September is almost here!

"September is the January of fashion" as they say and I couldn't agree more. Have just started getting my September issues in the mail. So far I've gone through Marie Claire, Flare, FASHION and Harper's Bazaar.

I was really, REALLY impressed with Flare's issue. This was the first issue of Flare I ever bought and I was amazed at the beautiful editorials and the great articles. It helped that there were three (yes, three!) covers of one of my favourite models, Daria Werbowy, in the issue. The photo of her in the Louis Vuitton bunny ears was so gorgeous that I had it framed for my wall. Editor-In-Chief Lisa Tant wrote in her blog about how she chose the cover.
Maybe it's time for another magazine subscription.

On the other hand, I was disappointed with FASHION's issue. I'm a huge fan of the magazine but this issue fell completely flat. The editorials were boring and looked a bit amateur- specifically the spread that used several models just seemed disjointed from the rest of the issue. To me, the issue was a bit sub-par, especially for a September issue.

I'm still going through Harper's Bazaar; there are so many editorials that I really have to sit down for a couple hours to get through it. Looks beautiful so far with great models.

Can't wait for Vogue!

And speaking of Vogue, check out this great profile of Creative Director Grace Coddington. The article is about her and the documentary The September Issue. In it we learn that Coddington drove all but one of the main fashion features in that particular Sept. issue- the "semi-disastrous cover shoot with Sienna Miller."

We also find out that she is the only one who can get away with being cheeky and opinionated with Anna Wintour. For example, Coddington had the idea to photograph the camera crew jumping in the air with model Caroline Trentini. "Wintour liked it — but made the comment that Richman's belly would need to be airbrushed to a slimmer shape; Coddington wouldn't hear of it. If the atmosphere captured by "The September Issue" is true to life, Coddington is the only one who stands up to Wintour that way."

I cannot wait to see this movie.

Update: Watch the red carpet arrivals for the movie's New York premiere on facebook here live at 7 p.m.

And here are two just-released clips!

1. Sienna's Wig


2. Texture Shoot

Not to keep ripping into FASHION mag but...

It just keeps disappointing me when it comes to their cover stories. A couple weeks ago I blogged about my gripe with the mag's treatment of cover girl Coco Rocha. The girl is a freakin star in the fashion world and she only got two photos.
The Sept. issue is no different. In fact, it's much, much worse. The cover girl is none other than Daria Werbowy, one of the hottest models ever.
The article itself if mediocre; it talks about her reaction to being the second model to get a star on the Canadian Walk of Fame, her makeup collection for Lancome (gotta have an ad placement in there somehow) and her three-month sailing trip which everyone has known about for months.
But that's not what rattles me-what disturbs me is why Canada's premier fashion magazine puts a huge star on their cover, a star who, by the way, is Canadian, and doesn't do a photo spread. There is just one (albeit gorgeous) photo of her in a Prada lace dress and the following page has a bunch of photos from her in previous FASHION issues! And back then at least they gave her spreads. So now that she's a star she doesn't get one.
I'm sure there is a reasonable explanation for this: the budget, cuts to the pages, not enough space, etc. Yeah I get it. I've had to cut good material from a newspaper. But to cut down the cover girl? Blasphemy. I expect more from a fashion magazine, especially a September edition.

Update: A reader wanted to know more about the article so here you go!

Daria reveals that she has mixed feelings about being a model. "A lot of the time, I feel like I'm part of the problem when it comes to all the superficiality and vanity that impacts the way girls grow up." But her success makes her want to do other things like her makeup collection for Lancome where some of the profits go towards a non-profit arts school in Rio.
She also talks about how she doesn't feel at home anywhere (born in Poland, raised in Canada, lves in New York.) She hopes to be back in Toronto for the Star ceremony on Sept. 6.

