSS @/yourusername

ynupdates

239,095 likes

ynupdates Y/N opening the 2023 Chanel by Karl Lagerfeld show during Paris Fashion Week.

View all 3,977 comments

user omg she absolutely killed it

user god does she need a dog? i can bark

user i love seeing her thrive

user quick charles this is your chance!!! she’s in paris 😭😭😭 @/charles_leclerc

↳ user lmaooooo not you tagging him but literally though

↳ user no srsly please mr. "i hope our paths cross soon" you don't understand i need this to happen

user yall saw that walk??? ugh y/n the woman that you are

user i don’t get the hype. all she does is walk.

user NAHHHH SHE ATEEE THAT

user i’m so happyyyy 🥺 y/n is so booked and busy she’s really out here doing multiple back to back shows for paris fashion week

↳ user same! it’s crazy that she gets to open and close multiple shows, especially ones like chanel!

user i love that so many people are going to these shows just to see y/n

user i could make this exact dress with my curtains

user if i ever meet her in real life i would die happily

yourusername

liked by charles_leclerc, bellahadid and 5,490,124 others

yourusername rien de mieux que d'etre a la maison [no place like home]

View all 12,658 comments

gigihadid sexy lady

↳ yourusername already missing you

user i keep forgetting she's part french

user you absolutely KILLED those shows

voguemagazine iconic ⭐️

alexademie 🔥🔥

user beautiful girl!!

user omggg charles liking this LOL

↳ user it's actually frustrating me that this man has no game like i'm rooting for you cmon

↳ user lmaooo literally though i'm just hoping he's pulling some strings behind the scenes

anokyai 😍😍😍

user la plus belle fille [the most beautiful girl] *liked by charles_leclerc

↳ user if this is him shooting his shot 😭😭

↳ user lol charles is down so bad he's even going through the comments

user am i just crazy but why are there two drinks in the second post? like is this supposed to be a very soft launch

↳ user it's probably gigi 😭😭 she did comment saying that they were hanging out with each other

↳ user but why not just take a pic of her tho

deuxmoi

31,844 likes

deuxmoi Y/N L/N & Charles Leclerc spotted hanging out with each other in Paris

View all 992 comments

user NO WAY OMG

user i'm actually in disbelief how tf did charles get here

user i knew you could do it charles!!

user TURN IT UP IVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS ONE

user so are they dating???

user CHARLES FR WINNING RN AHAH

↳ user NO LITERALLYYY HES BEEN DREAMING ABOUT THIS FOR AGES

↳ user he manifested this 😭

user they look sooo good together

user why does he look so srs

↳ user give my man a break 😩

↳ user well it looks like he’s not your man anymore 😭😭

user omgg this is like a fairytale

user wait i'm kinda obsessed with this

user i’m so invested

kymillman

201,885 likes

kymillman Y/N AND CHARLES

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc is joined at the track today by top supermodel, Y/N L/N. This is the first time Y/N is with him and she clearly shines in front of the camera.

Her debut at the grid has quickly become a popular topic as fans and drivers alike are intrigued by the presence of one of the most famous women in the world.

For A3 prints, hand-signed & numbered by a range of drivers/team principals head to kymillman.com #f1 #formula1 #signedprints #japanesegp #CharlesLeclerc #Y/NL/N

View all 971 comments

user SHDJEJ IM ACTUALLY GOING FERAL

user mom and dad 😩

user so it’s official???

↳ user i mean this is the hardest launch they could have done other than posting 😭

user i’m a charles fan and even i’m surprised he got her to date him

user i’m rooting for them so much 🥺🥺

user she’s serving though

user i’m watching the race rn and they literally keep talking about y/n being there AHH

↳ user i always forget she’s kind of a big deal

user kym gets on my nerves but this picture is actual gold

user it's so obvious that this is a publicity stunt

↳ user nah but for who? bc i know damn well that neither charles nor y/n need it

↳ user obviously not for them but maybe it's to gather more attention for f1

↳ user girl i need u to listen to urself rn 😭 bc that makes no sense

user idk who charles is and idk what the hell f1 is but best believe i’m tuning in next race just to see y/n

↳ user literally me girl i can’t believe i’m watching cars drive in a circle rn

yn_updates

91,922 likes

yn_updates Some moments of Y/N being mentioned by drivers during the Formula 1 race

View all 1,061 comments

user i swear it was like every minute i'd hear y/n's name

user the way that all the drivers are aware of charles's long time obsession with y/n LOL

↳ user i just know charles is the type to never shut up about her ahaha

user she's literally THE y/n l/n. i mean if viewers are sky rocketing just by her being there, imagine her impact if she had actively promoted it

↳ user she's so iconic

↳ user no bc i love y/n so much that i just forced myself to watch rich grown men vroom vroom in circles for almost 2 hrs just to catch a glimpse of her

user i'm in love with her life

user LMAOOO THE DRIVERS TEASING CHARLES

user lando's so funny 😭😭

user y/n and f1 stans are being FED today wow

user is it just me or am i kinda annoyed about how often they're bringing her up like my girl can't even support her bf in peace

↳ user yea i'm eating it up but also feeling bad for y/n at the same time. the attention is definitely a double edge sword.

user apparently she was with joris most of the time 🥺

user this is literally straight from a fairy tale i can't

user didn't they just meet like a week ago

↳ user as far as we know they were first spotted together about a month ago by that deuxmoi post. but assuming from y/n and charles's past relationships, i don't think they'd be this comfortable going public without being together for a while

↳ user yea this has definitely been going on longer than we think/have been seeing

charles_leclerc

liked by yourusername, gigihadid, landonorris and 7,712,083 others

charles_leclerc J'ai toujours su que c'était toi. Joyeux anniversaire, mon amour ❤️ [I've always known it was you. Happy birthday, my love]

View all 34,511 comments

yourusername merci, mon cœur ❤️ [thank you, my heart]

yourusername je suis raide dingue de toi [i'm madly in love with you]

↳ charles_leclerc l'amour de ma vie [the love of my life]

user are we interrupting something...

user i can’t believe it’s already been 6 months since they first went public

user throwing myself down the stairs as we speak

user they don't know it yet but we're actually a throuple

user happy birthday y/n!!!

user in love with their love 🥺

user lmfaoooo i just know charles is on cloud 9 this man literally sees y/n and is blind to everything else

↳ user he's sooo cute, he's like a love sick puppy

user i still think this is a pr relationship

user god i'd die for someone to look at me the way charles looks at y/n in that second pic

user this is my roman empire

user i'm so obsessed with them it's insane

user our generation's brad and angelina

↳ user don't say that wtf my parents are never separating

user pls don't ever breakup 😭😭

[themakeupbrush]

In no particular order, my top looks from the 2023 Met Gala "Karl Lagerfeld: A Line in Beauty"

My thoughts are below, but I'll be honest, I didn't really do any background research this year because there wasn't much to be done. These are really just my opinions on whether or not I liked the look.

Ironically, I felt this was a very mediocre year, which led to me having a lot more favorites than usual because they were kind of all on the same level. In previous years I would have separated this into multiple posts, but I don't really see the point.

Doja Cat: I wanted someone to dress up as Choupette the cat and she delivered, and managed to do so in a way that was still fitting for the event

Keke Palmer: She looked amazing, and really captured the Chanel look with the bombshell hair and the extremely bedazzled tweed. I honestly don't want to think about how much that dress weighed

Anne Hathaway: Besides that fact that I love everything Anne Hathaway has ever done, this dress was the perfect combination of honoring Lagerfeld's style while also incorporating it into the style of the brand she was representing (Versace). It had tweed and pearls, but also sex appeal and safety pins

Cardi B: First, I just want to appreciate her ongoing commitment to high fashion and the fact that she had three (3) completely separate looks. This particular Miss Sohee look was my favorite because she's living out my glinda barbie mermaid fairy princess dreams

Harvey Guillen: This was one of the first looks I saw of the night, and still one of my favorites. It has all the Lagerfeld style essentials, but still manages to look unique. Plus, creative menswear always gets extra points because the bar is painfully low, though this year was a surprisingly pleasant exception.

