Luxe Models on D&G back-biting Victoria Beckham!

Luxe Models were intrigued to read recent comments from fashion moguls Dolce & Gabbana, who questioned Victoria Beckham’s ability as a designer. While they didn’t come right out and say they thought she was terrible, they weren’t exactly positive about her work.

The former Spice Girl has been dabbling in the fashion world since 2000, when she made a  

guest appearance on the catwalk for Maria Grachvogel at London Fashion Week. She has been designing clothes since 2004, when she released her line of high-end jeans, VB Rocks, through Rock & Republic.

She launched her own denim label, dvb Style, and soon afterwards launched her perfume, Intimately Beckham. She was quoted as saying that she doesn’t just want to lend her famous name to products, and that she likes to be involved in the whole process of design and production. Luxe Models can’t be sure, but we reckon it’s unlikely VB ever whips her sewing machine out to run up the hem on her new range…!

She has been the face of Rocawear and Marc Jacobs and was even the British ambassador for D&G back in the mid-00s. Turncoats much, boys?

The reports on D&G’s intonations about Beckham aren’t completely damming. Apparently they just feel like she’s really not high fashion material, like them. They put her designs in the same category as those of high street brands like Zara and H&M. They went on to say that Italian fashion is a lot more cool and trendy than anything coming out of other countries at the moment, including designs by Victoria Beckham. But they propped all this up by saying that they consider VB a friend all the same. Might not be the case for long, lads!

What do you reckon to these comments? We’d love to hear from you! Follow us on Twitter for regular updates. And if you’re interested in breaking into the world of modelling, visit the Luxe Models website for details of our services. 

Luxe Models discuss Fashion Week

Luxe Models have been tracking New York Fashion Week and we reckon young designer Alexander Wang is really coming up roses. His pulling power was strong enough to draw New York’s fashionistas across town to Brooklyn where he was displaying his AW14 collection in his new show space.

The show opened with a series of 1960s-style utility tunics. They all feature a number of pockets deigned for carrying all your essentials. This shows that Wang has tapped into the modern woman’s desire for clothing that is practical as well as stylish.

His outerwear styles were clearly created to deal with extreme weather conditions. His printed parka jackets were sublime and we loved the laser-cut leather jackets! There were also temperature-sensitive outfits on show that changed colour as the models sashayed across a number of carefully placed heating vents.

Tommy Hilfiger’s American Explorer collection was also focussed on extreme weather wear. There was everything from mixed plaids to sheepskin-lined hiking boots – perfect for high-flyers heading off on a winter ski trip or amidst the New York streets, where there is still a thick layer of snow on the ground.

Derek Lam created a great collection, centred on simplicity. He offered up a perfectly cut masculine coat, a great fluted hem skirt and a sharply tailored pair of trousers that women will love.

Bowling shirts and jackets with embroidery details on the breast look set to be hugely popular and really capture the feel on the 1950s with a modern spin.

Stuart Vevers showed his first collection for Coach since leaving Loewe and we were worried he may not live up to the challenge of creating a fresh look. However, he certainly didn’t disappoint. The collection really spoke to the younger audience with denim jackets and detachable collars, bomber jackets and striking Houndstooth outerwear.

Phillip Lim was showing pastel printed shirts and teddy bear jackets with an overriding autumnal colour scheme.

Finally, Victoria Beckham continued the looser silhouette she’s been championing but has dropped the masculine feel that was prevalent last year. Her show closed with a display of very feminine gowns to keep her loyal fans satiated.

Hot Tips for AW14: Colours, chiffon, bomber jackets, tunics, 1950s styles. 

Luxe Models are really enjoying Fashion Week so far and we'd love to hear your thoughts on it too! You can follow us on Twitter for regular updates. 

Are Super Foods really that Super?

At Luxe Models, we’re always striving to maintain a healthy balance of good diet, low stress and high enjoyment of our favourite things (fashion, photography and blogging, obviously), so anything that helps us to do this is, in our eyes, perfectly awesome. Lately we’ve been looking into the trend for “super foods” that’s been growing over the last few years. Victoria Beckham swears by seaweed for a speedy metabolism and Matthew McConaughey enjoys a sprinkling of acai berries over his breakfast granola. And recently pomegranate has been highlighted once again for its health benefits. But do these foods really have special properties to keep us healthy? We decided to take a look at a few in detail, so let’s find out!

