Category Archives: Press Archive

Mary-Kate Olsen

Posted by Jane on July 27, 2011 • Filed under: Press Archive • Write comments

If “style savant” was an actual phrase in the dictionary, we have a feeling there would be a picture of Mary-Kate Olsen next to it. And with good reason: you can trace countless trends back to this fashion dynamo, as she continually creates wholly original and enviably unique ensembles on a daily basis. In addition to influencing the way the world dresses with her noteworthy, often-emulated outfits, Olsen is also controlling the pieces everyone buys, thanks to the fashion empire she co-founded with sister Ashley, which reaches consumers at every level, from luxury (The Row), contemporary womenswear (Elizabeth and James), casual lifestyle (Textile Elizabeth and James), juniors (Olsenboye, which retails exclusively at J. C. Penney), and online-only commerce (StyleMint). While Olsen is always relevant, right now is a particularly exciting time in her career—she was a CFDA Swarovski Award for Emerging Talent nominee, just launched StyleMint, and The Row’s first handbag collection debuts this fall—hence today’s Guest Editor story. Considering her extremely intense schedule, we were delighted that the mini mogul took the time to tell us about her obsessions du jour, selections that are just as super-chic as she is!

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The Row handbags launch at Barney’s

Posted by Jane on July 17, 2011 • Filed under: Appearances, Images Gallery, Press Archive • Write comments

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Appearances in 2011 > 07/13 – The Row Handbags Launch at Barney’s

On July 13, 2011, at the intimate unveiling of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen’s handbag collection for The Row, a tight-knit group of friends and editors convened at Barneys New York, where they got a first look at what the girls have been working on for Fall 2011.

With Ashley wearing a colorful beaded gown and Mary-Kate in a turquoise blazer, the low-key soirée felt more like a casual viewing than an official unveiling. The duo’s range of luxe clutches, totes, backpacks, and messenger bags were subtly showcased around the perimeter of the party, boasting rich hues of blue-infused gray, milky caramel, midnight navy and a toned-down black in exotic python, alligator, and luscious ostrich skins. The cross-body mini handbag, aptly named “The Twin,” along with the rest of the refined collection, was adorned with the perfect amount of hardware—simple sophistication at its best.

The evening’s guests included Sally Singer, Keegan Singh, Anne Christensen, Harley Viera-Newton, Elizabeth Olsen and Barneys team members Mark Lee, Simon Doonan, Amanda Brooks, Dennis Freedman and Daniella Vitale.

As the fete died down, the conversation turned to the longevity of the brand. “Don’t you think The Row will outshine Hermès?” quipped one close friend. Ever humble, Mary-Kate chimed in, “Who knows, but let’s give it at least another 150 years.”

With that, the girls headed off to an uptown restaurant to quietly toast their Barneys New York handbag debut.

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Olsens Celebrate New Handbag Collection for The Row

Posted by Jane on July 17, 2011 • Filed under: Press Archive • Write comments

One could make sport, and some have, of guessing which Olsen sister is which based on style cues alone. But at Barneys New York on Wednesday night at a cocktail party to celebrate the launch of their new handbag collection for The Row, Mary-Kate sported a sun-dipped tell.

“He’s saying that you’re more tan than me,” Ashley explained to Mary-Kate as the pair took a brief break from the party.

“I know,” Mary-Kate said. “I took an extra week off.”

With a resort collection out of the way and a spring line looming, the pair could be excused a little off time, which they had taken in June. The generally positive reviews from the cocktail crowd — which also included younger Olsen sister Elizabeth — seemed to signal a busy second half to 2011. A crocodile-constructed backpack with a price tag to rival a year at a private university seemed to hold a special fascination among the fifth-floor audience.

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The Row: 2011 CFDA Award Nominees

Posted by Jane on June 2, 2011 • Filed under: Press Archive • Write comments

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, The Row
Nominated for: Swarovski Award for Womenswear

What was the first piece you designed? How old were you at the time, and what was the reaction?
M: The first pieces we designed were white silk suits in an atelier in Los Angeles. I think we were around 14 years old. It definitely wasn’t our introduction into the world of fittings and custom-made clothing, but the luxury of the atelier and craftsmanship was a great experience.