Jennifer Lopez: It's not the most creative look, but it's right up my alley and honestly, do we expect anything groundbreaking from JLo? She's always going to show up in something pretty that's decently on theme enough for me to just focus on whether or not I like it. And this immediately makes me think of classic Chanel.

Penelope Cruz: She was a co-host, it's vintage Chanel couture from the 80's, and she's one of the people I most heavily associate with Lagerfeld and Chanel. A win all around.

Russell Westbrook: I really want to give Russell Westbrook credit for always showing up to the Met Gala and really going for it. I love all the details: the pearl necklace, the tweed blazer with floral clasps, the bows on the shoes

Chloe Fineman: Another first look that turned out to be a favorite. This again had all the necessary design elements without feeling like a cheap knockoff. Also major points for the bedazzled cat bag.

Anok Yai: I don't know and I don't care how this relates to theme, she looked like a goddess

Bad Bunny: Another man not only doing something interesting but incorporating the theme? Genuinely shocking. Obviously I loved the OTT floral cape, but I really loved the ode to c. 2005 Chanel with the backless suit and backwards necklace.

Gisele: She wore the same dress from an iconic 2007 editorial, proving not only that she still has it, but that she's always had it. A true supermodel.

Salma Hayek: She looked hot, I don't know what else you want me to say about it. Also it had color, which nothing else did. My eyes were starving for color.

Glenn Close: For starters, she needed an entire team to carry her train so props for that. She brought the drama, the glitz, and the "age is just a number so shut the hell up" glamor.

Lil Nas X: This was, for lack of a better phrase, a cheeks out, bedazzled, balls to the wall look. The Choupette inspiration is more obvious when he was inside with the fur (ish?) coat on, but I honestly didn't care. I needed a moment and he delivered. Though I do wonder (1) how long it took to bedazzle him and (2) will he every fully be de-glittered.

Brian Tyree Henry: I don't know if it's the pose or the cape, but it's giving me dramatic shakespeare vibes and I appreciate it.

Naomi Campbell: The only issue I have with this look is that they called 2010 Chanel Couture "vintage" and I can't accept that. Beyond that, I mean, it's Naomi Campbell in Chanel Couture. I was also dying for any semblance of color at this point and somehow this dress was among the most colorful

Jenna Ortega: The perfect combination of chanel tweed cropped blazer/mini skirt and the Wednesday Addams aesthetic. Which was interesting because I thought she was trying to move away from that but I don't care it was a successful look

Ava Max: Chanel was known for the haute couture bride, and this not only really captures that, it was one of the most and quite honestly only majorly dramatic looks of the night

Halle Bailey: She looked like a mermaid and I love that for her

Ashley Graham: I would have loved this look regardless, but after seeing the dress it was modeled after, I also think it was one of the best tributes of the night

Tems: Has she ever looked bad on a red carpet? Her headpieces are just getting bigger and more elaborate and I see nothing wrong with that.

Diddy: I love the drama + the floral cape, though I am left wondering how he didn't faint under all of that. Also, you can roast me all you want for captioning his post with Sean Combs but that's what was given to the AP so it's what I went with.

Shai Gilgeous Alexander: A final man who followed the theme and wore something interesting, arguably more interesting than some of the women. I actually think I like this look better without the coat over it.

[salted-caramel-tea]

can we please have more met gala talk? I need to hear your opinion on some of these... looks

ok i’m gonna use this to try and sum ip my thoughts so pls bear with me

anyway i wasn’t rlly excited for the theme this year bc i don’t like karl lagerfeld and despite his contributions to modern fashion houses i don’t think he ultimately deserves to be celebrated given his consistent fatphobia, racism islamophobia and antisemitism . he was a cunt and an asshole and i hope he’s resurrected so he can die again

that being said i’m still gonna rate the looks anyway bc that was the theme of the exhibit this year whether anyone likes him or not

so obviously we get a lot of references to chancel via styles that have almost become motifs of his influence in various houses like his bridal collections , baby pink and black, flower appliqués, tweed etc

these one really stood out to me . bc this is what i would consider as a tribute to a designer . these garments took iconography and personalised them. it’s taking those influences and creating something that inserts karl lagerfeld into their world as opposed to inserting themselves into his world creating iconic unique garments that aren’t just pulled from haute couture lines or a big money talking point the garment is made for the wearer and the wearer sells it. it shows a direct intertwining of their style with karl lagerfeld fashion. jenna ortega especially drawing from such an iconic dress with the gold chains bordering the layers of her skirt i think it’s beautiful and creative

on the other end of the spectrum we’ve got vintage pulls

now i’m not against vintage pulls . bc i think some of the designs are gorgeous and i said before if anyone was going to pull from the archives i wanted it to be that exact dress dua lipa is wearing . however i to my the trouble with reliance on archived looks is that the dress was not intended for the wearer. they looked absolutely beautiful but there was no connection between the garment and the wearer, there’s no touch of them or integration between them and karl lagerfeld . wearing his designs is definitely talking points and gets people interested in looking into the archives of chanel in particular but there’s very little room for personality especially with the trending lack of accessory

the 3rd category is Doing Karl

picked these because they are on the two direct opposite sides of the spectrum for karl looks. obviously we expected men to come out in sunglasses gloves and high shirt collars but i’m more in love with the way people create from their inspirations . cardi is obviously inspired by the personal fashions of karl lagerfeld from her grey hair to her oversized collar and black and white theme but her dress pulls other crucial elements of his design career linking the art to the artist and doing so in a way that allows herself to come through the various layers of karl lagerfeld references . the dress pattern incorporating the rose appliqués and quilting in a way that almost resembles the tweed texture i think it’s a really smart garment and she looks beautiful

lastly .

the cat . i enjoy the campiness around peoples interpretation of the car although i believe some people executed it better than others i personally love doja’s entire look i think it’s glamourous but maintains that camp quietness that people tend to associate with her via the facial prosthetics and the feathering of the train of the dress replicating a fur like texture i think it’s so smart and glamorous and the reference is THERE and is understandable whilst maintaining the extravagance expected from met gala looks

all in all was i wowed to death by this year ? no . there’s been better themes. i feel like ppl got a bit lazy with influences by just dressing up as karl or pulling from archive or just not sticking to theme . i feel like with pulling from one certain designer the ability to implement the wearer and their designers own personality into the look is limited slightly but i’m impressed with the people who did create some of the most extravagant looks of the night so many people came out with beautifully executed and inspired looks and although i wish people were a little more creative (especially the men) there was some absolutely iconic looks last night . it was not ever going to be the met galas most iconic night with such restrictive influence to one designer but the created looks for last night were phenomenal and paid their appreciation towards the works of karl lagerfeld . he’s still a cunt tho .

[prouvaire]

lmao i’m so old i dont know how to answer replies anymore @ourbastardofsorrows

anyways after a day of memorizing stuff and a week of prolonged suffering through the wonderful world of possession (sadly not the fun kind we briefly studied in canon law) i’m both extremely tired and angry so here’s a condensed list of fashion opinions i might elaborate on later when my one (1) braincell returns from the war 

Fashion is an art form that conjugates all aspects of humanity. It’s art, history, sociology, psychology, chemistry, biology, maths, etc. It’s not an oppressive imperative, au contraire, in it’s purest and best form it’s both an expression and a reflection.

The big houses are overrated, boring, generic, incapable of innovation, and bound by societal expectations, LVMH, and their own former glory. Oh, and might I add, their bland, tasteless, and very white patrons. And, yes, I’m calling out Chanel, a brand whose admittedly few groundbreaking contributions are greatly overshadowed by long periods of stagnation and repetition. I’m also calling out Dior because if I see another belted tulle dress I’m gonna scream (oh and lmao at their completely OrgANic and UnARTifiCiaL way to make the saddle bag relevant again) 

Louis Vuitton is boring af. That’s literally it. 

