By Emili Vesilind on March 12, 2010
The tragic but, sigh, not so unexpected death of Corey Haim has us thinking about the 80s-era styles he rocked in his most famous roles — as the eager-beaver underdog in Lucas and the motor-mouthed little bro out to slay vampires in The Lost Boys.
As Sam in The Lost Boys, Haim embraced primary-colors, Miami Vice striped blazers and popped-up shirt collars. His hair? A blonde-tipped Flock of Seagulls-lite pompadour.
In Lucas, where he played the underdog lead character pining for the new girl that Charlie Sheen eventually nabbed, Haim rocked an adorably nerdy, timeless style marked by coke-bottle glasses and a crumpled fisherman’s hat.
The troubled actor’s off-screen style veered toward the super-cheesy and spiky-haired in his later teen years (think Dream a Little Dream), but we’ll always remember him on the Lucas football field, his tiny form nearly swallowed by a huge football jersey — out to prove ‘em all wrong.
Photos, from top: Haim in The Lost Boys and Lucas.
By Erin Weinger on March 11, 2010
Grey Ant, Chicago native Grant Krajecki’s venerable L.A. based label, is moving operations to New York to be part of the CFDA Incubator program (ugh, another one bites the dust). Bad news for L.A. fashion in the long run, good news for us all in the short as the brand is closing out a decade’s worth of merch and nothing is above $20. Find samples, denim and sunglasses for men women and, according to the invite, trannies too. Goods start at a measly $1 and cash and credit cards will be accepted. If you don’t plan on shopping, at least come to pay your respects to the brand that single handedly made it ok to wear mom jeans.
Saturday, March 13 from noon to 5 p.m.
1061 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles. Parking and entrance on Beaudry Ave.
By admin on March 11, 2010
I was wondering what Richie Rich has been up to post-Heatherette (his former partner in the label, Traver Rains, is pursuing photography, as we wrote about a few weeks back). Turns out Rich has returned to one of his enduring muses, Pam Anderson, for a new, trashtastic line called Tabloid Hero (Pam will be spokesmodel). “All my celebrity friends will be rocking it out. I spoke the other day to Fergie, who is dying to wear it,” Rich tells Page Six. “I am going to do the first infomercial with Kim Kardashian, who even though she has her own line, she says she will support me.” On my count, that just leaves Jenna Jameson, whom I remember strutting on the Heatherette catwalk a few seasons ago at LA Fashion Week. And I imagine she’s already on line two in Rich’s design studio. —Krista Jennings
By Emili Vesilind on March 11, 2010
Isabel Toledo, one of the great women-friendly designers in the industry, will be in the classroom at L.A.’s Otis College of Art and Design to work with student designers on a special fashion project.
The mentorship program at Otis is one of the most impressive — chair Rosemary Brantley is great at talking high-pro folks (including Francisco Costa for Calvin Klein, Monique Lhuillier, Trina Turk, Vera Wang, Todd Oldham, Bob Mackie, John Varvatos, Diane von Furstenberg, Jeremy Scott and Rick Owens) into the classroom.
Designers work with a small team of juniors and senior who then work through the design process: researching, sketching, draping, drafting and constructing a final garment. So far, Toledo has given 15 members of the Otis Fashion senior class the following design direction: “Design seasonless, sustainable day-to-evening wear to be worn 20 years from now. Create five easy modern pieces that are interchangeable and can go from functional day to an evening function. One of the pieces must play a dual role, i.e. vest to bag, bag to jacket, jacket to toolbelt. Reuse, recycle, repurpose, and upcycle in creating sophisticated looks for the future.”
The most impressive work by the student designers will be presented on the runway on May 8, 2010 at Otis College of Art and Design’s annual scholarship fundraising gala in Beverly Hills.
Photo: Toledo in the Otis classroom.
By admin on March 10, 2010
Say what you will about Mark Hunter and ironic facial hair, but he does continue to snap away some of my favorite party photos. The photographer’s latest series from Paris Fashion Week has many gems, including this shot of Grace Jones. —Krista Jennings
By Claire Butler on March 10, 2010
Red carpet shoe staple Jimmy Choo toasted its new Choo 24:7 footwear collection with Nordstrom at a luncheon yesterday at the Beverly Hills Hotel.
