BUY MUSIC.

Pink Friday to be released Monday, 22 Nov

Trina's voice, Lil' Kim's style, Missy Elliot's quirk

Is Nicki Minaj a copycat or today's most relevant femcee powerhouse? You tell me.

What happens when a bunch of nerds and fashionistas get together?

...The conception of Google's latest development in online shopping: Boutiques.com

“Online fashion shopping has to be universal and curatorial at the same time. This is an answer.” -Mr. Shah, team leader of Boutiques.com

Read more:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/18/fashion/18googlefashion.html?src=twt&twt=nytimesfashion

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704312504575619071414921144.html

Kanye West & Phillip Lim

If you have not seen this already-- watch it! It's worth all 35 minutes. Two of my favorite artists, Kanye West (musician, director) and Phillip Lim (costume designer) collaborate to produce this short film.

What a genius way to promote his album and pull together/share his vision for My Dark Twisted Fantasy. Kanye's album will be released on 22 November. Mark your calenders.

London callin', speak the slang now

London, England

Monday 31^st May, 2010

Welcomed in London

Today we left Antwerp for London. We ended up having to take a later flight because of the British Airways strike at Heathrow. The flight wasn’t long though and we were there before we knew it. When we were collecting our bags we saw actor Simon Baker. He was really friendly and agreed to take a photo with Lauren.

As soon as we got our bags we met our coach and tour guide and went on a brief sightseeing tour of the city. We stopped along the Thames near the Tower of London to take photos. It felt good to be on British soil. When we got back on the coach we headed to our hotel, which is in a really nice area, right next to Hyde Park.

A Quiet Evening

Because our flight was a couple of hours later than expected, our appointment at Zandra Rhodes was pushed back to tomorrow. We tried to go to the famous Ye Old Cheshire Cheese pub on Fleet Street, but it was closed because of the national bank holiday. So instead we got dinner at a nearby pub that was open.

After I finished eating I took the tube to southwest London to visit my family for a bit. By the time I got back to the hotel, the rest of the girls had just got back as well and we were all tired so we went straight to sleep.

Tuesday 1^st June, 2010

Bernard Thorp Printing Works

                This morning we visited the Bernard Thorp printing works, one of Europe’s leading designers and manufacturers of bespoke furnishing fabrics and wall coverings. The company was established in 1971 and operates in New York, Paris and London. We got a chance to see fabrics actually being hand printed and were able to take photos inside. Dilip, one of the people who works there, explained that what they do is similar to screen-printing in that they take the negative of the design, but these fabrics are hand printed rather than digitally printed. He said it takes 3-4 weeks to print the fabric after they’ve received the design. About twelve screens are used for each print, for the different colors used. The fabrics are mostly from England, but the designs come from several countries—a lot of them come from India. Dilip stressed the importance of the eco-friendly materials they use, especially for wallpapers, such as sea grass, hessian and raffia, some of which is imported from China.

Meeting Prudence

                At noon we met with Prudence, who is a couture hat designer, a milliner. She works with designers such as Vivienne Westwood, Yves Saint Laurent, Julian MacDonald, Biba, Gucci, Lacoste and Balenciaga. She also does her own line of hats each season. Prudence studied fashion merchandising and then realized once she began working as a buyer and then later a stylist, that she would much rather be on the design side of fashion. She started making knitwear at first, but had other people working for her and didn’t like that. She met a milliner and was inspired to learn to make couture hats. She found someone to teach her, which was rare to find because most milliners stopped working in the ‘60s. Prudence explained that the popularity of couture hats declined in the ‘60s largely because of the popularity of the Vidal Sassoon bob haircut and because of the fact that one didn’t have to wear hats in church anymore. The woman who taught Prudence, named Rose, had made hats for the queen mother. Her teacher, Rudolph was from Czechoslovakia and had been important to couture millinery. Prudence learned from Rose every day for seven years and by the end of her training she had made about 20 hats. She took 11 of them to Harrods to sell, but Harrods rejected her. She was upset, but was encouraged by her friends and then took her hats to Bergdorf Goodman and Henry Bendel. They loved her hats and sold them there. Eventually her hats landed the covers if Italian Vogue and French Elle. Through this she got PR and began selling her hats at Liberty also. She wanted to work with other people who make things by hand and got in touch with Vivienne Westwood. Prudence explained the design process she goes through with Vivienne Westwood. She collects historical photos and photos of things she likes and then creates a concept from there. Prudence talked about being able to know exactly what you like and what you don’t like and about being honest with yourself. She talked about being able to create high quality work under pressure, for clients with specific demands and under time constraints. Prudence likes mixing different textures and taking classic shapes and changing them by using different fabrics and making them modern. Although hats aren’t used as they once were, as a status symbol mostly, they are still popular in Japan and in Italy and used more as fashion statements than anything else. Prudence was very candid with us and very down to earth. She had a lot to say and it was very interesting.

