Tini Tani
Jess A
Martina M
Martine Falk Andersen
Weronika Kumanek
While summer undoubtedly calls for sandals, there are other alternatives that can better dress up off-duty attire. Just look to Martha Hunt to guide the way: When the Victoria’s Secret Angel stepped out to take her dog, Bear, for a walk in New York yesterday, she moved casual denim cutoffs and a tank top into polished new territory thanks to her simple ballet flats. This isn’t the first time Hunt has made the daily chore look cooler than usual. Last spring, she stepped out in equally classic Converse and jeans, and her latest outfit felt like an abbreviated version of the original. Hunt tucked a silky spaghetti strap top into denim shorts for a chic combination. She was smart to tote a cross-body bag with a playful tassel, leaving her hands free to hold onto her dog’s brown suede leash, which tied in nicely with Hunt’s own purse. Oversize hoop earrings were an eye-catching addition, while a bouquet of fresh sunflowers provided the ultimate summer finish.
New Mexico is having a moment. Its capital, Santa Fe, has long been known for its desert spas and rich Native American culture, but the city has lately become a destination for urban dwellers craving a little peace, solitude, and otherworldly scenery. Visvim’s Hiroki Nakamura and his wife, Kelsi, visit Santa Fe once a year—their friend Jed Foutz owns the gallery and store Shiprock Santa Fe—and when a Victorian house down the street became available, they felt it was the perfect setting for their first women’s-only Visvim store (also known as WMV Visvim). An unlikely location? Yes. But, as Nakamura says matter-of-factly: “We always like to do things differently.” Fans of the label might say that’s an understatement. While the duo’s peers may have leaned into the streetwear craze or over-the-top runway shows, Hiroki and Kelsi are as focused as ever on fabric development and artisanal techniques like hand-painted washi skirts, rare natural dyes, and other time-intensive crafts. Fittingly, the new Santa Fe store opened on the same weekend as the city’s annual International Folk Art Market festival, which brings artists and makers from around the world together to show and sell their work. “Our products have a connection to the culture in Santa Fe,” Nakamura says. “People here have an appreciation for crafts and things made by hand, so Jed suggested we open the store during the festival, when everyone is in town. Bigger cities like New York and Tokyo are more commercial [in terms of fashion], but here, it’s really culture- and art-oriented.” That translates to women’s fashion tastes, too. There’s a big demand for vintage clothes and casual, desert-friendly pieces—think lots of denim and breezy cotton. The light-filled store houses racks of the new WMV collection, as well as antique furniture and Japanese art, which is a first for the label. Much of the artwork dates back to the ’40s or ’50s and comes from Okinawa, an island in southern Japan, and the antique furniture is available to buy, as well. “All of the pieces have the same feeling [as our clothes], so we wanted to try showing them together,” Hiroki says. Adds Kelsi: “They’re just pieces we love.” It also speaks to Visvim’s core tenets: Japanese techniques and classic Americana—think jeans, moccasins, and leather jackets tweaked with artisanal details and crafts you can only find in Japan. Usually, the American vibes are more Western than East Coast, too; flip through the label’s recent men’s and women’s collections on Vogue Runway, and it’s easy to picture it all in Santa Fe. The Nakamuras have several stores in Japan, but this might be the most “Visvim” one yet, and you can expect more experimental retail concepts from them in the future.
Republicans have finally given up on voting on a bill to repeal President Obama’s Affordable Care Act. On Monday night, after weeks of failing to drum up enough support in the Senate to pass a Mitch McConnell–helmed legislative effort that promised to strip 22 million Americans of their health care in the name of a tax cut for the wealthy, the BCRA officially became DOA, when two Republican senators, Mike Lee of Utah and Jerry Moran of Kansas, publicly declared they could not back the bill. The two joined Kentucky’s Rand Paul and Maine’s Susan Collins, who had already declared themselves against the bill as well. The two most recent defections, which effectively tanked any possibility of the bill’s passing, apparently happened as President Trump was hosting a dinner for some senators in the hopes of swaying them to his side. According to Politico, Trump told his guests: “We have the Senate, House, and White House, and we have to do it or we’re going to look terrible.” Before the dinner ended, Lee and Moran released their statements against the bill, and McConnell was forced to withdraw it. After news of their defections spread, Trump took to Twitter to weigh in on the failed effort. “Republicans should just REPEAL failing Obamacare now and work on a new health-care plan that will start from a clean slate,” he wrote on Monday night. He added this morning: “As I have always said, let Obamacare fail and then come together and do a great health-care plan. Stay tuned.” While the bill’s failure in the Senate is certainly a victory for those in support of the Affordable Care Act (and for the millions of Americans who get to keep their health insurance), McConnell has given no indication that he is ready to fully surrender. On Monday night, he announced his latest strategy: Instead of repeal and replace, the Senate majority leader is going to try to pass a full repeal and figure out the replacement aspect later on. In a statement drafted yesterday, McConnell promised a vote “in the coming days” on a 2015 House bill that called for a repeal of Obamacare (which President Obama then vetoed), with “a two-year delay to provide for a stable transition period to a patient-centered health-care system that gives Americans access to quality, affordable care.” But experts warn that fully repealing the ACA without an alternative would leave millions without insurance overnight (back in 2015, the Congressional Budget Office predicted around 32 million people would lose their health care and premiums would go up 100 percent) and that a repeal-only bill could cause insurance markets to collapse—an option that is unlikely to gain favor among skeptical Republican senators. It’s left to see which road McConnell will try to go down. For now, the ACA remains in place, but if Trump’s tweets are anything to go by, his effort to dismantle Obama’s health-care legacy remains a priority—despite all indications that even his own party isn’t sold on the idea. “We were let down by all of the Democrats and a few Republicans,” he wrote. “Most Republicans were loyal, terrific, and worked really hard. We will return!”
