Your morning fashion and beauty report: Obsessions with hats and shoes and staying svelte enough for ‘True Blood’
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We’ve been trumpeting the ‘return’ of women’s hats here at All the Rage for some time now, but they are back for men, too, and we don’t mean just baseball caps. On-trend guys, inspired by the likes of Justin Timberlake and Johnny Depp, are sporting fedoras, straw hats, knit caps and more. Places like J. Crew and Gap are reporting strong sales, from metro centers to the sprawl of suburbia. But the new generation of male hat wearers is puzzling over hat etiquette -- (‘Whaddya mean I can’t wear it at the dinner table?’) [Wall Street Journal] Maybe I can talk my co-blogger par excellence Adam Tschorn, who wears a hat with panache, into explaining it all for the lads.
J.C. Penney has been trying to improve its fashion cred lately. In its latest step in that direction, the giant retailer is opening MNG Mango Shops in 77 of its stores and online and billing it as the biggest fast-fashion rollout ever. [WWD] (Subscription required.)
Emma Watson, who has spent most of her life playing Hermione in the Harry Potter movies and recently marked the end of filming the last in the series by cutting her long locks into a pixie, may have had a motive other than just a fun style change. Today’s speculation: she might be gunning for the coveted role of spiky-haired Lisbeth Salander in the American version of ‘The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.’ [People]
It takes work to be a vampire ... especially it you’re a lady vampire and have to fit into a slinky latex dress. Since she joined the cast of ‘True Blood’ last year, Kristin Bauer worries more about getting to the gym and ab classes. And lunch at Craft Services? Just walk right on by! [People]
Billie Madley, an actress in New York, has a 600-pair shoe collection that was featured in ‘Sex and the City.’ Joan Benham, a housewife in London, has 356 pairs of Manolos. Dioulde Diallo, a shoe store manager, keeps half her collection in London and half in Paris. Yes, guys, women really can be obsessive about footwear! [Telegraph]
Speaking of shoes, eco-friendly cork shoes are showing up on fashionable feet. And cork clutches are coming on strong too. [FabSugar]
International Playground, the New-York based chain of boutiques, opens Thursday in Echo Park. [StyleSectionLA]
And now, back to hats: If your summer travels take you to Paris, check out the display at the Maison Rouge, which is featuring an exhibition containing more than 300 hats and headdresses from around the world. [TMagazine]
-- Susan Denley
