Glam or a Sham: Rihanna's GQ Cover

Hey Glamazons!

Rihanna's racy reign continues with her latest magazine cover and spread in January's GQ to promote her amazing new album Rated R. In a pair of leather hot pants, a bodysuit with a deep V and a suggestively cropped white sweater, Rihanna serves up lots of edge and sex-soaked attitude for the cameras.

Though I've blogged about how Rihanna's skimpy outfits can be seen as over-the-top, the GQ cover may be a different story. Hear me out. It's a Men's magazine, widely recognized for it's sexy covers---one of which featured Jennifer Aniston in a tie...and nothing else.

Still, I'm sure an onslaught of criticism awaits Rihanna for her new, provocative spread.








What do you think, Glamazons? Glam or a Sham?

Kisses,

Coutura

V Magazine To Feature Plus-Size Models on January Cover

Glamazons, isn't a beautiful thing when thin-obsessed fashion industry leaders start acknowledging the rest of the world?

Such is the case with Stephen Glan, editor-in-chief of V Magazine. In an effort to recognize beauties of all sizes, Glan is featuring a plus-size model on the January cover. "Big, little, pint-size, plus-size -- every body is beautiful. And this issue is out to prove it," he said via NYPost.com.

V Magazine, which has featured Kate Moss and Lady Gaga (below), will include beautiful plus-size supermodel, Crystal Renn and shoots by Terry Richardson and Karl Lagerfeld (in an attempt to clean up his comment about plus-size women, I suppose) in January's issue.

Though it will be a welcome change to see full-figured women featured prominently in a major fashion magazine, I have to point out that plus-size still starts at size 8 (and yes, that's illogical. baby steps) and I think using plus-size models regularly instead of just in a special issue will have more of an enduring impact on the industry.

As the January issue comes on the heels of V Magazine's controversial shoot featuring model, Sasha Pivovarova, in blackface only two months before, many believe the plus-size angle is a not-so-subtle attempt to clean up the magazine's image. Do you agree?


What do you think of V Magazine's effort to include women of all sizes? Will you buy the magazine? Do you think it's a great stride toward accepting plus-size women in Fashion?




Kisses,

Coutura

Trend Alert: Mad for Plaid

Glamazons,

If I told you lumberjack and private school plaid is sexy, would you believe me? Well, you should. This season, the coolest trendsetters are making the ubiquitous pattern look hotter than ever.

The timeless print is getting a chic makeover this season with laidback oversize tunics paired with leggings and feminine, flirty skirts worn with fitted black tees.

The pattern has permeated menswear too with crisp, plaid button-down shirts and down jackets with plaid details hitting the stores.

Get the look with these celeb-inspired styles and scroll all the way to the bottom for affordable finds!

GLAMAZON FAVORITE: LOVE these plaid shirts from Cavi Designs, a menswear line worn by Jay-Z, Fabolous and more. They have a great selection of colors and an even better fit! $97.54, cavidesigns.com.

Kisses,

Coutura

Video Glam: Teen Blogger Tavi Teams Up with Rodarte for Target

Hey Glamazons!!

So I attended the Rodarte for Target preview months ago and I was as thrilled to see the amazing collection as I was to meet Tavi Gevinson, the 13-year old blogger of Style Rookie, who has truly blown the industry away with her intelligence and fashion sense!

Check out her fab video project of the editor preview event (that I attended), the lookbook shoot and the ad campaign shoot below. She also interviewed designers, Kate and Laura Mulleavy, and chatted with celebs like Elijah Woods at the Rodarte runway show.



Fab!!! Here are some images of the MAJOR collection including a sequin dress that is everything!










Sequins, lace and leopard, oh my! Rodarte for Target is perfect for the young, fashion-forward dresser who is a romantic at heart.

The collection ranges from vintage-inspired looks with feminine flourishes, like the charming tulle skirts and swingy dresses lined with lace, to party-ready standouts like the leopard print minis and sequined frocks.

Remember Rodarte for Target is all about layering so have fun piling a knit over a lace cardigan over a leopard-print dress. Take off the knits and cardigans and you have a look that is still fabulous once the temperature rises.

Just in time for Christmas, the Rodarte for Target line hits stores on December 20th and is priced at $10-$80!

What will you add to your wardrobe when the collection hits stores??

Happy Shopping, Glamazons!

Kisses,

Coutura

Photos: Target. Nitrolicous.com.

NEW!! Make Your Own Fashion Show with Rugby Ralph Lauren

Hey Glamazons!

From the panicked hustle behind the curtains to that magical moment where the first model steps foot on the runway, everyone has imagined working Behind the Scenes at a fashion show. Now, we all can live out our dreams through Rugby Ralph Lauren.

