Now this is what I call fashion. New York's City FW gave us a preview of what we can expect from the other fashion cities in the coming weeks.

Catherine Malandrino is the epitome of Parisian chic. If I could have one woman give me a one-on-on styling appointment, it would be her. We'd gab and drink copious amounts of wine with nibbles of cheese. We'd be friends and then I'd get free clothes...

Oops, I digress. Anyways, she dresses for the woman who wants to looks classy but also one who loves to feel sexy while walking down the street, strutting her way to the work with a gentle sway in her hips. This spring collectino brought out that same feeling. 

I especially loved the neutral pallete and soft floral dresses.

How can you not adore those ruffled collars? Not too high and not overly flowy.

images frim nymag.com

Fotos: Catherine Malandrino via bpcm

Carolina Herrera wanted the faces to have a dramatic look with a lil softness to it.

Proenza Schouler wanted tough but glamourous faces.

And Catherine Malandrino wanted a french vibe look. Mac did an amazing job and the styles look awesome!

Thanks to Heather over at M.a.c. for the info! visit www.maccosmetics.com

Alexander Wang 

Catherine Malandrino

Rachel Roy

Alexandre Herchcovitch

Diane von Furstenberg

Hervé Léger

Doo.Ri

Lacoste

BCBG

Graphic design by Mademoiselle Le K – copyright 2008

Related post / Autre article : Look Books New York Collection Spring-Summer 2009 (Part 2)

Beautiful sunny day in Saint germain des Prés, the very hype Rive Gauche : having a late brunch at the Armani cafe with friends. I taste the famous sugarfree dark chocolate ice cream, so delicious, what a great flavor ! Same comments for the Parmeggiano and the bread. And excellent fresh pasta said my friends. And so rare in Paris trendy spots, the Italian director is really a nice person .

Et c’est reparti après une longue absence de mon blog chéri. Direction Saint Germain des Prés, sous un soleil estival : brunch tardif à l’Armani Café avec des amies. Me laisse convaincre par la fameuse glace au chocolat noir, une merveille sans sucre à l’arôme entêtant. Le Parmeggiano et le pain y sont aussi à mourir. Et les pâtes, excellentes à ce qu’il paraît. Sans oublier le directeur originaire de Lombardie, un homme charmant.

Armani Café : 149, bd Saint-Germain 75006 Paris, Phone / Tél : 01 45 48 62 15 , Métro Saint Germain des Prés

Next stop, Le Bon Marche : enjoying the fashion young designers level and  the amazingly beautiful windows decorated with mini colorful lions, elephants, giraffes, dinosaurs and hippopotamus (click here to see all the pictures). Congrats to Mr. Merchandiser : it’s absolutely beautiful and it brings good vibes. In a coming post, I will present you my gourmet shopping at the Epicerie Fine (for my NY people: our Dean Nad Deluca). Wow!

L'arrêt quasi rituel au Bon Marché, espace jeunes créateurs et dernières vitrines fleuries de lions, éléphants, girafes, cignes, dinosaures et hippopotames miniatures multicolores (cliquez ici pour voir mes photos de ces superbes vitrines). Bravo M. l'artiste merchandiser, c'est simplement beau et ça met de bonne humeur. Prochainement un shopping gourmandise à la Grande Epicerie.

Le Bon Marché : 24 rue Sèvres, 75007 Paris, Métro Sèvres-Babylone.

La Grande Epicerie : 38 rue de Sèvres, 75007 Paris, Métro Sèvres-Babylone. Open / ouvert : from Monday to Saterday / de lundi à samedi, from / de 8h30 to / à 21h. 

Just for the pleasure of the eyes, the famous pastry shop of the Macarons superstar Pierre Hermé. Next door: the Khiel's shop that looks like the one near Union Square in NY! A bit of Big Ap in Paris babe! I’m found of Khiel’s hair masks. And for buying 30 % less, cosmetics sold in chemistry: City Pharma. At 38 rue Madame: I discover a new shop near APC's, Swildens.

Repérage incognito chez la star du Macarons, Pierre Hermé : non je ne succomberai pas! La boutique Khiel's mitoyenne, avec ses faux airs new-yorkais, me rappelle celle près d'union Square : j'ai un faible pour leurs onctuex masques capillaires. Et pour des produits de soin en para pharmacie à -30%, City Pharma (exe Pharmacie Fouetty). Mention spéciale rue Madame, où j'ai repéré la boutique Swildens (38 rue Madame) près d'APC : vous savez les nus pieds frangés façon "Pocahontas le retour chic" que vous ne quitterez pas de l'été.   

