SPRING’s nail offerings featured an array of innovative textures and finishes, and Yves Saint Laurent looks set to keep the trend going for summer with its new tri-phase La Laque Couture Tie And Dye top coats.
Rather than creating the tie-dye finish you might expect, the new top coats are designed to be shaken to mix the iridescent particles, colour and high-shine, transparent top coat for a candy-like veil finish. And then, after each use, the three phases in the bottle will return to their distinct layers - like a beauty chemistry experiment, if you will.
Available from May 1 at Selfridges and Brown Thomas, in four shades priced at £18 each.
Thanks to recent tragic anorexia deaths and several high profile campaigns, seeing a scarily skinny model on the catwalk is becoming an increasingly rare event.
But while womenswear designers have taken a step in the right direction, it seems the same cannot be said for those behind men’s fashion collections.
A photo of a shockingly thin male model on the catwalk at YSL was tweeted by blogger Poppy Dinsey, the founder of website What I Wore Today.
‘Woefully irresponsible model casting at YSL yesterday.’ she wrote, before adding: ‘Speechless’.
The photo of the emaciated model prompted a barrage of responses from other Twitter users, most of whom tweeted their support and horror YSL’s use of the gaunt model.
But in a disturbing twist, others weighed in in favour of looking extremely thin, with one user - who outs herself as ‘pro ana’ in her Twitter handle - arguing that despite appearances, Dinsey should have made clear that he ‘ISN’T ill’.
The woman added: ‘Have you thought how he’d feel if he saw this? He has absolutely NOTHING wrong.’
‘I have had hundreds of replies but haven’t seen a single response that says they think it looks healthy or acceptable, although plenty of fashiony friends enjoyed the collection itself - which people seem to be forgetting about,’ said Dinsey.
‘What did upset me was the number of people who said the model was ‘disgusting’ - I made a point of saying you can’t assume that the model has an eating disorder.
‘I have been to hundreds of fashion shows so I’m never particularly surprised by the latest ‘shock model picture’ but casting directors have to take some responsibility.
‘A model may well be healthy, but if someone looking at the pictures will assume the opposite, why not cast someone who doesn’t create such controversy?’
The gaunt-faced model is a far cry from the healthy-looking male models who have dominated the industry in recent years.
High-earning male models such as David Gandy, Gabriel Aubry and Andrés Velencoso have set an industry standard geared towards the fit and healthy rather than the emaciated.
But the appearance of the emaciated model suggests times could be changing and that’s worrying - particularly at a time when male anorexia or ‘manorexia’ is becoming more widespread.
According to recent figures released by eating disorders charity, B-EAT, the number of male anorexics, previously thought to total just 10 per cent of total sufferers, has shot up.
Male sufferers now account for a quarter of all disordered eating cases but often find themselves struggling with the disease alone thanks to a lack of awareness about the disease and how it affects men.
‘All too often eating disorders are seen as a young girl’s illness,’ says B-EAT spokeswoman, Leanne Thorndyke.
‘There is still a great deal of misunderstanding and stigma surrounding these serious psychiatric conditions which makes it even more difficult for a male to admit to having the problem and seeking help.’
And, while the sight of models such as the one seen at YSL aren’t directly to blame, according to Thorndyke, they certainly don’t help.
‘The fashion industry doesn’t cause eating disorders. It does, however, have a powerful influence that is highly toxic to some vulnerable people.
‘People have told us these images alone do not cause their eating disorder but it can make it harder for people to recover.’
Adds Dinsey: ‘It’s unfair on the fashion industry to say that all designers are peddling an unhealthy ideal, as the majority of designers and casting directors will be doing their utmost to only book healthy models.
‘Catwalk models aren’t like your average attractive guy or girl from school - they fit a very narrow ideal of height and weight and some people are just naturally that thin.
‘The problem is, impressionable people across the world see these images and aspire to be like this - when it would take nothing short of starvation to achieve the same shape - and that’s forgetting they’re probably four inches too short to model anyway.’
British model Edie Campbell and musician Beck both star in the new Saint Laurent Spring/Summer 2013 campaign. Posing in black&white for Creative Director Hedi Slimane who also serves as photographer, the duo wear the label’s 70s inspired pieces including wide-brimmed hats and suited tailoring.
