YSL, A Joke, Misogyny at Mcqueen, Gatsby Does Stella Awards, Grey Magazine

By the official end of Fashion Week, it’s information overload. I’ve seen and recorded a lot and to make sense of it all, I sit down with anyone of the number of editors/stylists/buyers in town to talk shop, to gather their take on the week, etc. As I mentioned on my Twitter page last week, one of the most debated subjects in Paris was, what was the worst show of the week? Ungaro’s disastrous’ debut with Lindsay Lohan as creative advisor was universally panned and deemed one of the worst. YSL was the other show that brought out the claws of the editors I spoke to. Considering Stephano Pilati’s strident steps for the house in previous seasons, the consensus was that the S/S 2010 show was so bad, it borderline on a joke. Editors were also annoyed at the house of Martin Margiela for their chicanery surrounding the ‘is he there, is he not’ debate. The official word is that he’s not there and hasn’t been for some time, which ticked off many for having been hoodwinked. Alexander Mcqueen’s fancy stage production and corresponding Web broadcast was also heavily discussed for its grandiose quality. While one couldn’t deny Mcqueen’s hyper-creativity and showmanship, there was murmur of the Brit trying too hard with his aggressive designs and distracting stage show—some quarters even leveled misogynistic criticism for having models wear those stilt-like10” platforms.

Stefan Hottinger-Behmer editor-in-chief of Gatsby Magazine was in town from Zurich and he filled me on the development with his magazine and their sponsorship of next month’s Stella Awards This year marks Stella’s 10th anniversary and to celebrate the occasion, they’re bringing back all the past winners for a showcase. While the award show is looking back, going forward, Gatsby (Switzerland’s much buzzed about lifestyle publication) has stepped in to replace Annabelle magazine, Stella’s longtime media partner. Stefan filled me in on other tidbits on the pulse of the Swiss market, its base for luxury advertising and the market’s general healthy forecast.

Speaking of magazines, in the past there were at least 3-5 new launches each season, now not so many. Daniel Wakahisa and editor-in-chief Valentina Illardi introduced me to Grey magazine. Grey is a hardcover book jammed with thoughtful editorials and a lot of writing. I didn’t make it to their Crillon launch party but they are now on my radar.

Im now back in New York for a two-week stint working on the many changes to launch this winter on JC Report. It’s then back home to Los Angeles and an intrigue trip to Stockholm at the end of the month.