Jaguar has launched the estate version of its XF sports saloon, dubbed Sportbrake. Shooting brake is a traditional term for an estate—especially a posh one—and the Tata-owned brand has blended part of the term with the close-coupled, sporting nature of the XF range.
   For once, this Jaguar has grace, space and pace. The XF Sportbrake is a mere 5 mm longer than the saloon, with only a tiny increase in weight (less than 70 kg—considering the weight of a rear door and the associated structure, this is very little). The chassis rigidity, Jaguar says, is the same as the saloon’s, meaning that handling should be almost identical to the acclaimed original model.
   Every panel from the B-pillar back is new. The blacked-out D-pillar works to good effect on the Sportbrake, better than on the larger XJ where the design feature first appeared.
   The boot space is 550 l with the rear seats up, increasing to 1,675 l with them down.
   The rear suspension has been changed to accommodate the body style. There is self-levelling air suspension on these models. All models are rear-wheel-drive with an eight-speed automatic gearbox.
   It’s not Jaguar’s first factory estate: that honour goes to the X-type Estate, a model developed when the company was under American ownership.

For those following Lucire via their RSS readers, there are a few articles on the main part of the site that may be of interest.
   New York beauty editor Reiva Cruze gives her low-down on three of the collections at New York Fashion Week, with her special insight working behind the scenes.
   Additionally, international make-up artist Pat McGrath shows us how to get a smoky eye look, working on Canadian model Jessica Stam, in a special promotion.
   Before he went off to shoot Milano Moda Donna, Thomas Salme filed a story about one of the city’s biggest names in photography: Graziano Ferrari.
   And Yuka Murai checked out fashion and celebrity photographer Frédéric Aranda’s work as he gets unprecedented access to Japan’s secretive kabuki theatre. There’s an exhibition in London of Aranda’s work next month.
   In the travel section, Elyse Glickman goes to Fiji and stops off on Turtle Island, where The Blue Lagoon was made.
   Christchurch’s Shoezies has reopened in Wellington—publisher Jack Yan was there on opening night. He also tests the Mini Countryman Cooper S All4, the big crossover Mini that actually has plenty of charm and sets a new direction for the brand.
   You can also add Lucire on Pinterest: our little links began appearing in February for the eagle-eyed among you.

It is 26-year-old Pearl Going’s desire to climb the world’s seven summits in record time, with the help of Adidas Outdoor and Sony New Zealand—and she’s already on her way.
   She’s just emailed us after climbing Mt Aconcagua, being the first Australasian woman to do a full traverse of Aconcagua base camp to base camp in less than five days.
   Last August, she managed to tackle Mt Elbrus (5,642 m) in Russia, with Mt Kilimanjaro (5,895 m) following in November.
   She is the first New Zealand woman to tackle Elbrus’s north face, while she also took the more difficult traverse of Kilimanjaro. Lucire has managed to get these images from the Kilimanjaro expedition.
   Guy Cotter is behind Going’s training in New Zealand, with the climber working in Wanaka to refine her skills.
   So far, Going says she has not felt any difficulty at 6,000 m thanks to her training.
   Her next target is Mt Everest, scheduled for April–June.

The last day of fashion week in Milano: Lucire has videos from Dsquared², Giorgio Armani, Roberto Cavalli and Gianfranco Ferré. The day saw an extravagant closing of the Cavalli show by supermodel Naomi Campbell.
   Dsquared² showed an autumn–winter 2012–13 collection based around a 1963–4 American high school class, and girls raiding their mothers’ wardrobes for dances and the prom. It was a fun collection where the theme translated well on to the catwalk: humorous, up front, and still stylish.
   Giorgio Armani went with masculine styles but said that he wanted them to be light and wearable. Models came out in fedoras before donning wide-brimmed hats, while the loose suits and A-line dresses emphasized the easy chic that Armani wanted to show. It was the colours that got us: usually known for more subdued tones, Armani wasn’t afraid to inject pinks and oranges into autumn, and did so very successfully. A perfect show for the final day at Milano.
   Roberto Cavalli impressed with his show, with 39,000 roses on the runway arranged in a tiger pattern, to supermodel Naomi Campbell in the finalé. The craftsmanship was evident: Cavalli created some of his prints by hand, painting them on to canvas; they were even reproduced in crystal. The trade-mark animal prints were on full show, with heavy use of animal skins and furs.
   Stefan Citron and Federico Piaggi, at Gianfranco Ferré, toned things down for the label, and their oversized lapels and collars worked on their coats and dresses. Panel dresses and gloves distinguished this collection. We were impressed by the geometric cuts, which again remind us that style is so often not about ornamentation, but the lack of it. Citron and Piaggi understand the importance of getting the foundation right.

Dsquared²

Giorgio Armani

Roberto Cavalli

Gianfranco Ferré

London has prepared to market itself in advance of the Olympics, and what better way to show off its up-to-the-minute nature than using the recently concluded Fashion Week?
   The videos shown here are from the London Media Centre, which states in summary: ‘As the countdown to the 2012 Olympics continues, the UK fashion industry is playing its part in the celebrations surrounding the Games, with famous celebrity designers, up and coming stars and catwalk models all getting involved.’
   While Lucire readers had access to live streaming video from London Fashion Week, these videos are of interest because they show behind the scenes footage and interviews (including Fyodor Golan preparing for its LFW début and Mary Katrantzou), with a more industry-focused perspective. Claudia Schiffer, Victoria Beckham and the British Fashion Council’s chairman Harold Tillman, CBE all appear. There’s also a bit of history in the first one.
   The Britain Creates 2012 project, where fashion designers and artists collaborate on artworks, is a highlight of the London 2012 Festival. It will be shown at the Victoria & Albert Museum during the Olympic Games.

