Westfield Partners With Hot Aussie Designers
Exciting news: Westfield department stores have launched a huge partnership with three of Australia’s hottest young designers.
Dion Lee, Romance Was Born and We Are Handsome have taken the market by storm, and now Westfield is their promotional partner.
They’ll be giving them financial support during Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, in-store design installations, short-term residency at Westfield Doncaster in Victoria, and a mentorship program.
It’s a pretty heady line-up for any emerging brand.
So why is Westfield put its money where its mouth is?
Peter Leslie, director of leasing, said it was ‘to show our support of Australian talent.’
‘The fashion retail space is changing,’ he said at the partnership’s launch, a star-studded event in Sydney, ‘and we want to embrace the evolution of this industry by providing opportunities.’
However, there’s also the interesting fact that Aussie designers have been voicing dissatisfaction with Mercedes Benz Fashion Week – specifically where it is in the calendar.
Dion Lee infamously pulled out of the 2012 Australian fashion shows, saying that his overseas shows, which were held very soon before and afterwards, had to be a priority.
So perhaps Westfield is hoping that with more investment and attention, Aussie designers will focus on flourishing at home as well as abroad.
Are you looking forward to seeing the Westfield collaborations?
Image: Dion Lee backstage at 2013 Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, courtesy Sonny Valdevelde.
Angelina Jolie And Stella McCartney Team Up For Maleficent
If your kid’s ever wanted to be the evil queen or king instead of the princess in trouble, a high-fashion line is launching just for them.
The reboot of Sleeping Beauty, Maleficent, is hitting cinemas soon, and its star Angelina Jolie has teamed up with Brit designer Stella McCartney to produce a line of kids clothing inspired by the tale.
However, don’t expect sweetness and light – at all.
‘It’s a lot eerier than the original sugary-sweet fairytale and Stella says that’s why she found the film inspiring,’ said Jolie. ‘There is a bit of darkness to Maleficent which can be really scary at times but at the same time visually brilliant.’
And McCartney herself was delighted at the possibility: ‘When the opportunity presented itself and I was invited by Angelina Jolie to visit the film set, I jumped at the chance.’
So what’s on the menu for kids looking for an unhappily ever after?
The range has eight styles, from tops to dresses to sandals, for both genders ages 8 to 14. There are sweeping purple dresses, dragon T-shirts and some very scary headdresses for dress-up.
And 10% of the sales will benefit charity – the SOS Children’s Villages.
Will you be buying a Stella McCartney Maleficent piece for your kids?
Image: Stella McCartney for Disney’s Maleficent.
Lady Gaga’s G.U.Y Video – All The Fashion Gossip
The new Lady Gaga video has dropped, and it has some serious fashion credentials.
For one, it was shot at Hearst Castle, an American landmark once frequented by some of the most fashionable people in history.
The huge, sprawling castle in California was built by American millionaire William Randolph Hearst for his starlet girlfriend, and in its heyday its parties attracted people like Joan Crawford and Clark Gable.
Now that’s a high-fashion pedigree.
Gaga is like most pop stars in that she has an in-house team – the Haus of Gaga – making many of her costumes, rather than getting them from designers.
So that arrow in the (very strange) first few minutes? Specially crafted by her own people.
But there was another interesting designer cameo. Gaga revealed that her extremely detailed, real-feather wings were made by Jim Henson Studios – otherwise famous as the designers of the Muppets.
Given that Lady Gaga once came to a premiere with Kermit as her date, she and the Muppets clearly know each other well.
Gaga’s also currently the face of Versace, so we imagine that some of her video wardrobe was custom-made by Donatella (perhaps the high-cut white swimsuit), and she’s clearly paying homage to the label’s perma-blonde designer with a floor-brushing long blonde wig.
Plus the Real Housewives who feature as a (clearly non-musical) ‘backing band’ are likely clad in Donatella’s finest pink gowns.
What did you think of the video’s fashion – bonkers or fashion-forward?
Image: G.U.Y. stills, courtesy Lady Gaga.
