As Kate prepares for her first Christmas as the Duchess of Cambridge, there has been a media buzz surrounding the future queen and what she will be wearing on the day. Rumours of 5 outfit changes at Sandringham - 3 meals, a morning church service and evening drinks to dress for - Kate is under pressure to impress on Sunday.

Kate has had a flurry of media attention over the past month, with the lead up to Christmas, rumours of pregnancy and many public appearances including Gary Barlow’s charity event earlier this month and the Military Awards, a ‘Night of Heroes’ this week. Kate remained elegant and glamorous as always. With confirmation that she is not pregnant, Kate has continuously dressed to impress at all her recent public appearances.

At the Military Awards, on Monday 19, December, Kate wore a stunning Alexander McQueen gown, the same designer as her infamous wedding dress from earlier this year. As Kate and Prince William arrived at the awards, they were undoubtedly the most prominent couple at the event; they were also accompanied by Prince Harry. In addition Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge presented an award for the Most Outstanding Soldier, which went to Ryan McCready.

2011 has been a rollercoaster of a year for Kate, with the wedding, her royal visit to North America, numerous public appearances and easing herself into day-to-day royal life - the Duchess of Cambridge has remained elegant and stylish throughout with each outfit choice. Similarly her sister Pippa Middleton has had a crazy year, since making front page news with her choice of dress at Kate’s wedding - she has had a frenzy of media attention, continuously being compared to Kate and being linked to many eligible bachelors including Prince Harry.

If Kate can survive her first year in the spotlight and remain flawless throughout she will definitely live up to expectations at her first Christmas as a Duchess and will be as glamorous as ever in her 5 outfit changes.

Posted: December 23rd, 2011 under Kate Middleton.
Comments: none

The rich & famous flock to the gala launch of the retrospective exhibition celebrating the work of Alexander McQueen.

The exhibition - Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty - is being hosted by the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York & will feature the designer’s best known work.

Only four days earlier the label was revealed to have received one of the most prestigious commissions it could be possible to have. When Kate Middleton arrived at her wedding she was wearing an exquisitely executed design by Sarah Burton, McQueen’s ‘right hand woman’ for many years & creative designer for the label since his tragic death last year. The commission brought with it an establishment acceptance of the late designer who was seen as somewhat of a rebel, as well as his designs which had often been viewed as somewhat risqué.

Already well known & revered in the industry before his death, McQueen’s prominence & that of his label has since grown.

Earlier this year Michelle Obama caused a furore among American fashion designers & journalists when she chose to wear a flame-red floor-length McQueen gown to state dinner in honour of China rather than something from an American label..

On display at the retrospective are McQueen’s very early designs through to his final collection, but grouped according to theme rather than in any sort of chronological order.

As he walked through the exhibition McQueen’s former colleague & friend – the milliner Philip Treacy – reportedly said: “For me, this feels horrific, but [McQueen] would have loved it – he would have pretended that he didn’t, but he would have, and the wedding dress would have given him such a sense of validation,”

“Fashion is supposed to be effortless, but when I look at every piece I think of what he put into it and how in the end the sheer pressure of creativity killed him. He promoted this idea of himself as an enfant terrible but he was actually a very sweet and gentle person – he wouldn’t have wanted you to know that, either.”

Celebrities ‘on display’ at the exhibition included: designer Karl Lagerfeld, actress Renée Zellweger, singers Mick Jagger, Madonna, Beyoncé, & Rihanna, models Alexa Chung, Miranda Kerr, & Iman, & tennis star Serena Williams.

Meanwhile Clarence House has announced that the Duchess of Cambridge’s wedding dress is to go on display, though as yet there is no decision on the time or venue.

“The Duchess of Cambridge is considering a number of options to give members of the public the opportunity to see, close up, the skilled British craftsmanship that went into the making of her wedding dress by Sarah Burton and her team as well as the Royal School of Needlework,” the statement read.

Posted: May 3rd, 2011 under Uncategorized.
Comments: none

The Sunday Times has announced that Sarah Burton, creative designer of the McQueen label is to make the dress that Kate Middleton will wear when she marries Prince William next month.

At Paris fashion week the news sparked surprise & excitement. So far Kate Middleton has worn demure low key outfits. It would be a somewhat of a divergence for her to wear a design from the label, associated with controversy as it is.

Up ‘til now both the designer & the design have been a closely guarded secret. The label was quick to categorically deny the claim & Clarence House responded by saying: “We’re not commenting on the specific designer for the dress because Catherine Middleton wishes to keep the designer a secret until the wedding day.”

Millions of people have been interested to know the details surrounding the creation of the royal wedding dress, both within the fashion world & among the public, but it is likely they will have to wait still longer before the designer & design are revealed.

Many believe that the claim has substance to it, but if it is indeed true the house of McQueen would have no choice but to refute the claim until such time as Clarence House chose to disclose the information.

