Going Solo: Tamara Mellon's New Namesake Line

Recently, Tamara Mellon gave Vogue an exclusive look inside her closet which, perhaps unsurprisingly, surpassed most women’s wildest dreams. But she sees room for improvement. “I need to switch out all those shoes for Tamara Mellon shoes,” she says with a laugh, referring to the Skittles spectrum of Jimmy Choos she acquired during her fifteen years as the label’s CEO and chief creative officer. With the launch this fall of her eponymous collection, Mellon is well on her way to a wardrobe revamp. She is introducing not only several styles of boots and heels when her line hits stores in November, but also ready-to-wear and handbags with sunglasses, fragrance, lingerie, a full makeup line, and stores in New York and London all on the horizon.

But that’s jumping ahead. This week, Mellon is presenting what is ready—clothes, shoes, and bags—at the Pace gallery, which she’s set up to mimic her own home. “That’s my sofa, that’s my coffee table,” she says with a smile, pointing to a cream linen couch and matching, lacquered furniture. There are also large-scale Richard Misrach photographs on each wall, similar to the artist’s oceanic images that Mellon herself owns. It’s her way of saying, even before the first model walks out, welcome to my world.

It’s not a bad place to be. Sartorially speaking, it’s a universe occupied by inimitably glamorous women with penchants for leopard prints, exotic skins, and fur. One rock star–worthy leather skirt has what must be a foot of fringe swinging from its hem and the languid, ivory silk suit immediately recalls Bianca Jagger. But it’s funny, because for as decked out as many of the models seem to be, there is an underlying, real-world effortlessness to Mellon’s approach. For instance, there are cashmere T-shirts to go with everything and leather legging boots to throw on underneath an oversize sweater or pencil skirt with a precariously high slit. Mellon herself is dressed in discreetly chic navy crepe pants and a black silk blouse. “I’m obsessed with creating the perfect blouse,” she says. “I’ve had so many, but they never had the right shape. I want something that’s easy to wear and comfortable.”

Bags are structured and grown-up, with office-ready totes and ladylike shoulder styles in leopard, red, black, and white for fall. Shoes include skinny, patent ankle boots with chunky heels, glossy pumps, and sandals with honeycomb mesh that covers the foot.

Mellon says this whole endeavor came together in three months, but really she’d been toying with the idea of breaking out on her own since some business relationships soured a few years ago. “I lost control, and it’s very difficult being a guest in your own house,” she says. So she did what a savvy, fearless woman like her would do: moved out and started building her own.

http://www.kissyprom.co.uk/pink-prom-dresses

Dress the Part: Get Bonjour Tristesse's Gamine Côte d’Azur Look

Where does fashion come from? What mysterious dreams, shards of memory, unconscious desires inform the way we want to look? Deep thoughts for mid-summer, perhaps, and there is no single answer, though at least some of our dark—and light—fantasies surely derive from the movies, those hours we spend sitting in silence in the company of people we don’t know.

Which brings us to our latest enthusiasm—the films of the director Otto Preminger, whose creative efforts from the second half of the last century, in addition to being sometimes amusing, sometimes downright incredible, sometimes even oddly edifying, manage to encapsulate fashion ideas that are bubbling to the surface even (maybe especially?) now.

As a special end-of-July treat, this week we take a critical (but still fun!) look at three Preminger classics—the Francophile fantasia Bonjour Tristesse (1958), starring the redoubtable Jean Seberg, the admittedly bonkers Such Good Friends (1971), featuring the bouncy Dyan Cannon, and lastly, Carmen Jones (1954), showcasing the astonishing Dorothy Dandridge.

We begin this adventure with Bonjour Tristesse, in which the lovely Seberg—here named Cecile—is so in love with her dad (the sexy David Niven, but still . . . ) she hatches an evil plot to thwart his romance with Deborah Kerr, who plays a dress designer and swans around saying things like “I wish I could have found some material the color of this water.”

