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subscribe to style file blog via RSSScreaming Mimi’s Gets Hell-Bent For Leather
November 6, 2009 3:45 pm
If the covetable leather pieces that walked the Spring 2010 runways have you wishing it were already March, here’s a little something to chase away the November rain: Screaming Mimi’s, the downtown vintage shop beloved by hipsters and drag queens alike, is releasing an all-leather archive this month, culled from the personal collection of a certain leather daddy with a thing for fine craftsmanship.
The good news for you? The anonymous donor was a fairly petite man, meaning the collection should fit most women sized 4 through 8. Chaps aside, the guy had some great taste. Chic motorcycle jackets, jodhpur-style shorts, and gloves from the seventies, eighties, and nineties should fit easily into any girl’s wardrobe—and the more daring can splurge on a vest with “Masters Kick Ass, Slaves Lick Boots” spelled out in studs.
These one-of-a-kind pieces (many of them custom) debut November 18, with prices ranging from $125 to $2,800. They’re a great way to kick-start Spring’s leather trend (think of the covetable tees and tanks at 3.1 Phillip Lim, Celine, and Balmain) before Fall ‘09 even hits the sale rack. We think your anonymous benefactor will be glad his collection is getting a stylish second act. And while we can’t be sure, we’re willing to bet a thigh-length leather dress will look better on you than it did on him.
382 Lafayette St., NYC, (212) 677-6464, www.screamingmimis.com.
tags: 3.1 Phillip Lim, Balmain, Celine
Expert Advice: How To Gift Costume Jewelry
November 6, 2009 10:02 am
It’s approximately two weeks until Black Friday. Take a breath. There’s still time to consider the thoughtful gift, like a beautiful piece of vintage costume jewelry. Needless to say, that venture involves more effort than others, but according to jewelry collector and historian Deanna Farneti Cera, it’s entirely worth it. “It’s not something you can just buy. You have to choose it,” explains Farneti Cera, whose friends usually know what they’re getting come Christmas. “It’s totally unique. It’s extremely improbable that you’ll find someone with the same piece.” To ease the shopping path, Farneti Cera has been selling off parts of her sizable personal collection of vintage bijoux through Yoox.com. There’s another sale starting today featuring pieces from Coppola e Toppo (including the dégradé beaded necklace pictured here for $2,250), the influential Italian house that created pieces for Emilio Pucci and Valentino. But we asked Farneti Cera to give us some pointers on how to shop smart for the perfect vintage bauble this holiday season.
1. Know Thy Giftee This might seem obvious, but Farneti Cera stresses the point. “More than with contemporary jewelry, you give a gift of vintage jewelry to someone when you know how they think, how they dress,” she says. “It gives a very personal imprint.”
2. Buy Pre-2000 OK, 1999 might seem a stretch as vintage, but for Farneti Cera, the year 2000 is something of a jewelry watershed. “Anything made before then is higher quality,” she explains. “The whole global market hadn’t appeared then. What is stamped ‘Made In Italy’ was actually made in Italy.”
3. France Rules, Mostly Oh, the French. Le sigh. There are few areas of aesthetics they haven’t conquered. “Every time, the leadership is in France,” says Farneti Cera. “Chanel, Schiaparelli, Roger Jean-Pierre for Dior in the fifties, Cardin in the seventies.” She does, however, make exceptions for American pieces made in the forties and Italian ones from the eighties.
4. Trust Your Instincts (Well, Some of You) According to Farneti Cera, names matter, but so does your gut. “In my opinion, everything that has somehow a wonderful history behind it such as Gripoix for Chanel or Schlumberger for Schiaparelli is worth looking for,” she says. “But something is not necessarily beautiful because its trademark is Chanel or Dior. Follow your eyes, your taste, your heart. Or let yourself be guided by someone who knows what’s good.”
5. Clicks, Then Bricks “Nowadays the best place that gives you a precise idea of what’s out there is the Web,” she says. But if you’re not ultra-knowledgeable, Farneti Cera advises going to department stores with vintage sections or hitting good antique shows, like the Pier Antiques Show at Pier 94 coming up soon on November 14 and 15. “You can compare prices. You can ask for evidence of the information,” she says. “A good sign is whether a dealer is ready to guarantee his merchandise and let you make a return.”
tags: Chanel, Christian Dior, Roger Jean-Pierre, Schiaparelli
On Our Radar : Delfina Delettrez’s Silver Finger Ring And Nail Polish Set
November 5, 2009 4:16 pm
We get excited about customized gifts. (Who could say no, for example, to a personalized Goyard bag or a fur with one’s initials embroidered in the lining?) Delfina Delettrez is offering a much less traditional take on the idea with her silver finger ring, which comes with a bottle of nail polish. It’s a concept that’s frankly both creepy and creative, and it left us wondering: 1. Should you match your jewelry’s mani to your own? and 2. Whatever will they say—and charge—for a polish change at the local nail salon?
About $370, www.delfinadelettrez.com.
tags: Delfina Delettrez, Goyard
No Word From No. 6
November 5, 2009 11:30 am
Let’s state right off that celebrities deserve a modicum of privacy. That said, we kind of wish that Karin Berenson, one of the proprietors of Nolita boutique No. 6, would be a little more gossipy about her star shoppers. Having lately spotted items from the No. 6-carried line Electric Feathers on Kim Gordon, Michelle Williams, and Jamie Bochert, we stopped in to see if Berenson would drop any other names.