Afternoon Tea at Harvey Nichols

                After meeting Prudence we took the tube to Harvey Nichols, Knightsbridge most fashionable store. Their window displays were so creative. We made our way to the fifth floor café of the store where we had afternoon tea with scones.

Afterwards we split up into smaller groups. My group met with the brand manager for the Alexander McQueen boutique in the store and he guided us through a tour of the store. He allowed us to take photos of the displays within the store and explained how each brand has set up its own boutique within the store and how the visual merchandisers have created central displays to form a creative and cohesive store environment. The music playing was very cool and varied from urban and indie to ethnic and classical. Our guide explained, as we moved down to the men’s floors that the women’s floors were set up with a more open feel because women tend to shop around, whereas men know exactly what they’re looking for and which brands they like, so each brand in the men’s department has more of a boutique feel to it.

After our tour was over I had some time to go back to the women’s department and look at all the shoes as part of my retail comparison report.

Zandra Rhodes Workshop

From there we went to the Zandra Rhodes workshop where we met Ben, the head designer. Ben deals with the shapes of the designs, while Zandra Rhodes creates the prints, which is what she is best known for. She studied textile design at the Royal College in London in the ‘60s. She started her own line and first began working in the States. She was featured in Diane Freelands, Henry Bendel and in American Vogue. She then came back to the UK and brought inspiration from her travels with her. She mostly works with silk fabrics and prints her own silkscreen prints. She did a print inspired by cowboys, a few inspired by Mexico, one inspired by Manhattan, a few inspired by Egypt and Kenya, and a punk inspired collection of prints. Zandra Rhodes likes to use natural fabrics, especially silk. They usually do loose fitting garments as they’ve found that their target customer is not always small in size and ranges from age 18 to 88. They don’t design for the general public or follow trends, but stay true to their own aesthetic. Zandra Rhodes is drawn to nature and loves flowers and mountains and bright colours. Ben’s aesthetic is more simple and plain than hers, but he brings to the brand his fashion design background while she brings her textile design background. He’s worked with Zandra Rhodes since he graduated from college. Though he dabbled in a few other things, such as theatre costumes and hospital uniforms, he’s spent most of his career designing for her.

Ben let us try on any of the outfits, including a YSL/Mondrain inspired dress and the top worn by Sarah Jessica Parker in an episode of Sex & the City.

Ye Old Cheshire Cheese Pub

                In the evening we went to Ye Old Cheshire Cheese pub and we all bonded as a group. I ordered fish and chips and sticky toffee pudding for dessert—typically British dishes. By the end of the day we were all tired and we had a long day ahead of us so we went to sleep early.

Edinburgh, Scotland

Wednesday 2^nd June, 2010

Locharron Mill

                Today we were up bright and early to catch our flight to Edinburgh. When we got there we had to take a coach out to the Locharron tartan and cashmere mill, which was another hour and a half drive from the airport, but the countryside, which we got to see along the way, was absolutely gorgeous. Scotland is so clean and seems so untouched. The drive there was nothing but green hills and fields and lots of sheep and cows. The mill was so interesting and the people that worked there seemed somewhat surprised to get a group of young people that were genuinely interested in what they do. They took us through the manufacturing area where they dye the yarn, warp the fabric, knot, weave, and darn. They first wind the yarn on to what they call a “cheese” and then dye it in vats. The yarn is spun dried and then dried in ovens. In the looms the shafts lift and drop the warp. Weft passes through the shed. Reed beats the weft into place and then the cloth is ready for darning and finishing. The cloth is then carefully inspected for any mistakes before any finishing, such as washing, drying, milling, brushing, pressing, cropping, Teflon or fireproof finishing can be done. They get their materials from all around the world and use materials like cotton, mohair, vicuna, lamb’s wool, alpaca, cashmere and silk. We then got a chance to see the design studio and talk to one of the designers. The Locharron mill works with fashion labels like Vivienne Westwood, Pringle and Comme de Garçons to create unique tartans

Touring Edinburgh

After our tour of the mill was over we got back on the bus and our kilt-clad tour guide took us back to Edinburgh and showed us the city. While Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland, Edinburgh is the capital city and it is still quite large. We saw all of the main sights and drove through the high street where all of the main high fashion shops were, including a Harvey Nichols. We stopped at a castle where the changing of the guards was about to take place and then we stopped at a cemetery, which overlooked part of the city, and took photos there. At this point it was almost time to check in for out flight and we were all hungry and tired so we headed to the airport, got some food and made our way back to London.

London, England

Thursday 3^rd June, 2010

Westminster Abbey and Buckingham Palace

                This morning we went to Westminster Abbey, which I don’t think I’ve ever been inside of—or if I have, I don’t remember. But anyways, it was beautiful and the gardens were really nice. The weather was perfect to be outside. Besides the gardens, the part I liked the most was Poet’s Corner where several writers, poets, and playwrights have been buried and remembered—including Charles Dickens, Rudyard Kipling, Jane Austen, William Blake, Charlotte Bronte, Robert Burns, Lewis Carroll, T.S. Eliot, William Shakespeare, Oscar Wilde, William Wordsworth and many more.

