Images from SHOWstudio's "Dress Me Up, Dress Me Down"

Last time we surveyed the rapidly changing landscape of digital fashion media. Today, in the second part of our series on the future of fashion magazines, we explore the experimental approach that online pioneers like Jefferson Hack and Nick Knight are using to create unique content and experiences that truly bring fashion magazines into the digital age.

LONDON, United Kingdom — The internet’s ability to transmit information immediately, impossible in print and too expensive on television, has changed the way in which we create and consume content perhaps more than anything else. “Print magazines will never be the first to break any news,” said fashion blogger Diane Pernet, whose influential website, A Shaded View on Fashion, has been reporting live from fashion weeks, showrooms and studios around the world, capturing and transmitting the moment almost instantaneously with inexpensive camera phones and laptops.

In response, forward thinking magazines have done two things. Web pioneers like Dazed Digital, a fashion and culture platform launched in November 2006 by the publishers of Dazed & Confused magazine, have begun “live blogging” themselves, posting realtime reports from fashion shows in Paris, London, New York and Milan. But they’ve also learned to focus less on what’s new, a commodity that’s instantly available everywhere, and more on a unique point of view and reader experience that aren’t easily replicated. “It’s got to be more about experiencing the fashion; a stylistic point of view. It’s less and less about information,” said Jefferson Hack, founder and co-publisher at Dazed Group. … Continue Reading

PARIS, France – When I first met Diane Pernet, it was hard to see beyond her iconic look : a towering pompadour, mantilla veil, cateye sunglasses and platform wedges, all in black, complemented by scarlet red lips and a signature scent.  Since then, I have never seen her in anything else.

But, despite her aesthetic constancy, she is one of those rare souls in the fashion business who still manages to surprise at every turn, with witty observations and an unflinching honesty. And, as I have come to know the person behind the veil, as it were, we have bonded over our shared passion for young design talent, debated ideas for fashion collaborations and industry progress, and exchanged dollops of industry gossip.

Diane, of course, is best known for building one of the most influential blogs in the industry, something she has done by focusing on emerging brands and edgy events from around the world, as opposed to the major brands which are covered ad nauseam elsewhere. But recently, she has been talking to me about A Shaded View on Fashion Film, which will launch at the prestigious Jeu de Paume in Paris in September.

… Continue Reading

Rubles are a Girl’s Best Friend (New York Times)
We came across this multilingual sign on the new Dolce & Gabbana store on London’s Bond Street the other day. It’s a sign of the times that many of the customers are from the Middle East and Russia. This article  describes the celebrity angle of Russia’s fashion scene.

The Real Story Behind Boombox (A Shaded View on Fashion)
Mandi Lennard, London’s uber PR for the hip and happening in the fashion business sent out an email last week confirming a report on the Business of Fashion that Boombox is to shut down by the end of the year. Diane Pernet interviews Richard Mortimer in this piece to get the back story.

Heart to Heart (Style.com)
Check out our first piece for Style.com which covers a cool mash-up of Comme des Garçons and Chrome Hearts.

Check out this cool photo from Getty Images that my friend (and 360 Fashion member) Diane Pernet just posted on her "A Shaded View on Fashion" Blog at  http://dianepernet.typepad.com/diane/2007/01/dp_for_sale_on_.html. You can see the reflection of the model walking down the catwalk in Diane’s glasses.

Diane is an iconic figure in the fashion industry and has a network of co-bloggers around the world who help to keep the content on the "A Shaded View on Fashion" site fresh and up to date. On a given day, there are posts about fashion happenings from three different continents. Diane is also a bonafide entrepreneur, having been part of the team to launch iqons.com (tipped as the myspace for fashion industry) and the You Wear It Well film festival of fashion film shorts.

I met Diane for the first time in February last year at the Charles Anastase show during Paris Fashion Week. Here is a picture I took of her before the show.