I’m in Paris for the final stop on the Spring 2012 tour bus, so here are my highs and lows from Milano.
Here are my top 11 looks from the shows I attended. If Zoe Saldana’s stylist is reading, please dress her in that stunning Ferragamo dress above. I beg you. *Sings* “If I had one wish…..”
HIGHS
Top 5 Shows: Ferragamo, Jil Sander, Dolce & Gabbana, Versace & Alberta Ferretti
Best Production & Best for Top Models: Dolce & Gabbana
Magic Moment: Watching Anna Wintour almost knock a security guard to the floor as she made a mad dash to leave after Dolce & Gabbana. Had she been 10lbs heavier, he would have hit the deck.
Funniest Conversation:
Me: I saw Abbey Lee Kershaw and Karlie Kloss at breakfast this morning.
Bryanboy: WHAT?? They eat?
Me: Yes, of course they do.
Bryanboy: I bet they don’t eat any of that fried sh!t.
Dolce & Gabbana: I had previously requested Dolce & Gabbana, but this season I got my first invites. They not only gave me invites to both shows, but they also gave me front row seats. I was also granted access to the VIP room and backstage.
Biggest Topics of Conversation:
1. Arizona’s strange walk. (Conclusion: It looks strange because she has shorter legs than the other models.)
2. Why wasn’t Karlie Kloss in the Versace show? She would have killed it. (Conclusion: she must have been obligated to attend another show.)
Vogue Italia: They featured my Topshop jumpsuit as the Look Of The Day during Milan Fashion Week.
Karlie Kloss: Abbey Lee Kershaw (who is hero worshipped by the other models), Joan Smalls and Karlie Kloss were all at my hotel. I have a mild obsession with Karlie Kloss, so I was chuffed to discover that she is really nice in person. The same can’t be said for Miss Naomi Campbell Jr.
LOWS
Taxis: Looking at my receipts, I still can’t believe how much I spent in 5 days. I could have bought myself a new pair of Louboutins, but I still would’ve needed the taxis to get around in those heels.
Anna Dello Russo: At Dolce&Gabbana I was surprised that ADR’s people were telling me that I was sitting in her seat even after I had showed them my seat assignment. Because I didn’t move – and why should I when I was in my assigned seat? – she accused me of giving her attitude. I was frankly mortified. When she found a seat, I went over to her and said that if she wanted my seat so badly that she could have it. I then went on to say that “I am here for fashion, not to fight anyone”. This appeared to calm her down as she replied, “Yes, me too”. Needless to say she now can’t look me in the eye.
Blogger Drama: Unfortunately, some bloggers rate you on the shows you get into. I don’t subscribe to that notion because different brands work for different bloggers. However, this competitiveness has led to one blogger using other bloggers’ and journalists’ names to get into shows. What she doesn’t realise is that, by bragging on her site that she attended X and Y shows, she is potentially putting X blogger’s relationship with Y brand in jeopardy, as well as putting X journalist’s job on the line if she actually gets caught. At this point I need to ask her, is bragging worth potentially getting someone fired?
Credit: Style.com
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Posted by Catherine Kallon on September 29th, 2011 In: Milan Fashion Week
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i’m surprised by the Anna Dello Russo story… Not in a good way, FC u did the right things !
I love u in this jumpsuit and u hair looks great
thank you…I normally opt for dead straight, but I’m liking it bushy at the moment
I love it! Beautiful FC
Next year I’m in full and total support for you posting what you wear in NY, Milan, London, and Paris
So glad you enjoyed D & G -it sounded like you had so much fun! Enjoy Paris!!!
Who is Naomi Campbell junior?
i tink its joan smalls bt i sua hope not…shes amazin
thank you for the amazing coverage FC
it’s lovely to hear all your stories from fashion week and congratulations on your vogue italia look of the day!
PS: is naomi campbell jr joan smalls?
thank you.
Campbell Jr is one of the three mentioned
hilarious!!!
fair enough
doesn’t matter who it is, it made me laugh alot 
Love this post!! Amazing coverage FC!