Then we walked to Buckingham Palace to watch the changing of the guards, but by the time we got there, there was already a big crowd and we couldn’t watch it from up close.

V&A Museum and the Grace Kelly Exhibit

From there we took the tube to the V&A, quickly got lunch and then met our guide Olivia, who gave us a fashion-oriented tour through the museum. There we saw early maternity wear, shoes, dresses and historic costumes. We also saw an exhibition that featured early work by Versace, Prada, Moschino, Missoni and Jean Patou as well as early Ferragamo shoes.

Then we had access to the Grace Kelly exhibition. Grace Kelly was a famous American actress in the ‘50s and later the Princess consort of Monaco. She was known for her beauty, elegance and her exquisite personal style. The exhibition featured clips from her films as well as a collection of her on screen and personal wardrobes, featuring clothes, shoes, purses, jewellery and sunglasses. Some of her favorite designers that were shown include Dior, Balenciaga, Givenchy, Yves Saint Laurent, Hermès and Madame Grès. The exhibit was spectacular, but I felt like we didn’t have enough time there to really absorb everything.

Harrod’s

                From there a few of us went to Harrod’s. The store is so big and busy that I got separated from the rest of the group, so I just did a quick tour through the women’s department, the toy department and then the food halls and then met up with a few of the girls in front of the store. Their window displays were, as always, amazing. Right across the street from Harrod’s is Topshop and a few of the girls wanted to shop so I went to check it out with them. We only had about half an hour there before we had to catch the tube back to the hotel to get ready for the group dinner.

Dinner and a Show

                I was a bit disappointed with dinner, but the theatre afterwards made up for it. We saw Wicked, which I’ve seen in London before, but it was still just as captivating. I particularly love the songs and the costumes.

Friday 4^th June, 2010

JC de Castelbajac

This morning we went to see Carnaby Street and Savile Row just as all the stores were getting ready to open. We had an appointment in the area at the Jean Charles de Castelbajac boutique. Although people think, because of their style, that they are a new brand, they were established in the ‘60s. In college JC de Castelbajac turned his blanket into a coat and from there his coats became really popular. He includes new coats made from unusual materials in each of his fall/winter collections. The brand is best known for its bright rainbow colors and use of Disney characters in their prints and designs. Many people consider their clothes to be more like pieces of art than clothes. In the ‘70s the brand was popularized by hip hop stars, the Charlie’s Angels actresses and Andy Warhol. Now they dress celebrities like M.I.A., Lady Gaga, Madonna, Beyonce, Santogold and Rihanna. JC de Castelbajac loves doodling and cartooning. He has hand drawn all of the cartoons and doodles around the store, on the walls and in the changing rooms. He worked with Antoine, author of The Little Prince, to create his own illustrated story book. He has a very big personality and knows a lot of people. He has a knack for spotting rising talent. At all of his shows he features live bands, singers and DJs. He has fun with fashion and often uses Kermit the Frog as a joke because people call the French frogs. His customers vary and range in age from 18 to 65. He does rugs, wallpapers and plates as well as clothes. He started his business when he was 18 years old and it was very controversial because he is of French nobility and his family did not approve of his career path until he gained fame. His style is highly associated with the UK Grime culture, which is a branch of hip hop. JC de Castebajac’s s sense of humor appeals to the underground culture. He is very in touch with his fans and to give back to them he has created a diffusion line at a lower price-point which he sells at Selfridges called JCDC. JC de Castelbajac lives in Paris but visits the London store quite often and has a close relationship with the team that works there. The displays are done by the team, but JC de Castelbajac’s influence is apparent throughout the store.

Liberty of London

                From there we visited Liberty, which had a very old home feel to it. They carry a unique selection of high fashion clothes and they also have a floor of artwork and interior decor. I picked up that the customer service in London, compared to Paris, is a lot more similar to American service—even in a high end store like Liberty.

Dover Street Market

                At noon we met with Sam, who we met in Paris at the Yves Saint Laurent exhibit. He is also close friends with Prudence and knows a lot about the fashion industry. He walked us through the Dover Street Market, the Vivienne Westwood store, the Stella McCartney store and the Matthew Williamson shop, all of which had amazing displays. The Dover Street Market is a concept by Rei Kawakaba, the designer for Comme des Garçons. It mixes well known designers with lesser known designers and antique pieces. Each piece in the store was designed exclusively for Dover Street Market. The interior decor of the store is really different and walking through the store is truly a unique experience.

Oxford Street

                After we were done with our appointments a few of the girls and I walked to Oxford Street, where most of the main shops are. I went into River Island, which is comparable to Forever 21 at home, to look at shoes as part of my retail comparison report and then I met up with the rest of the girls at Topshop, which is huge. Topshop was a bit overwhelming for Daisy, Jolie and I so we walked over to Urban Outfitters while the rest of the girls were shopping. When they were done we took the tube back to the hotel, ordered pizza and called it a night.

