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Gwyneth Paltrow

Gwyneth's Favorite Female Chef Snags a Second Michelin Star

Filed under: Dining, Luxury Travel & Hotels, Celebrity Shopping


Hélène Darroze (above), who runs the chic eatery in her name at London's posh Connaught hotel, has just been awarded a second Michelin star making her the only female chef in the UK with two of the coveted étoiles under her toque. Gwyneth Paltrow, who lived at the Connaught for a month and was a regular visitor to the restaurant while renovating her house in London, is one of Darroze's biggest fans. Reinforcing the legendary Mayfair hotel's 114 year old legacy of fine dining, Darroze, a protegé of Alain Ducasse, has established a loyal following among other notables and gourmets as well with traditional dishes from her native Southwest France combined with the best seasonal ingredients from the British Isles.

Gwyneth Paltrow To Be The New Face of Baume & Mercier

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

Gwyneth Paltrow is everywhere lately. The actress who is currently promoting her new movie Country Strong and recently appeared on Glee has been tapped as the latest ambassador for Swiss watch brand Baume & Mercier. Unlike past faces of the brand including Teri Hatcher and Meg Ryan, Paltrow is designated as a "friend of the brand" and won't appear in any ad campaigns for the watches. The new gig does mean that Paltrow will fly to Geneva later this month to take part in the SIHH watch fair cocktail party. The appointment of Paltrow appears to be part of a rebranding strategy that involves concentrating on its popular Classima collection, re-launching the Linea and Capeland lines and premiering a new Hampton collection this fall.

Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas Hosts Star-Studded Grand Opening

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels


The place to be to ring in 2011? For many of Hollywood's elite, it was The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, the city's newest and most glamorous resort, which kicked off a grand opening celebration with concert performances from JAY-Z and Coldplay, plus guest surprises by Kanye West, Beyonce and John Mayer.

Coldplay kicked off the evening with a 12 song set, which included Yellow, In My Place and Clocks. To ring in the New Year, JAY-Z joined Coldplay on stage for a rendition of Lost, followed by a countdown to midnight. JAY-Z took the stage for the first hours of 2011 and was joined by Kanye West for an impromptu freestyle performance of Run This Town, Can't Tell Me Nothing and Runaway. As Kanye left the stage, John Mayer joined pal JAY-Z with his guitar for several songs, including Public Service Announcement and 99 Problems. The ultimate collaboration of the evening came when Beyonce joined her husband on stage for Young Forever. She continued to wow the crowd, bringing Coldplay frontman Chris Martin back out for an acoustic duet of her hit, Halo.

Koffmann's Opens at London's Luxe Berkeley Hotel

Filed under: Dining, Luxury Travel & Hotels


The Berkeley (above), London's luxurious and beloved five-star Knightsbridge hotel, has just opened Koffmann's, a new restaurant from legendary French chef Pierre Koffmann. Overlooking Hyde Park, the historic hotel has long been the destination of choice for stylish travelers including Madonna, Gwyneth Paltrow and Naomi Campbell. Chef Koffmann, whose name has been synonymous with some of the UK's finest French cuisine for over 35 years, counts Gordon Ramsay among his protegés. The opening of Koffmann's marks the chef's return to The Berkeley, where he was at the helm of the celebrated La Tante Claire until its closing in 2003. The Koffmann's menu features several of the chef's signature items, such as a braised pig's trotter with morels, which guests may recognize from La Tante Claire, but on the whole Koffmann has moved into a more relaxed, informal style while still embracing his classic, provincial, French culinary roots. The menu offers hearty, robust, seasonal dishes, many influenced by his Gascon heritage, which can be enjoyed seven days a week for both lunch and dinner.

The Classicist: Historic Hudson River Astor Estate Restored to Its Former Glory

Filed under: Estates, The Classicist


Marienruh, a historic fieldstone colonial revival country estate built for heiress Alice Astor, the daughter of John Jacob Astor IV and sister of Vincent Astor, and her Russian aristocrat husband Prince Serge Obolensky in 1926 is being restored to its former glory by its new owners. The gracious mansion, situated on 100 scenic acres given to Alice by her brother overlooking the Hudson River in Rhinebeck, New York, was constructed for the glamorous couple by renowned architect Mott B. Schmidt. It had been on the market for $8.5 million up until last summer when unnamed buyers purchased the property, which had been in institutional use for some time, and set about renovating it – a pleasing reversal in an age where many fine old mansions are being put to less dignified uses, often destroying their souls in the process.