Top fashion moments of 2012
1.One of fashion’s most celebrated designers, Nicolas Ghesquière, exited Balenciaga after 15 years amid rumours he was not happy with the direction the brand was moving towards…And shortly after, Alexander Wang was named his predecessor.
2.Karl Lagerfeld’s adorable kitten, Choupette, became an internet sensation after the designer revealed details of her diva lifestyle (she has three maids, doesn’t like to eat off the floor and keeps a diary, to name a few)
3.In an emotional farewell, Raf Simons received a standing ovation at his final show for Jil Sander. Soon after, the Belgian designer was appointed creative director at Christian Dior. Simons garnered critical acclaim for his first haute couture and ready-to-wear collections for the iconic brand.
4.Fashion critic Cathy Horyn called Oscar de la Renta a “hot dog” in a collection review for the New York Times, prompting the designer to pen an open letter to Horyn via WWD, asking; “If you have the right to call me a hot dog why do I not have the right to call you a stale 3-day old hamburger?” Even though, technically, he did it anyway. They’ve since made nice.
5.Hedi Slimane joined Yves Saint Laurent, and promptly changed the name and logo of the ready-to-wear line to Saint Laurent Paris.
6.For Louis Vuitton’s A/W 12-13 collection, Marc Jacobs sent out a fully-functioning, hand-made replica of the Orient Express laden with models (and porters for their luggage).
7.Daria Werbowy chopped off her signature wavy locks for Céline’s A/W 12-13 campaign…
8.Australian designers Dion Lee and Josh Goot showed in London, receiving international acclaim for their collections.
9.Zac Posen’s PR Lynn Tesoro was slapped by French editor Jennifer Eymere after a disagreement over seating at Posen’s A/W 12-13 show. Tesoro is currently suing Eyemere for $1 million in damages.
“To be honest, for me it wasn’t even clear we would be shooting a men’s campaign. As the day evolved it became evident that he wanted to use me for his men’s campaign.”
“Slimane told me I was boyish in his eyes. For him femininity and masculinity are the same thing, the difference is not so interesting, he said.”
“The pieces are classics. I think they will appeal to both men and women in the same way. I know that my boyfriend would love to buy some pieces and so would I!”
Since Yves Saint Laurent announced that it would be changing its named to ‘Saint Laurent Paris’ to signify a revamp under new creative director Hedi Slimane, the public have had a mixed reaction regarding the news. Although they will continue to use the old ‘YSL’ logo, they’ve created a sleek and simple ‘Saint Laurent Paris’ longer logo to accompany it which will begin appearing on store fronts shortly. Despite some negative feelings towards the name change, it appears many fashion insiders are on board. Karl Lagerfeld recently voiced his approval:
“All of them, Dior and Hedi at Saint Laurent, are friends of mine, so I think it’s a very good thing… Paris needs some new things, some stimulation… It’s good for everybody. Competition is a healthy thing in life, especially in this business. I love the idea. I think it’s interesting and it’s important. Something fresh was needed.”
“I think it was a good idea to change it … People who aren’t in the fashion world might not know that a new designer has joined the brand, so this is a clear way of signifying that there’s been a big change. It’s the sort of thing everyone will notice, not just fashion people. YSL was the first campaign I ever did, I’d love to do another one — it’d make me so proud.”
The iconic French brand has teamed up with Pantone and Facebook , and will soon be launching a ‘Devoted to Fans’ line, a collection available completely and exclusively to their Facebook fans. The first product to emerge is an eye palette using the iconic blue we all recognise from Facebook. There will only be 1,650 available for loyal fans to snap up, will you be one of them?
Could Yves Saint Laurent return to the world of couture? Hedi Slimane says maybe. The new creative director revealed that haute couture is a possibility for the house, although not its primary concern. “The priority today is to revamp and redeploy the luxury ready-to-wear,” Slimane says in a recent interview.
"Fashion is like a party. Getting dressed is preparing to play a role"
Yves Saint Laurent (via the-front-row)
Reblogged from the-front-row with 174 notes / ysl fashion designers quotes inspiration