London Fashion Week, a foretaste of the Olympics

LibertyLondonGirl: an accessible and affordable fashion shopping tour of Shoreditch

London Fashion Week B-roll

LFW extended interviews

East London: Shoreditch and Hoxton

Mister, the menswear label which Lucire fashion editor Sopheak Seng dubbed his favourite at New Zealand Fashion Week, is readying the very collection he saw for retail sale.
   As the label goes from strength to strength, so does the professionalism and depth of its marketing. Its latest campaign visuals for its autumn–winter 2012 collection are the best that Mister has done to date, while the behind-the-scenes video, shot by M3, makes for entertaining viewing.
   The autumn–winter 2012 collection has been inspired by the fairy tales and make-believe of the brothers Grimm, and is called Not So Grimm.
   The keystone of the Mister brand has long been its understanding and appreciation of fine British tailoring, applying that to a unique and playful æsthetic, fusing it with the street style of Asia.

MisteR Hansel & Gretel Photo Shoot from Mark Marchand/M3 on Vimeo.

John Shearer/Getty Images

Donato Sardella/Getty Images

Our west coast editor Elyse Glickman was at the Oscar functions last night and will file her story shortly, but we do have some images from the Oscar parties that had taken place the week before.
   Montblanc has really pushed its Collection Princesse Grace de Monaco this year, with three functions before the Oscars. The Vanity Fair party held on the 21st at the Hotel Bel-Air saw Amber Heard, Dianna Agron, Raquel Welch, Alana Stewart, Jackie Collins, Brian Grazer, Irena and Mike Medavoy, Sally Kellerman and Marg Helgenberger rub shoulders with Princess Grace Foundation president Toby Boshak, Montblanc North America CEO Jan-Patrick Schmitz, and Vanity Fair publisher Edward Menicheschi and LA editor Wendy Stark-Morrissey.
   Last Saturday’s function at the Hotel Bel-Air was even swisher with the presence of Prince Albert II of Monaco and Princess Charlene present, as Montblanc paid tribute to Princess Grace. Attending were, inter alia, Rosario Dawson, Teri Hatcher, Natassja Kinski, Rosanna Arquette, Giada de Laurentiis, Olga Kurylenko, Petra Nemcova, Michael York, Mischa Barton, Kate Mara, Kate Flannery, Tippi Hedren, Kelly Carlson, Michele Hicks, Kathleen Robertson, Marisol Nichols, Robin Tunney, Lydia Hearst, Amanda Righetti, Emily Proctor, India de Beaufort, Liberty Ross, Danny Huston, Jesse Metcalfe, Olivia d’Abo, Morgan Fairchild, Fallon Goodson, Dennis Haysburt, Michael Nouri, Roger Corman, Brenda Vaccaro, Kate Linder, Julia Verdin, Donna Mills, Sylvie Vartan, Mary Birdsong, Erin Murphy, Nate Parker, Cobie Smulder, Jimmy Jean-Louis, Brunson Green, Delphine Chaneac, Beatrice Rosen, Sheila Shah, Cara Santana, Adriana Abascal, and Lady Victoria Hervey.


John Shearer/Getty Images

Donato Sardella and Michael Kovac/Getty Images

Jeff Kravitz/Wireimage

Pascal Le Segretain/Wireimage

Top Meryl Streep and Jean Dujardin, Best Actress and Best Actor in the press room at the 84th Academy Awards. Above Jean Dujardin wearing the Jaeger-LeCoultre Memovox.

In our Oscar footage from last night, we first have Meryl Streep’s acceptance speech, for her portrayal of Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady.
   Streep, 62, was already the favourite to win after taking a BAFTA and a Golden Globe for her role.
   Streep gave an initially humorous, then a very emotional, acceptance speech, thanking her husband first. She then thanked her hairstylist and make-up artist Roy Helland. This was her third Academy Award.
   Jean Dujardin won Best Actor for silent movie The Artist. He was the first Frenchman to win the award, and the first actor in a silent movie to win since the Oscars’ first year.
   The Artist also won Best Picture, and its director Michel Hazanavicius took home the Best Director award.
   Christopher Plummer, 82, became the oldest acting winner as he took the Best Supporting Actor award for Beginners. Octavia Spencer won Best Supporting Actress for The Help.
   In our other Oscar highlights, Billy Crystal has a go at celebrity mind-reading as he puts a humorous spin on the lives of Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Morgan Freeman, George Clooney, Viola Davis, Martin Scorsese and Uggie the dog. Robert Downey, Jr presented a documentary pastiche as he and Gwyneth Paltrow presented the award for Best Documentary. Will Ferrell, meanwhile, played the cymbals as he presented with Zach Galifianakis. Emma Stone teased Ben Stiller about his Oscar wardrobe, while Sandra Bullock does her presentation in German—and not the claimed Mandarin.
   Following on from our Oscar red-carpet gown article, Angelina Jolie bared a lot of leg in her black Versace gown as she gave the Adapted Screenplay prize in our sixth video clip.

Billy Crystal’s Oscar highlights

Meryl Streep wins Best Actress for The Iron Lady

Billy Crystal’s celebrity mind-reading

Jean Dujardin wins Best Actor

The Artist director Michel Hazanavicius thanks Uggie the dog

The Artist wins Best Picture

Robert Downey Jr teases Gwyneth Paltrow

Will Ferrell and Zach Galifianakis

Angelina Jolie bares a lot of leg

Emma Stone teases Ben Stiller

Sandra Bullock presents in German