This week Karl Lagerfeld is in the Paris office of global newspaper Metro acting as a guest editor. The designer is notorious for his controversial public outbursts and today he took five minutes off from his duties to give his opinions on what's dominating the world's headlines:
Here's what Karl Lagerfeld had to say to Metro:
Karl on M.I.A. and her middle finger during Madonna's Super Bowl halftime show:
"Nowadays people give the middle finger quite quickly – it's not the best behavior. Everybody does that, what's new about that? It's just become a bad habit. People in magazines are 50% bimbo and 50% pregnant women."
Karl on Adele, Florence Welch and Lana del Rey:
"I prefer Adele and Florence Welch. But as a modern singer she is not bad.The thing at the moment is Adele. She is a little too fat, but she has a beautiful face and a divine voice. Lana del Rey is not bad at all. She looks very much like a modern-time singer. In her photos she is beautiful. Is she a construct with all her implants? She's not alone with implants."
Karl on Barack Obama's claim that he "deserves" to be re-elected:
"Yes he does, especially because of Mrs. Obama. I'm a big fan of Mrs. Obama – and her face, I think, is magical. He would not be there without her. There was an article by some stupid woman, I forgot who, and she said she [Mrs. Obama] was poorly dressed. Mrs. Obama is not a fashion statement, she has other things to do. ...My favorite line of Mrs. Obama is when a journalist asked her if she thought her skirts were not too tight and she answered, "Why you don't like my big black ass?" This is a line I admire. She got me with that. So I want Mr. Obama who I think is very okay— because there is nothing better anyway — [to be re-elected], especially because of her."
I never voted in my life. I will never vote. I know too much about politics from what's going on backstage. To vote you have to believe all that garbage that they promise you, and they can't keep those promises. If someone gave me an Obama pin, I would just put it on.
* UPDATE: Kristina Schake, Director of Communications to First Lady Michelle Obama released a statement saying, "Mrs. Obama never made that statement."
Karl on women in Russia:
"If I was a woman in Russia I would be a lesbian, as the men are very ugly. There are a few handsome ones, like Naomi Campbell's boyfriend, but there you see the most beautiful women and the most horrible men."
Karl on sustainable fashion:
"I don't know what you consider as sustainable fashion. Do it, but don't make a subject out of it. It's a little bit boring."
Oh, Karl. What would we do without you? You can check out more "Karlisms" over at Metro.
This picture of Kristen Stewart is causing a fashionable stir across the Internet. Apparently, while the actress was on set with Karl Lagerfeld - allegedly shooting a fashion editorial for the June issue of Vanity Fair - she was snapped giving someone quite an emphatic middle finger.
Was Kristen giving the finger to Uncle Karl behind his back or was the gesture intended for the paparazzi who were reportedly stalking the Twilight star during her Paris visit.
No word from Kristen's camp on who it was meant for... but judging from the picture who do you think that Kristen Stewart was giving the middle finger to?
To celebrate the launch of his exclusive Net-a-Porter masstige line Karl, Karl Lagerfeld teamed up with the online luxury retailer to create a crazy new video which features the legendary designer interviewing... himself.
Is Net-A-Poter's Karl Lagerfeld video pure genius or pure craziness?
She starred in the Marc by Marc Jacobs fall/winter 2011 ad campaign and she hit the red carpet throughout 2011 wearing gorgeous couture threads by Chanel and Valentino, but that doesn't mean that Elle Fanning is in a hurry to get dressed up like an adult.
In February's issue of Teen Vogue, Elle Fanning talks about something unheard of in Hollywood... the 13-year-old actress tells the glossy that she doesn't want to look like a grown-up when she hits any of her fashionable Hollywood premieres. Elle claims that: "I'd much rather look like a two-year-old than a 21-year-old". In fact she's decided that she has no interest in wearing diamonds, red lipstick or fancy gowns until she's older.
"You don't want to do everything right now," she tells Teen Vogue. "You want to wait for that special moment."
Elle Fanning is one of the few starlets in Hollywood who is regularly praised by critics for dressing her age. But. Just because Elle's "age appropriate" on the red carpet doesn't mean that she doesn't have a passion for fashion. The young actress claims that she knows what is going on in the fashion world and she knows exactly what she likes and dislikes. Elle follows style blogs, stays on top of runway trends and is able to track down tons of youthful pieces from designer's like Marc Jacobs, Karl Lagerfeld and Rodarte for her red carpet appearances.
