Black Friday in Manhattan

This Black Friday I went to Bloomingdales, DKNY, Barney's, Bendel's and Bergdorfs.

Key points at Bloomingdales: Lots of people on the contemporary floor- looked like mostly self shopping. They had fabulous holiday dresses and tops and it seemed to be the bulk of interest. I went up to the sleepwear floor since sleepwear usually sells so well at Xmas- there was almost no one there. On the other hand- the bra sales rack were swarmed. No one was looking at regularly priced racks. In the windows- it was all Juicy Couture- a big push for that even throughout the store in multiple departments.

DKNY: Now this came as a surprise to me: They had a deal where it was buy 2 sale items get one for $1. Now note- everything was on sale and it all looked like early fall leftovers. All racks had the "buy 2 get one for $1 tag on them" with the $1 as the biggest attention grabber. It all looked pretty low budget and needless to say- it was difficult to find 2 things you wanted to buy in the firstplace.

Barney's: Their theme was "Have a Hippie Holiday". They had 60's music playing and has large peace signs throughout the store. Other than the windows and decor- I did not see much "peace and love"about the fashions- other than some psychadelic color- playing into this theme.

Bergdorf's-Bergdorfs definitely gets first prize again this year for their AMAZING window. Every window was all white and silver and had a "Winter Wonderland" feeling. Absolutely beautiful. Then inside the first floor as decorated with white boughs and silver pinecones- very luxe but homey too. It definitely gets you into the gift giving mood.

Bendels: Has an "Arabian Nights" theme on their main floor. They had life size ostriches dripped in jewels on all main tables. All about color and luxury. Merchandise was bejewelled and full of glitz and skins to play into the theme. Very fun.

Overall- not as many shoppers as I would have expected. 5th avenue was full of shoppers compared to other areas but people were not carrying many bags this year- On average only 1 if they had on at all.

I think with everyone being so cautious this year people are waiting later to buy because then it will feel more like a "necessity" because of the deadline. Seems that shoppers will justify a good sale item for themselves anytime.

Overall themes in trend were very schizophrenic from store to store. Could be a case of throwing anything against the wall to see what sticks in uncertain times but very different tastes are definitely being targeted between these store that normally have a lot of cross shopping.

Bad Hair in Advertising

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Men in Suits- An AMA Recap

It is a great time for men's fashion. It wasn't that long ago when music awards meant little more than showing up in a tee shirt and jeans (think Eminem in all his rebelliousness). Now men (and boys)are showing up in suits and looking positively gentlemanly and super ferosh! Is this the Gossip Girl effect tricking down? We particularly like the Ralph Lauren suits worn by the Jonas brothers during their live performance.
Some tips from Tasty:
Do not attempt the slim shiny suit/ skinny tie look unless
1. You are between the ages of 16-33
2. You are slim and lanky
3. You are Joe McHale or some other celebrity/musician/ entertainment industry worker
4. You are at an evening event or party
5. To pull of this look in places other than La La land- rock the jacket and tie with some slim black slacks or slim dark wash denim.

I am feeling the need to express how thrilled I am that last Friday CNN wrote an article yesterday about first lady fashion (This is the article if your interested http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/homestyle/11/21/fashion.first.ladies.ap/index.html). I have to say that on election night I found myself fascinated in what Michelle Obama was wearing. Bangle bracelets, hoop earrings, hair that did not look like a helmet. jacked arms and a fabulous Narcisco Rodriguez dress. Although the dress with its unusual criss cross waist detail in my opinion was a brazen choice that she herself did not look completely comfortable in- I applauded her move to take that giant step out the box and try something unexpected. It was so cliche' to see Sarah Palin and Cindy McCain exiting the stage on election night in identical basic blah blah first lady suit dresses and coiffed hairdos. Obama was a breath of fresh fashion air. So what will Michelle be wearing on Inaugeration night on January 2009? For the inaugeration we recommend:
from left: A ruffled boucle' long jacket from St. John, a stunning draped dress from Luca Luca or a belted tweed jacket with sequined tweed skirt from Oscar de la Renta. Stunning!

Gucci's Man Fragrance ad

On the left: A raccoon
On the right: James Franco for Gucci

Franco's expression looks as though you surprised him while he was rummaging through your trash.
Think about it.

LEGGINGS ARE NOT PANTS!!!!!!!!!!

Blair Waldorf was correct. I don't care how good you think you look in leggings- wear a dress or long top over it. You know who you are. Please. Stop. Now.
On other news- liquid leggings are never ok at work. If your goal is to be taken less seriously then suit up because it's working. I have seen them worn mostly in black but I have had the unfortunate coincidence to see them in silver as well. This does not look good nor does it make me happy.
With so much fabulous hosiery and legwear out there this season there are endless possibilites if it's something different you are after. I am loving these 2 pairs of tights- the first from Marks and Spencer and the second from Topshop. They are unique and fun but also warm and appropriate! Blair would approve- please just wear them with a dress.

Economic Downer

Today I went to some department stores and I have to say- YAAAWWNN. One store made a glimmer of effort with pre-packaged "gifts to go"on tables littered throughout the store while the racks had the same old crap I saw there months ago. And I mean crap. If this stuff was in my closet I would donate it. I definitely got the feeling nothing's moving. I saw Christmas items marked down today at 40-50% off! It's November 19th.
There was also buzz (and this is sick) that a certain retailer was handing out coupons in the subway with a lottery ticket stapled to it so people would take it. What's next- a fashion show at the OTB? Pret-a-Potty!!
A survey posted by Forbes.com states, "shoppers plan an average total spend of $546 this year, which is a 14 percent decline compared to $637 from the 2007."
What do you think are this holiday's big bets and what will fall flat?

Random Fashion Quote of the Day

Random Homeless Man on the Subway sings, "I like Victoria's Secret- everything's unisex. Men like dresses, especially in the Village."

The mother of invention

Necessity really is the mother of invention- or in this case creation. After years of coming home from work detailing out faux pas and golf claps over outfits I had seen over the course of the day to my fully uninterested live in- He said,- (unselfishly I'm sure)- why don't you start a blog? So what will I write about? Cry for help outfits I see on the streets of NY and fabulous ensembles and the women I hate because they get to wear them.
More seriously- I will be blogging about what I think will be hot and coming up in trends. More than for you (sorry readers) I need this blog as a brain stairmaster for me to work on designing future collections and being a fashion phenom (obviously).

Until next time