“Ugh,” she replied, when asked to confirm our suspicion that Electric Feathers was becoming an under-the-radar must-have. “I really don’t like to give out that information. I mean, there’s someone who just bought a piece, who I’m sure you’d like to know about, but I just can’t say. I can tell you that we’ve been doing really well with the jumpsuits.” A little more digging turned up evidence that Erin Wasson, Irina Lazareanu, and Julia Stegner have all worn Electric Feathers, the brainchild of Brooklyn-based designer Leana Zuniga. The label is an editor and stylist favorite, too. And Berenson was willing to go on the record about its appeal—namely, the anti-hype sensibility that makes it stand out. “The pieces are distinctive, but they’re so understated, there’s an anonymous quality,” she noted. “It’s not like you’re going to walk around in Electric Feathers and feel that everyone knows what you’re wearing.” Well, maybe now everyone will.
No. 6, 6 Centre Market Place, NYC, (212) 226-5759.
tags: Electric Feathers, Jamie Bochert, Kim Gordon, Michelle Williams
On Our Radar: Club Monaco Aliandra Sequined Blazer
November 4, 2009 4:43 pm
I always like to have bold pieces in my wardrobe. Basics? They’re not really my thing. (My mom often complains, “Can’t you just buy something simple?” Sorry, Mom—no!) So when I first saw this Club Monaco sequined blazer, no surprise, it went straight to the top of my shopping list. Now I’m just waiting for it to hit stores so I can get my hands on one, but thankfully it won’t take long. It arrives mid-November, just in time for my holiday parties.
$295, available at Club Monaco stores nationwide, www.clubmonaco.com.
tags: Club Monaco
On Our Radar: Benjamin Montoya’s Douglas Shades
November 3, 2009 5:28 pm
Benjamin Montoya, proprietor of L.A. spec shop City of Angels, has carved out an interesting niche for himself in the eyewear trade. Time and again, Montoya has taken classic sunglass shapes—the wayfarer, the aviator, the cat-eye—and tweaked them just enough so they look totally fresh. His latest creation, the Douglas sunglass, manages that trick nicely, riffing on the round shades that have been all the rage but making the lens un-round, detailing the frame in metal, and adding optional clip-on lenses. What with Daylight Savings Time, we aren’t seeing much sun here in New York, but these specs make me hungry for some.
$350 (without clip-on) or $500 (with clip-on), available at www.leeleelu.com.
tags: Benjamin Montoya
Phaidon Pops Up in Soho
November 2, 2009 5:44 pm
Now that Halloween is behind us, holiday shopping season begins. Not officially, of course, but those of you who like to get a head start on the annual gift-grab ought to wander to the new PHAIDON|STORE, which opens today in Soho. Taking up a cool 2,500 square feet on Wooster Street, the pop-up shop sells every book in the Phaidon Press catalog; it’s also the only place you can find the art publisher’s new series of Collector’s Editions: signed, numbered, specially bound editions of select titles that come with an original silver gelatin or C-print signed by the artist. Photographer Roger Ballen, whose Gagosian Gallery show opens later this week, is one artist whose work has been Collector’s Edition-ized by Phaidon; so, too, Stephen Shore, Jeff Wall, and Danny Lyon, all of whom have new work up at PHAIDON|STORE. Limited editions are one good way to get people to stop dillydallying and start holiday shopping; a firm deadline is another one. The first and only free-standing Phaidon shop in the U.S., PHAIDON|STORE packs up its racks in January. In other words: Stop procrastinating.
tags: Danny Lyon, Jeff Wall, Phaidon, Roger Ballen, Stephen Shore
On Our Radar: 3.1 Phillip Lim Brogue
November 2, 2009 11:48 am
Phillip Lim’s new shoe collection recently hit the sales floor of his Mercer Street boutique. I’m head over heels for the entire line, but these shiny gold brogues especially captured my heart. They’d look amazing with a cuffed wool pant and crisp white shirt, or even a floaty skirt and wool tights. The only problem? Other shoppers who wear 38.5s apparently had the same reaction; my size is completely sold out. I have to wait for the next shipment to arrive (Lim’s shoes are only available at his two stores), but maybe you’ll have more luck.
$495, available at 3.1 Phillip Lim, NYC and L.A.
tags: Phillip Lim
Tory Burch Puts Her Stamp On Sunglasses
October 29, 2009 3:26 pm
Tory Burch is in expansion mode. Costume jewelry and swimwear are on the agenda, and her new range of sunglasses launched online at www.toryburch.com earlier this week. “I always lose my sunglasses,” the designer said. “That’s one of the reasons this is such an important collection to me. I wanted to find a price point where it would be OK if you lost them.” She’s sort of joking, but Burch is proud to note that the majority of the line retails for less than $200, including the foldable aviator shields, pictured here, that she’s recently been sporting around town. The designer has been an aviator fan since she was 13. “My first pair were black, gold-rimmed Ray-Bans,” she told us. “I thought I was very cool.” The collection also features oversize squares and oversize rounds à la Jackie O, both with fairly subtle logo detailing on the arms. For a limited time, returns are free on eyewear bought on the Web site—very cool indeed.
tags: Tory Burch
On Our Radar: Gap Body Pullover
October 29, 2009 11:30 am
How great is it that sweatshirts are considered high fashion this season? The runways were ripe with examples—Isabel Marant paired hers with flirty skirts and studded boots—but we’re loving Gap Body’s heathered raglan pullovers. They have a slim fit and sleek neckline, and they’re only $29.50. I’ve already picked up two of them.
Available at Gap stores nationwide, www.gap.com.
tags: Gap
