Jeff Koons x H&M Artist Collaboration

While many a great artist doesn't receive recognition in their own time, Jeff Koons, is an exception. Koons is the American artist best known for taking everyday objects like his famous balloon dog and recreating them as high art. His work is being celebrated in a retrospective exhibit at the Whitney Museum of American Art from June 27-October 19, 2014.  As H&M is the sole fashion retail sponsor for for the exhibit, they have partnered with Koons to create their first ever artist collaboration.

H&M is opening a new flagship store at 589 5th Avenue, which will be the largest flagship store in the country. The store will be 57,000 square feet and be the first store in the New York area to offer H&M Home, in addition to H&M concepts for the whole family.  As part of the celebration Jeff Koons' Balloon Dog will adorn the facade of the store.  In addition, shoppers will have their own chance to take home a bit of Koons with a limited addition Dog Balloon leather handbag which will retail for $49.95. The handbag is unique and certain to sell out, so head over to the store July 17, 2014 at noon to snag your bag! The first 500 shoppers in line will also snag an H&M t-shirt and a gift card valued at $10 to $500.

What do you think of the bag? Will you be in line for yours? If you don't live in the NYC area, don't fret, you'll have your chance to snag the bag at select stores in Los Angeles, Dallas and Chicago or online at H&M.com beginning July 17, 2014.

H&M 5th Avenue Flagship, 589 5th Avenue, New York, New York 10017.  (855) 466-7467.  Store hours Sunday-Thursday 9am-9pm, Friday-Saturday 9am-10pm

H&M Design Awards 2014

H&M has just announced the eight finalists for the H&M Design Awards 2014. The finalists chosen are quite an international mix from design schools around the world as one of the most promising talents of their generation.

The finalists have each won €5000, and will now present their work to an international jury that will determine the winner of the competition.

The winner will receive €50,000 and the chance to present winning collection on January 28th during Mercedes-Benz Stockholm Fashion Week. The winner will also develop pieces from the winning collection to be sold at selected H&M stores this Fall.

This year's prestigious jury includes which includes London-based designer Erdem, actress Michelle Dockery, style expert Michelle Harper, Serena Hood the executive fashion editor of Vogue UK, Sara Maino senior fashion editor of Vogue Italy, plus Ann-Sofie Johansson who is H&M’s head of design and of course Margareta van den Bosch, H&M’s creative advisor.

“I am so excited about the finalists for the H&M Design Award 2014. Each one has a sense of unique creativity, amazing technical skills, and the vision to push fashion forward. I can’t wait to see who will win!” says Ann-Sofie Johansson, H&M’s head of design.

THE FINALISTS

EDDY ANEMIAN – 24-year-old Eddy is from Saint Chamond in France and is currently studying at La Cambre in Brussels. For the H&M Design Award 2014, he presented his fourth-year collection, inspired by Tilda Swinton in the movie I Am Love and the French painter Ingres.

CAMILLA BLASE WOODMAN – Camilla, 26, was born in Bristol in the UK, and studied knitwear at the Royal College of Art in London. Her collection takes inspiration from the dystopian vision of the future found in the 1988 movie They Live, resulting in graphic metallic knits matched with fuzzy knits inspired by white noise.

JIA HUA – Chinese-born Jia, 25, studied in the MFA program at Parsons in New York. Jia’s collection was inspired by artists such as Dan Flavin, Mickalene Thomas and Caroline Larsen. She mixes traditional craft techniques with contemporary sportswear and combines different materials, such as chiffon with sporty meshes.


DEVON HALFNIGHT LEFLUFY – Originally from Vancouver, Canada, 29-year-old Devon recently graduated from the Masters year at the Royal Academy in Antwerp. His luxury streetwear for men has already been stocked by stores such as Opening Ceremony and RA.

XIAO LI – 26-year-old Xiao Li is from China and studied for her MA at the Royal College of Art in London. Her interest is in garments of the future, with a focus on wearability. Her techniques include combining silicone with knits to create innovative fabrics and making molds of her knit fabrics.

LINA MICHAL – Born in Gothenburg, Sweden, 25-year-old Lina recently graduated from Beckmans College of Design in Stockholm. Her collection is inspired by nature, and takes decorative elements from Swedish traditions such as Midsummer and folk costumes for brides, using organic volumes and surface manipulation.


