If you are a fan of The Rachel Zoe Project, then you know that the celebrity stylist has long been working on her own brand. With the success of her reality show and book, her website and daily newsletter, as well as her line of QVC accessories and outerwear, the mama-to-be seems well on her way to accomplishing her goal. Now, seven-and-a-half months pregnant (with a boy!), Rachel Zoe has amped things up even more, producing a higher-end alternative to her QVC clothing and accessories collection.
An intimate presentation was recently staged – Tom Ford Spring/Summer 2011 style – in which editors were asked not to take pictures; lucky for nosy Zoe lovers, however, Harper’s Bazaar and Teen Vogue’s fashion news director leaked some images from the show. The collection, which Zoe hopes to see stocked alongside Marc by Marc Jacobs, Diane von Furstenberg, and Alexander Wang, is called the Rachel Zoe Collection, and will conveniently make its debut around the time the fourth season of her hit Bravo reality TV show begins in August.
According to (via Twitter) Teen Vogue’s fashion news director, Jane Keltner deValle, Zoe remarked at the presentation that “this is the scariest thing I’ve ever done, but also the most fun.” She added, “I’ll be honest, I’m very nervous. For reals. I’ve been going to shows for a long time, and I’m always judging.” Perhaps she had real reason to be nervous, it didn’t take long for the first wave of controversy to hit: Keltner deValle, while seemingly impressed by the collection, tweeted a picture of a Teen Vogue shoot in which Zoe is featured styling a model in a vintage dress that looks identical to the one featured (below, left) in the stylist’s debut collection.
That criticism aside, the collection is pure Zoe. We’re talking 70s bell bottoms, jumpsuits, capes, and four-inch tall platform stiletto heels. Prices range from $250 for a day dress, and go up to $700 for a full tuxedo look. No retailers have been confirmed yet, but I’m guessing, given that editors seemed to love it, buyers will come around. However, I have to say that most of the pieces in Zoe’s new collection look more like something you’d find on the racks at Zara than anything original enough to be Saks Fifth Avenue-worthy.
images via WWD
