FASHION Magazine

Just following the success of his recent Spring 2013 show in Paris, it has been announced today that Nicolas Ghesquière is to leave Balenciaga. According to WWD, the designer, who has been creative director of the French brand for 15 years, confirmed today that they have made a “joint decision to end their working relationship”, […]

The post Nicolas Ghesquière to leave Balenciaga appeared first on FASHION Magazine.

For all you Kristen Stewart fans who are just dying to know the juicy details about her recent foray into the world of fashion and fragrance, here’s how you can get your answers!

Over the weekend it was announced that Kristen Stewart will be answering questions live on October 18 from the Balenciaga fragrance website. Granted, the usually private star will probably avoid any Robert Pattinson queries—but knowing how crafty K.Stew fans can be, we’re sure at least one of you will compose a fragrance-related question that will include a way to confirm the rumours that they’re back together.

See the Carine Roitfeld M.A.C Cosmetics party photos »

If who comes to your party is an indication of your popularity, then Carine Roitfeld is the most popular girl in Paris. The list of attendees at last night’s European launch of her special M.A.C Cosmetics collection (which ironically leaves Canadian shelves tomorrow) runs the gamut of fashion’s biggest and best.

Karl Lagerfeld, Valentino Garavani, Azzedine Alaia, Nicolas Ghesquière, Riccardo Tisci, Mario Testino, Giambattista Valli, Haider Ackermann, Anna Dello Russo, Kanye West, Natalia Vodianova, Julia Restoin-Roitfeld and many, many more turned up last night to toast the former Vogue Paris chief, editor of her own magazine and world’s most stylish grandma.

Ever since Kristen Stewart was announced as the face of Balenciaga’s latest fragrance Florabotanica, we’ve been following its launch every step of the way. Now that there’s just a few weeks to go, Balenciaga has released an exclusive behind-the-scenes video on the making of the Florabotanica ad campaign.

No one does high-end sci-fi mash-ups better than Nicolas Ghesquière and Balenciaga Fall 2012’s outsized Star Wars meets Elizabethan England printed sweaters are just the latest indication. Otherworldly yet utterly wearable, we took the challenge of DIYing the look. To boot, we came in under $100 (ahem, the original is almost $4,000!)

Let’s DIY! »

Last week we were in Paris to interview Kristen Stewart about being the face of Balenciaga’s new Florabotanica perfume, which launches this fall. Between attending a garden party—hosted by Stewart and the fashion house’s creative director Nicolas Ghesquière—and chatting one-on-one with the actress the next day about everything from fashion to fragrance, here are three things we learned about KStew.

View the photo shoot »
Shop the shoot »

Ever wonder what a vampire (lover) smells like? Or an awkward 21 year old? Well, Balenciaga has announced today, that our favourite lover of a bloodsucker, Kristen Stewart, is the face of their new fragrance.

K-Stew’s claim to fame is, of course, the Twilight series, and we’re sure devoted twi-hards will be running to get a bit of Bella Swan come the perfume’s release—but the creative director of Balenciaga, Nicolas Ghesquière, does not mention her appearance in the famed film in his statement explaining his choice. Instead, he talks about her lesser-known roles in Panic Room and Welcome to the Rileys. We’re with him so far…

The ingénue dishes to WWD: “The brand is just cool. That’s the way it is. I feel drawn to it. It provokes on a number of levels. It isn’t afraid or contrived. It hits a very cool balance, always. Always pretty undeniable.” Cool? Maybe. Muse-worthy? Not so sure.

What do we know about the “cool” fragrance? Not much, just that the name is yet to be announced. The scent is expected to launch this fall, just in time for the final installment of Twilight: Breaking Dawn, Part 2. What a coincidence.

Balenciaga’s SS 2012 show is all over Twitter and fashion news sites this morning, but not for the reasons you would expect. The headlines were enough to make any fashion editor cringe with sympathy: “Broken Benches Send Editors and Buyers Crashing to the Floor at Balenciaga Show” and “Balenciagea Attendees Forced to Stand Throughout the Show Because of Faulty Benches”. No one was hurt, thank God, but standing during a runway show? How terribly gauche!

Thanks to live Tweeting, we get to experience the event almost as if we were there. Runway show veterans the Traina sisters were the first to hear the bench creaking, and jumped up seconds before it came crashing to the floor. (Kate Lanphear and Eric Wilson weren’t so lucky!) But despite the surprise of a standing-room-only presentation (and difficulty for the shorter members of the audience), the show did go on. Everyone present, including the likes of Catherine Deneuve, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Salma Hayek, and François-Henri Pinault, stood like champs, and watched the show as though the models were brides heading down the aisle. We can’t even imagine how horrible it would have been had Anna Wintour been one to fall on the floor.

Following the recent conviction of John Galliano, the buzz around Marc Jacobs replacing him at Dior intensifies. The latest rumour is that Jacobs and business partner Robert Duffy are in negotiations and asking for a salary package of $10 million.

If Jacobs cashes in on the deal, he’ll be one of the highest-paid designers in the world. The new position of creative director also means more work for Jacobs, adding Dior’s two couture shows on top of his existing workload.

Now that it’s looking more and more likely that Jacobs will say goodbye to Louis Vuitton, the people at Vuitton seem to be scrambling to find a replacement. Apparently they’ve approached many of fashion’s heavyweights including Alber Elbaz, the Proenza Schouler boys, Nicolas Ghesquiere, Sarah Burton, and Hedi Slimane. So far, Elbaz, Ghesquiere and Burton have declined.

Woke up with a smile knowing I had a Balenciaga ticket in hand! After a gulping a cappuccino, I dashed down the Rue de Rivoli to the Hotel Crillon where paparazzi lined the entrance waiting for fashion photo ops. It doesn’t matter how dressed I get for these things, there will always be someone better. This morning, it was a woman in a red Balmain studded moto jacket who got those cameras snapping.

The video for Anna Dello Russo‘s eponymous fragrance is set to the tune of Kanye West‘s “Runaway.” [The Cut]

Karl Lagerfeld is the latest designer to announce a collaboration with a mass retailer. The Kaiser will design a capsule collection for Macy’s, set to hit stores in September.. [WWD]

Could a third installment in the Sex and the City movie franchise be coming to the silver screen? “We all want to do it,” says Kristin Davis. “I guess it’s just figuring out whether we can move the characters forward any more.” [Vogue UK]