Shang Xia, a Chinese lifestyle brand, has launched its new Le Chant du Thé campaign images, photographed by Paolo Roversi. Jiang Qiong Er, the artistic director of Shang Xia, with the collaboration of the Fred & Farid agency in Shanghai, and Roversi himself, came up with the concept, playing on the brand’s Chinese roots. Jiang says, ‘More and more Chinese people, after spending so long dominated by western style, have a need to return to their own cultural heritage.’ By linking it to tea, at the core of Chinese civilization, the photographs feature tea leaves and even a pool of tea, alongside the Shang Xia Lan Yue leather and bamboo bag, the Sculpture overcoat in cashmere felt, and Bridge, a tea service crafted in bamboo.

   Italian supercar brand Lamborghini has announced a limited-edition Aventador LP700-4 Pirelli Edition, celebrating its collaboration with the tyre manufacturer. Pirelli has equipped Lamborghini cars since the beginning in 1963, and the Pirelli Edition, for which orders are being taken now, will be available for delivery in the northern summer. Coupé and roadster models are available. The Pirelli Edition features a two-tone colour scheme (matt black detailing combined with a body in Giallo Spica, Rosso Mars, Bianco Isis, Nero Aldebaran, Grigio Liqueo or Grigio Ater, or gloss black for the upper parts of the car and the air intakes, with four matt finishes in Bianco Canopus, Nero Nemesis, Grigio Adamas or Grigio Titans for the remainder). There’s a smidge more information on the new model at Lucire Men.

   Estée Lauder will acquire Glamglow, a Hollywood skin care brand with a collection of high-end treatment masks, with the deal to close in January.
   The current line includes five mud-based facial skin mask products, each targeting a different skin care concern: Youthmud for anti-ageing, Supermud for problem skin, Thirstymud for hydration, Powermud for deep cleansing, and Brightmud for the under-eye area. A range of daily cleansers will appear in January.
   The four-year-old company, originally called Hollywood’s Boutique Secret, already retails in Sephora, Douglas, Neiman Marcus, Selfridges, Harvey Nichols, Bloomingdale’s and, from January, Nordstrom.

Dita von Teese has unveiled a new collection, called XXXtian, as part of her lingerie range, in collaboration with Christian Louboutin.
   XXXtian, pronounced ‘X X Christian,’ features an exclusive silk toile de jouy print developed by Louboutin for his shoes and handbags in his spring–summer 2011 collection.
   The toile shows von Teese in her gilded birdcage dancing with her feather fans, and being fitted for custom Louboutin fetish boots, says the company.
   ‘Christian and I have been dear friends for years, and he has created many custom pairs of shoes for my burlesque shows. When this toile originally appeared in his shoe and handbag collection, I was honoured to have such a tribute,’ said von Teese. ‘I’m so thrilled that he generously allowed me to offer this risqué print in luscious Italian silk in my Tulip collection, plus a glamorous 1940s style negligée and dressing gown for the ultimate luxury lingerie experience.’
   Louboutin said, ‘The Toile de Jouy is the essence of French 18th-century feminine sophistication. No one can be closer to a modern Marie-Antoinette than Dita, her curves and wit celebrated on a canvas dedicated to adorn either a shoe or divine lingerie.’
   The XXXtian collection comprises an underwire bra, corselette, garter belt, thong, bikini, a high-waisted brief and, for the first time, two chemises and a robe.
   It is available at Myer.com.au and glamuse.com.

Above Alive Skin & Hair offers Australian and New Zealand customers a range of 3,000 beauty products.

Alive Skin & Hair has launched, stocking over 3,000 hair care, make-up, beauty and skin care products, targeting Australian and New Zealand customers. The website stocks brands including Alpha H, ASAP Skincare, Dermalogica, Elemis, Jane Iredale, Joico, Matrix, Moroccanoil, Skinceuticals, St Tropez, Thalgo, and Youngblood, supplied straight from the manufacturer, and sold ay 15 to 35 per cent off the recommended retail price. Alive Skin & Hair can ship the same day for orders placed before 12 p.m. AEST, and shoppers earn points with each purchase. There are experts to help with online and telephone enquiries. Alive Skin & Hair also gives shoppers the chance to choose two new samples to try, for free, with each order.
   New Zealand natural skin care brand Living Nature has gained a bigger footprint in the Japanese market with a concept store on the second floor of the Grand Tree Musashikosugi Shopping Centre near Shibuya, Tokyo. Operated by @Star Japan, the Living Nature distributor there, the new store reaches thousands of Japanese shoppers, located a few minutes from the busy Musashi–Kosugi train station, which sees 390,000 commuters per day. @Star Japan, meanwhile, has operated since 2000, and has had a long-standing relationship with Living Nature.
   In a release, @Star sales and promotion manager Ai Takahara said, ‘This development of the concept store provides a way to engage with consumers and enable our highly trained staff to share their experience of the Living Nature range, which offers truly natural products for face and body.’
   In Cornwall, England, Spiezia Organics has rebranded, and is about to launch three new hair and body products, containing 95–8 per cent certified organic ingredients and botanicals. Its Organic Gloss shampoo features ingredients including lemon peel extract, zizyphus joazerio bark extract and dandrilys; its Organic Shine conditioner helps stimulate hair growth with ginger oil and lemon peel extract, and contains royal jelly to strengthen the follicles and prevent hair loss; and its organic hand and body cleanser has aloe vera gel, radish oil and lemongrass oil. Spiezia Organics’ commitment to the environment extends to its 100 per cent sustainable packaging, while it is the first UK company to have Soil Association accreditation across its whole skin care range.

