Exclusive Women’s Collection To Be Launched At Scoop NYC During Art Basel

New York, NY (November 12th, 2012) – Scoop NYC and LA><ART have teamed up to launch the Alexandra Grant for Clover Canyon Collection exclusively at Scoop NYC’s South Beach store, located within the Shore Club Hotel during Art Basel. On Thursday, December 6th, Scoop NYC will celebrate the collaboration with an exclusive in-store party in honor of artist Alexandra Grant and Rozae Nichols, Clover Canyon’s designer. LA><ART, a nonprofit contemporary art space in Los Angeles committed to experimental exhibitions and public art initiatives, will be the evening’s beneficiary of 10% of sales.

Alexandra Grant, an American artist based in Los Angeles, has collaborated with Rozae Nichols, the designer behind Clover Canyon, to design a collection of women’s styles using prints inspired by several of Alexandra Grant’s paintings. Grant is known for creating paintings, drawings and sculpture based on explorations of text. Her art has been displayed at museums and galleries around the globe including her first solo exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, the 2010 California Biennial of Art at the Orange County Museum of Art, the Contemporary Museum in Baltimore and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

Clover Canyon is designed and produced in Los Angeles, and each of Ms. Nichols’ collections reflects the eclectic, joyful spirit of California through vivid prints and streamlined silhouettes. The Clover Canyon atelier is unique: working collaboratively, and drawing on their shared passion for travel and art, the team designs original prints, and hand-engineers them to frame and enhance the body.

Susan Davidson, President and CEO of Scoop NYC said, "I am thrilled about Scoop’s collaboration with LAXART, Alexandra Grant and Clover Canyon. Alexandra's paintings are beautiful. The prints that Clover Canyon has created from them will truly resonate with our customers."

Rozae Nichols added, "We are so excited to collaborate with Alexandra Grant.  Her vivid paintings express a fluid language and feminine beauty in perfect harmony with Clover Canyon. This is such an inspiring project to celebrate with Scoop / Miami Art Basel."

The collection will be sold exclusively at Scoop NYC’s Miami Shore Club location and on www.scoopnyc.com beginning December 6, 2012.

On Monday night, November 5, 2012, Victoria Beckham won the "Womenswear Designer of the Year" award. She was awarded for her signature women’s haute couture collection, Victoria by Victoria Beckham.

The 2012 WGSN Global Fashion Awards were held in London, England. The awards ceremony recognizes talent in fashion and retail from around the globe. The awards are only for the best designers in the world. A select panel of specialists select the designers.

Victoria did not attend the event. Senior Vice-President, Zach Duane, thanked the panel on her behalf, while she took to her excitement on Twitter. She tweeted, "Thank you WGSN, thrilled to win Womenswear Designer at Global Fashion Awards." Other winners of the night included Kim Jones for Louis Vuitton menswear and Charlotte Olympia, a shoe wear and accessories designer.

Prior to becoming a fashion designer and style icon, Victoria Beckham (previously Victoria Adams) was a pop singer. She was part of the girl-group, Spice Girls, and was nicknamed Posh Spice. She was given the nickname for her taste in classy pieces and in designer dresses. The group lasted from 1993 to 2000. Victoria later met and married soccer player, David Beckham. They have four children: three sons and one daughter.

The theme of the 2012 Teen Miami Pageant was all about each of the contestants having the ability to gain self-confidence, self-esteem and the opportunity to make new friends. This pageant was based on PERSONALITY.

The three part judging process started with a 3-minuet interview with each young lady. We had to ask them questions about their life, education and plans for their future, plus some random things that told us a bit more on who they were. The most amazing thing here to me was how proper and well spoken these gals are! As judges we were to gage each ones scores on a set of criteria. They had to just be them self and present themselves in a manner that their personality shined through! What we discovered was some outstanding things, most of the girls were not into social media, they helped out at home, they volunteered in their community and had high hopes for their future education. They smiled and laughed freely. One question was what is your favorite subject in school……..hands down it was math or science. When asked why, the answer was summed up as it gave them the opportunity to think, reason a decision and come to a conclusion. They just amazed me!

