Fashioning February: The Glossy Reality

I don't know about you but I was rather upset when The City ended as it meant that my weekly fix of the lives of glam media girls was over. Who was not riveted by the arguments between Olivia and Erin at US Elle magazine? Despite all the drama that went on in the show, Elle's appearance in the spin off to The Hills rewarded them with hours of free publicity. Having a presence on TV, preferably a fashion related reality show is an essential marketing tool and something that magazine publishers are now considering as part of their marketing mix. Remember the Elle and Project Runway partnership which eventually became Marie Claire and Project Runway after Nina Garcia ousting from Elle and eventual appointment to Marie Claire. Ironically both publications got in on the action by launching their own reality shows; in 2009 we saw Stylista where a group of fashionistas competed for a job at Elle and the next year the staff of Marie Claire along with three wannabees starred in Running in Heels. However before that we had the now defunct Jane trying out potential writers in The Fashionista Diaries before they folded and Cosmo Girl stepped in to save the day. In actual fact the reality show and magazine hybrid only kicked off with The Hills when a certain Lauren Conrad landed an internship at Teen Vogue to go along with her new life in LA. So no surprise then to hear that Teen Vogue are in the midst of making their own reality show about life at the magazine. With Erin Kaplan now on board at the publication after bidding US Elle goodbye and working alongside the media friendly, Amy Astley it certainly would make superb viewing. To top it off the show will be directed by non other than R.J. Cutler who made the ever so successful film, The September Issue which is about the life of Anna. Wintour who really needs no introduction.

It really is amazing the way magazines have thrown open their doors to the cameras but what are the reasons for this? A reality show is all about extending the brand and broadening the magazine audience - basically exposure and product placement. A show about a magazine will feature close ups of the brand logo, computer screens displaying their website and more importantly we get to see the journalists at work discussing ideas and implementing them. This definitely gets the audience interested, I remember when US Marie Claire did a fashion shoot on three savvy business women which involved them traveling through New York in a caravan, it got me really intrigued that when the publication hit the stands I bought the issue and I never had anytime for US Marie Claire. Add that to an insight into the writer's personal lives and you have a very dynamic situation. The fact is television is an extremely powerful medium. Look at Elle - they have had cameras in their offices since 2004 with Project Runway. Stylista and the The City. Also the huge success of The Devil Wear Prada meant that every editor of a glossy magazine were inundated with offers of a reality show. With magazine sales declining rapidly due to the digital revolution it looks like magazines might be relying on TV to save them. Who would have thought it eh?

Welcome to Fashioning February

I launched this series last year and it proved to be so popular that I decided to bring it back again. Fashioning February is an editorial celebration of fashion focusing on New York Fashion Week and London Fashion Week which takes place during next month. It will be rammed full of features, interviews and profiles on the fashion industry and fashion bloggers. Tomorrow we will kick with Blogger of the Month which will feature Sasha Wilkins from Liberty London Girl, there will also be a video interview with Amelia Gregory, founder of Amelia"s magazine which took place at the launch of her new book and also each week a blogger will be discussing her favourite fashion decade. You would have to be under a rock not to have come across the saga involving Jennine Jacobs regarding her blog, The Coveted. She took time out to talk to me about her other baby, the superb Evolving Influence Fashion Blogger Conference which takes place next week. As well as the usual My Space feature I will be talking about the pending Teen Vogue reality show and just why is that magazines reality shows are so popular.

I look forward to seeing you all tomorrow and let the start of Fashioning February begin.

Giveaway
In order to celebrate the launch of Fashioning February I am giving away books by the following fashionistas.

A copy of Style Diaries by Simone Werle which takes a look at fashion bloggers and their style
A copy of Style by Lauren Conrad where she talks about the secret to looking fabulous.
A copy of The Truth About Diamonds by Nicole Ritchie which is her debut novel.

To enter the competition all you need to do is drop me an email at ondolady@gmail.com and put the name of the book you want in the subject line. The competition will close on Monday 28th February at 12am GMT time.

The Teen Vogue Hand Book

Those of you who read this blog regularly will know that I have a fondness for Teen Vogue. The magazine is like the little sister that I never had and who I look at with fondness and slight reminiscence. Well when I heard that Teen Vogue had published a handbook for people who wanted to get into the fashion industry I never really took much notice because as an avid reader and worker in the fashion education industry, I have more or less read every guide out there. I also dismissed the book as a mediocre book produced just to make fast cash out of the aspiring fashionistas out there. The handbook dropped last month to a great deal of media attention on blogs and magazines but after reading the reviews I decided that I needed to check it out to find out what the fuss was about. When my copy arrived from amazon it would an understatement to say that I was surprised by what I saw. In a nutshell The Teen Vogue Hand Book rocks!


