#10- Special Picks for Earth Day

As the 42nd Anniversary of Earth Day approaches, people are becoming frustrated with the failure of governments to take any steps towards protecting and preserving the environment. The Earth Day 2012 campaign is designed to provide people with the opportunity to unite their voices in a call for a sustainable future and direct them towards quantifiable outcomes.

Hopefully we’re always thinking about ways that we can be optimal citizens of the planet, but as Earth Day approaches (April 22nd) it’s a good opportunity to think about the vast array of eco-friendly missions we can support with our fashion and beauty choices. Through research, I rounded up some stylish options from small brands and a few familiar retailers. Hope you like them!

Organic by John Patrick

Recycled cotton trench coat

H&M Exclusive Glamour conscious collection jacket in recycled polyester

This electric organic cotton mini dress with a pleated skirt is from H&M's new red carpet Conscious Collection ($69.95)

Faux-leather ballet flats from Zoe&Zac have organic cotton linings and recycled rubber soles. Available at Payless ($26.99)

Wear "beads" made out of recycled newspaper varnished with an eco-friendly water base. Each bracelet is made in Cambodia. ($12 at greatrecycledgifts.com)

When you're done wearing your Okabashi Maui sandals ($14.99 Okabaski.com) send them back to the company in Georgia. They'll recycle them into a new pair and give you a coupon.

Matt & Nat's vegan non-leather accessories like this apple green wallet, include linings made out of 100% plastic bottles. ($60, mattandnat.com)

Levi's WaterLess jeans use less water in the finishing process and give a fabulous fit. The modern slight curve straight jean ($78, us.levi.com) is currently 20% off.

Don’t forget the theme for 2012 Earth Day is Mobilize the Earth!

#9-New Show Format

Four-Dimensional Fashion Show and Holography

While new technologies have many uses, fashion designers have started to integrate it into their runway shows to create a new fashion formats and experience that wow audiences and set them apart from other designers. I’m going to show you two new show formats today---- four-dimensional fashion show and holography.

As these images and video showed, through the magic of cutting-edge, architecture light-mapping technology, Ralph Lauren presented the world’s first four-dimensional fashion show experience featuring digital sound effects and even scents from Ralph Lauren fragrances. I love the idea that they made a historic fusion of art, fashion and technology which is great at striking a balance between “timeless” and “modern.”

Holography is another of the technologies. By adding this technology to the show the designer engages the audience’s senses while also showcasing an incredible work of art. Burberry is the most recent designer to showcase holographic technology in their show as mentioned in my former blogs, but they weren’t the first.  Both Diesel and Alexander McQueen integrated the technology into their shows.

 

To celebrate the opening of their Beijing store, Burberry held a runway show with virtual technology that included real-time video and holographic technology. Models walked the runway while computer graphics interacted with their clothing and movements making it difficult to distinguish the live models from the holographic ones. By infusing fashion with technology Burberry was able to create a stunning work of art on the runway.

In addition to models walking the runway Diesel projected animated holograms that were visible to both sides of the catwalk, Liquid Space. The holograms represented an underwater landscape depicting a futuristic world of bioluminescence and giant mechanic cephalopods. All of the images were projected mid-air during the show to move with and around the models.

During Paris Fashion Week, Alexander McQueen projected a 3D image of Kate Moss in an empty glass pyramid. The image appears spontaneously in mid-air and twists and spins itself into the shape of a woman before revealing that it is in fact Kate Moss.  Just as quickly as the image appeared it disappears into thin air. McQueen managed to not only show off his new collection but also create an unforgettable experience for the audience.

#8-Look Books

Prada Fantasy Lookbook Spring 2012

A lookbook is a collection of photographs compiled to show off a model, a photographer, a style, or a clothing line. Lookbooks in their online form can be described as "fashion diaries" because fashion bloggers are constantly updating them on a daily or weekly basis. So this week I’m going to show my favorite lookbook to you.

I think we can call these images “Retro Fantasy” since Prada releases its highly anticipated “Fantasy” lookbook every season and spring 2012 is no exception. The new season features a dose of nostalgia with handmade collages of vintage photographs from the fifties and sixties matched with images from backstage at the runway show. Models such as Lindsey Wixson, Kasia Struss, Ginta Lapina, Fei Fei Sun and Daphne Groeneveld make an appearance in photos shot by Phil Meech and artwork created by Jereon Koolhaas and Lok Jansen.

Look at all those retro blazing cars and rockets. I love all the jewelries and the vintage details such as the pleats on the apparel. Moreover, the colors are bright but still subtle because of the pastel feeling. I think the concept of the lookbook is pretty dope too.