If I took a fashion magazine's advice

I am guilty for falling for editor's picks in fashion mags. When I read their recommendations, whether it be the must-have jacket or a beauty tip, I fold the corner of the page and write down the advice, hoping that I will somehow become a better (or better-dressed) person.
But as I was flipping through the Sept. FASHION magazine (review on that issue to come) I realized that I am a fool for gobbling up this advice without really thinking about how much it will cost me both monetary and psychologically. I admit that ever since I became obsessed with fashion I have gotten more greedy, more superficial and more loose with my money. I can't help but think sometimes that fashion mags represent everything that is evil in the world: Greed, unrealistic body image, snobbery and eating disorders. Save for the photo editorials and maybe a "real life" column, many fashion mags dish out bad advice.

Let's take the Sept. FASHION magazine as an example.

Page 48- Readers are told that a "dull trench will no longer do." Instead, we should buy architectural coats with "sharp edges, cutaways and moulded looks." Examples given are a $3000 Proenza Schouler coat and a $6000 Christian Lacroix coat. That is what my student loan total is. But who cares? You can't be seen in a plain trench!

(Proenza Schouler coat)

Page 72- Readers, it's time to throw out all those dull cottons and polyesters. They are so boring in these rough economical times. Instead, slap the falling dollar in the face by buying outrageously expensive clothes with materials that are impossible to dry clean! For example, a $10,000 feathered Burberry Prorsum dress will not only get you noticed, but it will make you seem like you are weathering the economy just fine, thank you very much.

(Burberry Prorsum coat)

Page 84- Here's an incentive to get Botox: The treatment can be claimed on your tax return "if a doctor deems them good for your mental health." You must be mental if you even think of doing this.
Botox is tax deductible!

Page 88- After all the Summer issues advising you on how to get a great tan, now it's time to smooth out all those new moles and leathery skin with a new product you must buy. Clarins Extra-Firming Tightening Lift Botanical Serum (yes, it's really called that) "smooths summer sun-exposed skin with hibiscus extract." Thank God for the hibiscus. Wouldn't know what to do without it! Oh and by the way, it will cost you $72 to not get cancer.

"Like my tan, FASHION?"

Page 116: Buy anything the celebrities buy because "if it's good enough for Gwynnie, it must be good enough for us." Then why don't I look like "Gwynnie?" Why, FASHION, why?

"Buy me."


So say I took this magazine's advice: I would have spent around $20,000 for a couple of coats, a Botox treatment and some cream. Plus any products that Gwyneth Paltrow buys. I have a feeling that even if I did spend money like a celebrity, I still wouldn't feel like one.

My gripe with FASHION magazine

When I saw that my favorite model Coco Rocha was on the cover of FASHION magazine, I almost peed with excitement. Normally I am not a huge fan of FASHION mag's covers; they can sometimes be stale, uninspiring and even amateurish. But this cover really popped out; the vivid colours were beautiful and Coco's pose was so natural and high-fashion. This cover is a definite hit.
Unfortunately my excitement turned into severe disappointment and frustration when I saw that Coco didn't have an editorial spread. There were only two photographs from the shoot and then a bunch of small family and friends photographs.
To the editors of FASHION magazine: This is Coco Rocha; one of the top models in the biz right now and she's Canadian. How can you fuck this up? For Canada's top fashion mag to not give Coco the editorial she deserves is insane. Was it because you couldn't fit the photos in the mag? Screw the other articles and editorials; Coco takes precedence. It's embarrassing that international magazines give her lots of pages but her own country's top fashion magazine can't do her that service. Where's the love?

Another gripe: The story was boring and didn't have any new information. Everyone who follows fashion knows that Coco was found while she was competing at an Irish dance competition. Isn't there something new to talk about? Couldn't the reporter come up with anything better than this?
I hope that next time FASHION mag puts a model on its cover, it gives her more than two photos. After all, fashion mags are supposed to be about the editorials.

Update: Here are the two photos from the mag.





At least Elle Canada knows a good model when it sees one. Here are some photos of Coco from their June 2008 issue.