Royal Wedding

THE most talked about day of the century finally came this morning when Kate Middleton, who will now be known as Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cambridge, married Prince William - who takes on the title His Royal Highness The Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathearn and Baron Carrickfergus.
After months of fantastic and fervent speculation following the announcement in November last year, the bride finally revealed what has been the biggest and best kept sartorial secret as she walked up the aisle in a beautiful Grace Kelly-esque silk and lace gown, designed by Sarah Burton of Alexander McQueen.
Burton - who took to the helm of the British fashion label following the death of its eponymous designer in February 2010 - had been spotted last night in semi-disguise sneaking into the Goring Hotel (it was the ballet pumps and rolled-up jeans that gave it away), where The Duchess of Cambridge had been staying with her family ahead of the big day. It had been widely speculated - though never confirmed until today - that Burton was designing the dress.

White House releases Obama birth certificate

The White House on Wednesday morning released the president's long form birth certificate (pdf) in an attempt to put "birther" questions to rest.

"The President believed the distraction over his birth certificate wasn't good for the country. It may have been good politics and good T.V., but it was bad for the American people and distracting from the many challenges we face as a country," White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer said in a statement.

The president had released his certificate of live birth in 2008, but many "birthers" said the absence of a long form birth certificate prompted questions about Obama's birthplace of Hawaii. In recent weeks potential GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump has brought birther questions into the forefront of the media.

"At a time of great consequence for this country--when we should be debating how we win the future, reduce our deficit, deal with high gas prices, and bring stability to the Middle East, Washington, DC, was once again distracted by a fake issue," Pfeiffer said. "The President's hope is that with this step, we can move on to debating the bigger issues that matter to the American people and the future of the country."

Obama admitted at a White House press conference following the document's release Wednesday morning that he's been both amused and puzzled by the degree to which his place of birth has become an issue.

The president echoed Pfeiffer's statements saying that Americans and their representatives need to come together to solve issues such as how to "invest in our future" while tackling the federal deficit and federal debt:

But we're not going to be able to do it if we are distracted. We're not going to be able to do it if we spend time vilifying each other. We're not going to be able to do it if we just make stuff up and pretend that facts are not facts. We're not going to be able to solve our problems if we get distracted by sideshows and carnival barkers.

Though the president didn't mention Trump by name, Obama noted that when he announced his deficit plan this month, his birth certificate, not our country's economic future, dominated the news that week.

Trump on Wednesday took full credit for the release.

"I feel I've accomplished something really really important and I'm honored by it," Trump said at a press conference held during his pre-scheduled visit today to New Hampshire. Trump noted that people have long been requesting the document, but Trump was the only one who got the president to release it. Trump suggested Wednesday this development will boost his own potential presidential candidacy.

Trump said he and others are still going to have to assess the document's authenticity. We're "going to look at it. We have to see if it's real, if it's proper," Trump said. But he added that he's "sure it's the right deal" and is looking forward to moving on to more important issues such as OPEC and China.

Kate Hudson’s Baby Is A Health Nut

LOS ANGELES—Kate Hudson may play something of a pampered girl-about-town in the new romantic comedy, Something Borrowed (in theaters May 6), but in real life, the actress is about as low-key as an A-lister can get—especially when it comes to her beauty routine.
“Darcy is super put together,” says the actress of her stylish alter ego in the film. “I’m definitely more natural. I love makeup; I just don’t like the time it takes to do it right.”
And while she portrays a designer-clad it girl who prances about Manhattan in bold red lips and perfectly polished nails—even going so far as to test tear-proof mascaras in preparation for her wedding day—Hudson prefers a more fuss-free style. “I kind of like the mushy mascara look,” says the down-to-earth mom, who gravitates towards the quick-and-easy in her products, like Nuxe multi-usage dry oil: “It has a golden tint. You can put it on your hair and your body and it smells really yummy.

The Rosie-Huntington-Whiteley-Syndrome

It’s a little known fact (outside the industry) that Michael Bay—he of Armageddon, Pearl Harbor etc—works with Victoria’s Secret.  You can thank the action-loving director for those dark commercials that try to squeeze suspense and adventure from lots of skin and a little bit of lace.  It was through VS that he met Rosie Huntington Whiteley, whom he cast in the sequel to Transformers.
It’s not that models haven’t always dabbled in film, but Whiteley was the first of this generation—those who weave in and out of Paris and J.Crew catalogs at equal speed and have their every action documented by Twitter and blogs.  Since then, Doutzen Kroes was signed to a Dutch film, and now Lara Stone’s expressing her interest in playing a Bond girl.
In all fairness to Stone—who’s the most high-fashion of the three—she says she’s never really thought about acting, but would consider playing “a Bond girl if they asked me. For sure—I would make a great evil Bond girl!”  Of the Frejas, Darias, Natashas and Abbey Lees of the world, who do you think will be next the next Hollywood defector?

