Source from: http://styleclone.com/21937/fashion-blogger-emily-johnston-designs-one-off-handbag-for-coach/
Over the past few years bloggers have really infiltrated the fashion industry. Fashion insiders have welcomed them with open arms while others have wrinkled their noses up at them, but you can’t deny that they’ve made one hell of an impression. This is no longer girls in their bedrooms writing for fun, blogging has now turned into a fully fledged career for some and many fashion blogs receive thousands, even millions of hits per month.
Super popular blogger, Emily Johnston, from Fashion Foie Gras has teamed up with US accessories lable, Coach, to design a one-off blogger friendly handbag.
Emily has designed a practical and functional handbag which includes a padded pocket to hold a blogger’s trusty digital SLR camera and a compartment to store flat shoes for when heels get too much. The leather tote bears the colours of the US and British flags as well as intricate leather and tassle detailing.
It’s an extremely exciting time for bloggers in the fashion industry. Jason Weisenfeld, senior vice president of global brand communications and collaborations at Coach spoke of the collaboration recently, saying: “Emily’s eye for making a great bag is as impressive as her super-chic fashion blog. We asked Emily to design something practical for the working blogger and in the process she created a bag that has the modern functionality every blogger needs.”
Of course, Emily is just as thrilled about the collaboration and when she revealed the exciting news on her blog, she wrote: “I have to be completely honest here. I’m not really even sure how to write this piece for you all. Even as I look at the picture of me with the Fashion Foie Gras Tote for Coach I still can’t believe it’s actually real. I kid you not, this feels like at any moment someone is going to say, “Just kidding… we weren’t really making a tote with you.” Although if you’ve ever met the Coach team you’d know this would be the last words out of their mouths as they are the most passionate and caring group of people and the work they do with Coach is on another level…”
…“As we were putting the bag together it became clear that although we were creating a bag with bloggers in mind, in reality we were creating the perfect bag for the modern woman. This is a bag for any woman who has to carry around everything and anything. It can be used as an everyday tote or as a bag for travel.”
This is, of course, not the first time that a blogger has teamed up with a big brand name and it’s slowly becoming a more common thing. Most of the fashion industry have got savvy to the fact that fashion blogs are the first port of call for product reviews and news and the blogger’s opinions really do count.Coach is just one brand that has realised this and is happy to collaborate with a growing blogging industry.
The Fashion Foie Gras for Coach tote bag is available from London stores now, while international orders will be taken from November 30th at Coach.com.
Showing posts with label fashion industry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fashion industry. Show all posts
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Monday, October 31, 2011
A boutique that runs in the service of fashion
Source From: http://www.phillyburbs.com/lifestyle/fashion/a-boutique-that-runs-in-the-service-of-fashion/article_3beee0ac-03c6-11e1-8e06-0019bb30f31a.html
Disillusioned by what the fashion industry offers women who are not rail-thin 20-something exhibitionists, Candace Stauffer decided she’d rather skip a big black-tie event than go in a second-rate outfit.
“You want to look sexy, but you don’t want to look slutty, either,” said Stauffer, who lives in Bedminster. “You want heads to turn when you walk into a room.”
So she and her husband, John, stayed home from his company’s Christmas party last year.
This year, John suggested his wife consult Jill Strickland, owner of the Frox boutique in Perkasie, whose hair Stauffer did when she worked at a salon in the borough.
Strickland pulled out her magic wand — a talent for personalizing clothes to a woman’s body shape and an inventory of stylish clothes — and like a fashion Cinderella, Stauffer is ready for the ball.
For her client, Strickland chose “a kimono-sleeved dress that cinches in at the waist, but hides the hips a little bit — I tend to be a little curvier,” said Stauffer. “The dress was beautiful purplish-blue, but she put big, bold gold jewelry with it, and a gold clutch bag ... she really just has an eye for fashion.”
Strickland grew up in the Vermilion Hills section of Levittown, displaying a predilection for fashion styling at a very young age.
“I had three older sisters, and I would always dress them up,” she said. “I would help them when I was, like, 7 years old, dress up for their dates.”
She started her career at an entry-level job at a clothing warehouse in Plumsteadville, and eventually became an independent sales representative for clothing manufacturers.
