ELLE December 2014

Monday, December 1, and Monday, December 29 FACTORY BOYS Art Kane, whose visionary eye Andy Warhol once compared to "a pumpkin sun in a blue sky," and Billy Name, whose images Warhol anointed as the only ones to truly capture the scene at the Factory (where he lived in a closet), get books dedicated to their work. Friday, December 5 THREE'S A CROWD Indie film Life Partners focuses on two friends, one gay (a decidedly headband-free Leighton Meester) and one straight (Community's Gillian Jacobs), who drift apart after the latter couples up with a bro played by Meester's real-life husband, Adam Brody. Sunday, December 14 MODERN MASTERS Is evoking timelessness what makes a painting of our time? Ponder this and other art-world questions at MoMA's The Forever Now, which presents…

THE ELLE MUST-DO CHECKLIST Monday, December 1 Scandi minimalist high-street favorite COS gave U.S. fans a website earlier this year—now it's coming to us direct, with a brick-and-mortar store in Beverly Hills. Thursday, December 11 Plastic? Fantastic! Casio's first watch for women, the G-Shock S-Series, made a fashion statement when it popped up on the spring/summer 2015 runways of such buzzy New York–based designers as Tome, Timo Weiland, and Jonathan Simkhai. Get yours when the full range is officially released this month. Tuesday, December 30 Put a little Old Hollywood in your winter getaway with the launch of Kate Spade New York swimwear, packed with throwback silhouettes and the house's trademark graphic patterns. Thursday, December 18 Need a midmonth pick-me-up? Bright pigments meet sharp geometry in Meatpacking District boutique Owen's…

GUEST BLOGGER OLIVIA BEE The wunderkind photographer has captivated a generation of second-screen savants. Now, as our blogger-in-residence, she'll be posting photo essays and fashion editorials on ELLE.com all month long "I used to always have a camera on me, but my attitude toward that has changed a little bit," says Olivia Bee, the buzzed-about fashion photographer whose dreamy depictions of youth—or, in her case, moonlit shots of the crew she grew up with in Portland, Oregon—grabbed the attention of Converse ad execs when she was just 15. A slew of zeitgeisty gigs soon followed: ethereal self-portraits for Hermès; a shoot with Zosia Mamet for The New York Times; an ongoing working relationship with client turned confidante Tavi Gevinson. "I find it easier to photograph people I know, so that's…

THE RIHANNA-SPHERE Next June I'll celebrate my fifteenth year as editor-in-chief of ELLE. A lot has happened in those 15 years, not least of which were 9/11, the birth of my two children, and the sale of ELLE by a French company, Lagardère, to an American one, Hearst. In that time, this month's cover subject, Rihanna, has been shot for the magazine five times and has been on four different covers: June 2008, July 2010, May 2012, and this month, December 2014. Which makes her the most covered celebrity of my tenure. This realization gave me pause, in no small part because the very first time we interviewed her, for an inside story in July 2007, we asked her for her defining pop-star moment, and she said, "I've had a…

ELLA ENCHANTED ELLE's October issue is dedicated to personal style, and our 2014 cover girl Lorde—née Ella Yelich-O'Connor—has it in spades. From her ethereal beauty to her candid opinions, the New Zealand singer charmed readers with her utter realness: "There is something amazingly throwback about this—the cloud of hair, the brow, the minimalist makeup, the devastatingly pouty expression. It's perfectly retro without being musty or dated. Really breathtaking." —Heather Cocks of Go Fug Yourself "This is GORGEOUS. And it doesn't feel like something layered over her. Inside, there are more gorgeous pictures and beautiful looks that suit her surprisingly well." — Tomandlorenzo.com "Lorde looks like herself—they've used natural makeup and there's a stark absence of the kind of heavy slap that magazine faces are usually drenched in. What a refreshing…

LOOK CLOSER As fashion's daring muse and music's chart-scorching hit maker, Rihanna has worn it all (and almost nothing at all). For our December cover story, we present the rebel raconteur draped in the most opulent haute couture and fine jewelry of the season. On a balmy early fall Wednesday, she arrived at Brooklyn's Root studios, the picture of off-duty superstar: striped oversize sweater-vest, black miniskirt, python baseball cap, and suede Miu Miu sandals. After emerging from hair and makeup with little more than a crimson lip, Rihanna took her mark in front of the camera, dancing to Drake and Rick Ross and posing like a pro: "Rihanna could have been a silent-movie star. She gets so much across without having to be a loudmouth," said ELLE fashion editor-at-large Lori…