Tonight is my 7th Met Gala! I’m so excited! I’ve had so many amazing Met memories in the past: going with Jean Paul Gaultier at 17 years old, going with my husband, James, wearing Zac Posen’s epic “cloud dress” and last year wearing vintage Givenchy previously owned by Elizabeth Taylor. Can’t wait for tonight!!
![THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER: Coco Rocha dishes her favorite fashion moments, tech goods and Brooklyn shop.
by Lindsay Flans
Following model Coco Rocha’s career in the world of high-fashion (from catwalking for designers like Marc Jacobs, Stella McCartney and Emanuel Ungaro, to lending her face to a limited edition Karl Lagerfeld Coco Cola Light campaign and his Macy’s collection, and filming commercials for clothing super-store White House Black Market), the Canadian has stylishly segued into the weekly TV circuit as a mentor on Oxygen’s The Face. Rocha, who coaches aspiring models through photo shoots and commercials (alongside supermodels Naomi Campbell and Karolina Kurkova) in order to help the winner become the face of ULTA Beauty, has some mentors of her own. “I will always have a special place in my heart for Jean Paul Gaultier who has given me so many amazing opportunities on his runway. He was the designer who asked me to Irish dance down the runway in 2007, which really put me on the fashion radar,” she says. “He has to be one of the kindest, most sincere people you could ever hope to meet and he’s one of the few designers who treats models as muses and really values our opinions.”
FAVORITE DESIGNERS:
Zac Posen has always been like a big brother to me. When I got married three years ago he was the only person I wanted to create my wedding dress and he went above and beyond, creating the most amazing dress I’ve ever worn. The support goes both ways, in eight years I don’t think I’ve missed a single show of his! Karl Lagerfeld also has always been a loyal supporter of me in his many ventures. From campaigns at Chanel to working with him on a Diet Coke commercial. I will always admire him and his work ethic immensely.
Lately I’m really loving the work Nicola Formichetti is doing with Mugler. It’s digital, high tech and everything we hoped and expected fashion would be in the second decade of the 21st century. I’m also extremely excited to see Fausto Puglisi’s first season as the creative director for Ungaro. I love Fausto’s aesthetic, wearing his clothes makes models like me feel like supermodels. I think Ungaro as a brand has gone through some hard times but in Fausto’s capable hands I’m expecting great things for the house in 2013.
FASHION MISHAPS:
My entire early high school career was a fashion mishap, I had the dorkiest style. I would wear big baggy sweaters, bell bottoms and the same running shoes every day. By the end of Grade 10, I was traveling quite frequently for fashion shows and shoots and at the same time receiving a crash course in fashion 101 at the feet of some of the world’s greats. I remember being given all these cute little dresses by Anna Sui when I was 17 and wearing one of them for my graduation boat cruise. I also remember doing looks for Louis Vuitton around then and being given my first designer handbag, it was my prized possession for a long time. Since then I’m sure I’ve made a few blunders and fashion faux pas. I think anyone who takes risks with fashion is bound to make a few mistakes!
FAVORITE RED CARPET MOMENT:
Zac Posen gave me this amazing gown he called the “Cloud Dress” which I wore to the Met Ball a few years ago. It had a seven-foot billowing train that was way over the top and tripped more than a few people, I adored it! I even wore the train as a cape when I entered! I’m a huge fan of Elizabeth Taylor and last year I got to go to her estate auction in New York where I bought this amazing 1980s Givenchy jumpsuit. I ended up wearing it to last year’s Met Gala which was all about “impossible conversations.” I imagined it represented my impossible fashion conversation with one of my personal style icons, Miss Taylor.
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FAVORITE PLACE TO SHOP:
I rarely get to shop these days! I remember when I first started modeling and moved to New York I discovered vintage shopping and loved the hunt for some obscure one-of-a-kind piece. Lately most of my shopping is done on TheFancy.com - It’s this great site that shows you what you’re looking for, before you even know you’re looking for it. I love gadgets and with The Fancy the crème rises to the top so that you’re treated to an endless stream of lust-worthy products, all of which can be purchased either on the Fancy or a third party site. Personally I am a huge tech fan and there are some amazing tech products and accessories on the fancy that I haven’t seen anywhere else.
