FASHION Magazine

By Sarah Casselman

Shown: Balmain Fall 2008. Photography by Peter Stigter. Ah, Paris! The people watching, the shopping–I am lusting after a white patent, oversized Longchamp clutch.

By Leah Rumack

Shown: Luella Bartley Fall 2008. Photography by Peter Stigter.

Luella Bartley Something wicked this way came at Luella’s witchy-inspired show, though thankfully the stated paganism was kept to a dull roar with a bit of coloured stitching at the top of puff-sleeved peasant blouses and high-heeled clogs, a few pointy hats and bright orange tights.

By Tammy Eckenswiller

The buzz among the beautiful people today included Carla Bruni and French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s marriage, and Fabien Baron returning to Interview magazine as co-editorial director with Glenn O’Brien. Some people think it’s strange to have co-directors, but hey, if Mert and Marcus [fashion photography team] can do it, so can they! New crush: Canadian-N.Y.C. transplant and uber-stylist, Alex Slavycz, so pretty and follows a hard-core no-fur vegan mandate!

The combination of early morning screenings and late night parties are taking their toll, and fatigue is setting in. Luckily, in between screenings and interviews, I can visit an eco lounge where I put my feet up and peruse the earth-friendly swag they have on offer. Standouts include Warmbat boots, which claim to be the world’s first 100 per cent all-natural sheepskin shoes, and a new line of jeans called Undune. Sure to become a cult classic, the jeans combine style and sustainable living into one stretchy pair of green-hearted goodness.

A local told me today that on this, the first Saturday of the festival, the city reaches its maximum capacity. I felt the sting of that truth while waiting 30 minutes to get a cup of coffee at Canada’s own Cow’s ice cream parlor/café—oddly, a festival hot spot.

The narrow streets of Park City are jammed with luxury SUVs, rented by visiting captains of the film industry. The shops and restaurants of Main Street have been emptied and converted into a strip of temporary “lounges” carrying the names of Skyy Vodka and Microsoft. Pedestrians consist of conspicuous black-clad journalists charging down the street, often overheard on their Blackberries saying “We’ll touch base,” while celebrities, including Kirsten Dunst, Josh Hartnett, Paris Hilton and Matthew McConaughey, roam the main drag in designer alpine gear—making Main Street the best place to hang out and star-gaze.

Teen Vogue. Lisa Love calls Whitney into her office and nonchalantly informs her that she’s going back to Paris to work at the annual Crillon Ball. I suspect she delivers her pronouncements so matter-of-factly just to see Whitney’s surprised facial expressions, and this remark earns her a good one: Whitney’s eyes almost pop out of her head. “What about Lauren? Is she coming?” Whitney asks. “I think Lauren had her chance to go to Paris,” Lisa replies.

We open with Lauren and Brody on a date… a friend date, apparently, as Lauren pouts that she hasn’t been on a “real date” in three whole weeks! Brody counsels her on what to look for in her next guy: “Somebody who’s not Mr. Perfect all the time… somebody who’s gotta be a little bit of a bad boy.” He seems to be hinting at himself here, and Lauren sweetly refrains from pointing out that bad boys neither ask her to cuddle nor cry when she breaks their fingers.

Cross by Justice

Once you get these bouncy tracks in your head, you’re a goner. This über-cool Paris duo (a.k.a. Xavier de Rosnay and Gaspard Augé) have been cheerily tearing up dance floors in Europe with their unique mix of electronic pop mashed up with a very hearty splash of disco and an undercurrent of techno.

A recent Saturday morning stroll aprés the perfect blowout turned into a stride when raindrops began to fall. Ducking into a used bookstore (entre nous: I actually prefer the word vintage–it sounds less “dusty”) for a much-needed coiffure cover, I discovered the book Dear Scott, Dearest Zelda: The Love Letters of F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald (available at amazon.ca). Reading countless pages of “dearest darling” and “my truest love” made me think: In our march for equality, have we managed to stamp out chivalry altogether?