After a nearly year-long saga that started more rumors than any Real Housewives ever could, the speculation is over – Raf Simons will take over at Dior. The position has been open ever since John Galliano was fired after a video surfaced showing the designer making anti-Semitic remarks. Head executives at Dior took their time filling the position, and it seems to have paid off.

Simons was ousted from Jil Sander last February, a move that shocked many in the fashion world – his collections for the label had always elicited a glowing response from critics and editors – and left everyone wondering what he would do next. But it seems he may have already known – in the New York Times article by Cathy Horyn, it is revealed that his talks with Dior began back in October.

Though Simons’ minimalist aesthetic exhibited at Jil Sander may seem at odds with the frivolity that Dior is known for, Horyn points out that, “a romantic is surely what he is,” referencing his men’s wear collections that “projected a generation’s ideas and obsessions against a monumental backdrop.”  And at Jil Sander we saw a bit of this romanticism as he expanded beyond the strict minimalist silhouettes, incorporating feminine shapes based on ’50s couture pieces.

Simons will show his first collection for the house of Dior during the Fall ’12 Couture shows in July. Needless to say, we can’t wait to see what he turns out.

H&M’s eco-friendly Conscious Collection hits stores today, and this latest crop of sustainable styles takes things to another level. The collection includes several floor sweeping gowns with beading and embroidery, minis with bright pops of neon and gorgeous florals, and summery separates galore. Several pieces from the collection have already been worn by stylish Hollywood starlets including Michelle Williams, Kristin Davis, and Amanda Seyfried.

Along with the collection, H&M launched it’s 2011 Sustainability Report, which reveals H&M as the world’s largest buyer of organic cotton. They said that they hope to produce all of their cotton in a sustainable manner by the year 2020. “We really want to make sustainable fashion affordable and accessible to more and more people around the world,” said H&M’s Head of Sustainability, Helena Helmersson. “We offer both fashion and sustainability – not one or the other.” And that is definitely something we support!!

So if you have some spare time during Spring Break – head over to H&M and peruse the latest Conscious Collection!

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We already posted a recap of A Conversation with Jean Paul Gaultier and Suzy Menkes at the De Young Museum, but now you can watch it! The conversation, which was presented in conjunction with the grand opening of the exhibit, The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk, highlighted defining moments in the designer’s life and career. They also discussed the remarkable exhibit, which truly takes the idea of a retrospective exhibit to a whole other level. It will be on display until August 19th!

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Fashion Incubator San Francisco Designers in Residence: Tamara Jaric, Bethany Meuleners, Sabah Mansoor Husain, Tony Sananikone, Paloma Von Broadley, and Justin Jamison. Photo Courtesy of SF Weekly. 

The inaugural class of Macy’s Fashion Incubator San Francisco showed off their new digs at last night’s launch event. The Fashion Incubator offices and workshop sit on the 7th floor of the Macy’s men’s building – the perfect perch to get those creative juices flowing. Two School of Fashion alums, Bethany Meuleners and Sabah Mansoor Husain, were selected to take part in the year-long mentorship program, which provides the designers with an amazing workspace in the Macy’s offices, as well as crash-courses on everything from the financial aspects of fashion, to production, and media training. The Fashion Incubator program hopes to reinvigorate SF’s fashion industry, which has been on a steady decline for years.

We were lucky enough to tour the designers’ space – which is pretty amazing. Each designer-in-residence, as they’re called, has an office, drawing tables, showroom space, and access to some pretty amazing equipment. It is an amazing opportunity for the young designers to really build their label under the guidance of industry professionals – and we can’ wait to see their progress throughout the year!

Immaculate Conception by aaufashion 

One of our favorite sections in The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk was the amazing collection of portraits just as you enter the exhibition. Each of the portraits features dresses from Gaultier’s Spring/Summer 2007 Haute Couture Collection - Virgins. The collection, beautifully displayed on mannequins singing a hymn, is absolutely stunning, featuring ethereal gowns and fantastic headpieces. And the images, specifically Immaculate Conception No. 3 (pictured above), are utterly arresting. The portrait, shot by Miles Aldridge, features model Alana Zimmer (who walked in the Academy of Art University Fall ’12 Fashion Show!) as the Virgin Mary. The colors are so vibrant – you can’t help but notice it.