The word haute couture gets thrown in a lot when there’s a pretty garment but it rarely is ACTUAL haute couture, which is honestly a disservice to haute couture bc if u see actual (and good) haute couture you quickly realize that it’s an art of the garment. It’s no longer a dress, or a shirt, or a skirt, or what have you, it’s something much more akin to a sculpture. It’s pushing the boundaries of our notions of textiles and construction. I mean look at Iris Van Herpen, Guo Pei, old Mcqueen, Cristobal Balenciaga, etc. 

on that note, CRISTOBAL FUCKING BALENCIAGA! Even Christian Dior bowed to Cristobal Balenciaga. 

Kinda circling back to point 2, but there are so many better couturiers than Coco Chanel that had even bigger impacts on fashion (imo the only thing gabrielle had going for her was marketing). E.g. Charles Frederick Worth, Mme. Grez, Elsa Schiaparelli. Madeline Vionnet, Paul Poiret, YSL, Boue soeurs, etc 

Dapper Dan is the unsung hero of contemporary fashion and it’s only in the last 5 years that he’s been getting his dues. Logomania started with Dapper Dan, streetwear as we know it is greatly based on Dapper Dan’s Aesthetic, every ig baddie and run of the mill influencer owes 98% of their aesthetic to Dapper Dan. Fendi should’ve made Dapper Dan their creative director, don’t change my mind. 

fashion owes a great fucking deal to POC around the globe and black american culture. Most trends can be traced directly to POC and black americans. I’m no expert, but Shelby Ivey Christie has some bomb threads about this on ig and twitter. 

The fashion industry as we know it was born in the 80s and it’s the fucking worst. Here’s my controversial opinion: it corrupted the art of fashion and the notion of luxury to the point of meaningless monstrosity. Thanks capitalism, racism, and nepotism. This point in particular gives way to a multifaceted analysis that’s worth further investigation. I mean it’s the reason why things pretty much always look kinda the same, why there are only like 4 creative directors, why there are only like 4 models (and we all know who they are), why Anna Wintour is still relevant, why Vogue and Conde Nast by extension is still relevant, why for some god forsaken reason there are like 50 shows a year (haute couture, ready to wear, resort, cruise, etc.) Though to be fair, the absurd amount of shows is also kinda Lagerfeld’s fault (thanks Karl we hate it) 

Mass production is a plague upon this land. I’m not saying fast fashion, I’m saying mass production. 

Paris and Milan fashion weeks are the superior fashion weeks. No, this is not only based on the fact that those are the only fashion weeks I’ve been to, and, no, this wasn’t just a weird flex. Or was it? 🤫

And as a last and possibly the only really controversial opinion on this list: Zuhair Murad and Elie Saab are overrated. Don’t get me wrong tho’ their embroidery is exquisite (I’ve had the delight to see an Elie Saab dress up close) but they pretty much repeat the same silhouettes every season. Also my monkey brain’s pet peeve is tumblr’s obsession with these two (and with Dolce and Gabbana but this one is not at all irrational considering that Stefano Gabbana is a racist asshole who harasses people online and Domenico Dolce is not that much better, also their collections are underwhelming and repetitive) 

[hennessystevens-udaku]

Baby Fever

Baby Fever: (n). The sudden desire to have a baby.

“You mean to tell me that’s a real thing?” Hennessy asked, holding Princess Nya in one arm while she typed away at her iMac with the other. She’d chosen to work from home today, in an effort to give Erik a break from the twins and to simultaneously finish planning Charlie’s lavish baby shower. She, Angel, and Bastion had already collectively decided that the shower would be Chanel themed, an ode to their favorite creative director, Karl Lagerfeld.

“Yes ma’am, and it looks like you have a severe case of it,” Charlie mused from the phone screen. It brought her joy to see her sister wife in this element, her tiny fingers working in overdrive to make sure everything was perfect for Charlie’s big day.

“I do not have baby fever,” Hennessy scolded, finally looking over to her phone screen to give Charlie a dirty look.

“Then why do you have the twins?” “Because Erik is tired.” “Did he tell you he was tired or did you assume?”

Henny pondered on the question, looking over at her phone guiltily when she realized Charlie was right.

“Ok fine, I took them from him, but they’re so stinking cute Cha Cha. Look at their little cheeks!” she squealed as she held the phone down for Charlie to see Nya and N’Jadaka playing together on the floor. Charlie only laughed, making faces at the twins when they looked up to see her.

“How’s the shower planning coming?”

“Great actually,” Henny responded as she browsed through the Chanel site for her gift. “Little Bee is making your cake and Bast has a few custom pieces coming in, just for the little princess.” “Wow, y’all are really gonna make sure this kid is rotten, aren’t you?” “Listen, I don’t have a kid so it’s my duty as favorite auntie to spoil y’all’s kids.”

“Why don’t you have a kid, Henny? You’d be a great mom,” Charlie said before she could stop herself. Her face turned down in sadness once she saw the slight bit of hurt in Hennessy’s eyes at her question.

“I’m still not ready, if we’re being honest. The whole miscarriage thing scared me and I honestly don’t want to try again. If it’s meant for me to have a little one, then I’ll have one, but until then I have y’all���s,” she says with a confident smile. “Now if you’ll excuse me, Miss Jade, I have a meeting with Auntie Bast. I’ll see you when you get home.” With a few air kisses, Henny ended the call and gathered the twins. She fed and changed them before laying them down for their afternoon nap.

“Angel and her schedules,” she mused with a chuckle.

--

Shower Day

What was once the estate’s lush flower garden was now an oasis of pink, gold, and glitter galore. The large gazebo had been decorated with pink, black, and white tulle creating a canopy with the signature Chanel double C logo in the middle. On the table sat Chanel themed treats like chocolate dipped pretzels, marshmallow treats, and cupcakes. Diamonds and pearls lined each table and each guest got custom Chanel party favors to take home to commemorate the event.

“Wow, you guys really went all out, huh?” Charlie said teary-eyed as she took in the sights.

“Only the best for our Charlie,” Bastion said with a cautious rub to her belly. Everyone knew how Charlie felt about her personal space being invaded and always made a point to ask before touching her.

“Exactly, now waddle on out there and enjoy the festivities,” Hennessy said, nudging her out onto the grounds.

Soon after, the shower was well underway. Everyone conversed and roamed the expansive backyard of The Kompound. Friends old and new walked around, interacting with one another as well as the expecting parents.

“Attention muthafuckas!”

“ALY’SHA!” Hennessy scolded with a stern face.

“My bad, but now that I have everyone’s attention, we’re about to get started with the games.

From ‘Guess Mommy’s Weight’ to ‘Who Knows Mommy Best’, everyone laughed and cheered as most of the wives answered correctly.

“That’s not fair. They’re always around her,” M’Baku pouted, pointing out Kimora and Josephine’s obvious advantage.

“Alright, alright, wives have to sit this next game out. It’s only fair,” Charlie reasoned. Hennessy stood on the sidelines, watching with pride as Charlie and Erik’s faces lit up.

“You done good kid,” Bast praised.

“Well I did have some pretty good help,” she said, sharing a hug with her and Angel.

“You’re up next mon cheri,” Angel teased, poking her chubby belly.

“Naah, I’ll leave the baby carrying to y’all,” Hennessy laughed, walking away to join the others. The thought of another baby was nice, but she was nowhere near ready to carry one again.

--

In the days following Charlie’s shower, Hennessy found herself thinking about a child of her own more and more. Though she was 100% against the idea of carrying another child, there was another option that she had been considering.

“A surrogate?” Charlie asked from her seat in one of the plush throne chairs in Henny’s bedroom. She’d invited both her and Angel in to get their opinions of the topic before presenting the idea to their husband.

“But would you wanna do a traditional surrogacy or gestational?”

“Gestational. I want this to be 100% my baby, I just don’t want to carry it.”

“That’s understandable,” Charlie nodded. “But have you given any thought as to who you’d want the surrogate to be? Like do you want it to be someone in or outside of the household?” “I’m still thinking about that part and I probably won’t come to a conclusion until I talk to Erik about it.” “Well whatever you decide, we’re behind you,” Angel said, with a kiss to her forehead. “My baby wants to have a baby,” she teased again, causing the other two ladies to burst into laughter.

