Actress, singer and all-American sweetheart Jessica Simpson last week announced she was pregnant with her first child.

We’re super excited for the 31-year-old and, while we can’t proclaim to be die-hard fans of her acting or singing abilities, we give respect where it’s due to her talents as a fashion designer. Honestly, this woman generates some serious dosh.

As the first celebrity whose clothing line has topped $1 billion in sales, it’s no wonder New York Magazine featured her on their cover with the tagline ‘Jessica Simpson, Fashion Mogul’.

Her empire includes clothing, accessories, shoes and fragrances and, more recently, she launched a ready-to-wear line which has brought in huge profit. While she might have been ridiculed as an airhead in her reality TV show years ago, it seems Jessica is a very savvy business woman indeed.

Famous for her ‘girl next door’ qualities, she’s channelled that sweet quality into a line that America’s gone absolutely mad for. Her clothing is girly, feminine and wholesome – she makes the kind of dresses teenagers would dream of wearing to the prom and, at around the £100 mark, many of them do.

While her label isn’t available in the UK (yet), for our fashionable friends over the pond it’s readily available. Take this classic LBD, for example, which, with its A-line cut is both classic and ultra-flattering:

Or how about the the nipped-in waist and old school glamour of this coat:

 Faux Fur Collar Coat, $228.00 $169.99.

 

And then there’s the wedges with bags of attitude:

Esteen Wedge Boots, $139.00.

Surprisingly stylish, we think you’ll agree. So we’re going to say this: watch out for Ms. Simpson, she’s quietly taking over a well-subscribed section of fashion with unrivalled success.

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I must admit that, perhaps unlike others, when I first heard Kanye West was launching a womenswear line, I was rather excited. Not excited in the way that Miu Miu’s glitter boots send me into total sartorial meltdown, or in the same way that the fashion world is waiting to hear who’s replacing Galliano, but in a way that I’m utterly intrigued and entertained by the idea that a jumped-up hip hop star who likes floor-length fur coats and excessive bling could make a go of it in another competitive creative industry.

Of course I had my doubts – one only has to look at Lindsay Lohan’s disastrous streak at Emanuel Ungaro to see that celebrity lines are ill-fated – but I also had hopes of having another Victoria Beckham surprise that sent the industry spinning on the very tables it turns on.

And so it was that Kanye West presented his first fashion collection at Paris Fashion Week on Saturday. He chose Lycée Henri IV, the prestigious public secondary school in the capital’s Latin quarter, to debut his designs, and invited an impressive list of no more than 100 guests who would sit on two single rows either side of the runway.

For all Kanye’s egotistical ways, it was a humble beginning to his career in fashion, and had his collection lived up to the calibre of its high-profile audience – Anna Wintour, Carine Roitfeld, Alexander Wang, Ciara and the Olsen twins all sat front row – this could have been quite the fashion moment.

Unfortunately, Kanye’s collection was everything it shouldn’t have been, but it wasn’t without effort. The hip-hop star – a regular fashion front-rower and fan, let’s not forget – seeked advice from London designer Louise Goldin after his attempt to enrole at Central Saint Martins was rejected earlier this year.

Despite his discipline, though, he presented a mis-matched collection of ill-fitting separates, inappropriately slashed dresses, jackets that swamped models’ small proportions and far too much fur for even the coolest kids.

Some pieces, like the slim-fit trousers or even the long-sleeved camel dress, were fine, but for the most part, items felt awkward. It wasn’t just that the tailoring was off, it’s that there lacked consistency and theme – apparent, perhaps, in Kanye’s post-show interviews where he fumbled through his inspirations with nerves and anxiety.

But that’s not to say he deserves a hounding. In fact, if his nerves show anything, it’s that he’s serious about his career in fashion – but hard-work and passion does not a designer make.

I dare say Kanye will be back next season, and that the intense criticism over his first foray into design won’t deter him any more than the haters will continue to hate, but I do hope he takes heed of his downfalls. He needs knuckle down, not on his publicity and promotion, but with a trained tailor to learn about cut and fit.

You never know, a moment out of the limelight might just do him good.

Images via Style.com.

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After all that’s gone wrong in the last six months for poor old Cheryl Cole, it was about time her luck changed for the better. And so, behold her latest career move – into the world of shoes.

The singer (do we still call her that?) has just announced an exclusive collaboration with Stylist Pick, that will see her launch her first footwear collection just in time for Christmas, as well as choosing her favourite pieces from the retailer’s monthly offerings and sharing style advice.

“We are thrilled to be working with Cheryl,” says Stylist Pick‘s chief creative officer, Juliet Warkentin. “Cheryl is the style icon and is amazingly warm, a quality that has made her the nation’s favourite. We believe that the launch will have a huge fashion impact; establishing fashion’s greatest influencer as a major force in fashion design and further democratising fashion.”

The collection will flaunt Cheryl’s penchant for glamour alongside accessible price points – and apparently she’ll be overseeing every part of the design process from production to packaging.

Of course, it makes sense – Cheryl’s been topping best dressed lists, covering fashion mags and working the title of style icon since we can remember, but the question is, do we really need another celeb label, and, more importantly, does Cheryl have the fashion know-how to pull it off?

We’re skeptical, but she has got quite the shoe collection to draw from (and we’re sure there’ll be plenty of girls queuing up to buy it), so we’ll reserve judgement until her collection launches in December.

