Fashion Style Guide

FASHIONTREND.VEGAS STAFF

If you are into prepping your season's style guided by the latest trends, you can definitely rejoice about keeping floral prints around. They come and go but seem to make it into the most celebrated runways time and time again. And there's one true reason for that. Florals are rarely unnoticed, nor will they fail to enhance a true fashionable spring style if that's what you are aiming for.

Some designer takes have embraced botanic and floral prints in all they splendor.

Turning maxi dresses, skirts, and light, textured blouses into either ethereal visions that make us think of blossoming secret gardens, or eye-striking color enhanced vintage takes, that merge definite botanic textile designs with flower embroidery, patchwork or some surprising flower geometry, even for guys.

Nevertheless, you'll notice how designers have gone to great lengths and managed to make unequivocal botanic prints seem as casual and effortless as wearing small, navy stripes! They have become an easy to pair up staple that speaks loud about your fashion sense and on-trend style. If you are wondering how to do it, it's almost always a matter of pairing correctly. We'll show you how!

What to pick?

Read: Cheap Bridesmaid Dresses

• A flower pencil skirt can be the classiest office statement.

• Guys can get the weekend spring look by adding a pair of flower-printed trousers to their closet.

• A light, textured, light-printed, mid-length dress can be an amazingly versatile and feminine, never-seen-before, closet addition.

How to wear it?

• Match flower-printed pieces with tailored, one-hued separates for a sharp look.

• Add the flower print to the slimmest part of your body, and bring all the attention!

• Guys can get the most out of fully botanic printed T-shirts and match with a blazer for a total in style look, or just roll up the sleeves a bit for an urban Vegas look.

Dare to wear it!

• A two-piece botanic suit with one-colored stilettos, or one-tone leather shoes for guys to create a complete fashion statement.

• Go for flower, hand-painted, embroidered or printed-flower accessories, such as backpacks, bags and sneakers.

• Discreetly printed and buttoned-up flower shirts for guys at the office to add some hipster style.

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MARC JACOBS GETS A LITTLE HELP FROM GAGA

It would have been a pretty fine Marc Jacobs fashion show by virtue of the clothes alone, but the designer who closes out New York Fashion Week every season had something else up his very voluminous sleeves.

Wedged into his lineup of models Thursday evening was none other than Lady Gaga, unheralded and apparently little noticed as she put on the blankest of model expressions and strutted the runway in platform boots, a huge black coat with green-tinged fur sleeves, and a big bow at the neck in pastel green, with matching purse.

With heavy black makeup on her eyes and lips, and platinum blonde hair in finger waves, Gaga blended in exceedingly well. There was no applause or audible sign of recognition from the crowd in the cavernous Park Avenue Armory.

As for the show itself, it had an austere, Victorian or Gothic feel -- with no music on the soundtrack, just the sounds of bells pealing -- and featured mostly long, grand coats and gowns in black or dark hues, with occasional pops of color. While some of the garments seemed perfect for, say, a stroll in a 19th-century London park, others had a more otherworldly feel, such as a huge, feathery concoction worn by model-of-the-moment Kendall Jenner.

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And the shiny, laced-up, very high platform boots added a comic-book feel to the proceedings.

Jacobs, who rarely does much explaining of his shows, did include a note in his program referring to Keiji Haino, a Japanese musician who uses a concept of "ma," described as "the haunted spaces between the notes" -- which may have explained the soundtrack.

Among the front-row guests was Vogue editor Anna Wintour, who wore a Jacobs-designed Hillary Clinton 2016 T-shirt. (The designer himself also wore one of the sequined tees.)

Also there: actresses Juliette Lewis, Christina Ricci, Sandra Bernhard and Debi Mazar, among others.

"Is that her? The blonde?" Bernhard asked about Lady Gaga after the show. "OK, I honestly didn't know it. She is unrecognizable! She's a chameleon. But yeah, she looked great now that I know for sure it was her."

Bernhard's verdict on the clothes: "Really great. It was romantic and out there and it was just inspiring."

--Jocelyn Noveck and Nicole Evatt

___

RALPH LAUREN TURNS TO ROCK

Parading impeccable models down the runway in taupe cashmere and men's ties may not sound all that new, but that's where Ralph Lauren went for fall, until he took a turn to rock 'n' roll.

There were "cool rocker" coats and jackets of blue and black in equal parts pirate and Sgt. Pepper. Large ruffles were abundant along the fronts of white blouses -- and slightly smaller ones for a curious winged effect on a backless black jumpsuit.

There was requisite fringe in black, and rocker pants as well.

Ralph Lauren using the term "cool rocker" is just plain cute. So was a brown tweed patchwork coat that had large, highly useful pockets sewn on. It was worn with a wide leather belt over a cashmere red formal dresses and mocha suede boots.

Other standouts: velvet embroidery on a black suede dress, some of that rocker fringe on a black suede motorcycle jacket and an unusual liquid gold fabric for a long, free-flowing pleated skirt paired with a black belt and cropped black top to expose a sliver of midriff. The same gold fabric was used for a couple of fitted evening dresses.

Forget rock. Disco anyone?

--Leanne Italie

____

BACK TO SUITS AT CALVIN KLEIN

After a season focusing on the slip dress, Francisco Costa brought the Calvin Klein label back to basics: Suits.

"It's a very exciting season because I decided to play with suits and tailoring, which is a staple of the house," Costa said in a backstage interview. "Suits are an expression of urbanism, I think. We haven't seen much out there. And bringing it back I think is great."

Costa showed a lot of suits in black wool, some in pinstripe -- very classic-looking except for the ubiquitous straps and suspenders hanging from many of them, intended for style rather than function.

But Costa needed some softness, too, and so he went for black formal dresses that were -- intentionally, of course -- falling apart somewhat.

"For soft we have deconstructivism around the dresses," he said, "so that she (the woman) isn't so suited -- she has another side, which is an undone side, which is great." And finally, he went for some faux fur, in collars. "I love the idea of fur! We've never done fur, so to play with faux fur was fun. "

Calvin Klein often brings in a celebrity-filled front row. Watching the show on Thursday were model Kendall Jenner and actresses Margot Robbie and Zoe Kravitz.

Kravitz especially liked the faux fur.

"Very simple, very sexy, good for winter," she said. "There were a pair of gloves that I definitely want."

--Nicole Evatt and Jocelyn Noveck

___

GAS MASKS WITH A FASHIONABLE TWIST

While most New York Fashion Week shows focus on clothes, emerging Chinese designer Chi Zhang had a whole different spin.

Zhang, who has collaborated with Marvel Comics, showed off bold colorful designs including fashionable gas masks.

"My main focus is China, but here is a good opportunity for me," Zhang said backstage, referring to the U.S.. As for the fashionable gas masks, he says they're doing well. He also incorporates gas mask designs in his clothes. He started to sell them six years ago, two years before pollution became a big problem in China.

"Everybody thought I was crazy," he said. "Now, it's becoming true."

Zhang was among five emerging Chinese designers that JD.com, China's largest online direct sales company, showcased for its first runway show during New York Fashion Week.

The Beijing-based company highlighted the creations Wednesday night at a space near the Hudson River.