SOPHIE SÄLEKARI – 22-year-old Sophie was born in Helsinki and studied at the city’s Aalto University School of Art, Design and Architecture. In her Russian-folk-inspired collection presented for the H&M Design Award 2014, she explored color, print and texture, and how to use fabrics in unexpected ways.

HENRIETTE TILANUS – Henriette, 23, was born in Nijmegen in the Netherlands, and graduated from the ArtEZ Institute of the Arts in Arnhem. Henriette’s collection is titled “Let the Dust Settle In”, and is inspired by the eccentric style of Edith Sitwell, using textile experiments such as embroidering on plastic and creating abstract flowers from found materials.

To find out more about the award and the finalists, and vote in the People’s Prize award, visit designaward.hm.com. Please click here to download the images and click here to view a short film on each designer’s presentation.

H&M x Times Square Opening with Lady Gaga

H&M is coming to Times Square with a bang this coming Thursday, November 14th at midnight with none other than Lady Gaga herself. The fashion icon/ pop superstar will be on hand at a special ribbon cutting and lighting of the H&M logo on the top of 4 Times Square.

Since Lady Gaga will be the one to kick off the opening, H&M will be selling her new album, ARTPOP,  at H&M Times Square and over 175 stores nationwide for an exclusive price of $9.95 while supplies last.

The Times Square location has about 42,000 square feet of space and will offer collections for women, men and children with a separate “shop-in-shop” area for accessories.  Guests at the store can get interactive with a digital runway that projects images of guests walking a virtual catwalk onto screens outside the store. Inside the store, you'll find LED screens, a charging station equipped with iPads, interactive mannequins and much more.

“This is truly a milestone moment for H&M, to have a footprint at the crossroads of the world and own a piece of the NYC skyline with our brand illuminated on top of this impressive building,” says Daniel Kulle, U.S. President for H&M. “With over 7,000 square feet of LED screens, and a 53 foot glitter wall in this ground breaking location, we knew we had to partner with a star who shines as bright as the store.”

To celebrate opening day, H&M Times Square will be open for a full 24 hours with a digital countdown announcing hourly offers for the whole family! The first 1000 shoppers in line will receive an Access to Fashion Pass, valued from $10 to $1000, and lots of fun giveaways! Twenty lucky winners will receive a golden ticket granting them a “meet and greet” with Lady Gaga and early access into the store to shop.

Also, important to note, the opening day coincides with the launch of the much anticipated Isabel Marant collection.  As a special treat, this will be the first store worldwide to debut the Isabel Marant for H&M collection to the public. Are you going to be getting in line?

H&M Times Square, 4 Times Square,  212.221.1709.  9am-1am, daily.

H&M x Isabel Marant Global Launch Party

Yesterday night, H&M hosted a star studded event to celebrate the upcoming launch of Isabel Marant pour H&M. Celebs like Audrey Tautou, January Jones, Freida Pinto, Astrid Bergès-Frisbey, Olga Kurylenko, Alice Dellal, Mélanie Doutey and Lou Lesage made their way to Paris to join in the celebrations.

The collection was presented in cinematic collage that combined images, films and models. Live performances by Grandmaster Melle Mel and Rappers Delight(from the Sugarhill Gang) kept the energy pumping. While guests were taken back in time to the streets of Paris in the early 90s, the same time period that Isabel debuted her eponymous line.  The presentation brought to life scenes including brasseries, neon signs, pizza shops, souvenir shops, epiceries, street vendors and people casually enjoying a stroll in the outdoors.

The collection, that includes Marant's most iconic pieces from her career. The collaboration will debut on November 14, 2013 in around 250 stores worldwide and online.

New H&M Flagship: Herald Center Fall 2014

It is no surprise that H&M is one of the world’s largest fashion retailers thanks to their affordable prices, fast fashion sensibility and amazing collaborations. Now they are going to make their presence even greater in New York City with their largest store globally.

The new location is set for the Herald Center with 63,000 square feet of prime retail space. Herald Center is located at the southwest corner of 34th Street where Broadway and the Avenue of the Americas meet. The new store will showcase all of the H&M collections and will stock H&M’s super fun Home Collection (which only recently made it's online debut in North America).

