Who:

I often find myself overlooking jewelry as a shopping choice. I look at it, quite a bit, but when it comes to actually purchasing something, the instances are few and far between. Most of the jewelry I own I have received as a gift (although there are a few exceptions where I have treated myself!). I think that this may change since I discovered Helen Ficalora.

I abandoned the eternal search for the Little Black Dress years ago, getting a little bored with an item of clothing that never seems to have enough going on to satisfy my demanding and fanciful tastes. Well as they say, a watched pot never boils, and while my back has been turned

It’s another fashion fairytale; gorgeous girl gets scooped up off the street and suddenly finds herself as part of a two-season runway exclusive with a main designer and the face of his new campaign. In this case the gorgeous girl is Toni Garrn of Hamburg and the main designer is Calvin Klein.
Garrn had no modelling aspirations prior to her impromptu scouting encounter; on the contrary, she is currently in school and lives at home with her parents. Yet despite her nonchalance about this new chapter …

I may have mentioned Calypso by Christiane Celle before, but it was only in passing and this stylist-cum-designer-cum-boutique owner definitely deserves to be in the spotlight! Born in France and inspired by the traditional clothing of Nepal and India, Celle lived in Manhattan and worked as a stylist for several years before opening the first of her many boutiques.

A trendy haircut often cements your fashion status, so where better to look than to

Who:

Prior to the November issue of French Vogue we hadn’t. But our curiosity about the dude whose fabulous legs outshone Carolyn Murphy’s, wasn’t peaked until we watched this video of Andre J performing Alpha Kitty duties for ex editor-in-chief of Seventeen magazine, Atoosa Rubenstein.

We were so in awe of his larger than life personality that we did the obvious and went straight to Google. And after much digging, here, here and here we discovered  that…

We all know the model’s version of the fairytale: willowy beauty is picked out amidst the masses for some ineffable quality and is immediately whisked off to grace the Fashion Week runways. The reality is often completely different, and many girls aspiring to be on the catwalks often never make it there—or they do, but never get the big campaign that will get them to the top level of modeling.

Who: Bernadett Penkov, a rising German designer since 2005.
Why: Penkov creates elegantly feminine pieces with modern and somewhat masculine touches, and has fashion spheres buzzing after winning her second Moet & Chandon Fashion Debut award.

Spring/Summer 2008: Delicate fabrics in understated colors were draped into breezy and angelic dresses and tops, and structured jackets and trousers served to create a striking contrast to the collection.
What next: Penkov showcases her work in Shanghai next week, and we’re sure she’ll take the international stage by storm!