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Rants

Monday December 6th, 2010

Annoying Habits of Other PRs by @NoBtotheS
Rants

Annoying Habits of Other PRs by @NoBtotheS

by No BS

Welcome back to @NoBtotheS‘s series on the suicide inducing habits of people in the fashion industry. (Editor’s note: If you’re not familiar with NoBtotheS, or No Bullshit, s/he is an anonymous fashion publicist working in New York City who’s famed for a hilarious Twitter account.)

This post is dedicated to the PRs who I call my friends, in the most sincere way. We shop, eat, drink, laugh, cry, and bitch together. This is for you- you know EXACTLY what I’m talking about.

1. Nonsensical RSVPs: Why am I receiving emails from your coordinator, RSVPing on your behalf to my agency’s event? You aren’t friends with the designer (or ME for that matter) so don’t be surprised if you get an email back from MY assistant beginning with “Due to the high volume of RSVPs and limited space…”

2. “Celebrity” PRs: Not to be confused with PRs who represent A-listers. I’m talking about PRs who mistake THEMSELVES for bold names. No one cares about you (ever) and demanding press mentions from your directors is desperate and needy. It’s just not a good look.

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Published at 5:06 PM

Monday November 29th, 2010

Annoying Habits of Fashion Designers by @NoBtotheS
Rants

Annoying Habits of Fashion Designers by @NoBtotheS

by No BS

Welcome back to @NoBtotheS‘s series on the suicide inducing habits of people in the fashion industry. (Editor’s note: If you’re not familiar with NoBtotheS, or No Bullshit, s/he is an anonymous fashion publicist working in New York City who’s famed for a hilarious Twitter account.)

Last week, No Bullshit took on Fashion Editors. This week, it’s PR clients, aka designers.

1. Oh- I didn’t realize you are a designer AND a publicist, too! We should both stick to what we do best; you design and I’ll handle the press. Accepting press opportunities before first discussing them with ME is just foolish! I am here, day in and day out, keeping your best interest at heart and one misguided placement could derail a year’s worth of strategic planning. Also, you’re giving me an ulcer.

2. Mistaking your publicist for personal assistant: Look, I didn’t slave my way to the position I’m in to be reduced to your PA. I work with editors on the top half of the masthead so I can get the press you want….DO NOT waste my time with pleas for dinner ressies at The Lion or Waverly Inn…get your 22 year old assistant to do that.

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Published at 12:08 PM

Monday November 22nd, 2010

New Column: Annoying Habits of People in the Fashion Industry by @NoBtotheS
Rants

New Column: Annoying Habits of People in the Fashion Industry by @NoBtotheS

by No BS

Welcome to @NoBtotheS‘s series on the suicide inducing habits of people in the fashion industry. (Editor’s note: If you’re not familiar with NoBtotheS, or No Bullshit, she/he is an anonymous fashion publicist working in New York City who’s famed for a hilarious Twitter account.) Up first, Fashion Editors–love to hate them and hate to love them.

1. They put the fun in trust fund: It took me a while to get wise to the fact that half of you come from wealthy backgrounds (rock legend patronage, heir to publishing giant, luxury goods parent company, and frozen food giant, etc, etc) and thus have the freedom to accept a position with a starting pay of $25k…the rest of you just marry well.

2. Overwhelming sense of entitlement: Here’s the thing; you’re not fooling anyone! All I have to do is search your name in entourage to see that you haven’t responded to my last DOZEN or so emails. But now that you want something (event invite, discount or a freebie) we are suddenly friends of the bosom.

3. Editors that don’t actually, you know, EDIT:

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Published at 1:00 PM

Friday November 12th, 2010

Isabella Blow Book War Rages On, Takes On Jezebel
Rants

Isabella Blow Book War Rages On, Takes On Jezebel

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The Isabella Blow book war just won’t quit. And the authors of the competing biographies–Tom Sykes, who cowrote Blow by Blow with Isabella’s widower Detmar, and Lauren Goldstein Crowe who wrote Isabella Blow: A Life in Fashion–continue to use the fashion blogosphere to duke it out.

Crowe has spoken out again, though this time, instead of responding to Syke’s latest outrage, she’s taking issue with one of the sites covering the saga, lady blog Jezebel.

Seems Crowe didn’t like Jenna Sauers’ implication, as she recapped the back-and-forth on Jezebel, that the authors were simply drumming up publicity at Isabella Blow’s expense. “Far be it from us mere bloggers to act like some kind of voice of morality here, but a talented and troubled woman died and all these people can think about is their petty little publicity-chasing book-selling feud?” Sauers wrote.

So Crowe sent a response to us and Racked, titled, “A Letter to Jezebel.” Here it is, in full:

How strange of you to recall, step-by-step, the grisly tale between myself and Tom Sykes (“Competing Isabella Blow Biographers Attack Each Other,” November, 11, 2010) but when it comes to my completely coherent clarification to decide to “act like some voice of morality” and point out that “a trouble woman died,” and accuse us both of pandering for publicity’s sake.