Saturday 5^th June, 2010

Portobello Road Market

                Today was our free day, but this morning Lauren and I met the rest of the group in the lobby to go to Portobello Road Market. I’d never been there before and it was nothing like I’ve ever seen. They sell everything there—vintage clothes, purses, jewelry, antiques, furniture, paintings, fresh fruit, ethnic food, old cameras and everything else you could possibly think of. The area is really nice too and Notting Hill actually looks like it does in the movie Notting Hill, with the bright colored houses. I loved the busy atmosphere of the market.

National Portrait Gallery and Tate Modern

                After that the rest of the group went to the Tower of London, but because I’ve already seen it I decided to go to the National Portrait Gallery. There was an exhibition of Irving Penn’s portraits and I really didn’t want to miss it because tomorrow is the last day it will be there. Irving Penn is a famous photographer, most well known for his black and white portraits of several celebrities as well as his extensive work for Vogue and Vanity Fair magazines. He’s one of my favorite photographers. I could have spent hours in the exhibit looking at his work. He uses plain backgrounds and really focuses on trying to bring personality out of his sitters. He mostly uses natural light and he thinks of poses for his sitters that are subtle, but strikingly expressive. After looking at the Irving Penn exhibit I checked out the rest of the gallery and then made my way to the Tate Modern Museum, where I saw contemporary art. I didn’t spend a long time there though because I met up with Lauren on Oxford Street when she was done at the Tower of London.

Our Last Evening

I went with Lauren to return a few things and then we met up with the rest of the girls at the hotel. We ordered pizza again and then we walked in Hyde Park and walked to Notting Hill, where all of the fashionable restaurants, bars and cafes are. It was a really pleasant evening and then we came back to the hotel to pack and get ready to leave the next day. While the rest of the group would be heading back to the States, I would be going to my uncle’s house in Isleworth, which is in southwest London, and spending a month there.

Weekend in Belgium

Antwerp, Belgium

Saturday 29^th May, 2010

Train from Paris to Antwerp

                This morning the coach met us at the hotel and we said goodbye to Paris! We caught a train to Belgium and to be quite honest I think the train was nicer than the plane we had on the way to Europe. It was nice looking out at the French country-side. The Interior Design girls got off at Brussels and we made our way to Antwerp. I listened to music, read the French Vogue I picked up in Paris and took a quick nap.

Exploring Antwerp

As soon as we stepped off of the train in Antwerp it felt cleaner and quieter compared to Paris. The train station there is really gorgeous inside. As we drove to the hotel the city had a bit of an odd vibe. Our hotel was in was a predominantly Orthodox Jewish area, as our tour guide explained to us when he met us in front of the hotel. He took us to the train station which was right in front of our hotel and took us into the main part of town.

He and his friend/apprentice gave us a fashion-oriented tour of the city. The city is beautiful. It has a very European feel to it and it also has a friendly small-town feel to it. The tour didn’t take long at all. Our guide narrated the story of the “Antwerp Six”, the six designers from Antwerp that have made it big in Parisian fashion, which includes Dries Van Noten and Ann Demeulemeester.

After the tour we got some Belgian waffles and a few of the girls and I went to check out a resale shop called Labels Inc that our tour guide recommended. It was an amazing boutique and I found some great Antwerp fashion pieces for good prices. Then it started raining, so we just looked for a place to eat and ended up eating at McDonalds where we met a couple of young locals who were really friendly and told us about some good places we could go the next day since a lot of places were going to be closed on Sunday. That night both Lauren and I were really tired so we went to sleep early.

Sunday 30^th May, 2010

MoMu

                This morning we visited the Mode Museum. The museum featured the Black Exhibit, which explores the history of the color black in fashion. The exhibit went through examples of the color black in historic costume, in painting, and in contemporary fashion and included examples of work by Ann Demeulemeester, Olivier Theyskens, Dirk Van Saene, Givenchy (Riccardo Tisci), Chanel, Comme de Garçons and Gareth Pugh. The focus of the exhibit was on the use of diverse textures such as fur, leather and lace and the different meanings black has had throughout history: mourning, gothic movement, elegance, etc. We were allowed to take photos in the museum and I was able to photograph most of the pieces in the exhibit.

Downstairs there was an open exhibit of the work of third year students from the Fashion Department of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp. Each student must present eight silhouettes and, as our guide explained to us, the students are pushed by having to create extravagant ethnic costumes which help them not only in technique, but also to better understand other cultures. The museum is a lot smaller than I expected, but the architecture of the building is beautiful.

Evening Escapade

After visiting MoMu Lauren, Daisy and I escaped to Brussels. We took the train (there are trains going there every fifteen minutes, so it was very easy). We didn't have much time because we had to get back for the group dinner, but we got to explore a few of the bars, chocolate shops, bookshops and art galleries in the center of the city. Belgium, I found, has a very artsy culture.

Although Brussels is more popular, what I really like about Antwerp that it is not big or busy and people here seem more relaxed and take the time to sit and enjoy the smaller things in life. Everything is very minimalistic. The city has an odd vibe to it—but I like it. Everyone is dressed very simply and casually, but still very smart and a bit quirky.