Most of the action takes place in and around a gloriously Technicolor Côte d’Azur and, in a conceit last employed by The Wizard of Oz, the scenes of Paris are black and white, which completely suits the gamine Seberg, in a singular black full-skirted cocktail dress with a halter neck and scant accessories but a pair of archaic little white gloves. (Lose the whities and this robe could attend a benefit in the Hamptons—tonight.) The black-and-white scenes also feature a musical number by the bohemian chanteuse Juliette Gréco, in a high-necked, long-sleeved affair, pale of face and with masses of ebony hair.

But it is at the super-saturated seashore that these ladies really shine, traipsing around in wardrobes that provoke the most intense envy, fifty-odd years on: tight-bodiced, wide-skirted, off–the-shoulder, sundresses; boat-necked, trapeze-shaped cover-ups with huge pockets; printed pants; sailor tops; and a series of maillots in delicious hues, sometimes accompanied by a denim work shirt tied high. (Seberg even looks good in this getup when she has a hot water bottle perched atop her head like a beanie, to treat a hangover.)

When Seberg’s character Cécile draws a chart on a chalkboard to rate her attributes against Kerr’s Anne, comparing the two of them in categories that include Fun and Intelligence, she gives herself 53½ for Chic, and allots Anne 100. But in truth, even a half century later, viewers will find that the score is dead even.

http://www.kissyprom.co.uk/purple-prom-dresses-online

Laura Whitmore, Gaynor Faye and Ruth Langsford reveal their handbag secrets

Laura Whitmore

Laura Whitmore's bag

Laura Whitmore

The MTV presenter, 28, carries a French Connection bag. She says:

"I'm a real handbag person so I have about 50 of them in my wardrobe. One of my favourites is an oversized mulberry bag that was given to me as payment for DJ-ing one night. I would never spend that much money myself because my mother would kill me.

"I did buy this French Connection bag, though, because it was much cheaper. I always choose a bag with a big strap so I can wrap it round my leg if I'm out in London. I would be heartbroken if it was stolen - it's like my baby.

"I carry all the usual things, like my iPhone, my iPad and a pair of earphones in case I need to listen to a new album for my work as a DJ.

"I also use my iPad for reading scripts if I'm filming for MTV. Often I'm doing both at the same time.

"When I remember, I pack my black MAC make-up bag, which I've had for years. It's like a magic Mary Poppins bag because it looks small but holds a lot, including my Lancôme foundation and Bobbi Brown eyeliner and concealer.

"Basically I carry the bare essentials for touching up my make-up on the run. I also carry a small DKNY perfume - Be Delicious Fresh Blossom - and deodorant, too.

"You'll also always find a pair of flat shoes or ballet pumps in my bag. I like to wear heels but the flats are great for running around London. You don't want to be wearing heels in the middle of a crazy gig, either.

"Quite often I'll have an entire outfit in my bag, which is why I need it so big. I never know where I might be going for dinner so it's always good to have a spare dress. One of the brands I wear quite a lot is shakuhachi.

"There's a Sex and the City episode where Carrie loses her favourite necklace and finds it months later at the bottom of her bag.

"That's me - you'll generally find a necklace there because if I'm wearing jewellery, I'll take it off and then forget which pocket I put it in.

"I also carry a lucky little shell that I found in Australia. I love walking on the sand, looking for pretty stones and shells, and when I was filming I'm a Celebrity I lived in an apartment near the beach for six weeks.

"I've also got a crystal guardian angel that my mum gave me for good luck when I left Ireland to come to London. It wasn't that she was worried about me - I've always been independent and she knows I'm good at looking after myself - but the angel is a nice touch.

"With filming you often have to wait around for long periods. If I don't eat I get cranky, so I always keep snacks in my bag.

"There is no point in giving me chocolate because that's only a 10-minute high, so I keep a packet of cashew nuts, which generally fall out and lurk at the bottom of my bag. I never clean it out as often as I should.