What would you say was your first big success at The Row?
A: Our first big success was our Spring Summer 2007 season. We launched The Row with 14 SKUs including T-shirts, T-shirt dresses and leggings. It took us over a year to get these 14 pieces perfected to where we felt comfortable showing anyone besides our friends and family.
M: The collection was small but the quality, for a T-shirt, was impeccable and we ended up selling to Barneys, Bergdorf Goodman, Forty Five Ten and a number of other amazing retailers.

What was the first piece you designed for The Row?
A: The first piece we designed was a silk modal T-shirt with no side seams. Just a French seam down the center back. It was made on a lingerie machine.

What’s the best piece of feedback you’ve ever gotten, whether from a teacher, mentor or fashion critic?
M: You can accomplish anything with hard work and a great team.

What was your reaction to your first CFDA nomination?
A: We were so excited. It is such a privilege to be included with these amazingly talented designers.

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Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen: Scissor Sisters

Posted by Jane on June 2, 2011 • Filed under: Press Archive • Write comments

They fascinate.

Perhaps because we’ve faux-known Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen since their two-in-one television infancy, the explosive early success of their second joint creative career intrigues all the more, its improbability boggling conventional thinking. Cast originally on adorableness alone (talent is a nonfactor at nine months), they parleyed cute into an empire that had them, in their early teens, controlling a billion-dollar entertainment business with a mass market fashion component. Now, approaching their 25th birthday, they are among the hottest forces in fashion.

Theirs is quite a tale. What were the odds that “Full House” would last long enough for the sisters to develop as real actors, and to become role models for a generation of awe-struck peers? That as they grew, genetics and innate flair would coalesce into a wide-eyed, grunge-Goth pixie style both engaging and unsettling? That ongoing public and tabloid interest in that style — and in their private lives — would result in power quotients inverse to the sisters’ diminutive frames? Most significantly, that these famous, fashion girls would ultimately parlay their particular cocktails of distinctive, edgy chic and pre-existing fame into a savvy business that has found serious consumer loyalty across several demographics? None of which could have happened without vision, a furious work ethic and, oh yes, talent.

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The Future Of Fashion: Ashley And Mary-Kate Olsen

Posted by Jane on May 27, 2011 • Filed under: Press Archive • Write comments

In this ongoing series, Style.com’s editor in chief, Dirk Standen, talks to a number of leading industry figures about the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for the fashion business.

Dualstar, the world headquarters of Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen’s numerous enterprises, isn’t some high-tech fortress. Set on a nondescript Chelsea block, it’s a low-key loft building that seems to have evaded condo-ization. Step inside and you could be entering the studio of any up-and-coming downtown designer. There are the bare wood floors, the nice flowers, the cartons of takeout food. It’s all very normal, and you sense that’s important to these refugees from massive childhood fame.

At a stage in life where many of their peers are vying for a slot on Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew, the Olsens are appearing in 130 stores worldwide with their luxury fashion label The Row, and they have been nominated for the Swarovski Award for Womenswear, the top honor for emerging talent, at next month’s Council of Fashion Designers of America gala. They are among the few celebrities to make critically acclaimed clothes (Ashley, left, long ago gave up acting and Mary-Kate now says she is too busy to pursue it, too), and nothing is typical about their approach. They sell their line Olsenboye to JCPenney at the same time that they sell The Row to Bergdorf Goodman, they deliberately aim The Row at women much older than themselves, and though they were born into the digital generation, their embrace of social media is a wary one. Still just 24, they are literally part of the future of fashion.

In conversation, the sisters are by turns articulate and guarded. They’ve done the media dance before and they’re not going to be drawn out of their comfort zone. Ask them about John Galliano’s meltdown and you won’t get much. Ashley: “I think he’s an amazing designer.” Mary-Kate: “I think he’s a brilliant designer.” That’s not to say they lack warmth. They laugh frequently, and though they speak in soft tones, they’re not afraid to meet your gaze with their startled, green-tinted eyes. Ashley is in some ways the designated spokesperson for the pair, Mary-Kate the quieter and funnier one, but their roles are more fluid than that, and yes, they frequently complete each other’s sentences. Here they shed some light on the design process behind The Row, the accidental way they became fashion icons, and the reason Twitter makes them anxious.

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