The handbook is like a small coffee table and the inside pages have past covers of Teen Vogue laid out in a collage style. The content is packed with useful information on careers in fashion but it is also visually stunning with gorgeous imagery and great design. It is divided into six sections and looks at routes into fashion design, fashion journalism, styling, modelling, beauty and photography. All the sections contain interviews with leaders in their field such as Marc Jacobs, Stella McCartney, Amy Astley (Editor of Teen Vogue), Natalie Massenet (Founder of Net-a-Porter), Andrea Lieberman (stylist to Jennifer Lopez and Gwen Stefani), Havana Laffitte (stylist for Teen Vogue), Chanel Iman, Pat McGrath, Jemina Kidd, Bruce Weber and Mario Testino. Each person talks about when they first became interested in fashion, how they got into their field, the ins and out of their job and they also offer advice to up and coming fashionistas. As well as these interviews there are also short profiles on individuals who keep the wheel turning. From interns at Thakoon, market editors, fashion writers and art assistants, at Teen Vogue and photographer, Patrick Demarchelier's assistant, nothing is overlooked. There are numerous quotes and tips scattered within the book which I think really injects a lot of personality into it. I really love the 'tool kits' where we get to see all the items that the fashion pros use on a day to day basis.

With a voucher for a FREE one year subscription to Teen Vogue thrown in with the book very few would dispute that The Teen Vogue Handbook is worth every penny.

You can buy the book from amazon.

Elle's Leading Ladies

Well it has been a pretty good week for magazines. The Brit monthlies such as Elle, Red and Marie Claire all hit the shelves and of course there was Teen Vogue with that fantabulous cover with Chanel Iman and Jourdan Dunn. However, US Elle have come up trumps with their November issue and have gone for the trend of having multiple covers. In celebration of their Hollywood Issue, Elle have featured Katie Holmes, Emily Blunt, Julianne Moore, Renee Zellweger and Zoe Saldana on different covers. My favourite one is with Zoe Saldana because it looks very tranquail and fresh. The pure white cover is a complete contrast to Saldana's dark and exotic looks. So it looks like I have another great reason to buy US Elle.

US Elle is available to buy now!

Jourdan Dunn and Chanel Iman and Teen Vogue

Having a Black model on the cover of a world famous magazine is fabulous enough but having two is pretty damm amazing. Enter Jourdan Dunn and Chanel Iman who donn the cover of November's issue of Teen Vogue. There is something about Teen Vogue that really takes my fancy; be it the cute size, the mini features and the great blogs. Despite the fact that I am (cough cough) well out of my teens I just like to read it. Back to Jourdan and Chanel, they discuss their friendship,  life as two of the great supermodels, Jourdan's pregnancy and being role models to young women. I really love the colour of the cover because it is fresh and fruity and quite a challenging one to use in November. Also the fashion shoot with the two ladies is stunning and they are really rocking the long pony tail and red lipstick. This issue also profiles Beyonce's hair stylist, Kimberly Kimble who dolls out advice on how to look after Afro hair.

The November issue of Teen Vogue hits the stores on 13th October but if you can't wait till then you can read the interview here.

The Voguettes

So the Fashion Week marathon kicks off this Friday which will be a mega fest of fashion shows, launches and parties. Such a hard life eh? Who would want to be a fashion journo? New York, London. Milan and Paris hosts four of the most prestigious fashion weeks where the best designers across the globe take part in. Journalists from all over the world attend the shows to check out the latest trends; from indie websites, local bloggers to upscale glossy magazines. Of course no self respecting fashion show would start without the editors from Vogue(s) present. The magazine's influence on style and fashion is immense and a nod or shake by a certain bobbed editor has been known to break or make a designer's career. Anna Wintour (American Vogue), Alexandra Shulman (British Vogue), Franca Sozzani (Italian Vogue) and Carine Roitfeld (French Vogue) are the ladies who everyone will have their eye on during Fashion Week.

American Vogue - the commercial title that brings in the cash

Editor: Anna Wintour

Age: 60

Editorship: Since 1988

Previous: British Vogue, House and Garden

Trademark: Her razor sharp bobbed hair, sunglasses worn inside and clip British accent

Highs: Turning American Vogue from a flagging and staid publication to a very successful one. Being the subject of documentary, The September Issue.