She opened her shop nine years ago after being stranded far from home on Sept. 11, 2001. On that day, she decided, “I never wanted to be more than two blocks from my children. I shouldn’t have to risk my life to sell clothes.”
She found storefront space in a 90-year-old building on North 7th Street and renovated it with the help of her husband, Stephen, who’s a general contractor.
Her business plan revolves around fashionable clothes for pear- and apple-shaped women as well as for those with slender, symmetrical figures. Or, as she described the lineup of real-people models in one of her twice-yearly fashion shows, women who are “17 to 70, size 4 to 16 ... When I go to market, I have all of them in my mind.”
Strickland displays business wear, fancy sweaters, trendy print dresses, jeans and separates on free-form racks made to her design. “I didn’t want anything that anybody else had,” she said, referring to the unadorned chrome racks seen in most stores.
A shopping trip at Frox involves a consultation with Strickland or one of her sales staff, who guide customers to figure-appropriate items. On a recent day, Strickland pulled out a knit skirt, priced at a little more than $100, that is suitable for a short, large-sized woman. The garment is washable, and reverses from print to solid.
“If you buy one quality piece, you’ll do better with that,” she said.
Frox also stocks handbags by Vera Bradley and Brighton, plus a wide selection of costume jewelry.
If a customer has trouble envisioning an outfit, Strickland does it for her. Sales staff settle a customer in one of two roomy dressing rooms and bring the clothes to her.
“It’s kind of like going into a boutique from 20, 30 years ago, where they helped dress you,” said Stauffer. “They really pay attention. They’re there when you come out of the dressing room. They want to see how it fits.”
Strickland said fashion expertise is her biggest stock-in-trade.
“Why are they going to come to me? Because of my enthusiasm, because of how we put things together,” she said. “Everyone has the same thing, but they don’t have Jill Strickland.”
Disillusioned by what the fashion industry offers women who are not rail-thin 20-something exhibitionists, Candace Stauffer decided she’d rather skip a big black-tie event than go in a second-rate outfit.
“You want to look sexy, but you don’t want to look slutty, either,” said Stauffer, who lives in Bedminster. “You want heads to turn when you walk into a room.”
So she and her husband, John, stayed home from his company’s Christmas party last year.
This year, John suggested his wife consult Jill Strickland, owner of the Frox boutique in Perkasie, whose hair Stauffer did when she worked at a salon in the borough.
Strickland pulled out her magic wand — a talent for personalizing clothes to a woman’s body shape and an inventory of stylish clothes — and like a fashion Cinderella, Stauffer is ready for the ball.
For her client, Strickland chose “a kimono-sleeved dress that cinches in at the waist, but hides the hips a little bit — I tend to be a little curvier,” said Stauffer. “The dress was beautiful purplish-blue, but she put big, bold gold jewelry with it, and a gold clutch bag ... she really just has an eye for fashion.”
Strickland grew up in the Vermilion Hills section of Levittown, displaying a predilection for fashion styling at a very young age.
“I had three older sisters, and I would always dress them up,” she said. “I would help them when I was, like, 7 years old, dress up for their dates.”
She started her career at an entry-level job at a clothing warehouse in Plumsteadville, and eventually became an independent sales representative for clothing manufacturers.
She opened her shop nine years ago after being stranded far from home on Sept. 11, 2001. On that day, she decided, “I never wanted to be more than two blocks from my children. I shouldn’t have to risk my life to sell clothes.”
She found storefront space in a 90-year-old building on North 7th Street and renovated it with the help of her husband, Stephen, who’s a general contractor.
Her business plan revolves around fashionable clothes for pear- and apple-shaped women as well as for those with slender, symmetrical figures. Or, as she described the lineup of real-people models in one of her twice-yearly fashion shows, women who are “17 to 70, size 4 to 16 ... When I go to market, I have all of them in my mind.”
Strickland displays business wear, fancy sweaters, trendy print dresses, jeans and separates on free-form racks made to her design. “I didn’t want anything that anybody else had,” she said, referring to the unadorned chrome racks seen in most stores.
A shopping trip at Frox involves a consultation with Strickland or one of her sales staff, who guide customers to figure-appropriate items. On a recent day, Strickland pulled out a knit skirt, priced at a little more than $100, that is suitable for a short, large-sized woman. The garment is washable, and reverses from print to solid.