After Alice Astor's death the mansion was used over the years as a Christian youth camp, a home for unwed mothers, a drug rehab center and an events space. Over the decades the house was stripped of nearly all its original details, including fireplace mantels, lighting fixtures, hardware and even the copper gutters. The restoration work is being done extremely carefully, overseen by New York architect-designer Robert Couturier. A few upgrades are of course necessary, and new greenhouses are being installed. One of the wings will now house an elegant two-story tall library. As architectural historian Mark Alan Hewitt notes in The Architecture of Mott B. Schmidt (Rizzoli, 1991), Marienruh's block-with-dependencies design was inspired by two influential 18th century American mansions: Montpelier (1751) in Laurel, Maryland, and the the Hammond-Harwood House (1773-4) in Annapolis, MD.

Marienruh is next to photographer Annie Leibovitz's 220-acre spread which had been listed for sale at $11 million as part of her debt restructuring imbroglio. David Bowie and his wife Iman have reportedly considered buying it; other celebrities with property in the area include Liam Neeson, Gwyneth Paltrow, financier George Soros, hotelier Andre Balazs, and Rolling Stone magazine founder Jann Wenner. Leibovitz's property including some stone barns was once part of Alice's father John Jacob Astor IV's 3,500-acre estate Ferncliff; another remnant of that once glorious demesne is the beautiful Astor Courts, designed by Stanford White as a playhouse for Ferncliff with an indoor pool and tennis court, which was was an Estate of the Day last fall with an asking price of $12 million.

Gallery: Marienruh

Louis Vuitton Takes London With Massive New Flagship

Filed under: Apparel, Events


In a bold recession-defying move, Louis Vuitton just opened a massive new flagship store in London, it most luxurious yet rivaling its famed Paris property on the Champs Elysées. Designed by New York-based architect Peter Marino, who also worked on the Paris store, its most eye-catching feature is a two-story wall of trunks from various decades showcasing the Vuitton tradition of working in leather, alongside a glass and LED staircase. The 15,000-sq.-ft. store is designed to reflect the 21st century mood of London and bring together innovation, heritage and fashion - "all values that are important to Louis Vuitton," Yves Carcelle, Vuitton's chairman and CEO, told the London Telegraph.

Marino conceived the store as the home of a world-class Vuitton collector and connoisseur. The ground floor is devoted to Vuitton accessories and features original artworks from artists like Richard Prince and Takashi Murakami who have collaborated with the famed French luxury goods house in the past. The first floor is devoted to womenswear and shoes, and also houses a library of coffee table books. The store's second floor is a private client suite accessible only by invitation, for celebrities and VIPs, while menswear is located on the lower ground floor. Celebs attending the star-studded opening of the new store included Gwyneth Paltrow, Kirsten Dunst, Elle Macpherson, Gemma Arterton and Thandie Newton.

The Fashion Statement: Short Cuts

Filed under: The Fashion Statement


Who likes short shorts?

Apparently everybody, as evidenced by the number of cropped breeches seen on the catwalks and red carpet recently. Ciara, Gwyneth, Nicole and a host of other celebrities have taken shorts out for a spin on the crimson. It doesn't seem to matter much whether it's cold outside or not. In fact, it was bitingly cold during fashion week in New York in February when Kylie Minogue decided to grace the front row in shiny black vinyl shorts.

Shorts have been around for centuries, of course. The descendants of kilts and togas, they were the look for young school boys. Soldiers stationed in hot places like Bermuda adopted the look for relief from the heat which then quickly influenced civilians. Women followed later. Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe and Jackie O. were often photographed in shorts.

Once only appropriate to wear starting this weekend (Memorial Day) through Labor Day, cut to today and the look is so prevalent almost every designer inserted a pair of shorts in his or her fall/winter collections. A few highlights: If one were to wear shorts on to the North Pole, Chanel had an option-gray fur shorts with furry boots and a patterned ski sweater. Salvatore Ferragamo struck a '70s vibe with rust leather shorts shown under a rust suede maxi coat and brown belted cable knit sweater and further punctuated with rust suede boots and a brown cable knit cap. Dolce & Gabbana had shorts you could wear to a meeting on Wall Street-a mauve boiled wool short suit with the knee length shorts, cuffed and modest.


Abramovich, Paltrow, Ganek Seen at Frieze Art Fair

Filed under: Celebrity Shopping, Art

david ganekThe Frieze Art Fair is drawing the right kind of people this year, even if the art market is showing little more than hope (and even that's debatable). Roman Abramovich - billionaire, Francis Bacon fan - has been seen scoping out the merchandise. Gwyneth Paltrow is at the show, too. Both were at the VIP preview (separately), and David Ganek made an appearance as well. Ganek is a hedge fund manager and art collector, and his wife, Danielle wrote a god-awful novel about the art business in Manhattan.

The Frieze Art Fair runs through October 18 and occupies 70,000 square feet in Regent's Park. In attendance are 165 gallery owners from 30 countries, all eager to take advantage of collectors excited to be at Europe's largest art fair. But, they have their work cut out for them. Auction sales are down between 70 percent and 80 percent from last year, and that's usually a pretty good sign of how the art market as a whole is doing.

