Eileen Ford Dies

Eileen Ford, founder of the legendary Ford Model Agency, has died aged 92.

A stalwart of the fashion industry since she established her eponymous agency with her husband Jerry in 1946 from their Manhattan flat, Ford represented some of the most famous faces on the planet, including Twiggy, Lauren Hutton, Christie Brinkley, Christy Turlington Burns, Ali MacGraw, Grace Jones, Naomi Campbell and Elle MacPherson throughout her illustrious career.

Famed for her encouraging and nurturing approach - she was infamous for standing up for her clients' best interests - she frequently invited models that had just arrived in New York to live with herself and Jerry so that she could help them adjust to life in the Big Apple. When she handed the reins to her daughter, Katie, in 1995, her ethos still remained at the heart of the company's operations.

Eileen Ford

"Eileen's influence, vision and kindness will be remembered and celebrated inside and outside the fashion industry," Laura Bailey, who was signed to Ford Models in the Nineties, told us this morning. "I'd only read about the near mythical fantastical Ford Models, but, when I moved to NYC on a wing and a prayer, they changed my life. "The stories of life with Eileen were legendary, and my early Manhattan days were very much shaped by the Ford Models family, then run by Katie and her team. It's a time in my life I'll always treasure. She was one of a kind."

Ford is survived by her four children, Katie, Jamie, Billy and Lacey.

From Pagan Goddesses To Pre-Raphaelites

The Valentino show that closed the autumn/winter 2014 couture season was romantic, graceful and very much in the spirit of the house's recent revival.

Backstage, pre-Raphaelite paintings by artists like Alma-Tadema filled the mood board, along with images of Roman goddesses with transparent swathes of fabrics across nude bodies. They reappeared quite literally in the show as airy dresses revealing - delicately - a lot of flesh.

"Pagan goddesses, Imperial Rome, with a truth about beauty," said Maria Grazia Chiuri, as she and Pierpaolo Piccioli described the duo's attitude.

The newly-minted Valentino has had a major influence on fashion, bringing back a sense of female privacy. Long sleeves and chaste dresses have been seen across the fashion universe. But there has always been previously a sense of underlying reality, which was often missing at this couture show.

For a start, there were the colours - so much off-white, as if drawn from Roman statues, and used for chaste day dresses, although Art Nouveau flower stalks in black on a white skirt made the look appealing.

Winter coats were tough to find, apart from a long green overcoat that blended with the fresh greenery on the backdrop. Or there was a feathered creation that had the feeling of an opera costume. Other cover-ups came in tapestry fabrics, as though taken from historic furniture. And that sense of the past became increasingly evident in a floor-sweeping gown with a floral surface.

Flat sandals lacing up the leg placed the show somewhere in a Roman legend - certainly not in rain-drenched Paris.

"MEMORY IS AN IMPORTANT PART OF OUR FUTURE" - PIERPAOLO PICCIOLI

But what about the history of Valentino, the founding designer who spent nearly half a century making clothes to woo and win his private clients? That is, after all, the essence of haute couture. The clothes that came out on the runway, however romantic, seemed a doubtful fit with Kim Kardashian, with her 21st-century body con, sitting front row.

Then there is Valentino the brand, which has had a youth quake revival without any of the shake-ups and dramas those words suggest. In fact, it is probably the established fashion house with the smoothest transfer to new hands. There certainly is a following for the graceful and gentle gestures of the current design duo. And perhaps they would argue that practicality can be found in their ready-to-wear.

Valentino presents the essence and the dichotomy of haute couture today. For the customer? For the image? For fantasy - or for real?

Gaultier´s Blood Lines

'He was the first real rock star designer and he had a great influence on us - he recognised and defied the conventions of the time, smashing preconceptions,' said Baz Luhrmann referring to Jean Paul Gaultier and sitting front row in the blood-red House of Horrors that was the Gaultier show set.

The movie director and his costume designer wife Catherine Martin must have been clairvoyant. For this vampire outing by France's enfant-terrible-turned-couturier took the designer's career as a reference point.

It ended with Gaultier on his knees in front of the Eurovision Song Contest winner Conchita Wurst, who was wearing a red and black 'wedding gown'.

For all the black, blood and gore colours, the vampire looks and the showmanship (including a few falls off stiletto-sharp heels), this was a very fine Gaultier show.

All you had to do as a client was to wash off the blood and there were the fashion codes of the designer: pants outfits cut so perfectly that they were scissor-ed round the body; miracles of fan workmanship turning pleats into a frame for the face; silk and raven feathers melded with mohair; perfectly tailored coats.

Through the collection ran sportswear, as if red rather than blue were the colour of the French football team and that they had passed their uniforms to the other sex.

And they were strong women, heaving with sexuality and attitude, as Gaultier first invented them in the 1980s.

His theme of female empowerment has not changed. But his technique has. This Danse Macabre, played out to the gothic sounds of Marilyn Manson, included so many different outfits that the volume of clothes, in every shape and style, was breathtaking.

