donna karan

Reach the Beach: Luxury Resort Style in the Turks & Caicos Islands {Exclusive Feature}

Filed under: Apparel, Dining, Luxury Travel & Hotels, Timepieces / Watches, Luxury Cars & Autos, Books, Men's Style, The Classicist

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The Turks and Caicos islands in the British West Indies is well known for having the world's most beautiful beaches. It also has some of the world's most stylish and luxurious beach resorts, which are remarkable for their amazingly private settings and lush natural landscapes, far removed from the over-development that plagues some other Caribbean hotspots. The perfect setting for our latest style feature, we're sure you'll agree.

Parrot Cay, located on a pristine 1,000-acre private island, including a mile-long powdered beach, is an elegant combination of glorious nature, understated luxury and unparalleled privacy complete with an award-winning holistic spa, healthy gourmet cuisine and beach villas with private pools (above).

The villas are a favorite with celebrities including Donna Karan, Bruce Willis, Keith Richards and Sir Paul McCartney. Some like Willis and Karan were so entranced they decided to build their own beach houses on the island. Want to own one? So do we. Parrot Cay is currently offering a small selection of villas for private ownership, starting at $10 million.

Tags: Aman resorts, Amanyara, architecture, Bagatelle, beach, beach resorts, books, Caribbean, celebrity vacations, Donna Karan, Gansevoort, Girard-Perregaux, Helly-Hansen, islands, JetBlue, Land Rover, luxury resorts, Parrot Cay, private island, R A E N Optics, resorts, Rizzoli, Royal Elastics, shoes, spa, Tods, Turks and Caicos, Vineyard Vines, watches

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Donna Karan On Hand As Nomad Two Worlds Exhibit Opens In Los Angeles

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Events, Art

In our modern, high-speed culture, we lose track sometimes of what came before. How do we bridge the gap between how we live now and the ways that indigenous people have lived on this planet for millennia? A new exhibit in Santa Monica, California showcases art as a form of communication. Nomad: Two Worlds opened last night at Pier 59 Studios West in Santa Monica with a presentation that combined art with strong messages about what we lose when we forget our collective past.

Tags: aboriginal art, donna karan, nomad two worlds, Russell James, urban zen, Urban Zen Foundation

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Shirley Ephraim Designs For Donna Karan

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Jewelry

Sometimes it's the divergent threads of an artist's life that come together to form a beautiful, creative whole. Nigerian born jewelry designer Shirley Ephraim has a fascination with woven and embroidered accessories that began in her father's village of Calabar where she spent summers among the local artisans as a young girl. She also learned the intricate craft of Spanish needle-point lace from her Costa-Rican mother at a young age. Later, in the U.S. she studied modern dance and also worked with jewelry designers. These components of her path come together in her jewelry line which features woven details and pieces with movement and drama.

Ephraim pursued an education at Parsons The New School for Design and during her studies, she interned with Donna Karan. She has a special capsule collection for Donna Karan which was featured in the Donna Karan Spring 2011 runway show and is now sold in Donna Karan stores in the U.S. and UK and online. The necklace shown at right is a long draped silk piece crocheted with crystals. It sells for $1,295.

Tags: donna karan, jewelry, jewelry designers, shirley ephraim

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The Fashion Statement: Long, Lean and Ladylike

by Kristin Young (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Apparel, The Fashion Statement

Among the oddball indicators of the economic future, hem lengths are one of the more popular. Urban lore says short skirts reflect a bullish stock market and hems drop when people get down on their luck.

New York Fashion Week officially wraps up today and, one of the take away messages is longer hems are here to stay. Ne fret pas: That doesn't mean we're in for another meltdown. In fact, the industry has been showing signs of a turnaround. Nevertheless, hems lowered in the middle of the downturn and longer silhouettes seem to be having a lasting effect on fashion.

Except for a nod to the '70s last season, Marc Jacobs has been flirting with a more demure, sophisticated look for a few seasons now. For fall, he showed grown up silhouettes ever-so-slightly reminiscent of Dior's New Look from the '40s in futuristic materials such as a metallic rubber, fur and cellophane.

Looks for the boardroom are what Donna Karan does best, and she was clearly enamored with '50s silhouettes for today's all-business woman. Bloggers mentioned Tippi Hedren and Grace Kelly as a way to describe the Hollywood glamour Karan managed to add to her working girls.