The second part of competition was the Casual Wear Competition.  Each contestant was able to choose an outfit that they feel comfortable in. The outfits include what they would wear to a casual event or could represent what they would wear to a sport that they participated in. They had to be age appropriate, and they were, it was extremely nice to see girls this age with their hair styled in a natural manner, with a light makeup and cloths that not only fit them properly, but outfits that were casual and suited their personality.

The third part of competition was the Formal Wear Competition. Simple formal wear, with hair and makeup appropriate for their age! The Emcee presented each contestant center stage and had an interview question. The questions were based on current lifestyle and plans for the future. It was amazing that the common denominator here was they all were making plans for a higher education. The scope of what they wanted to do for a future career ranged from being a physician, involved in the forensic sciences or involved in police sciences. I was amazed at the options they had researched and as well, that they were involved in magnet school  or program that had pre requisite courses in line for their future, or volunteered within the community pertaining to their future goals. The get it girls of the future, were on stage and blew me away!

I have to say I was extremely impressed with each and every one of them. It was a great experience not only for the young ladies, but each of us that were invited to judge the competition. The judges were an amazing group of people who have successful businesses, give back to the community, implement programs and/or volunteer for the needs of their community.

The scope of the judges were individuals like me who have mentor programs, there were a panel of 10 of us total, Long time professionals in the beauty industry like Rick Lesser a freelance stylist for film and photography, Raquel Watters who is the owner of Ric-Rac salons in Miami, Jessica Rae Anderson a international fashion stylist and writer, just to mention a few. After the pageant concluded a group of us judges went out together, seems like we all felt that we received much more then we gave, everything we were hoping for the girls, we got as well, we made new friends, we had a great time, we felt wonderful and inspired. When you think of pageants, know there are many types……….the real deals that make a difference will always impress and inspire me to do more for the industry & the community.

Best said is this: No Honey Boo Boo’s here!

The global luxury market in 2012 is expected to reach sales of 212 billion euros, or $274.5 billion at current exchange rates, up 10 percent compared with the previous year, according to a study by Bain & Company in cooperation with Italy’s luxury goods association Fondazione Altagamma, presented today in Milan. Sales in the last quarter of 2012 are expected to grow 7 percent.

According to Bain’s study, the Asia-Pacific region, and China in particular, will help lead the growth, with an expected 18 percent jump in gains, followed by the Americas, with sales seen up 13 percent by the end of the year, compared with 2011. Greater China has overcome Japan as the sector’s second market, behind the U.S.

Bain also expects that the luxury goods market will grow, at constant exchange rates, by 4 to 6 percent per year between 2013 and 2015, projecting revenues of over 250 billion euros, or $323.7 billion, by 2015.

“Concerns about market weakness are somewhat overblown,” Bain partner Claudia D’Arpizio writes in the study. “But we are seeing sharp disparities between brands that are not keeping up with the quickening pace of change in the market and those that are adjusting to shifts in tastes and demographics.”

The study underscored the fact that accessories have become the core category in personal luxury goods for the first time, accounting for 27 percent of total sales, also lifted by increasing levels of male spending and increasing interest in higher quality and more expensive items.

Leather goods are projected to grow 16 percent in 2012, reaching sales of 33 billion euros, or $42.7 billion, while shoes are seen growing 13 percent to 12 billion euros, or $15.5 billion.

The actress and Will Kopelman welcomed their first child – a daughter on Wednesday, PEOPLE confirms.

“We are proud to announce the birth of our daughter, Olive Barrymore Kopelman, born Sept. 26th, healthy, happy and welcomed by the whole family,” the couple tell PEOPLE in a statement.

“Thank you for respecting our privacy during this most special time in our lives.”

Although rumors of pregnancy began swirling in February, Barrymore, 37, never said a word, preferring to let her June wedding portrait speak for itself. In it, her husband — an art consultant — gently cradles his wife’s growing baby belly.

“I can’t wait until I have my children,” the actress recently told Haute Living, indirectly referring to her pregnancy. “I just want to build fun, great things for my family.”