Pierre Hermé : 72 rue Bonaparte 75006 Paris, Phone / Tél : 43 54 47 77, Métro Saint Sulpice

City-Pharma : 26 rue du Four, 75006 Paris. Métro Saint Germain des Prés ou Sèvres Babylone. From monday to friday / du lundi au vendredi: from / de 8h30 to / à 20h00, saterday / samedi from / de 9h00 to / à 20h00.

Khiel’s : 72 bis rue Bonaparte, 75006 Paris, Phone / Tél : 01 55 42 03 06, Métro Saint Sulpice

Sir Paul Smith, I do really love your conceptual windows ! Recently I’ve discovered in London the Paul Smith bargain shop for men : 30 % less on previous collections during all year.

Chez Sir Paul Smith, vitrines conceptuelles, j’adore, ,j’adore, j’adore ! Messieurs, j’ai découvert récemment à Londres, la boutique Paul Smith à moins 30 à 40 % toute l’année sur les collections précédentes.

Paul Smith : 22, boulevard Raspail, 75007, Phone / Tél : 01 42 84 15 30

Sorry, I can’t extensively show you all my favorite shops in this superb area: just a couple of snap shots when I go for a walk. Many boutiques I like are missing like the renovated new one of Sonia Rykiel. Here: at Alexandra Sjofer, luxury umbrellas to act like Catherine Deneuve in the “Demoiselles de Rochefort “. Easy choreography: turn your umbrella up and down, from time to time hiding your innocent face behind it! And as "we worth it", some wow siren shoes at Monsieur Christian Louboutin.

Impossible de vous présenter toutes les boutiques qui me plaisent dans ce quartier, en voici deux-trois snap shotées au gré de promenades, d’autres incontournables manquent à l’appel, comme celle nouvellement rénovée de Sonia Rykiel. Ci-dessous : chez Alexandra Sjofer, de luxueux parapluies pour jouer les « Demoiselles de Rochefort ». La choré : bien faire tourner non stop le parapluie que l’on baisse et monte selon le tempo, l’œil rond. Et parce que nous le valons toutes bien, des chaussures de sirènes chez Christian Louboutin.

Alexandra Sojfer : 218 boulevard Saint Germain, 75007 Paris, Métro Rue du Bac

Christian Louboutin : 38-40 rue de Grenelle,75007 Paris, Phone / Tél : 01 42 22 33 07

Cause we also have a great brain and an amazing aesthetical taste, two fine arts bookshops : L7, the select bookshop and publishing house of Karl (Lagerfeld) and Taschen.

Et parce que nous avons aussi des cerveaux et un sens esthétique, deux librairies pour amateurs de revues d’art pointues et beaux livres : L7, la librairie et maison d'édition de Karl (Lagerfeld) et Taschen.

Librairie 7 L : 7 rue de Lille, 75007 Paris, Phone / Tel : 01 42 92 03 58, Metro rue du Bac

Taschen : 2 rue de Buci, 75006 Paris, Métro Odéon ou Saint Germain des Prés

Taschen is in front of one of my favorite terrace in rue de Buci: a bohemian arty café, nicer than the very formal tourist Flore, where waiters are absolutely awful! Stop being so nostalgic! And if you still want to live the post card: a “picturesque” café, La Palette, why not… Not really my cup of tea.

Taschen fait face à une de mes terrasses préférées, rue de Buci : un café arty bohème bien plus sympa que le très touristique et guindé Flore, où les serveurs sont absolument insupportables. Arrêtons toute nostalgie! Pour un café « pittoresque », La Palette, pourquoi pas... Pas vraiment ma tasse de thé.

La Palette : 3 rue de Seine, 75006 Paris,  Phone / Tél : 01 43 26 68 15, Métro Odéon ou Saint Germain Des Près

Looking at this pizza scooter and I know : I want a pizza, si si una pizza ! I won’t tell you at the Santa Lucia restaurant (recommended by a Roman friend)  pizza is as great as the Michele’s Napolitan ones in Napoli (thin pastry and fresh tomatoes and basilico and virgin olive oil and basta). But it’s good and expensive and the service definitely misses the Southern warming.

Le déclic, le scoot pizzaloïo : si una pizza ! Je ne dirai pas que la pizza du Santa Lucia, recommandée par une potesse romaine, rivalise avec la sublime napolitana (pâte fine, tomates, basilic, huile d’olive et basta) du cultissime Michele à Napoli : mais c’est bon, plutôt cher. Et l’endroit manque vraiment de chaleur.

