Victoria Beckham Spring / Summer 2012
Oh, isn't it great to be Victoria Beckham? Not only has she just popped out a Baby Becklet, her business is booming. Today, 'The Cut' reports that sales for VB’s fashion line are up more than 70% and she pocketed a whooping £15 million in the first three months of 2011. Goodness gracious, and that’s before her Victoria by Victoria Beckham lower-priced line had even landed! As if that wasn’t gob-smacking enough, the label is on track to rake in a total of £60 million by the end of the year. Well Mrs B, put your feet up, crack out the champers and get little Harper a diamond rattle, we say!
Victoria Beckham Spring / Summer 2011
You'll remember there were more than a few skeptically raised eyebrows when Posh Spice announced her foray into fashion seven years ago – WAG-tastic bandage dresses and micro-shorts to be worn with orangey tans, anyone? But Victoria soon silenced her critics. Season after season, she's impressing the FROWers at New York Fashion Week with beautifully tailored, effortlessly elegant dresses and super-luxe bags worth up to £18,000 each (no wonder she's minted). After Victoria's most recent show for Spring / Summer 2012, Grazia's style director Paula Reed affirmed 'Mrs Beckham is making confident strides into the fashion establishment' – and we love watching every Louboutin-shod step.
Victoria Beckham in one of her own designs
As if we need any more persuading, Lady B continues to be the ultimate ambassador for her brand. Shamelessly showcasing her creations at any given opportunity has certainly contributed to the wellspring of her success and, of course, a host of A-list style icons wearing her wares can't hurt either. Cameron Diaz and Gwyneth Paltrow have become loyal followers of the figure-flatters, Eva Longoria and Demi Moore have modelled more than one of those signature exposed zips, and the dresses have so extensively travelled the fashion foodchain that Carol Vorderman has even got in on the act. Indeed, Eva was at a swanky Hollywood premiere only yesterday wearing another number by her BFF – this time, an electric-blue frock from the Autumn / Winter 2010 collection. Nice job!
Kate Winslet wearing a Victoria Beckham dress at the Venice Film Festival
So what better chance than this to pay homage to those Victoria Beckham beauties that have leapt off the catwalk and onto the red carpet in 2011, so far at least. C'mon, it'll help us forget she's considerably richer than we'll ever be...
Let's begin with Cheryl Cole looking utterly resplendent in a pink crepe gown from the Spring / Summer 2011 catwalk at last month's Pride of Britain Awards. Do you remember in 2009 when Chezza dismissed Victoria's dresses as for 'older women' only? Oh, how things change!
Ah yes, you can always count on Demi to crack out an elegant VB-er and she did just that for Variety's Power Of Women Luncheon. For her long-awaited return to the red carpet last month, Mrs Kutcher chose a blush-coloured design with a contrasting white shoulder that captures the sporty vibe of Spring / Summer 2012 but is nonetheless sophisticated.
Here she is – the aforementioned Longoria at the premiere of her ‘Glamour Reel Moments’ film on Monday night. Don't you think she's a dead ringer for her pal in this flattering shift dress? We're loving that asymmetrical drape neck for a sexy hint of shoulder.
If you're Olivia Palermo, there's no fretting about wearing a dress the designer has already stepped out in as she aptly demonstrated at 'The Ledge' film screening in June. Yep, OP bravely wore the very same Mandarin yellow silk crepe frock Victoria sported at the International Herald Tribune’s Heritage Luxury Conference back in November last year. Naturallement, Olivia knows how to make it her own with a fuchsia pink clutch and Charlotte Olympia leopard print heels.
Similarly, this understated peachy number was the perfect choice for Freida Pinto's appearance on 'Late Night with Jimmy Fallon' - even if Mrs B had got in there first.
Onto Kate Winslet who looked every inch the Hollywood superstar at the YO DONA Magazine International Awards in Madrid this summer thanks to a stunning black floor-sweeper from the Beckham archives (Autumn/Winter 2009, to be precise). Having had a taste of the VB goodness, Kate then hit the Venice Film Festival wearing a coffee-coloured jersey dress from the designer's Autumn/Winter 2011 collection. What a good girl for waving the British flag abroad.
You've got to give props to Kim Kardashian for proving that you don't need a teeny physique to wear Vicky B. In fact, the curvy newly wed oozed glamour in this shimmering floor-length Autumn/Winter 2010 gown, wisely removing the grosgrain embroidered belt to enhance that gorgeous draped effect.
And the list goes on! Gisele Bundchen was next to champion the designer at the Premier Global Environmental Awards in a white microbrushed cotton cap sleeve dress. Tres classic, tres chic.
This blush-coloured dress Brooklyn Decker wore at the Academy Of Country Music Awards has proved a resounding hit in celeb circles, with Katherine Jenkins and Jennifer Hudson wearing similar designs.
And who better to polish off our VB extravaganza than the lovely Mila Kunis? She began the year by treating us to a white strapless frock with a full skirt and horizontal shimmering stripes from Lady B's Spring/Summer 2011 catwalk. What cuteness!
See, what more proof of Mrs Beckham's brilliance could you need? And you didn't think about your bank balance once, did you.
