Catwalk Catchup: PFW Chanel Spring/Summer 2012

No Fashion Week review would be complete without mentioning Chanel. Their Spring/Summer 2012 offering at Paris Fashion Week was a sea (literally) of magic! It was an underwater fantasy complete with the hottest models in the biz and one Miss Florence Welch singing to the crowd from a shell…true story. 

 

Karl Lagerfeld was keen to mix it up a little this season, opting to step outside the box and create a collection that wasn't "very Chanel". Why? Because Kaiser Karl so rightly mentioned that Chanel's style is being done by many other designers.

What do you think?

Catwalk Catchup: MFW Fendi Spring/Summer 2012

We love to layer and the Fendi catwalk is absolutely packed with layered loveliness! There's also an abundance of sheer pieces and some very interesting box-shaped bodices finding themselves on lots of the dresses. Quite a versatile collection we must say; fringe, lace, sheer, layering, acute and structured shapes and silhouettes - a  real mixed bag!

 And of course, being Fendi and Milan, it was quite the star studded event both in terms of front row and runway - Carine Roitfeld was of course frow, while hot top models Anja Rubik and Natasha Poly were strutting their stuff on the catwalk for one of the most sought after fashion week gigs! (the pink star signals a Fashion Compendium favourite - look how pretty that dress is...you listening Karl Lagerfeld?) 

Blake Lively Covers InStyle Australia October

Are the magazine covers down under getting better and better by the month?! We haven't had a Blake Lively cover for what feels like an eternity and quite frankly we want this rectified! Hopefully Blakey and fellow Gossip Girl star Leighton Meester will individually grace our magazine covers in the next few months as they promote the new series of Gossip Girl. I admit this isn't the greatest and most ground-breaking picture of Blake - we've all seen better; we know she can do better, you just need to look at her work with Karl Lagerfeld for proof. But she looks like herself - no frills and gimmicks and not even too much airbrushing. Just cute little Blake Lively being Blake Lively. Can't hate a Blake cover, even if we try really hard.

Karl Lagerfeld Teams Up With Snoop Dogg (Seriously!)

We always knew Kaiser Karl loved a bit of celebrity collaboration, but we have to admit, we totally didn't see this one coming! Always one for the shock factor is our Chanel man!  

Karl Lagerfeld has indeed teamed up with Snoop Doggy Dog for Jean-Roch's music video - Snoop features prominently but Karl makes a cameo appearance, dressed all in white.  What an image! Cannot wait to see this badboy premiere! 

Rachel Bilson's third and final Magnum short film

Karl Lagerfeld obviously saved the best 'til last. This is by far our favourite - how elegant does Rachel Bilson look? And how good does she look as a ballerina? If we didn't love Mila Kunis so much, we'd say Miss Bilson could have easily played her role in the Black Swan. Which of the three Magnum short films is your favourite?

Daily Style Crush: Blake Lively

Yesterday, we brought you some of out favourite catwalk looks from the Chanel Resort 2012 collection, and told you some of the hottest celebs turned up to support Karl Lagerfeld in person in some of Chanel's greatest designs. Blake Lively was just one of Hollywood's finest to witness the collection live, and looked sensational dressed head to toe in Chanel. What a beauty.

Image courtesy of Dominique Charriau/Getty

Catwalk Catch-up: Chanel Resort 2012

Where do we start? What a fabulous collection; and it was 100% well worth the wait. Karl Lagerfeld's latest show took place on the glamorous French Riviera yesterday, with all the hottest Chanel celeb-faves in attendance. Blake Lively and Rachel Bilson, two of Uncle Karl's leading ladies of the moment were there showing their support, and showcasing some gorgeous Chanel looks of their very own. So many of the hottest models were walking too; Abbey Lee Kershaw, Karlie Kloss, Natasha Poly (to name but a few...)

