Gucci

Gossip Girl front woman Blake Lively is known for her high-fashion style (both on set and off). So it's no surprise that the Gucci team has selected the young actress to represent its new couture fragrance, Gucci Première. "She is a girl of extraordinary beauty and she's a girl who loves fashion," Gucci creative director Frida Giannini told WWD. "Although she's young, she's also very determined, and I liked this spirit.…She knows how to be a diva in the right sense, with an aspirational glamour."

Gucci Première hits counters this September in the States (and next month in the UK). But we're looking forward to the short film ad campaign, which was filmed by Drive director Nicolas Winding Refn. We already know there will be breathtaking gowns in the spot, but will it also feature fast cars and synth pop? Can't wait to find out.

After a stint as the face of Chanel's Mademoiselle ads, Blake Lively has been named as the face of a whole new campaign — for a whole new house.

Gucci has tapped Lively to front the campaign for its newest fragrance, Gucci Première, which hits stores worldwide in September. While there's no word if Lively and Lagerfeld are still chummy, the actress has definitely won over Gucci's helmer, Frida Giannini. "She is a girl of extraordinary beauty and she's a girl who loves fashion," Giannini stated. "Although she's young, she's also very determined, and I liked this spirit.…She knows how to be a diva in the right sense, with an aspirational glamour."

The admiration is apparently mutual. "I couldn't be more proud to be working with Gucci and its heart, Frida," Lively said.

As for the campaign, it will include black-and-white images photographed by Mert & Marcus, as well as a short film directed by Nicolas Winding Refn. The print ads — which will appear in the UK first — will reportedly feature the actress wearing a sequined dress whilst looking out over the glimmering lights of Los Angeles, while the film will include footage of the actress in the Mojave Desert, as well as getting ready for a Hollywood premiere. The film will make its debut at this year's Venice Film Festival.

Above, Lively and Winding Refn on the set. Courtesy of Gucci.

Those stories and more in our daily news roundup.

• Chloé will celebrate its 60th anniversary this year — and in grand fashion. Among the scheduled festivities are a retrospective exhibition and a party in conjunction with the Spring 2013 show. The house will also release a capsule collection based on garments from its archives, redecorate its Paris boutique, and publish a book with Rizzoli. [WWD]
  

• The catalog for Daphne Guinness's Christie's clothing auction is online. Hopeful buyers will be able to bid on dresses from Lanvin and Alexander McQueen, a Lacroix opera coat, and a selection of size 37 shoes. [The Cut]
  

• Gucci recently bought a stallion named Vleut and, in honor of the brand's founder, Guccio Gucci, renamed it Guccio. The hope is that Guccio will make an appearance at this Summer's Olympic Games in London, though he currently resides at the Dutch home of Australian equestrienne Edwina Alexander. [Elle]
  

• Speaking of the Olympics, rumor has it that British models Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell, and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley will participate in the closing ceremonies at the London games. Details are scant, but the three are said to be participating in a display of fashion from top British designers like Vivienne Westwood and Sarah Burton. [Modelinia]
  

• Ahead of her move to the English countryside, Amanda Brooks has donated a portion of her high-end wardrobe to the New York City Opera's annual pop-up thrift shop. There is reportedly lots of Prada, 3.1 Phillip Lim, Jil Sander, Tuleh, Yves Saint Laurent, and Chanel — and "loads of shoes." [Page Six]
  

Guess CEO Paul Marciano said that a judge vindicated his company in its trademark infringement case against Gucci when she decided that Guess should pay just $4.7 million in damages instead of the $300 million Gucci originally sued for.

In a statement, Marciano said Judge Shira Scheindlin's decision "definitely confirmed . . . that this case should have never gone to three years of litigation and trial." Scheindlin wrote that Gucci's claims of how much business Guess had taken from them by allegedly copying its designs over the last two decades was "highly speculative." Marciano largely agreed, calling the entire lawsuit "unconscionable by its scope."

"They 'forgot' to claim certain trademark rights that Guess used for 23 years . . . and the court sided with Guess," Marciano said. "When they found certain issues, they waited not months but years before acting and never wrote a letter, sent an email or picked up the phone to say, 'We have an issue.' That never happened."

Marciano said Guess is "extremely satisfied," and pointed out that Gucci itself has been accused of copying other designers.

"Gucci maybe should look at their own designs and inspirations when it comes to other brands of who they get inspired by," he said. "Everyone will remember Roberto Cavalli's statement from WWD on Feb. 24, 2012, that Gucci basically copied his entire collection of 2010. Gucci never responded to that."

Gucci initiated the lawsuit in 2009, claiming that Guess concocted a "calculated scheme" to knock off its designs and did so over the course of several decades. After years of legal volleys, the case went to trial in March.

One of the most fabulous Cannes Film Festival parties this year was the Gucci and Vanity Fair bash attended by Naomi Watts, Jennifer Connelly, Salma Hayek, and more. And while all the ladies looked fabulous in their Gucci frocks, Naomi stole the spotlight in her pale gray one-of-a-kind sequin-and-feather Gucci dress, which she paired with gold satin Gucci ankle-strap peep toes. Naomi's ensemble is an ultra-chic throwback to the '20s and one that's dying to be re-created at your next special event. Start with this Sue Wong feather-embellished cocktail dress ($530) and match it with Naomi's exact Gucci sandals but in leather ($625). If you prefer darker hues, try this equally flirty 28.5 black fringe dress ($632).