FAVORITE RECENT PURCHASE:
My latest purchase was the iPad mini. I’ve had an iPad since they were first launched and I had no complaints about it so I didn’t really see the point in getting an iPad Mini in addition. As always with Apple products, seeing and feeling the device in person changed my perception. The Mini is shockingly light and easy to manage. It also easily fits into a medium-sized purse which I can tell you is extremely important to a New York City girl.
FAVORITE UNDER-THE-RADAR STORE:
In New York there is very little that is great and can remain under the radar for long. For home furniture I’d say Film Biz Recycling in Brooklyn is a best-kept secret. It’s this great charity that takes in abandoned movie props that would have ended up dumped in a landfill somewhere and recycles them back into use. My husband James and I have found a lot of our favorite treasures there and we think it’s a must-go-to for anyone who’s looking for that unusual piece for their home.
TRAVEL MUST-HAVES:
I have a great pair of Molami headphones that I go everywhere with. Also a must is a good Rebecca Minkoff bag to hold my iPad mini!](http://24.media.tumblr.com/04ca9430116c82d9cf3100a4334ba30a/tumblr_mksrgcGLUF1qeyuguo1_500.jpg)
THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER: Coco Rocha dishes her favorite fashion moments, tech goods and Brooklyn shop.
Following model Coco Rocha’s career in the world of high-fashion (from catwalking for designers like Marc Jacobs, Stella McCartney and Emanuel Ungaro, to lending her face to a limited edition Karl Lagerfeld Coco Cola Light campaign and his Macy’s collection, and filming commercials for clothing super-store White House Black Market), the Canadian has stylishly segued into the weekly TV circuit as a mentor on Oxygen’s The Face. Rocha, who coaches aspiring models through photo shoots and commercials (alongside supermodels Naomi Campbell and Karolina Kurkova) in order to help the winner become the face of ULTA Beauty, has some mentors of her own. “I will always have a special place in my heart for Jean Paul Gaultier who has given me so many amazing opportunities on his runway. He was the designer who asked me to Irish dance down the runway in 2007, which really put me on the fashion radar,” she says. “He has to be one of the kindest, most sincere people you could ever hope to meet and he’s one of the few designers who treats models as muses and really values our opinions.”
FAVORITE DESIGNERS:
Zac Posen has always been like a big brother to me. When I got married three years ago he was the only person I wanted to create my wedding dress and he went above and beyond, creating the most amazing dress I’ve ever worn. The support goes both ways, in eight years I don’t think I’ve missed a single show of his! Karl Lagerfeld also has always been a loyal supporter of me in his many ventures. From campaigns at Chanel to working with him on a Diet Coke commercial. I will always admire him and his work ethic immensely.
Lately I’m really loving the work Nicola Formichetti is doing with Mugler. It’s digital, high tech and everything we hoped and expected fashion would be in the second decade of the 21st century. I’m also extremely excited to see Fausto Puglisi’s first season as the creative director for Ungaro. I love Fausto’s aesthetic, wearing his clothes makes models like me feel like supermodels. I think Ungaro as a brand has gone through some hard times but in Fausto’s capable hands I’m expecting great things for the house in 2013.
FASHION MISHAPS:
My entire early high school career was a fashion mishap, I had the dorkiest style. I would wear big baggy sweaters, bell bottoms and the same running shoes every day. By the end of Grade 10, I was traveling quite frequently for fashion shows and shoots and at the same time receiving a crash course in fashion 101 at the feet of some of the world’s greats. I remember being given all these cute little dresses by Anna Sui when I was 17 and wearing one of them for my graduation boat cruise. I also remember doing looks for Louis Vuitton around then and being given my first designer handbag, it was my prized possession for a long time. Since then I’m sure I’ve made a few blunders and fashion faux pas. I think anyone who takes risks with fashion is bound to make a few mistakes!
FAVORITE RED CARPET MOMENT:
Zac Posen gave me this amazing gown he called the “Cloud Dress” which I wore to the Met Ball a few years ago. It had a seven-foot billowing train that was way over the top and tripped more than a few people, I adored it! I even wore the train as a cape when I entered! I’m a huge fan of Elizabeth Taylor and last year I got to go to her estate auction in New York where I bought this amazing 1980s Givenchy jumpsuit. I ended up wearing it to last year’s Met Gala which was all about “impossible conversations.” I imagined it represented my impossible fashion conversation with one of my personal style icons, Miss Taylor.
