"I like its simplicity, it makes me feel elegant," said Zhang, who works as a manager at an electric power company in the south China's Guangzhou City. "France for me is elegance: good fashion and wines." Western couture houses such as Hermes are now tapping into the discreet tastes of the super-rich. "The Chinese mainland market is still very accessories-oriented but we believe that will change," said Alex Bolen, chief executive of New York-based couture house Oscar de la Renta, whose sleek cocktail dresses retail for up to US$10,000, while its evening gowns approach double that. "There's definitely a market for the cocktail dress. But what has surprised us, pleasantly, is how rapidly the customer has also adopted our day wear." Leading the charge is upmarket Hong Kong department store Lane Crawford, which is bringing cutting-edge Western designers to the mainland. The opening of Lane Crawford's first store in Beijing last October has expanded the mainland presence of British designers such as Alexander McQueen and Stella McCartney, and heralded the arrival of more niche designers, including Dries Van Noten, Hussein Chalayan and Rick Owens. Meanwhile, Chinese fashion editors, headed by Vogue China, have become an influential presence on the European fashion scene. People's purchasing power and the growing sophistication of wealthy clientele is creating a very diverse market for fashion, says Angelica Cheung, editor of Vogue China.
Rihanna's high-neck white gown with cascading ruffles and emphasized hips by Elie Saab was sort of a modern take on old-world Victoriana. Other outfits on parade outside the Staples Center in Los Angeles that deserved notice included Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland in a chic coral-and-black gown by Victoria Beckham that fit her like a second skin. Katy Perry made her statement with hot pink lips but her champagne dress with gold-and-pearl floral embellishment by Zac Posen was understated and elegant - at least by Grammy standards. Toni Braxton wore a dove-gray, one-shoulder gown by David Meister while Melanie Fiona also did the asymmetrical top, but hers was black and had a pouffy black trumpet skirt by Christian Siriano. "It made me feel like old Hollywood," she said. "It's classic, like I think my music is." Britney Spears wore a black lace dress with black bodysuit by Dolce & Gabbana, and Ciara wore a black lace jumpsuit and crystal-studded jacket with tails and shoulder pads by Givenchy. Nicole Kidman wore a movie star-worthy black Prada gown with a halter neckline. Jennifer Lopez, who had one of the most famous Grammy fashion moments in a plunging-V gown back in 2000, again wore Versace, this time a silver chain-mail dress with white chiffon overlay. There was also a strong showing of gray, which is sort of unexpected considering the crowd. Miley Cyrus did a steely long-sleeve minidress and chunky heels, and Pink wore a gray-to-black ombre gown with a jeweled neckline and waistband. Her super-short hair highlighted her other bling: diamond bracelets, pendant-drop earrings, pave ring and hair brooch, all by Neil Lane.
The ballgowns were massive concoctions of petal-shaped tulle, chiffon and droopy lengths of silk - one hand-painted with an oversized peony. The models - their eyes and lips blooming with rich jewel tones - wore cones of colored cellophane, like a bouquet wrapping, on their undulating upswept hairdos. "I loved it, I want to be every flower in Galliano's garden," actress Jessica Alba said. Other A-list guests at the show - held in a tent in the garden of the Rodin Museum - included "Gossip Girl" Blake Lively and Jared Leto. During the show, Lively, known for her budding interest in fashion, drew little sketches of each passing outfit on her collection notes. Yesterday's garden was yet another sumptuous collection for Galliano, who season after season manages to deliver inspired reinterpretations of founder Christian Dior's historic collections. ON his third visit to China - and first to Shanghai, John Galliano thinks it's time to showcase the French savoir faire in the world's most populous country. Very different from Karl Lagerfeld, who not too long time ago presented a glamorous Shanghai-inspired collection for Chanel in the city, Galliano has created the latest cruise collection for Christian Dior that captures the true spirit of la Parisienne. "I didn't want to come here and present a Chinese-inspired collection to my Chinese friends," said Galliano in a previous interview. "I'm the ambassador of the house of Dior, and I wanted to come here with a French-inspired collection, and to show the savoir faire of France."
