Gisele sets her sights on the slums for Brazil's next beauty



Question: Which supermodel was rejected by 42 agencies?

Answer: Gisele.

Bet those 42 are kicking themselves.

And just to prove she isn’t prepared to let these agencies make another ludicrous mistake, Gisele has returned to her native Brazil to cherry pick the country’s next top model.

It will be a model contest with a difference though. Top CUFA (Central Única das Favelas) is a competition only open to women who live in Brazil’s slums.

Out of the women Gisele picks, judges will then select one model to represent each of Brazil’s 27 states.

The overall winner will go on to receive a yearlong modeling contract.
Speaking at the launch Gisele said "I feel privileged to be the sponsor of this project.”

Despite the competitions best intentions, Top CUFA risks being highly controversial.

Race-related violence is already problematic for Brazil and there are fears that Top CUFA’s contestants, many of whom are of mixed race, could ignite racial tensions.

However, contestant Rafaella Lemes was optimistic about the competition: “Even if she is white, Bundchen’s being here is important because she’s from Brazil where there is great racial diversity.”

Here’s hoping the competition gets off to a flying start.

Brad Pitt is the New Face of Chanel No. 5

The House of Chanel named actor Brad Pitt as the new spokesperson for the Chanel No. 5. This will mark the first time a man will be in ads for the iconic fragrance. The question is, why Brad Pitt? Here are my thoughts:

Creating a buzz: If you walk down the aisle of your favorite department store, you will find a wide array of perfumes. How can a company move out of the clutter without compromising its elegant brand? Brad fits the profile of a typical Chanel No. 5 ‘spokeswoman’. He has been an
Academy Award Nominee. Chanel did not change the look or the scent, but by featuring a man people are now talking about the product.

Cross-reference: There are other celebrity men who can endorse, but most do not come with a subliminal thought, Angelina Jolie. When you think of Brad, you think of Angelina. Angelina looks more like the traditional Chanel No. 5 spokesperson. Choosing Brad will calm the traditional people who think that the spokesperson should only be a woman.

This new tactic has shown that this iconic brand will continue to reinvent itself over time.

FIFTIES AMERICANA
From pastels and plaids to futuristic florals, designers have beaten off the gloom of recession with an array of colour to brighten up the catwalk. Think dreamy fifties Americano and classic geometric florals. With the clench of androgynous, grunge trends rapidly losing their grip, its time to make way for digital technology to ravage us with a technicolour of pretty prints and fifties silhouettes, while the only accessories a women needs for her long beach walks at sunset to look tres chic, is her retro cat eye frames and kitten heels. Bold, clashing motifs brought a beach glamorous air to Prada, while glossy leathers and shimmering pleats introduced a refreshing touch to Marc Jacobs this spring. For those daring fashionistas who can bare their midriff, mini tops showing off glimpses of super slim abs are no longer a fashion faux pas, but a must have revolution. Go all out sophisticated, fifties glamour this summer. No need to worry about your poolside presence, Marc Jacobs’s skirts will give you enough of the wet look treatment.

To celebrate their 10 year anniversary, Harvey Nichols Edinburgh, will host an extravagant party like no other. This party will be a celebration of the success of Harvey Nichols over the past 10 years and is focused on wowing customers and reaffirming its status as Scotland’s ultimate luxury lifestyle shopping destination.

The event will be for guests made up of customers, celebrities. The party will take place on a shop floor, which will be completely cleared of all stock and fixtures to allow a blank canvas for a production team to create a magical and twisted fairytale land. Within this land will appear separate areas dedicated to individual fairytale characters and habitats, each one offering the party guest a new area to explore.

As part of this theme, Edinburgh College of Art Performance Costume BA (Hons) students have the opportunity to reinterpret one of the many traditional fairytale characters and design a costume based on this character which we can showcase at the event. Depending on the design, this may either be worn by a model as part of a living instillation or may be integrated into the production design (worn by a mannequin in a static pose).