funny face

"Young Frankenstein"
directed by Mel Brooks
1974

Something funny in not so funny times. By the way, Happy Halloween.

rain on me

3 things I learned about when it rains in NYC:
1. Why didn't I get those $28 rain boots at the Marc Jacobs store the other week? Shame on me.
2. Not owning an umbrella is not smart, but don't be stupid enough (no matter how wet, and I was pretty damn wet) to buy one of those p.o.s.'s that are sold on street corners.
3. It can rain everyday if that means that the clouds will part again and I'll have another model encounter. While on an errand for work, I passed newcomer Arlenis Sosa on Grand in between Lafayette and Crosby. It was too cold for my tongue to fall outside of my mouth, but my eyes were transfixed on her natural beauty for our brief moment. I mean, this is who we're talking about:

the candy man can

Mo's Bacon Bar at Vosges Chocolate's
Applewood smoked bacon, Alder wood smoked salt,
Deep milk chocolate, $7.50
Bacon and chocolate? Shouldn't this be illegal?

the real me

How do we like? I figured new city, new look. I'm still tinkering with a few things, but check out the new tags section. I had no idea that all I think about is Milan Fashion Week, Movie Trailers, and Women I Love. Speaking of such women, I highly recommend checking out Mike Leigh's "Happy-Go-Lucky." It's an honest, funny, and ultimately moving film about the power of optimism in spite of the ugliness and cynicism that has become the cultural fog no one can seem to snap out of with the exception of star Sally Hawkins as Poppy, the effervescent and eternally happy school teacher. A film that opens with its heroine blissfully riding on a bike with the wind passing through her hair, perma-smile stretched across her face, and the eccentricity of a true independent soul gleaming from within is the perfect expression of freedom as true happiness. Hopefully we can all keep smiling and keep rowing as she so succinctly puts it at the film's end.

young folks

My new favorite song to listen to in the morning while trying to shove my way onto the A train.

the pick up artist

Sketches by Richard Haines
What I Saw Today
I'm glad someone else finds this city so inspiring.

topsy turvy

Sutherland wool-cashmere topcoat
J. Crew, $388
I was in a Staples of all places the other day and saw a three quarter length topcoat on a fellow shopper and suddenly it all clicked. I need one as well. I'm tall and slim enough for it look just right. J. Crew, why must you insist on being so expensive during this economic crisis?

high and low

Two crowds I'd care not to deal with again for sometime: Designer sample sales and Forever 21 at Union Square. I elbowed my way through the masses and got two pieces perfect for fall and winter layering.

Heritage 1981 Button Down
$21.50, Forever 21
Raf by Raf Simons Short Sleeve Button Down
about $300, on sale for $50

nsfw

Speaking of Mr. West, I will be the first and surely not the last to say I hate his new sound. I appreciate when artist wants to make a clear statement, and am so willing to believe in statements that might be ahead of their time, but what Kanye has so exceptionally done so far in his career is appropriate the genre conventions, aesthetics, and sounds of a non-hip-hop universe and make them his own that somehow still appeal to the contemporary hip-hop audience with the exception of the space he's venturing into for his latest album, "808s and Heartbreaks." "The Graduate" was the perfect balance between Kanye's interest in electro-house music and hip-hop street cred, a bold move for a hip-hop pop artist. His decision to record his new album entirely using Auto-Tune and singing, instead of rapping, on every track is a terrible one that shows his limitations as a vocalist, not something entirely required for the success of a rapper, but definitely for a balladeer. For an album that is supposed to be his emotional opus (his recent break-up album and the death of his mother have surely had an effect on him), it makes no sense that he chooses a device that makes a person sound like a robot, instead of emphasizing the emotions of disappointment, frustration, and loss through his actual voice. On top of that, his album listening party consisted of forty naked women in afro wigs courtesy of artist Vanessa Beecroft, a stunt and a misfire for his appreciation of mind-expanding contemporary art. Is it just me or is that the most poured on thick schlock of this artist's near asexuality? There usually seems to be a wink in his eye with his obsessive posting of hot girls on his blog, but this seems a bit extreme for a gathering of people like Michael Rappaport and Audrina Patridge. Let's not forget his latest video was an homage to "American Psycho." If he's truly channeling Patrick Bateman, then perhaps this will all be a nasty dream we'll soon forget.

reeeeeeeemmmmmmiiiiiiiiiixxxxxxx!!!!

I want to hate MGMT, but I can't resist this remix. Add to the equation Kanye in non-Auto Tune mode and it's good, right? Right?

mia

Dear Readers,

Excuse the lack of posts. Consider this a breather for not only me, but you as well before things pick back up. Adjusting to a new city and finding work can be time consuming beyond belief and as a result, draining on all fronts, especially my creativity. The fashion month coverage was more sparse than what I'd care for it to have been on this blog, but you can check out the dozens of reviews I wrote on the 212DRESSINGROOM blog and I'd recommend taking a peek at Bitch, Please's extensive reviews. Overall, I thought it was a weak season. Women are going to have a tough time balancing on insanely high heels and not looking ridiculous in harem panted jumpsuits or transparent laden pieces. The collections that really said something beyond what the trends dictated were the ones that really stuck out as defiantly beautiful and innovative with a bit of accessibility. If women's fashion has the edge of fantasy over men's, that's what should come through in the designs, however women of today need something functional and ultimately comfortable, wearable, and fitted to their own personalities. A seemingly impossibly magic trick to pull off, but it's what keeps fashion relevant and evolutionary.

Here are the top collections of the Spring/Summer 2009 season:

Dries Van Noten
Jil Sander
Narciso Rodriguez
Marc Jacobs
Ann Demeulemeester
Lanvin
Giles Deacon
Yves Saint Laurent
Calvin Klein
Balenciaga

paris: the song we sing

What would be the ideal music for a show in which the models looked like demented Fellini heroines wearing harem pants? A mean, throbbing UNKLE song remixed by DFA, of course. Once again, Stefano Pilati and DJ Michel Gaubert expertly choose the perfect song to complement a seductive and expressive collection.