Donna Karan has built up one of the most successful American fashion houses over the last two decades. The brand is synonymous with elegant but practical style, so her clothes are worn by women all over the world.
Donna Karan studied design, but left college without completing her course in order to become an assistant at Anne Klein, a design firm. She became a designer there in 1974 following Klein’s death and won many awards for her work. She helped to launch Anne Klein II in 1983 – a line intended to close the gap between designer items and affordable fashion. The following year she launched Donna Karan New York with a collection aimed at working women.
She specialised in basic wardrobe items that every woman needs. In 1989 she launched DKNY, which offered a designer name at reasonable prices, making it affordable for the working woman who does not earn a six figure salary. Her ‘Essentials’ line added to the success of the brand, offering the consumer a basic collection of items that every wardrobe should have, such as bodysuits, jackets and jeans.
Donna Karan clothes are worn by many famous names including Barbra Streisand and Hillary Clinton, while her menswear collections are favoured by the likes of Richard Gere and Warren Beatty. The fashion collections are supplemented by home furnishings and body care products such as perfume.
There are around 30 Donna Karan boutiques worldwide, with the ready-to-wear collections also being made available in some department stores.
Donna Karan
Picture courtesy of [cipher]
Picked up on last year colour blocking is set to be a big trend again this year, looking at the spring/summer 2010 catwalk trends. Acid brights and garish bold pattern are also a huge trend this year so you can defiantly see that bright colours are defiantly in designer women’s wear.
Colour block
Colour blocking is a separate trend to the bold prints that we have seen flourish this year, as the name suggests you need to go for block colours in the basic hues, red, blue, yellow, pink, green and so on. With this trend experimenting in clashing colours is encouraged to make a statement but do remember to keep it simple, not too many fussy shapes or too many accessories.
Bright tops
If you’re not quite brave enough to clash your colours, try opting for colour blocks in the same tonal family or mix and match colours with white and black.
Accessories
Not every guy is a style expert, probably far from it however there are ways to keep stylish without much effort and that keeping it simple. For those who don’t particularly like shopping, buying the basics is a great way to have simple style. You don’t have to follow the trends instead opt for non fashion items that are wardrobe staples and don’t tend to really go out of fashion. Summer is a great time to mix and match your wardrobe to get the most out of it.
Jeans are a staple in anyone’s wardrobe, and are also great for the summer as we are not known to have that many scorching days, straight cut darker denims are a great base for any style, simple and go with anything. For a smarter look accessorise your jeans with a belt, preferably the same colour as your shoes! Shirts, long sleeved and short sleeved are always handy to have to smarten up any look, as well as t-shirts and polo shirts and if you like the style vest tops are also good for summer.
During the warmer summer months you probably won’t want to be wearing your heavy trainers and shoes so why not opt for some light shoes such as plimsolls and when and if it gets hot have some flip flops ready.
Once you have your wardrobe staples sorted out you can then look for a couple of accessorise to mix and match for your looks, sunglasses, hats and if its chilly a light scarf.
Wardrobe staples
For many a film buff the pieces on sale in this Hollywood auction are easily recognisable from some of the biggest films ever made, meaning a once in a lifetime opportunity for collectors. The auction which will be one of the biggest ever held in Hollywood is set to raise about two million pounds with an unprecedented range of 1,500 landmark items. Some of the pieces from the sale that stand out include:
From one of cinema’s most memorable song and dance sequences the “Diamond’s are a Girl’s Best Friend” sequence in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, is the famous pink satin gown worn by Marilyn Monroe, who played the part of gold-digging Lorelei Lee. It is thought to fetch £170,000.
The famous Wicked Witch of the West hat worn by Margaret Hamilton in The Wizard of Oz is also up for auction and film buffs will instantly recognise the hat which is made of black wool bunting fabric and has a wide brim supported by a steel hoop and a black silk scarf tied around its base.The hat which was used in key sequences of the 1939 film, the bidding for the hat is expected to reach £100,000.
Other items included in the sale also include the Holy Grail from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Darth Vader’s lightsaber from Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi, an X-Wing Fighter filming miniature from Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope and Johnny Depp’s vicious looking scissorhands from Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands.
These seasons ladies designer clothing must haves:
Colour of choice – Turquoise, defiantly a summer feeling colour, turquoise reminds you of being by the beach and the crystal clear waters and a great choice for a summer dress especially for a summer wedding. Looks good accented by black like below or with tons of gold and bronze jewellery for a tropical look.
