Latest news with #Neverworns
The Star
20-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Star
Why toes are taking over: Fashion's growing obsession with feet-first style
Recently, when temperatures in New York City were soaring, Jalil Johnson had to put together an outfit for a business meeting and a lunch. Johnson, a writer in Manhattan, does not have a corporate job. But he still wanted to look presentable and stylish, so he went with a dark blazer, a blue button-up shirt – and flip-flops. 'I think they look fantastic with a suit,' Johnson, 25, said. He liked the visual contrast of wearing a blazer with beach sandals, he added, and was emboldened to dress up his flip-flops after seeing some on the runways at the recent menswear shows. Louis Vuitton showed leather flip-flops, and Prada had models walk the runway wearing rubber-soled thongs in shades of pale blue and pistachio green. Auralee's show featured male and female models wearing colourful two-tone flip-flops that resembled a US$690 (approximately RM2,930) pair by the Row. Toes also paraded down the runways at Dries Van Noten, Lemaire, Hermes and Kiko Kostadinov, where thong sandals were paired with toe socks. All of it was a sign that menswear was jumping feet first into a trend already permeating womenswear. From luxury flip-flops to mesh flats to five-toed sneakers, lots of footwear in favour with fashionable people emphasises the digits also known as little piggies. Read more: Menswear puts its best foot forward, as toe-baring styles step onto the runway Liana Satenstein, 35, a fashion writer in Brooklyn, has been following the industry's toe-forward trajectory for years. As have publications like British Vogue , which declared in a 2023 headline: 'Toes are the new legs'. The 'footaissance', as Satenstein called it in her Neverworns newsletter, has coincided with other sartorial trends – naked dressing, short shorts – that prescribe leaving little to the imagination. 'Nothing is titillating anymore,' she said. 'But there's something so sensual about feet, from toe cleavage to the curve of an ankle.' Unlike the curves achieved via deep-plane face-lifts and other cosmetic surgeries, those of feet and toes are usually natural – something the 63-year-old fashion designer Rick Owens recently alluded to, when he said he was starting an account for his feet on OnlyFans and described it as 'an interesting way of addressing ageing'. In her newsletter, Satenstein has written about thong heels Phoebe Philo introduced last summer (which Satenstein called a 'sickeningly sexy combination of filth and chaste'); the sneaker-like Vibram FiveFingers (a 'fashion girl' favourite, she wrote, and a source of 'perpetual phalangeal pleasure'); and Balenciaga's Zero shoe (a barely-there sandal that, as its name suggests, is not much of a shoe at all). Satenstein called a leather peep-toe heel by Khaite the 'freakiest' of them all. Some new thongs nod to earlier styles, like a spangly metallic heel reissued by Jimmy Choo in May. The shoe was introduced in 2000, when Carrie Bradshaw was running around New York in open-toe Manolo Blahniks on Sex And The City (open-toe Manolos are also a favourite of Anna Wintour). Havaianas flip-flops, another nostalgic thong, have been worn by personalities and with collections by labels like Kallmeyer, which featured them on models in its Spring 2024 lookbook. A pair of Yeezy heeled thongs that Kim Kardashian wore out in Los Angeles in 2018, which Satenstein wrote about for Vogue , were an early sign to her of the toe cleavage to come, she said. The next year, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen of the Row fueled interest in showing toe with the release of their label's nylon-mesh Sock shoe. Since then, shoes that have sustained the interest include the cloven-toe Maison Margiela Tabis, an insider favourite. As designers like Emme Parsons have incorporated embellishments for toes into their shoes – Parsons, who lives in Palm Beach, Florida, sells a sandal with a built-in ring – other brands have introduced jewellery to make them shine. Read more: What to know about the Prada 'sandal scandal' and India's Kolhapuri comeback One is Chan Luu, which hosted a 'pedi party' at a salon in Los Angeles last month to promote a new collection of toe rings. They include styles with hefty Swarovski crystals, which resemble a diamond ring Rihanna wore on her middle toe in 2023. 'Bigger is better,' said Tessa Tran, 37, CEO of Chan Luu. The fashion designer Yael Aflalo's new namesake label also sells a toe ring with a large diamond. It was designed by Leandra Medine Cohen, the fashion writer once known as the Man Repeller, whose own toe-forward footwear includes Havaianas, corded sandals and jelly flip-flops by Ancient Greek Sandals, which she recently wore with an Emilio Pucci swimsuit and nylon surf pants. In developing the new ring, Medine Cohen said, 'We thought about a cigar band, but then we decided that an engagement-style solitaire was the most digestible and humorous.' 'Like, are you really going to put a diamond on your toe?' Medine Cohen, 36, said. The 'contrast of a very casual shoe with the ring feels right', she added, echoing Johnson's sentiments about wearing flip-flops and a suit jacket. 'It's that same contrast, with a delicate piece of jewellery and a hairy toe.' – ©2025 The New York Times Company This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
