Writer Stephen Fried has publicly apologized for coining the term “fashionista” in his 1993 biography of Gia Carangi. In an essay/epic humblebrag posted to the Atlantic Web site, Fried explained how fashionista came to be:
Twenty years ago, I apparently changed language forever. I published a book that unleashed upon an unsuspecting public a single word of terrifying power and controversy. That word is “fashionista.” […]
Since I was re-reading a lot of the newspapers and magazines from the period of Gia’s supernova career in the late ’70s and early ’80s, and remembering a lot of coverage of Sandanistas [sic] (and a lot of “–ista” jokes among my mag writer friends), I just decided to try it.
Fried offered an apology “to all users of language for my crime against nomenclature.”
Jourdan Dunn is back with a new episode of her online cooking show, Well Dunn. Cara Delevingne joins her to cook shrimp, broccoli, green beans, and mushroom tempura in a sweet-and-sour sauce. Their first task: de-veining the shrimp. Says Dunn to Delevingne, “You’re gonna take out the poo-poo. The doo-doo. The poo…See this line here? That’s where all the shit’s from. We don’t want that.” Delevingne observes, “He hasn’t been eating very much, this little shrimp. He’s been watching his weight. Aye, me. I don’t know why. I mean, you’ve got a perfect little figure, shrimp.” [YouTube]
Rita Ora joins Adele as one of the cover stars of Elle‘s “Women in Music” issue. [Elle]
Nasty Gal has removed from sale a knock-off of a Givenchy bag. [FL]
The blogger behind Part Nouveau, which traces art-historical and fashion-historical references in contemporary fashion objects, takes on heelless shoes in her latest column for Fashionista. [Fashionista]
• Time magazine’s annual list of the 100 most influential people on earth includes a handful of names that will be familiar to those in fashion: designer Michael Kors, J. Crew’s Jenna Lyons, and Uniqlo head Tadashi Yanai. [Time]
• The U.K. has hit upon a new cosmetic procedure for women: nipple tattooing, or “tittooing,” to darken the nipple and areola. Allow tittoo artist Gail Proudsmore to explain:
“A lot of people want their nipples made darker. It’s the fashion. Some people think theirs are too pink or their boyfriends want them done. I think sometime they are doing it because they are conscious of them being pale and they think it’s fashionable to have dark nipples. They’ll look at the magazines and page 3 and unfortunately a lot of it might be peer pressure.”
• Prada is launching a short story competition. The brand is seeking stories 4,000-8,000 words in length that are loosely inspired by its eyewear. The winning writer will receive €5,000 and publication in an online journal Prada intends to launch. The company is seeking writers “who can see the world with a unique, rare gaze.” The brief asks, “What are the realities that our eyes give back to us? And how are these realities filtered through lenses?” [Telegraph, Prada]
• In late May or early June, Gap Inc. is going to start testing a “reserve in store” function for online shoppers who want to order an item online and pick it up from a retail store. [WWD]
• The U.S. private equity group Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. has acquired the French fashion company SCMP, which owns Maje and Sandro, for a reported $853.4 million. [WWD]
• Apparently Hedi Slimane’s designs for Saint Laurent — though mostly derided by critics — are selling well:
Yet store buyers have fallen all over themselves to be the first to stock Mr. Slimane’s designs, which they say have been selling briskly this spring, despite some problems with deliveries.
“We would have liked to have had it sooner,” said one retail chief, who declined to be named because Saint Laurent is a potentially lucrative business. […]
Barneys New York had sold 60 percent of its spring order at full price as of last week, including a $14,000 dress. Jeffrey New York also sold out of several key looks.
“When we were buying the collection,” said Jeffrey Kalinsky, the store’s founder, “I felt like I was seeing dollar signs.”
Bergdorf Goodman is building special departments for Saint Laurent in its men’s and women’s stores, which are expected to be completed this month.
“We’re very eager for the business to be as big as the perception of the brand,” said Joshua Schulman, the president of Bergdorf Goodman.
• Now that J.C. Penney C.E.O. Ron Johnson is out, many of his favorites are leaving the company, too. That includes Nick Wooster, the former fashion director of Bergdorf Goodman, whom Johnson brought on as the executive vice president of private brands. Wooster famously told the press that J.C. Penney, in order to turn around, needed to “make cute shit.” [NYPost]