They are almost all "environmentally friendly, love company, keen to save money but often shop impulsively and love to dress up," said Chen. The third round of the biweekly event took place lately. As people bustled and laid out their clothes on the sofas of the caf, Chen started running a show-and-tell. People presented their clothes, explaining the origin of the garments, why they bought them and the reason they were giving them away. The only male participant brought a yukata from Japan. "My wife visited Japan for an exchange program and her host family bought this yukata for her as a gift," he said during the show-and-tell. The women were keen to try it on. Eventually, a girl named Xu Yi got the yukata and matched it with a pair of pink geta. "Everyone loves it when Xu Yi comes," Chen said. "She has participated in all three events and always brings her clothes by trunks." After the show-and-tell, the women dressed in their "new" clothes and voted on who has the best new outfit. The winner received a cocktail on the house. Chen's partner, Deng Xiaosong, is the owner of the caf and helps her run the exchange. It fits well with the caf's second-hand theme. "At first, I wanted to have a photography-themed caf, because I love taking pictures, but I felt that this theme is overused," Deng said. "Most of the little decorations you see around the caf are second-hand, such as the 1980s comic books, the tin toys and that camera," Deng said. "Every piece [of furniture] except the sofas is second-hand," he added, pointing to an exotic carpet.
Designers at New York Fashion Week used a new tactic to woo back wary customers - flowers. Those lovely symbols of spring renewal emerged after days of rain-drizzled gloom for Mercedes Benz Fashion Week. But that doesn't mean everything was roses - the floral patterns looked like flowers after the rain, a little worse for wear. Muted florals were blurred like they had been caught in a downpour. The sense was one of transition: Spring is coming but not undaunted. Retailers should be satisfied with the pops of color, something they want to use to draw customers into stores. But the colors aren't so bright they require sunglasses - designers are aware of the gloomy context, too. Diane von Furstenberg Diane von Furstenberg followed her successful formula of mixing high-fashion concepts with relatable pieces: This spring, the theme is "queen of the desert". "Diane von Furstenberg can do no wrong," says stylist Mary Alice Stephenson. "It's always a perfect mix of what editors want - over the top, gold embellishment -but there's also those little dresses that everyone wants." What will there be a clamor for? Perhaps the green macrame dress or the gold bomber jacket. There's also the tie-waist, draped lavender tiger chiffon dress and her standby wrap dress, this time offered in an orange print. The sunset colors, including burnt yellow, orange and purple, as well as greens and blues, are in line with the dominant palette so far this Fashion Week, and the runway had the requisite not-too-perfect florals.
Rihanna - who was forced to bow out of last year's awards as a performer after being assaulted by then-boyfriend Chris Brown - accepted the trophy along with Jay-Z and with Beyonce's young nephew in tow. West - who has kept a relatively low profile since his dustup with Swift a few months back - was a notable no-show. Maxwell, up for six awards, also won his first Grammys - best R&B male vocal for the ballad "Pretty Wings" and best R&B album for "BLACKsummers' night." The album marked the R&B crooner's return after an absence of eight years from the music business. Many participants in the program wore red cross buttons in support of Haiti earthquake relief. Mary J. Blige joined Andrea Bocelli in a rousing rendition of "Bridge Over Troubled Water," which was not only designed to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the song's big Grammy wins, but to raise money for the people in Haiti. The performance, introduced by Haitian native Wyclef Jean, will be available via iTunes.com/target, with the funds going to earthquake relief. The show also included a special 3D tribute to Michael Jackson featuring a video clip he made of "Earth Song" as Usher, Carrie Underwood, Celine Dion, Jennifer Hudson and Smokey Robinson sang along. Jackson's young children, Prince and Paris, accepted a lifetime achievement award for their late father. "Through all his songs his message was simple, love. We will continue to spread his message and help the world," Prince said. In a tribute to the late guitar legend Les Paul, British guitarist Jeff Beck and Irish singer Imelda May performed Paul's "How High the Moon."