Turquoise dresses
Length of dress – Maxi, this year again the maxi dress is a must on most lists, a great dress to wear for both day and night, it doesn’t need much to change it up. Maxi dresses are also great if you don’t like baring your legs, you can keep them hidden but also keep cool another holiday must!
Maxi dresses
Patterns – Bright and Bold! There is a mixture of styles, patterns and colours in this year, but one way to mix them all is opting for a popular choice as seen on many catwalks, bright and bold patterns. Clashing colours and outrageous patterns will be a big hit and can be mixed and matched to keep your looks fresh. Remember to not go over the top with your accessories tho keep them simple to show off tour clothes.
Bold brights
Recently we have had a taste for summer, with a break in the cloud so some sun got through, so for you guys it’s time to start thinking about summer wear fashion. It doesn’t matter if you’re partying it up this summer in Ibiza or chilaxing in your garden having a BBQ you can enjoy the funky summer styles that are on offer.
Brights are in so stand out from the crowd with funky bright t-shirts great to wear with shorts when it’s hot or with jeans for a smarter look. You also don’t want to be mixing lighter clothing with chunky shoes or trainers so opt for flip flops (but make sure your feet look tidy) they will also keep you cool!
Hats are also another big hit this season so add some class with a trilby, straw ones like the one below are great if you’re heading to the beach and you can style it up for an evening with a canvas one for a smarter look!
All you need to remember is to keep cool in the heat!
Summer clothing styles
She may be the darling of the British catwalk but Agyness Deyn has a few more tricks up her sleeve! She has now designed a range of t-shirts for Uniqlo. Known for her rocker chick sense of style Ms Deyn has already starred in some colourful ad campaigns for the bargainous Japanese high street chain.
Both her and her sister Emily Deyn have come up with a funky limited edition collection of tees which are emblazoned with retro Polaroid photos, and take inspiration from the punk era. Agyness sister Emily also has fashion in her blood is a designer and owns cool Manchester-based fashion label Hussaindeyn, their UT women’s collection is now in store and online and design costs £12.99.
The nautical look is in fashion this season, an ideal time to flaunt this look is on holiday you can be excused for going a bit over board but just remember not too much. Blue is an all important colour in this look either block, striped or spotty for a retro feel, and working it against a white backdrop like white linen trousers or pretty white dresses makes it stand out.
Key accessories if you going for simple style nautical clothing are broaches, bracelets, necklaces and hats in a funky hello sailor style. Red also goes well and can make an outfit pop when you have slight hints. A good thing to remember when wearing any kind of style like this is not to go too over the top you don’t want to look like your captaining a vessel or a shipmate!
Hello sailor holiday wear
Summers finally looking like it’s on its way, well for now anyway so for fashion conscious guys it’s time to look at designer menswear to see what’s there.
Luckily for you guys t-shirts are a popular choice of clothing meaning there is huge choice no matter what your style is and because the t-shirt is so versatile you have so many more options, which is great for those of you who aren’t that keen on shopping.
Many things now dictate the style of clothing available and one of the biggest is the music industry either rock, R&B, Hip Hop, House or electric can sway a person on to a style which feature on many t-shirt designs.
Funky Hip Hop and House t-shirts
Chilled indie t-shirts
Indie looking kids with their faded t-shirt in homage to their favourite bands, or Hip Hop street styles and slang used to draw attention with vivid almost graffiti like designs. However not everyone likes to draw attention to what they are wearing but never fear the plain t-shirt will always be here. You can either opt for the safe but still sexy white t-shirt or lighter spring colours such as pale blue or pale green and if you a little more daring maybe some brights!
Plain t-shirts
When summer finally hits it will be a great time to wear this seasons must own, the maxi dress. Now although a big fashion hit they are not suitable for everyone to wear, and not all styles suit everyone either, but for those who suit them there is a great choice of styles and patterns to choose from so now is the time to start looking at this must have fashion item.
Now for those who can wear maxi dresses they are not only flattering but also practical especially for those who don’t like baring their legs, they also can be dressed up for glam evening wear at a special occasion or dressed down for a casual summer evening. One of the things to look at when buying them is length, if your are tall normally maxi dresses are great when you wear them with pretty sandals as the bottom just skims the floor however can look slightly off when worn with sky high heels. The same goes if your shorter the bottom can end up dragging across the floor if you don’t wear them with heels, however the only plus side for shorter people is that you can have your dress altered to suit.
Patterned Maxi Dresses
Bright patterns and tribal prints are big too this season and are popular designs for maxi dresses, it just depends how brave you are, if you don’t feel comfortable wearing a brash pattern why not try a block colour instead.
Glam Maxi dresses