In the evening we had our group dinner back in Antwerp. The restaurant was really nicely decorated and the service was very good. The people here seem a lot friendlier than in Paris. I sat next to Dr. Bowen and a couple of the interior design girls and got to know them a bit better.

Paris, je t'aime.

Please excuse my poor writing, these were just brief notes I took for class--

Saturday 22^nd May, 2010

Departing from Texas

My parents came to Waco last night and stayed with me in my apartment. My mom helped me finish some last minute packing and this morning we got up early to leave for Dallas. They dropped me to the airport and once I was checked in I met up with the rest of the group. Our flight was delayed for a couple of hours so I played cards with and got to know some of the girls. The flight was long and, although it was a night flight, I was too uncomfortable most of the time to get much sleep. I watched Marley & Me and read Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to pass the time. I didn’t eat the plane food because 1) it was beef and 2) it was plane food so when we got to Paris I was really hungry.

Paris, France

Sunday 23^rd May, 2010

Arriving in Paris         

We arrived in Paris and some girls felt unwelcomed at the airport when the language barrier became apparent. Everyone was hungry and nobody was sure when we’d get a proper meal so we stopped at a cafe in the airport while one of the interior design girls was looking for her passport to get through customs. We struggled to communicate with the people working there to get croissants and coffee and they laughed at our pronunciation, but I found that my two semesters of French paid off, as I managed to get away with a chicken salad sandwich.

Once we were all through customs, had our baggage and food in our stomachs, we followed our tour guide to the coach waiting for us outside. The bus driver seemed little pleased with our “Texas sized” luggage. The coach took us on a brief tour of the city and as our guide narrated the tour in her heavy French accent, many of us dozed off for a bit until we got to our hotel. Dr. Bowen passed out our room keys, bus passes and museum passes and Lauren and I raced up to our room before the elevators got crowded. The room was so cute—it was very mod, decorated in purple and lime green. We had a view that overlooked the street.

Walking through Paris and Seine Cruise

After we freshened up and unpacked a little, we met Dr. Brunson and Mrs. Kane downstairs and walked to the Eiffel Tower. I always thought Paris was really dirty and overrated and most of the memories I had of the city were of it being too cold to think about anything but being too cold—but the weather was beautiful. It was sunny and pleasant and when you take the time to walk through the streets and watch the people sitting at the cafes and walking down the street, taking their time, - everyone seems to be doing their own thing and everyone dresses just how they want, they don’t seem to care about blending in and they really take pride in how they present themselves— you really see why so many people love Paris.

As we approached the Eiffel Tower there were hundreds of people—parents with children, couples, groups of young people, people walking their dogs, people sitting with books reading—lying out on the grass and soaking up the sun. We met the rest of the group at the river for our boat tour of the city. We sat on the side of the boat so we could feel the wind and watch all the people sitting along the river, enjoying the warm weather. We saw a few of the main sights of the town. The architecture of the city is gorgeous. When we got back Lauren and I went to dinner at the Pizza place near the hotel and then came back took showers and went to sleep.

Monday 24^th May, 2010  

The Louvre and Notre Dame

This morning we went to the Louvre and since we didn’t have much time there we just saw the main pieces of art. From there we walked to the Notre Dame and spend time in there. It was gorgeous.

Draping Demonstration by Madame Pico

In the afternoon we had an appointment with Madame Pico, who spent most of her life working for Madame Grès, although she did also work with Pierre Balmain and Nina Ricci. Although she did not speak English and had a translator, you could sense her passion for her work. I imagine the intricacy of her couture work and drapery requires passion and patience. She didn’t always want to be a designer though, she said when she was younger she wanted to either be a ballerina or a sculptor. From age 25 to 30 she made couture hats. She also spent time working on Patterns for Alex Barton and making costumes for the theatre. Because Madame Pico spent so much time working with Madame Grès, she knew her intimately as well. Madame Grès had an affair with and married a Russian painter named Serge-Czerefkow and in 1933 her daughter Ann was born. Her husband left her in 1940 and then she never saw him again. Madame Grès was friends with Balenciaga and Givenchy and in 1942 she opened her own fashion house. The name Grès came from her husband’s name “Serge” (the E is silent) backwards. Madame Pico was one of six people working under Madame Grès. They would produce about 80 pieces to show every season, but only a few would include drape work as it is very time consuming and because it is couture it must be done right. Now the company is owned by her daughter. Madame Pico continues to make her own clothes and now she makes clothes for her daughters. Madame Pico was very friendly and seemed enthusiastic to share her experiences with us.

Evening at the Eiffel Tower

In the evening we all went to the Eiffel Tower. Lauren, Daisy and I stopped to get crêpes, so we got separated from the group and only got to go halfway up the tower, but it was still beautiful from there. We caught the light show right when we got down and while we waited for the rest of the group we sat in the grass.