Lows: Controversy over the April 08 issue with Gisele and LeBron James. Rumours that she is on her way out. 

In a nutshell: Anna is simply the most powerful woman in the fashion business and over the years has become a fashion icon. She is also known for her icy nature which makes her revered by her staff. The character, Miranda Priestley in The Devil Wears Prada is rumoured to be based on her. Anna expanded the Vogue brand by introducing  Teen Vogue, Vogue Living and Men's Vogue. 

British Vogue - The girl next door

Editor: Alexandra Shulman

Age: 51

Editorship: Since 1992

Previous: Columnist for Daily Telegraph and Editor of GQ

Trademark: Alexandra Shulman is probably the most ordinary and down to earth out of all the Vogue editors. If she walked into a room you would probably not look twice but she has a dry sense of humour and is not scared to voice her opinion.

Highs: Taking the magazine's readership to a million due to the legendary Gold issue that celebrated the Millennium.

Lows: Criticisms that she is making the magazine very bland by putting B list celebs such as singer and X Factor star, Cheryl Cole have been fired her way. Admitting to buying a dress from Victoria Beckham's collection was not her finest hour either. 

In a nutshell: Alexandra has proved herself to be a very savvy business woman who understands the publishing industry very well. Also she is always up for a fight hence her snarky remarks about Heat magazine in their hey day.

Italian Vogue - the arty one out of the bunch

Editor: Franca Sozzani

Age: Late 50s

Editorship: Since 1988

Previous:  Editor of LEI 

Trademark: Long flowing blonde hair, black coat over a black dark dress.

Highs: The all black issue that sold out immediately that they had to reprint more issues.

Lows: Although her All Black Italian issue was well recieved, The Africa Issue in L'Uomo Vogue was not so popular and Franca was accused by a journalist at The Washington Post for running magazines that are politically incorrect. 

In a nutshell: A woman who is not scared to take risks and put her money where her mouth is. Italian Vogue is testament to that as it is the least commercial out of the Vogues and often contains provocative images. 

French Vogue - the kooky cool one of the group

Editor: Carine Roitfeld

Age: 54

Editorship: Since 2001

Previous: Consultant for Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent

Trademark: Just got out of bed hair, Brooke Shields eyebrows dressed in outfits with straps and buckles.

Highs: Persuading Kate Moss, Sofia Coppola and Charlotte Gainsborough to guest edit the magazine. Styling a model in a shoot that paid homage to Anna Wintour here, not sure if it was a compliment or if she was simply taking the piss.

Lows: An interview in the New York magazine where she declared her desire for her staff to be skinny and beautiful. 

In a nutshell: Carine breaks conventions in fashion by putting edgy and dark images in the magazine. Her approach to the magazine is pure abandonment with no concern for conventions. 

For more info on the four Queens of Fashion then check out this funky guide here.

The September Issue

Vogue (both UK and US) have received a bit of a bashing over the last few months. UK Vogue has been accused of going over to the dark side and being all bland, boring and predictable by draping its cover with generic stars such as Cheryl Cole and Victoria Beckham. Whilst US Vogue has been criticised for losing its edge and replacing its wonderful creative fashion spreads with dull and lifeless shoots. Fellow Blogger, Chloe Tejada aka Fashion Journalist in the City ponders the stance of US Vogue here while Michele Obi from myfashionlife discusses the dilemma of the British counterpart in this fascinating piece. This combined with ever growing rumours that Chief whippersnapper, Anna Wintour is hanging up her heels and sunglasses means that life is pretty full on at Conde Nast towers. It is ever so mind boggling that they even entertained the idea of having cameras in the Vogue offices to make a fly on the wall documentary about the magazine. Unlimited access was given to director, R. J. Cutler to make, The September Issue which is a reality film that focuses on the production of the largest edition of Vogue which was published in September 2007. The film was shot over nine months and captured behind scenes at fashion weeks, staff meetings, photo shoots as well as moments with Anna and her family and close friends. The movie also shows the relationship that Anna holds with Grace Coddington, a dynamic redhead who is Vogue's Creative Director and according to Time; the most influential Fashion Editor. I will be honest and admit that I have never heard of the lady but 20 minutes of research later and I can tell that Ms Coddington seems as formidable of icy Wintour herself. Christ how interesting would it be to see those two at work? The September Issue made its debut at the Sundance Film Festival yesterday and the rights for the film have been snapped up. I have not read the review for it so I am not sure how it was received but those who were after a real life The Devil Wears Prada have been granted their wish.