Irish jig at Jean Paul Gaultier
PARIS FASHION WEEK via INSTAGRAM - March 2nd to 4th, 2013
Before the Jean Paul Gaultier show with the amazing Numero editor-in-chief, Babeth Djian! #PFW
Strike a pose! The fantastic stage design at Jean Paul Gaultier tonight. #PFW
Jean Paul Gaultier whispering a secret… My lips are sealed!
Bumped into two of my favorite people, Ellen Von Unwerth and Renzo Rosso, at the Diesel party!
The official iPhone screensaver of Ellen Von Unwerth ;)
Glamour and I are in agreement - we are all about orange for Spring 2013.
Spotted my friend Ava in the white jacket at Giambattista Valli. She and I used to be roommates years ago!
Anna + team taking it all in at Giambattista Valli - PFW.
Found two trouble makers backstage at Jean Paul Gaultier - Miss Karlie Kloss and Cara Delevingne.
![JEAN PAUL GAULTIER - Interview for Glamour MagI just arrived in Paris to support my dear friend, Jean Paul Gaultier, and so I thought it only appropriate that I post this interview we did together in the latest copy of American Glamour Magazine. Gaultier has given me so many amazing opportunities on his runway; he was the designer who asked me to Irish dance down the runway in 2007, which really put me on the fashion radar. More than that, though, he is one of the kindest, most sincere people you could ever hope to meet. See our interview below:
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Now This Is a Major Fashion Moment
Designer Jean Paul Gaultier interviews Coco Rocha about catfights, male models – and playing for Team Coco.
In fashion it’s a given that every designer has a muse. For much of the last decade Jean Paul Gaultier, the Parisian designer who created Madonna’s cone bra in the late eighties, has found his inspiration in Canadian model Coco Rocha. Back in 2007 the then 18-year-old Rocha opened and closed Gaultier’s fall show by dancing a Celtic Irish jig down the runway. (Another year she played a mermaid!) The two have been friends ever since. Here, Gaultier and Rocha – who’s a new star judge on Oxygen’s model-competition show The Face, alongside Naomi Campbell and Karolina Kurkova – sit down to talk.
JEAN PAUL GAULTIER: Which was more difficult: coaching the girls for the competition or getting along with Naomi and Karolina?
COCO ROCHA: I think you know the answer to that.
JPG: Yes, I can imagine!
CR: When we first started shooting, we were like children on the first day of school. But two days into the show, you could definitely see that there was a competition among Team Naomi, Team Coco, and Team Karolina. We’re all fighting to win. We have three different personalities and our own concept of how a model should model, so you know it’s going to be a good show.
JPG: From what I saw, it seems like there was a bit of tension between Naomi and Karolina.
CR: There’s going to be tension in a lot of scenes.
JPG: Yes, yes yes! Especially with Naomi, she can be sometimes a little excited, no? Did you teach the girls how to Irish dance?
CR: No, I didn’t get to, but they knew that I could. Everyone always remembers my dancing.
JPG: I think you should teach male models how to walk. Some guys are very beautiful, but they walk like they’re embarrassed. It’s ridiculous.
CR: How do you choose a male model for your shows?
JPG: I want a male model version of you or Naomi or Karolina or Linda [Evangelista]. What makes you special is that you create so many different personalities. It’s boring when the models all walk exactly the same. Don’t you think?
CR: That’s why all of us like doing your show. You allow us to be whoever we want. These days we’re told to walk straight, don’t move, no emotion, no nothing. I want my team [on The Face] to play characters because it’s far more interesting. I have to say that you’re one of the only designers who likes to talk to his models and ask us about our opinions and what we’re thinking.
JPG: If there were no models, I couldn’t do my shows. You make my shows real – I love that.
