BECKHAM AT THE PALACE: Victoria Beckham traveled to Buckingham Palace on Wednesday to pick up her OBE, or Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, from Prince William.
She wore a custom-made dress from the Victoria Beckham fall 2017 ready-to-wear collection and purple heels.
The honor is for Beckham’s services to the fashion industry and was revealed in December as part of the Queen’s annual Birthday Honors List, issued last December. She was joined by her parents, Jackie and Anthony Adams, and husband David Beckham who attended the investiture ceremony.
David Beckham, the former England captain, received the same title for his services to soccer in 2003.
“I’m proud to be British, honored and humbled to receive my OBE from HRH the Duke of Cambridge. If you dream big and work hard you can accomplish great things,” Victoria Beckham said. “I’m so happy to share this very special occasion with my parents and husband, without their love and support, none of this would be possible.”
Although Beckham’s children Brooklyn, Romeo, Cruz and Harper were not present, Romeo posted a picture of himself with his mother on Instagram: “Mum, I love u so much and hope you have the best day ever! I love

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During the late Eighties and early Nineties, department stores in the New York Tristate area faced a theft problem they couldn’t avoid. If a store sold Ralph Lauren, it was susceptible to a visit from the Lo-Lifes, a gang from the Crown Heights and Brownsville neighborhoods in Brooklyn. The crew made it their daily mission to ransack shops for the most ostentatious or easy-to-grab Polo merchandise, which they then resold or wore like ceremonial garb.
“It was a full-time job,” said Bonz Malone, an original Lo-Life member and graffiti artist who went on to become a music and culture journalist. “We blew out Macy’s, Lord & Taylor, Saks Fifth Avenue. We were coming in 20 and 40 people deep. There was no way you could stop all of that.”
The Lo-Lifes helped make the Waspy brand desirable within urban communities. Their brotherhood and fixation with Polo spawned a subculture that was initially confined to Manhattan and Brooklyn but spread across the globe thanks to the group’s founder, Thirstin Howl 3rd, a rapper who calls himself a Polorican, and eventually the Internet, which made more people aware of the movement. Last year, Tom Gould, a photographer from New Zealand, released a book with Howl

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South Africa’s two rival fashion weeks were a celebration of African design as well as an indication of the growing corporate support for the country’s young designers.
At South Africa Fashion Week in Johannesburg, which was held earlier this month, one of its banner sponsors, the department store chain Woolworths, backed the Woolworths StyleBySA show, which featured eight local designers: Rich Mnisi, Thebe Magugu, AKJP, Maria McCloy, Sol-Sol, Selfi and Young & Lazy.
The designers showed modern streetwear to footwear and accessories inspired by the African continent; from the runway, the collaborative capsule collection was, in a first for SAFW, made available online immediately and what ensued was “a frenzy of online sales,” according to Charmaine Huet, Woolworths’ group director of marketing and sustainability.
Fast-tracking runway to retail has been a priority for the partnership of Woolworths and SAFW.
“As a passionately South African retailer we want to boost the visibility and viability of local designers,” Huet noted. “The quality of the work on show, and the response to it, is compelling proof of the incredible local talent the South African fashion industry has on offer.’’
After inventory of the StyleBySA capsule collection was exhausted via online sales, the collections became available in select Woolworths

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Phoebe Neuman

The former Spice Girl has been honored for her services to the fashion industry.

The offering even includes couture for little ones wanting to break away from Givenchy ready-to-wear

Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan successfully pushed through a national referendum giving him powers greater than any head of state since the sultans. Americans accustomed to pro-democratic rhetoric from the U.S. were surprised that President Donald Trump called the increasingly authoritarian leader to congratulate him on the narrow victory. Unfortunately, Trump’s diplomatic response reflects a new reality in the Mideast that has built up over time and is only now coming into full view.

