The Nifty 50 | Apiece Apart, Designers

A couple of years ago, Laura Cramer, an art director, and Starr Hout, a stylist and fashion designer, were on a road trip in West Texas. As they drove through the stark landscape, they started fantasizing about simplifying their lives — starting with their clothes. “I said, ‘I have this idea,’” Cramer recalls. “It’s about a streamlined, reduced wardrobe, something you could put in a small suitcase and just be happy about. A wardrobe worth wearing. And Starr just completely agreed.” Apiece Apart was born.

The concept behind the line is tantalizing: Eliminate clutter and confusion in your wardrobe and you will be happier. “I feel like women have this secret stressful time — that 15 minutes in the morning when they have to get dressed and out the door,” says Hout. “We thought, What if we could help to eliminate that? What if your clothes could support you and help you to have a higher quality of life?” To that end, she and Cramer have created what they call a modular uniform: fluid, easy-to-wear pieces like column skirts in different lengths, and drapey silk blazers that eschew trendiness for versatility. Everything is designed to mix and match, so that if you buy an Apiece Apart blouse, you can rest assured that it will go with every skirt and pair of trousers in the line.

This kind of dressing, says Hout, requires a shift in thinking. “Women tend to buy emotionally, but then they end up with a closet full of clothes that don’t relate to each other. But if you think about what you’re going to buy in a more focused way and you get your staples, then you can add your novelty items and your jewelry. It’s freeing to have a codified closet.”

Freeing, yes. But is there a risk that it can get a little dull? Not at all, says Cramer: “Simplicity is a great challenge. Each season we set ourselves a different one. For spring, it was color, because we discovered that women really love color. For fall, we’re adding skins and texture. If you want to have the best wardrobe you can, you have to push yourself a little.”

ALICIA KEYS – Most Beautiful People of the Decade [Foto]

ALICIA KEYS

She seemed to come to us from nowhere in 2001, fully-formed and ready to have us fallin’ for her fiery voice and vulnerable confessionals. Tens of millions of albums sold and multiple Grammys later, she’s suddenly everywhere again, haunting our heads on Jay-Z’s zeitgeisty anthem, “Empire State of Mind.” She’s one-part Aretha and one-part Joni—which is to say that she’s timeless.

GLADYS KNIGHT: Give me some of your pet peeves.

ALICIA KEYS: Give me one of yours, and then I’ll give you one of mine.

KNIGHT: Okay, so there are some announcements that the make before you go onstage: no recording of this show, no pictures taken, none of that stuff. Then as as soon as you step onstage and you get flash-flash-flash. This is show business. This is show business. These people we hook up with go to great lengths to make sure that they’ve got control of our likenesses, and you’re going to take my picture with a cell phone?

KEYS: [LAUGHS] The cell phone thing is out of control. Here’s my pet peeve: The not-so-unstated rule that women are only to be treated as sexual objects and gawked at-you know, sitting up against a car, washing something, bending over, licking something. That just drives me crazy.

KNIGHT: It’s up to us to take back that control.

KEYS: Yeah. Make people wonder a bit more.

MARIAH CAREY & NICKI MINAJ FILM “UP OUT MY FACE”

Check out some photos of singer Mariah Carey and rapper Nicki Minaj on the set of their new video, “Up Out My Face”. Mariah’s husband, Nick Cannon posted the photos of his blog and is also the director of the upcoming video.

The 25 Coolest Sneaker Designs of 2009

(Bloomberg) — Adidas has long been one of the world’s premier brands in fashion sport shoes. Now the German sporting-goods company plans to begin selling high-end mountaineering jackets next year, muscling in on North Face’s turf as outdoor gear grows faster than traditional sporting goods.

Adidas is setting a lofty goal for itself, too. It wants to become a leading brand for so-called performance-sports gear by 2015, says Rolf Reinschmidt, head of the global outdoor division.

Sales of outdoor gear will rise about 0.7% in Europe this year, outperforming the declining sporting-goods market, according to industry body European Outdoor Group. The fragmented nature of the market makes it attractive for adidas. North Face owner VF leads the $59 billion industry with outdoor-sports sales of $2.74 billion, the association says.

“Adidas is still far behind the specialist labels, but it’s coming up,” says Andreas Bartmann, chief executive of Globetrotter, Europe’s largest outdoor-products retailer. Globetrotter, in Hamburg, Germany, will start selling adidas hiking boots next year.

Revenue Is Up

The new 325-gram Terrex Feather Jacket is designed to protect trekkers at heights of up to 19,685 feet. Like all adidas performance sports gear, the $595 product will initially be available only in Germany and neighboring Austria and Switzerland, along with Russia, China, and Korea. From 2012, the entire line will be available globally.

The world’s second-largest sporting-goods maker doesn’t provide sales figures for its outdoor unit, saying only that the division’s revenue rose in the first nine months of 2009 while overall sales fell 3.7%. VF, which is in Greensboro, N.C., reported that North Face’s third-quarter revenue increased 10% at constant currency rates, while sales of its Vans label climbed 4% on the same basis.

