Frugal Fashion: Emma Watson's pool party style at Coachella

There was no shortage of parties during the first weekend of the 2012 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. Celebrities from around the world were spotted partying it up in the desert during the first three days of the fest, including Emma Watson, Lily Collins and Josh Hutcherson. Some of the hottest soirees this year were hosted by fashion brands.  A|X Armani Exchange hosted the third annual neon carnival, Guess threw a pool bash and Mulberry hosted a monster-themed pool party at the Parker Palm Springs.

"Harry Potter" series star Watson attended the Mulberry party, keeping with the monster animal theme in the brand's fuzzy tiger playsuit animal print romper, simple black cardigan and the “Leo” sandal in elephant by Joie. She accessorized with the Mulberry mini Lily crossbody bag with tassels in oak, an animal tooth necklace and a gold and black belt.

A comfortable romper is a Coachella staple and a dependable go-to item when the weather heats up in the summer. For a romper in a fun animal print try the Aqua Romper button back abstract animal printed for $78 from Bloomingdales.com or the Type Z Elly Animal print romper $28.50 from 6pm.com. Grab a simple cardigan such as the women's cropped lightweight cardigan from Oldnavy.com for $19.94 and slip on the Replay sandals in light gray from Yoox.com for $89 to complete the pool party look.

Watson's floppy brown hat is a must for parties under the sun. For a similar hat, get the Fringe bow floppy hat from Forever21.com for $19.80. Sling the Johnny Loves Rosie cross-body bag from Asos.com for $47.27 over your shoulder for a lightweight bag to carry the essentials. Continue to play with the animal theme with the American Eagle Outfitters tooth necklace for $12.50 from ae.com and the  Asos lionhead chain belt from Asos.com for $27.27.

Watson's pool party ensemble can easily be re-created for those Coachella-bound for Round 2 this weekend. Just don't forget the sunscreen!

Happy shopping.

Have an outfit you're dying to buy but need a frugal alternative? Email us a picture. We're up for the challenge.

ALSO:

Mulberry throws a monster pool party for Coachella

At Coachella festival, music and fashion are a natural fit

Coachella 2012: A|X Armani Exchange, T-Mobile host neon carnival

-- Jenn Harris

twitter.com/jenn_harris

Photo: Emma Watson at the Mulberry Coachella pool party. Credit: Donato Sardella.

Mulberry throws a monster pool party for Coachella

British luxury brand Mulberry threw a poolside party and barbecue at the Parker Palm Springs on Saturday, with creative director Emma Hill hosting a slew of Coachella-bound bold-face names, including actresses Lily Collins, Kate Bosworth, Emma Watson, "Mad Men" costume designer Janie Bryant, L.A.-based fashion designer Corey Lynn Calter and jewelry designer Suzanne Felsen.

Collins, a Coachella newbie, was happy for the break. "Last month, I was on 23 planes in 20 days," between the press tour for her film "Mirror Mirror" and shooting the indie film "Writers" in North Carolina, she said. "So I'm just excited to be hanging out with my friends."

Bryant was another newcomer to the Coachella scene. "I usually go to Stagecoach," said the Tennesee native, referring to the country-themed music festival that also takes place in Indio in springtime. Bryant was wearing oversized bubble gum pink sunglasses, a 1980s print playsuit and an aquamarine ring designed by pal Felsen. So what do Stagecoach festival goers wear? "A rebel flag bikini and cowboy boots," Bryant said. "Well ... not me personally."

The Mulberry event was themed around monsters. The entrance was flanked by humongous, hard plastic monster paws. Outsized inflatable creatures floated in the pool and populated the lawn. Even the lounge chairs had become creature comforts covered with beach towels bearing a hairy monster pelt print and dotted with tiny, monster-shaped pillows that proved popular props for those being photographed poolside.

But there was a method to the monster madness since it reflected the inspiration of the brand's fall and winter 2012 collection -- Maurice Sendak's children's book "Where the Wild Things Are," as well as Spike Jonze's movie adaptation of it.

"I almost bawled my eyes out when I saw that film," Hill said earlier in the day, taking me through the fur, boucle, lace and tweed fall samples of the collection, which proved to be popular choices with Mulberry's celeb fans on the chilly first day and night of the Coachella festival, when they hosted an after-party at the Parker again with a performance by Kasabian.

Some standout pieces included a leather-and-lace bustier dress with tie-dye panels, a flame-colored tweed coat, a tribal-meets-Art Deco zigzag beaded flight jacket, sparkly tiger print sweaters, shaggy fur vests and monster-print sweatshirts, all in a grunge color palette of black, gray, orange and army green.