Sorry for not commenting but I was totally busy..
I’m a little bit dissaponted from Mrs Campbell Jr because she is one of my favourite models right now!
When will people understand that it doesn’t matter how peautiful or successful you are if you are not o GOOD person!!!!!!
glad you enjoyed it
looks and sounds like you had an absolutely amazing time
thankyou for all the great posts and photographs
may i ask who naomi campbell jnr is?
wowzer, im so surprised about that with ADR!
Love your look for Look of the Day.
As for your lows, i am going to hit you with the Tupac hook: You Gotta Keep Ya Head Up…
thank you x
I love Karlie! You’re not alone, I’m mildly obsessed as well.
When she is on the runway…NO ONE else exists in my eyes.
Truly captivating and puts the rest in the shade
+1
Ms Naomi Campbell Junior as in Jourdan Dunn?
Hmm I’m not surprised but apparently her and Karlie are BFFL
Not Jourdan. One of the three mentioned in the piece
Joan? How did she act? D-I-V-A?
to the 10th degree
Oh I am glad!! Abbey Lee Kershaw is one of the very few famous people I have spent time with and I thought she was adorable. AND, I can confirm: she eats pizza.
Plus I love Karlies work and would cut my arm off to meet her.
Boo to Joan then. Also ADR – I love that you dealt with her so graciously, yet totally owned her!
ps Highs and Lows is one of my favourite things on your blog!!
glad you enjoy it.
Its a pleasure to share my experience with you
Mine as well! Love these stories that bring us just a bit closer to the experience of fashion week(s). Thank you tons for the hard work (understatement, I’m sure) and the cash you shelled out for cab fare! Goodness gracious!
It really is my pleasure
Love these little anecdotes. It sound like you had a blast. I havent really rated Anna Dello Russo but she has gone down in my books. On the plus side, it must have been a pretty good seat if she wanted it so Congrats!
is Joan Smalls Mss Campbell jr ? was she rude?
*I die* (in my RZ voice) at you being a KK fan. She’s one of the few models who’s careers I follow very closely. As for her missing Versace… *sigh* … for some strange reason she doesn’t seem to be one of Donatella’s darlings or even regulars…
Congrats on the VI feature. You’re doing it big
Hope you have even more highs and less lows in Paris.
My eyes follow her from the second she steps onto the runway until she exits.
She models with every inch of her body.
She’s one of the most breath-taking creatures to walk the planet.
Did I say my obsession was mild? Make it full blown lol
lol
you are awesome. she is seriously gorgeous
Merci xxx
to me Bottega Veneta was great, the colors were amazing, and the gowns too
You did a great job in NY, London and Milan and I’m sure you will in Paris too. Hope you are enjoying it as much as we are
Thank you…Day 1 and I’m already having a blast.
Where do you stay- I thought the marni show was stunning.
Enterprise Hotel.
Its out of the way and very quiet.
Hmmmm, one has to wonder why ADR thought you – as opposed to someone else in the front row – MUST have been her seat, evidence to the contrary be damned. Well, so glad you were able to brush her off your shoulder (*Jay-Z move here*) and enjoy the many highs of your stay. Thanks so much for sharing!
*Hmmmm, one has to wonder why ADR thought you – as opposed to someone else in the front row MUST have been her seat*
EXACTLY
We are most definitely on the same page
My guess – she didn’t recognize you on sight and therefore thought either that you were an imposter, or that you were new and therefore would be someone she could bully.
Either or. I guess we will never know
+1
Thanks for these insights. Sounds as though you had quite the crazy fashion week. So pleased to hear about the royal treatment showered upon you at Dolce and thrilled to see Jil Sander in your top five collections of the week. The less said about Anna Dello Russo and ‘her people’, the better. The woman needs a major reality check – the more crazily she is feted by street style photogrohers, the more arrogant and wildly self-indulgent her behaviour gets. A little bit of humility and modesty wouldn’t go astray. You should be proud that you stood your ground and didn’t succumb to their pushiness – you had every right to be there. Anna Dello who?
