Uniqlo + J

I was going to go to Uniqlo because I felt like I needed a new beanie, but this was the line outside of the store:

Two days after the debut of the Jil Sander for Uniqlo line, they are still making people wait outside….I looked inside the store, and it was no more crowded than usual.  Marketing tactic I guess.

The infamous minimalist that was pushed out of her eponymous label in 2004 has since established a new relationship with Uniqlo.  Her first project for the Japanese fast fashion retailer is a ~100 piece women’s collection and ~40 piece men’s collection, with items ranging from outerwear to knitwear to accessories.  Below is a sampling of some of things you can now find in the store.

Hmm…worth the wait?

Random Foolishness

Me, Alia and Andreyna acting up at the Bijules / Henrik Vibskov / Eva party at Beast in Chinatown a couple of weeks ago. Courtesy of Joyce Eleny.

Rendez-Vous New York

Rendez-Vous returned to New York for its second installment from September 18-21. Juma was there along with tens of other designers from across the country and globe.  This time, only Alia was able to make the trip, but we had a great time hanging out at the show, and galavanting around Manhattan and Williamsburg.

Unlike Vegas, I made sure to take pictures of my favorite Juma pieces.  It was a great collection, and I’m excited to see how consumers respond when the clothing hits retailers in a few months!

Here is a pic of Alia at the show in front of Juma’s hot, new banner showcasing pics from their most recent campaign.

One of my favorite women’s looks this season is this black v-neck dress.  The body of the dress is made of a cotton knit fabric, but it is accompanied by a cotton-nylon blend woven that creates the interesting shape along the front.  It reminds of the shape of a razor-back vest, which scoops down to create the oversized pockets.  I think the dress is chic, forward, but understated. 

Naturally though, I focused more of my attention on the menswear.  One of my favorite additions this season is a cropped version of the lablel’s popular drop-crop trousers.  Big fan of the pockets added to the legs of the pants.  Here’s a pic of a pair in charcoal:

I was also a big fan of the sweaters added this season.  This gray, zip-up cardigan with the large pocket along the left side is one of my favorites.  The pocket is created with a fabric of a contrasting texture…the same cotton-nylon blend woven used in the dress shown above, and in a lot of the other pieces this season.  Once again, Juma takes a classic silhouette and makes it their own with subtle, yet incredibly thoughtful detailing.  Love it!

Okay, maybe I didn’t do a great job of taking pictures because that’s all I have….To be fair, I did bring my camera, but failed to realize that it was completely uncharged, so I was relegated to using my iphone again.

I always seem to have some excuse…hmm, I tried.  I’ll try harder next time though.

Deuces Wall Street

Peace out Investment Banking!  After a year+ of residence in purgatory, God has triumphed over Lucifer and I am freeee!!!  I guess I’m being a bit dramatic, but its good to finally be on the path towards something that I am passionate about.

This is how I felt skipping home on my last day:

To be entirely honest though, leaving was surprisingly bittersweet.  I expected only to be radiating sunbeams upon my departure, but instead, I felt my tear ducts activating a bit…I did work with some (emphasis on the some) genuinely good people, and I’m especially going to miss my fellow analysts.

However, I’m incredibly excited about my new job at Gilt Groupe, and am pretty anxious to get started with the new chapter of my life.

The question that remains is what to do about this blog…the concept doesn’t really work anymore now that i’m no longer a banker…I’ll keep updating content for now, but be on the look out for a new blog to launch sometime in the near future.

My Up Close and Personal Encounter with Anna Wintour

and by “encounter,” I mean, we were in the same room…but to be fair, she was pretty darn close.  “how close?” you ask…??  This close:

“and where were you?” you ask…?  actually, you probably don’t really care, but I was at the Tory Burch presentation.  Here’s a picture of the Wintour and Tory together:

Courtesy of Tiffany.

Oh yea, there were clothes at this event too, which were surprisingly decent.  Absent from this season’s collection were the multi-colored motifs which initially defined Tory’s aesthetic.  With more subtle patterns and color palette, the designer created a collection that was young, modern, cute, which will speak well to her targeted audience.  There was also great range within the collection, which had everything from blazers, suits, jackets, skirts, dresses, shorts, cardis…even cropped leather pants.  This diversity also extended into the designers choices of fabrics and textures, which included knits, nylons, leather, and lace (well, maybe not lace, but it worked for the alliteration).  While this range may bode well in stores, I did find it to be a hindrance to the overall cohesiveness of the collection.  I mean…how often do you find cropped leather pants next to a pink, tweed, two-piece skirt suit?  However, less a couple of seemingly misplaced looks, the designer did stick to her traditional boho-chic aesthetic, as there was an abundance of tie-dye and boyfriend-fitting clothing…

No, the collection didn’t leave me feeling inspired, but I don’t think this was the designer’s desire or intention.  Is it fashion?  eh.  Will it sell?  Most definitely.

Below are some pics taken at the presentation:

‘Performance’

Vogue Italia. September 2009.  by Steven Meisel. 

As anticipated, reports show that Fashion Night Out was a popular success, but commercial flop.  Retailers managed to draw crowds, but failed to entice attendees to purchase.  I’m not sure what made the planners of the event think that it would increase spending…the format of the event really didn’t encourage shopping.  The crowds in most stores were definitely too big for shoppers to really peruse the racks, or try on clothing.  I think that if CFDA / Vogue plans to do this again, they should abandon sales as a goal for the evening, but rather think of the event as a promotional tactic, and devise ways of encourage attendees to come back to the stores at another time…i think the event did do a good job of getting the public excited about fashion though.  Maybe it will have some long term benefit…? 

Read more about it on Forbes.com: http://www.forbes.com/2009/09/17/fashion-night-out-lifestyle-style-anna-wintour-vogue.html

its always strange when I spend the evening mingling among fashion-types, then button up a few hours later to go to work…not to mention that walking down Bedford Ave. in the morning is like a fashion competition, and my 3-button suit definitely comes in last place. 

updates from the week to follow shortly, including my intimate encounter with Anna Wintour…as soon as I can find my camera cord to upload pictures…