The Del Rey bag, inspired by songstress Lana Del Rey, spawned a waiting list as soon as it came down the runway at London Fashion Week in February. For fall, it comes in an immensely chic iridescent goldish green snakeprint leather, and some versions have a turtle shaped lock. The Maisie is another new bag, with trompe l'oeil details on the front and shearling or snakeskin sides. In addition, old friends the Alexa and Lily bags have been updated with chunky chain handles, tassels and studding.

Mulberry will open its first West Coast store June 16 on Grand Street in San Francisco. And an L.A. store is in the works too.

RELATED:

Mulberry's foxy Coachella pool party

A Mulberry menagerie makes merry at the Marmont

At Coachella festival, music and fashion are a natural fit

-- Booth Moore 

Photos, from top: At left, actress Lily Collins and Mulberry creative director Emma Hill; right, Wild Belle's brother-and-sister act Natalie and Elliot Bergman were among those attending Mulberry's monster-themed pool party at the Parker Palm Springs during the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. Credit: Donato Sardella.

"Mad Men" costume designer Janie Bryant sips a drink poolside. Credit: Adam Tschorn / Los Angeles Times.

Harley Viera-Newton, from left; Atlanta de Cadenet Taylor; Emma Watson. Credit: Donato Sardella.

A Mulberry menagerie makes merry at the Marmont

It was a Mulberry menagerie in Hollywood on Thursday night, when the British luxury brand took over Bungalow One at the Chateau Marmont for poolside dinner, drinks and a performance by up-and-coming torch singer Lana Del Rey.

Arriving guests were greeted by a zoo's worth of Mylar animal balloons -- many of them disconcertingly life-size -- in the shape of tigers, zebras and giraffes, giant plastic ice cream cones tucked into the hedges and the words "Ding Dong" spelled out in balloon clusters across the surface of the pool.

At the single long dinner table -- that stretched nearly the entire length of the pool patio -- party favors included paper eyeglasses that spelled out "Oooh," as well as swimsuits and sun visors from Mulberry's spring 2012 collection.

Kate Bosworth, Juno Temple, Cat Deeley, Gia Coppola and Jamie King were among the Mulberry-clad guests sipping on peach margaritas and Champagne. (Apparently, the Mulberry team got hooked on peach margaritas during their stay at the Coachella Music Festival earlier this year.)

After dinner and a short set by Del Rey (one to keep an eye -- and ear -- out for, with a Sarah McLachlan-meets-Adele-meets-Nico vibe), guests moved inside for more drinks and dancing among the inflatable herd.

The carnival-like decor was designed to conjure the carefree, carousing spirit of the spring runway collection, inspired by British beach shenanigans, including all the fun to be found on the pier, such as donkey rides, ice lollies and carousel animals. (And by "British beach shenanigans," Mulberry creative director Emma Hill said she was referring specifically to her own childhood trips to Brighton, "where we'd be sitting on the beach in bathing suits with coats over top, under tents in the rain, eating fish and chips.") 

It may be Mulberry's strongest season yet for clothing, from the beach bonkers print (depicting lots of cold-looking people sitting fully clothed on the beach in the rain) and airbrush animal prints splashed across blouses and floor-skimming tube dresses, to the dressed-up jackets and drawstring skirts, in Mulberry's own star-and-clover lace. 

Hill put an emphasis on outerwear, with waterproof anoraks and trench coats in lemon sherbet yellow, fern green and nightshade blue, packable ponchos with drawstrings and hoods in pebble beige, cozy ribbed tops and leggings for layering under strapless dresses. 

And, for when the sun actually does come out, there are sporty 1970s inspired baseball tees, buttery leather jogging shorts, miniskirts and bomber jackets, as well as a smart-looking boucle shorts suit. Gem-dotted T-shirts and booties, as well as the "posh pier gear" dress laden down with jewels, referenced twinkling lights on the pier at night. And the famous Bayswater, Alexa and Lily hand bags were updated with colorful jewels, scallop edge detailing, or teddy bear-shaped rivets and twist locks. 

There was also a ray of retail sunshine for West Coast fans of the brand who, until now, have had to order all of their Mulberry online: the luxury label is slated to open a San Francisco boutique in May, and plans to follow that up with a Los Angeles location in 2013.

Which sounds just beachy-keen to us. 

--Booth Moore and Adam Tschorn

RELATED:

Mulberry's foxy Coachella pool party

Coachella: Nevermind the music

Mulberry mayhem at the Marmont

Photos top to bottom:

The atmosphere at the Mulberry pool party at the Chateau Marmont.

