Kate Moss For TopShop

[lucy92]

images and story from timesonline.co.uk

The Kate divide

As New York sneers at Kate Moss’s range for Topshop, Lisa Armstrong explains that Americans don’t share our affection for shop-soiled glamour

After the hype, the backlash. New York magazine has declared Kate Moss’s collection for Topshop “bland”. The New York Post ’s headline — “Duplikate” — professed an equal frenzy of apathy. And spiky comments from Barney’s creative director, Simon Doonan, about Moss, Croydon and slags were gleefully taken out of context all over the press.
Moss does appear to have fallen for her own mythology recently, dangling precariously out of windows (oh, the danger!), playing Marianne to Mick Jagger (sort of) on an unconvincingly “spontaneous” loop of YouTube footage and flitting, eerily Yoko-like, in and out of Pete Doherty’s performances. But perhaps the lukewarm US media’s reaction versus the exitable British one says more about our nations’ different approaches to what might be called slightly soiled glamour. We love it, they don't. Stocking the range — which, lest we forget, is manufactured, priced and pitched at a high-street market — in Barney’s, one of New York’s slickest, most exclusive, department stores may be another factor. Anyway, here at The Times, we’ve seen it, and barring the odd chiffon smock and overly nylon mini we like it.
Does any of this matter to the famously flameproof Moss? Well, yes. There comes a time when even the most genetically blessed find combining hard living with close-up portraits an increasing grind. Kate Moss is no fool concerning her career. A gradual shift towards styling/design is not just the key to longevity and sanity, it represents a move into an area in which she has complete confidence. “I’ve never done this before,” she admits, “but I’ve seen it done for years.”
One of the most surprising aspects of the whole deal is how personal the collection is. For someone whose image is predicated as much on her sense of style as her physical attributes, Moss has been remarkably generous in sharing individual pieces from her own wardrobe. Then again, once she’s seen thousands of clones running around in facsimiles of her beloved waistcoats and hotpants, she may decide it’s time for some reinvention.
function pictureGalleryPopup(pubUrl,articleId) { var newWin = window.open(pubUrl+'template/2.0-0/element/pictureGalleryPopup.jsp?id='+articleId+'&&offset=0 &&sectionName=WomenFashion','mywindow','menubar=0, resizable=0,width=615,height=655'); }Sticklers may bridle at Moss coopting the word design for what she does (basically turn up at the Topshop offices every fortnight with carrier bags of her treasured clothes, try on all the samples and constantly suggest alterations). On the other hand, given that the angles of a lapel can make the difference between a jacket being sexy or staid, 2cm on the length of a dress can make it frumpy or fabulous and a well-placed dart can transform ordinary trousers into head-turning, buttock-raising, leg-lengtheners, Moss’s unerring eye for fit is no small thing. Of course there’s an argument to be made that buying into the Moss collection probably constitutes the most fundamentally unMoss like behaviour anyone could indulge in (though she’s not averse to borrowing from others’ style herself, whether it’s early Bardot or later Hendrix). Still, dismissing her collection on that basis alone would probably be an own goal. In a world where every other overstyled, freebie toting, visually clueless celebrity is held up as “style icon”, Moss’s instinctive eye and unfailing taste are the real deal. And, if nothing else, the modal-cotton-mix T-shirts and racer-back vests are great buys.
HOW MUCH WAS SHE INVOLVED?
Once Moss had inked the deal with Sir Philip Green in October, she was introduced to Topshop’s design consultant, managing director and head buyer, who were there to point out, inter alia, that a micro-mini that looked dandy on Moss at a Babyshambles gig may not work so well in a size 16.
— They were joined in fortnightly sessions by a technical fitter and a merchandise assistant, whose role was to work out how the collection would be displayed, packaged and branded. Moss turned up with a bag of her beloved vintage pieces (none with recognisable designer labels inside: Moss isn’t about to cannibalise the industry that has been so good to her). Various ideas were explored, sketched and sent to the manufacturers.
— When Moss returned, she tried on every sample, pulling in waists, rolling up sleeves, twisting reveres to achieve the recognisable Moss effect. “Two months in,” says Topshop design consultant Jaqui Markham, “we had rails and rails of clothes — ultimately we ended up using only 60 per cent — and still she kept on bringing in new items that had caught her eye, or she’d bike over a beaded camisole for us to have a look at for the limited collection pieces.”
— Items would be sent back to factories for alterations. Moss would return for more fittings and with more carrier bags: the process turned out to be mutually informative. “We learned a lot about what she likes and she learned how to put a whole collection together, from beachwear, to jeans, to vests, to how putting a pleat in a skirt can make it wearable to a much wider segment of women,” says head buyer Sophie Brierly. “The hardest thing was making great little bags that cost less than £200. Then again, her favourite Glastonbury bag was a little vintage one. Luckily she’s not hung up on price. She wears £200 jeans, but she’s also always worn Topshop’s £30 Baxters.” Prices in Moss’s collection range from £10 for vests to £150 for limited edition dresses.