Tuesday 25^th May, 2010

Fragonard Perfumerie and Museum

                This morning we had a tour of the Fragonard Perfumerie and Museum. It was really interesting to see how they extract the fragrances and the different flowers, plants, spices and fruits from different parts of the world. I bought a perfume for my mom from there. Just outside of Fragonard there was a little boutique and some people used that for their retail comparison report. I looked in there, but they only had two pairs of shoes and since my focus is shoes I decided not to use that place.

L’Eclaireur Boutique

After that appointment we saw the opera house on our way to L’Eclaireur. Some people stopped at a bakery and got tapioca before we went in. The boutique is kind of hidden. We rang the doorbell and then they opened the doors to what was more like an art gallery than a fashion boutique. They sell the furniture, art and decorative pieces in the boutique as well as the unique and exclusive selection of clothes and accessories they have. They carry international designers, from Asia, America and Europe and they mix well known labels like Ann Demeulemeester, Comme des Garçons, Giorgio Brato, Martin Margiela and Dries van Noten with lesser known and up-and-coming designers. In total they carry about 30 different designers. They opened their first boutique on the Champs Elysees and once that became successful they opened four more stores around Paris in the last ten years. Each store has a unique style and clientele. They’re clientele is, for the most part, set. They are affluent and loyal. The economy has not really affected their income because they are in the luxury market. The do not advertise publicly, so most of their marketing is done through word of mouth. They have had celebrity clients and they get artists, painters, designers, architects and gallery owners come to the shop especially during fashion week and Parisian fabric fairs. They keep an archive of all of the clothes they have that don’t sell right away, so clients can research back and get items from previous collections if they’d like. However, they do not carry a designer’s entire collection in the boutique, they select a few that they like and have a limited amount of stock in the boutique. The boutique’s collection must have the best of the best, it must cohesive and it must carry a wide enough variety for the client to choose from. Their style is very androgynous and they have about an equal percentage of male and female clients. They go to showrooms four times a year, once each season for menswear and once each season for women’s wear. Although the designers may have specific requests about how a certain piece of clothing should be worn, they have no control over how the clothes are displayed. The designers often come to the store to see how the clothes are selling and which pieces are the most popular. The sales associates assist clients and try to point out combinations that the client may not have thought of. They have very strong, but strictly professional relationships with their clients and don’t really have competition because the concept of their boutique is so unique.

Colette Boutique

After we left the boutique we had time to grab lunch and walk around the shopping area. I used that time to find a boutique to analyze for my retail comparison report. Then we had an appointment at Colette boutique. We met with Alain Lalou, whose designs are featured in the boutique. He explained the concept of the shop to us before we got the chance to go in, walk around and experience it for ourselves. Going through the store is truly a unique experience and they really think about everything from shoes, clothes, accessories and makeup to food, art, books, music and everything in between. Everything is well placed and presented in a clean, but creative manner.

In the evening we took a walk down the Champs Elysees and got dinner there. After we ate we went into Monoprix, which is comparable to Walmart or Target and there we saw business mogul and former fashion model Kimora Lee Simmons shopping with her husband, her kids, and her nanny. We asked if she would take a photo with us but she was very rude about it and said no and then threw a fit in the middle of store, so we left. We walked along till the end, where we took pictures at the Arch de Triumph. When we got back Lauren and I sat on our window sill and looked out at the street and watched the people before we went to sleep.

Wednesday 26^th May, 2010

The Palace of Versailles

                This morning the whole group took a coach to Versailles. We met our guide who gave us a tour through the palace. We saw most of the rooms, each one different in decor, but each equally extravagant. The Rococo influence is heavily apparent. We also got to walk through Marie Antoinette’s bedroom and the Hall of Mirrors.

Yves Saint Laurent Exhibit

Once we got back we headed to the Yves Saint Laurent exhibit at the Petit Palais. The exhibit was a breathtaking 307 piece collection of Saint Laurent’s works from his early work for Dior in 1958 to his last evening dresses in 2002. At the beginning of the collection we were confronted by a striking portrait of Saint Laurent by photographer Jeanloup Sieff which was taken to launch his 1971 fragrance “pour home”. Because Saint Laurent had a reputation of being shy, quiet, and classic he wanted to show his more daring side by posing nude in an almost arrogant manner. The light around his head alludes to a halo, suggesting he thinks highly of himself. We saw a collection of peacoats, revolutionary pant-suits and safari-inspired wear. We saw his summer 1971 collection which was highly controversial and rejected by most media. Although that collection was a commercial failure, it influenced his rive gauche prêt à porter line of retro ‘70s fashion. We saw his works inspired by different artists and different countries—Mondrain, Matisse, Picasso, Van Gogh, poetry, Asia, Spain, Russia, Hungary, India, Morocco, Africa and Italy. We saw the famous “Trapeze” collection. We saw his terribly uncommercial phallic wedding dress, which never sold. We saw his comic strip which was inspired by Dior in ’67. We saw portraits of him done by Andy Warhol and Irving Penn. The exhibit ended with a terrifically dramatic room of evening dresses next to a wall of the progression of “Le Smoking” suit, from the fall of 1966 to 2002. He included one in each of his collections and each was different, but equally loved by his fans. As you exit you walk through a collection of colour swatches that Saint Laurent kept. There were no black swatches and no purely white swatches. There were plenty of blues and shocking pinks. Once you come out you can watch a video of a collection of some of Saint Laurent’s most beautiful, most famous and most controversial pieces on the runway. Yves Saint Laurent has always been one of my favorite designers so the exhibit was an amazing experience for me.