Gaultier may not be your cup of blood - but it was a powerful show.

Miss Barcelona Rusa

Veronika Lir, the director of Barcelona´s VLIR model agency presented a second instalment of the increasingly popular event Miss Russia Barcelona.

Veronika, who´s company specialises in model, promotion and event management for the Russian fashion, beauty and luxury scene in Barcelona captivated viewers with her latest offering on 28th June. It was the second time that this increasingly popular event was brought to Barcelona, which was eloquently hosted in the Astoria theatre within the heart of Barcelona´s Eixample district.

         

              

  

Securing sponsors such as Replay, SK Style and Music Television, this event dazzled both on and off screen attracting hundreds of event spectators and thousands of viewers on-line during its three hour duration.

The final winner from the group of Russian hopefuls was Kristina Zhukova, who took pride of place in the closing ceremony, along with the prestigious award. With such a successful outcome, we are already in anticipation to attend the third episode in 2015.

You can view the official website of the event with all the highlights here

Are The French Losing Fashion’s Crown Jewels?

With Versace, the Paris haute couture season sparked to life.

Make that the Italian couture shows, for the French seem to be letting go of their fashion crown jewels.

Donatella Versace announced backstage that her inspiration for streamlined designs, in black or ink blue, laced with white and embossed with shiny vinyl straps, was the Fifties and the glory days of couture.

What Donatella counts as discreet is still "sexpot" glamour for the audience, sitting on purple chairs against a furry floor. The glamour touches were futuristic: crystal metal mesh, metallic buckles and silk coated with silicon.

With fringes swinging, skirts were narrow or ultimately cut in a sweeping ballroom style, but they all showed slivers of flesh. The single trouser leg may not catch on. But this was a controlled performance and probably the nearest to French high fashion that the designer has yet achieved.

Could it be that Donatella has swallowed the belief that less is more? "V" for vulgarity had been removed from the Versace agenda. A bared back and a curve at the front chest was a sophisticated way of revealing a new geometry. And with ruler and compass following the structure of corsets, the show had a subtle retro glam brought up-to-date.

What do the Italians know that the French don't?

This week's programme is an Italian deluge, from Miuccia Prada's resort show for Miu Miu to the revival of Schiaparelli by Italian entrepreneur Diego Della Valle.

As with established houses like Armani Privé and Valentino, there seems to be an innate Italian understanding of fashion craft.

But there is now a change of guard at French fashion's governing body, as Didier Grumbach, president since 1998, hands over the reigns to Ralph Toledano,  president of the fashion division of Spanish fragrance giant Puig.

I have always admired the energetic outreach of the previous executives, who, since the Seventies have aimed to make Paris the worldwide international centre of fashion.

But while ready-to-wear shows from British, Belgian or Japanese designers have made the Paris ready-to-wear season hyper-international, the same cannot be said for haute couture.

The French houses have fallen one by one, with only Chanel and Dior left standing at the couture peak.

Even at Givenchy, with its exquisite handwork from Riccardo Tisci, commerce has wiped out couture.

Watching Raf Simons walk through the Dior ateliers, his fingers stroking the embroideries edging court jackets, he explained today's reality. "Runway wise, as a twenty-first-century PR tool, we have to be honest," he said. "There are not enough women in the world to make couture work in the same way as ready-to-wear. It's about protecting its beauty."

But Karl Lagerfeld, over 30 years at Chanel, told a different truth. "Couture has to be flawless - and most houses don't have the workers we have," he said. "To move forward you have to have the techniques. And, in couture, Chanel is like a war machine."

Great Scots: Meet The Scottish Fashion Awards Nominees

Model Jean Campbell, who shot her first ever editorial - for  Vogues October 2013 issue - less than a year ago, and has since become a Burberry campaign face, has been nominated in the Scottish Model of the Year category at the forthcoming Scottish Fashion Awards. Mary Charteris, who won the prize last year, is also nominated.

"2014 is a hugely important year for Scotland from a political, cultural and sporting perspective so it's important that we use whatever means to shine the spotlight on our incredible wealth of fashion talent emanating from Scotland and Britain," SFA founder Tessa Hartmann told us today. "The fashion sector is often overlooked and under estimated in the Scottish business community and this definitive list highlights that that view needs to change. Our job is to highlight them to global audiences - regardless of borders."

Last year's Scottish Designer of the Year, Christopher Kane, will face his old friends Jonathan Saunders and Holly Fulton for the prize again this year, while up-and-coming brands including Harvey Nichols-favourite Deetz and 2012's winner Hayley Scanlan will battle it out for the Young Designer crown.