Karl Lagerfeld has unveiled the 13th Chanel Métiers d’Art collection in Salzburg, Austria, recognizing its historical connection with Gabrielle Chanel (she got the inspiration for the Chanel jacket there, at the Hotel Schloss Mittersill, then owned by Baron Hubert von Pantz, with whom she had a fling). Lagerfeld discusses his collection in the video clip below, which showcases the Paris–Salzburg collection, featuring Cara Delevingne, who not only closed the show, but is the face of the collection itself.
   The presentation, at the Leopoldskron château, showcased the fine work of the feather-workers, milliners, tuckers and bootmakers. Lagerfeld took inspiration from traditional Austrian clothing, revisiting the dirndls and lederhosen, using loden, tweed, felt, leather and satin cashmere mix, taffeta and lace. Evening dresses featured pin-tucked fronts, frills, pleats and voluminous sleeves.
   ‘You can take inspiration from the apron, from the sleeves, from all the little details, but you have to forget it all and we do it in a new way,’ said Lagerfeld. ‘The star of Salzburg is about the jacket, but what I like is the craftsmanship, the embroidery with all the feathers. There is an unbelievable craftsmanship in all those clothes: most of the embroidery includes stones and many feathers, it’s like fur, it’s like flying fur. If you look at them closely, it’s quite unbelievable; when you see them or you touch them. So I tried, with beautiful fake pearls, to make interesting pearl jewellery that looks like embroidery. It’s the updated version of what I think it should be, could be, and had to be today.’
   In New York celebrity sightings, Lady Gaga has been spotted wearing the Blake wide-brim hat in oyster felt with pearl trim from Eugenia Kim’s fall 2014 collection last week, while Eva Longoria wore a Ralph & Russo spring–summer 2014 white silk crêpe cap sleeve embellished jacket with structured peplum, pencil skirt and black alligator belt to the ninth annual L’Oréal Women of Worth event.
   L’Oréal Paris notes that Longoria’s look uses True Match liquid foundation in C2 Rose Vanilla, the Volume Million Lashes Excess in Extra Black, Color Riche Le Kajal in 501 Oriental Black, the Super Liner Brow Artist Plumper in medium to dark, and the Elnett Volume Excess hairspray. Blake Lively, very much this year’s L’Oréal Paris celebrity with all the attention she garnered at Cannes, was also at Women of Worth, her look accomplished with True Match in N3 Creamy Beige, the Glam Bronze Powder Duo in 101 Blonde, the Flash Lash Butterfly in Intenza, Txt Wave Creating Spray, and the Nude Rose Color Riche La Palette.

   Polish model Anja Rubik, 31, meanwhile, has released her new perfume, Original. At Colette in Paris, she discusses some of her beauty tips from her career, including using eyelash curlers and moisturizing your skin. Rubik also reveals that Brigitte Bardot is her ‘ultimate beauty’, and rates Charlotte Gainsbourg and Patty Smyth highly.
   The perfume scents are those that have followed her over the years, namely white lilies and green tea, while the black-and-white imagery was inspired by her love of black-and-white photography and the work of Robert Mapplethorpe.
   Carrera y Carrera is going from strength to strength: the Madrid-based luxury jewellery brand has opened a boutique in Macau, as a first beach-head into China. Manuel Carrera, a fourth-generation descendant of the Carrera family who founded the brand, was on hand with CEO Svetlana Kupriyanova.
   Finally, in the main part of our site, travel editor Stanley Moss fits museums and great food into 48 hours in Torino, while publisher Jack Yan tests the BMW X1 Sdrive18d—readers might like the title.

Above Tous’s autumn–winter 2014–15 campaign and Carrera y Carrera’s Romance en el Loto collection emerge.