After the conversation with her sister wives, Hennessy knew it was time to talk to the big man himself. She found him sitting in his office, looking over location plans for future outreach centers. She knocked softly before walking in to sit down beside him.

“Wassup Princess,” he said with a smile, his gold fronts gleaming in the light.

“Hey Daka, can we talk?” He looked up at her, noticing the seriousness of her tone.

“Is something wrong baby?” he asked, looking her up and down trying to find some sign of distress.

“No, it’s nothing bad,” she assured him, running her fingers through his dreads.

“Then what is it?”

“I want a baby.”

*********************

TAGS: @mareethequeen @greennightspider @lovemecharlie @alyshastevens-udaku @muse-of-mbaku @amethyst1993 @itsangeludaku @laketaj24 @bidibidibombaclaat @allhailnjadaka @bastioncarterstevens-udaku @whatmoredoyouwantamericaa @inlovewithmakeupcomicsanimelove @trevantesbrat @wakanda-inspired @supersizemeplz @davitaroberson @forbeautyandlife @jozigrrl @chaneajoyyy @thehomierobbstark @iamrheaspeaks

[filosofablogger]

Good Monday morning, my friends, and welcome!  Please overlook the messy house … with the air-conditioning out this weekend, I haven’t felt like doing much to the house.  How was your weekend?  I didn’t bake for you this morning, again because the house is hot and muggy, but Jolly dug up a few things, and we made sure to remember Benjamin’s donut with sprinkles and juice box!  And rawgod’s tea.  And even Larry’s bacon!  So, grab a bite and let’s find some fun stuff to start our week off with a laugh or two, shall we?

    Sorry, Larry, you’ll have to cook it yourself, for it’s too hot to have the oven on!

Benjamin’s juice boxes — but he’ll share if you ask nicely!

Polite intruders …

Imagine waking up in the middle of the night to find a stranger cooking himself breakfast in your kitchen.  It happened in Safety Harbour, Florida, about 15 miles from Tampa Bay.  The residents of the house woke to the smell of breakfast, and when they went to the kitchen to investigate, there was a man, Gavin Crim, cooking himself a nice little breakfast.  He was polite … told the owners to go on back to sleep, he’d clean up after himself.

Apparently, conscientious burglars were a bit of a thing in Florida last week: On Monday, a woman in Pensicola returned home to discover a man holding a purple Swiffer mop and attempting to clean up her house.

Shortly after 3:00 a.m., police responded to a call from a woman claiming a strange man was in the house. The woman, who requested anonymity, said she had barricaded herself in a back room.

When officers arrived, they found Tyler Matthew Smith still holding a Swiffer. Apparently Smith, 33, had already swept up glass he broke to get into the home into a dustpan. “It appeared Smith had attempted to clean up the mess,” reads the Pensacola Police Department report.  Okay, well … I guess it pays to be polite if you’re in somebody else’s home, right?

Some pricey sneakers!

What did you pay for your last pair of sneakers?  I’m a frugal person, and it nearly killed me to replace my old ones back in July 2018 … after all, I had only had them for 6 or 7 years, but they were holey and the sole had come loose on one, which meant I was in danger of falling flat on my face.  But, when I found a new pair of Reeboks that I thought would meet my needs, I nearly had heart failure seeing the price tag of $48.19!!!  I think the pair before that cost only around $29!  I mean … it’s shoes, not a new computer!!!  To add insult to injury, I’m not all that happy with them, but … they are going to have to last for the rest of my life at that price!  Anyway …

Sotheby’s auction house and retailer Stadium Goods have paired up in an online auction of … the world’s rarest sneakers!  Now, before you get all excited and think about owning a pair of these gems, check the status of your bank balance, and if it isn’t at least 5 digits, don’t bother.  Take a gander at this one, for example …

This is the Nike Waffle Racing Flat Moon Shoe, a handmade running shoe designed by Nike co-founder Bill Bowerman, and one of only a few pair in existence.  These are expected to fetch around $160,000 at auction.  Pick your jaws up off the floor now.  Or how about these …

They are the Nike SB Dunk Low with artwork by French painter Bernard Buffet.  Um, okay, but if you bought those and paid say even a lowball $50,000 for them, could you really bring yourself to wear them out walking, or even to the grocery store?

Now these …

… are the once-fictional sneaker worn by Marty McFly in Back to the Future Part 2. Nike released only 26 pairs of the 2016 self-lacing version, the proceeds of which benefited the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. Due to the power-lacing feature and extreme rarity, a size 11 pair up for auction is estimated to sell for up to $70,000.  Self-lacing???  Who knew?

These are more to my liking …

The “Chanel x Pharrell x Adidas NMD Hu TR – 1-of-1 for Karl Lagerfeld” is said to be one of the most coveted models in the collection.  It was released only at a special Chanel pop-up shop at Colette in Paris in extremely limited quantities, but this shoe is even more special. It features a modified design that replaces “Chanel” across the top of the right shoe with “Karl” and was given exclusively to Karl Lagerfeld as a gift from Pharrell.  Sorry folks, but no, I am definitely not paying $50,000 for a pair of shoes to slog through the mud in!

As I say at least 10 times a week … Some people got more money than sense.

Cheers for Governor Sununu!

Wendy Auger of Rochester, New Hampshire, has had the same vanity license plate for some 15 years now.  It reads “PB4WEGO”.  Suddenly this year, Wendy got a ‘recall letter’ from the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles, asking her to turn in her plates for new ones.  Why?  Because apparently, after 15 years, somebody figured out what her license plate says and decided they “do not conform to legal requirements”.  Why?  Because the state says phrases related to “excretory acts” aren’t permitted.  Oh for Pete’s Sake!!!  Has the State of New Hampshire nothing better to worry about?

“I’m not a political activist. But this is a non-offensive thing that I’ve had and it’s part of who we are as a family and who I am and there was zero reason for them to take it away.”

Well, Ms. Auger’s story somehow came to the attention of New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu, who rallied to the cause!  According to the governor …

“Upon this being brought to my attention, I reached out to the Division of Motor Vehicles and strongly urged them to allow Wendy to keep the license plate she has had for the last 15 years.  I recently left a message on her phone to share the good news that her plate will not be recalled.”

What a nice governor … don’t you just wish all politicos were like that?

And speaking of license plates …

In Australia, starting this year, drivers can get license plates with emojis!  😄 😉 😎 😍 ☺️ Plates will still need three letters and two numbers, as the emojis will not be included in official registration numbers. However drivers can decorate them with one of five decorative emojis — “laugh out loud,” “wink,” “sunglasses,” “heart eyes” or “smile” — for up to AU$500 ($350).

I was looking for a few knock-knock jokes to knock you guys out with, but first … I came across this one …

Two country dudes are walking down a dirt path. One man has a big sack over his shoulder. The other man asks what’s in the sack.

The first man says, “I got me some chickens for dinner tonight.”

The other man asks how many chickens are in the sack.

“Well, I’ll tell you,” replies the first guy, “If you can guess how many chickens I got in this here sack, I’ll give them both to you.”

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Or how ‘bout this one …

A blonde goes to the library to get a book. A few days later, she comes back and says to librarian at the counter, “This book was very boring. It had too many characters and too many numbers, so I would like to return it.”

The librarian says to her coworkers, “So here’s the person who took our phone book!”

😁😁😁😁😁

Knock knock.

Who’s there?

Spell.

Spell who?

Okay, okay: W. H. O.

Okay, okay … stop rolling your eyes!!!  🙄

And last, but not least, if it’s Jolly Monday, then there must be a cute animal video somewhere, mustn’t there?  Now … where did I put that … JOLLY!!! Where’s that animal video you found last … oh … yeah … here it is …

Well, folks, it’s that time again … time to put on your workweek smiles and go do things to make other people happy so that they will give you money at the end of the week.  I shall stay here and risk ulcers trolling the news of the day so that I can give YOU ulcers when you return home each night!  Seriously, though, have a wonderful week, and remember to share those gorgeous smiles with others, okay?  Love ‘n hugs from Filosofa and Jolly!