Check out the trailer for the film below and tell me what you think? Compelling or just another reality film?

Whitney in the City

So Whitney Port made her debut in her new show, The City which aired last night on MTV with a bumper edition. The City is a spin off of the popular so-called reality show, The Hills which is set in LA and in which Whitney is a co-star. After spending many years as an intern at Teen Vogue and stylist at PR company, People's Revolution as well as lending a sympathetic ear to the doe eyed Lauren, Whitney has swapped LA for NYC. She lands a plum job as PR for Diane von Furstenberg (DVF) and moves in with her old mate Erin Williams in a cool apartment in the Gramercy area of Manhattan. The perks of moving to a new city means meeting new people and checking out exciting bars and restaurants. We are introduced to Whitney's co-worker, the divine Olivia Palermo who is a high profile socialite or social as she prefers to be called. Olivia is quite clearly the catalyst to Whitney as Heidi is to Lauren in The Hills but with much better connections. Erin offers the fun factor and a lending ear particularly when it comes to guys. Talking of guys this is where the intro to The City differs from The Hills in that the guys are featured in the opening credits. One of then is Jay Lyons, a musician who Whitney met when she came to NYC for her job interview. She is quite clearly smitten with him but whether he feels the same way about her is to be seen. Then there is Adam Senn, a restaurateur and Jay's flatmate who is new to NYC as well.

This new reality show has been covered extensively in the media and blogsphere which is no surprise considering the phenomenon of The Hills. Aesthetically, The City is definitely easy on the eye and with the almighty Big Apple as a backdrop, how can you go wrong? As a TV show the plot leaves a lot to be desired; a considerable amount of time was spent on Whitney's love life. Is Jay a two-faced, two-timing snake? The answer is that Jay lacks so little charisma and presence that it was hard to care. Aside from her first day at work and New York Fashion Week, very little is seen of Whitney in her workplace which is very worrying as it was Lauren and Heidi's glam jobs that made The Hills the success it is. Olivia is a very different proposition; yes she has a life fuelled with dinner parties, lunches, fashions shows and celebrity galas but she has an edge to her that makes her interesting. For a start she is described as a real life Blair Waldorf; she even has her own publicist and is constantly being mentioned in gossip blogs and newspapers and she even has a fan blog that focuses on her life. Rumour has it that she runs her own PR agency which would make sense as she is trying to build her brand. I would say that The City has a long way to go before it earns the right to be called the reality version of Sex and the City. Still it was good to see Kelly Cultrone in the programme and more interesting are the reports that Kelly is to get her own show.

Check out the official blog for The City here.

Kate Moss: Style

Over the last few years style trends such as knee length boots, skinny jeans, flat ballet pumps, the cape and Mary Jane shoes have been seen on all and sundry and they have one person to thank - Kate Moss. The sight of the famous supermodel wearing these items has played a big part in their popularity. Part bio and part style book – Kate Moss: Style delves into the wardrobe of one of the most iconic woman in the world. We are given the stories behind Kate’s wonderful outfits, where she really shops for her clothes, who her inspirations are and what exactly her input is to her line at Topshop. As you can imagine a whole range of fashionistas have contributed quotes to this books; stylistas such as Tom Ford, Karl Lagerfeld, Matthew Williamson, Alexander McQueen, Britt Ekland, Katie Grand and many more all add in their two pence worth.

Fashion journo, Angela Buttolph has been buzzing around on the scene for a long while – her stints have included the Evening Standard, i-D, Vogue and Grazia. She is one of those faces that pops up on TV now and again offering her opinion on fashion culture but she has never really made an impression on me unlike other fashion peeps such as The Telegraph’s Hilary Alexander or The Guardian’s Hadley Freeman. Well that is all in the past now because I am truly smitten with Angela and her delicious book. As far as I am concerned she has taken a really tricky task of creating a riveting book on Kate Moss based on quotes from past interviews in various publications with gusto. Ms Moss is so famous that there are very few people out there who do not know the ins and outs of her personal and public life but Angela manages to present the Moss story in a way that is refreshing and compelling. Weighing in at a massive 198 pages, Kate Moss: Style did look like a very daunting read but I was hooked from the very first line. The writing, which is sharp and crunchy, is a product of fantastic research into Kate’s early years in South London, onto her life as a supermodel and then her evolution as a designer. The book also has wonderful typography, great captions and captivating images that are to die for. Kate Moss: Style maybe a celebration of the model’s life in fashion but it is also a wonderful celebration of fashion journalism.

