Celebrity Life

Ahead of New York Fashion Week, we explore the young brands that we think will make waves this season.

Starting February 11th, all the Carries and Samanthas will squeeze themselves into the front rows of New York fashion week shows. And although all of us, undoubtedly, are looking forward to marvelling at the new collections of Peter Do, Gabriela Hearst, Michael Kors and Tom Ford, there are a few fresh faces that deserve a spotlight.

Here are our picks of the top young brands at the upcoming NYFW

DAUPHINETTE

The self-proclaimed “Happiest Brand on Earth”, Dauphinette, produces outerwear from recycled and repurposed leather, fur and vintage. Founded in 2018 by Olivia Cheng, the New York-based label channels the whimsical romanticism and floral prints of 19th-century French couturiers – all that – with a boho-sensual spin. Apart from its range of feather-adorned outerwear, Dauphinette has attracted a cult following on social media thanks to its chunky jewellery featuring fruit motifs, flower petals and even butterfly wings. 

LAQUAN SMITH

For the past couple of seasons, at least, Laquan Smith’s New York fashion week shows have been some of the most-anticipated ones among the Gen Z hypebeasts. Laquan Smith can be credited as one of the brands that, alongside the revived Mugler, created the newfound interest in bodysuits among fashion savants – the unmistakable eroticism of mesh merged with velvet gained Smith the spot of the cult-favourite avant-garde designer in the minds of many. The label grew to prominence after debuting its biker-inspired PVC pants and corsets (worn by Kim Kardashian for the KKW Beauty launch) mixed with wearable staples, like the white mohair dress Kylie Jenner wore in March 2021. 

MAISIE WILEN

Representing LA in the cold showrooms of Spring Studios during New York fashion week is Maisy Wilen – fashion protégé of one Kanye West (now known as Ye) and the Adventist of the second coming of the provocative yet soft partygirl aesthetic – think Euphoria’s Cassie or Pose’s Angel. Wilen’s psychedelic prints on everything from knit dresses to bikinis and her lingerie-inspired looks from the latest collection won the hearts of countless celebrities, including Kim Petras and Winnie Harlow. 

BEVZA

Some of us long for the day when minimalism dies, but the brands like BEVZA caress the hopes of the trend getting more exciting. Kyiv-based BEVZA creates streamlined silhouettes with enticing twists – most notably – geometric waistlines and sailor collars. The brand’s laissez-faire elegance, embodied by its ‘white dress concept’, is, somewhat, an antithesis to the clichéd Little Black Dress. 

ELENA VELEZ

In her collections, Milwaukee-born designer Elena Velez spotlights craftsmanship – the brand’s aesthetic reads as the love letter to the metalsmith industry of Wisconsin. The connection between Velez’s sensual, post-apocalyptic-esque looks lies in her use of “salvaged, site-specific” materials. The brand emphasises tactility through bodycon silhouettes and aggressive sensuality by rejecting the symmetrical canons through raw hems, messy cutouts and wetness.

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Bidding will open at Sotheby’s on Wednesday, January 26 for 200 pairs of Louis Vuitton Nike Air Force 1s created by late Louis Vuitton men’s artistic director and iconic fashion designer, Virgil Abloh. Proceeds from the auction are set to benefit The Virgil Abloh™ “Post-Modern” Scholarship Fund, which the designer established in partnership with the... View Article

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Strap into something more comfortable with the Dior and Birkenstock collaboration for the Dior menswear Fall/Winter 2022 collection.

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Here's our pick of the best Chinese New Year skincare collections and limited-edition releases for 2022.

Start the new lunar year with your best face forward — we've rounded up all the lotions and potions, creams, balms (well, the serums and essences and moisturisers!) to get your hands on for spring. All packed up in regal red and gold, these limited-edition Chinese New Year skincare releases will ensure good luck, and good skin.