"These designers are all very talented and have unique expressions and styles," says Lijun Xin, president of JD.com's apparel and home furnishing business. The clothes are priced $100 to $300, JD executives say.

Just like the Milan show, the designer roster was chosen in collaboration with the Milan-based Europe Design Center.

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This one is a pattern I first used in 1969, I think,’ says Rosita Missoni, the twinkly-eyed, 84-year-old matriarch of the famous Italian fashion family.

She is talking me through Missoni Home’s brand-new collection at herMilan apartment, which has been kitted out in kaleidoscopic colours and patterns, beautifully showcasing the products in a real home – albeit one of spectacular proportions.

The fabric in question – an intricately embroidered floral called Oriental Garden – looks surprisingly fresh and contemporary, despite being inspired by a vintage shawl.

‘I was trying to create some sort of order from the chaos of my closet and I found the shawl that the design was based on,’ says Rosita gleefully. ‘I bought it 50 years ago and I had forgotten about it. I was so happy!’

An avid collector of vintage furniture and fashion, Rosita used to trawl antique shops and markets with the late legendary fashion editor Anna Piaggi on trips to London in the 1960s. While Anna searched for kooky clothes, Rosita hunted down pottery by the likes of Susie Cooper and Clarice Cliff. ‘For me they were treasures and they cost almost nothing,’ she says.

Rosita’s other main source of inspiration is the natural world. Her main home and Missoni’s factory are located in Sumirago, a small town 45 minutes from Milan, which sits at the foot of the Lombard Alps.

‘My husband said we should build our factory where we would like to spend our weekends and that was the best decision we made,’ she says. ‘Doing a creative job, having a fantastic view and a beautiful garden that’s full of flowers is wonderful. We had such a beautiful autumn last year. I said to my gardener, “Please don’t sweep up the leaves.” They made amazing “rugs” on the ground.’

Sumirago was also chosen for its proximity to the city of Gallarate, where Rosita’s family had a factory making bed and bath products, and they now manufacture all of Missoni Home’s wares, making it truly a family business.

PHOTO: http://www.graziaaustralia.com/red-bridesmaid-dresses

‘When we married, we bought a small apartment in Gallarate and put four knitting machines in the basement. I started making little sweaters and dresses alongside the sportswear we were known for, and in 1958 we had our first big success with a collection of striped dresses for la Rinascente [department store] in Milan.’

They were so popular that the couple came out from the basement and hired a bigger space before building their own factory in 1964. Huge waves of success and fashion plaudits have come in the decades since, but the Missoni DNA – colourful, dynamic and playful – has remained resolutely the same.

In the late ’90s Rosita handed the reins of the women’s fashion collection over to her daughter Angela. After taking it easy for a couple of months, she decided that being a retiree wasn’t for her.

‘I thought, “There has to be more to life than this.” I didn’t want to be in fashion any more, but I was missing having a creative outlet. When you work you have a reason to get out of bed in the morning and this was the path that I was used to following. So I started thinking about what else I could do.’

Her home had ‘always been dressed in Missoni fabrics’, so Rosita decided to infuse the bed and bath collection with the energy of their fashion pieces. The first full Missoni Home collection, with cushions, throws, rugs and ottomans, as well as linens and towels, launched in 1997. Within a couple of years, Rosita started seeing copies – ‘so we knew we were doing something right.’

Missoni Home is now a global concern, and is consistently one of the biggest sellers on the homeware site Amara, which company founder Sam Hood puts down to the vibrancy and beauty of the prints.

‘Missoni Home is one of those brands our customers associate with timeless style. The designs are iconic and the various zig-zag patterns are consistently our bestselling designs,’ says Sam. ‘This season, the Sulawesi floral print is one of my favourites, though. Coloured petals against the monochrome flowers really jump off the fabric.’

We tend to think about Missoni’s output as surface pattern, but the company’s weaving know-how means that there’s a strong textural element and the fabrics have a pleasing tactility – whether rough or silky smooth.

Overprinted designs on the fabrics also add depth and movement and where some are robust enough to use outdoors, others are gossamer-light or woven from metallic threads. This type of innovation still clearly excites Rosita, who has no plans to retire any time soon.

‘They will have to throw me out of the factory! I do it with so much pleasure that I could do it for ever,’ she says. ‘Knitting gives you the possibility of thinking about a design and having it realised within a few hours, which for me is still fascinating. It’s a workshop where you can see your ideas come to life.’

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Gucci's gamble to put Alessandro Michele, a little-known accessories designer, in charge of its creative turnaround, has won praise from the catwalk. Investors are still waiting to see the benefit.

Michele's focus on vintage styling and the brand's double-G logo has been well received by fashion magazines, but sales at the US$3.8 billion (S$5.5 billion) brand have not budged. Gucci accounts for nearly two thirds of parent Kering SA's profit and has barely grown over the past three years.

"Investors are interested in when this new creative momentum will translate into tangible financial results," said Mr Mario Ortelli, an analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein. "The turnaround of Gucci continues to be central to Kering's investment case."

Paris-based Kering needs the revamp to work, yet the timing could not be more challenging. The fallout from the November terror attacks in Paris compounded an already difficult year for Gucci and its luxury peers as demand slowed in almost every region, led by a slump in Asia.

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Evidence of how Michele's debut collection, which entered some stores in September, went down with shoppers will become visible on Feb 18, when Kering reports earnings. This week, the 43-year- old Michele unveiled his latest menswear styles.

Kering promoted Michele to Gucci creative director in January last year, tasking him with restoring growth to the 95-year-old label. From his first collection featuring pleated red leather skirts and sheer pussy-bow blouses to his 1970s- inspired vision for spring-summer 2016, Michele brought a buzz back to the brand. He won best international designer at the British Fashion Awards in November.

There are signs his efforts are rekindling demand, with Kering citing double-digit growth of handbags such as the US$2,500 Dionysus and US$1,390 Linea A shoulder bags. Mr Ortelli, the Bernstein analyst, expects Michele to accelerate sales by the middle of this year.

"We're seeing a lot of new clients, a lot of new customers - different, younger, more fashion-forward - buying the collection, but not losing the previous ones," Gucci chief executive officer Marco Bizzarri told The Business Of Fashion website in November.

It will probably take until the second half of the year to see if Michele has delivered on expectations, according to Mr Antoine Belge, an analyst at HSBC in Paris.

Brands such as Louis Vuitton and Kering-owned Saint Laurent took about 18 months to boost sales after similar revamps.

The full complement of Michele's designs will not be in Gucci's boutiques until the third quarter, predicts MainFirst Bank AG analyst John Guy.

Revamping the brand's network of more than 500 stores - the second largest among leather-goods makers after Salvatore Ferragamo SpA - will take as long as four years, Mr Bizzarri has said.

Still, "if the numbers are good in the coming quarters, some people will call it a turnaround", Mr Belge said.

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GQ threw a party in Milan Saturday night to introduce Will Welch, the new editor in chief of the forthcoming GQ Style. “We have an issue coming out in March that’s in the old format and there is a big launch on May 17 — that’s when we go quarterly,” said Welch, noting that while GQ is a general interest magazine, GQ Style would take “a really deep dive into the world of fashion and lifestyle.”