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Published at 10:01 AM

Wednesday November 10th, 2010

The Isabella Blow Book War Rages On
Rants

The Isabella Blow Book War Rages On

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Two competing biographies of Isabella Blow, widely regarded as one of the most brilliant and creative forces in fashion, hit shelves this week. There’s Blow by Blow, Detmar Blow’s biography of his late wife coauthored by Tom Sykes, and there’s Isabella Blow: A Life in Fashion by veteran fashion writer Lauren Goldstein Crowe. Crowe’s is being optioned for a movie. Detmar’s bio is the required reading for our first Fashionista book club (virtual) meeting.

There’s a lot of bad blood between the two books. At the New York launch party for Blow by Blow, Detmar told WWD that he had “no interest” in Crowe’s book. Following the London launch party for Isabella Blow: A Life in Fashion, Crowe wrote to tell Racked.com: “Personally I thought it more interesting that Detmar’s sister and cousin were there as were both Isabella’s sisters and her step-mother and a variety of cousins. Also Philip Treacy and Lucy Ferry who didn’t attend Detmar’s launch. But hey, that’s the world we live in.”

And now Tom Sykes, coauthor of Blow by Blow (and brother of Plum and Lucy) is fighting back. He sent us a long, angry email to comment on what he called the “outrageous slur that has been made today on our book by Ms Crowe on the fashion blog racked.com.”

Here it is in full (we’ve bolded the best bits):

‘Hey, that’s the world we live in’? What the hell is that supposed to mean?
Lauren Golsdstein Crowe’s outrageous insinuation seems to be that somehow her book is the ‘approved version’ because Issie’s sisters came to her book launch. This cannot go unchallenged. Lavinia, Isabella’s beloved youngest sister, came to the launch of our book in London, and was an honored guest at the dinner afterwards at Annabels. Freddie, Lavinia’s son and one of Issie’s cousins, was also at our launch in New York. And, for God’s sake, DETMAR WAS ISSIE’S HUSBAND FOR ALMOST TWENTY YEARS!!!!

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Published at 4:58 PM

Wednesday November 3rd, 2010

Sandra Lee Is the New First Lady of New York: An Introduction To Her Style (Tablescapes Included)
Fashion Is Fun

Sandra Lee Is the New First Lady of New York: An Introduction To Her Style (Tablescapes Included)

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Andrew Cuomo is New York’s new governor, which means that his longtime girlfriend, Food Network star Sandra Lee, is New York’s new first lady.

Confession: When we’re not trolling the internet for fashion news or out at fashion events, we’re watching the Food Network. Food Network’s lady stars tend not to be too concerned with their style. Giada De Laurentiis’s style is pretty much limited to plunging jersey v-neck tops with a camisole underneath, because, let’s be honest, if it weren’t for her camisoles Everyday Italian would really be food porn. (Weird side note on Giada, Lauren hears from a source that Giada wears all Anthropologie because her husband’s a VP there.) I don’t even know what Rachel Ray wears because I can’t see behind the pile of ingredients and EVOO she’s loaded into her arms to avoid a second trip to the pantry or the fridge. There’s that new show Bitchin’ Kitchin’ on the Food Network’s hipster sister channel, the Cooking Channel, and the host, “Nadia G,” seems to have an intense rockabilly thing going, but I haven’t watched because I hate the name of the show so much and if I hear that promo where she’s says she’d rather “make out with Clooney” one more time I might burst. (Apologies for the ranty too-long sentence.) Lauren’s Food Network style icon is Claire Robinson of Five Ingredient Fix because she likes her vintage aprons and gold lockets.

But Sandra Lee is the one Food Network star who puts a lot of effort into matching her outfits to her tablescapes and even to her cocktails. She loves her some cocktails. So this is an exciting development that the Semi Home Made star will be even more visible at events and on the red carpet.

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Published at 6:17 PM

Wednesday October 20th, 2010

Seeing Pink: A Survivor’s Take On The Marketing Madness of Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Rants

Seeing Pink: A Survivor’s Take On The Marketing Madness of Breast Cancer Awareness Month

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You probably know that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month (BCAM). Whether it’s because you’ve noticed the nationwide proliferation of pink, or because you’ve been affected by the disease first-hand and this month serves as a bitter(sweet?) reminder, there’s no question that the campaigns that accompany it are pretty in your face.

I am a breast cancer survivor. And BCAM is undoubtedly an important way to raise funds towards researching its cause and developing new treatments that could eventually eradicate the disease. But lately it seems that the commercialization of BCAM over the past few years has begun to turn the pink ribbon from a symbol of hope into a gimmick that trivializes what it stands for.

It’s extremely difficult for me to sit here and say where companies capitalizing on the “trendiness” of BCAM should draw the line: Herceptin, the drug that essentially saved my life, was only approved by the FDA in 2006, and would never have been discovered if it weren’t for the millions of dollars donated towards breast cancer research every year.

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Published at 4:30 PM

Friday October 8th, 2010

Gap’s New Logo: Why They Did It and Why We’re Not Surprised
Rants

Gap’s New Logo: Why They Did It and Why We’re Not Surprised

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The internet is freaking out over the new Gap logo (a hater created this new logo for them) and we get it. It looks like Gap is schilling for Lipitor. The thing is, the logo change wasn’t actually that sudden.

