Your Stylist: Revving up your spring wardrobe with '50s inspiration

Prada's Spring 2012 collection was not only eye-catching, with its 1950s automobile-inspired prints and flames shooting out from the back of shoes to look like a mint-condition car on the go, the line echoed a retro aesthetic common in Southern California. As fashion critic Booth Moore says in her review of the line, there's a distinct feeling of the SoCal Kustom Kulture, which draws hundreds of thousands of enthusiasts to car shows and car clubs from L.A to San Diego.

The collection put a fresh spin on a retro theme. Incorporating the look into your spring wardrobe doesn't have to mean buying the Prada fire flame car shoes (though if those fall into your budget, then by all means wear them and bask in all the envious glances they'll get). I love the all-American look of this Joie Eloisa car sweater.

It can go preppy if worn with a crisp white collared shirt underneath or fun and '50s if worn with a fitted pencil skirt and kitten heels or the polka dot denim that's so hot this season -- Current/Elliott makes a cute green and white pair of polka dot skinny jeans and G Star does the abbreviated version, seen in their polka dot short shorts.

Cat eye sunglasses always bring that '50s vibe to any outfit. I love the rich red shade of this Givenchy pair. The cat eye shape in unexpected hues feels right this season and punctuates easy spring basics with a pop of color.

This Pinky Lee "Deluxe" clutch is done in a sparkly red vinyl to echo the interior and seat of a '50s style car. It adds that quirky touch to a streamlined look of cropped capris, ballet flats and a tailored button down shirt -- ponytail optional.

--Melissa Magsaysay

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Photos:

Top - A model in Prada Spring/Summer 2012 women's collection during Milan Fashion Week Sept. 22, 2011. REUTERS/Stefano Rellandini

Left - Joie Eloisa car sweater, $298, at www.joie.com

Right - Prada car shoe/Prada

Below - G Star polka dot denim shorts at G Star store Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills

Left - Givenchy sunglasses, $350, at www.barneys.com

Bottom right - Pinky Lee Deluxe Red Sparkle Handbag, $140, at www.uniquevintage.com

 

 

 

 

Stars hit runway for Prada's fall-winter 2012 men's show

Miuccia Prada made sure the 2012 Golden Globes didn't have a lock on the celebrity-studded red carpet over the weekend, closing out her fall-winter 2012-2013 men's runway show in Milan on Sunday with a handful of Hollywood elite including Gary Oldman, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe, Garrett Hedlund, Jamie Bell, Tim Roth, Emile Hirsch, Alex Carril and Victor Carril.

PHOTOS: Milan Fashion Week Prada men's fall-winter 2012 runway show

Because I'm not attending the European men's runway shows this season, I didn't have the luxury of slipping backstage and buttonholing the enigmatic designer about why she chose the actors to walk in the show finale, but, according to published reports, the show -- and the collection -- was inspired by the notion of power and powerful men. (“Clothing is also a tool of power and a way to express male vanity," she was quoted as saying in fashion industry trade paper WWD.)

And one certainly didn't need to be in a front-row seat to pick up on the military vibe of the buttoned and belted jackets, spit-shined boots and lapel accessories that evoked the notion of military badging including boutonnières, shield-shaped lapel pins and sunglasses with red-tinted lenses tucked into jacket breast pockets.  

The images of powerful men in military-inspired greatcoats striding through a cavernous room brought to mind one of the more memorable of last January's menswear shows in Europe -- the military meets melancholia aesthetic of the Alexander McQueen fall-winter 2011 collection.

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-- Adam Tschorn

Photos: Gary Oldman, left, Adrien Bordy and Willem Dafoe hit the red-carpeted runway in Prada's fall-winter 2012-2013 men's runway show Sunday during Milan Fashion Week. Credit: Prada

Golden Globes 2012: Prada is back on the red carpet in big way

When Uma Thurman wore that glorious lilac chiffon Prada gown on the Oscars red carpet in 1995, it put the Italian design house on the international fashion map. That marketing gold ushered in the modern era of celebrity dressing, which is why every major fashion house on the planet has people in Hollywood right now, plying their wares. For the Globes tonight, Prada is expected to dress Zooey Deschanel in a green silk gown with an open back and a top embroidered with pearls. Freida Pinto will be wearing a Prada bustier gown in peacock blue satin. 

--Booth Moore

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Photo: Zooey Deschanel arrives at the 69th Golden Globe Awards at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Sunday. Credit: Jason Merritt / Getty Images.

Banned in Britain: Hailee Steinfeld ad for Prada

See Hailee. See Hailee Steinfeld. See Hailee Steinfeld sitting on a railroad track, dressed in Prada-owned Miu Miu. See Britain's Advertising Standards Authority banning the ad because Steinfeld is only 14 years old and photographed in a "potentially life-threatening situation."