The Seattle-based department store hosted the intimate event for its big-spending local clientele — as a chance to meet Jimmy Choo’s high-profile president, Tamara Mellon, and Nordstrom’s charming vice president, Pete Nordstrom.
“Tamara is a fashion personality, and we thought people would love meeting her,” said Nordstrom. “Women love Choo.”
Mellon, who showed up in a cool Yves Saint Laurent leopard-print dress, said Nordstrom has been a key account for the brand for years, and that L.A. is a “huge” market for the company, despite the recession. “I wanted to come out and meet our customers,” she said.
The Choo 24:7 collection is comprised of new and classic looks Mellon picked out herself — mainly from her own closet. “You can wear these in two years if you want,” she said, “because they’re not too trendy.”
Photos, from top: Tamara Mellon (in the middle) chatting with our old friend Wayne Niemi from Footwear News; a Choo 24:7 display.
By Erin Weinger on March 9, 2010
It’s that time of year again…local sartorial superstar Corinne Grassini’s Society for Rational Dress is sample sale-ing goods from fall 2009 and spring 2010 (!) and you’re invited.
Find a selection of T-shirts, dresses, leather skirts and cozy knits between 20 and 75 percent off original prices. That means whispy cotton T-shirts with ruched detailing start as low as $25 and slinky silk dresses won’t top a Benjamin. But the pieces de resistance, in our mind at least, are Grassini’s paper-thin leather skirts which will start at a measly $75 during the sale (watch your back—we will fight you tooth and nail to grab one in our size).
The sale goes down this Saturday, March 13 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., at Grassini’s downtown L.A. studio.
255 South Santa Fe Avenue #100
Los Angeles, CA 90012
213-613-0757
By Andrew Harmon on March 9, 2010
The subdued presentation of Alexander McQueen’s fall 2010 collection — or 15 looks from what likely would have been a larger addition to his already prodigious oeuvre — was hosted Tuesday in a goldleaf-overdosed salon at PPR, the luxury conglomerate run by Francois-Henri Pinault that counts the McQueen label among its holdings.
The collection is, as one would expect, miraculous. Oskar Weinstein has the full RTW line on his great website here.
It’s a shame we didn’t see McQueen’s work commemorated at the Kodak Theatre on Sunday. For most who vamp along the Academy Awards red carpet, perhaps he was just too “edgy” (a word I still don’t really understand when it comes to describing fashion, 
though I assume it’s something antithetical to pretty and safe).
On my count, Salma Hayek was the only recognizable face to wear McQueen on Oscar night (to the Elton John afterparty, and the posterior of the dress was delightfully not one that most Hollywood actresses would want associated with them). Then again, Hayek is married to … Francois-Henri Pinault.
By Emili Vesilind on March 9, 2010
Taylor Jacobson, stylist Rachel Zoe’s former frustrated assistant, has partnered with L.A. denim brand Kasil on The Workshop, a “platform for collaborations, with the vision of involving young talents from different fields such as styling, music and contemporary art to work on the collections as co-designers.”
David Lim, creative director of Kasil, was inspired by Jacobson’s quirky, rocker sense of style and impressive background in dressing biggie celebs. “She is the quintessential trendsetter,” he said in a release. “Her sense of style adds funkiness to the street chic that compliments our collection.”
For the first collection, which will debut for Fall/Winter 2010, Jacobson designed the “Minx,” an ultra-skinny jean that comes in four washes. “My vision was to create a transitional jean that was edgy yet polished at the same time,” said Jacobson. “A feminine collection juxtaposed with masculine undertones.”
From the collection pictures the company sent out (below), the collection isn’t exactly breaking new ground. But then perhaps it’s all about the fit?
By admin on March 8, 2010
After a painful debut last season as an artistic adviser to Ungaro, Lindsay Lohan was nowhere to be found at the label’s fall 2010 show this morning in Paris, according to Miles Socha at WWD (story developing). The paper’s longtime European Editor went backstage following the show to corner owner Asim Abdullah to get the official story. “She’s not involved in this collection,” Abdullah said. He declined further comment. Probably because there’s nothing left to say. Starlet experiment over; let’s move along. —Krista Jennings