Elle
02-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Elle
Take It From Zac Posen: The Mall Brand Is So Back
Zac Posen, the smiling conqueror of the red carpet, has been up to something a little different lately. With his appointment as the chief creative officer of Old Navy and creative director of Gap Inc. in February of 2024, the designer was tasked with revitalizing a massive heritage brand. In just a little over a year, Posen, who can also point to his ready-to-wear experience as creative director of Brooks Brothers, has launched GapStudio (a brand atelier of elevated staples), ushered in a subtle aesthetic shift, and signaled that the 'mall brand' renaissance is finally here. Many of Gap's peers have re-found their footing within new niches. Abercrombie & Fitch pivoted to TikTok influencers and released pieces across an inclusive range of sizes. In 2021, tapped Noah co-founder Brendon Babenzien to head up menswear, in an effort to revitalize the brand by capitalizing on his downtown New York appeal. More recently, also rebooted its beloved catalog and delved into high-end, cult-following-driven collaborations with designers including Christopher John Rogers and Maryam Nassir Zadeh. However, no 'mall brand' conversation would be complete without the retail giant that is Gap Inc., and it is precisely why Posen's and Gap's fans are paying so much attention. Many are nostalgic for the simple-but-cool appeal of '90s and early 2000s-era Gap, much of which was attained through its high-fashion-like commercial advertising. Celebrities such as Whoopi Goldberg, Madonna and Missy Elliott, along with supermodel Naomi Campbell, fronted campaigns shot by fashion greats like Patrick Demarchelier and Annie Leibovitz. With so much star power, there was an undeniable aspirational appeal. 'You would see them put these famous people in their ads in very simple clothes, and it was this interesting way to say 'You can have this look, too,' because they would be in a $14.99 hoodie, for example,' Liana Satenstein, a fashion writer and founder of the shopping series Neverworns, tells ELLE. In 1993, Gap even launched its famous 'Who Wore Khakis' campaign, which utilized archive images of cultural figures like Miles Davis, Salvador Dalí, and James Dean all sartorially equalized by a single everyday item of clothing. Though the marketing landscape and celebrity culture have vastly changed since then, within Posen's brief tenure, parallels can be drawn. His creative directorial debut began with something true to his heart as a designer, a red carpet rollout that included Da'Vine Joy Randolph at the 2024 Met Gala and Anne Hathaway's instantly shoppable shirtdress at a Bulgari event last May. The looks lent themselves to the budding excitement for GapStudio, which officially debuted in April of this year. 'We've only done a few red carpet looks so far, but each one has been a powerful way to express GapStudio's creative potential. Red carpet dressing is a kind of high-frequency communication—it lets us amplify the brand codes through an artistic lens,' Posen explains. For the designer, each look, whether it be Demi Moore's goddess gown at the Time100 Gala or Laura Harrier's recent Met Gala suit, provides a platform for the brand's new house codes. Current offerings from GapStudio's summer drop include draped denim trousers, a light-wash denim dress, easy slip dresses, and on-trend off-the-shoulder tops. Posen adds, 'These moments are rooted in the same language: American classics, reimagined through construction, elegance, and wit. They're about taking familiar pieces and distorting them into something special.' By opening the design dialogue between the red carpet and the mass market, this strategy recalls the 'they're just like us' mentality that Satenstein noted. In both 1996 and 1998, Sharon Stone caused a stir arriving to the Oscars wearing a Gap shirt paired with her Armani jacket and Vera Wang skirt, respectively. Controversial at the time, the blending of relaxed, classic day-to-day aesthetics with red carpet glam has made both appearances some of the most iconic Oscars looks of all time. Add on a handful of collaborations with hugely popular independent brands like Dôen and Cult Gaia, and customers are noticing a tangible shift in designs across the company, too. New York City-based content creator Kelsey Kotzur recently went viral for a pink bubble-hemmed dress that she found at Old Navy. 