There is some action at Frieze this year. Artist Jim Hodges has an exhibition at the Pompidou Center in Paris that's captured the attention of a museum. Stefan Edlis, Jean Pigozzi and David Roberts - all prominent collectors - have been seen at the fair. Art dealer Marianne Boesky moved 13 paintings from a new series of 15 watercolors by Barnaby Furnas that depict the capture and execution of John Brown, the Civil War abolitionist. Prices ranged from $25,000 to $30,000.

After the dismal situation at Frieze in 2008, there's a collective desire for this year to be better. While wishing for an art market recovery probably won't make a difference, the sentiment itself is comforting.

Gwyneth Paltrow, Fashion Designer

Filed under: Apparel, Celebrity Design

gwenyth paltrowCan you stand another post on Gwynnie? (Or on celebrity design?) Between GOOP and her awards appearances and Coldplay, Paltrow is constantly in the celeb world's news. Next up for her: a fashion line. Paltrow has collaborated on the designs for a capsule collection -- ZOEtee's Loves Gwyneth -- with the French label ZOEtee's, famous for soft jerseywear and versatile separates. The collection will be for autumn/winter2009.

According to ELLE UK, "Made up of jersey basics as well as some glam, 1970s-inspired looks and pieces influenced by masculine tailoring, the collection will be unveiled to the fashion press next week in London. ... With Gwyneth's fashion credentials we're expecting a luxe, sophisticated yet very wearable collection of instant hits."

Word is that the proceeds from every piece sold will be donated to a charity close to Paltrow's heart -- London's Kids Company, which which offers therapy, education, art, sports, and hot meals to at-risk children.

There's lots more about Paltrow in the March 2009 issue of ELLE UK. Here's a teaser.

Gwyneth Paltrow To Launch Lifestyle Advice Site

Filed under: Services

As much as celebrities make good copy here at Luxist, I confess some days I'm plumb celebbed-out from their overexposure on TV and in print. But I really couldn't stop myself from sharing the fact that Gwyneth Paltrow thinks she knows best, and wants to share it all with you real soon on her unfortunately-named website, GOOP. Not much to offer yet, but the home page urges readers to "nourish the inner aspect." And then you can select a category to explore further: make, go, get, do, be, or see. These all go to the same place, Paltrow's mission statement. If you sign up for the GOOP newsletter, Paltrow will send you some tips as well as an alert when the site officially opens. Too bad she won't be sending Coldplay tickets ... (BTW, if you're not a Paltrow fan, you can join in the making fun of her site here.)

Gwyneth Paltrow Named Ambassador to 2008 Key to the Cure

Filed under: Apparel, Charity, Big Givers

Saks Fifth Avenue along with the Entertainment Industry Foundation recently announced that Gwyneth Paltrow will act as the new ambassador for the 2008 Key to the Cure, a women's cancer initiative. Karl Lagerfeld has designed the exclusive tee for the cause, with all proceeds going to cancer research.

The weekend-long shopping event is slated for October 16 through October 19 at Saks stores nationwide and online at saks.com. Two percent of proceeds from the weekend's totals will be donated to the Women's Cancer Research Fund. Now in its 10th year, the annual Key to the Cure event has raised over $28 million for cancer research and treatment programs.


Gwyneth Paltrow Named the New Face of Tod's

Filed under: Apparel, Handbags, Shoes

Gwyneth Paltrow has been named the new face of Italian luxury goods brand Tod's in the wake of a short film she made for them which just debuted at Cannes. The ad campaign, shot by Mario Testino in Capri aboard dashing Tod's CEO Diego Della Valle's yacht, portrays "the uber luxurious, outdoors-y life of a beautiful Italian aristocrat from the heady days of the jet-set era," Vogue UK reports.

"Italian style is very sexy, very womanly and what I love is that it seems to have so many different inspirations," Paltrow told the mag. She replaces Sienna Miller, who starred in Tod's ads last year. The Cannes short, which was directed by Dennis Hopper, a longtime friend of Della Valle's, portrayed a day in the life of Gwyneth with her favorite Tod's bag. We have long been fans of Tod's classic driving mocs, probably the most comfortable shoes in the world.

A £30,000 Yoga Lesson

Filed under: Auctions

Gwyneth Paltrow donated her time, in the form of a yoga lesson, to a charity auction last month that was held as a benefit for The Prince's Trust, which helps young people ages 14-30 get their lives on track through training, mentoring and financial assistance. During the auction, the lesson sold for £30,000. Gwyneth said that she is working on a special lesson plan to ensure that the person gets her or her money's worth:  "Unfortunately I can't do it in the nude or anything to make it really exceptional but I will try and come up with a good plan."

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