Santa Lucia Restaurant : 22, rue des Canettes, 75006 Paris, Phone / Tel : 01 43 26 42 68, Métro Saint Germain des Prés

Ze detail (“ze” is our funny Frenchie way to pronounce “the”)! Yes I’ve been walking around since my childhood without never ever paying “any” attention to the Dragon, could you imagine? Unbelievable, I know! And this street is named “rue du Dragon”! Shame, shame on me!

Ze détail ! Hé oui, tellement traîné mes Converses dans le quartier depuis des lustres, sans avoir jamais remarqué le Dragon ! Un comble rue du Dragon ! Shame on me !

Relax this not a new cosmetic and perfume  line called « French boudoir », it’s just Master Ladurée  taking care of our traveler Macarons. Special mention to the very charming Ladurée Madeleine for having a tea time. So my dearest, it’s time to leave you.

Non ce n'est pas une nouvel ligne « Boudoir » de cosmétiques et parfums, juste Maître Ladurée qui s'inquiète pour nos macarons voyageurs. J'aime beaucoup le cadre désuet du Laduré Madeleine pour un thé. L'heure de se quitter.

Wait please ! Have you noticed how the really good ideas are expressed at the same time in different places in town ? Babe, that’s what we called here “the trend” : Catherine Malandrino, 10 rue de Grenelle (75006) and Colette, 13 rue St Honoré (75001). By the way, I shot the pictures of  both the same night.  

Notez avant, comme les vraies bonnes idées s’expriment au même moment en des lieux différents de la capitale, ça s’appelle l’air du temps : Catherine Malandrino, 10 rue de Grenelle (75006) et Colette, 13 rue St Honoré (75001). Photos prises le même soir. 

Some other posts about Paris Districts / D'autres articles sur les quartiers de Paris :

Paris : Le Marais

Paris puzzle 2: Haussmann, Montmartre...

Paris puzzle : shopping @ Palais de Tokyo...  (concerning the trendy part of the 16th Arrondissement / la partie fun du 16^ème)

Paris: République, Bastille

An organic palette of pomegranate, herb and lava is tempered by deep grey and all shades of greens to khaki.  Bold cashmere, striped knit, silk jersey, wool jacquard and silk chiffon are linked to glove leather.  A high-waisted pencil skirt paired with a mini sweater and a micro jacket are a statement of sleek sophistication, while a long sleeve shirt dress in silk satin, printed chiffon and wool gauze is a new day dress.  Emphasis is placed on the shoulder through draping, long sleeves and bijoux embellishments. 

True to her Murano inspiration, Catherine Malandrino’s collection illustrates the full range of refined sensibilities for a sensuous, polished and opulent fall silhouette. 

The above content is part of the Fall/Winter 2008 Catherine Malandrino lookbook.

Anyway, here's Brangelina with Zahara arriving in Monaco:

The Jolie-Pitt children, sans Shiloh, enjoy a stroll with their parents on a very rocky beach near Bono's home in the South of France. Bono's fellow U2 band member, The Edge, was with the beautiful family:

Angelina took her daughters, Shiloh and Zahara, to a shopping spree at Monaco:

This time around, the boys (Maddox and Pax) enjoy a boat trip with Brangelina in the South of France:

One of the luckiest boys in the world:

Angelina arriving at the Carlton Palace during the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. She wears a dress by Alberta Ferretti, Nine West shoes, Ferragamo sunglasses and Bulgari jewelry:

Ange leaving the Eden Roc Hotel to attend a promo for Kung Fu Panda:

Kung Fu Panda photocall at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. Ange is joined by co-stars (or rather the ones who lent their voices to the animated film) Dustin Hoffman and Jack Black:

Brad escorts Angelina to the Kung Fu Panda premiere at the Palais de Festivals at Cannes. Angie's gorgeous dress is courtesy of Max Azria:

The beautiful couple leaving the Carlton Hotel in Cannes:

Maddox and Shiloh went on a shopping spree with their parents at Bonpoint, a children's clothing boutique in Cannes:

The couple out on a date *sigh*...Ange wears a Nicole Miller dress and her bag is from Bally:

Ange attends The Exchange photocall at Palais de Festivals with director Clint Eastwood. The film was originally called The Changeling but the producers decided to change it. Ange is decked in Dolce & Gabbana:

At the premiere of The Exchange at the Palais de Festivals. Angie wears a Reem Acra creation:

The couple shops at a Toys 'R' Us store in Cannes:

Ange at the Grand Hotel Du Cap-Ferrat in Cannes:

And I just have to add these pics though these were not taken in France. I just love Angie's Catherine Malandrino dress. She wore this last April at Los Angeles:

Anyway, I'm so looking forward to the names Angie will give her soon-to-be born twins. Until then, au revoir!