Read the Full Story at People Magazine

Move over Le Perla, there's a new lace panty in town. Frederick's of Hollywood has launched a new luxury label collection, called Harriett.The name comes from wife of Frederick's of Hollywood founder, Frederick Mellinger. Harriett wasn't just his wife, she was also Frederick's muse. To honor the woman behind the man, Frederick's of Hollywood has created a line that includes the most luxurious fabrics like fine silk and eyelash lace. The Harriett label is an ode to the love story behind the legend. The fall collection retails from $29 for a thong to $159 for a corset. "We are excited to present this new label," said Frederick's of Hollywood Chief Marketing Officer, Tracy McCourt. "We realized that we had an opportunity to expand our product assortment by developing a luxurious line of lingerie, clothing and accessories not only to satisfy the desire of our current customers for products featuring the finest fabrications, but to introduce ourselves to new customers with similar needs." Ms. McCourt continued, "This is a significant step in creating a revitalized brand landscape and customer experience." Wanna experience Harriett for yourself? Check out www.harriett.com

One of the prettiest collections of this year's fashion weeks was Dennis Basso. For his Spring/Summer collection 2013, Dennis Basso brought back the iconic 1960's socialite. It was "Breakfast At Tiffany's" for the modern era, and we loved it. Basso said that his main inspiration came from the glamorous seaside resort of Deauville, France, where the finest families and high society gathered each spring and summer. Often called The Riviera of Paris, the 60’s were a special time at this fabled resort; when women always dressed for dinner.  The color palette of the collection reflected the sea and the night sky: blush, champagne, pearl, shades of blue and sheer black with gold metallic accents.

The hair was perfect too. Hair design was handled by John Barrett.

Photos by Angie Lagou

For the final show of New York Fashion Week, Ralph Lauren broke free from the pack and went down South America way for his Español-flavored spring collection. Jessica Alba, for one, was excited by it, sitting next to Olivia Wilde taking pictures and mouthing “so chic” to a consultant seated behind her. There was lots to be excited about, between the gold embroidered toreador pants, tooled leather jackets and the serape blanket wrap tops, not least of which were the cha-cha-cha accessories: colorful bead jewelry, stencil cut-out leather belts, python and lizard hobos, blanket stitch platform sandals. Not sure if he had Argentine Marxist revolutionaries on the brain, but the berets and the studded motorcycle mailbags lent a fab Che Guevara air.

Read the Full Story at New York Post

She revealed her 25lb weight gain during a radio interview this week.

And Lady Gaga kept her fuller frame covered up in a leopard-print dress while arriving at her Paris hotel on Friday night.

The 26-year-old hitmaker hid her new curves under the dramatic zip-up dress with wide peplum hips, which she wore with Victorian-style black platform booties.

Read the Full Story and see Photos at Daily Mail UK

Robyn Lawley has been known as one of the most successful plus-size models in the fashion industry, but now she breaking ground, going where no plus-size stunner has gone before: Ralph Lauren.

The size 12 model, who stands at a statuesque 6 feet 2 inches tall, initially worked as a regular sized model but felt the pressure to diet and change her body, and eventually hit her stride as a plus-size mode at 19. She was  on the cover of last year's Vogue Italia.

“I had to go through my own self-love, self-hate to get to where I am,” says 23 year old Lawley. “It took me years to watch other plus-size models be so confident with themselves. But then I realized that I could use my voice to be a positive role model for girls. When I found plus-size modeling, it was such a relief to be just me.”

Lawley’s modeling career began early at age 16 when she entered a competition. She finally signed with an agency three years later at the age of 19. Just four short years later Lawley is a Wilhelmina model, in the ranks of fashion’s biggest names and participating in shoots with the biggest brands and campaigns.

“It feels really good,” she said of her recent success. “I feel it’s been a really long time coming, but it feels like it was meant to happen now.”

Lawley says she was inspired by “strong, not-too-skinny” models of the '90s, like Linda Evangelista, and hopes she can be inspire others the same way. “I do try to respond to comments I receive on Facebook,” she said. “Some girls struggle with confidence, so it’s nice to be able to talk to them.”

This plus-sized beauty is trying to redefine what it means to be beautiful.  “I genuinely want companies to take notice and start being more realistic about who their customer really is,” Lawley said. “I hope to keep breaking down those barriers.” It will be interesting following her career.