Rumor mill
MANILA, Philippines - Ever since Marc Jacobs announced his departure from Louis Vuitton earlier this month, former Balenciaga creative director Nicolas Ghesquière’s name has been been thrown around pretty frequently as his replacement. This week, speculation evolved into premature confirmation as several insiders from the industry, such as Eva Chen, Nina Garcia and even the Twitter account of Dazed and Confused, started congratulating Ghesquière on his new gig. However, WWD swiftly corrected the rumors with a quote from LVMH chairman and CEO Bernard Arnault stating, “No decision is done. We have to, after the show, think and decide. But no decision will be made immediately.†Fashionista.com traced the hearsay to Singapore men’s magazine Men’s Folio, which announced, “It has been confirmed that that former Balenciaga artistic director Nicolas Ghesquière beat out many contenders to fill in Marc Jacob’s (sic) shoes.†While many of us would be thrilled to see Ghesquière get right back to work, it looks like we’ll have to wait and see how this all plays out.
It was plaid at first sight at the wedding of Grammy-winning rapper/producer Pharrell Williams and newly minted wifey Helen Lasichanh. Eschewing the usual tux and white gown, Williams — who’s always been a bit of a fashion fiend, founding brands like Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream — wore a red tartan suit, while Lasichanh, who also has a fashion background as a model and sometime fashion designer, went bolder with voluminous navy blue plaid dress and a tiara. Though they were engaged for only three months, the couple has been together for five years and have a four-year-old son named Rocket. Last Oct. 12, they boarded a yacht in Miami Beach, Florida with a couple of family members and friends, like Usher and Busta Rhymes, who performed at the reception, along with Jay-Z, Justin Timberlake, Robin Thicke, Paula Patton and Gwen Stefani. They later said their vows at Kampong National Tropical Botanical Gardens in Coconut Grove. Terry Richardson took their wedding photos, natch.
Fash-piration
How much people spend in the name of fashion has been in the news a lot this week. Page Six reported that unlike previous years when tickets to the Met Gala were available at $15,000 and $25,000, this coming May, the “cheap seats,†as New York Magazine called them, would no longer be offered because the annual fête needs to be “even more high-fashion, even more exclusive and even more aspirational.†Meanwhile, Time magazine reported that while North Korean leader Kim Jong Un spent $645.8 million last year on luxury goods like pets, fur and mid-sized sedans, while according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, NoKor is “one of 34 countries that require external assistance to properly feed their people.†Last, Anna Dello Russo revealed just how much it costs to take a fashion shower: $50K... for one outfit. A day. In a video for a Moda Operandi series called The One That Got Away, in which fashion people talk about that one item that they couldn’t get their hands on, she told BFF Giovanna Battaglia, “It doesn’t happen to me. I missed so many boyfriends but not outfits, darling. For me, I have to look expensive. I need… $50,000 (for) each outfit a day.†Well, considering she wore a two-piece outfit from D&G’s spring 2013 collection to go running with Battaglia, does her statement really come as a surprise?
When Gwyneth Paltrow makes news, I usually DGAF, but whatever, it’s a slow news week: Her Royal Blondeness has announced a partnership with Michael Kors for a one-off Christmas collection that will be available exclusively on the resource for all things Gwynnie, Goop.com. “Michael’s clothes are gorgeous, staple, American classics that never go out of style,†Paltrow said (quite possibly referring to herself as well). “I thought it would be wonderful to reinvent some of my favorite vintage Michael Kors looks that I have kept for years, that I wear over and over.†In the past, Paltrow has collaborated with Matthew Williamson and BFF, Stella McCartney. According to Vogue.co.uk, the line “includes ready-to-wear, such as capes and peacoats, as well as accessories from Kors’s mainline, selected by Paltrow.†Mmmmkay.