- Rajni Lucienne Jacques](http://25.media.tumblr.com/6078fa30d87f4c8f604cbf50093f0c25/tumblr_mj1dhoNbSs1qeyuguo1_500.jpg)
JEAN PAUL GAULTIER - Interview for Glamour Mag
I just arrived in Paris to support my dear friend, Jean Paul Gaultier, and so I thought it only appropriate that I post this interview we did together in the latest copy of American Glamour Magazine. Gaultier has given me so many amazing opportunities on his runway; he was the designer who asked me to Irish dance down the runway in 2007, which really put me on the fashion radar. More than that, though, he is one of the kindest, most sincere people you could ever hope to meet. See our interview below:
For The Love Of Fashion - Elle UK, June 2012
In this article I tell British Elle my biggest fashion sacrifice, my biggest fashion regret and what I did when someone offered to buy my Zac Posen wedding dress!
DINNER WITH GAULTIER - via Instagram.
March 17th, 2012
Last night my dear friend Jean Paul Gaultier asked me if I would join him at a gala for Lycee Francais de New York (literally meaning: The French School of New York). At the event I bumped into Linda Evangelista (her son goes to the school), who told me she was wearing my look from Jean Paul’s S/S 2012 runway show. I was thrilled she even knew who I was, let alone what I wore 2 seasons back! Linda gave a lovely speech and handed Gaultier, the guest of honor, an award from the school. I had an absolutely lovely time and sat with the amazing Hannelore Knuts and Jean Paul Gaultier - we all made a pact to join next season’s ‘Dancing with the Stars,’ though Jean Paul sadly backed out at the very last minute.
PARIS FASHION WEEK - via my Instagram
March 5th, 6th & 7th 2012
THE MAESTRO OF HAIR - Odile Gilbert
Photos by Alex Cayley
Hairstylist Odile Gilbert is a legend in the fashion world and a favorite of people like Karl Lagerfeld and Jean Paul Gaultier - not to mention, a big favorite of mine! As an artist, she has been part of many of my most memorable fashion moments in the last 8 years and I’ve had the joy of working with Odile on countless shoots and shows.
A few months back, Odile came to NY to shoot this story all about her work with Allure and asked me to be a part of it. To find out more about Odile, please read the article in the October issue of Allure.
Jean Paul Gaultier Haute Couture - By James Conran
This picture was taken just an hour ago, backstage at Jean Paul Gaultier’s Black Swan-themed haute couture show (more pictures HERE). Mr. Gaultier actually let me wear this outfit as I headed out of the show and to my next very special event - I went to The American Embassy to watch Anna Wintour receive the Légion d’Honneur from President Nicolas Sarkozy! I thought it was pretty low-key and demure, no? Hehe, on my way right now… xx
“Dear Paris, it’s haute couture week and Jean Paul Gaultier wants everyone to enjoy it! Be at 325 rue Saint-Martin in Paris at 2:30pm tomorrow for the catwalk to sidewalk show. xoxo Coco.”
To Monsieur Gaultier - Right now Jean Paul Gaultier is in Canada for a massive career retrospective hosted by The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. I had hoped to join him there for this momentous occasion but sadly it turned out I had to stay in New York this week. I have heard amazing things about the exhibit and hope to see it myself very soon!
In the meantime, here is the video we made for the Jean Paul Gaultier shoot Elle magazine had a few months back. All the outfits are vintage Gaultier. You may have seen this the last time I posted it but now its re-edited with a new song (by our friend ALLIES) and a few new scenes.
JIG - A few weeks ago I was sent an advance copy of an amazing new documentary called JIG. The film really struck a chord with me because it delves into the fantastic and often bizarre world of Irish dance, a world I came from long before entering into high fashion at 15 years old.
In this little video I talk about my early life as an Irish dancer and my infamous Irish jig down Jean Paul Gaultier’s runway in 2007.
I’m happy to announce that JIG - the film will be released across America on June 17th, 2011!
*Additional filming, editing and production by James Conran with kind assistance and footage from the office of Jean Paul Gaultier.
JPG + CRC.
James has created my new favorite behind-the-scenes film! Please enjoy watching the special Jean Paul Gaultier retrospective for Elle magazine I’ve been talking about allllll week. You’ll notice it turned into a night shoot as the clothes, sent from France, were stuck in customs almost the entire day. Still, we worked through the night to get the two cover shots and editorial done… in fact, if you pay close attention you’ll see one extra picture that never made it to print.
Like the song? Its our friend ALLIES.