Gap started using the same helvetica font in advertisements for 1969 jeans over a year ago and it’s also been used in stores and on tags. This can be seen as one of many strategies the company has employed in an attempt to improve business, which hasn’t been doing so well over the past few years, a downfall many have attributed to the company’s lack of direction.

Gap’s creative director since 2007, Patrick Robinson, revealed his interest in keeping Gap modern and fresh as part of his plan to “elevate the brand.” However, some are criticizing Gap for taking this too far by getting rid of the “iconic” logo of the “heritage” brand. But is Gap really a heritage brand? 1969 was not that long ago. Maybe a step forward, visually or otherwise, is what the brand needs.

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Published at 4:00 PM

Monday October 4th, 2010

A Guide To Winning The Sea of Shoes Art Contest
Rants

A Guide To Winning The Sea of Shoes Art Contest

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Earlier this year we dubbed Jane Aldridge from Sea of Shoes one of the most influential style bloggers.

Now, in addition to blogger and (sometimes) designer, Jane is taking on a new role: Art critic. Jane has come up with a contest, asking readers to choose their favorite look from Spring 2011 and create a sketch inspired by that look. On November 1, Jane will post her 15 favorite submissions and post them on her blog.

With hundreds of entries already pouring in, winning this contest might be a little difficult. Lucky for you, we’ve created some guidelines that will ensure you a spot on the top 15. Take a look.

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Published at 6:00 PM

Wednesday September 29th, 2010

Major Thing We Missed During NYFW: US Weekly Hearts Scott and Garance?
Rants

Major Thing We Missed During NYFW: US Weekly Hearts Scott and Garance?

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Sometimes I feel as though I live in a fashion bubble. There are people that are fashion famous–or at least very well-known in fashion circles–that I assume those who work outside of the industry aren’t particularly familiar with. Anna Dello Russo may be a rock star to me and those who read this site, but has my 22-year-old cousin living in Washington D.C. and working at Nikon ever heard of her? Unlikely.

So I was a little surprised last weekend when, whilst flipping though a copy of US Weekly on my first day off since September 5, I stumbled upon the rag’s annual list of Most Stylish New Yorkers. Along with the usual suspects–Gossip Girl’s Kelly Rutherford, Katie Couric, our favorite PR powerhouse, Kelly Cutrone–two bold-faced names stood out in particular: Scott Schuman and Garance Dore.

Now, before you say “Wait, this is old news!” I know. But like most fashion people, I wasn’t paying attention to anything outside of Lincoln Center and Milk Studios on September 14. I was too busy worrying about the fact that The Row just canceled their New York show to scan the latest issue of US. So forgive me. But I feel compelled to share my thoughts with you anyways, dear reader.

Although I doubt we’ll be seeing this particular superlative mentioned on The Sartorialist homepage underneath “Selected as one of Time Magazine’s Top 100 Design Influencers”, it might be even more significant.

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Published at 9:00 AM

Friday September 24th, 2010

Musings on the Man Romper
Fashion Shows

Musings on the Man Romper

by John Ortved

If not one of my favorite looks of the New York Spring 2011 Men’s collections, Yigal Azrouël’s one-piece, short-sleeved “jumpsuits,” with their lower halves cut well above the knees, remained a standout, if for no other reason than it reminded me of a romper. Which, in fact, it is.

The idea of a romper for men should not be so outlandish. They were, after all, created with boys in mind. The style, if we can call it that, goes back to Victorian times, when the garment was designed as playwear (ideal because of the mobility it allowed within the dressing/undressing ease of a one piece) for boys, and boys only—though eventually the practicality was extended to little ladies as well. In the ’50s, the romper became stylish for not-so-little-ladies, and during the last half-decade has experienced a resurgence, found on runways from Vena Cava to BCBG, thanks in no small part to American Apparel, who more than anyone have made the sexy, playful romper ubiquitous.

While the romper for men (I’m officially dubbing it a “stomper”) may not offer the same pin-up appeal, it looks rather appealing. If not exactly dashing, it’s a fun subversion of the workwear theme, which will be hard to escape next spring—and on the right guy it could look almost cool.

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Published at 4:00 PM

Monday September 20th, 2010

A Message to Modcloth Regarding The “Blog Writer Dress”
Rants

A Message to Modcloth Regarding The “Blog Writer Dress”

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Gently priced, self-described “indie” clothing site Modcloth is selling a dress called the “blog writer dress.” It is an off white star-print baby-doll dress with a pinafore-type smock that retails for $131.99. There’s a stereotype about bloggers that they are slovenly and perma-pajama-ed and stuck in the middle of a macbook-and-couch sandwich. Feeding into that stereotype, Modcloth’s “blog writer dress” looks appropriately like a nightgown. For an eight-year-old.

I blog and I edit a blog and I don’t dress like this. Nor do any of my friends who edit and write online. The Gloss took an informal poll of some lady bloggers only to find out that they, too, did not wear, as Triangle Music‘s Valerie Marino calls it, “hipster muumuus,” to work.

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Published at 6:00 PM