Quotable

We are not only people having fun or partying, traveling in private jets and kissing celebrities. We are hard workers, responsible for thousands of people's jobs.

- Valentino, on the importance of the fashion industry

"Of course, I am not eternal"

Farewell?

This is what 75-year old Giorgio Armani had to say yesterday after hinting that it may be time to appoint a successor.

"I'm already organizing staff who will continue my work...of course I am not eternal, there comes a time when you must hand it over."

Armani spoke to reporters while in Moscow, having recently jetted in to attend a slew of Armani-related events, including several Fall 2009 presentations and parties.

Recent management changes made within the company have indicated an easing of his workload. Rumors are flying about a possible sale of the company. While there has been no speculation about new creative heads or designers, the industry waits with bated breath until the dreaded day when an announcement is made- and we all know the implications of such a declaration.

Long Live "King Giorgio".

Tip: Laura Dawson Sale

District L readers:

Laura Dawson's last 3-day sale was so popular she's having another one. But today is the last day, so act fast!

Just go to her online store and buy a fabulous piece from her A/W collection, then get another for free.

Enter promo code 26-27-28 at checkout, and sit in anticipation by the front door.

Don't You Know Who She Is?

"I just got robbed in the street in front of the Thyssen museum . . . My wallet, cash and all my credit cards!!"

From Diane Von Furstenburg's twitter page after she, well...got robbed in the street in front of the Thyssen museum in Madrid. She was there, of all things, to receive a Telva Fashion Award. How ironic!

Not ones to take things lightly, District L has already dispatched its army of bitchy queens and PR girls on a search and destroy mission after the bastard.

Maybe this is some karmic payback after allowing MTV to film "The City" at her HQ in the Meatpacking District?

White Break: Bangkok Art & Culture Center

District L recently made a jaunt down to Siam Square in downtown Bangkok to visit the recently inaugurated BACC (Bangkok Art & Culture Center), where we chanced upon a fabulous little exhibition called "White Break".

White Break

"While everything turns to black and dark, it feels like to the end of the road, white is like the light leading to the beginning"

-Jitsing Somboon

The mini-exhibition was inspired by this one quotation, celebrating the color white and it's many representations and interpretations. Coming from dark and tan obsessed North America to pale and white concerned Asia brings the exhibit into a whole new perspective.

Any celebration of white clothing (a personal favorite) is brilliant by me, and a big fuck you to everyone who told me it was impractical.

Since when is fashion always practical?

 

Things That Fabulous People Hate...

Christian Louboutin stated that designing clothes would be his "idea of hell." Cindy Crawford, on the other hand hates catwalks. (I guess if you made your living by not eating, it's okay to bite the hand that feeds.) Speaking of not eating, here is more recent evidence that King Karl hates fatties.

We at District L have our own list of dislikes. On our laundry list? This.

No, this is not the line outside of 1Oak on a Saturday night. This is the crowd waiting to get inside Abercrombie on a Monday afternoon. With the stomach-turning stench of high school wafting down Fifth Avenue, this Midtown disaster ranks pretty high on our shit-list.

Quotable

"I was like, 'Are you really sure you want my name on your ass?' He said, 'Yes.' I didn't want to do it on his ass. I thought he should think about it, so instead I did it on his back, and said, 'You should still think about it! Do you really want my name on your back?' And he said, 'Yes.'"

Christian Louboutin, on one of his more vehement fans at his "Shoe Signing" last Thursday at Bergdorf Goodman.

 

Rosso Reveals.

Charismatic Diesel head Renzo Rosso has some big news.

S/S 2010 in Paris for Maison Margiela revealed that enigmatic Margiela himself was no longer desigining for the label.

Rosso, whose Staff International group currently runs Maison Martin Margiela, has just announced that he is very, very close to annoint...we mean, appointing a new head designer.

According to a twitter post from T magazine's Horacio Silva, "Just had a chat with Diesel's Renzo Russo who says he is this close to naming a new designer at Martin Margiela." The next post read, "Russo stressed that Martin Margiela will continue to be involved with his namesake label, albeit at a distance."

Knowing the Maison's history of shrouding everything it does in mystery, District L really cannot speculate as to who this individual may be.

Rumors, however, of Rosso's intent to buy Ittiere have been denied. One man can only be so fabulous.

Whoa whoa, hold on a sec.

