BARBARA HULANICKI ON DESERT ISLAND DISCS

Design Icon and Founder of BIBA, BARBARA HULANICKI OBE was the guest on last week's BBC Radio 4 DESERT ISLAND DISCS, and if you missed her you can still catch the programme on BBC Iplayer

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b03kpkyj/Desert_Island_Discs_Barbara_Hulanicki/

Can you believe that next year will mark the 50th Anniversary since BIBA first brightened our lives, and as at DWS we are not just big fans but also a good friend of Barbara, we are working on our own ideas on how we will celebrate this fashion milestone. We'll keep you posted.

http://designerwarehousesales.com

JEAN PAUL GAULTIER AT BROOKLYN MUSEUM

At DWS we know that you need a regular  fashion 'fix' so our Hot Tip this week is to hop on Virgin Atlantic to New York and head to the Brooklyn Museum to see THE most wonderful  exhibition THE FASHION WORLD OF JEAN PAUL GAULTIER : FROM THE SIDEWALK TO THE CATWALK. 

This multimedia exhibition is organized around seven themes tracing the influences on Gaultier's development—from the streets of Paris to the cinema—since he emerged as a designer in the 1970s. It features approximately 140 haute couture and prêt-à-porter ensembles, from the designer’s earliest to his most recent collections, many of which are displayed on custom mannequins with interactive faces created by high-definition audiovisual projections. Accessories, sketches, stage costumes, excerpts from films, and documentation of runway shows, concerts, and dance performances, as well as photographs by fashion photographers and contemporary artists who stepped into Gaultier’s world, explore how his avant-garde designs challenge societal, gender, and aesthetic codes in unexpected ways.

M. Gaultier may be a tad too old (!) to still keep his well-deserved accolade of fashion's 'enfant terrible' BUT as one of our VERY favorite designers he always will hold a special place in out hearts.

Go See!

http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/jean_paul_gaultier/

SHOPPING AS AN ART FORM

PRADA MARFA  modeled after a Prada Boutique is a permanent land art project by artists Elmgreen & Dragset that was constructed in 2005 literally in the middle of nowhere in Texas, USA. The interior of the structure includes luxury goods from Prada’s fall collection from that year BUT the door does not open, ensuring that the sculpture will never function as a place of commerce.   It takes a whole new meaning to the expression 'shopping is an art form'.

Suddenly after eight years the Texas Department of Transportation have declared this well known art work 'illegal' and want it torn down. Even if they are cultural philistines (!) we think that should still allow this wonderful quirky iconic piece to stay and brighten up the highway out of Marfa.

If you agree then check out their facebook page www.facebook.com/savepradamarfa. and show your support.

http://designerwarehousesales.com

HOW I LIVE NOW

We especially love our customers when they say nice things about us. MEG ROSOFF  multi-award winning author and loyal DWS customer for over a decade was just being interviewed by ROBERT ELMS on his RADIO LONDON programme and one of the questions he asked her was where was her favourite shop.  Without a seconds hesitation she answered THE DESIGNER WAREHOUSE SALES.  Thank you Meg for saying that, it was much appreciated.

The reason that Meg was being interviewed was that her novel HOW I LIVE NOW which won the Guardian Prize, Printz Award, and Branford Boase Award and made the Whitbread Awards shortlist has now been made into a film.

Directed by Oscar Winner Kevin McDonald ('The Last King of Scotland') and starring Saoirse Ronan, Tom Holland & George MacKay it opens in Cinemas on October 4th.   We can't wait to see it.

And if you missed the novel the first time around,its being re-issued and is now available at Amazon and all good booksellers.

It's a treat to be able to return the compliment as without such wonderful loyal customers like Meg, DWS would never lasted 26 years. It's an added bonus when they are such nice people too.

http://designerwarehousesales.com

BETTY JACKSON'S BOY

For all you loyal DWS fans who keep asking after the whereabouts of everyone's favourite British Designer BETTY JACKSON CBE we can report a sighting.  NO, she's not coming out of 'retirement' to do another Collection .... and trust me, at DWS we miss her more than most.  We carried her line for the first 25 years of our business without a single exception until she stopped.  And it wasn't just the clothes we loved but the fact that she, and husband DAVID COHEN are two of THE nicest people we have ever had the joy to meet in this industry.

