Style.com’s executive editor, Nicole Phelps, called out Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen’s “beautifully understated” Fall ‘12 collection for The Row as one of her highlights of the season in our editor scrapbook. The CFDA members are decidedly on the same page—the sister act earned a Womenswear Designer of the Year award nod, alongside seasoned veterans like Marc Jacobs and Proenza Schouler’s Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCollough, on Wednesday night. Here, watch a Style.com exclusive video (below) showcasing the luxe, monochrome looks the Olsens presented at the historic Bemelmans Bar in February.
—Kristin Studeman

Photos: Courtesy of The Row

Selfridges has announced the latest round of designers for its Bright Young Things initiative, a project it launched last year (with emerging designers Simone Rocha, Kirsty Ward, and Alex Noble in the mix) to support young designers in London. This year’s 15 Bright Young Things include womenswear designers Maarten van der Horst (the recent Central Saint Martins grad who made a big splash at Fashion East with his Hawaiian prints), Alice Lee, Adam Andrascik, Sorcha O’Raghallaigh (who has worked with Lady Gaga and Nicola Formichetti), and MASC; menswear designers Shaun Samson, Astrid Andersen, William Richard Green, and Alex Mattson; and accessories designers Oliver Ruuger and T. lipop. The group also includes photographers, graphic illustrators, interior designers, and prop makers.

As part of the program, which launches today and runs through the end of February, the designers will get to showcase their work in the retailer’s Oxford Street or Duke Street windows, and their collections will be for sale on Selfridges.com and in three pop-up shops.

Photo: Alessandro Viero / GoRunway.com

our editor recommends

The entertainment business revolves around the art of the pitch in order to get a TV show or movie made. So perhaps it's no surprise that one of Los Angeles' premiere museums, LACMA, has created a similar way of acquiring new art.

UPDATED: Terry Semel, Steve Tisch, Jamie McCourt and Bill and Colleen Bell were among those helping acquire works by Rauschenberg, Neshat and more at the museum’s annual Collectors Committee weekend.

Valentino’s creative directors, Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli, have been showing their men’s collection quietly, in the label’s Place Vendome showroom. (Fanfare or not, their Spring ‘12 collection, left, was one of the best of the menswear season.) For Fall, they’ll take their act to a bigger stage: It was announced today that the duo will be the guest designers at Pitti Uomo 81 in Florence this January. “Their work combines a dynamic, contemporary spirit with the sartorial savoir-faire of a house that wrote a huge chapter in the history of fashion,” Pitti Immagine CEO Raffaello Napoleone said in a statement today. “Their visionary yet pragmatic approach combines tradition and innovation without interruptions.” The show will be presented Wednesday, January 11, 2012.

Photo: Courtesy of Valentino

Ballerina slippers never go out of style. They’re so pretty and femme in a world of buckles and bondage. Not everyone is going to want to channel the King of Pop this Fall, so here’s a change.

Dressed up with an LBD or down with boyfriend jeans and a cardigan, these flats are perfect for showing that girly yet practical side.

See other celeb-favored summer steals!

I love the petal blush color and the contrasting grosgrain ribbon that’s slightly distressed and curled on these Urban Outfitters leather ballet flats. These flats come in two colors — champagne and black — and are only available online.

Purchase information: Buy it here.

Christian Dior has enlisted its second Black Swan star, Mila Kunis, to be a face for the brand. Kunis, who calls herself a “jeans and T-shirt” type of girl, joins the ranks of Dior ambassadors like Swan co-star Natalie Portman, Charlize Theron, and Sharon Stone. The actress is the new face of the Mikael Jansson-shot Miss Dior handbag campaign, set to debut this month in international issues of Elle, Vogue, and Madame Figaro.

“Mila Kunis is a very talented young actress; she embodies the true modern woman. Her performance in Black Swan was remarkable. She is very gifted,” Dior deputy general manager Delphine Arnault tells WWD. “We are looking forward to a long relationship with her.”

Of her new role with Dior, Kunis, who just finished filming Oz: The Great and The Powerful with James Franco, admits, “I’m honestly just learning about fashion.” Lucky for her, Dior is not a bad place to start a fashion education.
—Kristin Studeman

Photo: WWD.com

Boy, oh boy. Dehydration has never been so … chic!

Check these New Moon water bottles out! Not only are celebrities like Emmy Rossum, Kristin Cavallari and the Kardashians (Kim and Khloe) all needing to quench their thirst — everyone is going completely bananas for these 1-liter, BPA-free bottles featuring our favorite boy toys of the moment. This is the type of situation where you will lay out $9.99 twice because, well, why get just one? And if you’re like me and can’t decide, here’s some incentive: The second bottle ships free.

Is there any reason why you need to stay loyal?

Buy it here.

—Marina Larroude

Photo: Courtesy of Talbots

It’s become a joke at the office how much I love leopard print. My colleague Matthew Schneier even teased me this week: “What are you doing when this trend goes away?” Easy: Save all my pieces and wear them again later, that’s for sure. I’ve been collecting leopard for years, and I still wear the first item I “borrowed” from my mother—a D&G leopard-print button-down from the nineties—alongside more recent finds like Alexander Wang’s leopard Alla wedge. Next on my wish list is from an unlikelier source—Talbots. Scoff if you must, but the mass retailer’s haircalf bag is great. It may look small, but it’s roomy enough to fit my entire life during fashion week. And if Talbots is good enough for Linda Evangelista—its newest campaign star—it’s good enough for me.

If you need inspiration for integrating leopard into your wardrobe, check out Dries Van Noten’s Fall ‘10 collection. He set the trend of mixing leopard with military-inspired items, which I’m loving right now. Or for more cool ideas, try Riccardo Tisci’s Resort ‘11 collection for Givenchy—cool whites look even crisper when paired with spots.

Talbots Haircalf Rectangle bag, $179, available at Talbots, www.talbots.com.

Photo: Courtesy of Illesteva

Eyewear label Illesteva has garnered a strong following of devoted fans (Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, and Alexa Chung among them) of its handmade, unisex frames since the New York-based label launched in 2009. Recently, the duo behind the sunnies, Daniel Silberman and Jus Ske, decided to make something especially for their lady clientele—introducing Illesteva’s first-ever female-specific frames. To kick things off, they focused on the cat-eye frame, available in four colorways, including tortoise and cream. “They fit in great with the Spring collection, and we always wanted to add a cat-eye frame; it just took a few seasons to design the right one,” the designers tell Style.com. We have the first look at the Claire ($220), above. The full range is now available on Illesteva.com.
—Kristin Studeman