"I always carry my Luella oversized wallet because I have several different currencies on me - euros for when I go home to Ireland, Australian dollars for I'm a Celeb and US dollars for when I travel for work.

"Whichever country I land in, hopefully I'll have some money.

"I normally have a book with me, too. At the moment I am reading The Great Gatsby. I also have the audio book so I can listen to it as well.

"I was recently filming for the ITV show The British Animal Honours hosted by Paul O'Grady.

"I went to Battersea dogs home, where they had these eight gorgeous puppies, and I had this puppy with me for half an hour. They were saying: 'Give the puppy back, Laura.'

"But I have such a big bag, I'm sure they wouldn't have noticed if I'd popped him in there, would they?"

Gaynor Faye

Gaynor Faye's bag

Gaynor Faye

The Emmerdale actress, 41, carries a Mulberry handbag. She says:

"When I land a new role, I often buy myself a new bag so I've got something to remember it by. This cerise Mulberry Bayswater is my Emmerdale bag, which I bought when I got the part of Megan Macey. She loves a bit of designer flash and I'm the same, so the bright bags tend to come out more often than not.

"I've got about 40 bags altogether, including some I've had since my teens. My Bayswater wasn't cheap, but with handbags you get what you pay for. I have four or five similar ones that I rotate, so they last me for years.

"When I came down to London to work aged 17, it was drummed into me to look after my bag in case it was stolen, and to this day I'm very careful where I leave it. I'm not particularly tidy, though - I've just found a few furry pistachio shells in the bottom of this one!

"Inside there is an Emmerdale script and highlighter that I carry everywhere, because sometimes you finish work and you still have another 10 scenes to learn for the next day.

"There's also my Orbit chewing gum, which is a necessity for most actors in case we get a kissing scene and we've been eating garlic. Sadly Megan hasn't had many of those. I got one snogging scene with Carl King and that was it!

"Attached to my ITV pass is a silver teddy bear, which was sent to me by a Scottish teenager called Lara. She has a twitter account called Gaynor Faye Fan, which I think is really sweet.

"I'm partial to liquorice so I always carry some of that, and at the moment I've also got some Maple Ice Mints that my mum brought back from Canada.

"There's a B12 Boost spray, which is good for energy levels, and I never go anywhere without my antihistamine tablets because I've got an allergic reaction to cats and dogs.

"That's not too much of a problem on Emmerdale, but it was when I was playing a vet in The Chase.

"I always make sure I carry a good moisturiser so I've got a small Temple Spa Skin Truffle cream, and there's a Race for Life medal in my bag because I did that last month in Leeds.

"It was to raise money for Cancer Research Uk, which I have supported for many years. I recently started to run and thought I could combine getting fit with doing something for charity.

"That explains the earphones, too, because I run much better when I'm listening to music. Those are also useful when I am using one of the Buddhist meditations downloaded on my phone, which are great for sleep and getting rid of stress.

"My Louis Vuitton purse and make-up bag were presents for my 21st and 30th birthday from Mum and Dad.

"I love the fact that I can still use them every day. Inside the purse are school photos of my son Oliver and daughter Lily.

"They know Mum has a big bag, so I'm the one who ends up carrying everything when we go out for the day - not just my stuff but theirs as well.

"When I have a massage, it's always my bag shoulder that's full of knots."

Emmerdale is on ITV at 7pm on weeknights.

Ruth Langsford

Ruth Langsford's bag

Ruth Langsford

This Morning's Ruth, 53, has a black DNKY bag. She says:

"Whenever I go out without my bag, maybe to take the dog for a walk, I feel a bit lost. It is like a security blanket.

"I always think if something happens, there is stuff in there that will help me survive - like a bag of almonds, which is my attempt at not buying sweets.

"I always buy almonds whenever I read that models eat them to maintain their size-6 figures. The trouble is, I eat mine in one go. That's not the point, really, is it?