***Thanks to Just Jared for the pics***

Chaque jeudi, j'ai désormais rendez-vous avec l'Express Styles.

L'hôtesse au standard me le pose sur mon bureau chaque jeudi matin. J'ai beaucoup de chance... Je le glisse dans mon sac, car je sais qu'il m'accompagnera jusqu'à la fin de la semaine... Je le lis, je le relis, je le pose, je le reprends plus tard... Je le déguste...
J'ai toujours aimé ce supplément, qui s'est affirmé encore plus mode à l'époque où les séries mode étaient conçues par l'équipe de Stiletto. Aujourd'hui, celà n'est plus le cas, mais la ligne éditoriale demeure vive, dynamique, pointue, un poil sélectif (plus Phillip Lim que H&M), un brin intello (plus Grand Palais que Batofar...), mais toujours mode, je dirais même de plus en plus mode... Vous l'aurez compris : c'est un magazine que j'apprécie beaucoup, tant pour sa richesse culturelle, que pour ses parti-pris et ses découvertes.

Cette semaine : America, be my guest !
En raison de l'évènement cinématographique de ce mois (aka Sex and the city le film), et actualité oblige (le dollar faible, la destination du moment, les élections...), le contenu est un hommage à la terre de Christophe Colomb.

Entrée sur le dernier rendez-vous incontournable des modeuses :  Hyères, avec un joli debrief de l'évènement sur une double page consacrée aux expositions et notamment à celle de Scott Schuman, The Sartorialist.
La thématique du magazine est essentiellement concentrée sur l'American way of life : Style & The city décrypte les looks de Sarah Jessica Parker version jour et version nuit, le sujet beauté est consacrée à Laura Mercier, puis re belote avec SJP en interview.

Actualité mode oblige, place à une série maillots de bain, puis retour sur la tendance U.S avec une sublime série mode photographiée par Gaetan Caputo, rendant hommage à Lee Miller, la photographe du début des années 30 (A ce propos, prenez votre agenda et notez : ne pas oublier d'aller visiter l'exposition de Lee Miller au Jeu de Paume Concorde à la rentrée prochaine).
Pas de thématique American girl sans un focus beauté sur Aerin Lauder, la petite fille de... Et je vous passe le sujet sur la chick lit revue à la mode tricolore...

Pour conclure, impossible de parler de the Big Apple sans évoquer ses places to see, parmi lesquels le Beatrice Inn, la boutique Opening ceremony et les adresses préférées de Catherine Malandrino.

Bref, je ne saurais trop vous recommander de filer vous acheter l'Express cette semaine...

Et vous profiterez de cette escapade au kiosque pour vous offrir également le magazine DS du mois de mai.

Primo, le sujet ce mois ci, c'est ecolo, bio and co.
Faisant suite à la très belle couv mettant en avant la journaliste Alexandra Golovanogg, le magazine de société féminin consacre son actu mensuelle à la tendance Green is in, un sujet désormais récurrent dans le petit monde de la mode.
Qu'il s'agisse pour le magazine d'une véritable prise de conscience écolo ou une simple appropriation d'un phénomène politiquement correct, j'ai trouvé plutôt ingénieux d'aborder tout le magazine sous cet angle. On y retrouve deux séries mode assez réussies, l'une avec la comédienne Marie-Josée Croze, et l'autre avec la sublime top Inga, ainsi que quelques bons commandements rédigés par l'incontournable green girl Nadège Winter.

Mais surtout, et là rien à voir avec le sujet de la révolution verte, le magazine consacre un article sur les blogueuses de mode (décidement, c'est un "phénomène" qui anime les rédactions des féminins), et en particulier Domino, Garance, et Géraldine.

look at that middle dress! ah, it's so gorgeous.today we went to the outlet and i spotted the catherine malandrino shop! so i went in, but of course everything was too expensive for me-but nevertheless it was such a light environment in there. and then i entered for a raffle for a $250 gift certificate to a catherine malandrino shop.

i was the second person to enter the raffle. i hope they choose me : D

i'm still looking for a nice pair of heels-i bought another pair of hi-top converses today. cream coloured.

what can i say-they never go out of style for me!

what else? i also bought a nice bright blue dress from Jimmy'Z. it was only twenty bucks-i couldnt help myself. nice curve swoop in the front and back-too bad it shows my back. i'll just wear a little sweater or something over it. we also stopped by kipling-which has the most adorable luggage bags and backpacks ever! i really like that store; mom bought a purse from there for only like forty dollars! it was such a grab.

