Leandra Medine's Blog, page 709

The Chatroom: Jenna Lyons

Welcome to The Chatroom, a new video series that will chronicle conversations with women who are cooler than cucumbers but better because they’re also more interesting. Each woman has demonstrated a strong sense of personal style, intelligence, and overall wit. Roll those attributes into a human and you, my friends, have an icon.

If you learn one thing about me, let it be that I like lipstick and love words.

Red lips.

Big words.

I tell you this because The Chatroom includes both — partially thanks to NARS and a new line of lipstick that possibly consulted the thesaurus of life when it decided to call itself Audacious Lipstick. Since the adjectives used to define the lipstick (all named after iconic women, mind you) are the same words one might use to define the women I admire — “Dramatic Depth. Unstoppable Character” – together we decided to celebrate the audacious ladies with glitter. And hummus. And a video.

For our first installment of The Chatroom, I sat down with the inimitable Jenna Lyons, President and Creative Director of J. Crew, to talk through style, inspiration, and the perfect way to cuff your button-down. Go watch!

You already did? Then there you have it: if the lives of both Jenna and myself depended on blind lipstick application, she would continue to live and I would not. Thankfully, however, life-dependent on lipstick we are not — not literally at least — which should give me ample time to step up my game. Most likely with Carmen in hand.

New installments of The Chatroom will be released on Mondays throughout September which should make Sunday nights especially more enjoyable.

Next up: Rashida Jones.

This series is sponsored by NARS.

The One Sentence Review: 3.1 Phillip Lim, Rag & Bone

If I had dollar for every time I’ve thought, nay uttered, the term, “elevated sportswear,” I’d definitely be able to afford all of the, you know, elevated sportswear permeating this fashion week — and I’d likely start at 3.1 Phillip Lim where a group of pastel citrus dresses, crop tank-tops, shorts and belted vests opened a show in a way that eloquently said, “I’m going to gym,” but only with a smirk that forced your eyes toward ankle length and then said, “JK, no I’m not,” but before you could condemn the models for tricking you, there you were: caught in a love trap, among deep green jackets and sheer navy pants, loose hanging waist straps and messy-haired buns that will be hard not to try to emulate.

See strap run! Rag and Bone was one of the first brands to exploit the prevalence of sportswear within high fashion with a collection for Spring 2013 that featured myriad bright color and multifarious straps that dangled and while last night may have remained largely monochromatic across a safari-inclined color spectrum, the straps were there — in some instances, on models who wore leather underwear as shorts. One word: cool.

Images via The Cut

Where DNA Trumps Evolution

The millennial generation is said to be composed of two disparate groups. There are the technology immigrants and the natives. What separates the two is simply a matter of time. While the former group, born earlier, had to learn social media, the latter has it built into its younger DNA. Yesterday at fashion week presented the question: can this concept of native vs. immigrant be applied to fashion?

Public School showed their SS15 collection yesterday at Milk Studios in a show that resembled a high-level party bus with its dense celebrity front row, white confetti covered floors and a soundtrack, being spun by a DJ as part of the shows decor right across the photo pit. While I sat and observed as a deluge of black pants and tailored waist coats rap-walked* down the two-aisled runway, I wondered why the brand has accrued the hype it has.

Conclusion? The cool factor. Not even a cinched waist or skater style silk skirt set in a water color print could compromise an iota of swagger from the label. This brand, at its core, is a product of the most prominent shift to permeate fashion: “elevated sportswear” and street-wear. And with Public School, there’s no learning curve, no need to adjust to changing times in fashion. This brand maintains an inherent sense of cool that belongs as much to it as Instagram does to a later born Gen Y’er.

Another brand that seems well aware of its place within fashion is Derek Lam, who reminds me on a seasonal basis that fashion week is not about reinventing the wheel. Quite the contrary — as a designer, there is one obligation and that is to create clothes that people will want to wear. In order to do that well, of course, the designer’s point of view must be taken into account, it must be massaged and handled with care. As seasons progress, this point of view should be made to feel a little bit fresher, perhaps more polished, but it should never become something different all together. Displaying a group of high-rise flared, streamlined pants, blouses that surprise you with their cut out details and bibs and then the season’s update: a heavy emphasis on the 70s in the form of suede purple patches, Derek Lam seems to underscore how well he and his partner Jan Hendrik Schlottman understand this every single season.

At Thakoon, Mr. Panichgul referenced at least three themes but melded them together so seamlessly and elegantly that you probably couldn’t even tell that what you were saw was a marriage of varying tribal (beaded tassels),  tropical (Tahitian floral prints) and French (one particular bordeaux-colored robe de chambre) origins. Though this wheel may have appeared vaguely reinvented, the Thakoon blueprints still stood strong with at least four cinched waist lines and a particularly resplendent play on unique, muted colors and varying prints.

