Meet The Artist Who Is Using Designer Handbags As A Canvas

Goyard St Louis Tote

Boyarde Messenger

Boyarde Messenger is a 32-year-old British pop artist known for "painting on everything but paper." Messenger started by painting the female body but rose to fame six months ago when she ventured into painting accessories. This move was prompted when she collaborated with her friend Charlotte Della, the designer for popular shoe brand Charlotte Olympia. Della commissioned Messenger to paint 100 shoes for her label, which were exclusively sold at Neiman Marcus, and earned Messenger, mentions in American fashion tomes like Vogue and ELLE.

Hèrmes Birkin Bag

Messenger channeled her new confidence and set out to develop methods for painting luxury bags. She explained, “It took me quite a while to learn,” the process. “Before I started, I experimented on vintage bags and learned to understand how leathers are all different. They breathe differently; you really have to understand the canvas you are working on.”

Louis Vuitton Neverfull

Messengers customizes Goyard, as well as Hermès, Louis Vuitton, and Balenciaga bags with “feminist-tinged” work for private clients who pay up to $3,000 to have their already-pricey goods upgraded by Messengers’s lofty hand. Messenger has developed specific painting processes for each type of bag material. They all begin by tracing the shape of her custom illustration onto the bags. But even though Messenger is has a lot of expirence painting high end goods it does not make the expirence any less stressful “I’m very confident with what I’m doing, but the process of painting on such an expensive bag is petrifying” and that the most nerve-wracking of all her commissions are Hermès leather bags.

Although Messenger has been very successful and is in high demand she is looking to break out from the custom-commission mold. She says that one day she ‘would love to do a collaboration with a fashion brand,’ to follow up her inaugural fashion experience with Charlotte Olympia.

The End of an Era

Marc Jacobs taking his final bow

After 16 years as the designer of the prestigious French label, Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs is leaving Louis Vuitton.  Jacobs is leaving the Paris fashion house to focus on his self-titled label based in New York.

So on May 2^nd Jacobs debuted his final collection for Louis Vuitton. Some thought the all-black décor and clothes had mournful implications but it was surprisingly and up-beat occasion. “Jacobs dedicated the collection to the many women who've touched or influenced him during his decade and a half in Paris, including designer muses Coco Chanel, Rei Kawakubo, and Miuccia Prada. You saw bits and pieces of their work in this collection, in addition to callbacks to his own greatest hits. To the showgirl in all of us,"

The Louis Vuitton show is always the highlight of Paris week. All the clothes were elaborately ornamented with combinations of jet beads, crystals, and glossy feathers for a showgirl inspired collection. Each model wore an extravagant headpiece with ostrich feathers designed by Stephen Jones. Even though this was such an ornate collection there were still elements of street style, which are always seen in Marc Jacobs New York shows. “Jacobs seemed to be making a point with those all-Americanisms, and a timely one at that, given his imminent refocusing on his own New York-born brand. It was perhaps no surprise that the American press led the standing ovation.”

TOP 5 FASHION READS FOR FALL

   1.  The Vogue Factor: From Front Desk to Editor: After more than 10 years as an editor for Vogue Australia Kristie Clements was abruptly fired. This memoir gives a behind the scenes look at the ever-changing fashion industry and gives an inside look as to how Clements made it from humble beginnings in Sutherland Shire, Sydney to becoming an editor at one of the most well known luxury brands in the world.

   2.  It: Model, television host, contributing editor to Vogue UK and style icon Alexa Chung has put together a collection or writing, doodles, and photographs. The book has been described as “Witty, charming and with a refreshingly down-to-earth attitude, a must-have for anyone who loves fashion, worries about growing up, or loves just about everything Alexa Chung. Already a best seller in the UK, It is set to be released on Oct. 29 in the US.

  3. In My Shoes: A Memoir: Tamara Mellon, the founder and former CEO of Jimmy Choo shares her whole story (including detail never before made public) in her candid memoir. She recants all the life lessons she has learned that made her the person she is today including her troubled childhood, her time as an editor at Vogue, her partnership with cobbler Jimmy Choo, and her very public relationships.

