Fashion News - 04-04-2006

...New York

When the official announcement came that Hip-Hop's royal couple Russell and Kimora Simmons were splitting it did not seem like much of a surprise.

Most people just wondered why it took so long. The pair appeared to be living separate lives for a very longtime. Russell was quoted as saying that they were on the rocks for 15 years.As the reigning Queen of Conspicuous Consumption Kimora is said to be the one that pulled the trigger.

Her wildly successful Baby Phat label originally an offshoot of her husband's Phat Farm pioneering street wear line, is the real star now. Kimora was a 17 year-old model when she met Russell who was 35 at the time and the founder of Def Jam Records which he later sold for 100 million dollars.

The married pair had also attempted to keep up appearances in public and Russell handed his wife a big bouquet of flowers and a kiss at the end of the runway after each one of her extravagant and wild fashion shows. The couple has 2 daughters.

<<Baby Phat Fall/Winter 2006 Collection in New York.
Photo: Edward James

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..Fashion Prizes

Congrats to our Winners;
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Shelley - V05 Oasis products
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..Feature Archive

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Canadian Designer Report

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Fur for Fall/Winter 2004

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...New York
	Naomi Campbell's rap sheet just keeps getting longer and longer. The supermodel was arrested again for allegedly striking her housekeeper with a cell phone according to New York Police. This was the 7 th assault related incident involving the temperamental runway walker. Campbell was fingerprinted and photographed at a police station before being taken to a Manhattan court for arraignment. At the same time her unnamed 41-year-old alleged victim was at Lenox Hill Hospital receiving 4 stitches after being hit in the back of the head. Outside the courthouse Campbell posed for photographers. In a written statement a spokesperson for the supermodel said, "We believe this is a case of retaliation, because Naomi had fired her housekeeper earlier this morning”.

...Washington, DC

An angry group of designers which included Diane Von Furstenberg, Narciso Rodriguez and Zac Posen descended on Washington DC demanding copyright protection for their designs.

They have the backing of Virginia Republican Representative Bob Goodlatte who is expected to introduce legislation to protect the intellectual property of designers from knockoffs.

High end fashion designers are tired of seeing their work instantly copied and in the stores for about a tenth of the price before they have even started shipping it themselves without the type of legal protection found in other industries.

<<Diane Von Furstenberg Fall/Winter 2006 Collection in New York.
Photo: Edward James

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...London
	Just a month after graduating from the prestigious Central St Martins Fashion School designer Christopher Kane is the talk of the fashion world. He was recently flown out to Milan by Donatella Versace and offered a job after she was so impressed by his graduate collection inspired by Gianni Versace's work in the late 90's. It featured ultra-tight, ultra-short, stretched lace creations embroidered with crystal mesh and chain links according to British Vogue. Anna Wintour met privately with the 23 year-old mega talent. Kane is expected to show a full collection this September during London Fashion Week.

...New York

At a splashy Swarovski hosted cocktail party on top the Rooftop Gardens at Rockefeller Center The Council of Fashion Designers of America announced its 2006 nominees.

Up for Womenswear Designer of the Year are Francisco Costa for Calvin Klein, Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCollough for Proenza Schouler, and Marc Jacobs. For Menswear Ralph Lauren, Thom Browne and Alexandre Plokhov for Cloak made the cut. Tom Binns, Marc Jacobs and Michael Kors were named for the Accessory Designer of the Year award.

The awards gala takes place June 5 at the New York Public Library. Presenters at the event included Michael Kors, Jack McCullough and Lazaro Hernandez, Stan Herman, and John Varvatos.

...San Francisco

Miraculously a Louis Vuitton bag packed full of jewels was returned to its owner by a Good Samaritan because it was the right thing to do.

When a Canadian woman left her husband in charge of her jewelry on a sightseeing visit to the scenic town of Sausalito in Northern California on their way to the airport after attending their daughter's wedding, he absent mindedly left it on a park bench.

The contents were estimated to be worth 1 million dollars. They included a 12-carat diamond ring, pearl and emerald jewelry, a Cartier watch and cash. John Suhrhoff a hiker found them a few hours later and turned them over to the police. The bag was returned to the Ghannadian family of Toronto.

...Mumba, India

Exploding clothing and chuckles are common at any fashion event since clothes are often quickly fitted as models scramble to get into their next look. But critics are saying that India 's immature overreaction to a series of wardrobe malfunctions during Lakme Fashion Week is a disappointment and another sign that fashion is still not ready to be taken seriously in the world's most populated nation.

For all its effort and cash Lakme Fashion Week is still struggling to be taken seriously. The Indian Fashion Industry is one of the largest and most important in the world.

This year the spotlight was stolen from the designers by a series of free peeks that were played over and over in the Indian media with very little mention of the fashion. When model Carol Gracias top fell off her shoulders audiences all over India were titillated for days afterward with images of the incident. Last season after all the money that was spent on production and promotion the event was sabotaged by infighting and nastiness.