No, it's not a joke.

The star of "True Grit" was photographed by Bruce Weber, a well-known photographer and moviemaker. A Prada Retail UK spokesperson told the Guardian that the ad campaign was  "part of a serious, high-fashion campaign aimed at adult women."

Weber's photographs, the Guardian reported, "were meant to look like the actor had been captured in photographs between takes on the imaginary film."

Several British papers, including the Daily Mail, commented on the fact that it looks as though Steinfeld is crying in the photograph. Prada representatives, the Daily Mail reported, "said Miss Steinfeld was not crying, nor had she been asked to cry or look upset. Rather, they said the ad pictured her with a "wistful and thoughtful face."

"Prada also highlighted the fact that no one was put in any danger because the images, which were shot by top photographer and film maker Bruce Weber, were taken on an abandoned rail track," the newspaper said.

The same board demanded earlier this year that an ad featuring Dakota Fanning with an oversized bottle of Marc Jacobs perfume between her legs be pulled. Fanning is 17.

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-- Alice Short

Photo: Hailee Steinfeld in a shot taken by Bruce Weber for a Prada/Miu Miu ad campaign. Credit: Prada

Fashion Diary: Destination Los Angeles

 Los Angeles may be far away from European fashion capitals, but for designers, it's always near -- whether they be inspired by Hollywood or the open road.

This week, I write about 12 of London’s top designers who plan to hit the road next month, bringing their clothes to Los Angeles in a bid for red carpet stardom. Speaking of hitting the road, Miuccia Prada seemed to have Ed “Big Daddy” Roth, Kustom Kulture and Hollywood hot rods in mind when she designed her spring 2012 collection shown in Milan last week. 

Many years ago, Coco Chanel was also lured to Los Angeles, not by its street culture or red carpet, but by studio head Samuel Goldwyn, who orchestrated the ultimate publicity coup in 1931 by paying Chanel $1 million to design film costumes during the depths of the Depression.

I chatted with Justine Picardie about Chanel's time here, and other things. Picardie wrote “Coco Chanel: The Legend and the Life,” originally published in 2010, with a new edition out now with drawings by Chanel creative director Karl Lagerfeld.

The book was feted Thursday night in Los Angeles at a dinner hosted by the French fashion house and Liz Goldwyn, who said the last memory her grandfather had of Chanel's fabulous film costumes for Gloria Swanson, Ina Claire and others was seeing them in garbage bags on the loading dock at the studio. What a pity.

-- Booth Moore

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Photos, from top: The iconic Hollywood sign. Credit: Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images.

Justine Picardie, left, and Liz Goldwyn at the Chanel dinner Thursday at West Hollywood's Soho House. Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Chanel.

Prada embraces SoCal kustom car culture

 
I'm looking at the photos of the Prada spring 2012 collection shown today in Milan, wishing I was there. Miuccia Prada showed a collection with particular relevance to us here in Southern California, the home of Ed "Big Daddy" Roth, Kustom Kulture and Hollywood hot rods.

I'm eating up the funky retro 1950s car print on the satin coat and the shoes with the flames shooting out the back. And the one-piece bathing suits modeled like cars, hugging every curve...To die!

The retro, Route 66/diner culture vibe reminds me of Proenza Schouler's spring 2012 collection shown in New York last week, and its themes of westward expansion and the broken American dream.

Very interesting ... and timely.

--Booth Moore

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Photos: Top far left, far right and bottom from the Prada spring/summer 2012 women's collection during Milan Fashion Week on Thursday. Credit: Reuters /Stefano Rellandini.

Top middle from the Prada spring/summer 2012 collection during Milan Fashion Week on Thursday. Credit: Associated Press / Luca Bruno.

Kids' clothes: Dress them up or dress them 'green'

It's not always easy to dress the little darlings who keep you up at night and drool on your jacket before you walk out the door to run errands or go to work.

If you are a "green" parent, for example, the landscape of "environmentally friendly" clothing was, until recently, grim -- think hemp fabrics and muddy colors. Today, however, there's quite an array of kids' clothing whose manufacturers boast of eco street cred. Which is fine, but what does the word "organic" guarantee, anyway? What about labor practices? And water use? Where were the goods manufactured?

Heather John surveys eco offerings for kids and details the lengths manufacturers will go to in order to maintain their green status.

If chic is your thing, you're in luck. Many parents are buying designer wear for their kids, much to the delight, no doubt, of luxury houses that have expanded to include tiny sizes.