Kate Moss: Style is available in all good book stores.

You can check out Angela Buttolph’s chic website here.

Media in the City

They came, they saw and they conquered and then they were gone in 60 seconds. Who am I talking about? Four ladies called Sarah Jessica, Kim, Cynthia and Kristin who brought the West End to a stand still during the much awaited premiere of Sex and the City: The Movie. The media fascination with this film has grown over the last four years, Face it press coverage was never going to be an issue, every media outlet in the world wanted this film and in order to stand out, editors had to think out of the box in order to produce memorable stories. Some failed miserably like The Guardian who for some reason unknown to me commissioned Alice Wignall to ask the tedious question as to whether a feminist can really love the show. Yawn - boring!! However, a few mediums did an excellent job such as The London Paper who have treated us to a novelty guide to New York City in Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte style. Also Heart FM who have really taken the film's mantra to heart and renamed itself Sex and the City FM for this week only. They will also be airing promos from the film and running competitions all week. Now that is what I call entertainment.

So here is my list of the top five media coverage of Sex and the City: The Movie.

1. EW.com have published a fantastic piece on six ways of looking at Carrie. Six men and women from all walks of life discuss the show and our favourite gal about town.

2. Mandi Bierly from EW's quirky confession on when she connected with S&TC. Aided and abetted by comments from readers.

3. US Vogue's depiction of Carrie and Big on their honeymoon was delightful and sexy.

4. The New Yorker's fantastically insightful profile on SJP herself.

5. Missy Schwartz from Entertainment Weekly has written a brilliant piece on the long journey of this year's much anticipated movie release.

Have you been taking in the media stories for the Sex and the City film? Which one has impressed you the most?

The Hills

I am not ashamed to say that I am addicted to The Hills. Lets see, I have downloaded the first five episodes of series one from iTunes, now that Channel 4 have got with the programme and started showing this hilarious reality show I make sure I tune in for that and I have even joined a Facebook group dedicated to The Hills. So I think it is safe to see that I am a true addict. I am not sure what it is about this teen reality show that has me glued to the screen. The characters are ordinary people going on about their ordinary lives but hey, maybe that is the attraction. The Hills is a spin off from Laguna Beach, dubbed The 'real' OC; now I never saw that programme so I cannot tell you much about it except that it was based on the life and tribulations of Lauren Conrad who The Hills is based around. The pert Lauren Conrad moves from Laguna Beach to Los Angeles and lands a coveted internship at the super cool, Teen Vogue which she juggles with a college degree at Fashion Institute of Design and Marketing (FIDM). Her room mate is her close friend Heidi Montag, the ultimate party girl who drops out of FIDM after one day. In the show we also meet Whitney Port, a savvy lady who is conscientious and proves to be a good friend to Lauren. Then there is Audrina Partridge, a stone face brunette with eye liner that could kill who apparently works as a receptionist for Epic but does not seem to do much apart from wine and dine with Heidi. Now lets talk about Ms Montag - oh dear, where should I start. Heidi brings new meaning to the word blonde. Her vocabulary consists of words such as "Oh totally," "It like so cool," and "Oh my Gawd!" Her interview with FIDM was bordering on hysterical.

Tutor: "How would you class yourself as a high school student?"
Heidi: "I never did anything, I never went to classes, I just hung out and went shopping."
Tutor: "Have you read the curriculum?"
Heidi: "Erm no"
Tutor: "What are your goals?"
Heidi: "I want to do PR, I want to be the fun PR party girl in LA"
Tutor: (Looks very unimpressed) "It usually takes someone being in the industry for a long time to land on the 'fun, I want to organise a party."
Heidi: (Looks surprised) "Really?!!, it's not like right away?"
Tutor: "No." Would you be willing to work in retail sales?"
Heidi: "You mean like actually working the floor and stuff?"
Tutor: "Actually working the floor and stuff."
Heidi: "I don't think I could do that."
Tutor: "Are there any other industries that you were thinking about other than fashion?"
Heidi: "No."
Tutor: "Are you sure you are in the right college?"

Ummm, all I can say is at least she made an impression. After dropping out of college, the ditz goes on to get a job working for an events company and was shocked and horrified to find out that instead of swanning in right at the top of the company, organising club nights she was doing tedious work like ordering stationary and getting the bosses lunch and stuff. I expect her resignation any day now. In real time The Hills is now on its third series where Lauren, Heidi, Whitney and Audrina have experienced the highs and lows of career, love and friendship. It seems that I have a lot to look forward to.