[fashionispoison]

^ love that sequined dress!!!

[russh_kris_z]

Lol it was inspired by her coco mademoiselle campaigns dress.

[fashionispoison]

i just tried looking up barney's events and they don't have her listed for may 9?

[a984mel]

Originally Posted by vogueness

i reckon they will be queuing from before midnight and that will make it a very long night....

wow....really?? I mean I love that white dress, but do I love it that much?!?!

[MARLOWE TIGER]

Copycat Kate: Haven't we seen her new Topshop collection before?

She's been paid £3m for her Topshop collection. But has Kate Moss done anything more for the money than open up her own wardrobe?



New York 2005: Kate loved her blue pansy frock so much she put it in her collection, £45

London 2007: Black satin chic is adapted for the high street with top, £18, skirt, £45, belt, £35

London 2006: The stripes and the three-quarter sleeves reappear here: jacket £65, top, £18, with trousers, £45
source:the mail

[MARLOWE TIGER]

The Copy Kate collection
It doesn't go on sale for almost two weeks, but eager buyers of Kate Moss's new range for Topshop can finally see what all the fuss is about, courtesy of a new website set up especially to view the range.
www.katemosstopshop.com features a look book of the whole collection: the perfect tool for planning what to bag when the range is finally unveiled on 1 May.

Top copies: Kate Moss models her own designs on the dedicated website which will sell her clothing range. The halter neck dress is £60

But despite the clamour to see the range, Moss has been criticised for doing nothing more than opening up her own wardrobe. Her designs, created in collaboration with stylist Katy England, have been 'inspired' by pieces she already owns. See more here
Not that 1 May need be a smash-and-grab raid on your nearest Topshop store. For while the best bits of the collection are sure to sell out fast, the beauty of the internet means that no woman need ever feature in an ungainly scrum for the last size 10 pair of cropped skinny jeans again.
Even those customers living in remote corners of the world, with about as much means of getting to Topshop on 1 May as flying to the moon, can still snag a piece of Kate.

All you need is a reliable alarm clock: the collection will be available to buy online from 4am.
While Moss has been criticised, particularly in the US, for simply opening up her wardrobe and replicating it in bargain, high street form, surely it is precisely this ability to capitalise on her own style which proves she is a shrewd businesswoman.
It would have been far riskier to put out a collection based on nothing more than the current zeitgeist.
Moss is the most closely watched - and copied - woman in the world: why shouldn't she turn her own sense of style into profit? The rest of the high street has been doing it - albeit obliquely - for years, with barely a store in the land not taking her look as inspiration for their ranges. Despite the critics, there is no doubt that the collection will be bought up hungrily by Moss's legion of fans. And while older customers might blanch at wearing a floral printed tea dress almost identical to the one she recently wore to such effect, younger customers should have no such qualms.
The Kate Moss range is definitely young at heart: tiny denim hotpants, shrunken waistcoats, string bikinis and skinny jeans will all look best on a Kate Moss body: for which, read anyone between the ages of 12 and 25.
Not that older fans need feel left out entirely. Rather than replicating the Moss look on themselves - which would surely be tragic on any woman whose years are commensurate with Moss's own - thirty and fortysomething customers should steer clear of Moss's obvious hallmarks and focus on the more anonymous pieces.
Priced at the higher end of the spectrum are two leather jackets: one fastenless and off-white, another black and zippered. These are future classics that could integrate into any wardrobe, whatever the wearer's age.
After reading about her tempestuous life with boyfriend Pete Doherty, anyone who thought Kate Moss is the jealous type can be appeased by a single glance at the look book. While half of the clothes are modelled by Moss herself, the other half are worn by Irina Lazareanu , a former drummer in his band, Babyshambles.
same source

[lucy92]

this is a good idea. i think this will thwart some resellers!