Gallery: NYFW

Tags: Carolina Herrera, Donna Karan, marc jacobs, michael kors, new york fashion week 2011, new york fashion week fall 2011

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The Fashion Statement: Baby Bumps and the Red Carpet

by Kristin Young (RSS feed) —

Filed under: The Fashion Statement

There is serious baby fever in Hollywood. Starting this Sunday at the Golden Globes, more baby bumps will be taking a turn on the red-carpet than you can shake a stick at. Victoria Beckham. Natalie Portman. Penelope Cruz. Gretchen Mol. Mariah Carey. Jewel. Pink. Jennifer Connelly. Rachel Zoe. And, just yesterday, Kate Hudson announced she had a bun in the oven. With so many expectant celebs, TV show Extra compiled a list to keep everybody's due date straight. We're, of course, more concerned with what they'll be wearing.

You might think this many women with child during awards season could foil a designer's grand ambition to see his/her couture gowns on the red carpet. Think again. Designers have pregnancy down. Remember Catherine Zeta Jones in 2003? The word "luscious" came to mind when the nine-months-pregnant star walked the Oscars in a low-cut chocolate-colored gown with beaded straps. And it was a coup for Versace.

My friend and colleague Amy Tara Koch published a book last year called Bump It Up and, in it, are great style tips courtesy of designers and fashion insiders.

"Half of pregnancy has to do with attitude," Filipa Fino, accessories editor at Vogue, told Koch. "I just refused to give in to feeling dowdy. And therefore, I did not look dowdy!"

Gallery: baby bumps

Tags: Adam Lippes, amy tara koch, Donna Karan, Isaac Mizrahi, j. mendel, Milly by Michelle Smith, Rachel Roy, thomas wylde, Versace

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Donna Karan Drawstring Shoulder Bag, Handbag of the Day

by Marsha Reid (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Handbags

A taupe canvas shoulder bag may not come across as the ideal winter accessory, but we had to feature this gorgeous Drawstring Shoulder Bag ($593) by Donna Karan. It features a long and slim silhouette, which I love because this bag will lay nicely against your body without unnecessary bulkiness when your carrying a few items. Multi-colored stone and metallic beading adorn the flap complementing the bag's neutral color palette. In addition to playful beading, the Drawstring Shoulder Bag is accented with leather running through the sides creating a drawstring effect and completed with a tie at the base.

Have tips or suggestions? Contact me @marsha712

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Tags: canvas, Donna Karan, handbag, handbag of the day

Inside the Homes of American Fashion Designers

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Apparel, Decor, Books, Celebrity Design, Architecture & Design

Assouline has released the latest luxe edition in its American Fashion series, dedicated to the top-drawer designers who are members of the prestigious CFDA. American Fashion Designers at Home showcases the personal spaces of more than 100 fashionistas, including Diane von Furstenburg, Oscar de la Renta, Cynthia Rowley and Kate Spade. While some designer dwellings are extensions of the sensibilities embodied by their apparel collections, others exhibit a marked contrast. The domiciles range from studio apartments to sprawling estates, but all are linked by a keen aesthetic sense. Included are Carolina Herrera's grand Louis XV–influenced New York apartment; Betsey Johnson's girly glamourpuss garret; Ralph Lauren's luxuriously rustic Colorado ranch; Donna Karan's tranquil Turks & Caicos getaway; Tommy Hilfiger's over-the-top Greenwich mansion; Calvin Klein designer Francisco Costa's ultra-modern Manhattan aerie; and Johann Lindeberg's converted Greenwich Village factory (on the book's cover, above). Check out the gallery for a preview of Randolph Duke's Hollywood spread (which he recently sold for $5.3 million), David Chu's chic digs and more.

Gallery: American Fashion Designers at Home

Tags: Assouline, books, Calvin Klein, Carolina Herrera, CFDA, coffe table books, Colorado, David Chu, decor, designer, Diane von Furstenburg, Donna Karan, estates, fashion, fashion design, fashion designers, Greenwich Village, interior design, Kate Spade, New York, Oscar de la Renta, Ralph Lauren, Randolph Duke, Turks Caicos

Scenes from NY Fashion Week: DVF and DKNY (video)

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Apparel, Video

Diane von Furstenberg and Donna Karan are the grand dames of New York Fashion Week. As befitting her legendary status, Diane von Furstenberg's line was titled "Goddess" and was inspired by Isadora Duncan. The line was also influenced by the colors of Greece, bright indigo, mustard yellow and plenty of prints. At a show attended by Sarah Jessica Parker and Anderson Cooper among others, von Furstenberg and her new creative director Yvan Mispelaere showcased casual luxe combining flowing halter tops paired with shorts, draped dresses with deep cleavage and of course, colorful new takes on von Furstenberg's iconic wrap dresses.