The Spanish labels are getting far more active, giving their better known French and Italian rivals a run for their money.
   While Zara’s been flying the Spanish flag for years in the budget sector, the much posher Tous has been promoting its wares Down Under, lately with a new store in Auckland in the Tower Building at 8 Customs Street West, next to the Customs Street House. The brand says it will open in Wellington and Christchurch, and give New Zealanders a taste of its luxury jewellery.
   By opening near Prada, Dior and Swarovski in the Tower Building, Tous believes the area will become a magnet for luxury brands for Auckland shoppers.
   Carrera y Carrera of Madrid, meanwhile, has shown its new Romance en el Loto (romance in the lotus) collection, which it calls a celebration of love.
   The new jewellery collection, with a delicate frog at its core, tells the story of founder Manuel Carrera, who, 50 years ago, spotted Marina—and, unbeknownst to him, he had caught her eye, too. It took some time before he mustered up the courage to introduce himself, and they have been inseparable since. The frog represents a ‘fun way’ of remembering that first meeting and the looks they gave one another. The lotus leaves are a tribute to Marina Carrera, symbolizing elegance, beauty and grace.
   The collection features rubies, diamonds and emeralds, in white and yellow gold.

Dan Sims

Above, from top Poppy Delevingne, Joan Smalls, Karlie Kloss, and Cara Delevingne, Model of the Year. Victoria Beckham, winning Brand of the Year. Emma Watson, who won the British Style Award.

Before an audience of 2,070 at the London Coliseum, the 2014 British Fashion Awards have seen Erdem and J. W. Anderson take out the coveted prizes of Womenswear Designer of the Year and Menswear Designer of the Year respectively. Anya Hindmarch was named the Accessories’ Designer of the Year.
   Actress Michelle Dockery, racing driver Lewis Hamilton, and models Karolína Kurková and Eva Herzigová, presented the much-awaited top three awards of the night.
   Actress Emma Watson won the British Style Award in a public vote (based on 3,000 participants), as the individual who best embodies the spirit of British fashion and is an international ambassador for London as a fashion capital. Harry Styles presented her award.
   Celebrity presenters on the night included Kylie Minogue, Naomie Harris, Anna Kendrick and Jeremy Irvine, Liya Kebede, John Galliano, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Naomi Campbell, Suzy Menkes, OBE, Karlie Kloss, Joan Smalls and Poppy Delevingne, Kate Moss, and Rita Ora and Nick Grimshaw.
   Victoria Beckham was named the best brand, recognizing her work in distribution, retail, campaigns and ecommerce.
   Cara Delevingne became the Model of the Year, while the Alexander McQueen brand took home the Red Carpet Designer award for creating global awareness of its designs in the media. Sarah Burton collected the award for the Alexander McQueen label from supermodel Moss.
   Preen was the awarded Establishment Designer of the Year with her work in global retail and ecommerce, while Simone Rocha was named the New Establishment Designer, for her impact on the industry.
   Of the awards named earlier, Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, OBE, was given the Outstanding Achievement Award for her contribution to the industry. W fashion and style director Edward Enninful won the Isabella Blow Award for Fashion Creator, and Chris Moore won the Special Recognition Award for his six-decade-long career and contribution to the industry.
   Names to look out for are Marques’Almeida, which won the Emerging Womenswear Designer award, Craig Green, the Emerging Menswear Designer winner, and Prism, the Emerging Accessory Designer winner.
   Nicolas Ghesquière, for Louis Vuitton, was recognized as the non-British designer who helped shape the fashion industry in the past year both in the UK and internationally, with the International Designer award.
   Louis Vuitton was recognized for its advertising in 2014 with the Creative Campaign award.
   The late Prof Louise Wilson of Central Saint Martins was also honoured in a special tribute, with looks by designers she had taught, including Christopher Kane and Mary Katrantzou.
   There were 63 nominees in total for the various categories, with 400 industry members worldwide casting their vote.
   Sponsors for the British Fashion Awards 2014 are Swarovski as principal partner; Canon, MAC, Toni & Guy and Vodafone as presenting sponsors; and American Express, Marks & Spencer, Mercedes-Benz, Penhaligon’s and Rightster. The British Fashion Council also recognizes Fashion Monitor and Harrogate Spa.

Dan Sims

Above, from top Michelle Dockery, and Womenswear Designer of the Year Erdem Moralioglu. Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, winner of the Outstanding Achievement Award.

Red carpet highlights

Highlights

Prism: Emerging Accessory Designer

Anya Hindmarch: Accessory Designer of the Year

Marques’Almeida: Emerging Womenswear Designer

Cara Delevingne: Model of the Year

J. W. Anderson: Menswear Designer of the Year

Edward Enninful: Isabella Blow Award for Fashion Creator

Victoria Beckham: Brand of the Year

Emma Watson: British Style Award

Louis Vuitton: Creative Campaign Award

Nicolas Ghesquière for Louis Vuitton: International Designer

Alexander McQueen: Red Carpet Designer

Erdem: Womenswear Designer of the Year

Chris Moore: British Fashion Council Special Recognition Award

Doug Rimington/Detune Photography

Above Marques’Almeida is the name to look out for in British fashion, as the label won the Emerging Womenswear Designer award at the British Fashion Awards 2014 tonight.