MODELS FROM RIP THE RUNWAY SHOW 2011

Tinuade

Hometown: Nigeria

Zodiac Sign: Cancer

Agency:   Isis Models Nigeria

I Am: Smart, unassuming and observant.

Who Inspires You: My Boyfriend

Best Modeling Advice: Believe in yourself.

Jeffrey

Hometown: New York City

I Am: Humble, loyal and positive.

Can’t Live Without: God

Who Inspires You: Everything and everyone positive.

Fashion Academic

PROFESSOR Richard Weston is perhaps fashion's most unexpected new design star, having been recently snapped up by iconic British store Liberty - through its new reality television series, The Next Big Thing. Weston, who is also professor of architecture at Cardiff University, impressed buyers with his range of unique scarves - which are based on scans of minerals, fossils and stones, which he finds near his home in Cardiff. His students are still struggling with his new-found fashion status.

Aside from his academic pursuits, Weston is also widely known in literary circles for writing Alvar Aalto - a book dedicated to the Finnish architect and designer, which won 1995's Sir Banister Fletcher Prize as the architecture book of the year. Weston says his love of pattern has been long-standing.
"I'm known in architecture as a writer but I've always been intensely visual and in love with colour," he tells us. "My first year tutor was an extraordinary Iranian who saw 'architecture' as embracing visual order in nature, buildings, everything. I've got lots of books about natural forms and patterns, Islamic tiling, rugs, fabrics, etc., and the 'decorative', mostly French, painters whose work I particularly love - for example Matisse, Bonnard and Vuillard."
The professor admits venturing into fashion has been a far cry from his day job, but he's enjoying the experience.
"So far it has been an almost unalloyed pleasure - getting in had its frustrations, but the fast-moving world of fashion and sensual delights of high-end retail are a welcome contrast to Britain's under-funded and over-audited universities," he says.
With his scarves collection proving a hit, Weston's label looks set for expansion.

"I sponsored a project called 'Frocks from Rocks' with Newport University's fashion students, with promising results, and Liza Bruce has used some for swimwear (I met her husband by chance in a mineral shop)," he says. "I have no delusions about becoming a new Karl Lagerfeld however! I'm looking to work with designers who share my passion for the prints."

Tommy Hilfiger autumn/winter 2011 at New York Fashion Week

Befitting Hilfiger's close links with rock 'n' roll, The Stones' "Gimme Shelter" kicked off the show, setting the pace for snappy, borrowed-from-the-boys, trouser suits, with sleeveless, tailored vests often replacing the double-breasted jackets, and coats, worn with red/navy striped collegiate hosiery.

Tommy Hilfiger autumn/winter 2011 in pictures

Easy grey sweatshirts, paired with burgundy leather mini-skirts or skinny jeans, were an updated take on campus style. Striped sweaters and skirts, accessorized with big brimmed felt hats and knitted cloaks, tossed over the shoulders, and caught at the back with double clips, suggested a more bohemian Woodstock mood.

More from New York Fashion Week

Hilfiger also dipped into Old School style, for an inspired run of "pyjama suits" in burgundy, red and navy silk foulard motifs, finished off with contrast stripe cummerbunds and hems, in jade and yellow striped satin. The mini-foulard pattern was repeated in billowing chiffon maxi-dresses, with batwing sleeves, accessorized with those big felt hats and knee boots.

A New View

SARAH BURTON has reiterated Alexander McQueen's attention to detail, unique vision and sense of originality, as she recalls some of his most well known collections. Burton is currently one of fashion's most talked about figures, having been tipped to design Kate Middleton's wedding dress, as well as being the latest name in the frame for the Dior job.

"The [autumn/winter 2006-07] collection was about the 1745 massacre of the Scottish Jacobites by the English, which Lee felt so passionately about because of his Scottish family heritage, which his mother had researched," she explains. "The women were the widows of the slaughtered army. This dress was actually based on my wedding dress - I got married two years earlier. We had to figure out how to make lace work in the round with those ruffles because Lee hated gathering. So we cut out all of the flowers from the lace and reappliquéd it on tulle to make our own fabric. This is the collection most people remember as the one with Kate Moss in a hologram. Oh, my God, it was so beautiful. He loved that show."