The most disappointing thing about it for me is the she is supposed to be the champion of bloggers considering none of us would know who she was if not for bloggers like Tommy Ton and Street Pepper.
She is the champion of no-one but herself if you ask me. Someone needs to inform her that she does not constitute the entire fashion galaxy, as much as she likes to think that she does. I believe that now she is at the top of the pecking order, her tolerance for anyone who isn’t ‘in her league’ (or, alternatively, wearing a piece of fruit on their head) is non-existent.
i think anna dello russo is a good woman but it was sad to red that, i didnt understand what happened exactly. she is very passionate about fashion she LOVES fashion. in my opinion she sees fashion as an art not just clothes to cover your naked body. this is one of the plenty things i really like-admire about her. i dont know her personally, want to meet her someday. i think she didnt want to act like that to you. i dont know why it happened.it made me kind of sad to hear the attitude thing because i really love her. plus about wearing different head pieces isnt a bad thing she is just original about that. if you look at the vogue japan november you will see an editorial with big brands’ -chanel, dior vs- headpieces. i think it is an awesome editorial; it is styled by her. it made me like that huge things and wear some.
http://forums.thefashionspot.com/f71/anna-dello-russo-fashion-director-large-creative-consultant-vogue-nippon-148239-13.html
cant believe the whole anna dello russo thing, seriously she thought you were in her seat? even after you proving that you were assigned it.
love the idea of anna rushes straight after a show and almost knocking someone down.
glad you had a great time.
Wicked, honest recap. Love it. Particularly love that you staked your claim confidently and with much class. I mean there’s a place in fashion for everyone. Alright i’m slow I know but is the “NC Jr.” You reference Ms. Smalls?
Wow it sounds like you had a wonderful time, I’m so jealous of all the people you got to meet. I feel for you with the Anna Dello Russo incident, hopefully it’s all good now
i spotted you at the d&g show and i wanted to tell you how much i appreciate your work but i didn’t want to bother.
thank you so much for this recap, high&lows is becoming one of my favorite thing.
Next please say hi
Way to stand your ground with your seat! Love the Look of the Day feature. Sounds like you’re having an amazing time and I’m so happy for you!
Love your post. Sounds as if Milan is very expensive to get around. The prima donnas apparently are taking over the city!
Good heavens, I would have a very low tolerance for that sort of behavior. Hopefully you won’t run into them in Paris…..
Hello Catherine. I have some questions for u.
Was the Ferragamo show ur favourite (u picked 2 pictures)? Why other models worship Abbey? And u said that Karlie is super nice. What about Abbey? Is she friendly? Cause I’ve just read at some famous fashion forum that she is really not.
BTW Karlie hasn’t been casted for a Versace show since SS10 (for 2 years now
) and this year I read she skipped first 2 days of Milan cause of some shooting.
Yes Ferragamo was my favourite show.
I don’t know why they worship Abbey, I will guess she is a nice person and that she’s respected by the other girls for all she has achieved in the industry.
I never spoke to Abbey, but she was friendly to her peers
Thank u for the answers
If I may ask, how was this NC Jr. acting like a diva? Just plain curious
BTW I love your Fashion Week Highs and Lows! Will be making one for the entire fashion week in general- in terms of your favorite looks? Keep up the coverage FC, we all really appreciate it!
The reason why Karlie Kloss wasn’t at Versace is because she walked and opened for Blumarine. Pity though, because Versace really needed some sensuality from Karlie’s walk.
About Blogger Drama: who is the blogger you are talking about? I’m so so curious to know it! Is she Italian?
I really love your blog, I read it daily with great interest!
No, she’s from new York
Two spring to mind. But the Man Repeller seems too nice, so my official guess is the Glamourai :-p
(Btw, serious question: why would that get an editor fired? Because they can’t write their show review?)
It’s neither of those. Both are too well regarded to have to stoop so low.