The Best Chinese New Year Skincare Releases 2022

Chantecaille

The bestselling Bio Lifting Mask from Chantecaille is getting a little facelift of its own, with a supercharged new formula and festive red and gold packaging. The Bio Lifting Mask+ (note that plus sign!) is packed full of botanicals and peptides that reduce the look of fine lines and visibly contour the face, while a new lifting agent smoothens and moisturises. With this product, the brand continues to support the SUJÁN Tiger and Leopard Conservation Project in Rajasthan, India. And, complementing the mask, is a limited edition ruby red lipstick — the nourishing and super-emollient Lip Veil.

Chantecaille's Lunar New Year-edition Bio Lifting Mask+ and Lip Veil (Ruby) are available to purchase online.

Charlotte Tilbury

To celebrate Chinese New Year, Charlotte Tilbury has released its award-winning Magic Cream moisturiser in a limited-edition casing, a glorious red tiger print lid. Pick it up on its own, or in a duo (with a LNY lipstick of your choice) or in a makeup kit with a LNY lipstick of your choice and a limited-edition version of the Airbrush Flawless Finish pressed setting powder.

Charlotte Tilbury's limited-edition Lunar New Year Magic Cream is available to purchase online.

Clarins

This exclusive limited-edition of Clarins' bestselling Double Serum features the same potent formula in the same innovative bottle — with a stunning tiger illustration for the new lunar year. Delivering made-to-measure dosage with a rotating push button, the serum combines 21 effective anti-ageing water and oil-soluble ingredients for regeneration, nutrition, hydration, oxygenation and protection. A set includes the Double Serum (Tiger Limited Edition), an Extra-Firming Neck & Décolleté Care treatment, and an Extra-Firming Treatment Essence.

Clarins' Double Serum (Tiger Limited Edition) is available to purchase online.

Clinique

To celebrate the Year of Tiger, Clinique's bestselling powerful serum for dark spots and discolouration and cult-favourite dermatologist-developed face moisturiser now come in limited-edition red and gold packaging. We especially like the look of the lotion (that lucky tiger head lid!), and its silky, easy-to-absorb formula is a winner.

Clinique's Limited Edition Even Better Clinical™ Radical Dark Spot Corrector + Interrupter and Limited Edition Jumbo Dramatically Different™ Moisturizing Lotion+ are available to purchase online.

Fresh

Fresh is collaborating with Canto-pop artist Alfred Hui for a special Chinese New Year collection of skincare favourites. Choose from bestsellers like the powerhouse antioxidant Kombucha Facial Treatment Essence, and the black tea complex-packed Firming Peptides Serum, Firming Corset Cream and Instant Perfecting Mask — all designed to keep your skin moisturised, and luminous-looking.

The "Fresh x Alfred Hui CNY Edition" is available to purchase online.

LA MER

Celeb-favourite skincare brand La Mer has released this limited-edition Hydration Adventure Collection, so you start the new year fresh and rejuvenated. The five-piece set comes with The Concentrate, The Eye Concentrate, The Hydrating Infused Emulsion, bestselling Crème de la Mer, and this vibrant red and green tiger print pouch!

The La Mer Hydration Adventure Collection is available to purchase online.

L’Occitane

For a little bit of indulgence, look to French brand L’Occitane's Chinese New Year offerings — limited-edition versions of rich and moisturising products from its almond line: the sweet almond oil-enriched body wash and the nourishing almond milk concentrate body lotion.

L’Occitane's CNY Almond Shower Oil and Almond Milk Concentrate are available to purchase online.

LUSH

Lush's Year of the Tiger collection includes everything from bath bombs to bubble bars, face masks, foot scrubs, shampoo bars and even (cotton) gift wrapping — we love the super cute jasmine Lucky Cat Bubble Bar and the Lunar New Year Knot Wrap. Browse the whole collection online or in-store.

Lush's Lunar New Year 2022 collection is available to purchase online.

