Barbie Basics LBD Collection - event recap

Yesterday I told you about the Barbie Basics LBD collection of dolls. Well, I had the chance to preview the one-of-a-kind designer dolls last night at Openhouse Gallery. The Kir Royale cocktails were flowing, the hors d’oeuvres were being passed and I got a chance to catch up with some of my favorite fashion bloggers. Then came the unveiling. Oh boy! If only I could have Barbie’s one-of-a-kind outfits for myself! The looks were everything you’d expect – and more! All of the dolls were styled amazingly, but my faves had to be the Betsey Johnson Barbie with the wide sheer skirt, the Devi Kroell Barbie with mirrored pants and an ‘exotic’ handbag, the Lorraine Schwartz Barbie with $10,000 of real diamonds on it, and the Subversive Barbie with a chunky, layered pearl necklace! Icing on the cake – designer Justin Giunta (Subversive) was there and told me about his inspiration for accessorizing Barbie, his jewelry line and his upcoming jewelry collaboration with Tory Burch!

Overall, all of the dolls were nothing short of fabulous! And as promised, bidding has begun on the dolls so if you want to get your hands on these one-of-a-kind designer dolls, whip out your credit cards and snap up one – or a few! Proceeds will benefit CFDA education and scholarship programs.

Make sure to follow Barbie on Twitter (@BarbieStyle) and check out her blog, where CFDA designer Justin Giunta has a guest blog about his designer doll.

Special thanks to Attention PR, Steven Kolb - Executive Director, CFDA, and Stephanie Cota - SVP, Barbie for hosting this event!

Photos via Racked and TrendHunter

Barbie Basics black label collection of little black dresses

Barbie is the luckiest girl in the world. Who else can say that they have a closet full of little black dresses (LBDs), designed just for them by 12 of the world’s top designers?

To celebrate the launch of Mattel’s new Barbie Basics doll, featuring twelve customized Barbies with varying hairstyles, skin tones and a basic LBD and accessories, the company also invited Council of Fashion Designers America (CFDA) designers to customize twelve one-of-a-kind dresses for Barbie. Designers include Deborah Lloyd (Kate Spade), Isaac Mizrahi, Rachel Roy, Tory Burch, Alexis Bittar, Betsey Johnson, Devi Kroell, Justin Giunta (Subversive), and Monica Botkier. Wouldn’t you just love to have a closet full of their stuff?

Each designer is auctioning their doll on eBay until February 7. Starting bid is $100 and net proceeds will go to the CFDA’s education program and scholarships.

And tonight, I’ll be tweeting live from the first-ever Barbie tweet-up, where we’ll get to take a peek at these one-of-a-kind dolls. Follow us on Twitter: we’re @WhatsHaute!

And follow @BarbieStyle for more updates on the dolls!

She’s here! The Cat Burglar Barbie by Christian Louboutin

Last month we told you about Christian Louboutin’s collaboration with Mattel to create a limited-edition Barbie doll. And now, just in time for the holidays, she has arrived – the Cat Burglar Barbie by Christian Louboutin. The limited-edition doll is super stylish, but would you expect any less of Monsieur Louboutin? She wears a black catsuit with the red-soled Louboutin Differa sandals and comes with 3 extra pairs of mini Louboutin shoes; the Miss ankle boots, the Claudia peep-toe shoes and the Altameche knee-high boots. Each pair comes with its own shoe box and bag. The doll comes packaged in a brown Louboutin box with a copy of Christian and Barbie’s travel journal. Gift it to the young fashionista in your life, or get it for yourself! Go ahead, we won’t tell!

$150, Net-a-Porter.com

My Most Uncomfortable Experience

Do you ever wish you could leave your house barefoot? We do. That’s because when it comes to uncomfortable experiences, it typically involves our feet and some painful footwear. Stilettos, of course, but other shoes, boots, even sneakers are included. The most uncomfortable moment? It happened during this past New York fashion week. Picture this: standing in line at Christian Siriano for an hour wearing my brand new Vince Camuto Della Peep-Toe Booties. Oh, the agony! But it’s one of the sacrifices we must make for fashion, right? After that grueling hour with my feet perched like a Barbie doll, I gave up the fight and put on my backups, my Tory Burch Leather Logo Reva Flats. After the show, I ran into Kelly Rowland who complimented me on my shoes. Now if a music superstar could appreciate some great flats, why couldn’t I?

Tell us about your most uncomfortable experience, footwear-related or otherwise!

Barbie by Christian Louboutin

Since it’s almost Christmas, you know what that means – a new version of the Barbie doll is hitting stores for parents to fight over. But this time, they may be fighting for it for themselves and not their daughters (or sons as the case may be). That’s because shoe designer of the moment (or many moments as his shoes remain in demand after numerous seasons) Christian Louboutin is styling three Louboutin Barbie dolls, who will come with mini Louboutin boxes and doll shoes. And of course, since Barbie always comes with controversy, the red-soled shoe designer is said to be re-shaping her feet because apparently, according to a Louboutin spokesperson, the designer believes Barbie has ‘cankles’. Who knew? Anyway, if you want these haute couture shoe/skinny ankled dolls, they launch in December 2009. The first in the series is the ’Cat-burglar’ Barbie by Christian Louboutin, dressed in a sleek hooded black cat-suit. Becuase all haute couture shoe/skinny ankled dolls are thieves. Didn’t you know?

Alexander McQueen challenges you to wear the most ridiculous shoes on Earth

We first spied these alien-footed Alexander McQueen mega heels at Paris Fashion Week and wondered how much they paid the models in order to force them to wear them on the runway. Now British Vogue scored a python pair (nicknamed the “armadillos”) and the staffers couldn’t even make it down the hall in them. At 12 inches tall with a towering stiletto heel, these shoes are only viable footwear candidates for one woman and one woman only. You might know her by the name ‘Barbie doll’.

Source: Vogue UK