"This DNKY bag cost about £300. I'd never spend thousands like some people do - that seems crazy to me. And you'll rarely see me with a dainty handbag - it's usually a great big one.

"Inside is my iPhone and my iPad, which I am thinking of swapping for an iPad Mini so my bag doesn't weigh so much.

"But there are no glasses! For years I couldn't function without my specs, but since I had a Clarivu lens replacement I don't need them any more. It's so liberating.

"Another recent change is the loose dog biscuits. last year Eamonn [Holmes, her husband] went on an open day to the Dogs Trust. I said, 'Don't you dare come home with a dog.'

"I'd never had a dog and always resisted the idea, even though my son Jack had been asking for one since he was four. Eamonn didn't come home with a dog, but with a picture on his phone of this gorgeous crossbreed called Maggie, who looked like a tiny black fox.

"When we phoned to ask about her, she had already been re-homed. Two weeks later, we went to have a look round anyway, but couldn't find a suitable dog. I was just thinking, 'Phew, we got away with that,' when we heard that Maggie had been brought back.

"When she walked into the room, Jack bent down and Maggie licked his knee and looked up at him. It was like watching love at first sight, and now we all adore her.

"For make-up I always carry my Jane Iredale powder and brush, and there's a MAC lip gloss and Spice lip pencil because I hate the feel of lipstick.

"It makes me feel like I'm six years old and playing with my mum's make-up. I've also got a toothbrush and toothpaste, and a little bottle of Jo Malone's Vetyver perfumer, which I love.

"Then I've got chewing gum, Covonia cough lozenges because I like the taste and a bag of Ricola Swiss herb drops in case I get a dry mouth.

"There's a clear pencil case with my Pentel pens and highlighters, which I use on scripts. I love new pens and I'm a bit of a stationery freak - it's that back-to-school feeling.

"I've also got a shell that Jack found on the beach in Cornwall when we were there with my mum. It's heart-shaped and very smooth, and it's the only sentimental thing I carry.

"My purse is huge - as big as some people's clutch bags. It's lime green leather and it prevents any 'Where's my purse?' panics because it's so bright you just can't miss it."

French Twist: The House of Carven's New Quirky-Cool Perfume

“The bottle is meant to look like you stole it from a pharmacy or a laboratory,” Guillaume Henry says mischievously, describing the frosty glass vessel that holds the brand-new fragrance, Carven Le Parfum, which launches in the U.S. exclusively at Saks Fifth Avenue tomorrow. Henry, the young creative director of the Parisian fashion house who manages to be a rather impish fellow despite the serious job title, has taken the grand name of Carven and infused it with a decidedly jeune fille spirit in recent years. Now he has taken his ability to intuit what a cool Parisienne wishes to wear, as she rides the Ferris wheel in the Tuileries or studies hard for the bac, and extended it to the world of fragrance.

From left: Models backstage at Carven's Fall 2013 collection; the fashion house's new signature perfume.

Of course, when it comes to scent, even a fashion designer with an ultra-sophisticated nose is a rank amateur—collaboration with a professional perfumer is a necessity. For the task, he tapped the French fragrance master Francis Kurkdjian, providing him with the briefest of briefs: “I gave him a few words—fresh, sunny afternoon, spontaneous, timeless—and he made it into a smell!” the designer remembers. Kurkdjian’s winning formula artfully combines notes of neroli, mandarin blossom, white hyacinth, white sandalwood, jasmine, ylang ylang ‪and, in a witty olfactory nod to the house’s penchant for pale green, a hint of sweet pea.‬ (Carven’s legendary 1946 fragrance Ma Griffe comes packaged in a box of that hue, while the new carton for Le Parfum features delicate green–and-white pinstripes.)

Asked how he met the challenge of translating Henry’s sensibility into a fragrance, Kurkdjian says that he thinks of the Carven woman as definitely feminine, and sporty in an urban way. “She has humor and a certain detachment,” he says of designing the floral chypre scent along with a certain “flair and quirkiness.”