Sarah Burton, McQueen’s former colleague & right hand woman, became creative director of the brand following his tragic death at the age of 40 when he hanged himself last year. Burton was responsible for directing the completion of the sixteen outfits which represented McQueen’s final collection & last October presented the first Alexander McQueen collection under her own name at Paris fashion week meeting critical acclaim.

Burton is a highly accomplished designer with a wealth of experience, capable of producing beautiful clothes under enormous pressure. She would most certainly be up to the challenge. To create the royal wedding dress is one of the most prestigious commissions for years – it will be a real coup for whoever has landed it, guaranteeing world wide publicity. Both Burton & the McQueen label already have a high profile both within the industry & beyond, but if the dress is capable of taking awareness of both McQueen & Burton to a wider audience then the dress will play a role far beyond its intended purpose.

Posted: March 7th, 2011 under Uncategorized.
Comments: none

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is set to hold a major exhibition of the late designer’s fashion creations.

The exhibition “Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty” will run from 4th May to 31st July & will have a Gala launch on 2nd May. It will feature more than a hundred examples of McQueen’s work spanning his 19 year career in fashion design.

Stella McCartney - who was a close friend of the designer - will co-chair the exhibition.

Thomas Campbell, the director of the Met, and Andrew Bolton, curator of its Costume Institute, spoke highly of the artistic merits of the late designer’s work. “His work fits so easily within the discourse of art,” said Campbell. “He can be considered no less than an artist whose medium of expression was fashion.”

Bolton said: “His fashions were an outlet for his emotions, an expression of the deepest, often darkest, aspects of his imagination. He was a true romantic in the Byronic sense of the word – he channeled the sublime.”

The exhibition will be organized according to theme rather than in chronological order. The exhibition will begin with a gallery named The Savage Mind, & include another named Romantic Gothic which will be centred around the Romantic literary themes of melancholy death & decay which so absorbed him..

Included will be his 1994 Nihilism collection, the McQueen tartan from his Highland Rape collection & his posthumous Angels & Demons collection shown last year.

The exhibition will also feature a small projection of the Kate Moss Hologram which featured in 2006 following the scandal over her cocaine use,

With London fashion week under way it was the ideal time for the preview of the upcoming exhibition which has been unveiled at the Ritz. The venue is deliberate. It was here in 1993 that McQueen first showed his collection of designs at his graduate fashion show ‘Taxi Driver’ based on the film of the same name. It was the first of what were to become eagerly anticipated shows; unconventional, unpredictable, extraordinary extravaganzas of highly imaginative performance and design.

The preview – which was unveiled by Anna Wintour and Samantha Cameron, was also attended by Stella McCartney - who will co-chair the exhibition - & Sarah Burton who worked with McQueen for 14 years & is now creative director for the label. Cameron said she was “thrilled by this recognition of British fashion”.

McQueen was considered by many to be at the forefront of world fashion with his innovative designs which pushed the boundaries and raised the profile of the British fashion industry.

Posted: February 24th, 2011 under Uncategorized.
Comments: none

Sarah Burton has been appointed new creative director for the label.

Earlier this year following the suicide of Alexander McQueen, it seemed unthinkable that the brand could continue without its iconic designer. However, as it became clear that the label still held vast commercial potential, its parent company Gucci put an end to the idea that it could not survive without its creator.

Now McQueen’s former colleague & right hand woman, Sarah Burton, is to oversee the creative direction & development of the brand. Following McQueen’s death Burton was responsible for directing the completion of the sixteen outfits which represented his final collection. Eighty per cent finished at the time, a design team of five working under Burton’s direction completed the outfits which were presented at Paris fashion week, meeting with critical acclaim.

Burton, aged thirty five, grew up in Manchester & studied at Central St. Martin’s College of Art & Design from which McQueen himself had graduated with a master’s degree in fashion design. In her final year – 1996 – she began working with McQueen, & in 2000 was appointed head of women’s wear design.

In response to her appointment Burton announced, “The creation of modern, beautifully crafted clothes was at the heart of Lee’s vision. I intend to stay true to his legacy.”

Mr. Jonathan Akeroyd, president and Chief Executive Officer of Alexander McQueen, said of the appointment: “We are delighted that Sarah has agreed to take on the role of creative director. Having worked alongside Lee McQueen for more than 14 years, she has a deep understanding of his vision, which will allow the company to stay true to its core values. Sarah is extremely talented and under her creative leadership we are ready to enter a new phase in the brand’s history.”

Robert Polet, president and Chief Executive Officer of Gucci Group, which owns 51% of the McQueen brand, said: “As a business we remain absolutely committed to the Alexander McQueen company which has proven to have strong customer loyalty and has shown to be a resilient brand in the aftermath of the tragic loss of its founder. Sarah has real talent, a close understanding of the brand and the vision necessary to take it forward. We will be giving full support to Sarah and the team in the coming years.”