The stakes are high. As a Muslim-majority nation negotiating to join the EU, a strategically critical player in the Mideast, and a longtime NATO ally with the organization’s second-largest military, Turkey’s political fate has long affected America’s interests and goals. And, in recent years, Ankara’s foreign policy has chafed against U.S. objectives, given its protracted divisions with Israel, continued conflict with the Kurds, and political hardball over Syrian refugees with Europe, which has struggled to absorb victims of a war that spiraled out of control on President Obama’s watch. Turkey even galled the Obama White House by quietly abetting ISIS through the oil trade — a shady deal that reached as high as Erdogan’s own son-in-law at the oil ministry.

But, in a twist, an abortive military coup last summer forced Obama to defend Erdogan’s regime as the democratically elected and legitimate representative of the Turkish people, even when Erdogan imposed draconian crackdowns against a broad swath of Turkish society, including thousands in the fields of academia, journalism, health and policing. The measure was seen as a bald effort to purge civil society of Turkey’s secular and modernist cultural leaders — intentionally or not, teeing up a narrow, but effective, win this month in the referendum to elevate Erdogan to a near-despot. Nevertheless, Turkey had begun to pivot in its foreign policy, tempering its attitude toward Israel and agreeing to help the U.S. combat ISIS. The groundwork was laid for Erdogan to push as far away from the West as he desired, so long as America’s most immediate interests were not put in peril.

So neither Erdogan’s referendum nor his dramatic success were any big surprise. The only real question was how the U.S. — now under the Trump administration — would respond. But even there, Turkey had worked to ensure continuity with Obama’s policy of accommodation on internal affairs. As Trump has given his generals a freer hand against ISIS, Turkey has steered clear of too much or too little involvement. Turkish-Israeli relations, meanwhile, “have converged and accelerated the reconciliation process,” as key Erdogan advisor Gülnur Aybet remarked last month amid fast-moving pipeline negotiations designed to speed newly discovered Israeli oil to the European market. Liberal Europeans may bridle at the thought of an illiberal regime dominating NATO; on the other hand, they’re being given an out on the once-thorny question of how to deny Turkey EU membership without looking illiberal themselves. For the U.S., it’s the best of both worlds: a more stable EU and a more stable NATO.

Yet, to Americans accustomed to a certain kind of global leadership, Trump’s move feels like a fresh defeat. As uncomfortable as it may be, feeling differently requires reckoning with just how sharply constrained America’s options have become — something Barack Obama realized, even as his policies were tightening the constraints.

SANTA ANA – Buena Park police on Tuesday, April 18, offered more details about allegations against a 38-year-old registered sex offender charged in a flurry of flashing incidents in Orange County.

Hyuh Woo Lee, who pleaded not guilty to charges Monday, is next due in court April 25 for a pretrial hearing. He is charged with three felony counts of indecent exposure with sentencing enhancement allegations for committing a similar crime while out on bail. Three alleged incidents took place on April 3 and 4.

Lee, who was arrested Thursday, April 13, is accused of “going to apartment complexes or local motels and walking around either naked or with a towel wrapped around him,” according to Buena Park police Sgt. Mike Lovchik.

In some cases he would hide in rooms and wait to “surprise” victims, Lovchik said. Lee has also been accused of touching himself during the
flashing, Lovchik said.

Lee is facing felony instead of misdemeanor charges because he’s a registered sex offender, Lovchik said.

Investigators are concerned there may be more victims who have not come forward, Lovchik said.

“There’s the potential for quite a few victims who may or may not have contacted authorities so we’re urging anyone who recognizes this guy’s antics to contact local police,” Lovchik said.

Lee, who listed his occupation in jail records as a truck driver, has a lengthy criminal history in Los Angeles and Orange counties of flashing, according to court records.

Lee was convicted April 19, 2010, and Oct. 31, 2012, of indecent exposure in Los Angeles County, according to court records.

Lee pleaded not guilty Feb. 15 to a felony count of indecent exposure with a prior conviction, according to court records. He was next due in court on that charge, which was investigated by Anaheim police, on April 24.

Lee was convicted Dec. 18, 2008, of misdemeanor indecent exposure and public nudity by a jury for incidents on Oct. 17, 2007. Before the jury convicted him he pleaded guilty to felony possession of a controlled substance in the case, according to court records.