We caught up with Betty and David recently and learned that whilst they are no longer in the retail buisness, their son is, sort of.  OLIVER JACKSON-COHEN is a very successful actor and he recently played the part of scene-stealing heartthrob artist Roddy in the hit TV Series 'MR. SELFRIDGE'. 

After catching his big break on 'LARK RISE TO CANDLEFORD' Betty's boy's star has risen and trust me, you couldn't find a prouder pair of parents.

We are so happy that she is enjoying her retirement and if you still crave her clothes .... well her collection will not return, but you can get the diffusion line she does for DEBENHAMS.

http://designerwarehousesales.com

SCATTER MY ASHES AT BERGDORF'S

We know you don't like paying full price for your fashion .....that's why you shop at D.W.S. .....BUT we know that you all have a penchant for the finer things of life, so we thought we would give you a Sneak Preview of a real gem that is about to hit select silver screens sometime soon.  It is an homage to one of Manhattan's best loved bastions of fashion BERGDORF GOODMAN, and it has a title to die for.

Here's 'SCATTER MY ASHES AT BERGDORF'S'

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARC

We are sorry we are a little late wishing you a HAPPY 50th BIRTHDAY MARC JACOBS, but we will confess it kind of slipped our minds.  But we were waiting for our INVITE to the BASH  which still hasn't arrived!  LOL

We think that Victoria Beckham snaffled our Invite .....  anyway we are celebrating this weekend by reducing the prices of all our MARC JACOBS DRESSES to either £99 or £199 at the DWS WOMENSWEAR SALE.

At D.W.S. you need never pay full price to look fabulous .....

http://designerwarehousesales.com

YOU GO GIRL

Spotted at a Bus Stop having a not-so-private moment of fun before she starts her day ..... just imagine how much more excited she would have been if she was on her way to the D.W.S. WOMENSWEAR SALE that starts this morning at 10 am sharp.

http://designerwarehousesales.com

TILDA SWINTON IN 'W'

TILDA SWINTON is one of our favourite actresses AND fashion icon.  We LOVED these pictures by 

TIM WALKER  for the May edition of 'W' Magazine that we just had to share them with you.

http://designerwarehousesales.com

MY BOYFRIEND DOES MY MAKE UP

So at D.W.S. we like to inform, educate and entertain you with these fashion snippets we post here on our Blog ..... and this is one of the latter kind. We hope. We've come across another YOUTUBE phenomenon who has more Facebook Fans than Jennifer Lawrence, more Twitter followers than Fox News (that's the US version of SKY) and more Instagram friends than even Oprah Winfrey.  Granted most of them are under 30 years of old.

So today we thought we would share with you one of JENNA MARBLES most viewed videos (over 14million hits and so far) .  It's called 'My Boyfriend Does My Make Up ' : a self-explanatory title.  We think it is rather funny .... but hey, we at DWS are very young at heart .... but it may not be to everyone's taste.  And be warned, Ms Marbles does use a lot of curse words.

If you enjoyed it, there are many more in her channel, so you can subscribe to get updates

http://designerwarehousesales.com

IS FASHION ART?

The answer is YES sometimes.  Definitely in the case of  renowned sculptor CLAES OLDENBURG who has two Exhibitions of his work opening at M.O.M.A. in New York on Sunday.   The one we are rushing to see is entitled 'THE STREET AND THE STORE' which features some stunning paper mache pieces he made back in the 1960's.  We can't wait to see it all.

The Exhibition runs through to August 5th 2013 

http://www.moma.org

THE DEVIL SHEDS PRADA

If you really can't wait for your fashion fix until Friday 19th April when at 10 am sharp we open the doors for our next WOMENSWEAR DESIGNER SALE then you might like to try and get your hands on some goodies that ANNA WINTOUR, Vogue's editor-in-chief, has donated to charity.  