He was confident the magazine would work despite the challenges of print. “It’s a difficult time…but I absolutely think that there is a hungry audience for what we put together,” he said, noting that Millennials would be key.

Cue 29-year-old Ethan Peck. “I have The Economist and the New Scientist on my bedside table — and GQ, of course,” the emerging actor smiled, sporting a brown suit by Ferragamo, a brand that’s been popular recently with Hollywood actors, including Bradley Cooper and Jake Gyllenhaal.

Gregory Peck’s grandson was fresh off a shoot: “If you are familiar with Lee Daniels [who] did ‘The Empire’ — I just wrapped his new pilot for Fox.”

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Peck kept mum about the show’s details, saying only that he plays “somewhat of an anti-hero.” If the show gets picked up, it will air in the second half of 2016. His “supernatural thriller” — “The Curse of Seeping Beauty” — is due out this spring.

Peter Dundas made his first outing as a full-fledged men’s wear designer. Describing his debut Roberto Cavalli collection as his “personal wish list,” he noted his friends had similar ideas, which they promptly put into action. “I think there is going to be a fight tomorrow when they discover how much is missing from the racks,” he worried.

Neil Barrett talked about the inspiration for his fall proposal. “I was thinking about my wardrobe as a kid. I had my little quilted anorak, kind of ‘South Park’-y; sleeveless V-necks, a little chunky, and I was caught in an orchard because I was wearing my yellow sweater while stealing apples. I can advise never to wear color when you do something which is incorrect or illegal,” he said.

Brendan Mullane said it was his bedside literature that gave him the idea for his new show, which would “see the alter ego of the Brioni man.” “I’ve been reading a lot of books about the work of artists like James Turrell, and also [Martin] Kippenberger — who they socialized with, what their actual life was outside of work and how it translated or not into their art,” he mused.

Brian Atwood noted his appetite for designing men’s shoes has been growing lately. Will he launch his own men’s line? “We’re in discussions about this,” he said, nodding his head.

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The uproar over Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio’s decision to sport Cuban heels shows two things. First, height matters – at least, for skyscrapers and presidential elections. Second, a heeled boot born of the French courts is apparently a misstep for a 21st-century American politician.

Though the 5'10" Rubio was mercilessly mocked for his choice of footwear, you can’t blame the guy for trying. From Louis XIV to Vladimir Putin, history has plenty of examples of shorter men seeking power with a little help from their shoes.

Being tall is a genetic boon. Research has drawn conclusive ties between height and success in business, dating and school.

Clad in black Beatles boots, Marco Rubio joins a long line of short men looking for lift. Some blatantly joke about it (Silvio Berlusconi, 5'5"); others refuse to acknowledge their lifts (Kim Jong Il, 5'3"). And as Harry Truman (5'9") and Jimmy Carter (5'10") can attest, a smaller stature won’t prevent you from being elected.

But being short makes it a heck of a lot harder. Taft, Roosevelt, Kennedy, Johnson, Ford and Reagan were all over 6 feet, as are Bush, Clinton and Obama. In fact, the taller candidate won in 80 percent of all elections in the 20th century. Swedish psychologists, American political scientists andDutch labor analysts all agree: We look to the tall to lead.

So can we really chastise a politician for playing the game?

And then there’s the fact that, historically, Americans are all about using clothes as a social apparatus, whether it’s to stand out or fit in. Want to blend in with the boys from Princeton’s Cottage Club? Grab a tweed sports coat. Want to hide your Ivy League origins? Jeans and sweatshirt may help.

What bothers Americans about Rubio’s boots is that they have a heel. Sure, Cuban heels are beloved by British pop stars and South American soccer players (off the pitch, of course), but American men don’t wear heels – at least, according to our prevailing ideas of masculinity.

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While the boots may be a new addition to the political arena, Cuban heels have actually cycled in and out of the public eye for nearly a century.

Their popularity date back to the days of embroidered tailcoats and powdered wigs. Men in heels first became fashionable in 17th-century France, when aristocratic men wanted to make the calves below their culottes look curvaceous. So they borrowed a style of elevated footwear that had been popular in Persia.

Beyond the apparent height advantages, it would be wrong to characterize Rubio’s boots as an attempt to be fashion-forward. Nor did Rubio likely have French aristocrats in mind when lacing up.

Instead, he may have been trying to highlight his Cuban roots. The boot certainly conjures Miami gangsters a la Scarface’s Tony Montana. It also brings to mind Tony Manero, the well-coiffed, aspiring dancer in Saturday Night Fever played by John Travolta.

In 17th-century Spain, male Flamenco dancers began wearing heeled boots in order to attract the attention of onlookers. The wooden heels clicked and clacked, directing the gaze to the dancer’s footwork. Worn originally by the Romani people in Spain (Gitanos), the heeled boot made its way to South America, and eventually onto the feet of Havana’s musicians. The aesthetic influence of Cuban theater, music and dance loomed large in American culture in the mid-20th century, so many Americans were aware of the boot even before the Beatles wore them.

French aristocrats and Flamenco dancers aside, perhaps Rubio’s controversial footwear is inspired by something even more simple. Ted Cruz (5'8") seems to have staked his claim on the ever-popular cowboy boot.

Maybe Rubio is just looking for something to make himself stand out – and up.

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You and I, we don’t do toss-everything-out-and-start-again new season wardrobe overhauls, do we? And not just because we can’t be bothered or don’t have time. We can’t be bothered, because it sounds super dull, and our leisure hours are full to the brim with messing about on the internet, like all normal people. But it’s not only that. We see the endless churn of New Looks and Must Haves for what it is: more airtime filler than real plot development.

What we do (don’t we) is the odd strategic update, where you have to buy one item – or dig it out from the back of the wardrobe – and retire one in exchange. And then try it on with a couple of things. So we’re talking one quickfire shopping trip, which can be incorporated in the aforesaid messing about on the internet, and five minutes of wardrobe overhaul.

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Today I bring you one such update. You need an army-green shirt. A bit oversized, and with a bit of heft to the fabric. Military detailing (epaulettes, hardware) I leave to your discretion. This is to replace the denim shirt in your wardrobe, and – if you give it a chance – in your heart. You wear it exactly the same ways as the denim shirt: open, as a kind of casual blazer, with a white T-shirt and black jeans; or tucked into jeans for that ironic normcore vibe. (It does the job of a denim shirt better than an actual denim shirt, because you can wear it with jeans without the tiresome double denim debate.) Or – see picture! – the army shirt does the denim shirt thing of loosening up an otherwise stuffy look. With heels and a fitted skirt, a silky blouse had started to look a bit obvious, which is why we started wearing this look with a denim shirt last year.

As with everything in life, timing on these mini updates is everything. Move too soon, and the impact is lost, because nobody except Alexa Chung gets how cool you are. Leave it too long, and you look like you’re copying everyone else. The aim is to nail the look when it’s in the air, but before it’s everywhere, and for the army-green shirt, that moment is now. On its coat-tails, you can float into the new season with no effort. Strike now.

