Cartier Collection at the Forbidden City

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Catch this show (more at the Telegraph) in the Meridian Gate (午门）as soon as possible. It ends with November. The Chinese-influenced pieces, mainly from the 1920s, are beautiful and surprising. The rigor with which Cartier artisans studied and imitated the motifs and techniques of traditional Chinese jewelry is impressive. The object above joins a Chinese-style tortoise with Western horological genius.

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This was one of my other favorite things. It is a tiny picture frame in the shape of a camera. It is about four inches tall.

Me on China Fashion Week at 163.com

Here I am, unedited, and sounding like an intellectual who doesn’t know very much. I was caught on my way out of a show and did not have any time to prepare. There wasn’t really even that much cat.

Also, at stylelist.com, here are pictures of the 20 strangest looks from China fashion week, without any mention of the designers. I know the names of some of them though there are sadly quite a few that I did not catch.

Fashion Fugitives

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The press pass that had gained me entrance to 20 shows over the course of a week was in the name of the fashion editor of my magazine. It was confiscated and I did not make it into the final awards ceremony. These two guys did, though they did not have either a press pass or a ticket. These two fashion students actually made it into every single show of China Fashion Week SS ’10 without any documents allowing entry. They would just sneak in – once or twice on my coattails. For the final event, they walked past the guards into a side door, even though there were metal detectors before all of the official entrances.

China Fashion Week Awards Ceremony: Li Xiaoyan Gets Gold!

Last night, Ms. Li Xiaoyan (李小燕) received the 2009 (for SS ’10 collections) gold prize for the best collection. This award is presented by the organizations that organized this, the thirteenth China Fashion Week. Learn more (in Chinese) on Yoka and Sina. View the award winning collection here at Yoka.

I met Ms. Li, originally from Taipei, after her show and she was nice enough to present me with the scarf she was then wearing, which is also part of the award-winning collection. This nice souvenir made up for the fact that my press ID was confiscated later that night because it was actually registered in my subordinates’ name.

Guo Pei (scroll down) received the award for the best woman’s collection and Cabeen got it for men.


Enovate: Capturing the 500 Million

Enovate is very relevant. The site charts the behaviors, ideas, and patterns of the world’s most important rising consumer group. Subjects from Erguotou to Wuliangye, and from anti-innovation to social entrepreneurship make comprehensive Enovate a daily must-see for those seeking to penetrate the dazzling China youth market.

At a Coffee Shop

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In a very tight coffee shop right near the China Fashion Week venues, I met Ms. Guo Pei (郭培), one of the most well-known Chinese designers. As I was heading in, she was leaving, together with Cabeen (here’s his show), another major designer. One of my biggest regrets this week is that I did not make the trip out to the Olympic Green to see her show. It just seemed too far and I was feeling a bit moody on Friday night. Her work is covered in the China Daily, Fashion Wire Daily, and the All China Women’s Federation, to name a few. Check her SS ’10 show. The theme was the thousand and second night. Here’s her blog, also.

Beauty Berry Fan

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An attendee at most of the key China Fashion Week events, this handsome editor was outside of the Beauty Berry show, which he thought was very nice. His boots, in this pic, are actually covered on the outside in wool.

Interestingly this China Daily piece does not even mention Beauty Berry, focusing on other brands that I thought were much less impressive.

You know you have been in China for a long time when you can write several posts on a brand called Beauty Berry without even commenting on the name.

Outside Beauty Berry

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Beauty Berry was very much anticipated by Beijing’s fops, fashionistas, and pretty boys and they were out in force. Designer Wang Yutao (王玉涛) should be pleased that the audience was very receptive, if comments from several magazine editors can be taken as a measure. A surprise appearance by supermodel Lv Yan bolstered the show, bringing a flurry of applause from the audience. I would be interested to find out where Beauty Berry pieces can be had.

Feline is Forever

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Just look at the runways at China Fashion Week SS ’10. I encountered this young lady in the subway on the way to the Qi Gang show, where big cats were in evidence. But this was not the only show immersing spectators in themes from the jungle and Beijingers these days seem never to get enough leopard scarves, flats, bags, neckties and jackets. Is leopard “classic” now like blue and white stripes or gray herringbone?

Notice that this is one of the first times that I have broken my usual rule of steering clear of those with brand names visible. Yes, I am a member of that snobbish and reactionary anti-logo crew. They should be paying her to carry a bag that is an advertisement in itself.