Marc Jacobs and Lady Gaga cover the Fall 2010 issue of V Magazine.  Also featured are Liya Kebede and Andre Balazs among other prominent names in the annual New York issue.  Fashion photograher Mario Testino captured the images of these amazing talents on film.  If you had any doubt that this was the New York issue, a partially dressed Gaga with her own interpretation of Lady Liberty’s crown and torch should clue you in.  The cover is very artistic, bordering on genius.  If I were a betting woman, I would bet that Lady Gaga was, um, wearing a Marc Jacobs gown.  Marc Jacobs is the fashion designer with leading man good looks, and he gives us his best side profile as he sits on a television set that could have come straight out of the 1950′s. 

Model Liya Kebede and hotelier Andre Balazs are obviously channeling uber-chic Upper-East-Siders in their spread.  The two are dressed up to the nines for a shopping trip that included an apparent stop at Michael Kors’ boutique.  Testino’s tell tale sign that this was a scene from the streets of New York would be the trash bin on the corner with an empty pizza deliver box inside.  The spread includes other famous names like Chloe Sevigny, Marina Abramovic and Debbie Harry to name a few.  Nicola Formichetti styled this amazing photoshoot.

Marc Jacobs scored big when he assembled models Christy Turlington, Karen Elson and Natalia Vodianova for Louis Vuitton’s Fall 2010 ad campaign.  The ladies look lovely as they groom themselves in a dressing room full of make-up mirrors with lights.  That lighting is usually a recipe for bad make-up application, but not here.  In addition to mirrors, there are plenty of Vuitton shoes and bags scattered throughout the room.  Let’s not forget that the models are perfectly dressed in the fall 2010 collection.  Steven Meisel captured the updated 1950′s vibe that Jacobs delivered in his collection.

The beautiful people came out tonight at Lincoln Center to hear the winners announced at the CFDA Awards.  There were very few surprises.  The big winner of the evening was Marc Jacobs for Womenswear Designer of the Year.  Take a look at the list of winners and nominees below to see if you agree with the outcome.

CFDA Winners:

Womenswear Designer of the Year: Marc Jacobs

Menswear Designer of the Year: Rag & Bone (Marcus Wainwright and David Neville)

Accessory Designer of the Year: Alexis Bittar

Popular Vote Award: Ralph Lauren

The Swarovski Award for Womenswear: Jason Wu

The Swarovski Award for Menswear: Richard Chai

The Swarovski Award for Accessory Design: Alexander Wang

The Jeffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement: Michael Kors 

CFDA Special Award Tribute: Lee McQueen of Alexander McQueen

The Eugenia Sheppard Journalism Award – Kim Hastreiter (Paper Magazine)

The International Award – Christopher Bailey (Burberry Prorsum) 

The Eleanor Lambert Award – Tonne Goodman (Vogue)

Icon Award: Iman

Nominees:

Womenswear Designers of the Year – Donna Karan, Alexander Wang and Marc Jacobs

Menswear Designers of the Year - Michael Bastian, Tom Ford and Rag & Bone (David Neville and Marcus Wainwright)

Accessory Designer of the Year - Alexis Bittar, Proenza Schouler (Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez) and Marc Jacobs

Swarovski Awards For Womenswear - Joseph Altuzarra, Prabal Gurung and Jason Wu

The Swarovski Award for Menswear – Simon Spurr, Patrik Ervell and Richard Chai

The Swarovski Award For Accessory Design – Dana Lorenz, Alexander Wang and Eddie Borgo

CFDA Special  Award Tribute – Alexander McQueen

The Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award – Michael Kors

The Eugenia Sheppard Journalism Award – Kim Hastreiter (Paper Magazine)

The International Award – Christopher Bailey (Burberry Prorsum) 

The Eleanor Lambert Award – Tonne Goodman (Vogue)

The Fashion Icon Award – Iman

Related Updates: CFDA Announces Fashion Awards Finalists

Alexander Wang Fall 2010

Donna Karan Fall 2010

Marc Jacobs Fall 2010

The Council of Fashion Designers of America has announced the finalists for the 2010 Fashion Awards.  Who says social media is not a good source for breaking news?  Alexander Wang, Donna Karan and Marc Jacobs were each nominated for womenswear Designer of the Year.  Today has been a big news day for the CFDA, it announced earlier that Diane von Furstenberg would remain as president until 2012, and now the nominations.  Too bad we’ll have to wait until June 7th to find out who will walk away with the awards, but for now, we can always speculate.  Check out the list of other nominees for the coveted awards.

Other Nominees:

• Menswear Designers of the Year – Michael Bastian, Tom Ford and Rag & Bone (David Neville and Marcus Wainwright)
• Accessory Designer of the Year - Alexis Bittar, Proenza Schouler (Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez) and Marc Jacobs
• Swarovski Awards For Womenswear - Joseph Altuzarra, Prabal Gurung and Jason Wu
• The Swarovski Award for Menswear – Simon Spurr, Patrik Ervell and Richard Chai
• The Swarovski Award For Accessory Design – Dana Lorenz, Alexander Wang and Eddie Borgo
• CFDA Special  Award Tribute – Alexander McQueen
• The Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award – Michael Kors
• The Eugenia Sheppard Journalism Award – Kim Hastreiter (Paper Magazine)
• The International Award – Christopher Bailey (Burberry Prorsum) 
• The Eleanor Lambert Award – Tonne Goodman (Vogue)
• The Fashion Icon Award – Iman

A funny thing happened in Milan and Paris during fashion month, it became fashionable to cast models with curves on the runway.  Two notable fashion houses took this step, and we applaud them both; the trail blazers were Prada in Milan, and Louis Vuitton in Paris.  The move towards curves have been gaining momentum, with in demand models like Lara Stone being sought after for advertising campaigns and editorials, but it has reached a new high.  Victoria’s Secret’s models were called to the rescue in Milan for Prada’s runway show, along with Lara.  Even their former Angels were called into action in Paris at Louis Vuitton.  It’s too soon to know if this trend will cross-over into Spring 2011.  Let’s not be naive, this was marketing; only the sales numbers will reveal just how brilliant.  We should not focus only on the sales of the clothes, but the accessories too.  Those who approve of this move may vote with their dollars, and purchase a Prada or Vuitton bag over other brands for fall.  Should it be a financial success, we may see other brands make the leap.  Even if this phenomena ends with the Fall 2010 season, it has left a permanent mark on all of us who witnessed the fashion industry embrace womanly bodies.

