Daily News: Read today's dose of chic intel right here...
written by Freya Drohan February 29, 2024
Moleskine brought together the Fashion Scholarship Fund alumni
Moleskine recently hosted the Fashion Scholarship Fund’s (FSF) alumni community at the brand’s flagship store at Moynihan Station. The educational non-profit, which prepares individuals to enter the fashion industry, partnered with Moleskin to foster community and encourage connection. The evening also celebrated Moleskin’s current resident artist, Keith Lafuente, whose fashion collections and artwork fuse subjects including identity with beauty, anime, and tourism, while shining a light on their queer Asian friends and peers. The event saw guests enjoying refreshments and music in the store, while sketch artist Zac Crawford brought their ideas to life on Moleskine notebooks. As part of the partnership, 30% of all sales at the flagship for one day in February were routed to benefit FSF too.
Penelope Cruz covers V’s Spring issue
We already knew that last year’s Met Gala co-chairs Penelope Cruz and Dua Lipa are a match made in heaven—and Vseems to agree. The duo sat down together for a chat to coincide with Cruz’ ’90s-themed editorial for issue V147, styled by Gro Curtis and lensed by Jack Bridgland. “In the ‘90s, there was very good equilibrium in [our] relationship with technology,” Cruz recalls. “Like everything before smartphones, everything before social media, I am convinced that all of this is not worth it. I don’t feel that our brains are prepared for that, especially teenagers or children. It’s such a crazy experiment that society is running on the youngest people and it breaks my heart. So I think it makes me feel even more in love with the ‘90s. For many reasons, I miss those times, but I also like the style of the photos.” From film to fashion, there’s no stone left unturned. Get into their tête-à-tête, right here and pick up the mag on newsstands from March 8.
Saweetie is Allure’s next cover star
Underestimate Saweetie at your own peril. The Grammy-nominated artist is covering Allure’s latest digital issue, giving a no-holds-barred interview to writer Lakin Imani Starling about the opinions and setbacks she’s come up against on her road to musical stardom. The rapper talks candidly about finding her place, personally and professionally, in the industry, as well as beauty standards, misogyny, and how she forged her own path (most recently, she funded the studio time, music video, and glam for her recently-released single Immortal Freestyle, because her label didn’t want her to drop it off-cycle. “It all started with me rapping in my car,” she says of her fame. “I think that’s the biggest mistake labels make these days. They take the artists away from what they’re inherently good at—the reasons their fan base fell in love with them. And I think it’s unfortunate that sometimes the art gets lost in that transition. Of ill-advised publicity plans from music execs, she say: “I’m going to twerk when I want to. That’s not going to be my marketing. And if that’s what you truly love to do, then empower yourself through that. But that’s not innate to me. If I get caught at a party or if I’m turning up, okay, cool. But I’m not finna do that because you guys think I should. That’s lazy marketing.” Read the full feature, with images by Dan Beleiu and styling by Jordan Boothe, here.
Taylor Lorenz to host new video podcast about technology for Vox Media
Vox Media has tapped internet culture and technology journalist Taylor Lorenz for a new video podcast that will roll out weekly every Thursday from March 21. Titled Power User, the venture will explore our extremely online tendencies and delve into topics including what it means to go viral, online fame, emerging platforms, #FakeNews, and more.“I’ve spent my career writing about how technology influences culture, and I’m absolutely thrilled to bring this story to life in podcast form,” Lorenz said in a release. “Power User will give listeners an inside look at the ever-shifting internet landscape and the different characters who are making it, breaking it, and informing how we spend our time.” Lorenz, now a technology columnist at the Washington Post, has long found internet fame herself as a commentator on the digital landscape and its creator economy. In fact, she even penned a book by the name of Extremely Online; the culmination of years spent in the weeds of the web while she held reporter roles at the New York Times, The Atlantic, and The Daily Beast. The trailer for Power User is out now, listen to it ahead of 3/21 here.
Heron Preston teams up with H&M on H2 Exchange
H&M has partnered with New York-based designer and creative Heron Preston once again to launch the circular fashion program H2 Exchange. H2 Exchange, the next step in H2 (the long-term partnership between Preston and the retailer that was announced back in the fall of 2023), begins with an open call for emerging NY-based designers to apply for the layered program. Three successful applicants will then work alongside Preston to create a collection of upcycled fashion, crafted from donated clothes from the public. (People are invited to donate clothes for H2 Exchange from March 8-10 at the newly-formed EXCHANGE studio located at 25 Howard Street, in exchange for tokens to buy pieces from the eventual EXCHANGE collection and other H2 drops.) ”We are exploring new ways of keeping clothes in circulation for as long as possible,” Preston said, about the community-building venture. “Building an ecosystem based on the marriage of brains, not brands, a platform that is bigger than the product itself, that empowers young talent and innovates in the sphere of circular fashion through the use of new processes.” According to the brand, the purpose of H2 Exchange is to feed new creative ideas into the global circular programs of H&M, which include garment collecting through stores, second hand resell, rental, and repair services, recycling technologies, and pre-loved fashion marketplaces. Follow along for updates on the Instagram account here.