Green warns copycats: hands off Moss range
retail-week.com

Sir Philip Green has issued a stark warning to rival retailers not to rip off the Kate Moss collection for Topshop.

“Everything’s copyrighted and I will sue,” Green told Retail Week.

The retail tycoon will draft in a dedicated mystery shopping team to scrutinise other retailer’s stores for copycat products when the Moss range launches on May 1.

“We’ve made a big investment and we don’t want that undermined,” said Green.

Design theft is a constant problem in fashion retail and costs UK industry as a whole about £10 billion a year, according to the Alliance Against Intellectual Property Theft.

Green has ambitions to turn the Moss range into a global fashion brand and said he had received interest from about 20 retailers worldwide already.

The Moss collection will comprise 80 pieces initially, ranging in price from £10 to £200. It will be showcased in shop-in-shops at Topshop’s most high-profile stores.

Green said new Moss merchandise would be introduced every seven to 14 days. “We plan to add all the time,” he said. “It’s a brand-build.”

Moss was reportedly paid £3 million for participating in the venture and is the latest celebrity to lend her name to the high street. On Monday, H&M revealed that pop star Madonna’s range helped drive like-for-like sales up 17 per cent last month.

[brokenenglish]

^ I think that's rather funny really...
He is warning people not to copy...
when that's all his "designer" really did!

[lucy92]

Hurray!

story from thelondonpaper.com

Limit on Moss's Topshop collection

Shoppers snapping up the new Kate Moss fashion collection will be limited to five items each to prevent the clothes appearing on eBay, Topshop said.
The high street chain is braced for huge demand for the model's designs when they go on sale on May 1.
A Kate Moss "countdown to launch" board will fill a window of the company's flagship Oxford Street store from Monday.
The collection of 50 designs includes clothes, bags, shoes and belts.
Prices range from £12 for a vest top to £150 for a cropped leather jacket.
A Topshop spokesman said the chain wanted to avoid the clothes being auctioned online on launch day.
He said: "This is to stop eBaying and people grabbing armfuls of things to put online. It isn't foolproof but what can you do as a store?"
Clothes in the collection include skinny jeans, one-shoulder mini dresses and T-shirts with the letter K woven in to the design.
The range will be on sale at 225 Topshop stores. It is not expected to sell out because the collection is not a limited edition.

[lucy92]

that's pretty awesome about people only being able to get 5 items at a time. but i suppose that wont stop resellers from visiting different topshop stores in london on the first day.

some things that we havent seen before perhaps (mirror.co.uk)

[laisla]

I quite like those strappy sandals in the last post. Fingers crossed those shades come in black, I cant quite aford ray bans and they look like a pretty good alternative.

The collection has really come at a bad time for me. Ive just shelled out for a new sewing machine and I have fabric to buy so that leaves little money to buy anything from the range. Im praying they will still have some small sizes in that floral dress when I next get £££!

my wishlist:

Floral dress
Skinny crop jean
Grey Stripe Waistcoat

I quite like the idea behind the signed shirt, think I might attempt to repliKATE [ahem] that with a cheap shirt shame my similar signed school shirts are covered with 11 year old's messy handwritting -I should have asked my classmates to write more neatly. darn!


edited to say that although I love some of the cocktail dresses, sadly I dont really have any where to wear them. If I did Id definitley get the white dress that everyone is going ga-ga over and the chanel knockoff. they really do look like value for money if you ask me.

[coolheadk]

does anybody know when is it launched for the rest of Europe???

[nogoodforme]

at first i wasn't super-interested in the kate moss topshop line (although i heart kate loads, and love her style, the idea of being another kate clone was just too depressing)...but i'm starting to like these little jackets a lot! they seem not too instantly recognizable.

and i'm psyched they have a 5-item limit...it always irks me when you go to these things and see those old dudes who just grab armfuls off the racks and you can tell they're just going to sell them on ebay for an inflated price!

[russh_kris_z]

Originally Posted by brokenenglish

^ I think that's rather funny really...
He is warning people not to copy...
when that's all his "designer" really did!

well the clothes arent really the same.. they were "inspired" but she changed so many features and little things here and there to improve th quality. She also changed the patterns a bit etc. And these are vintage finds too