'He's taking the heart of Old Navy/Gap and putting his expertise behind it and creating something incredible,' she tells ELLE. For Kotzur, who worked at both stores throughout high school and college, the fact she can now find an on-trend, evening edit-inspired dress for under $50 at the retailer is surprisingly refreshing. The shift in offerings has been subtle and pleasant, or as Posen explains, 'Not through an overnight transformation, but through thoughtful evolution.' Recent ads are also reflective of this nostalgic, real-life celebrity appeal. In May, Old Navy tapped a star-studded cast, including ELLE's Summer Issue cover star Lindsay Lohan, Dylan Efron, Quen Blackwell, and Charo, for a retro workout video, titled 'Old Navy, New Moves.' The campaign was shot by fashion photographer Ethan James Green and directed by Torso. Coinciding with Posen's appointment, Gap brought back its dancing commercials, featuring Tyla and Jungle's viral hit 'Back on 74'—signaling a re-ignition of the videos that heavily contributed to its advertorial influence in the '90s. Since then, Gap has continued dancing its way through digital marketing, producing campaigns starring The White Lotus's Parker Posey and Troye Sivan. Not to mention Lila Moss, the ultimate Gen Z iteration of '90s iconography, fronting GapStudio's summer 2025 campaign. Turns out, Posen's design identity has more in common with the label's '90s era than one might think, and it's an aura that the company is undoubtedly working to recapture. 'There's this amazing intersection of '90s sportswear, New York grunge, late-'30s futurism, and uptown/downtown energy—all of which shaped me growing up. We're looking at how that aesthetic, that attitude, can live in today's world,' he says. As for what we can look forward to at GapStudio, he adds, 'At its core, it's about building an elevated capsule wardrobe that feels personal, cultural, and timeless—designed to live in your life and also be remembered.'
Elle
18-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Elle
Why Everyone Is Shopping on Livestream Right Now
In January, writer Liana Satenstein hosted an informal runway show in her living room. As friends-cum-models paraded through the narrow space, she announced each piece over the din of the well-heeled crowd. But to be in the room where it happened, you didn't have to score an IRL invite. You just had to tune in to the live selling-and-buying platform Whatnot. Shopping, for as long as it has existed, has been about more than just the practical act of purchasing goods. It's a chance to socialize, to indulge, to play. And now that e-commerce has become old hat, there's a desire to bring some real-life excitement to the online experience. Enter the livestream. Satenstein, who hosts a series of closet cleanouts she calls 'Neverworns,' started with in-person sales, but kept receiving messages when she'd post teasers online. 'What am I supposed to do? You have to either be here or too bad,' she thought at the time. Livestreaming became a way to bridge the gap—shoppers could get the full Neverworns experience, including a chance to purchase, from the comfort of their own homes. If boomers had QVC, livestreams are shoppertainment for the Twitch generation. 'Gen Z, and the up-and-coming Gen Alpha, sees social media as an entertainment platform just as much as traditional TV,' says Rebecca Rom-Frank, a marketing strategist for the trend forecaster WGSN. 'With the rise of video platforms, it makes sense that livestream shopping would follow.' Satenstein drew inspiration from QVC clips on YouTube and a 1989 interview with Donna Karan on a talk show called Attitudes. 'There's context, layers, history—and [Karan] has a model walk out in the clothes showing how something fits.' Since its founding in 2019, Whatnot has become a buzzy name in the live shopping space. In January, the platform announced that it had raised $265 million in new funding. According to Whatnot, viewers spend an average of over 80 minutes per day watching its content, more time than they spend on Instagram or TikTok. While they buy about 12 items per week, there are also plenty of users who are tuning in just to chat or listen, no purchase necessary. 'I hear time and time again that it feels like a TV show, where each week there's a new episode,' says Nica Yusay, who sells luxury handbags on the account FashioNica. Despite the convenience of a one-click checkout, there's a loss of community spaces. Shopping has become a solo sport, but livestreams can bridge the gap. Customers can get involved, connecting with like-minded shoppers—and the seller on the other side of the lens—without leaving the couch. Watchers ask questions on the fly, and sellers do their best to keep up, offering banter, backstory, and even try-ons in front of their audience. 'People ask me how many unitards I own at this point,' says Nina Chong-Jimenez, a Whatnot seller whose account, Lockitin, has made nearly 68,000 sales. 'At any given moment, I'm stripping down to put anything on that I can. It's important for you to see how a piece is going to fall on a person.' It's an added layer of transparency that's often lacking in apps or large online marketplaces: You can see the person behind the post, and get real-time info on the piece for sale, all while chatting with friends. With higher sale conversion rates than conventional e-commerce and a growing market share, livestreaming seems poised to keep winning new fans. For now, buyers and sellers are still figuring things out. 'There's no rhyme or reason,' Satenstein says of how much she ends up selling in a livestream. 'But I'm having a good time.'
