Building A Better Barneys
While Barneys’ Madison Avenue flagship is getting an extensive renovation, the retailer’s online home is getting some work done, too. This week, Barneys revealed the new, revamped Barneys.com, with new features to streamline browsing and product suggestions from a host of influencers, including Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Julianne Moore and her stylist Leslie Fremar, and [...]

Cannes Ready
The truth is, I’ll be home in New York this weekend, taking long walks in Central Park and having friends over for a barbecue. But a girl can dream. And where I’d really like to be spending my weekend (and, what the hell, next week) is Cannes.What to pack for the French Riviera? Neon and [...]

Helping Haiti, One Brushstroke At A Time
“I was in Haiti for my very first time,” says the designer and big-time Haiti activist Donna Karan, “and I got back to my hotel one day and saw this amazing artwork on the walls. I said, Oh my God, who did this?” As it turned out, the artist was leading contemporary Haitian artist Philippe [...]

Is Africa Fashion’s Next Big Thing?
What’s the next big thing in fashion? Lately, signs are pointing to Africa. For starters, Franca Sozzani dedicated the entire May issue of L’Uomo Vogue to celebrating the continent’s intrinsic allure and creativity. This year’s International Herald Tribune Luxury conference will examine the growing African middle class as an emerging consumer as well as the [...]

It’s A Good Day To Friend Mark Zuckerberg, And More of the Day’s Top Stories
It’s probably been a pretty happy birthday for Mark Zuckerberg (pictured), Facebook’s baby-faced CEO, who turned 28 this week: The company’s initial public offering today is targeted to raise $16.4 billion and be the third largest in financial history. (The initial share price is $38.) Could a trade-up from his much-maligned hoodies be next? [...]

Jewelry Designer Sally Sohn’s Postcard From South Korea
Sally Sohn makes exquisite (and exquisitely expensive) one-of-a-kind jewelry by finding rare heirlooms at auctions in every corner of the globe, then refurbishing them with precious stones and metal. The results of her work are delicate, whimsical pieces encrusted with pearls and diamonds, sold at retailers including Bergdorf Goodman, Ikram, and Lane Crawford.Recently, Sohn led [...]

New York Welcomes A New Wang
While it takes a cranked party to drown out the sound of World Trade Center construction, such was the scene at last night’s W Hotel Downtown soirée for Chinese designer Uma Wang (pictured, right), who turned heads this past fashion week in Milan, where her namesake label made its Italian debut. Hosts Meredith Melling Burke [...]

She Loved To Love You, Baby
A disco queen has died. “Last Dance” quips may be expected. But Donna Summer’s influence was great. She didn’t just have a moment—she had 17, the epic length of “Love to Love You, Baby,” the track she recorded with Giorgio Moroder, the Italian producer with whom she helped to shape the entire genre of dance [...]

Southern In The City
New York’s International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) kicks off this week, and the fashion set is not to be left out. Designer Natalie Chanin of Alabama Chanin, has organized a series of events called MAKESHIFT, to initiate, she says, “a larger conversation around finding the point where the professional worlds of fashion, craft, design, and [...]

The Guys Who Set Paris On Fire
The song of Fall ‘12 Paris fashion week? No question—Zebra Katz’s (pictured, left) vogue culture-referencing “Ima Read.” Credit for that goes to Rick Owens (pictured, right), who blasted the song as the soundtrack to his fire-and-brimstone (literally!) Fall womenswear show. (”It’s a Rick Owens show, it’s not Disney World,” the designer shrugs.) Dazed & Confused [...]