Cocoa

While most people trying to stay on the straight and narrow path of healthy eating might aim to avoid chocolate, some studies have revealed that it’s actually great for lowering stress levels! During the study, people ate 40g of dark, high-cocoa chocolate for two weeks and a slight reduction in stress hormones was noticed. Also the Kuna Indians of Panama drank cocoa as their main beverage, and overall had noticeably lower blood pressure. Bear in mind though, we’re talking about the benefits of cocoa, rather than chocolate itself, so stuffing yourself with a bar of high-sugar milk chocolate and calling it a diet probably isn’t the best plan!

Broccoli

A study carried out by World Cancer Research found that eating more low-starch vegetables like broccoli can help the reduce the risk of some cancers, such as mouth, throat and stomach cancer. While many have claimed that broccoli reduces high blood pressure and the effects of diabetes, the studies were inconclusive. Don’t let that put you off though! Broccoli is still packed with the nutrients and vitamins that are essential for maintaining a healthy diet. It’s also a very flexible food that can be used in a variety of ways; anything from stir fry to curry!

Pomegranate

New research suggests that pomegranate might be able to undo some of the effect of a junk food diet! Great news if you’ve been known to indulge in one too many cheese burgers when you’re off the diet. A new supplement, Pomanex, is currently being tested to reveal its benefits. Experts say it helps to keep blood vessels healthy and elastic, which is vital if you want to avoid heart attacks and strokes – let’s be honest though, who doesn’t?? It is also thought to improve blood flow, lower stress and slow the progress of prostate cancer in men.

Lemons and Limes

There are a number of benefits to embracing lemons and limes, not least of all for their sanitising and deodorising properties around the house! They contain something called flavonoids, which are great at helping to reduce inflammation. They’re also great for digestion and rubbing a small amount of lemon or lime juice onto your skin can do wonders for it! It’ll keep you looking young and healthy.

Our research included a look at what dieticians have to say about the super food trends and there was general agreement that more studies need to be carried out to really learn about the benefits of so-called super foods. BUT! We reckon it can’t be that bad to indulge in most of these foods since they’re largely healthy anyway! Just be sure to keep a good balance of food groups and, if you’re trying to lose weight couple your healthy eating plan with a good amount of exercise. 

Victoria Beckham’s latest Show for New York Fashion Week

Do you remember the days when Victoria Beckham was simply known by the infamous nickname Posh Spice? We at Luxe Models do, and we’d never have guessed back in the 90’s that in 2013 Victoria would have transcended the world of pop music and embraced the life of a fashion designer. However, as the spectacle known to the greater public at large as New York fashion week rolled around once again, we were waiting with bated breath to see what Mrs Beckham would put out on the catwalks this time around.

Sunday 8th September saw us reaching the halfway point in the world’s most famous fashion event and designers were well in the swing of introducing what they want us to wear in Spring 2014 to the world. It seems that Victoria went all out this time as her theme centred on geometric shapes and the “merging of boys and girls sensibilities” (according to the press releases). The results were somewhat a departure from Beckham’s classic looks, as her most surprising turn came from the way she handled her hemlines. Departing from her signature mid length body con dress, Posh decided to go a different way this season as her models sported flirty mini hems as they sashayed down the catwalk.

Contrast seemed to be the watch word in this show as structured, boarding school style blazers and classic button up dress shirts struck a stark contrast from the catwalks version of sporty track jackets and even cropped trousers tempered with feminine details including a drop-waist peplum, peek-a- pleats and even the odd inclusion of spurts of glorious sheer chiffon material.  Carrying on with the ultimate theme of contrast, one constantly employed in the world of high fashion, but one notoriously hard to do well, Beckham went for a monochromatic colour scheme interspersed with the odd splash of eye catching fuchsia.

Everything was set off in the way that Mrs Beckham naturally would, with attention grabbing sky high Manolo Blahnik stiletto heels designed to perfectly set off the tone and style of the geometric handbags, which had geometric shapes and patterns that were often repeated on the roomy dress shirts sported by her models.

Reviews are still coming in thick and fast, and with New York fashion week still in swing, the real attitude sported by fashions finest towards Mrs Beckham’s latest collection won’t truly come to light until it’s been seen in the light of every collection destined to grace NYC’s catwalks. However, early reviews seem to be complimenting Victoria on her forward thinking and daring choices, with The New York Times fashion blog labelling it “one of her best collections”.

Posh has never been one to play it safe, her time in the spotlight is certainly a testament to this, and although her foray into the world of fashion may have seemed unrealistic at the height of her pop fame, now it seems to work, it’s seems like this was always who she was meant to be.