Ah, summer. The much-anticipated time of year when it’s acceptable to kick off thigh-grazing boots and shimmy back into teeny-tiny tube tops. But of course, the season (and the skin-baring) doesn’t come without perils—namely in the form of a sunburn, which has been known to wreak havoc on even the most diligent of SPF appliers. So just how do you take care of your skin without sacrificing any time in the great outdoors? For answers, we turned to a handful of perfectly poreless It girls from South Korea—a country that’s practically become synonymous with skin care thanks to Koreans’ devotion to innovative products paired with equally innovative application methods. (Ever heard of the “7 Skin Method”?) Here, from unique layering techniques to a mattifying Korean sunscreen, a bevy of tips and tricks to keep burns at bay all year long.
Man bags aren’t a new thing. They’ve been everywhere for a while—remember Joey from Friends? There’s an entire episode of that show from 1999 dedicated to the goofball’s newfound love for a simple black purse. (”At first, I thought it just looked good, but it's practical too,” he said. “Check it out! It's got compartments for all your stuff! Your wallet! Your keys! Your address book!”) Now, the man bag is no longer a novelty: Also known as a “murse,” it’s worn under the arms and across the chest, in forms ranging from satchels to messenger bags. Proponents have included a buff David Beckham, a cool A$AP Rocky, and a hip Pharrell. The latest incarnation of the man bag? The “mote”—a men’s tote bag. Just a few weeks ago, Balenciaga’s dadcore-themed Spring 2018 men’s show included slews of tote bags in sleek leather, and a can’t-miss-it lime green raffia piece. Louis Vuitton showed a monogrammed version, while J.W.Anderson had large knit totes. The piece also made cameos on the street during men’s fashion week: Many showgoers wore the tote in cloth form, clutching the formless carryalls in their hairy hands or slinging them over strong shoulders.
Fresh off the heels of Couture Fashion Week in Paris, Kendall Jenner and Bella Hadid were letting their flag fly high at Pride Parade earlier today in London. The supermodels walked every major show from Fendi to Dior, but that didn’t stop them from turning the sidewalk into their own personal runway in the name of gay rights. Moreover, with their consciously-coordinated outfits, it almost seemed to send a larger message of unity. (And they looked good, too.) With most of Europe still under a sweltering heat wave, they did well to go for cute little midriff-baring tops. The tonal color palette made for a polished, off-duty look, and they were right in step with each other in low-slung boyfriend jeans. While Jenner, recently named an Adidas brand ambassador, laced into the brand’s classic sneakers, Hadid opted for combat boots—and both were made for marching. Statement sunglasses in an angular shape rounded out the low-key good vibes, with rainbow-striped hats radiating a playful sense of harmony.
Quilts might have quaint, homespun associations, but for Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren, they’re couture-worthy—and a symbol of peace. “Patchwork serves to symbolize a wish for harmony: to create unity through diversity,” the designers told Vogue via email. Who knew your grandma’s favorite hobby had such a nice hidden message? Of course, their patchwork-heavy Viktor & Rolf show on Wednesday didn’t get that message across right away. What was up with those doll heads? Did they have a hidden meaning, too? Horsting and Snoeren called them “action dolls,” with the “action” part coming into play via their interpretations of MA-1 bomber jackets. There were padded army green dresses, ruffled military jackets, and orange-lined nylon gowns, all with those patchwork details built in. The designers said they were “rooting for a world that is creative, diverse, and eco-conscious”; the doll heads represented a range of ethnicities. Like last season, upcycled fabrics were a big focus as well. “[We gave] new life to old fabrics sourced from various vintage markets and our personal archive, essentially transforming something old and discarded into something surreal and handcrafted,” they said. “[It’s like] a stepping stone for the new in a quintessentially Viktor & Rolf way.” Here, they gave Vogue an exclusive glimpse at that upcycled patchwork process; see the details above, then catch up on all of our couture coverage.