Origins

Origins' super-soothing water-like treatment lotion is getting dressed in red for the new lunar year. The Mega-Mushroom Soothing Treatment Lotion harnesses the power of nutrient-rich super foods used in traditional Chinese medicine, like reishi mushroom, sea buckthorn and fermented chaga, for supple, soft and healthier-looking skin.

The Dr. Andrew Weil for Origins™ Lunar New Year Mega-Mushroom Soothing Treatment Lotion is available to purchase online.

Shiseido

Perhaps the most stunning bottle on this list yet, Shiseido's Lunar New Year offering is not just limited-edition packaging but a reformulation. Its Ultimune Power Infusing Serum now has muGenerationRED Technology™, which is a very long way of saying you're getting a potent blend of everything you need for radiant-looking skin. Star ingredients include fermented roselle, heartleaf, reishi mushroom, and iris root.

The Shiseido Ultimune Power Infusing Serum is available to purchase online.

Sulwhasoo

We love Korean beauty brand Sulwhasoo at the office. For the new lunar year, three bestsellers are getting a little red-and-gold makeover — 'Lucky Knot' editions of the anti-aging serum-essence, and the ginseng-infused renewing cream and renewing serum.

The Sulwhasoo Lucky Knot Collection is available to purchase online.

Tatcha

Packed with Japanese superfood ingredients like Akita rice, Okinawa algae, and Uji green tea, The Essence from Tatcha is exactly what you'd need in that skincare transitioning stage between a harsh, cold winter to a (hopefully) gentler spring. The limited-edition bottle doesn’t hurt either. It's available to purchase at Lane Crawford.

(Hero image courtesy of Tatcha, featured image courtesy of Clinique)

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At the unveiling of Stefano Ricci autumn/winter 2022 collection, we explore the artistry at the heart of the Italian luxury lifestyle brand.

And we talk to CEO Niccolò Ricci and creative director Filippo Ricci about the multiple global expansions planned at the family HQ.

Stefano Ricci Autumn/Winter 2022: Niccolò and Filippo Ricci on Artistry & Global Expansion

Those who know the Ricci family have become accustomed to wonderful surprises when it comes to their fashion presentations.

A small group of journalists and VIPs from around the world gather each season, either in their hometown of Florence or another divine Italian location gaining private access to historical locations, artistic gems or cultural relics.

It always feels like a journey of discovery as well as the unveiling of the latest sartorial line-up, as these presentations and campaigns come as love letters to their native Italy. As creative director Filippo Ricci explains, “It’s about celebrating not only the most famous cities and locations in our country but also some locations that are real hidden jewels of Italy.”

This season didn’t disappoint. The UNESCO World Heritage site of Mantua city provided the setting for the unveiling of the Stefano Ricci autumn/winter 2022 collection, as well as some key business announcements. Next year will be the 50th anniversary of the label, which was founded by Filippo and CEO Niccolò Ricci’s father, Stefano, a man whose global vision also led him to open his first boutique in China almost 29 years ago.

Today, Niccolò reports that in spite of the pandemic, growth last year was “strong in stores in United States, Southeast Asia, China, Russia and the former-Russian Republics. They’re all out-performing,” he says.

Stefano Ricci occupies a rather special niche in the world of high style and luxury menswear. Unbeholden to shareholders, mass-market movements or even the luxury mainstream, the family company has continued to flourish, creating traditional alpha-style apparel for wealthy males and emerging from difficult Covid times more than healthy.

“We’re going to be openings a few new stores in 2022,” reveals Niccolò. “The main one will be in New York on 57th Street, a new milestone for our company.” Also in the pipeline are stores in Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok.

But today we’re firmly in Italy — in Mantua, the small but once-powerful seat of Renaissance military power and artistic splendour. At the outskirts of the mysterious “sleeping-beauty city” is the Palazzo Te, built by the architect, painter and artistic director Giulio Romano (a favourite pupil of Raphael’s) for Federico II Gonzaga, Marquess of Mantua and his lover Isabella Boschetto. It now stands as a stunning museum housing breathtaking painted frescos and sculptures, and rooms that seem to get increasingly elaborate with ceilings bordering on the transcendental.