Ms Wintour was of course the inspiration for the movie 'THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA' and although the two handbags are actually not Prada they are from her closet at Vogue.  Just like the amazing fashion treasure trove that Anne Hathaway's character gets made over in the movie.

The bags, a REED KRAKOFF tote and a SALVATORE FERRAGAMO hobo, are in in perfect condition according to the eBay page, and are being sold to help 'BEATING BOWEL CANCER'

So if you feel like doing your part to support this very worthy charity , click here to get to the eBay auction or head to http://www.beatingbowelcancer.org for other ways to contribute.

http://designerwarehousesales.com

LILLY PULITZER : THE WOMAN WHO RE-DESIGNED SUMMER

At D.W.S. Summer is our favourite season : pretty tropical prints in bright sunny colours for which we have one lady in particular to thank for : LILLY PULITZER.  The story has it that in 1959 when this young heiress from the wealthy publishing company opened a juice stand among the citrus groves in Palm Beach, she needed a dress that would camouflage the stains of orange and grapefruit spills.  So she had one made, creating a look that proved to be so popular for more than five decades. Her vividly flowered housedresses became known simply as 'Lillys'.

She designed collections around whatever struck  her  fancy ... fruits, vegetables, politics or peacocks.  They were bright and garish and yet they became the summer 'uniform' of the ultra-rich : even Jacqueline Kennedy wore them.

It is with some sadness that we read of Ms Pulitzer's death yesterday at the age of 81.  Her dresses full of her wonderful joie de vivre have inspired several generations of designers  since, and have made summer fashion so much more fun. We have never had any 'Lilly's' BUT have sold many many well-known international Designers collections that owe more than a debt of gratitude to this inspirational woman.

Thank you Lilly Pulitizer for making our lives so much brighter.

http://designerwarehousesales.com

PARIS HAUTE COUTURE EXHIBITION

When we are not scouring the world looking for clothes  to include in our next DWS Sales, we enjoy looking and appreciating the very best in fashion just for th esheer joy of it.  And so we will be hot footing to Paris  this weekend for a new Show dedicated to Haute Couture that opens this coming Saturday 

Some time in the late 19th century  DANIEL SWAROVSKI founder of the famous crystal empire, got in touch with CHARLES FREDERICK WORTH, the Englishman credited with inventing the art of high fashion, to inquire if he was interested in a collaboration. It was arguably the first of its kind in fashion history.

This marked the beginning of the crystal maker’s love affair with fashion, including high-profile collaborations with CHRISTIAN DIOR and COCO CHANEL — a fact that may surprise you when you go through the PARIS HAUTE COUTURE EXHIBITION at the HOTEL DE VILLE,  supported by the Austrian crystal giant.

The show, has been curated by OLIVER SAILLARD, Director of the Fashion Museum MUSEE GALIARD and it brings together about 100 haute couture dresses alongside original designer sketches, photographs and accessories. Displayed in chronological order from the founding days of couture to the present, the exhibit depicts vintage gowns in relationship with contemporary designers such as AZZEDINE AKAI, BOUCHRA JARRAR, and GIVENCHY, whose creations are injected at strategically important places. 

Particularly striking is the juxtaposition of a 1928 dress by PAQUIN and an YVES SAINT LAURENT model from 1968. “These were two very strong decades for women, and interestingly the dresses are very similar, too — richly embroidered, but very simple in style,” noted Saillard. “I’m now thinking about doing an exhibition dedicated to those two periods.”

To find the best examples, Saillard tapped the Galliera’s archives, counting more than 20,000 pieces. “We chose only those that were screaming: ‘Look at me, I’m haute couture.’ Some of the gowns have not been shown to the public in 40 years.” Alongside the grand couturiers such as BALENCIAGA, MADELINE VIONNET and CHRISTIAN LACROIX,  visitors will also discover less familiar names including MOYNEUX, MARTIAL & ARMAND, JEAN DESSES and GUSTAV BEER, who closed down their 'Houses' decades ago.