Surprisingly, something noteworthy totally escaped our attention.

While scouring the internet, we came across this little gem on FashionWireDaily that captured our interest.

“I was very influenced in my choice by Tim Gunn, who had invited Lindsay to be a judge [on Project Runway]...his comments that she had a great sense of fashion and knew what works and doesn’t work, were pretty significant to me.”

This came directly out of the mouth of Mounir Moufarrige, CEO of Ungaro.

This is the first of several heart-stopping revelations in the article, entitled "The House of Ungaro's Lowdown on Lindsay Lohan".

Frankly, we were rather shocked to learn that Tim Gunn of all people was the "deciding vote" as it were, to appoint Lohan as the new creative co-director of the major Parisian house.

Moufarrige reveals the reasons behind the final decision, and even behind the fact that she was being considered for the position at all. At first, his rationales seem legitimate.

"We need to bring in younger and cooler and trends to Ungaro. This team can provide that."

"He added that [Estrella] Archs and Lohan had been spending more time together in Los Angeles and New York, but added that this fitted in more with his “long-term vision of the Ungaro woman. She is a combination of the American and European girl.""

Okay, okay, but hold on a second. It gets better.

“Lindsay already had an Ungaro coat at the age of 13...her own mother used to wear Ungaro. You could not sit on a settee or chair in her place. Her home was full of brands. You had to sit on the floor!”

Well, shit. I had a Burberry overcoat when I was 13, I assume I'll be taking up my new position as creative co-director any day now.

The article then goes on to list all of the various events, photoshoots, and interviews Lohan was late for or skipped out on entirely leading up to her Paris showing.

“Lindsay Lohan is not a designer, we are not pretending that she is. But she is a great merchandiser who can bring lots of ideas. You will soon see that,” said Moufarrige.

We all saw how that turned out. Case closed.

Quotable

"We know Marc Jacobs doesn't take the fashion world too seriously, so maybe clogs were his way of having a joke at our expense. But you can bet your last penny that these noisy shoes will be all over the high street come spring."

Rachel Holmes, Guardian UK, laments the "klompen" filled runways of LV and Chanel

Honestly, we have to agree. WTF.

Gilt, not Guilt.

Karl and Mini-Karl are listening. Tread lightly.

Ugh, enough already.

Shopper's guilt is on the rise, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal. It's hampering the luxury retail goods market, and our mood.

"It used to be about keeping up with the Joneses, and now it's about outsaving the Joneses," said Gilt Groupe co-founder Alexis Maybank of the recent spike, obviously related to our super-stagnant, completely and irrevocably fucked economy.

The article even goes on to elaborate on how the pang of guilt produced by the prefrontal cortex is the exact same one produced after a smoker finishes a cigarette. What it should really produce is the exact same reaction that occurs in our prefrontal cortices after we pound a bottle of Moet- "another plz."

A valid point the article makes is that "Browsing and buying release a variety of emotions. Selecting clothes and trying them on produces a high. When shopping feels good, that's the dopamine in your brain, the same euphoria that eating chocolate can generate."

Witchcraft, voodoo, and make-believe to be found in the article includes:

""Luxury shame"—epitomized by the showy act of walking out of a fancy store with a big shopping bag [and that's a bad thing?]—is one of the main reasons for the estimated 20% jump in online luxury sales this year."

"Another tactic for taking some of the guilt out of shopping—offering a charitable-giving component"

"Other companies are putting more emphasis on the "guilt-free shopping" that is said to come with buying environmentally safe products."

Wah, wah, wah.

Whatever happened to buying something just because? Because it's high quality? Because it's luxurious? Because you want it.

District L doesn't appreciate being made to feel like an arrogant turd for wanting to invest in luxury apparel and accessories without all of the environmental, philanthropic, and smarmy strings attached.

Stop crying before Karl hears you.

Update: Gawking at Fashionistas

Gawker paid tribute to our fabulous favorite Anna Wintour, suggesting that skinny PR girls should dress like her for Halloween. Unfortunately, they called her scary and used a photo of the one time she wears loafers.

Our suggestion? Wear a bob, big sunglasses, and a patterned A-line dress with Jimmy Choo pumps.

Fashionista, on the other hand, offered quite a few fashion ideas for Halloween. On the list? Anna, Tavi, Vivienne, and Rachel Zoe. And if a boy came to a Halloween party dressed as Olivier Zahm, we would love him forever.

