You've probably heard the news by now but, as you can imagine, it's too good not to comment. Carine Roitfeld has officially signed on as the new global fashion director of Harper's Bazaar. Aside from the fact that it means that we can expect to see a lot more Roitfeld-styled shoots (hurrah!), the move is a big middle finger to Condé Nast, who haven't shied away from criticising the former Vogue Paris editor recently.
According to a press release, Roifeld will work with Harper's creative director Stephen Gan (who she also works with on CR Fashion Book) on several fashion stories each year, which will appear acroess the 26 intentional editions of the magazine. 'This collaboration marks the first time anything like this has been done and we're very excited about what Carine will bring to Bazaar editions around the world,' Hearst CEO and president Duncan Edwards said in a statement. 'She is a visionary in the fashion world and we are so happy to be working with her.'
On the whole, Nicole Kidman is a good cover star. Her one for Vogue Australia's May issue is still one of my favourites from her, so much so that I'm willing to put the monstrosity that was her V magazine cover to one side. That aside, she really did need to pull it out of the bag for her latest one and thankfully she did.
The actress appears on the November cover of US Harper's Bazaar glowing in a gold dress alongside cover lines that ironically say, 'Sexy & Age Appropriate' and 'The Daring Issue.' Even more ironic is the fact that the cover was shot by Terry Richardson. Considering how revealing her Mario Testino-shot V cover was, you would have thought that was more Richardson's bag but credit where credit's due, he's actually done a good job with it.
US Harper's Bazaar aren't the only ones releasing behind-the-scenes videos from their September issue cover shoot. Last week US Vogue released this video with Lady Gaga.
Granted, the video doesn't quite match up to Bazaar's sit down interview with Gwen Stefani. On the flip side, Vogue do offer up Marc Jacobs fluffy hats, elf shoes and Gaga doing her best Beyoncé hair-flicking impressions while her aptly titled new song 'Hair' plays. What more could you want?
By now you've all probably seen Gwen Stefani's amazing September cover of US Harper's Bazaar (it's my favourite so far) and if you liked that, you'll be pleased to know that it doesn't end there. Yesterday the magazine released a behind-the-scenes video from the cover shoot and before you dismiss it, it's not one of those typical ones with music playing on top.
In the video Laura Brown sat down and spoke to the singer about everything from how she came up with her signature look to when she discovered fashion and everything in between. Most interestingly, though, was the revelation that Stefani used to play with Terry Richardson's band in the early No Doubt days:
No Doubt used to play with [Terry Richardson's] band, Double Freak. It was pretty freaky. It was the L.A. scene, back in the day. I didn't even realize it until I walked in and he was like, "Double Freak!" And I was like, "Oh my god, really?"
As The Cut hilariously point out, Brown didn't push her for details considering how crazy some of the those stories could, and have, been so kept it on a fashion level and of course, spoke about Stefani's new record with No Doubt.
Regular readers will know just how strongly I feel about the need to have models on the covers of magazines as opposed to celebrities. GwenStefani is an exception to the rule.
Aside from the fact that she's uber talented, she's one of the few celebrities, along with Sarah Jessica Parker and Lady Gaga, whose careers have been so extrinsically linked to fashion that having her on the cover of a September issue makes sense. After all, she is a designer in her own right too.
Today her Terry Richardson-shot US Harper's Bazaar cover dropped and it is everything we could have hoped for. The head piece she rocks on the cover works brilliantly and in the accompanying shoot Stefani sports that beautiful pink Jil Sander dress from Raf Simons' last collection at the house, along with that multi-tiered Alexander McQueen dress too.
The headlines may still be full of reports about the end of Vera Wang's marriage but Michael Kors is one designer that's been talking about just how happy his marriage is recently. In the August issue of Harper's Bazaar the designer reminisces about tying the knot with longtime partner Lance LaPere in 'The List' feature:
Our wedding day last year was our dream day. We stayed with friends in Southampton. We both had massages, we had caviar for lunch — gobs of it. We went to the beach and got married barefoot. Then we went to see The Help in East Hampton and afterward we went out for pizza at Sam's. Give me beach, give me a movie I can cry at with someone I love, and within that day have my favorite junk food and my favorite indulgent food.
Pizza and a movie on your wedding day, really? Well if it's good enough for Kors....
Elle are undoubtedly going to clean up with their circulation numbers for August with that perfectly timed Katie Holmes cover but US Harper's Bazaar will not too far behind. Since shaking things up earlier on this year, the magazine has had a string of strong covers and their latest one starring Rihanna is no exception and besides, the singer's covers always tend to go down well on the newsstands.
Last week I showed you a preview of the subscriber's cover showing the singer sporting a Fall 2012 Tom Ford dress but recently, the full editorial was released online. On the official cover, which was shot by Camilla Akrans, Rihanna looks refreshingly paired back wearing a simple but classic Calvin Klein dress and a gold Neil Lane bracelet. This is by far, the best editorial we've seen from her a long while.
I think it's safe to say that Rihanna's last big cover didn't go down particularly well. While her accompanying spread in US Elle's wasn't too bad, it was the cover, which showed off her blonde hair and black roots, that was generally to blame for the criticisms. Over the weekend it emerged that the 24 year-old has bagged another cover but this time for US Harper's Bazaar's August issue and so far things are looking good.
The image that has hit the net is said to be the magazine's subscriber's issue and sees the singer sport a gold dress from Tom Ford's Fall 2012 collection along with blue snakeskin boots, in what is her first ever cover for the US title. The magazine has been doing well with their covers and fashion stories since their big redesign earlier on this year so I'm sure we'll be in for a treat.
British Vogue isn't the only cover that Kate Moss has bagged for June. Yesterday this image dropped showing the model posing on the cover of US Harper's Bazaar's runway report magazine, partnering up with Terry Richardson again. On the cover Moss sports a feathered dress from the much-loved S/S12 Alexander McQueen collection and the accompanying shoot takes place on a sunny beach in Jamaica.
We really missed Karlie Kloss during London and Milan but luckily for us she made a big return today at Paris fashion week opening the show for Anthony Vaccarello.
Last season Kloss wore the designer's black cut out dress with that thigh-high slit and as you will recall, Carine Roitfeld wore it to her big fashion week closing party shortly after it debuted on the runway and Gwyneth Paltrow wore it to cover US Harper's Bazaar's revamped March issue. Today she was a lot more covered up in this trouser-shirt combo.