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I had the opportunity to sit down with Maria Aristidou, the Greek fashion designer. Her answers to my questions about her 'inspiration' were most interesting. Essentially, her inspiration is drawn from living life and especially from new experiences. She translates these experiences into mental images, a kind of 'learning process.' This learning process forms the basis of her inspiration. She then translates this inspiration into palpable designs.

Maria participated in Paris Pret-A-Porter A/W 07-08 as well as in the Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week A/W 08-09. In 2011 she was nominated for the must magazine STYLE Awards in the category of Best Fashion Designer. Nowadays, maRia aRistidou is working on her capsule collections as well as for the collaboration with LIVE AID Symphony Orchestra at the SGM Conference Center Roma for a Charity Gala Fashion Show in 2016.

How did you get into fashion design?

When I was 16-17 years old, I had an uncle that owned a clothing production plant. He happened to see my sketches one day and he mentioned that I should pursue fashion design. It was the first confirmation from someone that I might have talent and that I should endeavor to develop it. Unfortunately, since in high-school I was an economics major, I did not have the prerequisites to enter a fashion design school, thus, I followed studies in Business Commerce. However, that did not stop me. Throughout my University years I kept sketching non-stop, making small costumes for a dancer friend in Toronto. Then an opportunity to participate in the Cymode'97 competition for young Cypriot fashion designers presented itself. The competition was organized by the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce. My catwalk presentation of 3 outfits won 2nd place. After that my fashion designing life began.

Did you want to become a fashion designer when you were young?

I was playing with Barbies till I was 12-13 years old, choosing and making outfits for them. Back then we did not have access to technology like children have nowadays. Things were more simple back then. But I have to say that one person that influenced me just because he had his personal tailor, shoe designer and always dressed to the T, was my grandfather as well as my grandmother's sister who was a seamstress. For a short period of time I wanted to be a journalist. That faded out, and I just started sketching women's clothes. So I guess fashion designing one way or another was trying to get out.

From where do you draw your inspiration?

From everyday life! Nowadays, there are so many things going on in the world and it's so easy to have access via media that anything can inspire me. From my travels, the people I meet, along with the things I see, read and touch, emotions, fashion history! I can't say that there is only one thing that inspires me. Every collection is a different story, a different picture.

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How has the source of your inspiration changed or grown? For example, what inspired last year's S/S designs? And what inspired this year's S/S designs?

The inspiration has to do a lot with the production process and what you have access to. If I recall correctly, the sources of inspiration 10 years ago and what I have now came from learning new things on a daily basis. I have to say that definitely changed and enhanced my work. I am constantly learning new things. I don't believe that it is something that will stop. Last year's SS design, which was a scarf line, simply came out of the need for an easy daily accessory that you can take with you in your summer travels! Something that you can wear at the beach or at dinner on a summer's evening. Nowadays I am working on my SS 2016 collection and the inspiration is a continuation of my AW 2015 scarf line pattern. The slight shift of my winter pattern, the playful summer colors as well as the access of certain means of production are all part of a very chic, high-end collection for both men and women for SS 2016. For women no matter what the inspiration the one factor that is essential is to always be feminine and elegant, whereas for men I always have in mind for them to be comfortable in their outfit as well as trendy.

What is your philosophy about the ART of fashion?

Art is the core of fashion. It is very important to see the aesthetic of something and bring it to life. I was never an Art major student and I did not really have someone to influence me during my childhood regarding art. Throughout the years I learned about Art and its history and I am still learning. This learning process is part of life and a big inspiration to my work. Any sort of art can touch your aesthetic chord and create something unique and beautiful. It can be a painting, street art, sculpture, installation, a craft etc.

What do you enjoy most about designing clothes?

The process of the collection's production and the smile on my customer's face when they feel beautiful and chic wearing maRia aRistidou designs. Making and choosing fabrics, embroideries, and the first fitting of the pattern are the most enjoyable.

What is the most challenging part?

Living in Cyprus for the time being is one of the most challenging parts for me, since resources for fashion designing are very limited.

If you could choose, which designer would you choose to work with/for?

A lot of my work is inspired by vintage fashion design. If I had the chance I would love to work with the House of Dior, Balenciaga and Jeanne Lanvin back in the 50's . Nowadays, I would love to work with John Varvatos and the Creative Director of Alexander McQueen, Sarah Burton, as well as with the Valentino Creative Duo: Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli.

Who are your favorite designers?

Every season can vary ...but McQueen has been the one that always fascinates me. For the last two seasons definitely Valentino, as well as D&G menswear, Antonio Marras, Bottega Veneta menswear, Alberta Ferretti.

Does your work reflect your personal fashion taste?? Can you describe your personal style?

I believe up to a point yes, there is an influence from my personal style. But when I design I always have a heroine in my head, and how that look for that particular season will apply to a number of women or men if it is a menswear collection. I love to be feminine, comfortable and chic. I always try to have something from my own touch, whether that is a detail on my garments or a type of an accessory that I love to wear.

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With boutique fitness studios, healthy restaurants, detox progammes, supplement stores and personal trainers now a dime a dozen in the city, it’s obvious that Hong Kong is in a “healthy lifestyle” craze. And the trend for stylish sportswear is shooting skyward.

The growing demand from women for functional and fashionable athletic apparel has created a new segment in the sportswear industry dubbed “athleisure” and traditional sportswear brands are vying for a piece of the pie.

Just as fashion designers Tory Burch and Alexander Wang have entered the activewear sector, traditional activewear brands are moving into the fashion sector. Online retailers are following suit: Net-a-Porter has more than 65 brands in the sports section of its site and ShopBop has over 45 brands in its activewear section.

Nike, Adidas and Lululemon are three brands spearheading the trend.

Nike has been the most successful with the move from the gym to the catwalk. There’s been a visible strategic merging of fashion and sportswear since October 2014, when the brand held a catwalk show as part of its “Women’s Innovation Summit” featuring fashion models Joan Smalls and Karlie Kloss as well as professional athletes and ambassadors.

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At the end of that year, Nike opened a women-only store in Shanghai, the first of its kind in Asia. The reason for the added focus on the female market was revealed in late October 2015 when chief executive officer Mark Parker said that the company expected revenue from women’s fitness to nearly double in the next five years from US$5.7 billion to more than US$11 billion.

Adidas has long experience of collaborating with high-fashion designers, a strategy that works very well for both the brand and the designer. Partners include Kanye West, Pharrell Williams, Jeremy Scott, Stella McCartney, Mary Katrantzou, and Yohji Yamamoto, among others, as well as high-street retailer Topshop. New products drop weekly to satiate customers’ appetites and the brand’s Stan Smith trainers are a fashion-week wardrobe staple.

And of course there’s Lululemon, who traditionally focused on yoga leggings and tops but now offer premium apparel and accessories for “yoga, running, activewear and other sweaty pursuits”; they even sell underwear and cardigans. So what sparked all the diversification? According to Amanda Casgar, director, brand and community, for Lululemon Asia, it’s due to blurred lines between work and leisure time.

“The world is changing,” she says. “People travel more and clothing needs to be functional and comfortable enough go from 6am to 10pm. Boutique gym memberships and healthy food is expensive, which makes an active lifestyle aspirational, which in turn fuels the demand for fashionable sportswear. It’s not enough for activewear just to be functional, it needs to be fashionable too so that

it looks just as good inside the gym as on the city sidewalk.”