If a PR thought that a journalist was giving her invites to another person then it’s very likely she could get fired, as it would be seen that she is not doing her job, if the PR told her superiors
Loved reading your recap FC. Very interesting experiences especially the one with ADR. And btw you look fabulous in that jumpsuit. You rock girl!!
Thank you
How you dare to said something like that about Ms. Joan Smalls, she has a nice and sweet personality; most of the interviews that I had read about Joan that she has a humble personality.
What did I say?
At the end of the day we can all hero worship celebrities, but we don’t really know them at all.
Reading an interview about someone is not even close to seeing their behaviour in real life.
I loved Anna Dello Russo and you can read above how she treated me.
With regards to Miss Naomi Campbell Jr, there were 3 separate occasions I was put off by her behaviour, but that is just my opinion.
If you believe Ms Joan Smalls to be nice, sweet and humble I won’t take that away from you.
Why don’t you state what those occasions were? You seem to talk about detailed experiences you had with other models, why not Ms. Smalls? You might be perceiving things differently and because you had that uncomfortable experience with the other model, you were still sour when you were around Ms Smalls. So, any small rejection or views could of triggered you to state your opinion. Maybe you do not understand people’s behaviors. You should try being in ones shoes to understand why such thing happened.
Any press is good press.
She’s was a total bitch to the staff at the hotel. I witnessed this with my own eyes.
She was also the only model I saw shout at photographers backstage at a show just because she didn’t have any makeup on.
I also witnessed this with my own eyes.
I was both disappointed and disgusted with her behaviour as a human being and as a black woman.
You need to take her off your pedastal because she isn’t worth your time.
Invest in a real Role model and not this overrated diva
Love your blog and love this post about Milan FW because I’m from Milan and I know how the city can be amazing during fashion shows (except for taxis…).
Who is the blogger you are talking about in your last low? Is she italian? However great job!!!
No she’s from New York
was it Gossip Girl?
I always knew she was a bit of a cow!
Thanks for keeping us in your back pocket all week FC. Adore your coverage. Love your picks. There is something about that No.21 look that is so fresh!
I’m a huge subcriber to Karma and “what goes around comes around”. Unscrupulous people with no manners are a huge pet peeve. You will continue to succeed FC because you have passion and integrity.
Pay them no mind!
Thanks Debi
It was very unfortunate
I have to say I am absolutely gutted about “Miss Naomi Campbell Jr” as she is always one of my favorite models in shows!
… Enjoy Paris (although i’m sure there is no questions about whether you will or not 
)
As always loving the coverage FC! Love hearing that you are being seated front row where you deserve to be!
Oh yes I’m very much enjoying Paris
Damn, you go girl! Don’t let any of these fashion snobs get to you. I love how ballsy and honest you are!
I won’t I will continue to do what I love to do which is enjoy fashion.
The rest goes over my head
Thank you so much FC for all the hard work not only during fashion week but throughout the year. I don’t comment very often but I assure you that I am a huge fan of your blog.I hope you had a great time in Milan,since it’s also my city!
my pleasure xxx
I had a great time in your city
Great job on this! I agree with others that the Highs and Lows is becoming one of my favorite posts! It gives such an insider view of things, and I like your POV. Was wondering…did you do a Highs and Lows for London FW? I couldn’t find it, but not sure I went far enough.
Thank you.
No I didn’t do one for London, Milan started straight after and I had time to write it.
In reflection not much to report.
Love the updates and you look great in the jumpsuit. Hope your experience only gets better from hereon.
thanks…Paris has already started on a high x
Ah I love your top 11 choices! Those are some of my favs too! And wow, competition between bloggers? Why have competition? When you guys are all there for fashion, who cares if you can’t get it, still seeing it in pictures is a value.
I was so happy to read about your invite to Dolce&Gabbana! Got a nice smile to know that your being rewarded/noticed for all the hard work you put into the site!
PS. Big props to you on the ADR confrontation
Thank you.