Jolly M-M-Monday!!! Good Monday morning, my friends, and welcome!  Please overlook the messy house ... with the air-conditioning out this weekend, I haven’t felt like doing much to the house. 

[ladystylestores]

Chanel Plans Return to Prior Runway, Collections Pace – WWD

https://pmcwwd.files.wordpress.com/2016/05/chanel-beijing-01.jpg?w=640&h=415&crop=1

PARIS – While other major brands question the fashion system in light of the upheaval triggered by the coronavirus pandemic, Chanel hopes it will soon be business as usual.

The French luxury house plans to resume its normal pace of collections and runway shows as soon as health conditions allow, Bruno Pavlovsky, president of fashion and president of Chanel SAS, told WWD in an interview as the house unveiled its cruise 2021 collection online.

“This is really the first time at Chanel that we’re showing a collection without a runway show. We’re trying to compensate for this, in a different format of course, with this presentation,” he said of the look book and video unveiled on Chanel’s web site and social media platforms on Monday.

Chanel, which is due to publish its 2019 annual results later this month, has been hit hard by the closure of its stores worldwide due to the spread of COVID-19.

“We expect to see a two-digit drop in sales, and we don’t have good visibility yet on the exact impact,” Pavlovsky said of the outlook for 2020. He noted the brand was performing well in South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong, where its stores remained open throughout the pandemic, and in parts of Asia where retail has resumed.

In light of the store closures, which remain in effect in the U.K. and U.S., the brand has decided to keep its spring collection on the racks for longer than usual, with delivery of the so-called Métiers d’Art line, normally due in May, now scheduled for early July.

Meanwhile, the pre-fall collection presented to Chanel store buyers in early February will be delivered from mid-July until September. But starting with the cruise line, which is set to arrive in stores on Nov. 15, Chanel will revert to its usual schedule, Pavlovsky said.

“At the same time, we also want to reintroduce the spring collections that we didn’t have time to sell in season. The cruise collection will allow us to re-energize those pieces,” he said.

Behind the scenes at the Chanel Cruise 2021 shoot.  Franck Mura/WWD

“This cruise collection has been a way to get everyone back into the life of the company, and we will continue with couture. I was with Virginie [last week] when she brought the first 25 sketches to the heads of the couture workshops, and I can tell you, everyone was smiling from ear to ear. Life goes on,” he said.

Chanel plans to present the high-fashion designs online on July 7 as part of a digital version of Paris Couture Week.

Even as designers such as Giorgio Armani and Dries Van Noten are pleading for fewer collections and more in-season deliveries, Pavlovsky said Chanel thrives on its system of six rtw collections a year – eight, if you count the Coco Neige and Coco Beach capsule ski and swimwear lines.

“We prefer to have six more focused collections rather than two endless collections. We chose this rhythm and we like it, and we believe it’s what our customers want to see in our stores. So we are sticking to this schedule, and in parallel, the fashion show remains the best way to express the brand’s creativity and know-how,” he explained.

Chanel hopes to be back on the runway in October, especially as it will be the brand’s last show at the Grand Palais before the venue undergoes extensive renovations ahead of the Summer Olympics in Paris in 2024.

“We are the main sponsor of the renovation of the Grand Palais, so I hope that in one way or another, we will be able to return to the venue after the Olympic Games,” Pavlovsky said.

However, he suggested the mega-shows which characterized the tenure of Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel – with sets including a space rocket, a waterfall and an iceberg – would probably give way to smaller shows under current artistic director Virginie Viard.

“We are entering into a slightly different period, probably more intimate, yet just as rich in terms of client relationships,” he said. “The Grand Palais offers a lot of possibilities. It’s a spectacular venue in and of itself. We don’t necessarily have to build a set within a set.”

Viard said she was keen to return to the runway, on her own terms.

“It will necessarily be on a smaller scale. It was great with Karl – it was an extraordinary period, but now it no longer makes sense,” she said. “But I do want to go back to fashion shows. It’s such fun. At the end of the day, fashion is about fun: the models, the fittings, all of that will be back as soon as they can travel again.”

Chanel also plans to hit the road again for its cruise and Métiers d’Art shows, which have taken it to locations including Havana, Shanghai, Los Angeles and Dubai. “We are always going to travel if we can,” Viard said.

In the meantime, the house is focused on getting its operations up and running again. Most suppliers re-opened from mid-April and about half of the company’s staff is back at work at its Paris headquarters after the lifting of France’s strict confinement measures on May 11.

“The teams are back in full swing,” said Pavlovsky, adding that its fashion advisers – as the company refers to its sales associates – remained in touch with customers throughout the lockdown.

In addition to hosting a live performance by Belgian singer Angèle on its Instagram Stories on April 3, the brand rolled out Weekly Style Talks, a private program featuring brand ambassadors like Caroline de Maigret, Soo Joo Park and Amanda Sanchez presenting their favorite pieces.

“It worked well, because people reserved looks afterwards,” Pavlovsky said, noting that once Chanel had worked out the necessary sanitary precautions, it delivered purchases to some of its best customers.

But don’t expect the company, which has partnered with Farfetch on a digitally connected store model, to change its stance to e-commerce, which is limited to beauty products and eyewear.

“No, we are not going to launch e-commerce. It works very well this way,” said Pavlovsky. “Maybe we could sell a third more bags by doing it online, but we are taking a long-term view of the brand. We are not aiming for an immediate return on investment on this kind of thing.”

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from World Wide News https://ift.tt/2XMq9rr

[itsiotrecords-blog]

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Designer fashion houses and labels tend to cultivate a persona which is aloof and elegant. They want to be seen as an entity about it all – offering fashion that transcends daily life. Many fashion brands have been around for generations, only getting stronger with each new designer that becomes the creative head. That doesn’t mean, however, that they aren’t run by human beings. They very much are, and where humanity is involved, there’s always a chance of something going terribly wrong. That’s why these designer brands have big dirty secrets hiding in their closets. They don’t like for those secrets to come to the forefront, and that’s why everything is often glossed over with the sheen of high fashion glitz and glamour. Under the surface, though, those stories are still lurking – and there are plenty of people who still remember what really happened. Some of these brands have made ethical mistakes with their sourcing and the creation of their clothes. In some cases, it’s the brand’s founder or a member of the executive management who was caught out doing something they shouldn’t have been. In other cases, it’s their dubious connections with shady political parties that have left them red-faced. Whether they are dissing their customers, talking down to celebrities, or being forced into public apologies for how they do business, these brands all wish you didn’t know what we are about to reveal.

These are 15 designer brands with the biggest dirty secrets of all time – and you won’t expect what’s coming up.

#1 Coco Chanel Dated A Nazi Officer In World War II, the fashion industry experienced a bit of a shut-down. The major fashion houses of France, the UK, and Italy had more important things to worry about – and had lost most of their workers, besides. Chanel had already gone through the economic troubles of the 1930s and decided to shut down her company when the war broke out. Living in a German-occupied area of France, she managed to obtain special permission to stay in her Hotel Ritz apartment. Why? Probably because she was romantically involved with Hans Gunther von Dincklage, a German military officer. Many have speculated that she may have been a Nazi collaborator or even a spy. She was cleared after interrogation. Many suspect, however, that her friend Winston Churchill was instrumental in clearing his name behind the scenes. Though she did not face charges, many viewed her as having betrayed her country, and she was forced to leave Paris for some time. She did not return to the world of fashion until she was 70 years old.

#2 John Galliano Is Racist AF John Galliano was at one time the designer behind Dior, until an incident in February 2011 lead to him being dropped by the label. He drunkenly rowed with a couple at a café – a Jewish woman and her Asian boyfriend. He said things like “Dirty Jewish face, you should be dead”, “I love Hitler… People like you would be dead. Your mothers, your forefathers would all be fucking gassed”, and “Asian bastard, I will kill you”. That’s when videos surfaced of him praising Hitler in another incident, and more victims spoke up about his verbal racist attacks. He was also sacked from his own namesake label which just happened to be owned by Dior at a rate of 91%. He eventually appeared in court and was sentenced, though not jailed. He is now back working in the fashion industry after the briefest of absences, working for Maison Margiela as their creative director.