You wanna see the “Real” Prada Fantasies Spring Summer 2012 lookbook? Click here to see the video. Don’t miss it! I’m obsessed with this 100% handmade sequence, all the hot golfing, picnicking, the space race, and other wholesome past times.

#7 Trunk Shows

Louis Vuitton’s Big Trunk Show

A "trunk show" is a special sale in which vendors present merchandise directly to store personnel or select customers at a retail location or another unique venue.

What I am going to introduce to you is Louis Vuitton’s Big Trunk Show in the Les Arts Décoratifs wing of the Louvre in Paris. As Eric Wilson said “There were hundreds of people just standing there, crammed on the marble stairs leading into the show.” I believe it must be one of the greatest Trunk shows this year.

The exhibition, once seen, covers two floors of the museum, with the work of Louis Vuitton on the first floor (mostly trunks) and, separated by more than a century, the work of Mr. Jacobs for Louis Vuitton on the second floor (mostly handbags, shoes, clothes, collaborations and advertisements). Pamela Golbin, the curator, said that the idea was to contrast the work of the two men as it related to the great cultural shifts of their times.

In Mr. Vuitton’s case, it was the industrialization of the late 19th century that necessitated luggage for new means of travel. In Mr. Jacobs’s case, it was the globalization of fashion in the early 21st century that has made Vuitton a familiar label in almost every corner of the world.

The Marc Jacobs floor, as it relates to a living designer, is far more exciting. His collaborations with Stephen Sprouse, Mr. Murakami and Richard Prince are on display, as are 53 handbags fetishistically stored in an enormous wall-size box of chocolates.

Let's take a look at some more scenes at the "Louis Vuitton-Marc Jacobs"trunk show at Les Arts Décoratifs in Paris.

P.S. Trunk Shows are particularly popular in the bridal industry. January through May is Trunk Show season. I recommend you the Kleinfeld Bridal | Wedding Trunk Shows and you can easily check it out online. Click here for the detailed dates and events!

#6-Video Fashion Show

Currently, a wide range of contemporary designers tend to produce their shows as theatrical productions with elaborate sets and added elements such as live music or a variety of technological components like holograms, for example, my favorite one is Burberry's holographic runway show.

A fashion show is an event put on by a fashion designer to showcase his or her upcoming line of clothing during Fashion Week. I’m going to show you several my favorite fashion show videos all over the world.

Beijing, China

Highlights from the Burberry Beijing event from the Beijing Television Center

I love Burberry! This is definitely an amazing video! High-tech always brings surprises to Fashion world. 3D holograms and real models mixed together, only six of them are real model. Let's enjoy this fantastic moment.

Toronto, Canada

World MasterCard Fashion Week Fall 2012 Collections

PAVONI HIGHLIGHT

PAVONI is an exciting new luxury fashion house that caters to woman with an inspired sense of taste, as well as an appreciation for superior fabrics, impeccable craftsmanship and incomparable design. This season they chose the peacock, which has long been recognized as the embodiment and symbol of elegance, to be the inspiration for their line.

  

I love this line because it would distinguish itself as the epitome of sophistication; a line that embodies everything a woman should be; delicate yet strong, opulent yet dignified.

Fashion shows debut every season, particularly the Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter seasons. This is where the latest fashion trends are made. As we all know, the two most influential fashion weeks are Paris Fashion Week and New York Fashion Week, which are both semiannual events.

Paris, France

Paris Highlights: Fall 2012 Ready-to-Wear

All the latest trends and insider perspectives from Paris' Fall 2012 fashion week. Let’s enjoy the runway, backstage, and front-row footage from the Paris show. The magnificent train came out at Louis Vuitton’s Paris fashion show; the gigantic crystals were on Chanel’s runway; the neon lights and escalators in Kenso’s fashion show.

New York, USA

New York Highlights: Fall 2012 Ready-to-Wear

Chinese theme collection from Jason Wu is my favorite part in this video. Those shining gold fabrics and huge Chinese red gates are really classic Chinese symbols.

#5- Fashion Choice! Embellished Sheers!

Fashion Choice! Embellished Sheers!

Today’s runways, stores and sidewalks are teeming with embellished sheers -- tiny studs, lace, embroider, and sparkling embellishments gave sheer pieces a glitzy makeover.

Despite the frigid weather, easy, breezy, translucent fabrics have snuck into wardrobes of attendees at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week.

Sheer is something you can layer and layer and layer. you may try to wear sheer black pants advertising lace briefs underneath. It is not too bulky and it always looks great.

These semi-transparent and flimsy fabrics with floral prints look like butterflies. I guess spring is coming soon!

 

Why not get a head start on the sheer trend for the coming spring and summer? You can try the classic black sheer sleeves or the white maxi sheer dress!