Left to right, Kate Bosworth; Mulberry creative director Emma Hill; Nathalie Love and Gia Coppola.

Left to right, Juno Temple; Lana Del Rey. All party photos courtesy of Mulberry/Wireimage.

Spring 2012 runway show images. Courtesy of Mulberry.

Your stylist: Keeping your red-hot hair color from fading

 


Resident Image stylist and market editor Melissa Magsaysay soothes your sartorial woes in the weekly Your Stylist blog column:

 
In this installment of Your Stylist, we address the blazing hot trend in hair color this season. Various shades of red are certainly the hue du jour with celebrities from Scarlett Johansson to Blake Lively  coating their signature blond tresses with some ginger-tinged dye. Longtime redheads Christina Hendricks, Florence Welch and Karen Elson seem to stand out even more for their locks recently with an  almost angelic glow of gorgeous color surrounding their faces.

But as trendy and eye-catching as red hair can be, it’s a serious thing to maintain in order to get the color to stay rich and vibrant for more than a couple weeks at a time.

Color specialist Vanessa Spaeth of the Andy Lecompte salon in West Hollywood gives us her expert advice about going red and staying that way and why the crimson color is so tricky to keep up.

In addition to a favorite conditioner of Spaeth’s that she mentions below, Ojon has a couple of interesting items for maintaining red. One is a color protecting cream that smooths out hair and claims to help color last up to 40 washes ($24 at Sephora) and the other is the Damage Reverse smoothing glaze for red hair, which deep conditions, controls frizz and contains Japanese astaxanthin algae, which is a red color and helps to reinforce the red in the hair ($26 at Sephora).

In your salon, have you seen a recent increase of women wanting to go red?

Yes, red has been much more common lately. It started as far back as last fall. The Models in the Mulberry SS11 show were wearing crimson wigs that had my fashionista clients in a frenzy. It seemed as if the fear of red was slowly being washed away. I personally, have always loved the bold, mysterious and sultry statement red hair makes. I recently added more rich tones to Christina Hendricks’ hair.

Now that women have become more open to the idea, it has allowed me to become more creative. I like to add a subtle hue of apricot or strawberry to my blondes who are looking for a more modern non-committal change, similar to Blake Lively’s new hair color.

Red seems like the hardest color to keep up. Would you say this is true? Why is that? Is there something in the formulation?

Typically, red has always been stubborn and almost impossible to keep up. It's the hardest to keep in, and the most difficult to completely get out. This is due to the large size of the red molecule, making it more difficult to bond to the cortex of the hair. However, with the technology we have today (in hair color and hair care), as well as some personal   'tricks,' there are ways to help.

What would you recommend people who have gone red do to maintain a vibrant shade and avoid fading?

It's important that your colorist is consistent with the kind of toners and glosses they use during the coloring process. These help keep the vibrancy, shine and luster that red so commonly loses. I also recommend certain shampoos and conditioners for my redhead clients, all depending on their shade of red, vibrancy and hair texture.

What specific products or home remedies would you recommend for people to keep up their red color?

I love the Davines colored shampoo and conditioner to help extend the life, but it is very important to use the proper shade. At times, it may be too much, so I’ll prescribe just the shampoo or just the conditioner paired with a protective match. 

-- Melissa Magsaysay

Photos, from top: Florence Welch at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards held at the Staples Center on Feb. 13. (Photo By Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Scarlett Johansson attends the 2011 White House Correspondents' Association Dinner at the Washington Hilton on April 30. (Photo by Kris Connor/Getty Images)

A model on the Mulberry SS11 runway/Yannis Vlamos/www.gorunway.com

Blake Lively attends the Chanel Collection Croisiere Show 2011-12 at the Hotel du Cap on May 9 in Cap d'Antibes, France. (Photo by Dominique Charriau/Getty Images)

Christina Hendricks at the 68th Annual Golden Globe Awards on Jan. 16 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. (Photo By Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Karen Elson attends the CHANEL dinner hosted in honor of Blake Lively during Paris Fashion Week on March 5. (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)

Your Morning Fashion and Beauty Report: Mulberry makes a splash at Coachella. Mary Louise Parker's good looks. And Chelsea Kane's dancing diet.

Our Booth Moore wrote about the phenomenon of big companies sponsoring parties at the Coachella music festival, which wrapped up Sunday. Even British brand Mulberry hopped across the pond to host a splash party. Eliza Doolittle, Nicole Richie and Alexa Chung were among the attendees. [Telegraph] [Los Angeles Times]

And you can take a look back at the fashionable flock attending the music fest in the desert here.