Meeting Alain Lalou

Later that evening we met with Alain Lalou, a bridal wear designer. He talked about Colette and the idea of the synergy of marketing (music, magazines, shoes, clothes). Colette is like a department store, but with a very selective collection of things and very specific clientele who are informed and know how to mix expensive pieces with non-expensive finds. He talked about his website and his new project of finding young talents and collaborating fashion with art. Lalou first sold his dresses to Saks Fifth Avenue in 2003. His design was featured on Conde Nast’s “March on Madison” posters. He then did a collection a woman from Texas called Christopher and Lalou. He then talked about how a creator must be curious and how our imagination can be stimulated by research and knowledge—this is how our society evolves. One must be inspired by what is different and develop sensitivity to other cultures. He talked about the power that women now have that is more open. He said the real power has always been in women’s hands, but now they have financial power and thus more freedom. He likes to create dresses for a powerful, but still mysterious woman. He uses mostly silk because he thinks it is a beautifully classic and elegant fabric. He stressed the importance of quality in making a garment. Some of his favourite designers include Givenchy, Alexander McQueen, Herrera, and Madame Grès and he finds Lady Gaga to be a new source of inspiration. He has dressed French celebrities, Sarah Jessica Parker, Hermes’ daughter and the queen of Thailand.

Thursday 27^th May

Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture

                This morning we had the privileged opportunity to visit Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne. We met with Patrick who has been with the school for 11 years. He is a professor there and has been the school coordinator for the last three years. He explained to us the history and significance of the school in the Parisian fashion scene. The school was founded in 1927 and is supported by the couture houses. It was founded to instil a sense of perfectionism in new designers. Students became apprentices to couture designers at a young age. The school deals strictly with haute couture, not with prêt a porter design. The students go through extensive training in all areas of fashion, learning everything from couture design and forecasting to Photoshop and merchandising. The school only accepts a maximum of 70 students and not all students make it through the program. Students spend time in their course of study working with designers and working at Fashion Week to gain the necessary experience to work in the field. Classes are taught in French, but they do have students who come from Asia, America and other parts of Europe although Patrick said it is harder for non-citizens to get a job. Professors are highly experienced in haute couture and many of them still work at design houses while they teach. The student make-up is mostly female, but Patrick has found that the men tend to advance further. Students come to the school at a young age, usually straight from high school, so that they can learn these skills early on in their career. The school is very prestigious and many students go on to either graduate school or to work with couturiers.

Ralph Lauren Store

In the afternoon we had an appointment at the new Ralph Lauren store in Saint Germain, the left bank of Paris, which is said to be the more intellectual/artsy side of the city. Ralph Lauren was one of the first major designers to open a store there. They’ve refurbished an old house and kept much of the original architecture and decor to give it an old Parisian feel. We met with the store manager who explained to us the concept of the store and the goal of Ralph Lauren as a brand. He explained that the company retail has three facets: full price retail, wholesale (department stores) and outlet stores (entry price). 70% of their retail is in the US and this is mainly because it is such an American brand. Ralph Lauren speaks to his customers through his stores and in this new store he is trying to fuse Parisian culture with American style. In America he tries to bring European style to Americans, but here he is trying to do the opposite with a lot of denim and flannel. He wanted this store to feel more like a home than a store and you definitely get that sense when you walk in. The concept is fusing an American barn with the Palace of Versailles. They’ve taken a more American approach to marketing and merchandising and when you walk in sales associates will greet you with a “Hi, how are you?” rather than “Can I help you find something” or no greeting at all—contrary to the French stereotype of a bit of a colder interaction. The sales team is very close and because hiring someone in Paris is very expensive and they get a lower commission, firing people becomes virtually impossible. The opening of the store had a lot of press and they had 4600 people come to the store on the first day. They still have a lot of people who come to see the store, rather than buy because it is so new, but they are doing well so far. The opening of this store may create a chain reaction of other big-name designers opening in this area. Ralph Lauren was in Paris for the first two weeks of the opening and he said it was a beautiful store. The manager talked about Ralph Lauren being a very kind and personable man who has come a long way from selling ties out of a drawer at the foot of the Empire State building to the five billion dollar international company he has today.

We then had an opportunity to walk through the store on our own and were able to take a few photos—but even the photos I took cannot capture the essence of the store. There is an interesting collection of photos and paintings in the hallways and stairwells. The top floor is very country-western and the men’s and women’s floors below have a much more classic clean feel, with Sinatra playing as I walked through.