It’s fitting that Filippo and his team engineered a collection that evokes much magic, mystery, and wonder through the enchanting use of beautiful raw materials, luxurious and textured to the touch. It includes masculine-cut suits and outerwear, made with characterful artisanal handiwork and careful construction that pays special attention to wearable comfort.

Stefano Ricci is hitting a few key points with its core demographic of ultra-high-net-worth males adapting to a new post-pandemic lifestyle. Suiting becomes more occasional rather than necessarily everyday, with smart casual and leisurewear becoming wardrobe mainstays. Hence the luxurious sneakers in suede and deerskin, as well as nubuck crocodile, a must today for certain men.

There’s an affinity to leisure and exploration of the great outdoors with sumptuous knit jogging suits, padded down jackets and gilets that come with easily wearable zippers, complemented by a sartorial field jacket or a luxurious hooded jacket with fox fur trim. As Filippo explains, “It’s the details that make the difference … and this applies also to Mantua, a small town that makes a big impact, home to some of the most beautiful theatres, as well as all these incredible rooms inside the Palazzo Te.”

This season shows off a variety of textures in effortless styles, from crewneck and rollneck knit jumpers, cashmere and cashmere-silk blends, soft suede blousons and jackets, and luscious Vicuna, which emerges a protagonist this winter. Jackets with mandarin collars offer an easier, softer take on the suit jacket. And we’re coveting those double-breasted deconstructed coats in wool, that come in rich hues ranging from burgundy to Ricci blue and earthy, neutral shades evoking the countryside.

With a large and well-rounded casual offering, it’s the soft Angora cashmere, knit jackets and Napa leather details that bring a fashionable indulgence to a sense of comfort and ease — these are outfits you’d imagine wearing while lounging by a fireside drinking rare Scotch from crystal tumblers.

A precise earthy, masculine palette reflects the rich tones of the Palazzo Te’s interiors, where some of the campaign is staged. The stories that unfold follow epic journeys into the Underworld, as told by Dante and Virgil.

The most impressive room is perhaps the Sala dei Giganti (the room of the Giants), where an uninterrupted fresco covers the entire interior walls and roof — a mesmerising depiction of Titans’ bodies twisting under collapsing structures, dominated the figure of an angry Zeus. Well, it wouldn’t be a Stephano Ricci collection without some classic alpha-male virility.

Enter the sophisticated suiting with formal checks — perhaps a nod to landed gentry and countryside living — where knit blousons and cashmere and silk blends show off the value of formidable fabrication, the bold Octagonal SR logo and all that nubuck croc offers a dash of ostentation.

This is also the season when the brand truly embraces logomania, a nod to wealthy millennial and Gen Z customers. There’s a more formal chapter of the collection, shot for the campaign inside the stunning confines of Teatro Bibiena in Mantua, famed for hosting concerts by Vivaldi, Verdi and, in 1770, a 13-year-old Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. We few privileged guests of the Riccis have lunch served onstage that day.

This is a setting in which the slick Stefano Ricci tuxedos shine and provide a perfect silhouette. And elegantly ornate tuxedo options in silk and wool are offered with “mini-me” father-and-son styles — all in exquisite, truly rarefied patterned fabrics spun from the ancient silk looms at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, owned by the Riccis themselves.

A hero coat with mink lapels dials up the luxe factor to make an entrance at grand balls, galas and concerts operas in a theatre such as the Bibiena, considered by Mozart’s father to be the most beautiful auditorium he’d ever seen.

Some of the collection’s formal- and eveningwear has taken a rather elaborate turn, as the whole world appreciates the significance of being able to don such clothing. The allegiance with music has been a long one, explains Filippo, and this location is just another celebration of the artistry that lies at the core of the Stefano Ricci brand.

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