#3 Designers And The Cruellest Fur In The World *This Might Offend Some Readers Karakul lambskin is known as the cruellest type of fur produced in the world. The problem lies in the way that it is harvested. As the name suggests, only lambs are used in the production as they have the softest fur, before it develops into a more woolly texture. The lambs are killed when they are either still in the womb or within a few days after they have been born. Often, the mother is also slaughtered in order to get to the lamb inside her. The baby is skinned right away. As with many animals used in the fur industry, it is normally considered too expensive to administer anaesthetic or even to kill the lamb before it is skinned alive. Of course, that kind of treatment might damage the fur. Some of the brands who have been caught using this fur include Karl Lagerfeld, Marc Jacobs, Fendi, Ralph Lauren, Gucci, Armani, Prada, and Dolce and Gabbana.

#4 Abercrombie & Fitch Fat-Shamed Their Customers The CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch, Mike Jeffries, got the brand into hot water in 2013. Strangely enough, he actually made comments in an interview in 2006 which only really picked up press attention in 2013. He had said that the company didn’t want ugly, fat, uncool, or un-American people wearing their clothes. He also used the word ‘kids’ to describe his customers, which implies that only teens are supposed to be shopping at their stores. He got into a lot of trouble for these comments, which many saw as hugely disparaging to the average customer. While it’s easy to imagine a couturier only wanting the richest, hottest, and most famous people in their clothes, when it’s more of a high street designer, that attitude just doesn’t work. Still, Abercrombie & Fitch seem to have brushed the incident under the rug, and don’t seem to have suffered any long-term consequences.

#5 Patrizia Gucci Ordered The Murder Of Her Husband Guccio Gucci was the founder of Gucci and the original fashion designer behind it, and he made his descendants very wealthy indeed. His grandson, Maurizio Gucci, ended up becoming head of the fashion house until 1993. That’s when he sold his stock to Investcorp for $170 million. Unfortunately, he could only enjoy the proceeds for a year and a half. He had left his wife Patrizia for another woman and then divorced her in 1991, but clearly she still held a grudge over it. She hired a hitman to shoot and kill him on the steps of his office as he was going in to work on September 23, 1995. She was arrested in 1997 over the killing and was convicted a year later. She was given a sentence of 29 years in prison. She has been given the chance to move to an open prison, but refused – stating, “I’ve never worked in my life and I’m certainly not going to start now”.

#6 Urban Outfitters Just Has The Poorest Taste Urban Outfitters has got into trouble more than once for the dodgy decisions they make towards selling certain items of clothing. One item that ended up getting pulled from the store was a blanket tapestry which had pink triangles placed over grey and white stripes. The problem? It closely resembled the uniform that gay prisoners were forced to wear in concentration camps, which outraged LGBTQ+ shoppers. Back in 2014 they also courted controversy with their Kent State sweatshirts that were spattered with blood and bullet holes. This was a reference to the deaths of four students at the university back in 1970. There can’t really be any poorer taste than inciting your fans to dress up like Holocaust prisoners and school shooting victims. Once the clothes were dropped from their line, however, it seems that everything was forgotten once more. These brands really have the knack of using PR to put scandals behind them quickly.

#7 Dolce & Gabbana Don’t Believe In IVF Domenico Dolce is one half of the design duo known as Dolce & Gabbana. He once made comments to an Italian magazine which angered many of his fans. He said that children who are conceived through IVF are merely “synthetic children”. The highest-profile reaction to this came from Elton John, who of course has two children conceived via IVF with his partner David Furnish. He went straight onto Twitter and called for a boycott of the brand. He said, “How dare you refer to my beautiful children as ‘synthetic.’”. Now that some time has passed by, many people do not recall this incident when going shopping or watching their fashion shows. The brand seems to have gotten away with the incident, though it’s not clear whether Elton John has forgiven them or started to wear their clothes again yet. If they were to make those comments again now, it’s likely that more of a furore would be raised.

#8 Hugo Boss Designed For The Nazi Party There’s a persistent myth that Hugo Boss designed the iconic Nazi uniforms. It isn’t exactly true – it’s a very simplified version of events – but the Boss label certainly had its origin in the party’s past. Hugo Boss opened his first clothing factory in 1924 after World War I. One of his first big clients was a textiles distributor who wanted him to make brown shirts for the National Socialist Party. History buffs will know that this is what the Nazi party was known as before Hitler took them to power. Boss later provided the uniforms for the SS, the Hitler Youth, and the Brownshirts. Things got even more shameful during WWII, when Boss resorted to using forced labour from concentration camps in his workshops. Hygiene conditions were very poor, food was insufficient, working hours were long, and the workers were not even allowed healthcare or shelter during raids. Boss himself was a registered member of the Nazi party.

#9 Karl Lagerfeld Fat-Shamed Adele Another incident of fat-shaming in the fashion industry would perhaps not come as a surprise to those who know the industry from the inside. Obsessed with making women look smaller, fashion houses and agencies often put so much pressure on models to stay thin that they end up with eating disorders or health issues. Lagerfeld reinforced this position when he said in an interview that “nobody wants to see curvy women on the runway,” and that Adele was “a little too fat.” He has never really taken his comments back, and later said of the controversy, “But after that she lost eight kilo, so I think the message was not that bad.”. Lagerfeld is known for his own brand, but is also the creative director behind Chanel as well as Fendi. He also uses fur in his collections despite not wearing it himself and abstaining from eating all but a little meat.

#10 Victoria’s Secret Uses Child Labour And Sweatshops A lot of brands came under fire when the collapse of a textile factory in Bangladesh claimed the lives of workers crammed into the unstable condition. As a result, a spotlight was shone on brands and where their clothing was made. It turns out that factory workers for Victoria’s Secret in Jordan were being forced to do five or more hours of overtime a day, with no extra pay. They were also slapped or beaten if their work was not up to scratch. If that was not bad enough, it was later revealed that their cotton was picked by children in Burkina Faso. This is the material that makes up their lingerie. Of course, both operations have such been shut down, but that’s no guarantee that their new suppliers are not exactly the same. This is a big problem for high street brands too, as the cheaper products are often made at a low cost in sweatshops with labourers paid hardly anything for their work.

#11 Karl Lagerfeld And Yves Saint Laurent’s Secret Rivalry In 2006, Alicia Drake published an expose called The Beautiful Fall – Fashion, Genius, and Glorious Excess in 1970s Paris. It was the passages about Karl Lagerfeld and Yves Saint Laurent that caught the eye of most. While industry insiders were already aware about their long-standing rivalry, members of the public had no idea what it was all about. The book spilled the beans: they had been fighting over a man during the 1970s. Jacques de Bascher was a nobleman who was attractive enough to catch the eyes of both designers, each of whom wanted him for themselves. Their bitter rivalry came to a head when Karl Lagerfeld ended up claiming Jacques’ heart. Sadly for him, it was not to last. Jacques became another victim of the AIDS epidemic, dying in 1989. Funnily enough, Yves and Karl are often mentioned in the same breath as the most influential and important designers of the second half of the 20th century.

#12 Anand Jon Is A Rapist Anand Jon was once a rising name in fashion. He graduated the from Parsons The New School of Design under the mentorship of Tim Gunn, and debuted his first collection in 1999. He was given help by Gianni Versace and Giorgio Armani, amongst others. He even appeared on America’s Next Top Model. One of the muses that walked his runway before being catapulted into fame was none other than Ivanka Trump. It all came crashing down in 2007 when he was arrested in California on rape charges. He was convicted on one count of rape of an adult woman, unlawful conduct, and contributing to delinquency of minors (though he was accused of raping many models, most of them underage). In 2009, he was given a sentence of 59 years to life. He has protested his innocence and asked for a retrial on grounds of false evidence, but this was never granted.