Fashion is a far-flung foreign amenity in the city of East Cairo. “Here and in the Middle East in general, where we face economic and political problems, fashion is strictly defined as clothes to be worn,” says the upstart designer and East Cairo local Dana Frid. “Creating a fashion brand and setting trends without boundaries are two things that are not easily reached.” Frid is an outlier. She discovered the world of fashion at age 17 when she “accidentally” happened upon the wide world of Tumblr. She started following fashion blogs and artists, learned design tricks online, and was, she says, “fascinated by everything since I had never seen anything like this in my entire life.” While her exposure to style came late, she did grow up surrounded by creative energy. Her mother is a painter and sketch artist on the side and a philosophy professor full-time. “She always worried about my future,” Frid notes. “She really wanted me to be in a creative field, but she emphasized that I should have a plan B if it didn’t work out.” Lately, it seems as if that plan B may never have to come into play. For the last year, Frid has been designing tees, hoodies, and pants decorated with her original flora and fauna artwork and wordplay with luxury labels. Where some tees are simply stitched with “Dior” or “Versace,” others come with hilariously brash slogans like “Keep the Snakes Away Unless They Gucci,” and “Bitches Want Chanel.” In a world where Vetements-esque brand play is king and Instagram sensations like Ava Nirui (AvaNope) are taking over our feeds with logo mash-ups, Frid has hit the nail on the head with her designs. Currently, she’s only selling through orders placed via email, but the soon-to-be-university graduate, majoring in business and political science, aims to be on her way to fashion school soon. She’s moving to Paris after her studies in Egypt are complete. “My friends and family—besides my mom—always tell me that fashion should be a hobby or something to do with my free time,” Frid explains. “They always say that there’s no future for such an occupation in Egypt and advise me to be more realistic. Having no support was tough, but on the bright side it made me work even harder to prove myself.” Frid has over 17,000 followers on Instagram and says that she’s been selling a steady amount of clothes during the last two months. Once she gets to Paris, she plans on expanding the brand beyond tees and hoodies, specifically with trousers. “I listen to a lot of R & B and rap songs,” Frid says. “Their lyrics always mention luxury brand names and that’s what initially inspired the slogans.” She adds: “However, I am now working on something different, collecting different types of art and creating heavier motifs. I’ve been looking to tarot cards, cherubs, and Ottoman and Persian art.” Frid loves Rick Owens, Riccardo Tisci, Helmut Lang, and Rihanna. She is by all accounts a woke cool girl obsessed with fashion. For her right now, that world is pretty much contained to the online realm. In the everyday, she struggles to explain that place to her confidants and neighbors. But thanks to her designs and determination, she’s got a bright future. “Fashion requires a high taste level,” Frid says. “It requires bold ideas and the ability to leave everything behind to focus solely on creating, on designing.” Above, take a look at Dana Frid’s made-in-Egypt collection. Would you “Die for Dior” too?
Fans of the new Wonder Woman will find a lot to love in Elie Saab’s latest couture collection, which billed the models as “warrior queens” and featured gold headbands similar to the one Gal Gadot (and the original cartoon heroine) wears. “I have always placed women at the center of my creations, but for this collection, I wanted to show a fearless, yet feminine woman, and accentuate the strength and power that arise beyond her appearance,” Saab explained via email. Fearless is certainly a quality every woman wants right now.
There were lots of medieval velvet, gold filigree, and fur stoles in this collection, but Look 48 was powerful in a softer way. Saab juxtaposed the simple, long-sleeved silhouette with super-feminine extras—bows! pink sequins! glass beads!—and the finished gown was covered in nearly 20,000 embellishments.
That required a level of skill and commitment you’ll only find in haute couture: Saab’s atelier in Beirut reported that 13 people were involved in the making of the dress—eight embroiderers, three seamstresses, one pattern maker, and the head of the atelier—and it took more than 500 hours to finish. It’s comprised of 8,000 sequins; 1,000 pearls; 10,000 tubes; and 1,000 stones, and while it took three months to create the dress from start to finish, three weeks were spent on the embroideries alone.
Above, Saab shares up-close, exclusive photos of the making of the dress. Flip through the mind-blowing details, then brush up on all of Vogue’s couture coverage here.
Céline Dion is no stranger to couture. In fact, did you know that for the past five years, she has worn haute couture almost exclusively for her performances? You would if you’ve been following Vogue’s #CelineTakesCouture hashtag on Instagram. On the last lap of the Fall 2017 Couture season, we followed the Grammy Award–winning singer, who took a break from her current mini-tour of Europe for a high note of high fashion. It’s been a whirlwind 24 hours, and we’ve captured every moment, from a stripped-down look to microflorals made for taking in the Giambattista Valli show, naturally. Come for the visual fodder, stay for the rich captions—which are filled with lesser-known trivia that may come as a surprise to even the most devoted of Dion’s followers. As she says herself: “The clothes follow me; I do not follow the clothes.”