Forty-six-year-old beauty Mary Louise Parker attributes her good looks to genes. And no hard partying, drinking or drugs. She eats healthfully and uses sunblock. Her only beauty regret is trying a keratin smoothing hair treatment -- a.k.a. the controversial Brazilian Blowout. It contributed to hair loss, she says. [T magazine]

What keeps Chelsea Kane in top form for "Dancing With the Stars"? Red Bull and a doughnut a day. [People]

Reese Witherspoon wore a white Jason Wu cocktail dress embellished with black beading to pose for publicity shots with "Water for Elephants" co-star Robert Pattinson. [People] For more on the New York premiere of the film, check out our photo gallery. 

If you're planning a wedding, you can save big bucks and be kind of eco-friendly by buying a previously worn (i.e., used) gown. Just be sure to do some due diligence and first ask a lot of questions about use, care, measurements (not just size) and specifically what is included in the price. [SavvySugar] 

Looks we're not ready for: Viveca Fox attended an event at Miami's Vault nightclub, posing on the red carpet in a pink halter and white skinny jeans, ripped at the knees. [The Cut]

When Dylan Lauren marries hedge funder Paul Arrouet, her dogs will be the flower girl and ring bearer. Dressed in couture from her dad, Ralph Lauren, of course. [The Cut] 

-- Susan Denley

Photo: Mary Louise Parker. Credit: Frazer Harrison / Getty Images 

Mulberry's foxy Coachella pool party

The festival atmosphere of the Coachella festival decamped to the Parker Palm Springs on Saturday, when Mulberry hosted a pool party and barbecue as part of the brand's 40th anniversary celebration.

The Gene Autry pool was bobbing with overgrown beach balls emblazoned with the fox head-motif from Mulberry's "Fastastic Mr. Fox"-themed fall collection. Not that anyone could think much about fall clothes in the 90-degree weather.

Toadstools, colorful birds and trees from the February runway show surrounded the pool area, and the brand's "VIB" (Very Important Bayswater -- a huge, gold, mylar inflatable version of the classic design) even made an appearance on the lawn outside.

The waitstaff was kitted out in humorous trompe l'oiel T-shirts printed with beige vests bearing the Mulberry logo -- long sleeve tees at that -- despite weather so hot the stunt birds painstakingly glued to the decorative trees by the Mulberry crew were melting off their branches. Everyone crowded under the shaded pagoda, while DJs Karlsson and Winnberg (of Miike Snow) and Andrew Bevan, Style Features Editor at Teen Vogue, spun old-school tunes by Joni Mitchell and Stevie Nicks.

Nicole Ritchie had been sporting one of Mulberry's itsy-bitsy, teeny-weeny fox-print bikinis earlier in the day, but changed into a breezy Mulberry "feathered friends" print blouse, shorts and wedge sandals for the party.

Other foxy ladies spotted: Alexa Chung, Camilla Belle, Gia Coppola, Harley Viera Newton and Brit pop singer Eliza Doolittle, who had the best Mulberry bag of the day, the Taylor mini satchel in bright cabbage green.

Speaking of brights, Mulberry creative director Emma Hill was rocking the season's neon trend, wearing bright pink shorts, while her 4-year-old son Hudson Hill looked fetching in colorful Vilebrequin swim trunks, Ray-Bans and a fedora.

Partygoers munched on sliders, fries, tofu kebabs and mini-ice cream cones, and sipped berry mojitos, and reclined on loungers with Mulberry beach towels embroidered with peace signs -- a design that felt  appropriate for a festival that at times has felt like a time warp back to the fringetastic '70s. 

-- Booth Moore and Adam Tschorn

RELATED: Coachella 2011 Fashion photo gallery

Photos, from top: Partygoers at the Mulberry pool party; decor at the party included overgrown beach balls, left, plus toadstools and decorative trees, right; a member of the waitstaff, left, and a partygoer, right; Eliza Doolittle, left, and Emma Hill with son Hudson, right. Credit: Adam Tschorn / Los Angeles Times

London Fashion Week: Mulberry's foxes and front-row hounds

With a forest full of flora and fauna decorating the runway, and no less than seven furry fashionistas of the canine variety in the front row (one wearing Mulberry finery, another being toted in it), it was clear that this collection was going to be a wild one.

Turns out, Mulberry designer Emma Hill was inspired by "Fantastic Mr. Fox" -- both the Roald Dahl book and the Wes Anderson film -- all the way down to the hardware on the latest Alexa handbag (tiny gold fox-head rivets on the turn locks).