And though this flair and quirkiness may evoke all the joys and carefree pleasures of youth, Kurkdjian, it turns out, has a more expansive view of the subject: “Carven is a state of mind, an allure,” he insists. “It is not a date of birth on a passport!”

Could my face cream cause dermatitis?

Go to a dermatology clinic and chances are you'll see more than one person with a sore, red, swollen or blistering face. The most likely cause? An allergy to their face cream. Dermatologists at their annual conference last week warned of an epidemic of what they call allergic contact dermatitis (inflammation of the skin caused by allergic reactions). They warn it's caused by a preservative in face cream which is also found in many other products, including suntan lotion, soap, deodorant and even baby wipes. The name of this preservative? Methylisothiazolinone – or MI for short.

It's not a new compound but it has only been used on its own, instead of with other preservatives, for the past five years – therefore its concentration in individual products has increased. In one clinic at St Thomas's hospital in London there was just one case of allergy to MI in 2010, but 33 in 2012.

People typically develop an allergy to MI over a few days, but it can be delayed. The allergy is caused by your immune system waging war against a specific substance on the surface of your skin – making it oversensitive when the chemical is applied again. No one knows why allergies develop in some people and not others, or why you can develop allergic dermatitis from a substance you've been using happily for years. So should you start checking labels, just in case?

The solution

You should definitely check, says Dr Jason Williams, consultant dermatologist and director of the contact dermatitis investigation unit at Salford Royal Foundation NHS Trust. He said that 10% of his clinic patients who have patch tests are shown to have allergies to MI. Sometimes, he says, people don't realise it's the cream that's to blame for their itchy skin, and rub even more on. "MI is being used on its own in 100 parts per million. This is a much higher concentration in creams than there used to be – which was five parts per million," he says. "I would look at labels; reactions can be severe. Generally, the fewer chemicals on the label the better. But organic creams are not always better, as plant extracts contain fragrance allergens that can cause contact dermatitis. It is better to go for unfragranced creams."

Treatment consists of stopping use and usually applying steroid cream to your skin – but it can take some weeks for things to get back to normal. If you do develop a red, swollen, itchy, rash-ridden face, then you should get patch tested (results take a week) so you can avoid whatever caused it.

The V&A’s Gone Clubbing

“The eighties were about being yourself,” said Kate Bethune when asked about the looks in the Victoria and Albert Museum’s latest show, Club to Catwalk. Open from today, the exhibition explores the explosion of ostentatious creativity that rose out of London’s eighties club scene, and how these underground fashions manifested themselves on the catwalk. Throughout the decade, designers and characters such as John Galliano, Jean Paul Gaultier, Boy George, and the king of the club era—performance artist Leigh Bowery

would create DIY ensembles, dress to the nines, and take on larger-than-life personas in iconic haunts such as Blitz, Kinky Gerlinky, and Taboo. One such character was milliner Stephen Jones, who has two hats featured in the show. “People didn’t really use the word style before 1982,” Jones told Style.com. “But suddenly, your style made it seem as if you were actively concerned about your appearance. It was more personal than fashion,” explained Jones, who described his own nightlife look as “a big dollop of Fellini, hats, French Left Bank, and a little bit of fifties thrown in for good measure.” Naturally, if you weren’t dressed your best, clubs would turn you away at the door. “The Blitz was the most difficult one to get into,” offered Jones. “The guy on the door was Trojan, and he had a little mirror in his pocket, and he’d famously hold it up and say, ‘Would you let you in?’” Jones didn’t have that problem, but sadly none of his own top-to-toe costumes survived. “Our outfits were only made to last one night. They’d sort of dissolve,” he said, adding, “If you wore something from a department store, or designer fashion, it would have been the kiss of death. Terminally uncool.”