Tags: diane von furstenberg, dkny, Donna Karan, New York Fashion Week

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WIE Symposium To Be Hosted by Sarah Brown, Donna Karan, and Arianna Huffington

by Lisa Palladino (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Services, Charity

WIE Symposium To Be Hosted by Sarah Brown, Donna Karan and Arianna Huffington

Sarah Brown, Global Patron of the White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood and wife of former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown, will chair the first WIE Symposium (Women: Inspiration & Enterprise) in New York City on September 20, 2010, with co-hosts designer and Urban Zen Foundation Founder Donna Karan and Huffington Post founder Arianna Huffington. The central theme is "Women Inspiring Women," and the conference is timed to coincide with the Clinton Global Initiative and the UN General Assembly. This inspirational symposium invites prominent women from the fields of politics, philanthropy, media, fashion, and the arts to inspire and empower the future generation of women leaders, advocates, and entrepreneurs.

The WIE Symposium will feature powerful speakers from around the world, challenging panels, and informative lectures with panel topics including the future role of women in technology, women leading the way in business, and a White Ribbon Alliance (WRA) philanthropy and advocacy panel with Brown. Five prize-winning young women advocates from Africa and Asia will speak about the importance of ending the tragedy of women dying needlessly in childbirth.

Gallery: WIE Symposium Co-Hosts

Tags: Arianna Huffington, childbirth, Donna Karan, Sarah Brown, urban zen, Urban Zen Foundation, WIE Symposium, women, WRA

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The Fashion Statement: Fashion's Night Out

by Kristin Young (RSS feed) —

Filed under: The Fashion Statement

The fashion world is buzzing about September 10. That's when people like Vogue chief Anna Wintour, Donna Karan, New York City Mayor Bloomberg and members of the Council of Fashion Designers of America will hang out with mere mortals like you and me at stores and boutiques in NYC.

The point? Shopping. And it's a boost to retailers, fashion designers and ultimately the whole fashion industry that has been pummeled of late.

This year's extravaganza is apparently bigger than last year's. On a geographical scale, it certainly is, with events planned for stores in Los Angeles, Paris, Milan and London. Okay, you expect those cities. But Fashion's Night Out is also popping up in unexpected destinations around the globe. Jamaica? China? India? Apparently so.

Aside from shopping, or at least window shopping, Fashion's Night Out is chance for non-fashion industry people to get a glimpse of what a real invitation-only fashion industry party is like. Doesn't hurt that September 10 is the start of New York fashion week, so everybody will be in town. And, this year, there will be cameras around filming for a CBS Special.

Last year, Bergdorf Goodman was a madhouse. Victoria Beckham and Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen were there, along with designers Georgina Chapman, Mark Badgley and James Mischka and Zac Posen. Charlize Theron showed up at Dior, Kate Hudson at Stella McCartney.

Tags: alexander mcqueen, barneys new york, Bergdorf Goodman, calpso st. barth, Dior, Donna Karan, Fashions night out, NYC Mayor Bloomberg, Stella McCartney, stuart weitzman, Vogue

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Bid For A Stay On Donna Karan's Private Estate

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, Auctions

Many celebrities own lavish vacation homes and some of them, luckily, like to share. Fashion designer Donna Karan has donated a stay on her private estate on Parrot Cay in the Turks and Caicos for auction on the charity auction site charitybuzz.com to raise funds for The Ellen Hermanson Foundation. The foundation was established in 1997 to honor the memory of Ellen Hermanson, a crusader in the fight against breast cancer. Proceeds from the auction will help fund the Ellen Hermanson Breast Center at Southampton Hospital.

Karan's estate, known simply as "The Sanctuary," is a Zen-like family retreat in easy reach of white sand beaches and turquoise waters. It has an infinity pool lined with black volcanic stone and the home is graced with Karan's collection of African and Asian art that adorns the white walls. The vacation up for bid is for eight people for four days and the auction ends on September 8. The lot is valued at over $40,000 and has a minimum next bid of $17,000.