Afterwards we had time for lunch and I just grabbed a sandwich to go from a cafe near the Ralph Lauren store and then found an art gallery, which actually wasn’t open yet, but the owner let me walk through and look at the collection anyways. It was a collection of comic and cartoon-inspired art and a lot of it had a heavy American influence. It was really interesting. Then I met up with Lauren and we went to the BCBG store.

Edelkoort Trend Forecasting Studio

Then, once everyone had eaten we headed to the Edelkoort trend forecasting studio. On the way we got a bit lost and I found a comic book store called Album that I had read about and been wanting to go to. I looked at comic books there for a bit until we figured out where we were going. On the way we passed a whole street of book shops that looked really interesting, but I never got a chance to go back to that area.

We were welcomed at the Edelkoort office by rain and a parade of protesters in the street, which Sophie (the lady who we met) said was very French. She began to talk about politics and about how everyone in France makes fun of Sarkozy and says that he has a Napoleon complex and is jealous of Obama. Sophie has been with the company for 18 years. She seemed like a very intelligent and interesting person. She is currently the office coordinator. She explained that what they do is not only fashion forecasting, but trend forecasting. They forecast trends two years in advance. Li Edelkoort is Dutch. Her first job was as a buyer for a department store, but she fell in love with a French man and ended up moving to Paris for him, where she founded her company. She has always been a good colourist and likes working with fashion, textiles and design. Sophie stressed that what they do is not trend watching and that the word trend has become trendy, but that forecasting is based on intuition. They still do research because everything affects trends including politics, art, music, etc. Trend forecasting is a more avant garde craft and includes all of these elements. It is more about an attitude, while trend watching is more about marketing. Edelkoort has had several big clients, including Marks & Spencer’s. They have several publications including Trend Union, Edelkoort’s editions, View on Colour, and Bloom. They have an office in New York and one in Japan as well. They start the process by looking at colours and then brainstorming to create a cohesive concept. They work with a large variety of clients in several different fields—food, home appliances, cars, phones, lights, etc. What they do is not design work, but concept creation and brand repositioning.

Sophie then showed us an exclusive video they have been working on for fall/winter 2011-2012. The concept is birds and the video outlined several forecasted trends in fashion and textile design, as well as beauty trends and a general attitude. They have created fabrics and put together photo shoots to put this video together, with a funky music selection.

Seeing the video and talking to Sophie really helped me understand what forecasting is all about and made me realize that this is something I could really see myself doing. I like the idea of looking at society from all angles—politics, art, music, everything—and looking to the future and creating concepts. It’s such a creative field and seems hard to get in to, but I think I would really enjoy and be good at this kind of work.

Friday 28^th May, 2010

Louis Vuitton Museum

                Today was our last day in Paris and we started off the morning by visiting the beautiful Louis Vuitton museum. It is a home to the Louis Vuitton family and often hosts several people in the company who come stay in Paris. We were offered tea and then shown a video about the company which went into detail about how the bags are made with such care and close inspection for quality. I never understood all of the hype about Louis Vuitton bags, but watching this video helped me understand the high standard of quality Louis Vuitton holds for their products. We were then given a tour of the trunks. There were all kinds of trunks—for hats, for tea, for a picnic, for toiletries, a desk. The functionality of the trunks is amazing. We were able to take photos of the trunks and of the house, so I have several photos. The garden was gorgeous, too.

Galleries Lafayette

Once we got back, I went with Dr. Brunson and a few of the girls to go see the catacombs, but they were closed when we got there because there had been a flood. So we took the Metro back to where Galleries Lafayette is and met up with the rest of the group in time for the fashion show. We almost didn’t get into the fashion show, but we did and ended up sitting toward the back and I still got some good photos. The show was of prêt a porter lines that the store carries. A student group from Tennessee was there too. Daisy and I sat next to them and talked to them about their trip.

After the show we had time to walk around Galleries Lafayette and go shopping if we wanted to. I went downstairs to the shoe department to work on my retail comparison report. The whole floor was just for women’s shoes! I was in heaven. The price range was really wide, they had shoes from €50 all the way up to €2,000.

After I looked at the shoes I met up with Lauren and Daisy and we went to H&M. I didn’t really feel like shopping though and then I couldn’t find them, so I just went on my own down the street and took photos of all of the window displays. Galleries Lafayette had some very creative displays, but I don’t know if all of the photos came out well because the sun was reflecting off of the glass. Then I ran into Jolie, Courtney and Lindsay and walked around with them until it was time to meet up with the group.

Dinner and a Night Out

It was too late by then to go back to the hotel and change so we went straight to dinner. The food was really good, but we were at a long table and I was at the end, so I didn’t really get a chance to talk to everyone. But overall it was a good way to end our visit in Paris.

When we got back I went out to a nightclub with a few of the girls. It was just a few minutes walk from the hotel and the place was packed. It was mostly house music, but they played a lot of American songs too. Daisy and I sat on the side most of the time and just enjoyed the music and got a feel of what the Parisian nightlife is like. We didn’t stay long and were tired by the time we got home.