High fashion, however, was unquestionably inspired by what was seen on the dance floor. Designers—both those who clubbed and those who didn’t—looked to style tribes of the time like Fetish, Goth, Rave, High Camp, and New Romantics. Vivienne Westwood was a champion and a pioneer of the latter (she has an entire case dedicated to her eighties wares in the show), and John Galliano (who’s Fallen Angel suit is above), Katharine Hamnett, and more wove club styles and sentiments into their collections. “Back in the eighties, John Galliano said that the clubs inspired so many designers, Central Saint Martins’ classrooms would be dead on Thursdays and Fridays because everyone was at home making their outfits for the weekend,” said Bethune.

The exhibition documents the club years via more than eighty-five looks displayed on two floors—one of which is dedicated to the catwalk, the other a re-creation of an actual eighties hot spot. “I hope people get the sense of how fun and liberating and eclectic it was,” said Bethune. “Literally anything went. And you could be a different person every night. You just had to change your dress.

Club to Catwalk is on view at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum through February 16, 2014.

Will the hair whisperer be able to tame my tresses?

Not only was it thick, coarse and curly, I even started going grey at the age of 12.

My nickname at school was Bush because children in my class said my hair looked as if I’d been dragged through one backwards.

Now I’m 27 years old. Over the past 15 years I’ve dyed, blow-dried, straightened and bleached my locks in the hope of bringing them under control. The result? My ends are so dry they look like frayed wire.

In a bid to rein in my flyaway frizz I book an appointment with Paolo Lai, a London-based hair healer whose celebrity clients include Holly Willoughby and Lisa Snowdon.

Paolo, who treats split ends, dry locks and breakage on a daily basis, has created an intensive treatment which he promises will tame even the wildest tresses.

The hour-long procedure involves studying the condition, strength and structure of the hair with a magnifying camera before applying a combination of hair oils and steam. The steamer causes the hair to swell and allows Paolo’s cocktail of conditioning products to penetrate into each strand.

A mixture of hot and cold spray is blown on to the hair to open and then seal the cuticles, while at the same time locking in moisture, in the same way hot and cold water will open and close pores.

Sophie shows off her super-soft curls after taking her problem frizz to Paolo Lai

This all sounds very impressive but will the hair whisperer really be able to tame my mane?

I meet Paolo, who also specialises in refl exology, at glitzy central London salon Neville Hair & Beauty, a stone’s throw from Harrods. Paolo started by examining my straw-like mop with his handheld camera.

“I’m zooming in 400 times closer than a normal camera,” he tells me.

Feeling slightly apprehensive about what he might find I tell him I’d tried to improve the condition of my hair with a Brazilian blow-dry treatment, which uses keratin to banish frizz and straighten locks.

“To change the structure of your hair, in your case from wavy to straight, you have to iron the inside of each strand to alter the cuticle,” says Paolo.

“Any change to the cuticle causes damage. A Brazilian treatment creates shine, not softness and can have a drying effect.”

After that damning indictment he presses the camera firmly into my parting and holds it there for five seconds before examining the picture on the screen.

“You aren’t going to like this,” he says, handing me the camera.

It’s my scalp up close and it isn’t a pretty sight, covered in what looks like wax. Paolo explains the coating on my scalp could be a build up of products caused by a lack of exfoliation.

“Exfoliate my scalp? I barely exfoliate my skin,” I think.

“You must pay attention to your scalp, either by running a comb over it or massaging your head when shampooing and conditioning,” he tells me.

“This will stimulate collagen production which will improve the growth and condition of your hair.”

Next we move on to the ends of my mop which are so dry and frazzled they resemble lightning bolts. Each strand seems to have a white outer layer on top of a brown inner layer. Paolo explains this is because my hair is now mostly naturally grey. The brown is dye in the core of each shaft of hair. Just as I’d predicted, my hair is frazzled from years of abuse.