In fact, many houses (think Fendi, Missoni, Prada, Armani, Gucci, Dior, Burberry, Marc Jacobs and Phillip Lim) now have a children’s division. Some of the designers churn out mini versions of their men’s and women’s ready-wear lines or logo-heavy accessories; others merely riff on the aesthetic of their already established brand. Melissa Magsaysay reports on kiddie couture. Maybe bringing up baby isn't so tough, after all.

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 --Alice Short 

Photo: Ashley wears a Kate Quinn yellow dress; John, a Kate Quinn button-down top and jeans. Photo: Kirk McKoy/Los Angeles Times

Your Morning Fashion and Beauty Report: Elle Fanning meets Paris Haute Couture. Emma Watson dazzles on eve of 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.'

 
"Super 8's" Elle Fanning attended her first-ever fashion show Tuesday and it was a doozy: Chanel's Haute Couture show in Paris. The 13-year-old younger sister of Dakota Fanning joined Diane Kruger and Joshua Jackson in the front row at the Grand Palais, and she got to meet creative director Karl Lagerfeld. Not a bad introduction to the world of high style. [People]

The Paris Haute Couture shows closed Wednesday with an elegant ball at retired fashion designer Valentino Garavani's spectacular French castle in Crespieres, about 30 minutes from Paris. The White Fairy Tale Love Ball was held to support Russian supermodel Natalia Vodianova's children's charity, The Naked Heart Foundation, and attracted socialites, designers, models and Hollywood celebs, including Daphne Guinness, Anne Hathaway, Olivia Palermo, former French Vogue editor Corine Roitfeld, W editor Stefano Tonchi, Givenchy's Riccardo Tisci, Tommy Hilfiger and Stella Tennant. [Telegraph]

Earlier in the day, French President Nicholas Sarkozy awarded the Legion d’Honneur award of merit to none other than Vogue U.S. editor Anna Wintour. Yes, the French do take fashion seriously. Wintour wore a blue Chanel couture suit that had been shown on the runway the day before. [WWD]

For photos from the haute couture shows, check out our All the Rage photo gallery.

With "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2" upon us,  Emma Watson is starting her final round of formal appearances on behalf of the long-running franchise. And at 21, she doesn't have to try too hard to show she has come a long way since she created the role of Hermione Granger a decade ago. As we've been documenting for some time now, she has become quite a fashion favorite. At a photo call on Wednesday, she looked coolly elegant in a black lace dress with a shimmering, gold underlay, complete with a ruffled, tiered skirt, left.   Watson is on the cover of this month's Vogue and August's Harper's Bazaar. The film premieres in the U.K. on Thursday, opens worldwide Wednesday and reaches California July 15.  [Telegraph] 

Jessica Simpson's latest -- and supposedly last -- entry in her Fancy Collection fragrance line is I Fancy You, a scent designed to bring up reminiscences of first love. It's described as redolent of velvety floral musk with notes of juicy pear, savory Fuji apple and bergamot orange. [People]

Giorgio Armani has been pretty outspoken lately. First he opined recently that labels like Dolce & Gabbana and Prada make men look ridiculous on the runways. (Ya think? Um, let's see: there were loud florals at Prada this spring and a lot of netting at Dolce & Gabbana.) And he swiped at Prada for going public with a stock offering to pay off its debts. After criticism of his remarks, he has written a letter to Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, saying, “I don’t need alliances, complicity, or need to surround myself with international jetsetters.... I have too much respect for myself, for the public, and for the people that work both with me and the fashion industry to renounce any sort of intellectual honesty that influences and orients my life, even at the expense of attractive economic opportunities.... I don’t need any of the money from the stock exchange — not for growth, not for globalization, not to aggregate my brand.” OK. [The Cut]

--Susan Denley

Photos, from top: Elle Fanning, third from left, is on the edge of her chair at her first-ever fashion show, Chanel's Haute Couture showing in Paris on Tuesday. More relaxed: fashion veteran Diane Kruger, third from right, with a smiling Joshua Jackson (Credit: Thibault Camus /Associated Press); Emma Watson at a photo call for "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2" on Wednesday (Dave Hogan / Getty Images).

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Milan Fashion Week: Prada packs a perfectly organized picnic

For spring and summer 2012, Prada hit the golf course -– what else could come to the mind when you hear the phrase “geometric outdoors”? The designer said that was the goal of the indoor “field” -– the 600 foam blocks placed on a grid of artificial turf throughout the company’s headquarters and show space on Via Fogazzaro. A description of the space handed out to the media emphasizes the spacing of each foam cube and the strictly choreographed routes each model would take to assure maximum visibility. She described it as having “the audience participate in a perfectly organized picnic.”