The Gucci group plans an extension of the brand, & is due to launch a collection of men’s underwear next month.

Burton will present her first full spring collection in October in Paris following a pre-collection presentation in June.

Posted: May 28th, 2010 under Uncategorized.
Comments: none

The Westminster coroner – Dr Paul Knapman – recorded a verdict of suicide at the inquest today into the death of fashion designer Alexander McQueen today.

The coroners court heard how McQueen’s body was found by his housekeeper - César García – when he arrived for work at the designer’s flat in Mayfair  in central London on February 11th – the day before the funeral of his mother, Joyce.

Arriving for work, Garcia discovered the front door was chained from the inside, and managed to get in to the flat through the utility room. He became aware that McQueen’s dogs were whining, & noticed that the there was a bit of a mess in the main bedroom. A candle was burning on the floor of the second bedroom, & it was here that Garcia discovered the body of his employer hanging in the wardrobe.

An ambulance was called, but upon examination the paramedic realized that there was no chance of resuscitation, rigor mortis having already set in.

The causes of death were found by the post mortem to be asphyxia & hanging. According to a toxicology report, McQueen had taken a quantity of tranquillisers, as well as a ‘substantial’ amount of cocaine & sleeping pills before he hanged himself.

The inquest heard how McQueen was struggling with depression, compounded by the death of his mother.

Dr Stephen Pereira - the designer’s psychiatrist - said that for at least three years McQueen had suffered from a mixed disorder of anxiety & depression. He also informed the inquest that McQueen had taken drug overdoses as ‘cries for help’ on two occasions.

He went on to speak of how McQueen’s workload had directly impacted on his mental state. “He certainly felt very much pressured by his work, but it was a double-edged sword,” said Pereira. “He felt it was the only area of his life where he felt he had achieved something. Usually after a show he felt a huge comedown. He felt isolated; it gave him a huge low.”

He went on to suggest the devastating effect McQueen’s mother’s death had for him. “He was a very secretive person. Over a period of time he had been let down by various friends who he felt were taking advantage of who he was. For that reason he was very guarded.

“He had been terribly let down in long-standing close relationships. He was very close to his mother. I think on top of the grief he felt there was that one link that had gone from his life and there was very little to live for.”

Pereira described how McQueen had frequently missed his scheduled psychiatric sessions, saying that there had been “enormous difficulty in getting him to personally, physically come to appointments”.

Dr. Knapman concluded that McQueen had “killed himself while the balance of his mind was disturbed”.

Recording the verdict Dr Knapman said, “It’s such a pity for a man who, from a modest start, climbed to the top of his profession only to die in such tragedy.”

Posted: April 28th, 2010 under Uncategorized.
Comments: none

Last Thursday the world was stunned to learn of the death of fashion designer Alexander McQueen at the age of forty.  Why did he die?

Born Lee Alexander McQueen, the youngest of six children and the son of a London Cabbie, McQueen was considered by many to be at the forefront of world fashion with his innovative designs which pushed the boundaries and raised the profile of the British fashion industry. He won the British Designe of the Year award four times, and was also named International Designer of the Year in 2003. His eagerly anticipated shows, unconventional  and unpredictable, were an extraordinary extravaganza of  highly imaginative performance and design. McQueen himself described them as “the culmination of everything that goes around in my mind.’’

It has been cofirmed that the upcoming London Fashion Week will honour McQueen by featuring a tribute to him.which is to be discussed with and approved by his family.

When it was announced last week that he had been found dead at his London home, there were reports that he had killed himself. The police would not comment on these reports, but said that there were no suspicious circumstances and that a  post mortem had been scheduled. Statements were issued expressing shock and grief and asking that the media repect the family’s request for privacy.

Today the reports of apparent suicide were confirmed when, following Monday’s postmortem, an inquest into his death heard that he had left a note then hanged himself in his wardrobe. The hearing today lasted only five minutes and a full inquest will take place in late April.

It has been widely reported that McQueen was absolutely devastated by the death, on February 2^nd, of his much adored mother, Joyce, with whom he had a close relationship. He had expressed his grief and the difficulty he was experiencing in coping with this on social networking site Twitter, and took his life the day before her funeral. A few years earlier he had struggled with the death by suicide of his close friend and mentor Isabella Blow. It is believed that some friends and colleagues had been concerned about him of late, but nevertheless, the discovery of his body came as a shock.

The contents of the note McQueen left have not been made public. We have a ‘flavour’ of the anguish he was experiencing in relation to his mother’s death from his Twitter posts. The tragedy is that the essence of the man, the source from which his creative genius sprang, the emotional depths that lay behind the beauty of his inspiring creations may, on this final occasion, have resulted in a pain so unbearable that rather than a beautiful creation, they culminated in the ultimate destruction, the annihilation of the creative genius that was McQueen.

Posted: February 17th, 2010 under Uncategorized.
Comments: none