Long time Alaïa fan Sarah Rutson wearing Alaïa boots
For all his idiosyncrasies (or stubbornness if you're being harsh), Azzedine Alaïa is constantly dubbed as one of the most important living designers by those whose opinions count. It's no surprise, then, that his designs are loved by the likes of Rihanna and Victoria Beckham and continue to keep street style photographers snapping at the shows.
Now, with with the help of The Outnet, you can get in on the action too. Tomorrow the designer outlet will release their biggest ever selection of Alaïa pieces and of course, all come with a whopping cut off the normal price. I currently have my eye on a pair of suede and mesh peep toe heels but the range available is so wide that you'll definitely be able to find something that tickles your fancy.
Expansion and multiple international stores has never been the sole focus for Azzedine Alaïa. Over the years he's remained true to his vision and in doing so, tends to show whenever he wants and unlike other designers, he doesn't feel the need to court or pander to the press and celebrities. While his approach to the media remains the same, it seems as though his approach to expansion has changed.
The Financial Times' Vanessa Friedman reports that the designer is working on opening a new flagship store on Avenue Montaigne in Paris. The move is a big one as it marks the first time he's opened a new store since 1992 and more than simply being a retail space, the five-floor location will also come with a new showroom and office.
Will you go and visit when the doors open next March?
All eyes may have been on the red carpet at Cannes over the weekend but a big event took place in Las Vegas too last night, as it played host to the 2012 Billboard Music Awards.
While the red carpet looks didn't quite match up to what we saw in Cannes, the looks were actually pretty good. Taylor Swift sported a red Elie Saab gown, Julianne Hough looked incredible in a silver Kaufman Franco creation and Miley Cyrus had everyone talking in this Jean Paul Gaultier double breasted mini dress.
This week has been a busy one in Hollywood. Earlier on this week we had the People's Choice Awards and last night was the turn of the Critics Choice Awards.
Outfits on the night that realy stood out came from Charlize Theron in Azzedine Alaia, Michelle Williams in Chanel, Kristen Dunst in Christian Dior, Jessica Chastian in Balenciaga and Shailene Woodley in Calvin Klein. I was really excited to see what Elizabeth Olsen would wear over the next week but her yellow Emilio Pucci dress that she wore to last night's event hasn't got me excited about what is yet to come.
Earlier this month we reported that Marc Jacobs moving to Dior was increasingly looking unlikely and now sources confirm that the move is definitely not happening.
LVMH reportedly approached Jacobs back in July after Bill Gaytten's less than impressive couture collection for the house and while Jacobs' move to Dior seemed secure, negotiations fell apart over money and Jacobs wanting to moving his whole Louis Vuitton team to Dior with him. As a result, a source close to Jacobs has confirmed that the designer "declined" the job for good earlier this month, as we reported.
Last night was the night that we had all been waiting for as Kanye West finally debuted his collection for KW by Kanye West in Paris during fashion week, to much anticipation. As you would expect, just about everyone was there. “I did not want to miss it,” Linda Fargo, the fashion director of Bergdorf Goodman, told The New York times and that seemed to be the sentiment of the all guests yesterday.
Fargo was joined by Jared Leto, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Leigh Lezark, Lindsay Lohan and Ciara. Designers like Alexander Wang and Azzedine Alaia sat alongside Anna Wintour and Glenda Bailey.
In stark contrast to the over-the-top Kardashian-Humphries wedding , Sofia Coppola tied the knot to her longtime partner Tom Mars in the South of Italy on Saturday. As we previously revealed, the ceremony took place in her father's 19th-century Italian vila in Bernalda in front of 80 guests.
Although many speculated that Coppola's good friend Marc Jacobs would designer her wedding dress, the director sparked reports that Azzedine Alaïa would make her special address after she flew to Paris to attend his couture show earlier on this year and it looks like the reports were true. The 40 year-old Oscar winner chose a simple but classic violet sleevless dress by the designer with her signature natural hair and make-up. Full length images of the dress are yet to surface.
I like my work but I kind of despise it as well. Sometimes it's just the relentlessness of the schedule. It's obviously quite pressured and quite stressful … This whole consumer demand for new, now and everything's got to be renewed every few months … I think that's got to implode at some point. For young brands, it's getting impossible to continue making so many collections for the work to be worthy of showing. I am not sure how you can come up with eight ideas a year and really endorse them and make them worthy of presenting.
We all know that Sofia Coppola will tie the knot with her longtime boyfriend, Thomas Mars, this summer but we finally have a date. This week the pair revealed that they will get married in an "intimate family wedding" in Bernalda on Saturday, Aug 27 and the ceremony will take place in her father's 19th-century Italian villa.
Although it's nice to know those details, we're more interested in the dress. As you would expect, Coppola's close friend Marc Jacobs is the front runner and seems the most obvious choice but after the directer attended the Azzedine Alaïa couture show recently, many are speculating that Jacobs may have some competition.
Clearly Azzedine Alaia isn't the only designer being unusually frank to journalists this week. After presenting his menswear show in Milan on Tuesday, Giorgio Armani reportedly criticised the menswear collections produced by Prada and Dolce & Gabbana arguing that both collections were not something that any man would want to wear.
But it didn't end there. “Fashion today is in the hands of the banks and of the stock market and not of their owners," he explained whilst criticising the press for not actively scrutinising the collections. "In a direct insult to Prada, he added that he doesn't need to go public because his company doesn't have debts, is independent, and produces clothing that makes men look handsome and elegant,' The Cut reports.
