FiveThings You Didn't Know About Yves Saint Laurent

FiveThings You Didn't Know About Yves Saint Laurent

The late designer Yves Saint Laurent is famous for his several contributions to the world of fashion. Today, on his birthday we share the top five things that you probably didn't know about him:

1. Yves Henri-Donat Matthieu-Saint Laurent was born in French occupied Algeria and moved to Paris in his late teens. In 1953, he won a fashion design contest organized by the International Wool Secretariat and Christian Dior was so impressed by his winning designs that he hired young Saint Laurent on the spot. After Dior’s sudden death, Saint Laurent was appointed Head Designer of the House of Dior at the young age of 21.

2. Yves Saint Laurent was the first French designer to create prêt-à-porter line, Rive Gauche, to democratize fashion and make it easily available to more people. He was also the first designer to use ethnic models in his shows.

3. Two of Saint Laurent’s greatest contributions to women’s wear are the "trapeze dress" and "Le Smoking". The trapeze dress was a part of Saint Laurent’s first collection as head designer of Dior. The dress debuted in the 1958 Dior Spring Collection and sprung him immediately to international fame. The dress had fitted shoulders and flared outwards from below the shoulders giving it a softer look.

"Le Smoking" was the first classic tuxedo suit for women and was introduced in 1966. With the tuxedo suit for women, Saint Laurent pioneered the androgynous minimalist look, which became increasingly popular. Saint Laurent is credited with empowering woman by giving them sartorial options which were earlier exclusive to men.

4. In 1971 Saint Laurent appeared in an advertisement for a men’s cologne from his line. This ad shocked the fashion world as he had posed naked with his legs modestly crossed in the front. Another highly accomplished designer, Tom Ford, paid homage to this vintage ad during his tenure at YSL, by making a male model pose full frontal for the M7 Men’s Fragrance.

5. In 1983, Saint Laurent became the first living fashion designer to be honored by the Metropolitan Museum of Art with a solo exhibition. He passed away on June 1, 2008 of brain cancer. His partner, Pierre Bergé, in collaboration with Christie’s, organized a grand auction of 733 items that Saint Laurent and Bergé had been collecting since the 1950s. The auction comprised a large range of items ranging from Picasso paintings to Chinese zodiac sculptures. The proceeds of the auction were said to be used for the creation of a new AIDS research foundation.

Something For Everyone At Taw Win Fashion Day

Something For Everyone At Taw Win Fashion Day

 

THE Talents and Models Fashion Day at Taw Win Centre on July 14 delighted the audience with its abundance of fresh new faces.For those living in Yangon, it is also possibly the year’s best opportunity to catch a glimpse of Myanmar’s virtual South Korean pop stars and divas. Despite a collective lack of experience, the majority of the show’s 84 models strutted along the catwalk with as much finesse as their professional counterparts.

There was a noticeable difference between this year’s show and previous ones.In 2012 there was a diversity of skin colour, body size and shape. The notorious one-size-fits-all “rule” for models appeared to be far more relaxed – it was a striking new approach that ought to be applauded.The audience benefitted from the display of a wide variety of fashion styles – some of which were designed to bring out the best in women with a fuller figure than that of the traditional “clothes hanger.”

The show was choreographed in groups of five to seven models, with each group representing a different sponsor whose designs are featured in stores at Taw Win Centre As well as showcasing a variety of trendy local labels, the textures, colours and patterns of the fabric complemented the stylists’ choice of hair and make-up particularly well.

Fashion sponsors included Orchid House, Fashion Place, Azreal, Heart Link, Blanco, Berry, Nan Wadi, Cherry, Bangkok Fashion, External, Forever, Dolphin and Iora.As the hands of the clock struck 3pm, the tunes spun by DJ Paing Pyae became louder, thereby swelling audience numbers to about 100 Former model-turned-MC Ma Moe had warmed up the audience with characteristic charm and humour; though nothing less would be expected from someone with thousands of MC performances under her slender belt.

After spending two hours backstage having make-up applied while fashionistas scrutinised the final touches of outfits, the models gathered at the wings of the runway displaying varying degrees of composure: Some appeared downright nervous, while others bubbled over with excitement, talking and jostling like teenagers at school Yet after emerging from the shadows of the perimeter, the young women transformed into composed professionals. Some were so breathtakingly beautiful they could easily have been mistaken for supermodels.

The audience cheered enthusiastically when the first five models strutted along the stage then turned on their oh-so-high heels after a brief pout or smile according to how they were dressed: sexy, sweet, demure or elegant.The photographers were pushing each other around to gain the best vantage point while somehow snapping shots without a half-second pause. A young boy who appeared about five years old seemed to be really enjoying the performance. His mouth was wide open, his eyes were bright and barely blinking and his smile stretched a mile every time a model walked towards the tip of the runway.

It wasn’t only the female models that were making a big impact on the crowd: The ridiculously handsome male models were right on par and drew the loudest screams from the lady-boys in attendance. Some of the girls were stunned into silence by their playboy appearance.The two-and-a-half-hour long model show held the public’s excitement from beginning to end. Every fashion sponsor appeared highly pleased with the results, which is of course no surprise as it’s likely that it sent sales in Taw Win Centre soaring mid-monsoon season.

Fashion Giant H & M Coming To Melbourne

 

 

nother major international fashion chain has its sights set on Melbourne.

Following the success of  Zara and Top Shop, Swedish brand H and M is coming to the Victorian capital.The fashion giant was rumoured to be scouting for locations in Sydney and Melbourne, specifically at Melbourne's Emporium development.The herald sun reports that analysts have confirmed that the Swede-tail giant is looking at both Chadstone Shopping Centre and Emporium in Melbourne.

H M, known also as, Hennes Mauritz is known for its fast-fashion clothing for men, women, teenagers and children.It has over 2,300 stores in 43 countries and as of 2011 employs around 94,000 people.It is ranked the second largest global clothing retailer.