 This morning on the subway when the conductor reminded us at each stop to, "take all of our personal belongings," he added, "And don't forget to vote!" On Super Tuesday, when 24 states are casting votes for their presidential delegates, the only thing I am more excited about than Hillary's rising popularity (so far she has clinched AK, MA, NY, TN, OK, NJ) is the Catherine Malandrino and Proenza Schouler collection in the tents. All day at work, as I read cover copy and sorted through book maps, I looked forward to sitting on my couch and clicking through the runway shows from yesterday while listening to the election results come in on NPR.

While I am thrilled that Hillary Clinton is in the lead as the democratic presidential candidate, I felt a little let down by Proenza Schouler and Catherine Malandrino. Try as I might to select at least a few pieces I loved to feature in this entry, I found only one in each collection. I should note, though, that these were also the only TWO I loved in the total of Monday's offerings. The beautiful teal, navy, and magenta ensemble, topped with a larger than life bow at Proenza Schouler, contrasted perfectly with my favorite puffy, black, sweater dress at Malandrino.

The polls are just now closing on the West Coast, so I won't be able to stay up long enough to hear the results in those states. But, I know I will have no problem getting up as soon as my alarm goes off at 6:00 am tomorrow morning, as I will want to check the results of the elections, as well as today's runway shows.

I never liked trying to sound American by talking nasally.  I'd sound like someone with speech problems like some people I know.  Hehe.  So, I went into training and since I am not at all an idiot, I learned what I was supposed to learn within the period allotted for the process, far more quickly, I believe.  Our trainers were a bunch of characters.  But then again, trainees---and students for that matter---always make fun of their trainers and teachers. 

The first month was a lot of fun.  Our American department head gave us the permission to take 10-minute breaks in between 60-minute of straight serious work.  Those were on top of our lunch breaks and two 15-minute breaks.  That was pure heaven for smokers like us and for non-smokers who took the same breaks as we did to chat and talk about the "characters" in the office.  Since we were told to speak English at all times then, we did.  So breaks were a bunch of breaks indeed filled with funny anecdotes in English.  There were 9 of us in our batch.  We were supposed to be a part of the first batch of 12 but since the first three---who later became our supervisors---were taken in before the Christmas break and they needed hands on deck (not on the dick, you, you!) then, we were considered the 1 1/2 batch.  Hehe. 

So anyway, the main criterion for the beauty contest---er---for hiring us was our English speaking skills.  Our American department head conducted one on one interviews and if you pass his standards---meaning he understands the way you speak and you get to deliver the answers to his questions the way he wants to hear them---then you're hired.  So we were super proud to have been hired into a position that promised at least a basic fee of twenty grand, well, not in dollars, but in pesos.  We were also given the chance to earn commissions.  It was a good deal!  I will keep mum about what went on after that in terms of monetary concerns because I don't want to rouse the sleeping monsters here and there. 

The first day we went live---call potential clients---we got lost.  One of the major problems?  Pronunciation of last names.  Pronouncing places wasn't much of a problem because somehow, I already knew how to properly most of them, like Tucson/TOO-sahn/in Arizona,  Cayce /KAY • see/ in South Carolina, Des Moines /dih-MOYN/ in Iowa, Leicester /LESS-tur/ in Massachusetts, Reading /RED-ing/ (not like READING from the base verb READ!) in Pennsylvannia and many others. 

Nope, we were not given any help in that department.  What I did was create my own pronunciation guide.  Well, it all boils down to etymology for some.  And if you really can't pronounce it properly, it's best to politely ask the owner of the name.  I once looked for a Miss Augusta Something only to find out that he's a HE.  Some countries don't go by the usual Filipino convention of names ending with (Mario) O or U for men and A (Maria) for women.  By the way, my parents names are Gregorio and Gregoria.  Talk about soulmates!  LOL. 

My research enabled me to learn some new things and to affirm those that I already knew.  I thought it would be nice to share the fruits of my research here.  How's that?  Most of them are from Inoglo, About.com and The Budget Fashionista.

