Yesterday I wrote about the PPR group working on an e-commerce venture with Yoox SpA and now it looks like other big luxury brands are also embracing innovative online platforms. Last week the New York Times noticed that within 24 hours of images of the Oscar de la Renta resort show being placed on TheFancy.com, a green and white sequin silk baseball-style sweater had 500 people endorse it. While that may not sound impressive, the fact that the site had received several advance orders for the sweater, which is priced at $2,490 might get your attention.
'Selling five of those baseball tees is not going to change our lives,' Alex Bolen, chief executive of Oscar de la Renta said, 'but I have got to say, I was surprised.' For me, the news doesn't come as a surprise. Recent research has unearthed the reality that these new social media platforms are having a serious impact on sales beyond simply redirecting traffic. Take Pinterest for example. Despite being the newbie on the scene, results released last week shows that people are 10% more likely to purchase something they see on the platform.
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.
The big award shows are where style stars are born - fact. 2011 marked the first time that we seriously stood up and paid attention to Jennifer Lawrence. That navy Louis Vuitton gown she wore to the Golden Globes was unconventional but worked, the hot pink Oscar de la Renta dress she wore to the SAG awards definitely made a statement and of course, nobody can forget the red Calvin Klein creation that she wore to the Oscars. Having got it right at all three big awards ceremonies, Lawrence seemed to explode this year and the same is true of Hailee Steinfeld.
With that said, all eyes are on Rooney Mara, Elizabeth Olsen and Felicity Jones for the coming awards. All three got it right in one way or another in 2011 but none have had a big red carpet moment. While Olsen should be the front runner simply because, well, she's an Olsen, my money is on Mara. Her recent choices for the promotional tour of 'The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo' have worked perfectly and her slightly dark and brooding aesthetic makes me think that she'll be brave and do something interesting and different this award season. In the last few weeks she's worn Givenchy twice and something makes me think that Tisci will be the designer of choice for her big Oscar moment and the partnership would make sense. The Tisci for Givenchy woman is always sexy but in a dark romantic way and that's Mara all over.
Style.com: 'De la Renta has ditched the old church where he's presented for the last couple of years in favor of his new 42nd Street showroom. New venue, new lease on life? The space is un-renovated, and the runway is narrow. It meant you had an up-close view of the beautiful handwork that has won him so many fans over the years.'
Daily Mail: 'As the grand master of red carpet glamour it is little surprise that Oscar de la Renta was one of the most eagerly-anticipated shows at New York Fashion Week. And the designer, 79, lived up to expectation with a spring/summer collection that seemed made for the red carpet.'
Houston Chronical: 'Oscar de la Renta doesn't hold back in an unsure economy. Maybe he doesn't have to. Mixed among the typical New York Fashion Week crowd of retail buyers, stylists and editors at the designer's Tuesday night show were private customers — paying customers — making notes about what they'd like to be wearing next spring. For those women, de la Renta didn't disappoint, with shocking-colored Chinese lamb jackets paired with wide-leg trousers, silk bow-tie blouses and embroidered skirt suits, and the big ballgowns that they need for their jet-setter schedule.'
Grazia UK: ‘Way to go ODLR!’ we squealed on Twitter as Oscar de la Renta kicked off his S/S’12 collection with a FROW-skimming ball gown of mustard taffeta. Traditionally, a catwalk show crescendos to this kind of extravagance – the finale gown usually being the grandest – but the designer geniously flipped the switch and won gasps of awe from his adoring crowd.'
Minimalism and new restraint are terms that we've all been talking about over the past few seasons, but in the world of Oscar de la Renta, no such things exist. As you would expect, his collection was all about luxury, which is fitting considering that a recent report showed that the wealthy no longer feel embarrassed to show off their money since the recession.
The designer took us on a journey around the world, but the collection had a particularly Russian feel. Ethnic prints appeared in abundance on outerwear, and the show opened with a jacquard printed coat in black, red and white. Fox fur appeared everywhere - think the skirt sections of dresses, hats and gillets - which will make sure that you're warm come fall's plummeting temperatures. The standout piece, for me, was a grey strapless gown with silver embroidery over the bust and dramatic grey tulle worn by Lindsey Wixson.
After a promising start to the awards season with the Golden Globes, the SAG awards were disappointing in the wardrobe department. The majority of the looks failed to excite at all and January Jones, Lea Michele, Tina Fey and Winona Ryder were the best of a bad bunch.
Thanks to Rachel Zoe, Eva Mendes is always on-point, and this outfit was not an exception. The actress stepped out at the Marrakesh Film Festival on the weekend - where she's a member of the jury this year - in this romantic white Oscar de la Renta dress with a big black bow teamed with simple flats.