In honour of the Met's new tribute exhibition to McQueen - Savage Beauty - the designer, spoke of how her former boss impressively wove his seasonal themes into every aspect of his collection.

"So much of the [spring/summer 2001-02] show was about the collective madness of the world. It was presented in a two-way mirrored glass box in London, and the girls had bandaged heads, acting like inmates of a mental asylum," Burton tells US Vogue. "Lee wanted the top of this dress to be made from surgical slides used for hospital specimens, which we found in a medical-supply shop on Wigmore Street. Then we hand-painted them red, drilled holes in each one, and sewed them on so they looked like paillettes. We hand-painted white ostrich feathers and dip-dyed each one to layer in the skirt."

Royal Wedding Latest

Kate Middleton showed her support for the British high street yesterday as she picked us some last minute purchases on the King's Road in advance of her wedding in just over a week. Wearing a black Issa dress - accessorised with a tan bag and shoes - Middleton picked up a few items in Whistles, smiling as she passed shop windows decorated in honour of the impending royal wedding. She shopped on the same street on Tuesday, stopping in at Warehouse as well as the new Banana Republic store, where staff reported she was pleasant and cheerful as she shopped.

New wave of polo T-SHIRT

Polo shirts are getting cool again. If you’ve written off the perennial style due to their image as boring, matchy tennis uniforms and/or 2006’s insufferable popped Lacoste and Abercrombie collars, it might be time to give them another chance. Today, designers like Scott Sternberg and Stella McCartney are adapting the preppy staple and evolving it into something hip, understated and new, but also vaguely ‘70s—a look we are totally on board with for spring.
As a basic silhouette, polos will most likely be around forever. Whether you choose a classic logo’d Ralph Lauren number or something a little more offbeat and innovative, is up to you! Here are a few cute options that occupy the latter category.
Scott Sternberg’s become known for his quirky, cool interpretations of the polo shirt and even made a blog about them. This striped mesh number is a must-have for spring. {La Garconne}
For an even edgier look, try this ASOS crop top. {ASOS}
For something more subdued, we love this soft, simple crepe de chine polo bouse. {Madewell}
This nude cotton polo by Stella McCartney is sweet and romantic. {Bergdorf Goodman}
Tory Burch updates the polo with cool stripes and crochet. {Tory Burch}
You won’t have to worry about confusing this blush-colored lace number by Lover with your boyfriend’s polos. {Gargyle}

MEET RIP THE RUNWAY 2011 MODELS

Bunmi

Hometown: Nigeria

Zodiac Sign: Pisces

I Am: Patient, loyal and beautiful.

Can’t Live Without: Cell phone, food and toothbrush.

Best Modeling Advice: Work hard. Nigeria

Zodiac Sign: Pisces

I Am: Patient, loyal and beautiful.

Can’t Live Without: Cell phone, food and toothbrush.

Aisha

Hometown: Nigeria

Zodiac Sign: Pisces

Celebrity Crush: Tyson Beckford

Can’t Live Without: Food, music and cell phone.

Best Modeling Advice: Have loyalty, patience and faith.

Best Modeling Advice: Work hard.

Fashion Network Africa 24-hour channel coming soon... watch out!!!

Fashion For Relief - New York

Naomi Campbell put her philanthropic skills to work in New York on Friday with her Fashion For Relief show, which saw a number of big stars walk the runway to raise money for the Haiti earthquake survivors and expectant mothers in the region.

Naomi was joined by designers Donna Karan, Georgina Chapman and Diane von Furstenberg as well as Daphne Guinness (who dazzled in a crystal body suit), Sarah Ferguson, Helena Christensen and Kelly Osbourne.

Though she took a spill on the catwalk, Agyness Deyn giggled and completed her walk barefoot. She was joined by fellow models Angela Lindvall, Karen Elson, Natasha Poly and Maggie Rizer in raising over $100,000 for the charity.

Best Dressed Of Paris Fashion Week

After New York, London and Milan, Paris Fashion Week provided almost as many fashion moments off the catwalk as on for style spectators.

Rihanna and Katy Perry were doing the rounds, making front row appearances at the Karl Lagerfeld, Balmain, Gareth Pugh, Chanel and Louis Vuitton shows. Claudia Schiffer both took in the hay-strewn Chanel show and later was joined by Kate Moss at the Yves Saint Laurent catwalk.

Elsewhere, Miranda Kerr was spotted relaxing at a café before her surprise appearance on the Balenciaga catwalk, while two of our favourite stores - Colette and Browns - hosted parties for their favourite fashion people.