“If you buy one quality piece, you’ll do better with that,” she said.
Frox also stocks handbags by Vera Bradley and Brighton, plus a wide selection of costume jewelry.
If a customer has trouble envisioning an outfit, Strickland does it for her. Sales staff settle a customer in one of two roomy dressing rooms and bring the clothes to her.
“It’s kind of like going into a boutique from 20, 30 years ago, where they helped dress you,” said Stauffer. “They really pay attention. They’re there when you come out of the dressing room. They want to see how it fits.”
Strickland said fashion expertise is her biggest stock-in-trade.
“Why are they going to come to me? Because of my enthusiasm, because of how we put things together,” she said. “Everyone has the same thing, but they don’t have Jill Strickland.”
Monday, July 18, 2011
Phoebe Philo: Fighting The War Against "Frivolous" Fashion
Source From: http://www.stylecaster.com/fashion/14133/phoebe-philo-fighting-war-against-frivolous-fashion
Phoebe Philo isn't one of the most outspoken figures in the fashion industry, but she doesn't need to be: her subdued, straightforward designs for Céline make enough of a statement. The woman who is single-handedly responsible for the revival of the French fashion house (and who can be credited for Chloé's success after she was named its creative director in 2001) gave a rare interview to The Independent which ran over the weekend.
Although she's a self-proclaimed interview-hater, she thoroughly discusses how she's worked to create a brand identity and modern designs that resonate not only with buyers, but with women everywhere. Phoebe explains her philosophy:
"What I love is this idea of a wardrobe, the idea that we're establishing certain signatures and updating them, that a change in colour or fabric is enough. I do think that the world doesn't need many more frivolous bits and bobs that end up left in cupboards or landfills."
Philo's "quality over quantity" viewpoint is rare these days in fashion, but it's evident that whatever she's doing is working. Her impeccably made staples are photographed on every international editor during Fashion Month, and although her clothing is a bit conservative, it perfectly straddles the lines between modern and timeless, as well as between masculine and feminine. The simplicity that she brings to her clothing is matched by her pure motives behind it. She says:
"I absolutely love fashion. I love doing new things and finding ways to swerve in a different direction. But one of the reasons why I try to use fabrics and cuts that don't go out of fashion is because I like the idea of women buying the clothes and then... I don't know what the word is... cherish sounds over-emotional for a relationship with a piece of clothing... but for a woman to feel proud, satisfied, comfortable and powerful in them, to wear them and get on with their lives."
She's a class act, this one. Check out the full interview over at The Independent!
Phoebe Philo isn't one of the most outspoken figures in the fashion industry, but she doesn't need to be: her subdued, straightforward designs for Céline make enough of a statement. The woman who is single-handedly responsible for the revival of the French fashion house (and who can be credited for Chloé's success after she was named its creative director in 2001) gave a rare interview to The Independent which ran over the weekend.
Although she's a self-proclaimed interview-hater, she thoroughly discusses how she's worked to create a brand identity and modern designs that resonate not only with buyers, but with women everywhere. Phoebe explains her philosophy:
"What I love is this idea of a wardrobe, the idea that we're establishing certain signatures and updating them, that a change in colour or fabric is enough. I do think that the world doesn't need many more frivolous bits and bobs that end up left in cupboards or landfills."
Philo's "quality over quantity" viewpoint is rare these days in fashion, but it's evident that whatever she's doing is working. Her impeccably made staples are photographed on every international editor during Fashion Month, and although her clothing is a bit conservative, it perfectly straddles the lines between modern and timeless, as well as between masculine and feminine. The simplicity that she brings to her clothing is matched by her pure motives behind it. She says:
"I absolutely love fashion. I love doing new things and finding ways to swerve in a different direction. But one of the reasons why I try to use fabrics and cuts that don't go out of fashion is because I like the idea of women buying the clothes and then... I don't know what the word is... cherish sounds over-emotional for a relationship with a piece of clothing... but for a woman to feel proud, satisfied, comfortable and powerful in them, to wear them and get on with their lives."
She's a class act, this one. Check out the full interview over at The Independent!
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