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After being named “Stylemaker of the Year” by the Accessories Council last year, American rapper Kanye West has remained a firm fixture on the fashion scene ever since, and it doesn’t appear he’s going anywhere fast.

Despite trying to attend many major autumn/winter 2011 fashion shows this year, and subsequently getting rejected (ahem, Balamain), West has actually met with Central Saint Martins professor and A.P.C. founder Jean Touitou since then, and more recently, collaborated with famed French graphic design and art direction team M/M to produce a collection of silk scarves.

But it seems Kanye is taking his fashion motives one step further to prove he’s deadly serious about the industry – as if wearing Celine whilst performing at Coachella wasn’t enough – by working on his very own clothing collection in Paris.

West has reportedly taken up residence in Paris and will show a collection for spring 2012 in a “presentation-style format” this coming September, reports Fashionista.

We actually don’t know what to expect. But we’re excited all the same.

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Lily Allen to launch Lucy in Disguise Capsule Collection:
Awakening the designer within, ex-songstress Lily Allen has jumped on the sartorial bandwagon and is set to launch a clothing line under her Lucy in Disguise label that she shares with sibling Sarah Owen. Launching in June, the capsule collection will consist of dresses all named after noteworthy individuals and locations. Read more here!

First Look: never before seen shots of Coco Rocha:

Brainchild of artist husband James Conran, Coco Rocha has launched a brand new website with archives and never-before-seen photos from her past seven years in the industry, documenting the Canadian model’s stellar career since her first brush with modelling aged just fifteen. Read more here!

Eliza Doolittle models for Moschino:

Cheeky pop crooner Eliza Doolittle proved her talents under more than one spotlight, after bagging the chance to model Moschino’s Cheap And Chic SS11 campaign. Apparently the label chose Eliza because “her fresh and playful personality interprets the new spring/summer 2011 Moschino CheapAndChic collection and embodies contemporary, young style.”  Read more and see the video here!

John Galliano’s successor won’t be named until autumn:

With rumours cropping up left, right and centre about Galliano’s replacement amidst the recent chaos of racial slurs and subsequent sacking, LVMH has dropped another bombshell: his replacement won’t be named until autumn this year. Read more here!

Thandie Newton launches British Designers Collective at Bicester Village:

Officially opened to the public on 31st March, the British Fashion Council’s second British Designers Collective launched at Bicester Village this week. Hosted by British beauty Thandie Newton, the BDC pop-up shop helps support London’s upcoming fashion scene, by allowing young British designers to showcase previous seasons’ collections complete with a lower price tag. Read more and watch a video of the launch here!

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It goes without saying we all secretly love cashing in on our favourite celebs’ sartorial fashion sense, but when we heard news that Katie Price is set to launch her own fashion and accessories label, well, that’s not quite what we had in mind for spring.

For those of you non-UK readers unfamiliar with Ms. Price, you might know her better for her pseudonym Jordan, aka The One With The Boobs Who Married Peter Andre And Then Divorced Him.

In addition to her perfume and book empire, the glamour model’s womenswear brand, Day 22, may not be to everyone’s taste – heck, it’s bound to be an acquired one – but it’s set to debut its first collection at young fashion tradeshow Pure Spirit later this month, according to Drapers.

“We named it Day 22 as on the 22nd of each month we will be adding new pieces to the collection including clothes, bags, sunglasses and shoes,” explains Katie. “We have had such a fantastic response already from the Twitter page we have set up which has included some teaser pictures and stores are already contacting us about stocking the brand.”

Price will collaborate her new business move with womenswear designer Lamis Khamis, focusing mainly on dresses, T-shirts and sweatshirts – no mention of velour just yet, but we’re sure it’ll crop up somewhere.

A few select pictures of the collection will be launched in a few days time, with further pieces added to the ‘premium boutique’ label every month as well as online – and, as fans of Ms. Price will be glad to hear, Katie will close the Pure Spirit catwalk show at Earl’s Court Sunday 13th February, followed by an equally anticipated question and answer session we’re sure.

Follow her progress and stay updated with all this Day 22 on Twitter at @Day22Tweets.

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Being seven months pregnant and missing out on Milan and Paris fashion week hasn’t meant uber stylist to the stars Rachel Zoe has been sitting at home knitting babygrows, oh no – the mum-to-be has more than that up her sharply-tailored sleeves.

The pint-sized fashionista has been working hard on her first line The Rachel Zoe Collection – but don’t worry, the business-savvy star has captured it all on film for her adoring fans. Cue the fourth series of The Rachel Zoe Project, please!

The new collection is set to feature an array of suited and booted outerwear items, including a smoking-inspired tuxedo jacket, WWD reports, and sitting alongside her entourage of power dressing pieces you can expect to see elegantly draped capes (what else?), an abundance of high-heel platform stilettos and, of course, handbags.

“I’d imagine everybody is expecting something from me that’s kind of a Seventies, uber boho-glam kind of thing, and, you know, very accessorized,” says Zoe. “And it’s not.”

But of course, such luxury doesn’t come without a hefty price tag (unlike her QVC line) – day dresses can reach anything up to $250, while a full-blown tuxedo look can set you back $700 – but perhaps not as steep as you might have thought considering Zoe’s fashion know how.

Manufacturing company Li & Fung has said no definite retailer has been secured to display the collection as of yet, but while we listen out for updates, take time to sift through the shoot Zoe styled especially for WWD – all with clothes from her new collection, of course.

[Images: Stephen Sullivan]

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