After washing my hair and scalp with Kérastase moisturising shampoo Paolo draws on his refl exology skills to deliver a deeply-relaxing head massage.

Then having combed my hair he sets to work mixing up a cocktail of conditioning treatments which include Aqua-Oleum by Kérastase, a strengthening treatment. He then adds a vial of Concentre Vita Ciment and Masquintense for thick hair.

Separating my hair into layers he uses a brush to paint the thick, creamy mixture from root to tip before combing it through to ensure an even coverage.

Next a futuristic-looking silver shower cap is placed over my head and every strand of my hair is tucked inside. All of a sudden a machine springs to life behind me, blowing puffs of warm steam directly into my silver cap. Weirdly my head doesn’t feel hot.

The only sign anything is happening is that the shower cap is slowly inflating on my head.

Paolo then applies nourishing Shu Uemura Camellia Oil to my damp tresses before I am whisked back to the sink so the treatment products can be washed off.

My hair is then blow-dried to perfection and feels super-soft and glossy to touch.

Over the next few days the ends remain soft and shiny and despite the fact I haven’t had a millimetre cut off there isn’t a split end in sight.

For the first time in my life my hair has movement and bounce as I walk. If only my old classmates could see me now.

FIRST AID BOX FOR LOCKS

Paolo Lai shares his top tips for sorting out hair problems

OVER-PROCESSED AND DRY HAIR

Use a nourishing oil to rehydrate your locks. Try a pure organic argan oil. Apply to damp hair so as it dries it will absorb the product.

If your hair is very thick you can add the oil to dry hair. If it is finer opt for coconut oil because it is more lightweight.

WAVY OR CURLY HAIR

Curly hair is naturally dry due to its structure.

Using a styling mousse can be especially drying as these often contain alcohol so opt for an oil-based styling cream to give your hair shape and body without compromising its health. Add a few drops of lavender or rosemary oil to the product to add shine and detoxify stressed tresses.

GREY HAIR

Grey hair is like a sponge and will absorb everything surrounding it such as pollution and smoke. This can cause a yellow tinge. Use a purifying shampoo twice a week to get rid of any stains.

Purple shampoo also gets rid of yellowness. Be sure to do a second shampoo with your regular product so you don’t end up with a purple rinse.

THIN OR LIMP HAIR

Oil will only make thin hair flatter. Start by making sure you have a good, layered cut to add volume. Then apply a volumising product to the roots. This will give you a lift and make hair appear fuller.

London Calling: A Snapshot of Amanda Harlech's Day at Chanel

Yesterday I caught up my British compatriot Lady Amanda Harlech in Paris, who was charging around Chanel headquarters in the Rue Cambon, Hasselblad digital camera in hand. “I’m taking close-up pictures of the collection for Karl,” she declared, hitching up her black chiffon Fendi maxiskirt and bounding two steps at a time up the stairs to the studio. “The fabrics are so amazing. Cubic flowers that look like origami. The finest pinstriped lines of sequin on cellophane. Extraordinary pleating like scribbled clouds. It must be recorded.”

Amanda Harlech (far right)

Amanda’s status as a great British entity and member of team Lagerfeld is just one of those facts of haute couture life taken for granted in Paris. She’s there in one of those mysteriously nebulous roles outside observers might imagine involves a lot of wafting and not much doing. Spending half an hour in her frenetic day of keeping up with Karl puts that notion to rest. Amanda’s responsibilities might be more about being Amanda—sounding board, verbalizer, culture explorer, expert enthusiast, couture cheerleader—than anything a literal-minded human resources officer could pin down as a job description, but her schedule is a nonstop blur. “What am I doing today? Well, I’ve just been to the Grand Palais with Karl to look at the set which is a building site—kind of going to be an Old World theater that crumbles away so you can see a modern skyline beyond. I’m glad I wore flats because I didn’t expect we’d be off tramping over the Seine to see Karl’s exhibition of photographs—daguerrotypes and platinotypes!—he’s done for Fendi about the glory of water. Then back to the studio and the accessorizing. Don’t know when we’ll finish here. It could be midnight. Then Karl will drop me off at the Meurice, and I’ll see [my daughter] Tallulah.”