I started with author's names. 

Paulo Coelho---paw-LU ko-wel-YU (my own version based on the IPA guide)

Chuck Palahniuk---chuhk PALL-uh-nik

Ayn Rand---ine rand

Roland Barthes---roll-AH(NG) bart

J.R.R Tolkien---"TOLL"-keen

Ivan Illich---ih-VAHN IH-lich

Jodi Picoult---JOE-dee PEE-koe

Marcel Proust---mar-SELL proost

Kathy Reichs---KA-thee ryks

Jon Scieszka---jahn SHESS-kuh

Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky---FYOE-dur mih-HY-loe-vich dahs-tuh-YEF-skee

J K Rowling---"rolling"
 

Then artists:

Jan van Eyck---yahn fuhn ike

Caravaggio---kar-uh-VAHJ-o

Rembrandt---REM-brant

Eugene Delacroix---uu-ZHEHN deh-lah-krwah

Edgar Degas---ED-gar duh-GAH

Claude Monet---kload moe-nay

Paul Gauguin---pall go-GA

Jean-Auguste Ingres---zhahn-o-gust angg

And what last name pronunciation guide would be complete without fashion designers?  So here's a not-so-complete guide from The Budget Fashionista.  They're divided into A-G, H-M, and N-Z. 

Giorgio Armani: Jor-ji-o Ar-ma-nee
Manolo Blahnik: Muh-no-low blah- nick
Andre Courreges: AN-Dre Courreges
Balenciaga: Bal-en-see-AH-gah
Bottega Veneta: Bo-TAY-ga Ve-NE-tah
Roberto Cavalli: RO-ber-to Ka-VA-lee
Chanel: Sha-nel
Chloé: KLO-ee
Comme des Garcons: KUM de Gar-SOHN
Christian Dior: KRE-shtaan DEE-or
Dolce and Gabbana: DOL-chay and Gab-BAH-nah
Ellen Tracy: EL-lin TRAY-see
Salvatore Ferragamo: Sal- va- tor Ferr-A-ga-mo
Gianfranco Ferre: Gee-an-fran-ko Ferr-ay
John Galliano: Gall-lee-a-no
Givenchy: Gee-von-she
Halston: Hall-stun
Hermes: Air-mez
Hugo Boss: He-you-go Bo-s
Imitation of Christ: Em-ma-ta-shun of Cry-st
Marc Jacobs: Ma-rk Jay-kob-s
Betsey Johnson: BET-see JON-sun
Calvin Klein: CAL-vin KLYIN
Donna Karan (DKNY): Don-NAH KA-ran
Michael Kors: My-kal Ko-ors
Karl Lagerfeld: Ka-ral La-ger-fell-d
Helmut Lang: Hell- Mut Lay-ng
Jeanne Lanvin: John La- vin
Ralph Lauren: LORE-in
Nanette Lepore: Na-net LA-pour
Christian Louboutin: KRI-shtaan Lu-bu-TAHN
Louis Vuitton: Lu-wee Vee-tuhhh
Catherine Malandrino: KATH-er-in Mal-an-DREE-no
Alexander McQueen: Al-ex-AHN-der Mac-KWEEN
Isaac Mizrahi: Eye-zak Miz-ra-hee
Issey Miyake: E-say Me-ya-kay
Zac Posen: Zak Poo-zen
Proenza Schouler: pro-en-za skool-er
Emilio Pucci: E-MEE-lee-o POH-chee
Tracy Reese: TRAY- cee Ree-s
Elsa Schiaparelli: EL-sa She-a-pa-REHL-lee
Anna Sui: AN-na SOO-ee
Gianni Versace: Gee-a-nee Verr-sha-chie
Diane Von Furstenberg: DY-an Von FUR-sten-berg
Vera Wang: Veer- ra Way-ng

About.com also has an audio pronunciation guide on how designers' names and brands are pronounced.  Check it out here.  It contains the correct pronunciation guides of Balmain, Byblos, Ermenegildo Zegna, Jean Paul Gaultier, Les Copains, Yves Saint Laurent and many more.

As a largely English-speaking country, I believe that pronouncing these foreign names and last names---English and Anglicized---are not merely about sounding good or whatever but it means giving respect to people from other countries whose names are not that easy for us Filipinos to pronounce.  My name is constantly mispronounced and misspelled either and while I have gotten used to it, it still gets annoying sometimes.  So, I think learning how to pronounce these names properly is a way of giving respect to others.