Lee pleaded guilty Dec. 19, 2008, to a misdemeanor count of lewd conduct in a public place and was sentenced to 95 days in jail and placed on three years of informal probation, according to court records. That incident took place Feb. 27, 2008.

LOS ANGELES — Whether he pulled up for a shot, set up a teammate or warded off his defender with his ball-handling skills, Clippers point guard Chris Paul had one thought racing through his mind.

“Just trying to be aggressive,” Paul said.

That thought process never stopped as the Clippers secured a 99-91 Game 2 victory over the Utah Jazz on Tuesday at Staples Center and evened the best-of-7 series, 1-1.

Paul finished with 21 points and 10 assists, going 9 for 15 from the field, including 3 for 4 from 3-point range. Paul opened the first three minutes of the game sinking an 18-foot-jumper, a 27-foot 3-pointer, forcing a turnover and setting up DeAndre Jordan with a lob. Paul helped close the game making a 3-pointer and a fallaway jumper to give the Clippers a 94-86 lead with 4:19 left. In between, he provided a blend of scoring and playmaking that helped fuel Blake Griffin (24 points) and Jordan (18) to big nights while the Clippers scored 60 points in the paint.

“I was trying to just stay on the court to tell you the truth,” Paul said.

Clippers forward Luc Mbah a Moute also observed Paul was also trying to rectify the Clippers’ Game 1 loss on Saturday. Though Paul had 25 points and 11 assists on 10-of-19 shooting in the series opener, it wasn’t as steady blend. After doling out 10 assists in the first half, he only had one the rest of the night. Held to five points in the first half, he scored 20 after halftime.

“He came out tonight and was really aggressive. We need him to do that,” Mbah a Moute said. “Sometimes he gets caught up in trying to get everybody involved and gets guys going. But when he comes out and plays aggressive, that helps a lot.”

It also helped that Paul did not allow two first-quarter fouls to dial back his aggressiveness. Though he went scoreless in the second quarter as he sat on the bench for nearly seven minutes, Paul had 14 points and three assists in the second half (6 for 10 shooting).

“He was good through adversity, which I thought was really good,” Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. “He got in foul trouble early, and we weathered that storm as a team. He had to weather the storm, sitting. Those uneven minutes for guys throw you off, and I thought it never threw him off. I thought he kept his rhythm, he kept his patience, he kept his peace.”

Paul did not keep his peace about one thing, though.

Afterward, Paul warned of a hostile environment for Game 3 on Friday in Utah, calling the Jazz’s passionate fan base “homers.” Somehow, Jazz fans on social media misconstrued that commentary as a slight instead of a compliment.

“That means they like their team. Why even try that, though?” Paul said to a reporter. “I’ve said that before, they’re homers, and I say when you go play there, you don’t really see opposing teams’ jerseys; know what I mean? They support their team, which is good; know what I mean? How can you take that in another way?”

The assembled reporters did not. Several Jazz fans did.

“When I go there, I don’t see like too many Clippers’ jerseys,” Paul clarified. “They really support their team, and it’s always been that. Yeah, you’re reaching if you’re thinking that’s something else. You’ve got to get a different hashtag. Come on, man.”

No one misconstrued Paul’s game, however.

“We always want Chris aggressive. He’s smart enough and good enough where he makes the right play,” Clippers forward Jamal Crawford said. “He doesn’t play with an agenda. He just plays and takes whatever is there. That’s what makes him one of the brilliant point guards that’s ever played.”

And that’s also what enabled the Clippers to avoid an 0-2 deficit against Utah.

“We moved the ball great, but all in all, I think our pace was pretty good all night,” Paul said. “Whether they scored, missed or what not, we just tried to keep the tempo and the pace up.”

In the most recent first-quarter filings from US apparel and footwear brands and retailers, Levi Strauss & Co saw sales increase but profits slip, while Hanesbrands is expecting sales of around US$1.38bn. Kate Spade, meanwhile, saw earnings slump on the back of sales declines.