There were so many memorable looks from the collection, but the ones that stood out the most were the ones that reminded the audience of a certain Royal Wedding. Do you think Her Majesty the Queen took styling tips from Uncle Karl prior to the big day, or was it the other way round? Either way, the show opened with some lovely yellow numbers which were reminiscent of the Queen's wedding outfit. But Her Majesty's look wasn't the only one to take inspiration from the collection. The bridalwear had more than a few hints of some of the aforementioned wedding attire displayed. The slimline, straight cut dresses were very Pippa Middleton, whilst the lace was of course reminiscent of Kate Middleton's gorgeous dress. 

But we are not for one second insinuating that Karl Lagerfeld has drawn inspiration from other designers and has left the signature Chanel style off the latest runway. The rest of the collection screamed classic Chanel - in fact we think the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge may have postponed their honeymoon just so they could pack some last-minute Chanel gear in their suitcases. No? Either way, the collection does seem fit for a princess, Duchess or anyone that exudes style. There were hints of vintage, forties inspired pieces in the collection, and the holiday-wear is exceptional - who wouldn't love to rock up on a beach wearing the latest and greatest Chanel Resort? 

We've managed to pick a few favourites from the collection, but make sure to check out style.com for the whole collection - it's definitely worth it.

See a preview of Karl Lagerfeld's The Tale of a Fairy

And finally, before we forget, make sure you head to the official Chanel website on Tuesday at 9am to see Karl Lagerfeld's brand new film (you can see a preview that Chanel News teased us with above.) The 30 minute film is entitled The Tale of a Fairy, and features all the Chanel favourites, including Lagerfeld muse Baptise Giabiconi, as well as Freja Beha Erichsen, Anna Mouglalis and other friends and ambassadors of the House of Chanel.

Here is how Karl Lagerfeld himself described the film: “It is a movie about an ill-advised use of money which begins with violence and ends with feeling” 

It will be screened for the first time on Monday at the Hotel du Cap Eden Rose at the Cap d'Antibes and then on the Chanel website for everyone to see on Tuesday. 

Rachel Bilson's second Magnum short film

Finally! It seems like we've had to wait an eternity for the second helping of Magnum short films startring Rachel Bilson and directed by Karl Lagerfeld. This time, Miss Bilson plays the role of an art student. Eating ice cream on the set, working with Uncle Karl and staring at the cute male model? Not a bad day's work!

What the celebs wore to the Met Gala

The outfits just got better and better throughout the night at the Met Gala, don’t you agree? We don’t think there were many fashion faux pas’ last night, so here is our top 12 (ten was a bit too hard for us!) ultimate favourite looks; well, 13 if you count Uncle Karl :) 

Jessica Alba and Kate Hudson joined Victoria Beckham’s Royal Wedding appearance in proving that being fabulous doesn’t stop when you’re pregnant.

Carine Roitfeld by Karl Lagerfeld

Visionaire's issue #60, also known as the Religion issue features this gorgeous picture of French Vogue's ex Editor in Chief Carine Roitfeld, lensed by the one and only Karl Lagerfeld. The issue, out in June, is guest edited by Riccardo Tisci, so expect to see many a Givenchy collaboration in there. 

Karl Lagerfeld's Paris chocolate hotel suite

This is a man who clearly seriously loves his chocolate. Uncle Karl has just unveiled a hotel suite in Paris made entirely out of chocolate. His muse Baptiste Giabiconi, who was recently seen in a cameo role in the first of Lagerfeld's Magnum short films, is also in on the chocolate action. The chocolate Baptiste comes complete with chocolates briefs, with a Magnum ice cream poised in his hand. Some of Karl Lagerfeld's favourites in one room - not too shabby. Apparently the room is made from over 10 tons of Belgian chocolate, and features chocolate furniture, including a chair, table and rug - wow. We don't know what to say except we are feeling a bit peckish now and want a bit of a chocolatey sugar rush. 