Above This campaign helped net Louis Vuitton the Creative Campaign Award at the British Fashion Awards tonight.

Neil Rasmus and Billy Farrell, of BFAnyc.com

Barneys New York unveiled its collaboration with film director Baz Luhrmann and four-time Academy Award-winning production designer Catherine Martin, christened Baz Dazzled, at its Madison Avenue store.
   Luhrmann, Martin and Barneys creative director Dennis Freedman, have taken holiday themes and, according to Barneys, in true Luhrmann style, ‘turned them upside-down into a world of fantastical characters, enchanted environments, and luxurious, metallic textures.’
   ‘From the first time my wife Catherine Martin and I found ourselves in New York back in the ’80s, we always marvelled at the way Barneys took the familiar and managed to turn it on its head. This way of seeing the world is somewhat akin to our own creative philosophy,’ said Luhrmann. ‘Here we are now, so many years later in our adopted home, honoured to join the pedigree of artists, performers, and creative organizations which have collaborated with Barneys, to take the familiar and turn it on its head.’
   Urbanized woodland creatures, including a b-boy elf, a “true owl” who always speaks the truth, a graffiti-ing squirrel, and Celestina the ice princess, inhabit a fantasy world ruled by the Luna and Solar queens. There is a series of live performances and interactive theatre in each of the Barneys windows.
   The themes for the four windows are love (Elphresh the elf pursues his impossible love, Elfemeral), beauty (the Spirits of the Snow, by artist Anthony Howe), truth (Truth, an eight-foot-tall steampunk true owl, by artist Chris Cole), and freedom (a trapped ice princess dreams of freedom).
   The Madison Avenue store’s façade ties in to the theme, with the Solar and Luna queens singing out of two Juliet balconies on the second floor.
   Music for the performances is provided by a cappella group Pentatonix, ­comprised of vocalists Scott Hoying, Kirstie Maldonado, and Mitch Grassi, vocal bass Avi Kaplan, and beatboxer Kevin ‘K. O. Olusola­who, who exclusively scored and recorded custom versions of classics. In addition, Pentatonix provided vocals to several characters.
   Costumes have been created by Zaldy, who worked with Martin. The performances were directed in collaboration with Luhrmann, Martin, Barneys New York, and Andrew Katz.
   A limited-edition Baz Dazzled XO Exclusively Ours collection of luxury holiday décor and gifts is available on the ninth floor of the Madison Avenue store, select Barneys stores nationwide, and Barneys.com. Items include an engraved Berti champagne sabre, a knit rabbit throw by Adrienne Landau, Studio DKS pillows, children’s costumes, stuffed animals, and exclusive Prada-created fur-lined sleeping bag and luxury picnic set.
   Pentatonix sang at the unveiling, singing, with the Luna and Solar queens, Madonna’s ‘Holiday’.
   Celebrities and VIPs at both the unveiling and the Central Park Zoo dinner afterwards included Richard and Lisa Perry, Amy Sacco, Aurelie Bidermann, Dakota Fanning, Dao-Yi Chow and Maxwell Osborne of Public School, Deborra-Lee Furness, Dennis Freedman, Estelle, Giovanna Battaglia, Stefano Tonchi, Jessica Joffe, Kate Foley, Lily Kwong, Meryl Poster, Michael Avedon, Pat Cleveland, Simon Doonan, Max Osterweis, Victoria Justice, Wendi Deng, Zani Gugelmann, Madison Guest, Victoria Justice, Hamish Bowles, Anna Wintour, Michael Avedon, Dorian Grinspan, Virginia Smith, Carter Elwood-Etherington, Breken Elwood-Etherington, Jennifer Zuccarini, Edward Menicheschi, Hailey Gates, Bronson van Wyck, Charles Rockefeller, Allese Thomson, Knight Landesman, and Brooke Garber Neidich.
   Twenty-five per cent of sales from Baz Dazzled holiday products will be donated to Room to Read, a literacy organization helping children in developing countries.

Neil Rasmus and Billy Farrell, of BFAnyc.com

Designer Fadwa Baruni has launched a UAE National Day-themed collection in association with Professionelle Boutique in Dubai Mall, available from November to the day itself on December 2.
   The dress design features the colours of the country’s flag, using silk and other high-quality fabrics. It features red, black and white, with a deep shade of green.
   Iraqi actress Alaa Shaker will promote the dress, while photographer Mohammed Al Marzouqi and Poupa Salon & Nail Spa have contributed to the promotion.
   Professionelle Boutique is on level 1 of the Dubai Mall, facing Shakespeare & Co.