Nike, Adidas and Lululemon are not the only brands filling fit women’s closets in Hong Kong. Under Armour set up a large shop in SoHo and is slowly growing a fan club thanks to its bright neon collections. Lorna Jane is stocked in boutique fitness studios and stores around Hong Kong Island and 2xU is often seen on the BikiniFit Mafia (Hong Kong’s leading female-only boot camp). Bespoke yoga

brands like A Day with Fé, Rumi, Easy Yoga and hu.nu are also carving out tidy niches in studios around Hong Kong, and Aeance recently entered the Hong Kong market with collections featuring wool and synthetic fibres to ensure optimum comfort and performance. Even gyms like Pure, have started their own lines in stylish sportswear, selling them at their outlets. Fast-fashion retailers Cotton On, H&M and GAP are also cashing in on the trend.

As a fitness (and fashion) fanatic I’ve embraced the sportswear surge with open arms. The lines in my wardrobe are now hugely blurred and my friends and I happily spend weekends in our very fashionable fitness gear. Would I wear any of these items if they didn’t look good? Probably not, but thankfully women now don’t have to decide between functionality and being fashionable because the best of both worlds is available everywhere, in as many colours and styles as you could want.

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MERRY Christmas to all! It’s the day after Christmas but the shopping isn’t over. Home décor and accessories are great options to complete that Christmas list. I recently discovered Fashion Interiors by Paul Cornelissen, an impression furniture and home accessories showroom with several beautiful showcases of stunning lifestyle rooms.

Located at 2307 Chino Roces Avenue Extension (formerly known as Pasong Tamo Extension) behind Intertek Building, Fashion Interiors offers an expansive selection of contemporary furniture with unique detailing. After years of just exporting globally under the flagship company Far East Furniture, local buyers can enjoy wonderful Fashion Interiors pieces to highlight and accent their homes.

Uninterrupted rise

There has been an uninterrupted rise of reputation for Far East Furniture due to its beauty and emphasis in high-quality living. After successful collections such as “Gallery Clair,” “Episode,” “Corvelli” and “Contradictions,” Paul Cornelissen has now developed something new and spectacular. As a reason for the continuous progress globally, the company is delighted to have found Paul Cornelissen eager to share and to create yet another eye-catching, worldwide concept, Fashion Interiors.

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The concept, with an area of 2,000 square meters, is currently open and located right next to Echo Plaza in Makati. Homeowners and shoppers are always welcome to visit and be completely amazed. The experience of viewing brand-new interiors is overwhelming. Visitors could delight on the uniqueness and diversity of the individual rooms. Each décor is a masterpiece and surely a great addition to any home.

The Fashion Interiors collection predominantly focuses on the aspect of atmospheres. Each individual room in the store is classified by specific and unique themes, all of which adopt the “latest” trends. Themes are especially devised and suggested by Paul Cornelissen.

Fashion Interiors is entirely centered on emphasizing its exclusivity by the combinations of classical, modern and romantic furniture models. With these types of furniture come the latest fabric choices from specific areas around the world. The different mixtures in fabrics give sofas, dining chairs and other pieces of furniture that exceptional and warm look that is desired.

Offers lighting, accessories

Aside from furniture, the lifestyle store offers lighting and accessories with ethnic impressions. The pieces are fused with eastern accents and western influences.

The Fashion Interiors collection intelligently balances a choice of high-quality furniture for every possible household room, from fine-dining, comfortable living rooms to romantic and modern bedrooms. Harmoniously completed with its unique accessories, Fashion Interiors items provide a lasting impression. The shop revives its collection every year to ensure its customers’ unrivaled expectations are met.

Original accessories presented at the shop are taken from distinctive parts of the world. These accessories aid in giving these individual rooms the “final touch.” Furthermore, the collection illustrates diverse types of art, which helps in accentuating the theme and philosophies of the room. Types of art in the flagship shop differ in the form of photography, paint and even sculptures.

The flagship store recently introduced the new concept of the “Fashion Bar,” a bar/restaurant completed with the company’s latest furniture. The “Fashion Bar” is responsible for hosting big names for specific private and corporate events. It is worth remembering the experience the company has acquired in international hospitality and real estate projects ranging from restaurants/clubs such as Caviar in Alabang, Republiq Club Manila and Opus Club Manila, to more high-class hotels/resorts including El Palacete Soñado Hotel in Spain and the Lewis Grand Hotel in Angeles.

Internationally acclaimed

Ever since the initial rise of Far East Furniture in the Netherlands during the 1970s as well as its present-day growth, it has always been an internationally acclaimed company becoming a trusted supplier among furniture importers, wholesalers and retailers worldwide. In addition, there has been continual success in Europe, the Middle East, Asia and the United States. Thus, Far East Furniture will remain working with selected distributors and retailers across the world in order to create this new and unique shopping experience.

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You may have heard some of the fashion industry horror stories.

Models eating tissues or cotton balls to stave off hunger. Models collapsing from malnutrition-induced heart attacks just seconds after they step off the runway. Even models growing a layer of downy fuzz as their bodies try to keep warm.

Excessively skinny models have been a point of controversy for decades, and two researchers say their body mass should be a workplace health and safety issue. In aneditorial released Monday in the American Journal of Public Health, Katherine Record and S. Bryn Austin make their case for government regulation of the fashion industry.

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The average international runway model has a body mass index under 16 — low enough to indicate starvation by the World Health Organization's standard. And Record and Austin are worried not just about the models themselves but about the legions of girls and women their images influence.

"Especially girls and teens," says Record, who is a deputy director with the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission. "Seventy percent of girls ages 10 to 18 report that they define perfect body image based on what they see in magazines." That's especially worrying, she says, given that anorexia results in more deaths than does any other mental illness, according to the National Institute of Mental Health.

Record and Austin, a professor of social and behavioral sciences at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, want the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to step in and create worker protection standards like it does for other dangerous industries. It's commonly known that certain diseases are linked with occupations, they argue, like lung disease in coal miners. "Professional fashion models are particularly vulnerable to eating disorders resulting from occupational demands to maintain extreme thinness," they write.

Their suggestion is to prohibit agents from hiring models with a BMI below 18. By that standard, a 5-foot-9-inch model would need to weigh at least 122 pounds. "Which is still quite thin," Record notes, but not dangerously so.

In April, France passed a law setting lower limits for models' weight. Agents and fashion houses who hire models with a BMI under 18 could pay $82,000 in fines and spend up to six months in jail. Israel also has BMI restrictions for models, and local initiatives regulate models in Milan and Madrid. Those bans were imposed in 2006, after the high-profile deaths of two models, Ana Carolina Reston and Luisel Ramos. In 2010 French model Isabelle Caro, who had campaigned to curb anorexia, died of the disease at age 28.

Regulating the fashion industry in the United States won't be easy, Record says. She likens the task to taking on Big Tobacco. But with the new rules in France, U.S. support could make a difference. A designer can't survive without participating in Paris Fashion Week, she says, adding, "Our argument is that the same would be true of New York Fashion Week."

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Anthony Nygren proposed to his girlfriend of about of four years, Meg Thompson, in one of the nerdiest locales imaginable: at the Twin Cities' Zombie Pub Crawl in 2014.