The first interactive feature of its kind, the "Make Your Own" Rugby Ralph Lauren Show lets you play director, stylist and DJ for your very own runway show. Fashion addicts can go to www.rugby.com and style models in their favorite Rugby Ralph Lauren looks, choose music from artists like Amanda Blank and the White Lies and present their show in a 3-D environment to rival the Bryant Park tents.

Once the models are dressed and music selected, all that's left to do is find an audience. Long gone are the days where fashion shows were reserved for the press, celebs, buyers and the "fakes." Through the "buy-now" option, you can give your friends and family first-row access to your original show on Facebook and Twitter. Get started - can't wait to see what you create!


The Rugby Ralph Lauren show comes on the heels of news that more designer brands, including Lauren by Ralph Lauren, will air shows online in the coming year. In addition to cutting costs, designers can reach a significantly greater audience online. Looks like we'll all have front row seats sooner than you think!

Kisses,

Coutura

Exclusive Glamazon Holiday Discount - Kissable Couture

Hey Glamazons!

Give the gift of beauty this season with luscious lip gloss!

Whether you're surprising your beauty-addict best friend/girlfriend or treating yourself to something fabulous, Kissable Couture's new Smooches II set is a holiday beauty must-have!

Founded by Keisha Whitaker (Forest Whitaker's wife) and beauty god, A.J. Crimson (responsible for Letoya Luckett's fab purple lips in her lastest video, "Regrets," - see above, I'm obsessed!), Kissable Couture delivers the best in beauty trends---and Smooches II is no exception.



All the trends of the season, from purple (perfect for holiday parties) to shimmery gold (perfect for, ahem, under the mistletoe), are available in this must-have set.

And guess what? DISCOUNT ALERT! Glamazon readers can snag this irrestible set at an exclusive discount - 25% off!

Use discount code: Glamazons at www.kissablecouture.com while supplies last.

Consider it our gift to you. =)

Check out the kissable set below, which includes: Elusive, David, Solstice, Awakening and Tyler.



Oh and the purple lip A.J. Crimson did on Letoya Luckett was sooo GLAM I included her latest video, "Regrets." (I love the song too!) Check it out!





Kisses,

Coutura

New Single From the Love of My Life: Sade

Hey Glamazons! In celebration of one of my most favorite singers of all time (Sade) I wanted to share the single from her new album, Soldier of Love. I know you've probably heard it by now, but just in case you've been living under a rock and haven't, click here to hear it.

Also, wanted to share with you that I have had the pleasure of meeting this lovely lady. It was when I was still in retail hell (ie working at the Express on 18th and 5th). She came into the store dressed down with her family, but still looked beautiful. I sold her some pants and declared my undying love for her. She hugged and kissed me, told me I was beautiful and thanked me for supporting her music for so long. I had no camera and only a piece of receipt paper with me and a pen in which to get her autograph. She told me that she wanted to do better than that and asked instead for my mailing address. A couple of months later, I received this gorgeous autographed picture of her and I was on cloud nine for weeks!

I've finally found the perfect frame for it and plan on hanging it up soon...well, as soon as I find my new apartment that is. Finding a place to live in NY is such a pain in the ass...ugh.

But, I digress. Hope that you guys loved the new single just as much as I do!

xo

Ferocia

Sonia Rykiel pour H&M Launches with Paris Show - In Stores Tomorrow!

Hey Glamazons!

Think the Victoria's Secret fashion show was the most glamorous lingerie showcase of the season? Think again. Sonia Rykiel for H&M launched with an extravagant display across the pond that gave the Angels a run for their money.

Inspired by Alice and Wonderland, the show was an elaborate presentation of romance and fantasy at the Grand Palais in Paris. Beneath a replica of the Eiffel Tower, models, including Lily Cole (below), posed on luxurious, silk sheets, sat on crystal chandeliers and played on swings atop a stage sprinkled with glitter. Kate Bosworth and fellow French designer, Jean Paul Gaultier (who is doing a line for Target!), came out to show their support.





The lingerie was as glamorous as the backdrop with 50's pin-up inspired silhouettes and feminine flourishes like jewels and rosettes.






Check out video from the show and red carpet below. What do you think of Sonia Rykiel for H&M's extravagant show? Will you shop the collection (which starts at $12!) when it hits 1,500 H&M stores and Sonia Rykiel boutiques TOMORROW, December 5th?









Kisses,

Coutura

Photos: H&M

Julia Roberts Named New Face of Lancome

It's about time someone snatched up this pretty woman!

Actress Julia Roberts has signed a deal with beauty brand Lancome to become a "global ambassadress." According to an article in today's Women's Wear Daily, Lancome didn't reveal the amount of money they paid her or what exactly she would even be doing in this new role. But, we figure that she'll be raking in millions upon millions for this new adventure!

xo

Ferocia

Don't Call It A Comeback!: RiRi Performs In New York

Hey Glamazons!

