- Kate Hudson is the new face of Almay. Take that, Cam! [WWD]
- Big news. Two cup sizes, to be exact: that’s what a new super-wonderbra promises to deliver. Says a Marks & Spencer lingerie designer, “Our bra is revolutionary.” [DailyMail]
- Noémie Lenoir apparently ingested drugs and alcohol while at the home of her on-again-off-again boyfriend, football player Claude Makélélé. She then called an ambulance, only to cancel it shortly thereafter, and go walking in the woods near the house. A dog walker found her and several bottles of drugs after she had lost consciousness, and she is now recovering from her suicide attempt in hospital. France has one of the highest suicide rates in the developed world, and suicide is highest among those aged 30-40. Lenoir is 30. Lenoir and Makélélé have a son, but have not been a regular couple for some time; Lenoir has recently been dating Carl Hirschmann, a Swiss nightclub owner and private-jet heir. In a scandal that has rocked Europe, Hirschmann stands accused of secretly filming women while they have sex, and blackmailing them with the tapes. Previous charges of raping a 15-year-old girl were dropped. [ToL]
- Critics are calling out a Mikael Jansson-shot Interview magazine fashion spread as “rather racist.” Quoth Refinery29’s Connie Wong of the images, which feature an abandoned Daria Werbowy amidst a throng of black partygoers, “while the super-sexy, ethno-traditional thing is very of the moment, it all seems to be setting up a 21st century colonial construct that makes us very uncomfortable.” We’re sure he just wanted the super-awesome edgy contrast! [Refinery29]
- The Interview spread’s caption says, “Let’s get lost. The hour is late, the air is thick, and the evening is charged with a steamy sensuality. What works? Tone-on-tone swimsuits, slithers of silk, and plenty of skin, as flesh meets flesh, body meets soul, and Daria gets lost in the heat of the night.” But a Fashion Spot commenter says, “I can’t believe that the editorial team got away with a story that overtly exposes and even promotes such racist stereotypes. The one time they chose to cast an amazing variety of black models they had to play with a tired concept; the only reason why they are honestly here in this story is to play up the stereotype of black people as anonymous, sexual, savage beings who here play back up dancer to Daria (the white person).” We’re gonna have to go with the latter. [Fashionologie]
- Speaking of super-edgy and not-remotely-offensive ad campaigns! Here’s how AdRants describes a new Eastpak commercial: “Little person. Seductively sultry and sexy Asian hottie. Anti-war message.” Watch it here. If you want. [AdRants]
- J.Lo and Marc Anthony are holidaying in the South of France, and staying aboard Roberto Cavalli‘s boat. Bully for them. [WWD]
- Lara Stone might marry her fiancé, David Walliams, this weekend in London. [Style.com]
- According to “sources,” Kate Moss has begun seeing a hypnotherapist in order to quit alcohol and cigarettes. She wants to have Jamie Hince’s babies, you see. [Sun]
- Frida Giannini is doing a couture collection for Gucci. It debuted with Salma Hayek‘s gown at the Cannes Robin Hood premiere. A press release described the getup as a “floor length bordeaux silk georgette one shoulder gown with hip, back and shoulder drape detail [which] also features deep red crystal embroidery at the shoulder and waist.” We describe it as kinda Gypsy Rose Lee. [Fashionologie]
- Cate Blanchett, for her part, sported the late, great McQueen. [AP]
- Speaking of firsts, designer Sonia Rykiel‘s first-ever gallery show is going on view in Paris. The exhibition contains works in pencil, markers, and pastels, rather than the designer’s usual medium of knits. [Daily Front Row]
- Um. James “Dawson” Van der Beek is in Cosmo, in a freaky “trust me I’m a doctor” fashion spread. [Racked]
- Gen Art, the org created to support young designers, is not going gentle into that goodnight: a week ago it announced it would have to close due to cash-flow. But designers who already paid for booth space at an upcoming Gen Art fair are pissed. Says one young jewelry designer, “They obviously knew when they cashed my check that they were closing the doors on the business, and it makes me sick to think that they stole money from me and my fellow indie designers who are already struggling to make ends meet.” [WWD]
- Kellan Lutz, the latest abs of Calvin Klein, wants Mark Wahlberg’s career. And also, on modeling: “It doesn’t look that hard, but a lot of people don’t think about what really goes into it.” [NYTimes]
- Perhaps relatedly, men’s swimsuits this season will be generally a few inches shorter than last. Apparently. [WWD]
- High schoolers are getting together to make Facebook groups to claim and co-ordinate prom dresses before the big day, and also to shame alleged style biters. Us and your Who Wore It Best, what have you wrought? [NYTimes]
- LVMH might sell Kenzo. [WWD]
- The Daily Mail found one former plus-size model who never liked her body or felt good in it — “That’s how I always felt, like a waste of a pretty face” — so she lost some weight. Now she works at WeightWatchers. You can do it too, ladies! [Daily Mail]
- Asos.com, the UK’s largest multibrand online retailer, will debut a U.S. site. [WWD]
- J Brand’s Houlihan cropped skinny cargo pants are a best-seller. More than 75,000 pairs have already been bought, and another 40,000 are on back-order. Of all the things to bring back from the early-aughts time capsule, cargo pants? [NYTimes]
- Benetton’s profits rose 9.9% in the first quarter, to $27.6 million. [WWD]
- Balenciaga’s parting ways with its long-term PR. Stylists hope this means a less snooty borrowing policy from the famously tight-fisted house. [DailyFrontRow]
- Marks and Spencer has apologized for marketing bras to 6-year-olds. They’ve also removed from their website a suggestion that the bra-styled crop-tops are “a great way of getting girls used to the idea of wearing bras.” [Guardian]
- Cardigans lead-singer-turned-designer Nina Persson has launched her line, and says she wishes she hadn’t done so while in the advanced stages of pregnancy. “Today is one of the hardest days to not drink, actually. The good thing is that you’re pretty high on other weird hormones, so you get pretty excited anyway.” Yes, the line involved cardigans. [New York]
- “What’s going on at Elle?” asks WWD. Well, for starters, the magazine’s managing editor is leaving and they’ve yet to find a new publisher. [WWD]
- The slumping economy and ad-sales in particular means it’s harder for newer models to break into the modeling “A-List” because companies want to go with “proven talent.” Says one marketing officer, “With the exception of the top 20 girls, there’s less work and less money.” [Forbes]
- One company doing well? Urban Outfitters, whose first-quarter earnings rose 72%. [WSJ]
- Also on the up: Kohl’s. [AP]
- Alexa Chung, Stella McCartney and Carey Mulligan have all donated clothes to the Oxfam Curiosity Shop, a new high-end venture from the org behind the charity thrift-shops. [ElleUK]
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