Christmas may be round the corner and though the festivities of the season are preoccupying the minds of most, we are a little more excited about the fact that the Oscars are only round the corner - cue fabulous and not-so-fabulous dresses and the general mania that sweeps Hollywood for that weekend. Outfits and hysteria aside, what's really got us excited at the moment is the fact that the Valentino film has been shortlisted for an Oscar.
Naomi Campbell sported a metallic veil and walked with a golden dagger down her first African catwalk this week. Why the get-up? To symbollically attack global discrimination against black models. Campbell staged a Fashion for Relief charity fashion show in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania - a new continent for Campbell's previous charity stops, which have included New York, London and Mumbai.
"Where do we see a woman of color in an advert? It's quite blatant," Campbell told Reuters. "There's definitely space (for more black models) but has there been enough effort? It was getting better but it's slipped back this year."
Jason Wu will design a Tse capsule collection [WWD]
Naomi Campbell's Birkin raised 21,000 euros for charity [Sassybella]
Give Savannah Miller two pencils, and she'll give you a scarf [Nylon]
Alexa Chung's inspired by Cybill Shepherd [Stylewatch]
Karmen Pedaru will be your goalie [W]
Naomi Campbell wore this interesting floor-length dress to the grand opening of the Kerzner Mazagan Beach Resort.
What do you think of her look?
Something smells fishy about Naomi Campbell's business practices, claim the group that helped the supermodel develop her fragrance and costmetics line. According to allegations in a Manhattan Supreme Court lawsuit, which were reported by the New York Post, the model backed out on a profit-sharing arrangement illegally.
The Miami- and London-based company that helped with design and marketing jobs for Campbell's line claims that, after seven years of handing over quarterly payments, Campbell stopped short. The lawsuit claims that while Campbell makes millions on fragrances including Seductive Elixir and Cat Deluxe, the business is being left high and dry.
One thing's for sure in the whole mess: Campbell is no stranger to scandal, and we don't see that stopping anytime soon.
Naomi Campbell, once again, champions minority models [WWD]
Cindy Crawford says she wouldn't have been a supermodel in 2009 [AFP]
Now, the layoffs move to W [FWD]
Thakoon Panichgul's family didn't think he could do it [Fashionista]
Correction: No HSN fragrance for Heidi Montag-Pratt [The Cut]
Despite an abundance of beautiful, striking new models hitting the runways each season, the supermodels of the latter days are still strong and sticking around for good. We've seen Yasmin le Bon launch a range for Wallis, Naomi Campbell has almost never been absent from a YSL advert, and Linda Evangelista has continued to be the face of L'Oreal. Here we have a sneak preview of the latest Chanel campaign, in which Karl Lagerfeld has shot original supermodel Claudia Schiffer in Buenos Aires, proving hands down that she still has it.
Francois Nars, the founder and creator of the eponymous beauty and cosmetic brand, has decided to create a book to celebrate the brand's 15th anniversary. The forward thinking make-up artist-come-photographer has enlisted the help of a few of his celebrity friends to pose in the 15 portraits in the book, named '15x15'. Naomi Campbell, Marc Jacobs, Daphne Guiness, Amber Valleta and Olivier Theyskens, amongst others, have all been photographed and made-up by Nars himself, to represent iconic images or people so that 'there is something different on every page'.
Iconic threesome, Eva Herzigova, Claudia Schiffer and Naomi Campbell – the supermodels that Testino recently shot nude for Dolce & Gabbana’s Anthology print campaigns – were spotted at Milan Fashion Week along with designer friends Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana last Friday evening helping promote the scents they each front.
According to Vogue.com, Naomi Campbell said: "I'm overwhelmed, this is amazing," as the semi-matching girls, all wearing white tanks, black satin blazers and denim, were welcomed by a crowd of nearly 3,000 people as they turned up at the Rinascente department store to sign autographs and pose for pictures.
In August we reported that the tide was slowly turning as the use of black and ethnic minority models had increased in advertising campaigns and on the runway. The meteoric rise of Jourdan Dunn was hailed as the beginning of a future in which, there would be an equal presence of black and white models in the industry.
Some would argue that progress was made by Italian Vogue with its all black issue last July and i-D Magazine's September Issue which featured Jourdan Dunn, Sessilee Lopez, Chanel Iman and Arlenis Sosa on the cover as well as in a multi page editorial. Nathan Jenden, the brains behind the label by the same name and creative director of Diane Von Furstenberg has also sought to tackle this issue by sending only models of colour down his runway during LFW last week. PPQ also followed suit. One can only hope that such a positive stand will be an inspiration to others or at least result in more media attention to the debate.