Daily Style Crush: Kelly Osbourne

I think this is my favourite Kelly Osbourne look, quite possibly ever. She was snapped at the God Bless Ozzy Osbourne premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival (the same festival that brought us the Karl Lagerfeld Rachel Bilson Magnum short films) in a figure hugging floor length dress that accentuated every last curve perfectly. 

The jacket added some casual sophistication, as did the super-glamorous up-do. The hot-pink lipstick just topped it off to give it the perfect ten-out-of-ten mark - contemporary, relevant, figure-appropriate and actually flawless. - This ensemble definitely proves that she is worthy of her Fashion Police role.
Image courtesy of Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images

Rachel Bilson's Karl Lagerfeld Magnum video

What better thing to satisfy our Easter chocolate cravings than the long-awaited Rachel Bilson Magnum Ice Cream video, directed by Mr Karl Lagerfeld. The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival yesterday, and we can honestly say that we love, love, LOVE it! Rachel Bilson looks beautiful in the first of the three short films, which also briefly features Karl Lagerfeld's muse Baptiste Giabiconi. Miss Bilson plays the part of a model called Olivia in the video above, and also portrays a ballerina and an art student in the remaining two which we are yet to see. 

This has certainly whet our appetite, and we can't wait to see the others!

Chanel Eyewear Spring 2011

Behold, two images from the advertising campaign for Chanel Eyewear Spring/Summer 2011, photographed by Mr Chanel himself,  Karl Lagerfeld. Elisa Sednaoui reprises her role as the face of the campaign, and is showing off two stunning frames. We can't wait to see the rest of the collection and more campaign images. 

The new Karl Lagerfeld Diet Coke ad campaigns

You'd have to have been living under a rock for the past few weeks to not know about Karl Lagerfeld's collaboration with Diet Coke since it transpired that he lost a lot of weight by sticking to a diet of vegetables and Diet Coke. 

The new designs of the bottles popped up on the internet a few weeks ago, but now the official campaigns have emerged. Uncle Karl went to none other than Paris to officially launch the product, with a very gorgeous Lily Cole offering her moral support. We are glad to see her back to her natural hair colour too - very bright and fitting for summer. 

Catwalk catch-up: Chanel A/W 2011 RTW

Dark and sensual; that was the theme that Karl Lagerfeld ran with for the latest Chanel catwalk outing. The volcano which graced the runway was also a haunting touch which encapsulated the aura of the collection spectacularly. The show was chilling enough from the pictures, we can only imagine that sitting Front Row would have heightened the chill-factor even more. We would happily give a right arm to have witnessed the live action though. 

Still, it's nice to see Lagerfeld going with the theme of winter, which many designers have dismissed this season. Chanel went with the theme of ice last year which also screamed winter, but so did the volcano - it was anything but smoking hot. Grunge, oversized, man-size and neo-medieval are all words which complement the collection. The palette was predominantly dark and smokey, but were finely crafted and brilliantly put together.

Our one and only criticism? We absolutely love how some heels are being replaced with biker boots, but they are hugely disproportionate in relation to the legs of some of the models - perhaps skinny jeans and grunge boots aren't the best option when you have the figure of a runway model. Still, if we had the height of runway models, the inability to wear oversized boots wouldn't be the end of our world. 

Thank you uncle Karl for another fabulous collection; they just keep getting better!

Lily Allen will marry in Chanel

It seems that Lily Allen won’t be one of the celebs teasing us with wedding dress designer speculation; according to WWD, she got straight down to business and already decided that she will be wearing Chanel down the aisle. She was spotted at Chanel HQ yesterday waiting patiently for a fitting.

Miss Allen is a Chanel ambassador, who is seldom seen without a Chanel accessory; she was appointed as the face of Chanel’s Coco Cocoon handbag line by Karl Lagerfeld, and it’s clear to see the two have maintained their friendship ever since.

If only we were bosom buds with Uncle Karl…