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Naomi Campbell Walks for Star-studded Burberry Show at London Fashion Week

Naomi Campbell. (Getty Images)
Naomi Campbell. (Getty Images)
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Naomi Campbell Walks for Star-studded Burberry Show at London Fashion Week

Naomi Campbell. (Getty Images)
Naomi Campbell. (Getty Images)

For Londoners, rain is simply a fact of life. But for Burberry, it’s the inspiration for seemingly endless variations of luxurious outerwear, from the heritage brand’s best-selling trench coat to oversized duffels and fur-lined bombers.
The British fashion house showcased its latest designs Monday at London Fashion Week to a soulful Amy Winehouse soundtrack interspersed with a woman’s voice saying “I love London ... the smell of London when it rains.”
“Saltburn” star Barry Keoghan and “The Crown” actress Olivia Coleman were among celebrities who turned up on the VIP front row to watch the show, which drew heavily on the heritage house’s military history and its signature check print, The Associated Press said.
Models wore double-breasted coats buttoned all the way up to the neck, as if bracing against the inclement British weather. Some donned mannish, oversized coats in military greens and browns paired with matching wide-leg trousers, while others covered up with an elegant silk scarf wrapped around the head.
Some models even strutted down the catwalk clutching a collapsible umbrella – in Burberry’s trademark check, of course.
It’s no surprise that the elements feature so prominently in the show. The fashion house’s founder, Thomas Burberry, invented the fabric gabardine, a breathable material used for rainwear, in the late 1800s. The brand’s trench coat, invented around the time of World War I, boasts functional designs like storm shields as well as epaulettes and gun flaps.
It’s not all function and practicality. Flashes of cherry red tartan, used in the lining of a coat or glimpsed in a skirt hem, brightened up a muted palette dominated by khaki and earthy tones. Tough bomber jackets and bulky duffel coats were softened with furry hoods or collars and luxurious fur accessories.
Supermodel Naomi Campbell, sashaying in a shimmering bronze strapless column gown, rounded out the show.
Burberry is traditionally the glitziest event at London Fashion Week, which also features catwalk shows by designers including Erdem, JW Anderson, Roksanda Ilincic and Molly Goddard.
The London displays wrap up on Tuesday, when the fashion crowd decamps to Milan Fashion Week for more new season runway shows.

 

 

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Fashion

80-year-old LL Bean Staple Finds New Audience as Trendy Bag

Gracie Wiener poses with some of her tote bags in Washington Square Park in New York, Wednesday, July 17, 2024, (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)
Gracie Wiener poses with some of her tote bags in Washington Square Park in New York, Wednesday, July 17, 2024, (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)
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80-year-old LL Bean Staple Finds New Audience as Trendy Bag

Gracie Wiener poses with some of her tote bags in Washington Square Park in New York, Wednesday, July 17, 2024, (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)
Gracie Wiener poses with some of her tote bags in Washington Square Park in New York, Wednesday, July 17, 2024, (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)

L.L. Bean created it 80 years ago to haul heavy blocks of ice. Now it's a must-have summer fashion accessory, The Associated Press reported.

The simple, sturdy canvas bag called the Boat and Tote is having an extended moment 80 years after its introduction, thanks to a social media trend in which they're monogrammed with ironic or flashy phrases.

New Yorker Gracie Wiener helped get it started by ordering her humble bags from L.L. Bean monogrammed with “Psycho” and then “Prada,” the pricey Italian luxury brand, instead of just her name or initials, and posting about them on Instagram. Then others began showcasing their own unique bags on TikTok.

Soon, it wasn’t enough to have a bag monogrammed with “Schlepper,” “HOT MESS,” “slayyyy” or “cool mom.” Customers began testing the limits of the human censors in L.L. Bean’s monogram department, which bans profanity “or other objectionable words or phrases,” with more provocative wording like “Bite me,” “Dum Blonde” and “Ambitchous.”

Social media fueled the surge, just as it did for Stanley’s tumblers and Trader Joe’s $2.99 canvas bags, which were once selling on eBay for $200, said Beth Goldstein, an analyst at Circana, which tracks consumer spending and trends.
The tote’s revival came at a time when price-conscious consumers were forgoing expensive handbags, sales of which have weakened, and L.L. Bean’s bag fit the bill as a functional item that’s trendy precisely because it’s not trendy, she said. L.L. Bean's regular bags top out at about $55, though some fancier versions cost upward of $100.
“There’s a trend toward the utilitarian, the simple things and more accessible price points,” she said, and the customization added to the appeal: “Status items don’t have to be designer price points.”

L.L. Bean’s tote was first advertised in a catalog as Bean’s Ice Carrier in 1944 during World War II, when ice chests were common. Then they disappeared before being reintroduced in 1965 as the Boat and Tote.

These days, they’re still made in Maine and are still capable of hauling 500 pounds of ice, but they are far more likely to carry laptops, headphones, groceries, books, beach gear, travel essentials and other common items.

Those snarky, pop-oriented phrases transformed them into a sassy essential and helped them spread beyond Maine, Massachusetts’ Cape Cod and other New England enclaves to places like Los Angeles and New York City, where fashionistas like Gwyneth Paltrow, Reese Witherspoon and Sarah Jessica Parker are toting them — but not necessarily brandished with ironic phrases.

“It’s just one of those things that makes people smile and makes people laugh, and it’s unexpected,” said Wiener, who got it all started with her @ironicboatandtote Instagram page, which she started as a fun side hustle from her job as social media manager for Air Mail, a digital publication launched by former Vanity Fair Editor-in-Chief Graydon Carter.

The folks at L.L. Bean were both stunned and pleased by the continuing growth. For the past two years, the Boat and Tote has been L.L. Bean’s No. 1 contributor to luring in new customers, and sales grew 64% from fiscal years 2021 to 2023, spokesperson Amanda Hannah said.

The surge in popularity is reminiscent of L.L. Bean’s traditional hunting shoe, the iconic staple for trudging through rain and muck, which enjoyed its own moment a few years back, driven by college students.