Celebrity Buisness

I may be one of the few (or many?) who dislikes the celebrity culture. It was Anna Wintour who, back in the 90's, dreamt up the idea to replace fashion cover models with celebrities as the face of Vogue. Of course all other magazines followed suit, and thus ushered in the age of the ubiquitous celebrity. You can hardly walk down the street today without spotting an of-the-moment star plastered across newsstands, vouching for the latest herbal energy drink, or announcing a new clothing line.

Where exactly is the line between film actor and omnipresent, pervasive social phenomenon? In the past decade, whatever once existed in the way of boundary seems to have evaporated. It appears that anyone of celebrity rank can become a fashion designer, and the title of 'style icon' is handed out like candy (not to mention it is in most cases the stylist behind the star who actually deserves the credit). A perfect example of the disastrous consequence of handing designer reins to an unqualified celebrity idol is Ungaro's heinous collection, created by Lindsay Lohan in October of this year. I can't remember the last time a fashion house received such overwhelmingly abominable press.

There are a few exceptions to my utter distaste for celebrities posing as designers. The Olsen twins have 2 lines, and I find Elizabeth and James to be exceptionally well executed, inspiring, and even wearable. Veteran stores such as Bloomingdales and Intermix offer a fairly large selection of items such as blazers, party dresses, and the boho chic pieces known as the twins signature look. The actress/model team of Milla Jovovich and Carmen Hawk have a sweet line called Jovovich-Hawk. I haven't seen anything for spring 2010 yet, but assuming its as romantic yet LA-edgy as their last 3 lines, I'll be a fan. In the meantime, I'll try not to trip and fall over the next celebrity disaster a I make my way around the City.