John Galliano has made his first appearance on the social scene. Is this the start of the resurrection of the fallen designer?
It’s not often that the appearance of a designer at a fashion party makes global news.
However, it’s not often the designer is John Galliano.
New York gossip column Page Six breathlessly reported that the shamed ex-Dior designer made one of his first public appearances since his trial, appearing to support friend Jeremy Healy at a bash in London.
Galliano presumably felt the pressure of several hundred pairs of eyes on him, and acted “quiet and reserved”.
Fashion commentators have been calling for his resurrection recently, particularly since his rehab – he’s admitted to being in a drug-addled haze while saying vitriolic hate speech in a cafe in Paris.
Galliano also quietly appeared at Kate Moss’s wedding, where he designed and made her wedding gown. By ‘quietly’ we mean ‘appeared in the pages of Vogue arranging the train’.
That photograph was a sure sign that one of the biggest hitters in the fashion industry is secretly on his side – Anna Wintour is famously frigid to those designers she loathes. Jean Paul Gaultier has called her ‘monstrous’, and Azzedine Alaia hasn’t been featured in Vogue at all for his feud with the industry titan.
With Wintour on his side, what beckons for Galliano? Will he get back to designing? Will fashion buyers forgive him for his anti-Semitism?
A new year might mean a new chapter for him. What do you think will happen? Image: John Galliano.
It seems a long time ago now that Miranda Kerr was just another Aussie model breaking onto the scene.
However, Douglas Perrett, a famous casting director, remembers the time well – and also remembers her frustration starting out.
The main cause of her lack of success? Her friendship with Jess Hart, the blonde bombshell with the gap in her teeth, who’s now most famous as one of the faces of Guess.
Perrett remembered that they would do all their castings together – and that her “blonde friend… would always get the job. She never booked the jobs.”
Perhaps that’s the reason Jess and Miranda no longer seem as close as they once were. Back in early 2007 both women were dating the male-model members of beach-band Tamarama – Kerr was with lead singer Jay Lyons and Hart with Nicholas Potts – and starred in their videos, but Kerr has since moved on to Orlando Bloom.
Kerr is now rated one of the world’s most successful models, so it seems she had the last laugh – but Perrett remembers otherwise.
Image: Miranda Kerr’s polaroid from Douglas Perrett’s collection.
We now live in a world where you can see Megan Fox carrying a clutch, find it on the internet and have it shipped to your door within the week.
Forget the iPhone – that’s technological progress.
The latest entrant into the 24-hour celeb-couture cycle is Celeb Boutique, which specialises in sourcing the exact items worn by the famed and well-heeled and providing them to us lesser beings.
The best part of their enterprise is that they don’t simply source Mulberry bags – they find affordable alternatives, making us fashionable within a budget.
That, of course, is the key problem of copying celebrity style. Not all of the famous are like Rihanna, who mixes and matches vintage with high street with couture, making copying her look a far easier and affordable exercise than, say, Victoria Beckham’s pure-designer chic.
We can recommend, however, that you don’t go out in some of the wilder outfits of celebrities unless you’re a size 00 and lack any sense of shame.
It’s going to be a source of deadly temptation for us now, to scour the daily paparazzi photos and know that somewhere on the web there’s an easily available version of the amazing shoes Kate Winslet was wearing last night…
Image: Celeb Boutique.
Pick up every bead you bought during all those trips abroad. Tribal chic is in.
Fashion’s having a colour moment, and exuberance is the key of the day – so have fun with it!
This isn’t a trend for the low-key or lacking in courage, but once you dive in, it’s hard to stop. Source out African- or Thai-inspired bangles, rings, necklaces and prints.
Don’t aim to look like an anthropologist project – mix and match, add feathers, add spikes, and always go for colour.
A tip – weighty pieces don’t need to be ‘on their own’ to make an impact. Layer several heavy necklaces for maximum impact.
If you’re a particularly vibrant personality, put all of these layers of accessories against a background of clashing prints and a slick of bright lipstick. It’s a very ‘in’ statement – perhaps we’re getting over the recession by being as loud as possible.
However, if you’re more classic in temperament, make the tribal statement over dark or cream clothes in simple shades and cuts. Let the focus be on your celebratory array of corals, beads, teeth and fringe. Work it back with slick hair and simplicity.
Also avoid cheap tourist-type jewellery – always look for beautiful pieces, even if your price range isn’t stellar. After all, once the moment passes you want to be able to wear these on their own, as statement pieces.
And have fun with it – it’s clear when a fashionista is doing something just because it’s ‘the thing’, or whether she’s indulging because she genuinely enjoys making a splash.
Image: Tribal chic in Harper’s Bazaar.
