Designer Shake-Ups
Now you see them, now you don’t. This year it seemed that every major label and beloved designer was making more moves than a chess player. Raf Simons left Jil Sander in February and just two months later was appointed the new head designer at Dior. Stefano Piloti was out at YSL and Hedi Slimane was in. In November it was announced that Christopher Kane and Versus would be ending their three-year partnership. But perhaps the most shocking shake-up of them all was happening at Balenciaga. Designer Nicolas Ghesquié©re, who helmed the é¼ber-successful label for fifteen years was suddenly out and speculation about who could possibly fill his shoes ran wild. In November it was finally confirmed that It-designer Alexander Wang would take over as creative director.
Fashion Olympics
Yes, we know that the Olympics are about athletic achievement. But the summer games in London added a healthy dose of fashion achievement as well. From the Stella McCartney- designed Team Great Britain uniforms, to the Closing Ceremony reunion performance by the Spice Girls, the London Olympics were a fashion fan’s dream come true. But our favourite moment (sports aside) was the Closing Ceremony tribute to British fashion featuring our beloved Supers (Kate, Karen, the Lilys, Naomi, Georgia, Stella, David and Jourdan) wearing some of the UK’s hottest designers (including McQueen, Erdem, Burberry, Saunders and Westwood).
Catfight on the Catwalk
Moments before Zac Posen’s Spring 2013 show, fire marshals demanded sixty seats be removed from the venue for safety reasons which left a French publisher without her front-row seat, and a scuffle ensued with one of the show’s PRs. Then came The Slap Heard ˜Round The Internet. Marie José© Susskind-Jalou, of Jalouse, allegedly slapped the head of Posen’s public relations team. Yikes.
YSL Drops the Y
Yves Saint Laurent dropped the Yves in an apparent attempt to modernize and rebrand the iconic label under new creative director, Hedi Slimane. While they’ll continue to use YSL and the existing logo in some capacities, the ready-to-wear line will now be called Saint Laurent Paris.
Royal Maternity Style
Unless you’ve been living under a rock with no Wi-Fi, you know that Wills and Kate are expecting a wee royal baby. While she’s still in the early stages of her pregnancy, we can only imagine what kind of amazing maternity looks we can expect in the next few months.
Cathy Horyn vs. The World
Famed fashion journalist Cathy Horyn was feeling scrappy in 2012. After Horyn slagged Oscar de la Renta’s Spring/Summer 2013 collection, the designer penned a scornful letter aimed at Horyn and published in Women’s Wear Daily. After trading insults, such as hotdog of American fashion and stale 3 day old hamburger the two apparently made up as they were spotted chatting at an event in December. Horyn also found herself embroiled in a feud with designer Hedi Slimane, although this time no one referred to the other as any type of meat.
The End of an Era
In April Jeanne Beker broke our hearts when she tweeted “This dream is over: After 27 glorious years, FT production ceased today.” For many of us, FT was our only glimpse into the world of fashion, long before every street style blogger was Instagramming from inside the tents. There may be other fashion-centric television shows (MTV has once again rebooted its supermodel-hosted House of Style, for example), but there will never be another Fashion Television. (Editor’s Note: Both Jill Klausen and 29Secrets’ Editor-in-Chief, Sara Koonar, started their careers interning at Fashion Television.)
