Venus Williams and fashion may not seem like the most obvious combination but that's exactly what the tennis player is focusing on. Earlier on this year she relaunched EleVen by Venus Williams by taking complete control over the line after originally designing it for Steve & Barry's, who went bankrupt in 2008 and now, she taking it to New York Fashion Week.
Over the weekend she threw a party for the line in the Hamptons where she confirmed that it's definitely happening despite the fact that the planning is in its infant stages due to her being in London for the Olympics. Yesterday her publicist confirmed that the line will be showed in a presentation format rather than a runway show on Wednesday September 12 and by the sounds of it, everything we'll see is completely Venus. 'I lead up all the design,' she told The Cut. 'That's really number one, because if I'm not there doing that, then it won't look like me, and it will start to look ordinary.'
Anna Wintour's never shied away from demonstrating her love of tennis. Over the years she's become a permanent fixture in the crowd at the US Open and Wimbledon and has become Rodger Federer's number one fan, even leaving Jason Wu's show early to watch him win the French Open.
So considering her relationship with the best in the tennis world (remember when she turned up at the Michael Kors shows with Serena Williams?), it's comes as no surprise that the Vogue editor is a dab hand with a tennis racket herself. The New York Times recently ran a piece on piece on the link between fashion and tennis, in which Wintour's instructor explained just how good she is. 'She's like a retriever,' he told the title. 'She's so fast. She'll chase down everything.' Can't say I'm surprised.
They're competitive on the tennis court and now they're fighting for your vote. Which Williams sister looked better at the 2009 ESPY Awards in LA yesterday?
Maria Sharapova: not just for tennis. Besides becoming the face of Cole Haan, she'll be designing for the line. Her stilettos will have Nike Air cushioning, and thank goodness. "Somebody needed to make a shoe that you can stand around for hours in," she told WWD.
