Kanye West revealed to WWD that he has plans to work with Louis Vuitton, or "Louis" as the rapper says. The collaboration between the rapper and the label will be on a line of men's shoes.

That's not the only thing Kanye is designing these days -- he anticipates launching his first women's clothing line under his own name this fall. This mixing of the worlds of hip hop and the classic LV logo won't be the first, though.

It doesn't suck being best friends with designer Marc Jacobs. His pal Pharrell Williams created a line of jewelry and limited-edition eyewear with Louis Vuitton (and Marc's assitance), and his resident muse, Sophia Coppola, was just tapped (along with her legendary directing father, Francis Ford Coppola), to star in Vuitton's Core Values campaign.

As you can see, the ad features the two enjoying each other's company (daddy probably telling daughter the secrets to making classic films) while casually lounging next to Vuitton luggage.

We don't condone physical violence, but we must give it up to all of the underlings taking down their formidable heavyweight opponents this month.

First, a 5'8 chap from California knocked out the frighteningly gigantic Suge Knight. And just yesterday, Louis Vuitton lost its trademark infringement case against mall favorite, Dooney & Bourke.

For four years now, LV has been trying to convince a judge that Dooney's multi-colored monogrammed handbags looked too much like their own, and were confusing customers.

While retail sales in the US and Europe are slumping, China's consumer class is just hitting the scene -- and they're willing to shell out some serious money on fashion. Designers like Prada, Armani, and Louis Vuitton are having a bonanza with newly rich Chinese who are hungry for the status symbols of conspicuous consumption. Yet, there's also a rising demand for $10,000 cocktail dresses and brands like Hermes from the growing ultra-rich class.

Traditionally, the Chinese market has been mostly dominated by accessories because of the limited space in China's crammed shopping malls -- which has led to the ridiculous level of knock-offs and forgeries. But that trend is starting to shift as retailers are steadily getting access to space where they can branch out. Coach is planning to open 50 retail stores in the mainland this over the next few years and tons of others are on the same kind of track. As you can imagine, renting a prime location for you flagship store in Shanghai is a royal rip -- but apparently it's paying off big time.

In another weird advertising move from Louis Vuitton, they've decided to feature the wrinkled mug of none other than rock-god Keith Richards in the next wave of their "Core Values" campaign. Although I'm not sure his style is really suited for a LV, I do think the decision was a million times better than their goofy TV commercial. Not to mention, they put Annie Leibovitz behind the camera -- instant classic.

I have to agree with LV's head of communications, who said "I think when people are flipping through a magazine, this will stop them," -- yeah, that's why I clicked on it. My first thought was: WTF? Keith Richards in a hotel room playing his axe next to a piece of LV luggage? Or, I guess it's a custom guitar case.

It's cool to see that LV has enough of a sense of humor about their luxury brand to juxtapose it with a sloppy, burned-out rocker. Promoting super-expensive luggage as ironic fashion accessories is a hilarious idea. Unfortunately, I'm not into $3,000 jokes -- unless they're really funny. The photo in itself is a work of art, at least their money produced something worthwhile, whether or not it will actually sell any luggage.

[via PopCrunch]

For anyone who has picked up a fashion glossy in the past six months, this shouldn't come as a surprise to you:

Spring 2008 is about three and only three key trends: bold colors, florals, and, well.... did I say color?

From the model's lips at Louis Vuitton that resembled a Skittles bag to the constructed floral military armor at Balenciaga, fashion's most directional designers all had bright hues on the brain this season.

And while most of us won't be able to snag one of those adorable harlequin dresses from Miu Miu (like me), these slick patent clutches from Poppy Couture will allow anyone to buy into this very vibrant trend without having to skip a rent payment or two.

How chic are these? The oversized clutches come in assortment of fun colors and can be easily transitioned from day to night. Which makes their $450 price tag a little bit easier to swallow.

Ladies, trust me, you'll be a vision in a white summer dress and this arm candy on your side.

Buy

At first, I thought it might be a life insurance commercial -- nope. Then, I was sure it was a credit card ad -- wrong again. Finally, I figured out what it was: a confusing waste of Louis Vuitton's advertising budget.

The minute and a half spot starts out with foggy travel images with meditative classical guitar music underneath -- the kind they play while you're getting a hot stone massage. Then, text flashes across the screen, lecturing you about how life is a journey. Not just some vacation, but a quest of self-discovery, man. Enlightening stuff, to be sure.

I guess buying a $2,000 purse could be a pretty good lesson in self discovery -- you might discover that you have a cash flow problem. The whole thing seemed to say "vacations are overrated, spend the money on a purse instead."

For their first ever TV commercial, you think LV would try to do something a little more memorable, this one played like a promo for a PBS travel show. They could have at least gone for shock value, like Prada.

[via Fashionista]

It's amazing what a slight shift in color can do. Louis Vuitton has ditched the standard brown and tan palette for black and gray. Louis Vuitton has just unveiled their new Damier Graphite print to Louis-loving celebrities like Pharrell Williams and Joshua Jackson (pictured).

The gray and black checkerboard print gives the classic Louis Vuitton bags a nice urban and masculine edge. The bags' silhouette in the collection will be more "manly" as well by featuring not only small leather goods but an extensive selection of luggage too. In addition to the classic pieces some new shapes will be available in the Damier Graphite print, like a briefcase with a special compartment to safely carry a laptop.