On Thursday, for their nuptials, the couple went with a different geeky genre: "Star Wars."

At the Minnesota Zoo IMAX theater, with an honor guard of "Star Wars" costumers present, and immediately prior to a showing of the new film "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," the couple staged a fantastical union, with the bride's dad as Han Solo walking her down the aisle, and Darth Vader himself as the officiant.

The couple, appropriately enough, live in New Hope. (The maiden "Star Wars" chapter from 1977 is now known as "Star Episode IV: A New Hope.") The groom chose to dress up as bad guy Kylo Renfrom the new Episode VII, however.

The "Star Wars" superfan is hardly alone in relishing "Star Wars" for his nuptials, and in general.

Certain devotees of the sci-fi movies are so fanatical, it stands to reason they would want their weddings to incorporate aspects of the film series to varying degrees.

Lynn Sessions, as a girl, wasn't the sort to daydream about future wedding circumstances. When the Shakopee woman began dating seriously, however, she did start to think about what her eventual marriage ceremony might be like.

His mother did have a problem with this ... at first.

She "was hesitant to accept that I wanted to make a joke out of my wedding," he recalled. "I said, 'It is not a joke. It is what we love. We wanted to embrace our fandom as we showed our love for each other."

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Mom eventually got with the program and even accessorized for the occasion: She wore Death Star earrings, and a bracelet with rectangular pieces made to look like classic "Star Wars" posters.

The couple, who were on a budget, found an ideal venue for the May 4 ceremony: Fantasy Flights Game Center in Burnsville, a place festooned with "Star Wars" memorabilia and wall posters.

They weren't in "Star Wars" costumes for what they called their "court" wedding but their guests, for the most part, were.

They did wear costumes earlier, for a Minneapolis civil ceremony, with Bowie as an X-Wing pilot and Lynn as Princess Leia. During that ceremony, the "Star Wars"-simpatico judge concluded with the words, "May the Force be with you ... always."

It was much the same at the May 2014 wedding of Jim and Stacie Mossey at St. Paul's Minnesota History Center, with the pair, their guests and even the catering staff in costume.

It was a "Star Trek" wedding, though, and not a "Star Wars" one.

No one is more enthusiastic about "Star Wars" than the Mosseys, who are among Twin Cities-area costumers who make frequent charity appearances dressed as "Star Wars" characters. Stacie Mossey is even a professional costume maker.

They did like the idea of a "Star Wars" wedding but realized "Star Trek" would be more practical. "Trek" costumes are for the most part more comfortable, a key consideration since they wanted to get the staff involved.

"Star Wars" armor is not easy to wear at a wedding," Jim Mossey said. "It's expensive and cumbersome."

Stacie Mossey made "Star Trek"-style tunics "for all the wait staff, and they really enjoyed it," Jim Mossey said.

So did Stacie, a "Star Wars" fanatic from way back, who had only "recently embraced 'Star Trek,' the original series," he said.

Thursday, however, the Mosseys were back in "Star Wars" attire for the movie-theater wedding.

They were among the honor-guard costumers, with Stacie Mossey appearing as a First Order stormtrooper from the new movie, and her husband as an Imperial officer from the classic films. So were the Sessionses, with Bowie as an X-Wing pilot, and Lynn as Princess Leia.

They technically weren't there for the nuptials, since their theater appearance had been in the works for months, while the wedding came about only in recent days.

Nygren won the "Star Wars" wedding as a prize in a KDWB radio contest, with D.J. Dave Ryan serving as a Sith Lord officiant with legal standing to perform such ceremonies.

It was a dream come true for the bearded groom, even if he had to scramble for a store-bought Kylo Ren costume with no time to commission a fancier version.

"I've been a 'Star Wars' fan since I was a little kid," Nygren said. "My fiancee was never a huge fan and I've been trying to convert her."

Thompson, dressed in conventional wedding attire, confirmed she is well along in her indoctrination. "Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi" was her favorite installment, and she has been having flashbacks to "Star Wars" Barbies she recalled owning as a child.

And while a "Star Wars" wedding wouldn't have been her choice under normal circumstances, she embraced the moment for one overriding reason: "I love him."

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If you are expecting traditional buckskin, fringe and feathers in the Peabody Essex Museum’s exhibit of Native American fashion, think again.

In “Native Fashion Now”– the first large-scale exhibit of its kind – indigenous tradition meets avant-garde fashion in unexpected and exhilarating ways. Take Jamie Okuma’s glorious beaded Louboutin boots – it took her nine months to complete the exquisite beadwork depicting swallows and colorful swirls, using antique glass bead in a kind of self-portrait.

The exhibit, which is both gorgeous and thought-provoking, features nearly 100 works, dating from the 1950’s to the present, of 75 fashion makers from the U.S. and Canada (71 of whom are living) and explores the intersection of fashion, art and identity.

According to Karen Kramer, PEM’s Curator of Native American Art and Culture, Native Americans have always used clothing as a form of expression. As home to the one of the world’s oldest and best public collections of Native Art and culture of the Americas and with a demonstrated interest in fashion following the success of Iris Apfel’s “Rare Bird of Fashion” (one of Apfel’s ensembles is included in the exhibit), PEM is a natural fit for “Native Fashion Now.”

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“It was about time,” said Patricia Michaels, a fashion and textile designer and Project Runway finalist from Taos, New Mexico, expressing appreciation that Native American textiles and fashion are moving into the spotlight. Dramatically opening the exhibit is a dress by Michaels that subtly integrates hand- and machine-made materials and is at once abstract and representational. The backdrop of runway footage from Michael’s New York Fashion Week show and a ceiling of cascading parasols created by her for the exhibit set the tone for innovation and excitement. Known for her unique textile designs, Michaels is self-taught, having learned fabrication from family members in her Taos Pueblo. “Expression has meaning behind it,” she said.

The exhibit continues in four rooms organized by categories – titled Pathbreakers, Revisitors, Activators and Provocateurs – each containing notable pieces. At the center of Pathbreakers are two vintage dresses by Cherokee designer Lloyd “Kiva” New, who was the first to create a successful fashion brand, marrying a native aesthetic with modern colors and textures. The first room also includes Orlando Dugi’s thrillingly stunning cape, dress and spiked headdress of porcupine quills from his Dessert Heat collection, symbolizing the night sky.

A contemporary take on a traditional blanket dress in Revisitors perfectly demonstrates how things change and how new ideas are always at work. While fashion designers have always been inspired by other cultures, the inclusion of Isaac Mizrahi’s Totem Pole dress prompts viewers to question the complicated issue of cultural appropriation.

Deceptively simple tee shirts by Jared Yazzie (one slogan says “Native Americans Discovered Columbus”) and hand-painted Chuck Taylor sneakers in the Activators room are equally as thought-provoking. Questions, both playful and serious, come to a head in the New Radicals room, highlighted by pieces such as a Tahitian bondage necklace, which juxtaposes hard stainless steel with soft pearls, by Pat Pruitt, a jeweler, metalsmith and mechanical engineer.

“Native Fashion Now” will leave viewers wondering about how what you wear can say a lot about who you are, and how even the art we think we ”know” – such as Native American art – does not remain static.