The clothing had a cute fox-and-hounds, English countryside vibe. Anderson would have loved the burgundy corduroy swing jacket and matching skirt, and the whimsical bird-print dress. There was also plenty for the urban fashion animal to wear, including jodphurs tucked into wedge heel boots, long skirts in autumnal prints and checks, worn with wooly sweaters and pompom scarves. Bags -- the Alexa, the Bayswater, the Carter and more -- came in deep colors of mock crocodile.

Clemence Poesy and Kirsten Dunst were the front-row attraction at the early show. But the four-legged starlets that came to the second showing were a lot more fun to watch, especially the St. Bernard that looked as if he wanted to take a bite out of the diminutive terrier walking a model down the runway.

-- Booth Moore in London

Photos: Looks from the Mulberry fall-winter 2011 runway collection shown during London Fashion Week. Credit: Carl De Souza / AFP / Getty Images.

Your morning fashion and beauty report: Taylor Swift photo shoot for Cover Girl is done

-- Photos are starting to circulate of Taylor Swift's new ad campaign for Cover Girl's NatureLuxe line of cosmetics. In the photos, Taylor looks fresh and glowing and, of course, beautiful (though we thought she looked that way anyway, as witness the photo above). [People]

-- It's a huge week for Britain's Mulberry brand, which just this week opened a bright new flagship on London's New Bond Street, picked up a prestigious British Fashion Award for best designer brand and announced that profits are soaring. All this after being practically comatose a decade ago. [Telegraph]  

-- The Kardashians' line for Bebe launched this year, but its days might be numbered as Bebe "reassesses." [The Cut]

-- Donna Karan is adding a new casual element to her collection and it seems to match the mood of consumers today. [WWD] (subscription required)

-- At the world premiere of "The Tourist" in New York this week, star Johnny Depp was sporting a smoky eye, the same smoky eye women everywhere are trying to achieve this holiday season. I guess he still hasn't gotten over his Keith Richards-inspired Jack Sparrow look. [Telegraph]

-- Ports 1969, the New York-based label designed by Fiona Cibani, plans to introduce a men's collection for fall 2011. [WWD] (subscription required)

-- This year, two favorite beauty brands -- Max Factor and Shu Uemura [updated 12:35 p.m.Dec. 20, 2010]-- were pulled off U.S. shelves. But BellaSugar points out you can still buy them online. Love that Internet!

-- Susan Denley

Photo: Taylor Swift. Credit: Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times

[Updated: A prior version of this post incorrectly spelled Uemura and Uemara.]

 

Mulberry launches swimwear for Resort 2011

 

British label Mulberry has long been known for its sturdy leather bags and accessories, but for Resort 2011, it's going decidedly lighter and skimpier, with a line of bikinis and raffia totes.

The first ever Mulberry resort collection includes a few bikinis that come in either bandeau or triangle top styles and in a punchy watermelon hue or "trippy tiger" print. The "Edie" bag -- a hybrid of the "Alexa" bag and the classic "Bayswater" bag -- is also a part of the line and comes in natural shades such as beige and oak.

The look is definitely cool-girl-takes-a-holiday, and Mulberry's biggest cool-girl fans, such as Kate Bosworth and Alexa Chung (for whom the "Alexa" bag was named), already have their hands on these bikinis. And no doubt they look totally adorable in them.

-- Melissa Magsaysay

Photos: Looks from Mulberry's Resort 2011 collection, available at www.mulberry.com

 

Mulberry mayhem at the Marmont

The Chateau Marmont was party central last night. But when isn't it, really?

British leather goods brand Mulberry took over the pool for an intimate dinner, and in the garden, the cast and crew of "Mad Men" downed Manhattans to celebrate the premiere of Season 4.

More about "Mad Men" in another post.

It's good to see Mulberry is going strong under the leadership of Emma Hill, who joined the brand as creative director 2 1/2 years ago. Since then, she's already had an It bag on her hands. It is, of course, the Alexa, which looks a bit like a vintage school bag and is inspired by DJ and global style-setter Alexa Chung. (The story is, Hill saw Chung carrying a briefcase, and decided to cross that with Mulberry's already-popular Bayswater style.)
 
"You can smell the good ones," Hill said of the Alexa. "My nose starts twitching. The only problem is not being able to make them fast enough," she said, talking me through the fall collection in one of the hotel's bungalows, with a gargantuan, pink, glitter-speckled leopard form standing sentinel at the door.
 
The collection is inspired by the campy 1967 film "Valley of the Dolls." "It's like a good girl gone bad, naughty royalty, very Princess Margaret," said the designer. "It's very L.A."