#13 Yves Saint Laurent Was An Alcoholic With A Cocaine Addiction Yves Saint Laurent may have been a fashion guru, but he certainly wasn’t the kind of person whose life you would want to emulate. The designer was once even reported as dead, so poor was his health in 1977 when he was taken off to rehab. His cocaine and alcohol addictions, as well as his naturally nervous and high-strung state, were almost the death of him. In the same year, he shocked the world by bringing out a new perfume called Opium – tongue-in-cheek dig at his own health problems. The tagline for the perfume read “Opium, for those who are addicted to Yves Saint Laurent”. Addiction certainly isn’t funny, and neither is poor health brought on by drug use, but Yves seemed to think so. So did his fans, considering that the brand is still going strong today. Oddly, he managed to survive his brutal treatment of his own body, only to die of brain cancer at age 71 in 2008.

#14 Halston Was A Party Animal Like No Other Known simply as Halston for his eponymous line, Roy Halston Frowick was a legendary designer in the 1970s. His brand still continues today and even experienced something of a resurgence, despite his death in 1990. There have been plenty of ups and downs in the brand’s history, but his own life was far more dramatic. There are countless stories of the parties that used to go down at his house, which normally included orgies as well as lines of cocaine distributed amongst the guests. To make matters even more scandalous, he employed an Arab houseboy to serve the lines. Funnily enough, despite all of that, it was a deal with J C Penny designed to produce more affordable collections of his clothing that ended up sounding the death knoll for the brand in that era. It was not until years after his death that it was relaunched and became more of a commercial success once more.

#15 Gianni Versace Was Murdered Many people today only know of Donatella Versace as the grossly over-done face of plastic surgery. Any other member of the family behind the brand is less well-known. In the late 1990s, however, Gianni Versace, the original designer and head of the brand, was dominating the news. In 1997, he woke up on the 15th of July in an unusually happy mood. He decided to go to the coffee shop to grab his morning papers, a task that was normally left to his assistant. As he returned home from his walk, a serial killer named Andrew Cunanan stepped out and shot him dead in cold blood. Though we know Cunanan was the perpetrator, we have no idea of his motive. No one can ask, as he shot himself dead after 8 days on the run using the same gun. Niece Allegra Versace was left half of his fashion empire, which she inherited in 2004 when she reached the age of 18.

Source: TheRichest

[thefasholes-blog]

Couture Week Day 2 Recap: Ruffles, feathers and more ruffles!

Alright fasholes, the couture just keeps coming in Paris as Uncle Karl presented his latest spectacle (complete with his own Hall of Mirrors!) After all, what is Parisian fashion without a healthy dose of Chanel? Today also witnessed a glimpse of Milan by way or Giorgio Armani's newest Privé collection. Throw in some technicolor bridal gowns from Alexis Mabille and you have day 2 of couture week! Peep our reviews below and tell us what you think! xx

Chanel

Today the Grand Palais was transformed into a modern day Hall of Mirrors. Karl Lagerfeld presented his Chanel Couture 2017 collection this morning, and there was no shortage of reflective materials to be had. This couture collection was so much fun, and it’s always so nice when you can tell that Karl Lagerfeld had fun creating his collection (seeing as how he’s the most stoic figure in fashion.) I’ll spare you all with going into detail about how much the texture elements of this collection had me gasping, but THE USE OF THE FEATHERS JUST HAD ME BESIDE MYSELF. I loved the feathers, I loved how Karl found yet another way to modernize Coco’s classic tweed suit, and I loved the closing “wedding dress” piece (worn by Karl’s most current muse, Lily Rose Depp.) Aside from the actual collection, the theme, hair and make up, and model selection were all astonishing as well (Hiiiii Arizona Muse, so nice to see you back on the runway!) Take a peep below to see my favorite pieces from the Chanel Couture 2017 collection!

xx Jillian

Armani Privé

While I have a definite appreciation for Mr. Armani, his clothes tend to bore me. It's not that I think they're poorly designed, they just don't excite me the way other designers do. I credit this with not being in his target demo which is certainly an older, more mature one. Needless to say, his latest couture showing was much of the same: chic, wearable offerings that never veered too far from Armani's sophisticated tastes. The color of the collection was definitely orange. Presented in a variety of hues, Giorgio plead his case for why he thinks orange is the new black. He made sure to insert some drama in the end with a handful of evening gowns that would look killer on frontrow attendee Nicole Kidman come Oscar time. All in all, it was a lovely, if not predictable show.

xx Curtis

Alexis Mabille

I always feel slightly giddy when I sit down to peep an Alexis Mabille show. One of the few current couturiers, Alexis has a knack for sending lavish costumes down the runway. Today, we saw a parade of technicolor bridal gowns that didn't skimp on tulle or drama. Almost every look had a matching veil and when there wasn't a veil, it was a tiara. This is the kind of kitschy flourish I have come to expect and love. The big question is will any bride be lining up to wear a fuschia, ruffled dress on her big day? Probably not unless you're Carrie Bradshaw or Serena van der Woodsen. Then again, since when is haute couture supposed to be super wearable? That's why we have ready-to-wear, people! The most intriguing piece to me was the corseted bodysuit with the overwhelming ruffled cape. Outrageous and unexpected, just what I needed after Armani Privé.

xx Curtis  

All images via Vogue Runway.

[ladystylestores]

Unpacking How Karl Lagerfeld’s 2004 H&M Collaboration Changed Fashion – WWD

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“It would have been super easy for Karl to say ‘no.’ The surprise was that he said ‘yes,’” Caroline Lebar, the late Karl Lagerfeld’s longtime communications director, marveled this week, recalling that day in 2004 when the designer agreed to design a one-off collection for low-cost Swedish fashion chain H&M.

“Cheap” had a real sting then, and Lagerfeld silenced it, making the incredulity of a collaboration between one of the world’s most acclaimed couturiers and a mass-market chain a leitmotif of an unforgettable advertising video. “Is it true?” a plump, indignant man shouted to Lagerfeld across a crowded restaurant when he learns of the tie-up. “Of course it’s true,” Lagerfeld shoots back. “But it’s cheap,” the man implores. “What a depressing word. It’s all about taste,” Lagerfeld replies dryly. “If you’re cheap, nothing helps.”

The chance to buy $49 blouses and $129 sequined tuxedo jackets from one of the most famous designers on the planet not only unleashed retail pandemonium — it had a seismic effect on the entire fashion system: breaking down barriers between luxury and mass; democratizing design in a new way, and foreshadowing an era of rampant collaborations, drops and pop-up concepts.

It would also catapult the image of H&M, creating a new annual selling bonanza that endures still, and it would ultimately inspire the template for Lagerfeld to relaunch his brand in 2012 in the then-burgeoning “masstige” zone, convinced his sweet spot was affordable clothing for a wide audience.

The big bang that the Lagerfeld for H&M project unleashed is also a reminder that instinct and daring should not be underestimated — or discarded in an era of influencer marketing, big data and AI.

Lebar said Lagerfeld kept an eye on everything, was always open-minded and rarely said “no” by reflex. While he had never visited an H&M store himself, the designer noticed young people in his studio wearing its clothes, and he knew it eclipsed all other fashion brands in terms of its mighty distribution network, then numbering about 1,000 stores in 19 countries.

“The surprise at that time came from a fast-fashion brand, so we should be very careful about what could be next,” she mused.

Lebar stressed that H&M was a “personal project” not associated with Lagerfeld’s signature fashion business, then operating under the Lagerfeld Gallery moniker with an ultra-exclusive, rarefied approach to ready-to-wear headquartered at one boutique on Rue de Seine in Paris.

Yet the designer reasoned that a sketch for a Chanel couture dress, Fendi fur coat, Lagerfeld Gallery blazer or H&M shirt involved the same process, cost and effort — the design component being the most important. He proved “that fast-fashion can also be creative,” Lebar said.

