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