Fashionistas aren't Elle's only fans. Elle even receives praise from her stylish sister in the February issue of Teen Vogue. Big sister Dakota claims: "She's the go-to fashion person in the family. Elle knows every single model, every single collection, every single piece from every single collection. She has a real passion, and it's not at all in a materialistic way. She genuinely appreciates the workmanship and creativity."
Dreaming of a Dolce & Gabbana collaboration with H&M or Target collaboration? According to Domenico Dolce it's never going to happen. In a recent interview with WWD the designer insisted that the Italian design duo would not be following in the footsteps of designers like Karl Lagerfeld, Stella McCartney, Lanvin and Versace.
Stefano Gabbana: [laughs] I ask him if he goes to mass to design collections...
Domenico Dolce: It's classic elegance. Elegance is always beautiful, contemporary and timeless. It doesn't have to be about the latest trend, or from a signature brand. Its forever. Recently, it's all "trusciume" [in Sicilian, cheap, trashy] — there's no quality, these fast-fashion companies churning out looks. People thought it was cool, but it's cheap. You can't expect quality at 20 euros [$27]. It's like good codfish at 5 euros [$6.70] -- how can it be? But it's not a matter of price. Elegance is intellectual; it's about good taste, the cut, proportions, quality, how you carry yourself.
Looks like Dolce & Gabbana fans will have to keep saving up for the real thing.
Karl Lagerfeld presented his 78-look pre-fall 2012 collection for Chanel this week in Paris' Grand Palais. The Bombay-inspired runway was packed with top models like Arizona Muse, Baptiste Giabiconi, Jacquelyn Jablonski and Crystal Renn but all eyes were on a famous model mother/daughter duo.
47-year-old Yasmin Le Bon (80s supermodel and wife of Duran Duran singer Simon Le Bon) walked the Indian-flavored fashion spectacle alongside her 22-year-old daughter Amber.
Of course this wasn't the first time that the genetically blessed mother/daughter duo walked the Paris runway for Chanel. Amber kicked off her modelling career at an early age when Yasmin walked the then-20-month-old toddler (wearing a pink Chanel romper that Karl designed especially for her) down the runway with Gail Elliott at a Chanel show in 1991.
Ever wonder how much money Karl Lagerfeld makes? Women's Wear Daily did, so they looked into the projected 2012 retail revenues for the designer's burgeoning men's line, Lagerfeld.
The Lagerfeld mens collection is currently sold at about 350 locations across Europe (mostly in France, Germany and Russia) and in 2012 the brand is estimated to bring in around $108.2 million.
Remember the men's line is only a small part of the Karl Lagerfeld empire. The designer also brings in big bucks for designing the Chanel couture collections and the ready-to-wear lines for Chanel and Fendi. In 2012 Karl will also see revenue coming in from his new masstige line, Karl and his upcoming high-end women's line, Karl Lagerfeld Paris.
No doubt about it... Uncle Karl is going to make a ton of money in 2012.
Women's Wear Daily recently asked an impressive roster of fashion designers for their out-of-the-box ideas on how to fix the economy. Here are 8 fashionable responses from 8 very different designers.
Karl Lagerfeld:
"I think they should make a tax so that when you earn a certain amount of money, you have to spend a certain amount on shopping. To buy whatever... And that way, we create tons of jobs. I think it’s a good idea. What I hate is people with a lot of money who don’t spend it. Money is there to be spent, because it creates jobs... Believe me, it’s not a bad idea. You buy whatever it is; food, furniture, design, clothes, cars... whatever creates jobs."
Donatella Versace:
"I believe that in tough times it is still important—more important than ever, actually—to look your best. It is a way of boosting your confidence and the confidence others have in you."
Karl Lagerfeld is always entertaining fashion watchers with his never-ending gibberish. The latest? In a recent interview with The Independent, the designer takes a few minutes to chat about his homes on Paris’ Quai Voltaire... all five of them.
"Bon. Here's my street [drawing a map]. Look. Here is the Seine. Here is Quai Voltaire. Here’s one house. [He draws it.] I sleep there. I go here. [He draws a second house nearby.] It’s a town house where I go for lunch and everything. I cross the street. [He draws another house.] I have a huge office here and then I go here [and another] to my photo studio. And here [he pens a fifth and final residence] I have a guest house because I don't want people in my home."
So Karl has 5 townhouses that are all on the same street in Paris. Makes sense right?
