Michelle Obama Wears Alaïa to State of the Union: On Tuesday night, while millions tuned in to hear President Obama’s State of the Union address, others were highly-anticipating what Mrs. Obama would wear. FLOTUS opted for a conservative emerald dress and sweater set designed by French designer Azzedine Alaïa. Seated alongside the always fashionable First Lady were "openly gay former NBA player Jason Collins, marathon bombing survivors Carlos Arredondo and Jeff Bauman, GM's first female CEO Mary Barra, and Sabrina Jenkins, a veteran and single mom featured [in] the recent Shriver Report on women on the brink." [The Cut]
Kenyan Artisans Star in Karen Walker Campaign: Designer Karen Walker teamed up with the United Nations’s ITC Ethical Fashion Initiative to create her latest line of sunglasses—promoting “sustainable business over aid dependency.” After hiring Kenyan artisans to design and produce the new collection, Walker chose to feature some of them as the stars of her campaign. Walker told The Telgraph that she was "thrilled to be able to work with the Ethical Fashion Initiative on this project and wanted to expand on that by presenting not only the pouches they're creating for us, but also something more intimate—a glimpse into the world that the work is coming from." [The Telegraph]
BFC/Vogue Design Fund Names Peter Pilotto Winner: The British Fashion Council/Vogue Designer Fund named Peter Pilotto and Christopher De Vos, designers behind the wildly printed line (and upcoming Target collaborators), as its 2014 prize recipient. The duo competed against other rising British designers, including Mary Katrantzou, Emilia Wickstead, and House of Holland to win a year of mentoring and a £200,000 grant to continue to produce their collection. [Elle]
Roberto Cavalli Continues Losing Streak: The longtime Italian fashion house has lost more of its executives—and this time, it's family. After the departure of CEO Gianluca Brozetti and COO Carlo Di Biagio, Daniele Cavalli, the son of Roberto and Eva Cavalli, has announced his departure. Cavalli's departure coincides with speculations that the company may be for sale in the near future. [Vogue UK]