Gallery: Parrot Cay

Tags: CharityBuzz, donna karan, parrot cay

Donna Karan Medium Shoulder Bag, Handbag of the Day

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Handbags

I honestly don't know what to think of this decidedly odd Donna Karan creation. It's the Medium Shoulder Bag (a name that doesn't do it justice) in black leather and it gets its uniqueness from a circular, pouchy, unstructured bottom with large double top handles coming up out of the middle, topped off with stud embellishments. It closes via drawstring and is fully lined in matching black leather with two interior pockets (one zip, one open). A fun casual bag that although very simple is surprisingly a love/hate kind of design. $1,495

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Tags: donna karan, handbag, handbag of the day

The Fashion Statement: Deepak Chopra on Design

by Kristin Young (RSS feed) —

Filed under: The Fashion Statement

Several years ago, I attended the opening party of Coco De Mer, a high-end erotic and sex toy shop in Los Angeles. Deepak Chopra headlined the event along with Dave Stewart and Ringo Starr. The store sells the book Deepak Chopra's Kama Sutra on universal themes of love, sexuality and spirituality. Still, the physician and natural medicine guru could have been wary of endorsing such an event. Instead, he exuberantly supported it. Cool dude, I thought.

Recently, Chopra impressed me again. This time he was with Donna Karan at ABC Carpet & Home in New York City to talk about another universal subject, "Design, Beauty & Commerce; Serving as a Tool for Social Evolution." T: The New York Times Style Magazine sponsored the event and it drew big names like Lucy Liu and Hugh Jackman.

Chopra is friends with Donna Karan and Paulette Cole, who owns ABC Carpet & Home, as well as many other designers such as Diane von Furstenberg and Calvin Klein. But his connection to the fashion world appears to run deeper than that. Again, it's an everything-is-connected theme: Fashion, design and beauty have been a part of our humanity forever and, in the future, could play a role in righting our planet's wrongs, he said.

Tags: ABC Carpet Home, CocoDeMer, deepak chopra, Design, diane von furstenberg, Donna Karan

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The Fashion Statement: Brides, 2010!

by Kristin Young (RSS feed) —

Filed under: The Fashion Statement

In India, the color is red. In the West, the hue is white (off-white back in the day, if you were considered less than virginal). Even black is making a comeback. When it comes to bridal gowns these days, anything goes.

Historically, designers have created wedding gowns -- usually making their debut in the finale of their shows -- that are reflective of the cultural norms and political messages of the day. Coco Chanel caused a stir in the roaring '20s when she introduced a knee-length dress with a long veil, a look vastly different from the house's current collection (pictured above).

In 1968, Yves Saint Lauren sent brides down the catwalk in bikinis made of actual flowers to celebrate the sexual revolution (the look resurfaced again in the '90s as a nod to history). Remember Sharon Tate's mini dress that same year in the much published photo with Roman Polanski? In 1969, Yoko Ono sported the same short hemline as she walked down the aisle with John Lennon. In the '70s, pantsuits had a moment, no doubt because it represented the day's feminist ideal.

So what's the message in 2010? It seems everything old is new again. Vivienne Westwood has picked up where YSL left off with a two-piece, toga-like number. Azzaro gives us plenty of short minis à la Tate and Ono. And Tuleh makes the statement that shorts are perfectly okay on the aisle as are corsets. Reem Acra and Donna Karan are all about elegance, draping and Greek goddesses while Charles Anastase has raised the empire waist to a new level, sitting just above the breast line.

Gallery: The Fashion Statement: Bridal Wars

Tags: Azzaro, Bibhu Mohapatra, BibhuMohapatra, Bridal fashion 2010, Bridal gown, Bridal springsummer 2010, BridalFashion2010, BridalGown, BridalSpringsummer2010, Chanel, Charles Anastase, CharlesAnastase, Donna Karan, DonnaKaran, House of Holland, HouseOfHolland, Marchesa, Reem Acra, ReemAcra, Tuleh, Vivienne Westwood, VivienneWestwood, YSL

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Donna Karan Crosstown Flat Hobo, Handbag of the Day

by Annie Scott (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Handbags

The Donna Karan Crosstown Flat Hobo is a lovely, practical bag in an unusual, beautiful, chaotic pattern.

This printed leather bag has a flat silhouette (as the name implies), but your own belongings will give it shape. It has front and back pockets as well as three interior pockets, and the double handles are accented subtly with chain. We love that the chain is somewhat hidden; it gives the bag no bearing on whether one should wear it with gold or silver jewelry.

This bag is perfect for your all-day endeavors like work, visiting friends, and sightseeing. At 16"W X 13"H X 3"D, you could fit entire portfolios or all your touring accoutrements like cameras and document carriers. Its chaotic pattern and comfortable shape make it an easy contrast to whatever you were planning to wear, whether you're trekking museums in Vienna or shopping in St. Tropez.

The Donna Karan Crosstown Flat Hobo is available exclusively from Saks Fifth Avenue for $795.00.

Tags: donna karan, DonnaKaran, handbag of the day, HandbagOfTheDay, hobo

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