OMG LOL... Frida 4 Free

Gucci introduced its first iPhone/iPod Touch app today, providing customers with hotel and restaurant tips, a 24-hour music channel, playlists, and a turntable for mixing tracks. The new luxe app was designed by industry-addicted music producer, Mark Ronson.

Our fabulous fave, Frida calls the free app a "virtual accessory."

She then went on to poke Mark Ronson and "like" his Facebook status.

STFU: Agyness Deyn

Times 1-6 out of 7,000,000 Agyness Deyn has been sighted being a pain in our ass. Thanks Google Image search.

We won't mince words- like many others in the fashion world, Agyness Deyn irritates the living hell out of us.

Which is why we weren't happy to learn she might be going down the highly successful, completely unidiotic, and much-venerated road of model-turned-actress.

Aggy is slated to appear alongside Linus Roache of Law & Order notoriety in a short film rumored to be sponsored and financed by Guerlain and Mikimoto.

That's just fucking precious.

Temperley Does it Properly.

Temperley London, S/S 2010 RTW

It goes without saying that the District L duo strongly disapproves of designers who sellout to downmarket retailers.

So you can just imagine how delighted we were to learn that Alice Temperley, designer behind highly successful pret-a-porter label Temperley London, has decided to launch a bridge line.

Gee, what a brilliant way to bring in ancilliary revenue without tarnishing your reputation! Imagine that...

Alice by Temperley, as the new line will be called, will be sold at Temperley London boutiques, London/NY/LA flagships, and select Neiman's locations.

Let's face facts. Sure, the recession is waning somewhat; but unless you've been picked up by one of the conglomerate fashion groups, the fashion game is a dangerous one.

So now all you losers who slept with Target and Payless without a condom are gonna pay.

Long Live the Queen

1874 marks the First Republic of Spain. 1803 marks the Louisiana Purchase. 1776 marks the year America declared independence. But before all that, there was Tatler. The British fashion and gossip magazine is celebrating their 300th year anniversary next month!

"1709, Tatler was born," said Catherine Olster, the new editor-in-chief.

Long live bitchy Queen Tatler!

No Hope

Yesterday, while running errands throughout midtown for work, my dwindling hope for the everyday citizen continued to erode. As I walked down Fifth Avenue, I saw a line for Abercrombie that snaked around the building. I saw pudgy women giggling over their Ann Taylor Loft finds and waddling straight into Ruby Tuesdays.

Then, this morning I read this, an article about a man unsuccessfully wearing runway looks in the suburbs surrounding London. Not being able to grasp its conceptual value, he wears Vivienne Westwood, gets mocked for not having the confidence to pull it off, and then blames the outfit.

S.O.S. Karl, S.O.S.

I have a dream that one day,

women will stop wearing Uggs,

and Abercrombie will stop calling their generic salespeople "models."

District L Wants to Know...

...why Fashion Week Daily is advertising management positions for Fashion Bug and The Limited on their website?

Jobs by Not Haute.net indeed.

Sites in New Jersey and...somewhere in New York that isn't the City or the Hamptons, no less!

Quotable

"The critics can say whatever they want, but Lindsay is a genius."

Dina Lohan on her daughter's multiple inadequacies as an artistic director...or whatever the hell she thinks she is.

If this is the new face of "genius", we'd hate to see what "complete idiot" or "catastrophic failure" looks like.

 

New York, Paris, London... Rome?

District L was conceptualized and conceived at  Milan Fashion Week back in 2006, so it is difficult to listen to the new rumors that are swirling. According to Lauren Milligan of Vogue, the rumors may be true: Italy might be moving its fashion week from Milan to Rome.

The Italian Chamber of Fashion denies the move, but Silvia Venturini Fendi didn't mind the idea. "I think Rome is a perfect place for creative happenings," she stated.

District L says no. Would you move London Fashion Week to Birmingham? Absolutely not! Would you move Paris Fashion Week to Marseille? Never!

Milan IS the home for Italy's fashion week. Changing that would be like moving New York Fashion Week from Bryant Park to.... oh wait.

The Buzz Around McQueen

Flicking through the photos of McQueen's show on Style.com put me in a good mood for the morning. It was bright, colorful, and intricate with the focus being put on the legs by short, shiny dresses.