Scottish Fashion Awards

See a full list of nominees below:

SCOTTISH YOUNG DESIGNER OF THE YEAR
Deetz
Mairi McDonald
Hayley Scanlan
Saunt & Sinner
Rachel McMillan

SCOTTISH TEXTILE DESIGNER / BRAND OF THE YEAR
Dhu
ten30
Begg & Co
Brora
Queene and Belle

SCOTTISH RETAILER OF THE YEAR
Abandon Ship Apparel
Jane Davidson
Maggie's Farm Boutique
Fat Buddah Store

SCOTTISH COMMUNICATOR OF THE YEAR
Soki Mak, Freelance Creative Director & Fashion Stylist
Lindsay MacPherson, Fashion Features Editor, Harrods Magazine
Avril Mair, Fashion Director, Harper's Bazaar UK and Town & Country
Sara McCorquodale, Editor, MyDaily
Ann Russell, Freelance Writer and Fashion Stylist, Frocktrade
Howard McLaren, Hair Stylist / Founder R+Co, (former Senior Artistic Director at Bumble & Bumble).

SCOTTISH ACCESSORY DESIGNER OF THE YEAR
Christian MacLeod (Accessory designer)
Jane Gowans (Jeweller)
William Chambers Millinery
Tens (Sunglasses)
Karen Morrison (Jeweller)
Karen Mabon (Accessory designer)

SCOTTISH FASHION GRADUATE OF THE YEAR
Barbra Kolasinski, London College of Fashion (University of the Arts London)
Dan W J Prasad, Royal College of Art
Letty Bishop, Grays School of Art
Rebecca Peattie, Nottingham Trent University
Kirsty Frew, Edinburgh College of Art
Colleen Leitch, Edinburgh College of Art

INTERNATIONAL DESIGNER OF THE YEAR (Scottish inspired/influenced or textiles sourced from Scotland)
Simone Rocha
Vivienne Westwood
Marc by Marc Jacobs
Maison Martin Margiela
Mulberry

SCOTTISH MODEL OF THE YEAR
Helena McKelvie, TESS Management London
Christopher Millington, The Model Team/RED Models New York
Terri McGlone, Storm
Paul Carrigan, The Model Team/Storm
Jean Campbell, Viva London
Mary Charteris, Premier Model Management

SCOTTISH EXPORTER OF THE YEAR
Common People
Mackintosh
ERIBÉ
Barrie Knitwear

LUXURY RETAILER (International brands operating in Scotland)
Tommy Hilfiger, Edinburgh
Harvey Nichols Edinburgh
Burberry, Edinburgh
Emporio Armani, Glasgow
Louis Vuitton, Edinburgh

SCOTTISH DESIGNER OF THE YEAR
Holly Fulton
Christopher Kane
Jonathan Saunders

A series of special awards - including the Hall of Fame, Fashion Ambassador, Fashion Icon and Founders Award - will be revealed in September at the ceremony in London.

Karl's Cinder-ellas Set Chanel On Fire

Like the dying embers of a Baroque world, a gilded mirror hung in a modernist white space above a digitally flamed fire, Bill Viola-style, as seen in the video artist's Paris exhibition at the Grand Palais

But for the Chanel winter couture show today in the same grand building, Karl Lagerfeld lit his own vision of modernity. Gone was the huge ring of spectators and towering sets. They were replaced by a modest, modern and minimalist approach.

The models moved through the space wearing dresses with the curvilinear form of a Le Corbusier building, the cloth moulded in an egg shape around the body, without any side seams.

Chanel's magical ateliers had no problem doing that magical modelling in neoprene or silk. They even created embroidery out of concrete, weaving tiny squares like a stylish bathroom floor, laced with gilding, on the front of a tweed top.

'It's Baroque meets Le Corbusier,' said Karl, explaining that his inspiration was images of a Thirties apartment by the architect of Modernism, who had set a gilded oval mirror into a concrete wall in a building high above the Champs Élysées.

Who knows how the creative process is fired? But this Chanel show glowed with imagination: here a dress with burning red threads woven through; there a silvered gown, as if grey ash were being fanned back to life. Those ash colours were in every shade from concrete to metallic, with evening outfits dense with decoration.

All the baroque intricacies of the surfaces were set off by flat sandals, tied with a satin bow, and wild-in-the-wind hair from Sam McKnight.

The most compelling examples of couture workmanship were the oval, egg-like shapes, reinforced by the finale of a wedding dress worn gracefully by a seven-months-pregnant model bride.

Karl got so much right in this collection: a sense that it is time to douse the fiery fashion shows, leaving the warm glow of haute couture for a smaller audience to appreciate. He focused on extreme craftsmanship, without showing outré or extravagant outfits. Even the light, thigh-length shorts, peeping out from short skirt hems, seemed appropriate.

These latter day Cinder-ellas looked fresh, young and lovely - and offered to the couture audience fashion modernism for the 21st century that was still very Coco Chanel.

Handbags slung across the body, cut on a curve and densely decorated, were another cool take on Coco.

But who - except Karl, with his deep knowledge of history and fashion - would have thought that Baroque style could fire up such modernity?