Kate Lanphear

Kate Lanphear has found a new job after leaving her position as Elle's style director in November.

Journalist Jim Shi tweeted on Monday that "Lanphear has joined T: The New York Times Style Magazine as style director. She'll be at the upcoming women's shows with Team T." The Times' official communications account later confirmed the news by tweeting, "Welcome to Kate Lanphear, new Style Director of @TMagazine."

Lanphear has been the subject of a number of job-related rumors over the past several months. In October, she was mentioned as a possible replacement for Deborah Needleman, who left WSJ. Magazine to take over T in September. In November, some believed she was headed to a start-up magazine called Editorialist.

She's the newest big-name addition to the team since stylist Joe McKenna was named the magazine's fashion director at large in November.

Joanna Coles told us she was "not going to muddle" with Cosmopolitan when she took over as editor in chief in September, but she clearly wasn't referring to staff changes.

Coles has reportedly sacked nine members of the magazine's team, including seven on the editorial side and two from the photo department. And while she's hired British GQ's Paul Solomons as creative director and Marie Claire's Joyce Chang as executive editor, a litany of other positions have yet to be filled.

The departures leave Jessica Knoll as the magazine's only current senior editor. When the two first met at a staff meeting in September, Coles joked, "Kate [White] told me you're a rock star. But Kate's gone, so it doesn't matter now."

Over the last several months, the desks at New York's glossy fashion titles have operated more like a game of musical chairs than anything else. The latest departure in a round of shuffling that started in August sees Elle's style director Kate Lanphear leaving her position. It's unclear where she's headed next.

The revolving doors started spinning when Sally Singer was ousted as editor in chief of T Magazine at the end of August. She's now back at Vogue as the digital creative director and was replaced by former WSJ. Magazine editor Deborah Needleman in late September. Needleman took WSJ.'s creative director Patrick Li and fashion features director Whitney Vargas with her when she made the jump.

This week it was announced that stylist Joe McKenna would join T Magazine as fashion director at large. W's Maura Egan has joined T as features editor. Meanwhile, Alix Browne, T's deputy design editor, will head to W Magazine as features director.

Back at The Wall Street Journal, Needleman's deputy editor Ruth Altchek was named editorial director of the paper's weekend Off Duty section and WSJ. in mid-October. Harper's Bazaar executive editor Kristina O'Neill was brought in as editor of the magazine. Two senior members of Bazaar's accessories team, Kate Davidson Hudson and Stefania Allen, left shortly after O'Neill, but not to join her at WSJ. Bazaar's features director Anamaria Wilson also left in October for a position as vice president of global corporate communications at Michael Kors.

Bazaar held onto and promoted three key staffers: longtime senior fashion market editor Joanna Hillman was promoted to style director, Nicole Fritton was named fashion market and accessories director, and Elisa Lipsky-Karasz became the magazine's features editor.

Brides executive editor Anne Fulenwider replaced Coles as editor in chief of Marie Claire. Her first big staff changes have been to promote Nina Garcia from fashion director to creative director and to hire Alex Gonzalez as artistic director. Fulenwider was herself replaced by Keija Minor, becoming the first black editor in chief of a Condé Nast title.

Speaking of Condé Nast employees, Eva Chen left her position as beauty and health director at Teen Vogue and was replaced by Glamour's senior beauty editor Elaine Welteroth.

Above: Joanna Coles. Below: Kate Lanphear.

>> Elle style director Kate Lanphear has a good explanation for fashion's current obsession with street style.

Lanphear recently sat down with Ruffian's Brian Wolk and Claude Morais to discuss the industry, her personal style, and why she loves her work. "My job is to make people dream, and to get them excited about dressing in a new way," she says. Below, a few more highlights from the interview.

On the current obsession with street style: "It's a by-product of social media. There is a true wealth of information online now, but the coverage first began in Japanese street style magazines. At the time, the economy was more robust—people were buying goods from luxury brands, but they didn't necessarily know how to wear them. People were hungry for ideas, but magazines were just shooting full looks, so if it didn't resonate with you on the runway, these street style mags were a great source of inspiration."

On growing up in the South: "I love the culture of the South, and the people there, but living in New York is a dream. There was a time when everyone around me said this dream would never come true. I still pinch myself every day. When I work, I always think about that girl in Virginia—what I'd want to wear, what I dreamed about then, and what I would have wanted to see in a magazine. For that girl, fantasy and fashion collide in simple images with a real spirit, like a gorgeous woman getting a coffee or hailing a yellow cab."

Her favorite lie: "'Your ass looks small in that!'"

>> Kate Lanphear Terms Herself a "Redneck," Robbie Myers Joins Twitter —The extremely press (and social networking)-shy Kate Lanphear collects old Margiela and Helmut Lang and has accrued quite the cult following, but she says of her current position as Elle's style director: "I often feel like I have to pinch myself. I can't believe it." And as for all her style acolytes: "I'm completely humbled by it. I mean, I am just your average redneck from Virginia." Speaking of Elle, Robbie Myers just joined Twitter. [The Cut]

Gaga reportedly got her own i-D cover after Naomi and Kate refused to do a shoot with her.

The Fashion Group International is crowning Balenciaga's Nicholas Ghesquière its newest superstar.

Francisco Costa suggests that the era of the waif may be officially over.

Vena Cava designed a collection for Bloomingdale’s Aqua Line.

Kate Lanphear stars in Eddie Borgo's Fall 2010 campaign.

Source: Getty

>> Anne Christensen Heading to Glamour? —Two short weeks after resigning from T as fashion director, Anne Christensen is said to be headed to Glamour in the same capacity, replacing Xanthipi Joannides, who left the position last month (Marie Claire's fashion director Nina Garcia and Elle's style director Kate Lanphear were also reportedly vetted for the job). Although Glamour did not confirm the move, Christensen will reportedly start next month. [DFR]

UDPATE: Christensen will be executive fashion director, a newly-created position, at Glamour, effective Aug. 24, and Glamour editor-in-chief Cindi Leive says she plans to "significantly increase" fashion pages in the magazine as a result. [WWD]

>> After losing the T editorship — which she at one point thought she was a shoo-in for — to Sally Singer, the magazine's fashion director Anne Christensen has resigned from her post. She wrote to WWD during a break from styling for Vogue China: “I’ve had a great 10 years at the Times and T magazines under 2 creative and smart editors: Amy Spindler and Stefano Tonchi. I’m very proud of the work I’ve done there and particularly proud of the upcoming Fall women’s T that I worked very hard on. Now I’m happy to move on to other adventures. I wish Sally Singer the best of luck. She has inherited a wonderful group of people at T.” As for her future: “I do want to explore other magazine possibilities. I like having magazine as a base — for a stylist, it gives you a real voice, and that’s important. And I have a great freelance career that I will continue, as well.”

Who is being eyed to replace her? »

>> Under the lead of designer Sophia Kokosalaki, who debuted her first collection for Diesel Black Gold in February for Fall 2010 (with Kate Lanphear styling), Diesel founder Renzo Rosso is in the midst of repositioning the label.

Rosso broke Black Gold off as a separate business division and company veteran Andrea Baldo has been named the label's new general manager. Baldo plans to bring higher quality to Black Gold by using mostly Italian fabrics, tightening distribution (the men's line will be available exclusively at Barneys in the Fall), and creating a new logo, a new shop concept, and more accessories. There will also be dedicated Black Gold advertising campaigns.

As for the core denim »