Expect four floors of retail therapy including ladies and men’s collections, H&M Sport, H&M Mama (maternity collection), H&M+ (plus-sized collection), accessories, cosmetics and H&M’s children’s collection, newborns to kids age 14.

“We are proud to continue our unprecedented expansion in New York City with this groundbreaking Herald Square location. Locking in our 14th store in Manhattan shows our continued commitment to growth in the New York City market,” says Daniel Kulle President of H&M North America. “34th Street has proven to be one of the most successful retail corridors for the brand after having operated two stores there for over 10 years.  With close to 300 stores across the country as well our new Shop Online, the H&M anchor store at this historic intersection will be one of our greatest accomplishments to date.” 

If opening a global flagship wasn't enough, in addition to Herald Center, H&M will open at 4 Times Square at the end of 2013, and on Fifth Avenue (and 48th street) in the spring of 2014.

All of this expansion is good for the local economy, H&M plans to hire 900 new employees with these three New York City openings. Kind of amazing!

H&M currently operates more than 2,900 stores around the world!

Shop: H&M Online

After months of waiting for it to happen with eager anticipation, H&M is now available for online shopping. You can shop from the ease of your home from Ladies, Men's, Kids and the newly introduced Home department! Enjoy FREE SHIPPING on your first order using code 0549, valid until August 15th.  So head to www.hm.com/us/ to get your shop on!

Isabel Marant x H&M

The question on everybody's lips after Maison Martin Margiela was who would H&M tap next?  This morning H&M just announced its autumn collaboration with Paris based designer Isabel Marant. Best known for her chic French effortless style, Marant mixes urban attitude, boho elegance, and a rock ‘n’ roll spirit. For H&M, Isabel Marant will create a wardrobe inspired by her signature style. The collection will be available and online in 250 select stores around the globe on November 14th, 2013, and will feature clothing and accessories for women and teenagers, as well as Isabel Marant’s first-ever collection for men. Are you excited yet?

“I am flattered by this collaboration. H&M works with the best designers, and this invitation is an exciting honor. I aim at creating something real – something women want to wear in their everyday lives – with a certain carefree style. I think this is very Parisian: You dress up, but don’t pay too much attention to it, and you still look sexy. The collection is infused with this kind of easiness and attitude. Everything can be combined following one’s own instincts, and my take on fashion is all about personality,” says Isabel Marant.

“We are excited to have Isabel Marant as a guest designer at H&M. The way she mixes different elements in her collections, creating a style that is effortless and urban, makes her very contemporary. She has a fantastic eye for ethnic detail and the rare ability to create something that people really want to wear. We are sure H&M customers will be excited about this collection,” says Margareta van den Bosch, Creative Advisor at H&M.

Watch this video of the charming Marant to hear about what inspires her.

H&M Conscious Collection Launch

Last week H&M marked the launch of its second Conscious Exclusive collection with special events in San Francisco, New York City, WestHollywood and Miami. Jessica Stroup, Penn Badgley, Victoria Justice and Jessica Lowndes hosted the events in conjunction with top DJ’s. The Conscious collection is part of H&M's effort to ensure a more sustainable future in fashion.


I headed to the New York City event at the 5th Avenue & 51st Street location in midtown to see the collection that is comprised of red carpet looks for men and women made from more sustainable materials such as organic cotton, silk-like tencel, recycled polyester and tulle.  Shoppers were encouraged to donate unwanted clothing items to be recycled or repurposed.

Penn Badgley hosted the Conscious Exclusive collection launch in NYC and says that the eco-line is a "step in the right direction that a lot of us need to be making towards living more sustainably." Penn also mentioned that it "helps when the clothes look good!". 



DJ Hannah Bronfman & Mike Nouveau kept the tunes spinning, while guests enjoyed cocktails and appetizers while they shopped the collection.

One thing I noticed was that some of the prices were pretty incredible with a recycled polyester dress retailing for just $20! Some of the more ornate showstopper pieces were a bit more with the tulle skirt gown at $199, the fringe dress the made me think Gucci for $199, the dress with beading that made me think Prada for $129.

My personal favorite was the satin kimono with heavy embroidery for $99.


I appreciated H&M's effort to create a collection that helps to reduce their carbon footprint. I also appreciated that despite being recycled, the clothing is stylish and fun in bright colors and doesn't look "eco" in a hippie kind of way.


The collection is available in 25 select stores in the U.S., for more information click here.