Louis Vuitton’s Fall 2010 runway show was a reunion of the supermodels in Paris.  Laetitia Casta, Bar Refaeli, Adriana Lima and Elle Macpherson walked the runway, and they looked fantastic.  Curves were in fashion this season in Paris.  These clothes were made to fit the bodies of real women; they had a grown-up femininity about them, nothing girlish.  We could have been transported back into the 1950′s with the longer hemlines, beautiful coats and elbow length gloves.  Yes, the 1950′s in Paris or was it Italy?  The fountain in the middle of the runway was the perfect backdrop.  Romance was in the air, and in the pieces.  Lovely plaids and prints were in abundance in fall colors.  The music was dramatic, and the scene cinematic; we were at the movies.  It was not all about the supermodels and scenery though, nothing could take away from those gorgeous shoes and bags.  The accessories were befitting of the Vuitton name.  Flats played a large role in the show, and the collection still managed to maintain its sensuality.  The bags were the jewels displayed in all their majesty, and they will be the best friends to every Louis Vuitton woman in the fall. 

A year ago Marc Jacobs wanted few celebrities at his fall 2009 runway show.  For Spring 2010 two of them managed to get in, Lady Gaga and Madonna.  One of whom was not invited, uh, Madonna.  The same rule apply for fall 2010, and it appears that the rule will be strictly enforced.  “When Marc says “no” he means NO! NO CELEBRITIES!,” says Marc’s business partner Robert C. Duffy on Twitter.  An invite to his runway show is a much desired commodity for editors, buyers, stylists, and yes, bloggers.  Celebrities may not be welcomed, but Marc Jacobs is granting front row access to all when he streams his runway show live this season. 

Marc Jacobs Shuns Celebs From Front Row [Harper's Bazaar Austrailia]

Related: Designers Live Stream Shows During New York Fashion Week

It appears the Internet is playing a starring role in New York Fashion Week.  Several of the top designers are live streaming their runway shows this year.  Among them are Marc Jacobs, Alexander Wang, Rodarte, Calvin Klein, Ports 1961 and Isaac Mizrahi.  The move towards live streaming the shows online has been a growing trend from previous seasons, and momentum is building.  Will this shift jeopardize the week set aside for the fashion industry to congregate under one tent?  That remains to be seen, but until then here’s a schedule of the shows to watch online:

Alexander Wang – February 13th @ 5:oopm EST – Showstudio.com

Calvin Klein – February 18th @ 3:00pm EST – calvinkleincollections.com

Isaac Mizrahi – February 18th @ 12:00pm EST

Marc Jacobs – February 15 @ 8:00pm EST – marcjacobs.com

Ports 1961- February 11th @ 3:00pm EST – vogue.com

Rodarte – February 16th @ 12:00pm – Showstudio.com

Marc Jacobs is very pleased with the selection of model Lara Stone for the new Louis Vuitton ad campaign.  The designer gives us a behind the scenes look at the photo shoot where Steven Meisel shot the Spring/Summer 2010 ad with the model.  Lara replaced Madonna, and all indications are she was the perfect choice.  She epitomizes the curvey and glamourous sought-after look of the new decade.  Arguably she ushered in the look, and we were all entranced.  The theme of the ad is natural and tranquil and it works well against the glamour and luxury of  the model and her Vuitton.  The goal of these campaigns is to entice women to aspire to be like the model and shop Louis Vuitton.  I would say that mission was accomplished.

Alexander McQueen Spring 2010

Luxury brands like Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs and Givenchy have not embraced the idea of selling their apparel online.  Marc Jacobs is an American designer, and he is also the creative director of Louis Vuitton.  There appears to be a  divide betweeen U.S. high-end retailers and European retailers; the U.S. companies are far more open to e-commerce.   

European retailers are hesitant to take advantage of the online retail market amid concerns about brand exclusivity and brand dilution.  They are concerned about a deterioration in customer service online as well.  Some retail consultants argue that the ease and convenience of ordering online is really what quality service is all about. 

Many of these brands have certain exceptions like, U.K. based Alexander McQueen.  His website sells everything to his U.S. customers only.  Yves Saint Laurent will only allow accessories to be sold online to its U.S. customers.  Chanel sells its beauty products, and Louis Vuitton sells  leather goods and accessories, but neither will go beyond those specified items.

Luxury brands are not as averse to the Internet as before, many have ventured into the online social networking arena.  It’s a great way to connect with customers in an attempt to better address their needs.  Twitter, Facebook and other sites provide real-time feedback that, if used correctly, can be invaluable to these companies.

“More than 50% of the population has grown up with shopping on the Internet. It continues to be the biggest growth opportunity for fashion, and luxury in particular. They’re not going to see the same level of growth in traditional outlets,” says chief retail analyst Marshal Cohen.  Maybe the question to ask is, can luxury retail continue to shun e-commerce without serious financial implications?

Online Luxury Retail Remains Elusive [BusinessWeek]