The prize for the week's starriest front row goes to Marc Jacobs at Louis Vuitton, who had Leighton Meester, Camilla Belle, Freida Pinto, Virginie Ledoyen, Zoe Saldana, Katy Perry and Daisy Lowe all in attendance to see his bouncy afro-ed girls take to the runway.

Best Dressed Of The Week - 15/4/2011

MANHATTAN had a glamorous moment this week at the New Yorkers for Children spring dinner dance, where Karolina Kurkova wore Sophie Theallet, Hilary Rhoda wore Chloe, Crystal Renn wore Zac Posen and Kerry Washington wore Prabal Gurung.

SEE THE WEEK'S BEST DRESSED PEOPLE
In London, Jade Williams, Sara Blomqvist, Polly Morgan and Valentine Filliol Cordier joined Maia Norman at Other Criteria on Bond Street for the launch of her Mother of Pearl pop-up shop, where Snow Queen vodka cocktails - courtesy of Maddox members club - quenched thirsts and Damien Hirst's artwork was the main topic of conversation.

Nigeria's Next Super Model 2011 is out again!!!

Maternity Fashion trends

One would naturally feel that having a baby will make them look a lot less sexy than before or they will not be able to wear the clothes that are in their closet ever again. Having a bay does mean losing the curves as well as losing the toned tummy you had. But this doesn’t mean that you have to lose out on wearing designer dresses. It just means that you have to change the terms of fashion. Bringing out a good combination of clothes is known as fashion and Maternity fashion trends brings forward a new line of clothing for the carrying mothers.


celebrity maternity fashion
Maternity fashion trends 2011 offers a variety of fashionable clothing that are comfortable and also can suit your fashion tastes during the nine months of carrying your baby. Most of these clothes will be available in your closet itself. All one will have to do is experiment with different kinds of soft clothing and tadaaa you have a new fashion trend setting dress.

Maternity fashion trends points out that the clothes which they bring out are stretchable at the tummy region and women need not bother about the size of their stomach. These clothes are very accommodative and make room for the baby. Pregnant women can still wear leggings or slim fit jeans while wearing stretchable clothes for the tummy region alone. If these don’t suit you very well, one can always try the bum hugging tunic top that is created especially for pregnant women.

Fashion Targets Breast Cancer 2011 launches today

Get ready to spend your pennies on a worthwhile cause because Fashion Targets Breast Cancer, the charity fashion initiative, launches its 15th annual collection in shops today.

Usually limited to a single T-shirt, the charity campaign and its high street and online partners have come together to create a whole FTBC line, of which 30 per cent of each sale will go straight to charity Breakthrough Breast Cancer. A 'Love' T-shirt by Topshop,, a heart print blouse from River island and an Aamaya by Priyanka cocktail ring from my-wardrobe.con will be in stores as well as offerings from Marks and Spencer, Laura Ashley, Coast and Warehouse.

Don't miss the opportunity to hit the high street guilt-free over the next six weeks to help to raise the £1 million FTBC are aiming for, and with the collection's prices ranging between £1.50 and £157, the donation can be as big or small as you like.

To help shoppers on their way, FTBC have enlisted the help of Cat Deeley, Sadie Frost and Doctor Who's Karen Gillan to spread the charitable word in a glamourous black and white photoshoot, following in the footsteps of Claudia Schiffer, Sienna Miller, and Kylie Minogue, who have helped to raise the £11.5 million that FTBC has made for Breakthrough Breast Cancer's pioneering research so far.

When I first mentioned to friends and colleagues I was going to Pakistan Fashion Week, the two 'b' words were invariably top of the conversational agenda - bombs and burkas.

After a week in Lahore, however, I can report none of the former and very few of the latter.

I met two full hijab and niqab wearing women in Anarkali - the bazaar named for a slave-girl supposedly buried alive by being bricked up in a wall by a Mughal emperor; one agreed to be filmed by the Telegraph's video cameraman, "because you can't see my face anyway", and the other, shopping at an underwear stall in one of the alleys, told me that the silver, purple and gold bras and knickers were "a good souvenir of Lahore."

Christian Louboutin sees red

Ask any fashionista about Christian Louboutin, and the first thing they will remark upon are the signature red soles the French cobbler has made his trademark.

Christian Louboutin sues Yves Saint Laurent
The story goes that Louboutin came up with the idea of giving all his designs a distinctive red, gloss sole in 1992 after painting red nail polish onto the bottom of a pair of shoes, because he felt the shoes "lacked energy". And so, a legend was born and in no time, flashing a red sole became a badge of honour for the fashion pack and Hollywood stars alike.