Click for Slideshow

The Exhibition runs through to July 6th click HERE for further information.

http://designerwarehousesales.com

SHARP SUITS

A long time ago our MD was a succesful Menswear Designer in his own right, and a kind of a big noise in mens tailoring in this country.  We are delighted to read that one of the ROGER DACK suits he designed is featured in fashion guru ERIC MUSGRAVE'S  seminal tone 'SHARP SUITS'  that has just been published by Pavilion Books.

We may be a tad biased, but we think this is a darn good read (and a great gift too).  Available from Amazon UK now, and in the USA in September.

Click here to order the Book

NEW YORK : HERE WE COME

If you are planing to visit New York this summer, then you will be in for a real fashion treat.  The Metropolitan Museum of Art has two major new Exhibitions that we cannot wait to see.

The first is Impressionism, Fashion, and Modernity  which will present a revealing look at the role of fashion in the works of the Impressionists and their contemporaries. Some eighty major figure paintings, seen in concert with period costumes, accessories, fashion plates, photographs, and popular prints, will highlight the vital relationship between fashion and art during the pivotal years, from the mid-1860s to the mid-1880s, when Paris emerged as the style capital of the world. With the rise of the department store, the advent of ready-made wear, and the proliferation of fashion magazines, those at the forefront of the avant-garde—from Manet, Monet, and Renoir to Baudelaire, Mallarmé, and Zola—turned a fresh eye to contemporary dress, embracing la mode as the harbinger of la modernité. The novelty, vibrancy, and fleeting allure of the latest trends in fashion proved seductive for a generation of artists and writers who sought to give expression to the pulse of modern life in all its nuanced richness.

If your taste is a little more cutting edge, then check out The Met's spring 2013 Costume Institute exhibition, PUNK: Chaos to Couture,  which will examine punk's impact on high fashion from the movement's birth in the early 1970s through its continuing influence today. Featuring approximately one hundred designs for men and women, the exhibition will include original punk garments and recent, directional fashion to illustrate how haute couture and ready-to-wear borrow punk's visual symbols.

Focusing on the relationship between the punk concept of "do-it-yourself" and the couture concept of "made-to-measure," the seven galleries will be organized around the materials, techniques, and embellishments associated with the anti-establishment style. Themes will include New York and London, which will tell punk's origin story as a tale of two cities, followed by Clothes for Heroes and four manifestations of the D.I.Y. aesthetic—Hardware, Bricolage, Graffiti and Agitprop, and Destroy.

http://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/upcoming-exhibitions

7%

We're not that big on making New Years Resolutions here at DWS but we did come across this wonderful list that we are going to try and adopt for 2013 , and would love to share.

Written by Regina Brett from Cleveland Ohio, who at the age of 90 has noted down the 42 lessons that she has learnt in life.

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short – enjoy it..

4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and family will. 

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don't have to win every argument. Stay true to yourself.

7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.

8. Save for retirement starting with your first pay check.

9. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

10. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.

11. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
12. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

13. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it...

14 Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

15. Get rid of anything that isn't useful. Clutter weighs you down in many ways.

16. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.

17. It's never too late to be happy. But it’s all up to you and no one else.

18. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.

19. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

20. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

21. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.

22. The most important sex organ is the brain.

23. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

24. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?'

25. Always choose life.

26. Forgive but don’t forget. 

27. What other people think of you is none of your business. 

28. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.

29. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

30. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does..

31. Believe in miracles.

32. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

33. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.

34. Your children get only one childhood.

35. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

36. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

37. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.

38. Envy is a waste of time. Accept what you already have not what you need.

39. The best is yet to come...

40. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

41. Yield.

42. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."

Its estimated 93% won't forward this. If you are one of the 7% who will, forward this with the title '7%'.

We are in the 7%.