    4. Just Me: In this new autobiography Italian fashion designer Roberto Cavalli lifts the lid on his traumatic childhood and fashion empire. Cavalli explains, "I wrote this book very slowly. I wrote it for me and also to leave something to my children, to inspire them."

    5. The Asylum: A Collage of Couture Reminiscences...and Hysteria: Simon Doonan, Creative Ambassador-at-Large for Barney’s New York, shares a hysterical collection of stories about “glamorous madness and stylish insanity” in his new autobiography. He explains, “His peers in this multibillion-dollar industry are just as nutty as the denizens of your local loony bin.”

LFW: Burberry Prorsum

Oversized Coat

Fashion lovers flocked to Hype Park in London to exhibit what this years London Fashion Week has to offer. England is home to world-fashion brands that have retail expertise and entry level products (such as sunglasses and perfumes) making them desirable yet attainable to a certain extent. For this reason London Fashion Week has become an indicator for upcoming trends. Some of the must-see shows every year include Tom Ford, Erdem, Jonathan Sunders, Alexander McQueen, Mulberry, Stella McCartney, and Christopher Kane but, the most iconic of all the shows and the the epitome of British style is none other than Burberry Prorsum.

Finale 

Pale Pink Lace Skirt

Christopher Bailey's "English Rose" collection was a departure from his usually aesthetic because it was more accessible to the masses. The collection used pink and custard tones and combined modern styling with traditional Burberry elements. Bailey even sourced lace from Nottingham, England to create pencil skirts which he paired with cashmere sweaters. Burberry is known for their trench coats and Bailey has recreated the signature trench almost every season for the label. However, for this season he deiced to show soft and roomy coats in the "English Rose" color pallet which   was a refreshing twist. The show ended with pale pink rose petals falling from the sky.

NYFW: Rachel Zoe

Zoe with son Skyler

Rachel Zoe is known for dressing the stars but within the last couple of years she has added fashion designer to her resume. Today at Lincoln Center Zoe, debuted her Spring 2014 line. Fashion icons like Coco Rocha and Olivia Palermo lined the runway to see Zoe's opinion of what is on trend for spring.

Flowing Pastels

Black and White Trend

The collection consisted of many flowing pastels and whites which are definitely a trend we have seen from many designers so far in this fashion week. There were many denim looks which was definitely a departure from what we have seen from Zoe in her last couple of collections. The casual look  is a refreshing twist from her usual tailored aesthetic. Black and White has been predicted as a huge trend for spring, so, Zoe of coarse used the color combination on many of her looks, including the look she wore for her bow. 

Relaxed Boyfriend Denim

When asked about the big show Zoe explained  "People don't realize how much work it is and how long it takes [to prepare for a show] because you see girls walk down the runway and a show is 10 minutes long. It's like planning a wedding!" Zoe also mentioned that having her family there was really important to her. She explained that once her son arrived she felt an immediate sense of "calm" and was ready for the show to begin. 

BCBG Kicks Off NYFW

Cotton Sleeveless Trench

Grand finale: Black silk tulle embroidered with beading and lace 

For days the fashion world has been buzzing about what to expect from this years New York fashion week but finally the wait is over! Fashion week officially began at this morning at Lincoln Center with the BCBG Max Azria show. Celebrities like Heidi Klum and Olivia Palermo sat front row to see what Max Azria had in store for Spring. 

The natural-looking models hit the run way in menswear inspired looks. The collection mainly consisted of light weight fabrics such as cotton, linen, and chiffon and used pales blues, whites, and floral prints all perfect for the spring/summer season. 

Watercolor Florals

The designers Max and Lubov Azria seemed to expand on there well received resort 2014 collection by tying in bohemian silhouettes with menswear tailoring. One of the most popular looks on the runway was "High-waisted wide-leg white pants, paired with a cropped tuxedo-style cotton twill shirt; and an asymmetrical, crisp white snake-embossed skirt worn with a boxy, soft linen jacket"

Mrs. Azria seemed very pleased with her collection and talked about her design style 'Our design approach has always been about deconstructing and reconstructing garments"