Growth in the industry isn’t universal. Columbia Sportswear said in October that third-quarter sales fell 4%, to $434.5 million, and forecast a decline for the year of 8% to 9%. The Portland (Ore.) company had previously predicted a “low-double-digit” drop in annual revenue.

Solo Ascent

Reinschmidt has led adidas’ outdoor sports unit since 2007 and has a team of 40 developing high-tech apparel and boots. In Europe, adidas increased its spending on marketing this year by running TV commercials with Alexander and Thomas Huber, brothers who are known for extreme Alpine climbing. The sporting-goods maker also started sponsoring Reinhold Messner, who made the first solo ascent of Mount Everest without bottled oxygen.

Adidas Chief Executive Herbert Hainer has said his company would build its outdoor-sports division using its own brand name and without resorting to acquisitions.

“Adidas is doing a seriously good job as the company tries to take advantage of the increasing interest for outdoor gear,” says Mark Held, secretary general of European Outdoor Group. He expects the industry’s growth to continue into next year. “Even in hard times, people continue buying outdoor gear to escape for a while from the seriousness of life.”

Belstaff – Barkmaster Lady leather biker boots

Dark gray leather ankle biker boots with a heel that measures approximately 30mm / 1 inch with a 10mm / 0.5 inch platform. Belstaff boots have a distressed finish, a silver-tone buckle-fastening ankle strap, stitched panels, a round toe and an adjustable panel at the top with a silver-tone buckle-fastening strap to fasten.

When Belstaff launched its high-performance waterproof outerwear line in 1924, it soon became the label of choice for motorcyclists and aviators alike. Now this iconic British brand is a fully-fledged fashion name and for fall expect black wet-look puffas and belted flight jackets that are perfect for city sojourns.

 

Pippa Small 18-karat gold smoky quartz earrings

 

Pippa Small’s 18-karat yellow gold and smoky quartz earrings for pierced ears are a delicate drop style that will add instant luxe to a day or night look.

 

Canadian-born British-raised jewelry designer Pippa Small showed her first collection in Paris ten years ago and quickly garnered attention for her striking organic style. She has since gone on to carve out a covetable niche of enticing jewelry with unexpected twists and has collaborated with the likes of Chloé, Gucci, and Bamford in the process. Each piece is designed in London and crafted in India’s Rajasthan by a team of highly skilled goldsmiths and stone-cutters, so adorn yourself with delicate gold-wrapped pendants, Lolite encrusted earrings and chunky green Tourmaline rings.

Stella McCartney 2009

Designing with herself and her friends Kate Moss, Madonna and Gwyneth Paltrow in mind, rock royal Stella McCartney is famous for her sharp tailoring, irreverence and sexy femininity. A strict vegetarian, her designs are fur and leather free. After working as the chief designer at Chloé, McCartney started her signature line in 2001 under the Gucci group, quickly adding accessories and fragrance. She often mixes tough and sweet elements, so look out for her ultra floaty florals and tailored trenches.

 

Stella McCartney 2009

 

Stella McCartney – Thigh-high faux-leather boots

 

Black faux-leather thigh-high boots with a heel that measures approximately 110mm / 4.5 inches with a 10mm / 0.5 inch receded platform. Stella McCartney boots have a gunmetal-tone sculpted-metal heel and platform, a square toe with gunmetal trim, a gummed panel at top and simply pull on.

 

Sergio Rossi – Astor suede ankle boots

Brick red suede ankle boots with a heel that measures approximately 120mm / 4.5 inches with a 20mm / 1 inch concealed platform. Sergio Rossi boots have an almond toe, an exposed silver-tone asymmetric zip fastening on front and leather soles.

The Sergio Rossi collection, famed for beautiful designs, superior fit and quality materials, is a shoe-aholic’s dream. Since the ’60s Sergio Rossi shoes have graced the runways of fashion pioneers such as Gianni Versace, Dolce & Gabbana and Azzedine Alaia. For spring, designer Edmundo Castillo’s bright colors and graphic shapes are all you need to step confidently into the summer.

Chloe – Kira leather bowler bag

Black leather bowler bag with gold-tone hardware. Chloé bag has a chain-embellished trim, oversized studs at the front and back with designer logo, two top handles, a detachable locking-stud shoulder strap, top zip to close with locking closure at side, internal zipped compartment and is lined in olive canvas.

French label Chloé was started in 1952 as an alternative to the norm’s strict adherence to haute couture. Founder Gaby Aghion spotted a void in the market and the notion of Prêt-à-Porter was born. The list of past designers reads like a who’s who of fashion’s greatest, including Karl Lagerfeld (who took it to iconic status in the 1970s), Stella McCartney and Phoebe Philo. British designer Hannah MacGibbon is the new creative director, look out for her refined take on easy glamour.