Of the artists represented, “each one comes from a beautiful journey,” said Michaels. “We are continuing the journey.”

“Native Fashion Now” is at the PEM through March 6, before traveling to Portland, Oregon, Tulsa, Oklahoma, and New York City.

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The iconic, over-the-top Victoria's Secret fashion show aired on Tuesday night.

According to The Wrap, viewership dropped 32% from 2014.

But this staggering decline - and the press surrounding the brand'sunrealistic portrayal of women - are unlikely to derail the lingerie behemoth.

According to IBIS World, Victoria's Secret's parent company L Brands holds 61.8% of the lingerie market. This is in part because Victoria's Secret capitalized on a practically nonexistent market when it first emerged onto the scene.

Lingerie expert Cora Harrington of the popular blog The Lingerie Addictweighed in on Victoria Secret's place in the lingerie sector.

"One thing many people don't realize is that Victoria's Secret fundamentally changed the lingerie conversation in America. Before [Victoria's Secret], one could only buy "everyday" lingerie in a department store, and even then, only in basic colors (white, beige, black...maybe the occasional burgundy or pink). A lot of popular brands, like Playtex, were even sold in boxes! You couldn't even see the product, much less touch or examine it. The entire experience was very desexualized, very sterile, but completely in line with American puritanical values," Harrington explained in an email to Business Insider.

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On the flip side, she said, the only place to get sexy underwear was a sex shop - something not many women were comfortable with. Even the notion of calling its models "Angels," Harrington noted, is a sharp contrast to the 'bad girl' image formerly associated with sexy lingerie.

Harrington also pointed out that the lingerie culture in America is drastically different from Europe, where independent lingerie boutiques are nearly ubiquitous and the lingerie market is more mature (here, Harrington notes, most women prefer to wear bras with sportier aesthetics). Women can find lingerie boutiques in trendy metropolises, Harrington explained, but women outside of those cities women often need a mass market place to shop for lingerie - and that's where Victoria's Secret comes into play.

"Their marketing, their products, their way of doing business has fundamentally changed the product mix in most every major U.S. department store, and despite their faults, they are the only place to buy nice lingerie for millions of women," Harrington said.

There are ample companies that are trying to compete with Victoria's Secret. Negative Underwear sells no-frills underwear. Aerie appeals to young women with its body positive campaigns. Adore Me operates on a fast fashion modicum. But none of these companies come close to Victoria's Secret's massive size; in part because Victoria's Secret came first.

In fact, it would take a massive shift in the sector to see a major change. The company has its demerits, but it's here to stay. (And, Harrington pointed out, "by featuring models of color, they're light years ahead of the average lingerie brand".)

"[Victoria's Secret] has literally defined the American lingerie market for an entire generation, so until another brand is able to claim a big enough piece of the pie by doing something different, there's very little incentive for them to change," Harrington explained. "Right now, Victoria's Secret could lose half their business and still be the biggest lingerie company in America by a wide margin. Apart from the occasional bit of negative press, there's next to no external pressure to adjust anything. And since sales are the biggest factor a company looks at for making decisions, so long as those numbers keep going up, they're getting positive reinforcement."

The brand continues to be an incredibly successful retailer. The show might be losing momentum given this years' ratings, but that doesn't mean that it's going anywhere. It just might have to listen to some discerning consumers. As Harrington wrote for Fusion, there's an increasing demand for authenticity coming from consumers.

Additionally, University of Southern California marketing professor Jeetendr Sehdev told Business Insider this summer that consumers are looking for models and brands to which they can relate.

So if the brand is continuing to churn out stellar results each quarter, the only thing that might need to adapt is the show - but don't expect any major changes soon. Quite simply, Victoria's Secret doesn't have to change anything, so why fix what isn't broken?

"I think [Victoria's Secret] may have to tweak the show in coming years, but there are so few mass market lingerie options in America, that it'll take awhile for the turning tide to affect their momentum," Harrington said.

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It’s Christmas: a time for getting together, getting drunk, taking stupid group selfies and posting them with the hashtag #squad before you’re sober enough to think twice.

No real skill is necessary for a basic party group selfie – but there are ways to ensure you look your best. New York photographer Peter Hurley’s Youtube series offering tips on perfecting selfies have attracted millions of viewers. There are also certain poses that have acquired the status of trends this season. Below, the top five are demonstrated by our model, complete with instructions for creating your own versions. Don’t be afraid not to experiment – the point is to be just like everyone else.

1. The peace sign

Raise your hand with palm toward the lens, make a fist and then extend your index and middle finger in a V formation, as if signalling to a passing waiter that you require a table for two. This shows that you are peace-loving, that you bear the people of the internet no ill will, and possibly that you’re against air strikes, although it probably doesn’t mean that when Justin Bieber does it.

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2. The shhh

Look into the lens, rest vertically extended forefinger against lips. Footballers sometimes celebrate goals with this gesture, as if to silence opposition fans or a critical media. The shhh selfie seems to indicate that you are hushing a chorus of imagined detractors, those who would disapprove of either your nightlife choices or your determination to document them so comprehensively. You wouldn’t actually be able to hear them, so it’s more of a symbolic thing.

3. The wine-eye

Hold your drink up to one eye, making sure that you can see the camera lens through the glass. Keep your fingers out of the way. The wine glass symbolises your ability to have fun – by drinking too much – and makes you look as if you have an enormous eye. To get the proper magnification you really should use an outsize “party-style” wine glass, but this is the biggest one I had.

4. The ‘hold your sub!’

This is one of Peter Hurley’s tips: to make your upper arms look slimmer and more muscular, prepare for any seasonal photo opportunity by pretending to hold an imaginary giant sandwich. According to Hurley, this gives your arms a narrower profile. It also looks stupid, but that’s because you’re not actually supposed to see your hands in the photo – crop them out. With a selfie you can only get one of your arms in the frame so choose your favourite.

5. The ‘being photographed with glasses’

This makes you look sophisticated and intelligent, but also nearsighted and nerdy. Better to hold your glasses in one hand, so you can project intellectual credibility without sacrificing your vanity. I used sunglasses in this photograph, which sort of undermines the whole effect, but they are prescription. You may subtly deploy your spare hand to gesture toward the spectacles for emphasis, as long as you don’t drop the giant sandwich.

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Gary Friedman wants to give consumers a full RH experience. There’s reproductions of 17th and 18th century English, French and Italian antiques for traditionalists, and for Millennials — who often draw design inspiration from

Apple — there’s modern furniture influenced by minimalism, the Bauhaus movement and Art Deco. There’s an RH restaurant — the first of many — and a guest house is in the works. Apparel, the last piece of the lifestyle puzzle, is close at hand.

Friedman, chairman and chief executive officer of RH, has a distinct aesthetic that he noted will carry over to fashion: Clean and minimalist with an emphasis on materials, quality and craft. RH’s small existing assortment offers a hint in terms of its emphasis on luxury fibers such as long strands of cashmere for infinity scarves and stonewashed Belgian linen for pajamas. Jewelry, a category RH plans to address, exists for kids with pavé diamond, charm and dog tag necklaces.