#4 Fashion Reporter's Language

I highly recommand you the New York Times Fashion Blogs. Especially, On the Runway is very professional and provides fashion-related news and commentary, from the latest runway shows and street trends to an inside look into the design process. Cathy Horyn, the fashion critic of The Times, leads the way. She is really in the fashion bussiness world and writes blogs clearly and creatively.

Milan Goes for the Gold is one of Cathy Horyn’s blog entry which brought me to the gold and Baroque essence of  Dolce & Gabbana.  She is good at using all the descriptive terms and I definitely learned some jargons from her.

 http://runway.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/27/milan-goes-for-the-gold/

The blog entry by Cathy Horn:

Milan Goes for the Gold

Even before she grabbed her Oscar, Meryl Streep was in the groove with her gold Lanvin gown. The Milan fall shows, which ended Monday, were loaded — the Baroque essence of the Dolce & Gabbana show, but also abundant in the lace-edged skirts at Salvatore Ferragamo, the small details at Aquilano.Rimondi. Trends from Milan include graphic patterns in prints and jacquards, slim trousers, velvet, narrow jacket shoulders and multidimensional effects with colors or embroidery.

Milan designers still love those boy-girl contrasts, like those at Giorgio Armani, with great-looking pants in a muted Prince of Wales check worn with lipstick-bright jackets, and lots of splashy prints for girlish dresses and blouses with collars spilling around the neck. But the glamour quotient was really concentrated on the Oscars red carpet — il tappeto rosso, as they say here — especially with those retro, cinched-tight gowns and white dresses (my vote for the best look goes to Gwyneth Paltrow in her caped Tom Ford gown). Apart from the elegant black-and-gray velvet gowns at Bottega, the delicately finessed slips at Jil Sander and the silvery mesh columns at Versace, Milan didn’t make a bold statement for evening.

My interpretation of Cathy Horn’s language used:

1. SILHOUETTE & DESIGN

l the Baroque essence of the Dolce & Gabbana

l lace-edged skirts

l slim trousers

l great-looking pants in a muted Prince of Wales check

l lipstick-bright jackets

l girlish dresses and blouses with collars spilling around the neck

l retro, cinched-tight gowns

l caped Tom Ford gown

2. DETAILS

l graphic patterns in prints and jacquards

l narrow jacket shoulders

l multidimensional effects with embroidery

l splashy prints

l delicately finessed slips at Jil Sander

3. COLOR

l gold Lanvin gown

l loaded with gold

l multidimensional effects with colors

l white dresses

l elegant black-and-gray velvet gowns

l the silvery mesh columns at Versace

4. FABRIC

l velvet

l jacquards

5. CREATIVE “JARGON”

l boy-girl contrasts

l glamour quotient

l il tappeto rosso

#3- Fashion Trend from New York Street

Poppin with Colors

      The Oscars were the Super Bowl of movie star fashion in Los Angeles last Sunday while now here on the street of New York City, fashion trends are all about colors!

       From Bloomindales’ Neon window display to Chunky knits, cashmeres, color-blocked sweaters, wraps, fur-trimmed outerwear, printed tops, dresses and coated and colored denim were all connected to colors!  Let’s poppin with colors and say hello to the spring of 2012!

I shot these pictures in front of Metropolitan Museum. This little red bonnet and the color block high heels are really cool to me.

The left girl is a student from Fashion Institute of technology. Her peach-puff-pink bag, tangerine scarf and the bunny-ear iPhone case are really great match.

I took the right picture on 26th street, this lady’s red lace skirt makes her look elegant.

Lincoln Center is always a fashion spot in New York City. I shot several cool photos there as well. The red hand bag is totally the high light of the whole outfit. In the background, the girl in scarlet coat and the girl in rhapsody lavender pants are also look great.

Using bright colors against a muted background color like gray makes the colors pop even more. This couple in Lincoln Ceter made the voilet hand bag look so dazzling.  Movie stars also went for bold colors, especially red, led by Emma Stone wearing Giambattista Valli, Natalie Portman in Dior and Michelle Williams in Louis Vuitton, while Viola Davis opted for emerald green Vera Wang.  Green is also a big deal on the street of New York City.

The neon bags by Cambridge Satcher Company are hot items in the colorful street trend.
（on 26th street）

Also, colorful animal prints are interesting to see.（on 26th street）

(Lincoln Center)

These young people combine a bright, multi-colored pant with lime green hat, blue hair and other bright accents to create a very fun and artistic look.

(Metropolitan Museum)
Mixing multiple bright colors can be tricky but purple and yellow are executed well.  

(Lincoln Center)
Coloful scarf can have a huge visual impact when it sets against a neutral background.
The black and white coat is also unique-designed.

(Metropolitan Museum)
This is a colorful season in the New York City just like this multi-colored scholar bag.
Let's poppin with colors!