With the strange antennae-like hairstyles, McQueen got me thinking of exotic beetles. No, not that big monster that scurried into your kitchen in the middle of the night last summer. I mean the jaw-dropping kind that you have to bend down for further inspection and ask someone if its poisonous.

A new type of femme-fatale?

Quotable

"You don't buy your dreams at the supermarket."

-Bernard Arnault, Chairman and CEO of LVMH and Christian Dior SA

Georges Chakra finale

Love, Loss, and What She's Wearing

So I was reading WWD today, when I came across this little gem. Apparently, Rosie O'Donnell is angry. I know, shocking.

In her play, Love, Loss, and What I Wore, one character takes a jab at Eileen Fisher stating, "I just want to say, that when you start wearing Eileen Fisher, you might as well say, 'I give up'."

While the line was humorous and rather accurate, O'Donnell was furious saying, "I'm really objecting to the Eileen Fisher comment being that I just purchased every single thing she makes and threw out everything else I own. Literally, my entire wardrobe is only Eileen Fisher... that and sweat suits."

Yeah, Rosie. By no means does an entire wardrobe of sweat suits and Eileen Fisher scream, 'I give up.' Not at all.

Don't look so angry!

Don't Kill Us- Karl Lagerfeld S/S 2010 RTW

So here's the deal. The majority of fashion press, by and large, has a high propensity for leniency when it comes to runway critique.

We aren't the majority of the fashion press.

Granted, things happen- Lindsay Lohan, for example. But I might as well get this one off my chest.

I wasn't terribly impressed with Karl Lagerfeld's S/S 2010 line.

Being Fashion God is a tough job- especially when you have your own line, Chanel, and 1/2 of Fendi to run and need to constantly churn out new ideas. At first glance, Karl Lagerfeld this season appears to largely be an assortment of rompers, shorts, and high-waisted skirts that have been dressed up and down for variety. Upon closer inspection, you realize that Karl is dressing his female alter-ego.

Like these gems.

The collection also featured some classic regurgitations of what one would expect to find in any Chanel showing.

All well designed. All perfectly wearable. Chic, but as a whole the collection felt uninspired and repetitive.

Let's just hope this runway suffered only because Karl has something spectacular up his sleeve for Chanel.

 

"Passage to India"- Haider Ackermann S/S 2010

Oh the things Haider Ackermann did with leather for A/W-they made us swoon, but not quite so much as the press did after Tilda Swinton wore one of his looks to the Cannes Film Festival. The designer admits that the onslaught of media attention "piled on the pressure" but that didn't stop him from whipping out another fantastic collection, this one inspired (apparently) by colonial India.

I have to admit, upon perusal of the collection's 32 looks I was left wanting for something to back this up. Aside from a few looks in saffron and the odd jodphur inspired pant here and there, I didn't really see what Ackermann was talking about. Semantics aside, the runway was killer. The draped leather jacket, executed in the creamiest leather imaginable is rising to become his signature piece. The beauty of it is that you can work a leather jacket into an ensemble for any season- in A/W it's a daywear essential, and for S/S the same jacket in lighter material complements an edgy evening look. Pairing the jackets with floor length gowns is another look Ackermann seems to have mastered- it reminded me of Balenciaga's tuxedo jacket/gown play for A/W.

So despite a somewhat ill-fitting title, the collection did not fail to impress; we can easily see the Haider Ackermann jacket becoming an essential for every girl's closet very, very quickly.

 

WWD Calls Lohan's Debut at Ungaro "An Embarrassment"

Hot pink and orange and heart motif, oh my! Thank you, Lindsay Lohan, for confirming our belief that Hollywood and high-fashion make a dangerous, disastrous combination. Lohan, the new "artistic advisor" for Ungaro, worked with Estrella Archs to create a rather dated collection that Style.com called "disappointing." See for yourself.

Quotable

"So, the designers had to pitch designs to INC, the bargain brand for people who are too fancy for JCPenny or Sears but really enjoy their price and design aesthetic." - Brian Moylan, on the demise of Project Runway

Gareth Pugh: Shades of Gray

We've witnessed a lot of white in Milan, we spotted more in Paris, and we even got a glimpse of white-trash. but Gareth Pugh decided to give us shades of gray this season. Moody and unpredictable, this show took our breath away.