Friedman’s plans to sell apparel at RH could send a small tremor through the industry, although a formal launch date hasn’t been set. Friedman noted that he freed consumers from the interior design industry’s practice of taking markups and he’ll similarly expose what he feels are luxury fashion’s bloated profit margins.

“There’s a disruptive opportunity that exists in apparel, especially in the luxury market that we’ll exploit,” he said. “Every luxury apparel brand started as a wholesale brand, so by its very nature there’s this extra markup. Whether you’re Brunello Cucinelli, who I love, or Prada or Gucci, you’ve got this extra markup. Even when they have their own stores, they have to have the same prices as the department stores.”

Apparel is an inevitable part of Friedman’s strategy to create a complete RH lifestyle, inspired by Ralph Lauren, whom Friedman studied closely and admires for “presenting his image and brand in such a complete way.”

The vehicle for launching apparel will be RH Atelier, which will use the infrastructure of the former apparel brand Hierarchy that RH acquired in 2013. Friedman promptly renamed Hierarchy RH Atelier. The focus will be on luxury apparel, accessories, footwear and jewelry. Already, RH manufactures cashmere bathrobes and knitwear, heathered cotton cashmere pajamas, quilted ballet slippers and Italian leather bags that could reside in one of RH’s $4,400 reclaimed Russian oak armoires.

“We’re building these amazing [stores],” Friedman said. “You could go into a bedroom and the armoire would have clothes in it — and you can buy them. It would be done in a voyeuristic way, almost like you’re in someone’s beautiful home.

“I’m not under pressure to make that much money on apparel. The operating margin of many luxury brands is 25 to 30 percent, but I only have to make 15 percent,” Friedman added. RH’s long-term operating margin target is in the midteens.

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RH is the biggest seller of Italian luxury linens in the U.S. “Ours is made in the same factories as brands like Pratesi,” Friedman said. “We can have the same quality of cashmere and leather and be half the price. I want to create a vehicle to allow people to have beautiful clothes at cost.”

Friedman joined Restoration Hardware as ceo in 2001 after being passed over for that job at Williams-Sonoma after 12 years. He transformed Restoration, then a $20 million retailer of furniture, tchotchkes and household products such as vacuums and shoe polish, into RH, a luxury home furnishings force with a market value of $4 billion.

“I’m the least likely guy to be doing what I’m doing,” he said. “We grew up so poor, we had no furniture. I lived in 21 different places before I was 18.” After being kicked out of junior college — Friedman noted that he’s dyslexic — he landed a job as a stock boy at The Gap and worked his way up the ranks to become the company’s youngest store manager at 21. When Millard “Mickey” Drexler in 1983 joined the Gap, he became a mentor. “Mickey was talking about things I believed in, like selling clothes that people actually want to wear,” Friedman said. “I’d never be doing what I’m doing if I didn’t have the opportunity of being at the Gap when Mickey was there. I had some style and he took an interest in me and involved me in meetings I never would have been” invited to.

“What Gary has done with RH is extraordinary,” Drexler said. “He has reinvented, remerchandised and re-branded an already great business to make it even greater.”

During a recent interview at the redesigned RH gallery in the Flatiron District, Friedman pulled out a dog-eared copy of a Restoration Hardware catalogue that he keeps in his briefcase to “show my team what is possible.” Sitting on an Italia taper arm sofa from RH Modern, Friedman called the collection the company’s biggest launch. Entire floors are dedicated to RH Modern at recently opened next-generation design galleries in Chicago, Denver and Tampa, Fla. In November, a freestanding RH Modern gallery opened on Beverly Boulevard in Los Angeles with the statue of an angel on the roof and an outdoor sculpture garden. A source book heavier than Vogue’s September issue and photographed by Fabien Baron heralded Modern’s arrival.

Wearing a T-shirt, brown pants, work boots and leather wristbands with inspirational messages such as, “Live and let live,” Friedman is relaxed about his wardrobe, but, not surprisingly, serious about design. As far as he’s concerned, it’s Design with a capital D. “We’re obsessed with architecture. We either find it and adapt it or we build it,” said Friedman, who can sound lofty when referencing Marcus Vitruvius Pollio, the Roman architect who lived in the first century, or the golden mean, an ancient ratio for assuring a building’s harmony.

Friedman’s investment in huge RH galleries has unsettled some investors. “The public markets want to define a business and put a box around it,” he said. “They want you to say, ‘We’re opening 5,000 of these.’ It’s not inspiring to do the same thing over and over again. Investors and analysts are seduced by a capital-light business strategy. Companies tout their online growth rate, believing it to be the more profitable channel. It’s obvious that a big percentage of a small number is still a small number. Why would anyone conclude that online is more profitable?”

RH stock, which has been trading at around $90 on the New York Stock Exchange, received a short-term “buy” rating from Zacks, and “outperform” from Wolfe’s. For the second quarter ended Aug. 1, net income rose 30 percent to $36 million, from $27.7 million in the 2014 period. Revenue for the quarter rose 17 percent to $506.9 million, from $433.8 million, while earnings per share climbed 27 percent to 85 cents, from 67 cents in the year-ago quarter. RH raised its full-year guidance for earnings to a range of $3.06 to $3.16 per share, from $3.02 to $3.15 per share. The full-year revenue outlook was raised to a range of $2.16 billion to $2.18 billion.

Friedman said inspiring three-dimensional environments will always trump one-dimensional online stores and almost mocks the current preoccupation with digital. “We have multiple new concepts in our product development pipeline. With less than 10 percent of our assortment displayed at retail, we have to open next-generation design galleries. It’s not about the Internet. Only 10 percent of sales are online. It’s about lack of imagination.”

RH is trying to blur the lines between residential and retail. The new six-floor, 70,000-square-foot Chicago gallery has a rooftop park and conservatory, lounge with stage, restaurant, wine vault and tasting room and espresso bar serving Doughnut Vault doughnuts and pastries from restaurateur Brendan Sodikoff, RH’s hospitality partner.

“We made no demarcation between the store and the restaurant,” Friedman said. “If they’re not eating, they’re drinking — customers walk around the store with a glass of wine.”

RH will take hospitality even further with a 12-room guesthouse with an apartment for Friedman on the top floor in the Meatpacking District near the future site of a six-floor, 80,000-square-foot RH Gallery on Ninth Avenue.

While RH galleries can be found in malls, Friedman prefers open air centers, calling traditional malls “airless environments where nothing can thrive. There’s no real creativity in retailing today. [Stores] are designed for products and not people.”

One of Friedman’s favorite projects is a one-off, RH Yountville in Napa Valley, where the company bought Maisonry, a wine, art and antiques business housed in an old stone building and the adjacent property. A path dotted with olive trees will connect Maisonry with three new buildings. In the backyard garden, Friedman envisions a table for large dinners. “This one for sure will be huge,” he said of the concept.

Friedman gets annoyed when people tell him he works too much. “I love what I do. It’s as much a hobby as it is a job. People say, ‘You should have a work-life balance.’ I work 18 hours a day. Don’t worry about me. My work is my life. This kid who never lived in a house, never had any furniture….I never dreamed that I’d ever be leading one of the biggest home furnishings companies in the world. It never should have happened.”

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