We were so inspired by the portrait, that we created a Polyvore set to match. We hope it inspires you as you get ready for tonight’s JPG-themed Friday Nights at the De Young!

Follow the jump for a complete listing of items pictured. Read more…

Photo Courtesy of Fashion Indie.

Over the past few years it has become a given that CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Winners will collaborate with mass market retailers, and we’re so excited that this year’s winner, Joseph Altuzarra, will release a capsule collection for J. Crew! There has been speculation in recent months, but Altuzarra confirmed suspicions when he told Fashionista that the designs he created with the J. Crew team “will be coming out in a few weeks.”

“It was a really interesting project because it was a conflation of their language – or of their world – [and] of our world and putting it together,” the young designer said.

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Guess is celebrating its 30th Anniversary with one of their ad campaign icons – Claudia Schiffer. Schiffer first posed for Guess in 1989 at the tender age of 19 and now, 23 years later, she hasn’t aged a single day. The anniversary photos were shot by Ellen von Unwerth – who shot the several of the campaigns in the 80s – and they capture the signature Guess look: black and white, sultry and smoldering. It reminds us why they were called supermodels – a title that Schiffer clearly still deserves.

Follow the jump for some photos of the original 1989 ads, and the anniversary edition. Can you tell the difference? See more…

Stefano Pilati spoke at the French Institute Alliance Française on Tuesday night talk series, reminiscing on his 30 year career and his tenure at YSL, and quelled rumors of what he’ll do next. “I started to work in the fashion industry at a really early age, and somehow leaving Saint Laurent ended a chapter, a career I started almost 30 years ago,” the designer said. “For some reason, I haven’t planned any move.”

Though unsure of what the future holds, he spoke at length about his path through the industry, even offering some words of wisdom that we wanted to pass on to you! When asked how young people should approach working in fashion, he responded:

“Don’t lose your passion, be true to yourself… Go to work as soon as you can… Do any job in fashion. No matter what. I’ve been a salesperson in a shop. I’ve been an assistant, a stylist, done internships… I knew that I wanted to work in fashion. That for me was a the same thing, to be a fashion designer came up, but you have to try many things.”

So there you have it – you have to be willing to try many things to find the right fit. And, as Jean Paul Gaultier said as well, you have to have passion!

Read more from the interview on Fashionologie.

Photo taken with Instagram.

In case you missed this momentous occasion – or you just want to watch the excitement again – we’ve got a video! Peep Jean Paul Gaultier as he enters the School of Fashion and is greeted by hundreds of adoring students and faculty, and as he talks to School of Fashion Executive Director Gladys Perint Palmer about creativity in the fashion industry. And be sure to head over to the De Young Museum to catch his exhibit, The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk, it is a fantastic experience!

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On Saturday, the De Young Museum hosted a conversation between Jean Paul Gaultier and fashion journalist Suzy Menkes, in honor of the opening of the designer’s exhibit The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk. “Jean Paul Gaultier is one of the funniest, most talented, wittiest, and funkiest fashion designers I know,” Menkes began. The only thing we might add to the list: most charming – he really is wonderful to talk to, which we learned during his visit to the School of Fashion.

During the hour and half discussion, Suzy touched on everything from his early love of fashion inspired by the Folies Bergère, to his work with Madonna, and the business side of fashion that is seldom discussed. She was quick to point out how deserving Jean Paul was of the exhibition, saying, “I’d just like to start with something a little bit more serious. In fashion, the real reason that people last – and when it comes to Jean Paul Gaultier is probably talked about the least – is the technique, the skill, the handwork, the knowledge. Sometimes it gets buried underneath the fantasies of the clothes, but if you look hard, you will see the extraordinary craftsmanship.” And it is so true – going through the exhibition, you are able to see the intense attention to detail and all of the hard work – particularly when looking at the couture gowns.

When asked about his early years, creating the corsets and dressing Madonna, Jean Paul cited his mother and grandmother as inspiration, who influenced him from a very young age. “They taught me how women were: strong, clever, human – and sometimes stronger than men. I realized very quickly that women were more interesting and maybe even more clever.” And he sought to portray that through the clothing – it was not about sexualizing women, but about showing their power. He spoke of how much he enjoyed working with Madge – they had similar ideas and wanted to say the same things. He also confessed that the original cone bra was worn not by Madonna, but by his teddy bear, Nana, who had a cone bra made of newspaper, which you can see in the exhibition.

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