Say hello to Jennifer Lawrence's cover of British Vogue's November issue. If you're anything like me, on first look, you might be slightly disappointed. Admittedly, the cover is a lot less glitzy than some of the actresses most recent ones but it's this reason that it's really grown on me.
It might sound really basic but the charm of this cover is that she actually looks liker her. Not following me? Just take a look at her face. At a time where retouchers are being overzealous with Photoshop, having a cover star look this natural is becoming increasingly rare. The dress, from the Dolce & Gabbana Fall 2012 collection, is intricate enough for it to warrant being on the cover but doesn't detract from her beauty.
I'm slightly crazy about it but what do you think?
When Dolce & Gabbana first announced that ScarlettJohansson would serve as the face of their beauty line, it made sense. She epitomises the effortless sex appeal that the label is known and loved for but as their latest campaign shows, maybe it's time to go in a different direction.
Johansson appears stripped down in in the campaign on a light-flooded bed to showcase the brand's new perfect luminous foundation and was shot in Sicily while in town for their debut couture show earlier on this year. And while there's no denying that she does look beautiful in the ad, the shot feels stale and unmemorable because it doesn't steer too far from all of her other campaigns for them and this isn't the first time she's left me feeling like this.
If you cast your mind back to May you just might be able to remember her less than impressive US Vogue cover and I don't say that too be harsh. I generally wish that she moved out of her comfort zone and experimented with something that goes further than the sexy bombshell look that she's reluctant to give up but things aren't looking hopeful.
By last week we'd all seen just about all of the major September issue covers but Vogue Paris was notably missing. That all changed today, though, as the glossy finally revealed their all-important issue and it's an interesting one.
As always, the cover was all about models with Vogue Paris favourites Kate Moss, Lara Stone and Daria Werbowy bagging their own separate covers. All three models appear sporting the same hair and make-up and black Dolce & Gabbana dress in line with the issue's black theme and that's where the similarities end. The issue also sees the magazine undergo a major revamp. 'The magazine features a calendar, airier design, with remodeled typography and the use of a craft-paper-like brown background - both of which hark back to its look in the Sixties and Seventies,' WWD reports.
Emmanuelle Alt has been under a lot of criticism since taking the reigns at the magazine and the September issue seems like a conscious step on her part to finalise the changes she's been making to put her stamp on things.
It was also so nice to spend three days in Taormina, Sicily, with all of the other girls; swimming in the hotel pool until the early hours and going out for dinner. All the local people would stare and ask if we were models — to which we would reply 'no.
This year Versace showed their first couture collection after an eight year hiatus and now Dolce & Gabbana have confirmed that they are following suit by showing their first-ever couture show on July 9.
Rather than have the runway show in Paris along with other brands, they've decided to host it in Taormina, Sicily instead. According to the Financial Times' Vanessa Freidman, the decision was a calculated move to help keep the critics away and besides, the guests in attendance are reported to be rich clients rather than journalists anyway.
While the news does come as a surprise, it actually makes sense. Recently Louis Vuitton spoke out about their concern to appeal to the top spenders by creating exclusive collections to tackle the problem of becoming too accessible as they expand. Versace has since followed suit and since Dolce & Gabbana dropped their lower-priced line, D&G, last year, it looks like they're going in the same direction by targeting those high-end customers.
Do you remember that ongoing tax case that Domenico Dolce & Stefano Gabbana were the subject of? Just to refresh your mind, in April last year the design duo were cleared of all charges of criminal tax evasion but today the story resurfaced and there's a twist. According to Reuters, the designers will be forced to stand trial after all.
'Milan judge Giuseppe Gennari gave the green light for prosecutors to bring the fashion duo to court over allegations of tax evasion totalling around 1 billion euros ($1.25 billion),' the title revealed. Gabbana took to Twitter on Friday writing, 'Everyone knows that we haven't done anything.'
I've never been a huge fan of US Elle's covers and sadly, their Kristen Stewart June cover was noticeably weaker than the actresses over covers this month. For July, though, they're on good form. For the issue Selena Gomez takes centre position wearing a strapless Dolce & Gabbana dress on one cover and a Balmain top on another.
The shoot is just as good as the cover and sees her looking all grown-up wearing brands like Lanvin and Yves Saint Laurent. In the accompanying cover story she talks about all the things you would expect, ranging from her relationship with Justin Bieber to trying to fight the 'Disney' image.
While the cover works, it does leave you asking questions. Granted, Gomez has a huge loyal following but as Coco's Tea Party points out, that audience is completely different to Elle's readership so why they decided to book her for the cover is a mystery.
As celebrity covers go, Eva Mendes is a pretty good subject. Her covers are always good and her latest one for Marie Claire UK's July issue isn't an exception. On the cover she sports one of those embellished Dolce & Gabanna body suits that have been doing the rounds this season.
In the cover story, Mendes' boyfriend Ryan Gosling naturally pops up and so does body image. 'It doesn't matter what you have of what you look like. It's something everyone has to work at. I realize I have contributed to a certain happy, healthy, empowered image, but that's not all of me,' she said. 'I feel it's important to let women know that I have similar struggles. What I tell girls is what they don't like about themselves now, they will probably end up loving as an adult, because that's what happened to me.'
The only issue with the cover is that it's a reprint. While reprinting makes sense for the smaller editions of the big titles, it seems strange that such a big version of the title couldn't create an original cover.
Kylie Minogue had a good day yesterday in Cannes. Earlier on in the day she arrived at the 'Holy Motors' photo call looking the best we've seen of her in a long time sporting a great green version of a black dress from the Fall 2012 Emilio Pucci collection. To attend the film's premiere, though, she upped the ante in this gold sequin Dolce & Gabbana dress.
When Emmanuelle Alt last booked Gisele to cover the magazine for their April issue last year, she looked feminine and demure sporting that white lace Dolce & Gabbana dress that dominated the covers last spring. For their June 'body issue' though, the Brazilian looks far from demure sporting nothing more than tiny black bikini shorts.
The cover looks fresh and is definitely one of the best summer covers out right now and the timing couldn't be better. Alt hasn't had the easiest time since being appointed editor-in-chief last year, especially with the new direction that she's pushing the publication in but based on the comments on The Fashion Spot, the cover is going down really well.