Tallulah Harlech and Amanda Harlech

Reported sightings of Harlech’s daughter were making their way to the studio. “I’ve just seen her on the street, wearing pajamas!” remarked Franca Sozzani, editor in chief of Italian Vogue, an incoming visitor. “Oh, is she? My pajamas, you mean?” Harlech twinkled, hands on hips. “The ones she spotted on me that I wore in Singapore when we were doing the cruise show in May, and I thought I’d do that 1920s thing?” Harlech junior, an actress, now has a place of her own in the front row as second-generation fashion aristocracy. That doesn’t stop Lady Harlech and her daughter from bedding down in the same room at the Meurice together. (Frugality is a defining trait of upper-class English womanhood).

After the two couture shows today, what’s Amanda up to next? “There’s the Fendi party on the third. Then home. And back again to shoot Karl’s movie for the Metiers d’Art show, which is going to be in Dallas in December. And there’s the ready-to-wear show in Paris before that, of course.” In the meantime, Harlech will be going to the Edinburgh International Festival to take part in its new fashion offshoot.

Amanda Harlech

But the real key to Harlech’s indomitable British combination of flighty imagination and no-nonsense practicality really lies far, far away from fashion on a farm in the inaccessible borderland between Wales and Shropshire. “It can take three and a half hours just to get to London some days,” she says briskly. “But I love it!” At home, Harlech is a writer (she’s working on a novel), a farm manager, and a mad-keen horsewoman. She has eight horses, competes, and is the proud owner of a month-old foal, King Alfred. (All this is documented on her Instagram). Equally in her element at the court of King Karl or mucking out King Alfred’s stable, what could be more terribly down-to-earth and British than that?

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Candy Land: On the Road with Dylan Lauren

Dylan Lauren

“Summer is very precious,” says Dylan Lauren, a careful counter when it comes to how many weekends per year the sun is expected to shine. But while the rest of the population is jetting off to exotic locales, the Dylan’s Candy Bar founder is doing all she can to stay put. Of course, when “put” means at one of her family’s coffee-table-book-worthy homes in Montauk or Telluride, it can feel like a vacation in itself.

Nevertheless, as the fearless leader of a candy empire who is about to launch a collaboration with LeSportsac, Lauren is required to spend at least a few Saturdays flying around the world in search of new store locations or undiscovered treats. Most recently, she and her team ate their way through the Sweets & Snacks Expo in Chicago. “There’s a football field’s worth of candy vendors; it’s a free-for-all,” she says. To counteract the sugar rush (or perhaps take advantage of it), Lauren hit a local Flywheel. It’s her go-to fitness routine when she’s traveling domestically, though if she can’t find a spin class nearby, she’s just as happy to go for a run, work out with resistance bands (light and easy to pack) or hit the hotel pool. “I’ve been in Shanghai aqua-jogging with thousands of people,” she says. She’s also been known to practice her water aerobics in the ocean.

The requisite Emergen-C packets, phone chargers, hair bands, and fashion sneakers also make their way into Lauren’s luggage, as do a few more unexpected items. For instance, if she’s headed somewhere where she doesn’t speak the language, “I bring a can opener,” she says, for canned tuna and vegetables she’ll pick up at a market. She’s also rarely without bubblegum—helps to stave off boredom, she says. As for what all these treasures get thrown into, Lauren swears by her nondescript black roller bag, identifiable by its swirled lollipop tag. But now that her LeSportsac collection of nylon tote, shopping, and duffel bags in crazy candy prints is coming out, she has more luggage options. Which is a good thing, because her travel itinerary keeps filling up, including a visit to a Willy Wonka–inspired garden in London later this summer. Staying put can wait.