The Louis Vuitton Damier Graphite collection is available to celebrities and will be available to the rest of the world in August 2008.

LA Fashion Week may be coming to an end but the fashion fun isn't over in the City of Angels.

The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles will be presenting work from Takashi Murakami October 28, 2007 through February 11, 2008.

Murakami is best known in the fashion world for his collaboration with Louis Vuitton, under Marc Jacobs' creative direction. The exhibit will include selections from the early 1990s to the present. Murakami's exhibit will occupy 20,000 square feet and will have over 90 works in various media.

Perhaps the most appealing aspect of the exhibit (to me) is the 1,000-square-foot Vuitton mini-boutique on the museum's mezzanine floor. The shop will include an extensive line of handbags and accessories created for the show.

This past Spring Louis Vuitton (the world leader in absurdly overpriced bags), premiered these enormous, checkered plastic totes as part of their collection. They look practical, straightforward -- probably good for carrying clothes to the laundromat or groceries home from the supermarket.

Except the bags cost £1,200 (about $2,400).

What crazy person would pay such a ridiculous amount for a $5 plastic laundry bag, simply because it's adorned with a Louis Vuitton stamp?

Why, Kelly Osborne, of course! They 22-year-old rocker was recently spotted carrying the tote when leaving her London apartment. As you can see in the photo, Kelly looks confused -- just like I would be if I'd paid $2,395 extra for something just because it once appeared on a runway.

Now that digital cameras and digital music players have been popular for several years, people are beginning to need a place to store and back up all of their data. External hard drives are all the rage now, and they've become incredibly affordable. For the most part, though, these massive storage devices aren't very appealing to the stylish.

That's where the LaCie Golden Disk comes in. This external hard drive is made of a gold-colored metal, and it's an "inspiring, luxurious design" according to their Web site that is certainly quite unique. The top panel has a wavy, liquid-like design, creating an interesting look for your desktop. It was designed by Ora-Ïto, who has also designed an ergonomic Louis Vuitton backpack. The drive has a 500 gigabyte capacity (yes, more than you'll ever need!) and is available for pre-order at $189, which is actually a decent price for what you're getting.

We are all slaves to fashion so everyone should be familiar with the shame associated with carrying a knock-off. At least I hope you are familiar. Knock-off are bad news. Not only are they tacky but they represent an industry of deceit and just plain nastiness.

But what about knock-offs that aren't really knock offs?

What do I mean? I mean this hideous cellphone skin for the hottest phone on the market, the iPhone. Everyone knows that Louis Vuitton, Burberry, and the likes did not design a cheap-o plastic skin for your phone. We know good and well Louis Vuitton wouldn't sell anything for $6.99 when they can charge $1200 for this.

So is it bad to by an knock-off or imitation of a print? Technically it isn't hurting anyone. Well I take that back, it is hurting you. Your 500 dollar cell phone will be the laughing stock of the neighborhood. Don't do it. If you can't afford a real Louis V case then just forget about it and go with something a bit more plain like this.

Don't have an iPhone yet? Well you can win one on ThisNext.com, just click here for more information. There are only a few more days to enter, so what are you waiting on?

Should an art museum also be a boutique? Usually the line between the exhibits and the gift shop is pretty firmly drawn but for a few months, a gallery at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles will host a store selling Louis Vuitton Murakami bags and other goods. The designs are part of an exhibit of the Japanese artist Takashi Murakami's works that runs from Oct. 29 through Feb. 11. The museum's chief curator has said that a mock up of Murakami's commercial ventures would not have worked. The museum won't get a share of the profits but perhaps the thought of designer shopping at the museum will attract new visitors.

It must be hard to have a career when you spend all your time acting like a coked-out and/or drunken lunatic.

No one understands that better than Lindsay Lohan, the celebrat who, after her most-recent DUI arrest, has seen potential movie roles yanked out from under her, and may now have missed her shot at being the face of Louis Vuitton.

But apparently Lohan's recent foray into excessive intoxication is only the icing on the cake. Two months ago Vuitton sent the actress some clothes to wear during a shoot for Elle (the magazine has posted amazing outtakes from the shoot on its Web site). Unfortunately for all involved, Lindsay decided she'd steal them.

Why you would steal clothing when you're worth tens of millions of dollars is beyond me -- but, if her behavior is any indication, maybe Lindsay is trying to destroy her career. If so, she's certainly succeeding.

Finally, the celebrities you've always wanted to see dolled in high-dollar designer wares. In celebration of the upcoming release of the much-anticipated Simpsons movie, Homer, Marge, and the rest of the gang are appearing in the August issue of Harper's Bazaar -- decked in Chanel, Jean Paul Gaultier and Versace.

Glenda Bailey, the magazine's editor-in-chief, commissioned Julius Preite (layout artist for The Simpsons) to illustrate the world's favorite animated family at a number of Fall Fashion Week shows -- drawn alongside cartoon versions fashion industry icons like Linda Evangelista, Karl Lagerfeld and Louis Vuitton.

It's now clear that the Simpson family have long been fooling the public, and beneath their unruly facade possess a grace, elegance, poise and charm rarely seen in bright-yellow toons. Bravo! Applause! Tres magnifique! Doh!