• The latest model to design clothes? That would be Jessica Stam, who is now collaborating with Rag & Bone. [SF, F'gie]
• Related: Hussein Chalayan isn't too impressed with models who think of themselves as fashion designers. [Cut]
• The day in Anna Wintour: Some people seem to think she's gone "power crazy" thanks to her price fixing proposal. Oh, and in case you were wondering, she isn't a big fan of reality TV. [P6, F'gie]
Hotel owner Andre Balazs has been busy the last few weeks trying to convince people to strip naked at his Standard Hotel. Today the mini-chain launched a line of swimwear with Quiksilver. The boardshorts are supposedly designed for "late-night impromptu pool parties" and will be sold via "high-tech vending machines." But does this mean the hotel's l'âge nu is finished? Developing! [Cool Hunting]
You don't usually see the names Sheila Bair and Anna Wintour mentioned in the same sentence. Bair, of course, is the supremely powerful chairwoman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Wintour is the supremely powerful editor-in-chief of Vogue. But now the two have collided. And, oh, yes. It is on.
• Gisele Bundchen's baby bump was retouched out of London Fog's fall ad campaign. But if you're absolutely dying to see it, the new issue of People seems to deliver. [WWD, Cut, F'gie]
• WWI influenced fashion. So did WWII. And Vietnam. So why is it that we're not seeing the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq reflected on the catwalk? [AP]
• What went down at the CFDA's "town hall" yesterday: Anna Wintour sort of proposed flouting anti-trust laws to boost the fashion industry, Diane von Furstenberg was sort of horrified by the idea, and then Anna informed the room that she has connections in the White House. [NYO]
The Post's Keith Kelly reported today that Elle's parent company has been in discussions to turn over a stake in the magazine to Hearst. Could to be true? For what it's worth, a Hachette spokeswoman tells the Observer there's "no truth" to the report. And while we were hoping that Joe Zee might be able to shed some light on the situation, he seems to be preoccupied with whether or not he has swine flu. Only time will tell if a deal for Elle is in the works. In the meantime, though, feel free to a little prayer for Zee. Catching swine flu five weeks before Fashion Week? That could be tragic. [NYP, NYO]
Remember back in January when we posted amusing little ringtones of Vogue's Anna Wintour and André Leon Talley? It was a resounding success, we must admit: something like 30,000 people downloaded the clips thanks to the flurry of press that followed, including a shout-out in French Vogue. Well, one of those people must have been R.J. Cutler, the director of The September Issue, the documentary about Vogue opening next month. Because as part of the promotional campaign for the movie, Cutler just released ringtones of—you guessed it—Anna Wintour and André Leon Talley.
Years from now, way off into the distant future, people will look back at the videos made by Plum TV, those tireless chroniclers of high society cheesedickery, and they, the future people, will wonder, "Why weren't those twatwaffles sterilized?"
• Madonna's "secret weapon" to looking good, at least according to her longtime makeup artist? Her eyelids are dusted with "a mixture of white shadow and flawless, crushed rose-cut diamonds." Certainly sounds expensive! [SW]
• Is Vogue about to undergo a makeover with "a new circle of models" and "an influx of fresh, young photographers"? One blogger says yes; the magazine, however, says no. [Cut]
• Rachel Roy is partnering with Estelle to create a jewelry line. [WWD]
• Coach president Reed Krakoff has confirmed plans to launch an eponymous "lifestyle brand" for the company, as rumored. [FWD]
• The latest ad campaign for Chanel handbags, shot by Karl Lagerfeld himself, features a very Holly Golightly-looking Lily Allen. [Pipeline, Cut]
• A new front-runner has emerged to possibly take over struggling Christian Lacroix. This time it's Italian retail giant Borletti. [WWD, AFP]
• More trouble for American Apparel and its founder Dov Charney? An anonymous store manager reports Charney has been busy firing employees "he deems unattractive." [Gawker]
• Amber Valletta is the latest supermodel to launch a clothing line. [Cut]
• QVC has tapped Isaac Mizrahi to host a show that's "part pitch, part reality show." The shopping network will air eight hours of "Isaac Mizrahi Live!" a month beginning in December. [WSJ]
• Rachel Roy is opening a pop-up shop in Soho in September. [NL]
• Tory Burch has sold a stake in her company to a Mexico City-based private equity firm. [NYT]
• Marc Jacobs' latest collection of t-shirts take a stand on gay marriage. "I pay my taxes, I want my RIGHTS!" is stamped on the front. [Cut]
• It's official: designer Esteban Cortazar and Emanuel Ungaro are parting ways. [WWD]
• The 20 biggest scandals in fashionland. [Pipeline]
• Amy Winehouse is planning to launch a perfume? Really? Please say this isn't so. [Grazia]
• What t-shirt you decide to wear in the Hamptons makes all the difference, apparently. [NYT]
• Manhattan is far thinner than the rest of the country. Simon Doonan (5-foot-4, 135 lbs.) on what it's like to travel to other parts of the country: "I'm appalled by people my age who can't get through the airport without a wheelchair." [NYT]
• The Barneys display featuring mannequins being attacked and blood spatter on the windows has been dismantled. Barneys creative director Simon Doonan says they had been put up while he was out of town, but they "clearly crossed the line," and so he ordered them taken down. [NYDN]
• Fashion Week kicks off in just seven weeks. The good news is that it probably won't be quite as gloomy this time around. [Cut, WWD]
• Anna Wintour didn't produce or direct The September Issue, the new documentary about Vogue. But that doesn't seem to be stopping her from being "completely controlling" about publicity for the movie. [NYDN]
• Breaking! Michelle Obama unveiled a totally new hairdo today. [Cut]
• Christian Lacroix saved? Possibly! Although Lacroix is keeping mum, a bidder for the struggling fashion house may have emerged. [WWD, Reuters]
• More depressing news about the state of the retail: Manhattan's vacancy rate is 6.5% and rising. [NYT]
• Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen are on the list of the 31 new inductees into the Council of Fashion Designers of America. Like, congrats! [FWD, Cut]
• Hermès reports sales were up 12% during the second quarter. If you've continued to shop there despite the downturn, don't pat yourself on the back. Credit the strong sales of Kelly purses in Asia. [BN]
• It's bad news all around for fashion magazines this September. Ad pages in W are down 53% from last year; Allure has witnessed a 52% drop-off; Vogue is down 37%; and Elle has experienced a 21% decline. [AdAge]
• Rumor has it reality TV star/train wreck Susan Boyle is posing for a Harper's Bazaar photo shoot. The good news? She won't be on the cover. [DM]
• A new survey finds that New York City is no longer the fashion capital of the universe. For the first time in five years, NYC came in second place and Milan snagged the top slot. Or at least this is what a research firm based in Austin, Texas is now claiming. [NYDN]
• The best and worst in July fashion mags. [Cut]
• It looks like Anna Wintour has decided to embrace The September Issue, the forthcoming doc about Vogue's inner workings: Anna herself will be hosting a "splashy" screening next month. [FWD]
• Jason Wu on his morning ritual (espresso at Starbucks, in the office by 10am) and his roommates (his two cats, Jinxy and Peaches). [Times UK]
• Christian Siriano's latest collaboration? It's with Starbucks, apparently. [Cut]