Daphne Guinness to bare all?

In a collaboration set to turn art into fashion and fashion into art, heiress and slave to high fashion, Daphne Guinness, will be showcasing some of her most famous pieces in a six week changing window display at Barneys, New York.
If Guinness wasn't renowned for having one of the most-coveted couture collections in the fashion world, this wouldn't be so exciting. As it stands, we could see anything from Alexander McQueen heel-less shoes and beaded couture gowns to studded leather Gareth Pugh jumpsuits, not to mention the heiress in her birthday suit.
Yes, you did read right.
As the grand finale to her six-week installation, Guinness will be getting dressed and readied for one of fashion's biggest parties, the Met Ball, in the window of the store, for all New York to see.
"What was I thinking?" she told US Vogue. "Me, as performance art! I am hoping my costume will fit!"
The project is set to coincide with the Costume Institute's Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty exhibition, which opens in New York on May 4, and will show some of her friend Isabella Blow's iconic outfits alongside her own. It will also include a short film giving us a peak into the Guinness dynasty's life, which is sure to be one to watch.

The Mouret the merrier

Afew days before I hit 40 (hit being the operative word), my friend Andreas inquired what I would be sporting to mark the occasion chez the party suite at Battersea Bridge Road's achingly fantabulous Draft House. "Oh, some fail-safe party ensemble: an ancient, hole-ridden cashmere sweater, glitzy skirt, heels, some bling, plus that indestructible Dorothy Perkins clutch someone once drove over. I never think about it until I'm leaving the house."
He gazed at me with the full weight of his Teuton metrosexuality. "It's not British to be too try-hard," I floundered. "I'm a drinker: I need something I can spill red wine down and climb a tree in. Bashes should be about old favourites, not premièring a breaking outfit." "Betts," he countered, "it's not as if you're ever going to get married. This is the night to glam up. Just get a dress."
If only life were that simple. Knockout frocks are like knockout chaps: the moment one decides one wants one, none will be found; thus one has to seize each in passing, whether one requires it or not. My last proper party dress is 20 (count 'em) years old. I have dined, danced and dallied, swum, skated and slept in it; and fondly considered it a Hepburn-esque take on the bin bag.

Congratulations LILAH GABRIEL

We are so excited to hear that Houston based design duo Jessica and Jason McMahon's jewelry brand, LilahGabriel has just been chosen as one of the top twenty finalists in the "Texas' Next Top Designer" competition. Congratulations! We love seeing you grow!

Sara Rue's First Bikini Ever.

Sara Rue lost an incredible 50 lbs with Jenny Craig -- and is finally ready to show off her body in a bikini, for the first time ever!

“If you would have told me one year ago that I would be in a national commercial in a bikini, I would have thought you were crazy,” says Rue, who looks amazing in a green pin-up suit. “But now, I feel so confident and comfortable."

Though she looks happy and healthy now, Rue says it wasn't always so. "I missed out on so many fun experiences because I was ashamed and embarrassed of how I looked in a swimsuit, but eventually I got to the point where I didn’t want my weight to define me anymore, so I did something about it. Now I feel like there’s nothing holding me back. It’s a wonderful, freeing feeling that I never thought I would accomplish.”

And while she's lost weight, don't expect her to lose her curves: "I strongly believe that it’s not about being thin; it’s about being comfortable in my skin. I love my curves, and I don’t want to lose them by overdoing it. I still want to look like a real woman.”

Jessica Stam & Karolina Kurkova: Momenti di Emporio Mates

Jessica Stam and Karolina Kurkova rub shoulders at the opening of the Momenti di Emporio exhibit on Tuesday (April 5) in New York City.

The exhibition displays Emporio Armani images throughout the years that were originally featured in the Emporio Armani magazine.

Also pictured inside: Joe Zee, whose new show All on the Line premiered on the Sundance Channel last week! The show follows the Elle magazine creative director as he helps a designer in crisis each week.

FYI: Jessica and Karolina are wearing head to toe Emporio Armani.

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RWANDA FASHION SHOW

MODELS DURING THE FIRST EDITION OF RWANDA FASHION FESTIVAL.

The second Rwanda fashion show commences today. Top designers across Africa will showcase their creativity and designs.Nigeria will be represented by Africa king of couture, Bayo Adegbe(Modela couture).This event is special because it is going to be witnessed by over thirty media organizations from all over the world.
An award has also been put together to honor some individuals apart from regular fashion designers.