I will always representing my website and myself with dignity
Who is Arizona?
http://www.style.com/fashionshows/complete/slideshow/S2012RTW-VBECKHAM/#slide=0
Great job! As always
Merci x
LOVED this segemnt. I find your life so interesting, and what is the best thing is that even with all the crazy drama that the fashion weeks seem to bring you you always seem to cope with dignity, integrity, grace and most of all style, which was so completely shown by teh great jumpsuit, which I could only have dreamed to have styled so well, let alone have pulled it off with such panache and ease. Also, I so wish I knew hte identity of the blogger, though obviously I understand why you would not mention her.
Paris seems ot have been great so far, I am so jealous, I hope you are enjoying it! Thankyou for this recap, I find your writing is even more hilarious when you talk about yourself and your experiences, have fun in paris!
thank you.
It’s great to share the goings on because it’s so much fun behind all the hard work
Congrats more deserved high profile invitations and front row. we should see more of you on the streetstyle websites rather than ADR. An example of why I read this blog over most the established magazines. I love these posts they so engaging and human and give real opinion and insight. Shame Joan wasn’t so nice- she always seems bubbly in interviews. Guess she forgot those days she was second tier anybody. P.s – I think you would totally rock that Ferragamo dress above.
Thank you and for all your comments.
I will always keep it real
Xx
Hi FC,
I just want to commend you for standing up for yourself with regards to the ADR story. A lesser person would’ve caved in to that intimidation and dare I say… bullying. I’m so glad you stood your ground and in such a graceful way.
And… your coverage has been amazing during these fashion shows!!
Thanks for all your work!
Thank you MN.
I did feel really intimidated but I’m glad I stood my ground. Thank god I keep all my invites.
Thank you so much for your fashion week posts! I live in Sydney so my favourite part of waking up every day is dragging my laptop onto bed and reading your updates.
I Zoe Saldana did indeed wear the Ferragamo i think i would then have to kill myself because i know i could never be happier than in that moment.
I also could totally see Scarlett Johansen wearing the yellow and red D&G dress
I would obviously like to see myself wearing all of this too.
Enjoy Paris!
x
Thank you.
Paris has been amazing so far and I think it will get even better so stat tuned
it was great to meet you in Milan. hope to see you next season! im aizat, the one who wear that hot pink jacket at Versus and Pucci show
It was great to meet you and talk fashion with you x
Nyasha Matonhodze is the new Miss Naomi Campbell Jr
wow!i’m so happy you attended so many important shows and everything else,&congrats for the front row seat at dolce&gabbana
very happy for you
i liked this post so much. especially about funniest conservation, it is so funny and sweet. i myself love karlie so much i never saw an image of her when she is in a bad mood, what kind of human is she, [i love you KARLIE you are amazing] i wanted to go to shows with you it would be awesome. great enjoys at paris. if you see freja would you please say i love her so much:D
i made lots of comments this time:D sorry about that. i didnt surprise that jourdan was diva she always looked to me that way like cold and negative all the time, but of course i cant know for sure.
sorry i wrote the wrong name it is joan smalls right?
although i’m not a big fan of Karlie as a model, i have to say she’s really sweet in person. As for Joan small she’s a total diva (met them several times during fashion shows)
All this blogger business and this Anna Dello Russo business – no idea who these people are and don’t give a rat’s ass. Only know that YOU are fantastic and that this is the one site that is always on it. Always honest to the point of perfection, Always update with the very latest, even though it’s like 4 AM in the UK (I live in Ohio, U.S.a. Love you Love you Love you!!!
Thank you.
You are very kind x
Darling Catherine,
One thing I have admired long and hard about you is your honesty. I like that you are always honest. I find that is so rare these days.
Very few call things as they see them.
For me as a woman, I am so proud, buoyed on and encouraged by all your fashion month achievements, site and career to date with reference to http://www.redcarpetfashionawards.com
I have watched you over time and have seen you gracefully deal with hurdles such as the Anna Dello Russo seating at Dolce & Gabbana incident.
That humility, your high standard of work ethic and tenacity is what will leave you still at the top by time the dust settles.
Cream always rises to the top and quality speaks for itself.
Bravo.
Love,
Marian.
Thanks Marian, you really a very sweet and kind person.