“Karl had never done mass market — and he loved a challenge,” recalled Eric Pfrunder, who worked closely with Lagerfeld on all his photography and collaborations. “He proved he could do an elegant line, but less expensive. I still have the shirts he made for H&M.”

The H&M project magnified Lagerfeld’s fame, as he based the coed range on his emphatic and graphic personal style, hinged on high-collared shirts and lean black tailoring. H&M even included his fingerless driving gloves and a T-shirt bearing a sketch of his face.

A t-shirt part of the collection  Courtesy of H&M

Margareta van den Bosch, creative adviser at H&M and Lagerfeld’s key contact there, said the collaboration with the designer replaced what was typically an underwear campaign for November.

“It was something really new. Karl understood that, and he was the first one,” she said in an interview this week. “We learned a lot from this collaboration.”

Van den Bosch said the teaser campaign, including billboards featuring Lagerfeld and model Erin Wasson, was an innovative element that propelled swift sellouts.

Not only did H&M learn that it was best to launch such designer capsules in fewer stores, it ultimately gave the chain the confidence to flex its own design muscles, launching its own Studio and Conscious collections, the former with big Paris runway shows, alongside the high-profile collaborations.

“Now we have different price levels in our stores,” van den Bosch said. Meanwhile, H&M soldiers on with its annual holiday collaboration and will reveal its 2020 one soon.

Margareta van den Bosch and Karl Lagerfeld  Courtesy of H&M

“The press is maybe a little tired of it. The customer is not. Nobody wants it to stop,” she said.

A lesser known, yet pivotal figure in the groundbreaking collaboration was art director Donald Schneider, who now runs his own creative agency in Berlin. Here, his account of the project, and how it changed the fashion world:

WWD: Can you recount how it all happened?

Donald Schneider: I still remember it all very clearly — those adrenaline-pumping nine months in 2004, working day and night with Karl and H&M helping to give birth to that legendary first designer collaboration.

At that time my creative agency, Donald Schneider Studio, was based in Paris and H&M was one of our clients for whom I was regularly art directing campaigns. I liked what they stood for, always thinking so big and modern, and their inspiring legacy of outstanding campaigns.

So one day in late 2003 I was in Stockholm again for meetings with H&M, having lunch with the-then marketing director Jörgen Andersson and the-then creative director Janne Nord. They were mentioning that this same morning they had received the results of an extensive survey on H&M by a respected consulting firm and that its conclusion was that H&M should surprise with a big new idea.

That challenge instantly tickled my mind and I spontaneously came up with an idea: How about inviting a high-fashion designer to design a special collection for H&M and create a surprising campaign around that? That would generate a buzz around a collection in a totally new way by putting the big name behind that, instead of H&M’s regular supermodel-in-the-campaign approach. They were completely surprised by this idea. Back then it was unthinkable to mix these two completely separate worlds — high fashion and retail.

A few days later Andersson called me and said that he very much liked my idea and that H&M wants to go for it. This was amazing news! In order to create a bombshell, I proposed we should try to get the king of high fashion, Karl Lagerfeld. Jörgen agreed. So I called Karl and asked him if he knows H&M — “Of course, all my assistants are wearing it!” Lagerfeld reported — and if he would be interested in designing a special collection for them. “Yes!,” Karl said. “The future will only be about high and low. Everything else in between will disappear. The high I already have with Chanel and this would be perfect to get the low.“ That was it! Karl instinctively went for it. He only had one question: “Have you asked somebody else for this, too, or am I the first one?“ “You’re the first one,” I told him. And Karl said, “OK, then let’s do it!”

A backstage image of Karl Lagerfeld shooting the campaign  Courtesy of H&M

WWD: Was there a particular business imperative from H&M that this project fulfilled?

D.S.: H&M had a stellar success in the Eighties and Nineties. They were the hottest fashion retailer. But by the late Nineties competitors had caught up. So H&M needed some sort of a big bang to further establish its leading position. And this first designer collaboration with Karl Lagerfeld in 2004 did that magic.

Of course going into this, there was no precedent to follow, no blueprint. We had to invent everything on this project while doing it. For example, up until then campaigns had always launched simultaneously with when the products became available in the stores. So we instead invented a countdown strategy for actually building up hype before, putting the campaign out in the days and weeks before. Even actually launching the collection on the same day in all countries was an almost impossible logistic stumbling block. But we did it, it was incredible teamwork, H&M fearlessly believing in it and throwing all its weight behind it.

WWD: Describe the context at the time. How popular were collaborations then?

D.S.: There maybe had been some small local collaborations before, I don’t know. But for sure nobody had ever taken it to this massive scale. And don’t forget, this was before the rise of e-commerce and social media. The phrase “capsule collection” was not common yet, neither putting an X between two names.

Also, Karl had just completely reinvented his persona, just completed his diet to fit into Hedi Slimane’s skinny Dior suits, started wearing lots of Chrome Heart jewelry, several rings on every finger — Karl the rock star! It was the perfect moment to have Karl himself starring in our campaign, I thought. But I knew he doesn’t like to be photographed, so I asked him to be the photographer himself and to shoot the campaign images as self-portraits, him wearing the men’s looks and standing next to model Erin Wasson in the women’s looks. For inspiration I showed him some sketches and mood photos, also some from an old Richard Avedon self portrait-shooting, him together with Marilyn Monroe. Karl loved this direction.

WWD: Did he have to get the permission of Chanel and Fendi to proceed? Or anyone else?

D.S.: No, he didn’t have to ask anybody for permission. Karl said that he has a contract for life with Chanel and can do whatever he wants in his own name.

WWD: The ad campaign played off the incredulity of a luxury name meeting cheap chic. Were you expecting some resistance in the marketplace to this new concept?

D.S.: We wanted to surprise and astonish — doing what nobody had dared before, mixing high and low, making luxury fashion available to everybody. Don’t forget in 2004 it was simply unthinkable that fashion could become democratized one day, the word “collaboration“ was not yet part of fashion’s everyday language. It was clear to us that not everybody would be pleased with this. As you can imagine there was lots of resistance and skepticism from all different sides, also from some journalists. I also remember when I let my Parisian agent into our secret, he was in shock and completely disapproved of it. He thought that this will destroy fashion.

Karl Lagerfeld’s sketches for the collection  Courtesy of H&M

WWD: Was there any nervousness on the H&M side? The Karl side? How risky was it?

D.S.: During the whole project, while working in total secrecy, we could feel that we’re on to something very big. But of course we all had our moments of doubts, even Karl. The morning of the launch, Nov. 12, 2004, 4 a.m. his time in Paris, he called me on my portable. It was 10 p.m. in New York where I was for another shooting. And he was very nervous: “What will we do if nobody shows up today at the stores?“

WWD: Karl liked to be first with things. Why do you think that was so important to him?

D.S.: Karl loved to surprise. He immediately grasped that this is the opportunity to catapult him into the forefront of everything. To break down the borders between luxury fashion and retail. To make him the designer who proved that looking chic is no longer a question of money. After all, it was Karl Lagerfeld for H&M that made Karl into the absolute superstar!

WWD: In what way or ways did it change fashion? How did it affect notions of brand elasticity?

D.S.: This one bang pushed open the door to what’s still thriving in fashion today. Just think of Virgil Abloh at Louis Vuitton, coming from streetwear being nabbed by high luxury and his own penchant for collaborating at all levels, from Ikea to diamond jewelry. Or think of Moncler Genius and its extremely successful serial collaborations.

WWD: What can we learn from this today?

D.S.: The origin of every big shift is a creative idea. Today I too often hear, “We need to find out what the customer wants, follow data, algorithm, consulting firms, Excel sheets.” But come on. If back then in 2004 we would have done a customer survey, no customer would have wished for a Karl Lagerfeld-designed collection from H&M. Therefore my callout for today: Let’s give more empowerment to creative ideas and visions; let’s surprise and dare.

See More from WWD:

Karl Lagerfeld Changed the Fashion Industry Forever

Karl Was the Ultimate Industry Role Model

Video: Remembering Karl Lagerfeld’s Prolific Fashion Career

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