Fresh off of the release of her new album, Rated R, Rihanna performed last night at the Hammerstein Ballroom here in NY. The free mini concert was part of Myspace Music's "The Release" concert series and I heard that fans started lining up as early as 7 a.m. to get their hands on tickets! Throngs of teenagers were pushing their way to the front of the line excited to hear the songtress perform songs live from her new album. (Or at least, that's what I overheard from the group of annoying people standing next to me. And please don't get me started on the two girls in front of me who thought it would be cute to sport mounds of weave and 8 inch heels at a concert...I mean, seriously, it's a concert...have a little bit of courtesy for the people around you! No one could see around that ish...ugh.)

After an introduction from Hot 97 DJ Angie Martinez, Rihanna finally took the stage at around 9:30 p.m. (The show was scheduled to start at 9 p.m.)

The stage set resembled something of a junkyard with it's piled up television screens and limbless half-naked silver mannequins. Rocking her newly blonde locks, the singer wore what seems to be her favorite garb nowadays: a silver leotard complete with fishnet tights and lots of ass cheeks. (Speaking of her ass cheeks, it looked as though the singer has an even gained a bit of weight; which is good because I thought she was looking a bit too skinny there for a moment haha)

She sang songs from her new album ('Hard' and 'Russian Roulette') as well as songs from her previous album ('Take A Bow' and 'Umbrella').

Overall, I'm proud of her for taking the stage so soon after the whole CB incident. It looks as though she's doing really well and off to a great start in taking back her life again.

However, I just don't think Rihanna is a great performer. I felt the show was lackluster and maybe she should look into adding in more choreography to her shows. (I mean, she didn't dance at all; she just walked around and headbanged when she wasn't sitting down. At least have some background dancers for your audience to look at!) She did do a good job of engaging her hard core fans in the front and even took off her black leather fingerless gloves and gave them to a girl in the audience.

Check out the video below that I recorded while there on my Flip camera (apologies for the thumping bass sound; these things aren't the best for sound and the lady I cut to is friend Jeannine Amber..she's an amazing writer!) and tell us what you think!

xo

Ferocia

Video Glam: Jennifer Lopez's Louboutins in "Fresh Out the Oven"

Hey Glamazons!

While we're not head over heels in love with Jennifer Lopez's new songs, image or Sasha-Fierce knockoff "Lola," we have to give her credit for her phenomenal taste in shoes. As you know I am a Louboutin lover and the new Bridget bootie, which JLo rocks in "Fresh Out the Oven," is the latest object of my desire.

Drool.

It's lady, vampy, vixen, rocker, glamour puss all in one mesmerizing shoe. The sexy peeptoe marries two of the season's hottest trends in holy matrimony: lace and leopard print. Genius!

As the shoe retails for a cool $1,795, some believe it's too trendy for the price tag. Trendy or not, I certainly can't, in good faith, spend more than two month's rent on a pair of shoes (please God, let them be at the next sample sale).

Some even think it's ugly. Gasp. While I do believe fashion is subjective, Louboutin and lace and leopard could never be bad. Right?

Heidi Klum wore them with all black everything to a Pre-Emmy party while JLo rocked them with a nude minidress and velvet shrug to the VMA's.

Take a look at the bootie-ful peeptoe and check Jennifer Lopez rocking it in her newest video, "Fresh Out of the Oven" below. What do you think of the shoes...oh and the song?

Kisses,

Coutura

Glam or a Sham: Lingerie with a GPS Tracking Device?

Hey Glamazons!

Controlling boyfriends have a new way to keep tabs on you - and no, we're not talking about Twitter. The luxurious 'Find Me if you Can' line from Lindelucy lingerie comes replete with lace, bows, floral flourishes and a small GPS tracking device attached via nydailynews.com.

While the idea seems reminiscent of a chastity belt or a hidden camera, the Lindelucy-lingerie wearer does have some authority. Only people with the password have access to the wearer's location and of course, she can decide who she wants to reveal the secret code to. Also, code or no code, the wearer can turn it off whenever she chooses and just like that, [easy] access denied.

Though the Brazilian manufacturer even argues that the GPS-lingerie "can be used as a safety device," I'm not quite sold. No matter how much agency the wearer has, the idea of a tracking device attached to my undergarments is a little too pre-Feminist movement for me. Since I'm not dating anyone in the Secret Service or working for a Pimp, there's no man who needs to know all of my whereabouts.

What do you think, Glamazons? Is it a sexy, playful thing lovers can have fun with? Or is it a tool men can use to control women that sets us back fifty years? And please note whether you're using the lingerie to track your girlfriend's every move or to play a "sexy" game of Hide & Seek, it will still cost you up to $1,100. Hmm...

Glam or a Sham?

Kisses,

Coutura

Photos: Lindelucy.com.