But anyone who wasn’t thinking about golf when the show began, must have been by the time a handful of looks had gone by –- what with the red, blue and yellow floral-print golf bags, Prada wingtip shoes with golf-cleat soles and an assortment of headgear and trousers that would have looked right at home on the links.

But Miuccia Prada never tips her hand at anything, and inspiration as straightforward as golfing –- even as the brand readies for a long-awaited IPO on the Hong Kong stock index and golf seems to be the preferred sport of corporate America’s high-rollers -– seems a bit like a red herring to me.

One of the allover prints that appeared on caps, shirts, trousers and jackets was different from the assorted bright florals that appeared in full bloom throughout the collection. It had a kind of late ‘50s, early ‘60s look that could be found just about anywhere, from the lining of kids sleeping bags (usually covered wagons and cowboys) to cocktail shakers (martini glasses and pink elephants) to the wallpaper of dad’s shag-carpeted rumpus room down in the basement (Playboy bunnies, martini glasses and cowboys). The people in Prada’s allover print seemed to be doing all kinds of things -- playing the tuba, doing handstands and sitting beneath a palm tree to name just three.

Whatever they were doing, the figures on the fabric certainly looked busy, and busy might be the best watchword for the entire collection -– at least until I can take a closer look at it. Wildly floral Western-style snap-button shirts sported contrasting floral yokes and button plackets. On solid color versions, the plackets and yoke were framed in rows of chunky jewel-like stones. The uppers of some dress shoes were accented with woven raffia (raffia is having a moment this Milan Fashion Fashion Week), and others had contrasting leather fringe.

A commentary on golf, a metaphor for life, a desire for control over uncontrollable events –- like an IPO or a picnic? No one’s saying, but rest assured that when Prada packs a picnic, you’re guaranteed a feast every time.

-- Adam Tschorn, reporting from Milan 

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Photo credits: (Top and bottom) Olivier Morin / Getty Images. (Middle) Matteo Bazzi / European Pressphoto Agency

Your Morning Fashion and Beauty Report: Duchesses of Cambridge and Cornwall don oh-so-chic hats for Order of the Garter

 
I admit it. With all the uproar over Princess Beatrice's odd-looking Philip Treacy fascinator at the British royal wedding recently, I've become -- well, fascinated by fascinators. And over-the-top hats. too. So here's a treat: Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, left, and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge (nee Kate Middleton) appearing together at Monday's Order of the Garter Service at St. George's Chapel in Windsor Castle. I like 'em both and could see wearing them on the right ceremonial occasion (if I ever went to a ceremonial occasion), though Camilla's does seem a bit overwhelming. [Telegraph] [People]

And the fascinators were out in force early Tuesday with the opening of the Royal Ascot races. [Telegraph] 

Meanwhile the British fashion world is having something of a tennis moment:  The British Fashion Council enlisted a host of British fashion designers to design exclusive outfits for the world's top female tennis players for this year's pre-Wimbledon party, scheduled to take place Thursday. Designers including Stella McCartney, Vivienne Westwood, Giles Deacon, Burberry, Richard Nicoll, Matthew Williamson, Hussein Chalayan and David Koma have all offered their services for the project, aimed at raising the off-court profile of the stars of women's tennis and the international profile of British fashion design. Later, the dresses will be auctioned off for charity. [Telegraph] 

"Sometimes geeks can be chic." So said Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour on Monday night as she accepted the "People's Voice" prize at Monday night's Webby Awards ceremony. [The Cut]

Blogger Rachel Kane has decided to leave her satiric WTForever21 site up, despite the retailer's statement of intention to sue her for trademark infringement. Last week, she had said that she was shutting down, and would no longer be making fun of Forever 21's clothing online. This week, she has lawyers -- no surprise there -- and plans to fight for her right to freedom of speech, and for fair comment. "If the company continues to makes threats that have no basis in law, my attorneys are prepared to vigorously defend me and seek all available legal redress against Forever 21," she said. This could be fun! [Jezebel]

Tobey Maguire looked good in a Spider-Man costume, so he's bound to look good in Prada. The atelier must think so too. On Monday they announced that Maguire will be the face of Prada's fall/winter advertising campaign. [Telegraph] 

Alber Elbaz premiered Lanvin's new collection for little girls at the end of his resort show Monday, and they are indeed dresses fit for little princesses. Think poufy bouffant skirts in cream, rose or scarlet. No word on pricing yet, but as a friend of mine would say, "It won't be cheap." [The Cut]

Photo: The Duchess of Cornwall, left, and Duchess of Cambridge at Monday's Order of the Garter service. Credit:  Kirsty Wigglesworth/AFP/Getty Images

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