Where Sunday ended, a new era for Versus Versace began. The brand tapped Anthony Vaccarrello as its newest designer, working alongside Donatella the Great. And it only took a mere glance at the collection for it to come together in one large resounding “duh.” With its emphasis on black, gold detailing, leggy, leggy legs and the geometric swirls emblematic of the Versace brand, Vaccarrello, known for the sex appeal he infuses into the high fashion world with his eponymous label may very well have found that while he’s largely an immigrant where Versus is concerned, he displays the character traits of a native, breathing precisely the air of relevance its craves into the lungs of its DNA.

All Images via Style.com

What is Happening Outside of NYFW?

Hey, guess what? Even though it’s New York Fashion Week, the world keeps turning. Funny how that happens. Here are 7 things that happened beyond the bubble:

1. Kate Middleton is Pregnant Again

According to the Clarence House Twitter account, (which is the royal residence in London, ICYMI), the Duchess of Cambridge a.k.a Kate Middleton is pregnant with royal baby #2. Prince George better watch the throne. [Daily Mail]

2. Serena Williams Wins U.S. Open Title  

Clad in a leopard-print uniform, Serena Williams won her 5th U.S. Open title, and her 17th Grand Slam title overall on Sunday. Afterwards, she even had the energy to take her opponent, Caroline Wozniacki, out for a drink. What a lady. [ESPN]

3. Guess Who Won the US Shoe-Open?

Stan Smith, again. On September 10th, Colette, Dover Street Market and Barneys will release an exclusive, all-white Adidas Stan Smith collection, which will no-doubt be a fashion week street style staple. (Okay, this isn’t beyond the bubble, but it’s news that’s too good to miss.)

4. A Taxi Service Just for Women

Starting September 16th, 2014 a new app called SheRides will offer taxi services similar to Uber and Lyft, but exclusively for female riders who feel safer and more comfortable with female drivers. Trying to catch me ridin’ girly? [NYTimes]

5. A Robot That Will Help You Win Tinder

For those who live their life according to the Lil Wayne song “Every Girl.” [Gizmodo]

(No matches yet, I see. Keep trying.)

6. While we’re on the topic of 21st century gadgets, allow us to acquaint you with the selfie hairbrush. That’s right, it is a hairbrush that takes selfies. Let that one ruminate. [Engadget]

7. Starbucks Doesn’t Know What’s in Their Pumpkin Spice Lattes  

Is it just me or did pumpkin spice latte season happen a lot earlier this year? Regardless, there isn’t really a good time to have a pumpkin spice latte because newsflash: they’re really, really bad for you. I know, I know! They’re delicious! But the list of ingredients will make you reconsider. [Jezebel]

Ok we tried. Can you tell us some pop culture stuff we missed so that we don’t sound so weird at dinner tonight?

Images via Michael Middleton and DON EMMERT/AFP/Getty Images & Adidas

The One Sentence Review: The Row

Have you ever mulled over a particular sentence for so long that after a while, you weren’t even sure what it meant anymore? Fashion designers are so lucky because when they do that (proverbially) the result is often a really smart, really edited, highly directional collection that makes sense and feels familiar in a way that appears not stale but just confident — and such was certainly the case this morning at The Row when a series of gold and burnt orange and navy and cream looks in a combination of foreign, rich fabrics and good old poplin, some caped, many belted and tied together in huge knots that accentuated the female waist but also celebrated the deflection of the male gaze stood to tell the story of Spring.

That was two sentences. Sue me.

This is What NYFW Sounds Like

There are always sirens. Always. They don’t exaggerate the noise in the movies when depicting New York City, so much so that the stereotype is true about New Yorkers having a hard time falling asleep when it’s quiet. I think the sirens get louder during fashion week though, maybe because everyone’s a little bit more stressed than normal or maybe because all five senses are on overload.

Music, then, feels like a reprieve.

When you finally escape the frantic hubbub surrounding the race to get to your seat in time, and the lights go dark and the runway begins to vibrate with models’ footsteps as they prepare to emerge from backstage like racehorses at the gate, the first note that hits the air sets the tone for what’s about to happen; a killer song at the end can change your whole opinion of a show.

You don’t have to get all philosophical about it either. Sometimes a designer’s soundtrack is simply on point (Lacoste, for example, always has the best music) and you spend the whole time deciding what’s more important: taking pictures, or Shazaming each track.

Pro tip: bring two phones.

One of my favorite “finds” of the season (AKA thank you for the ear candy, BCBG) is Kwamie Liv. You’ll like her if you’re into Lana Del Rey:

As for the rest of the best so far, check out the playlist below. We’ll keep updating it, of course, but I still have one more question…

NYFW Sounds Like This by Man Repeller on Grooveshark

What’s your favorite, what’s your least favorite, and if you were playing deejay for your favorite designer, what would you put on the runway playlist?

Image via FabSugar

Music Selects from: Derek Lam, DKNY, Rebecca Taylor, BCBG, Richard Chai Love, Baha East, Cushnie et Ochs & Lacoste

“Streetwear” is a Loaded Term

As a model glided down the runway with impressive agility, two shiny black crutches nestled under his arms for the purpose of accessory rather than utility, it was clear we had entered Shayne Oliver’s dystopian world of Hood by Air: a universe laden with diversity and androgyny, where misfits are the cool kids.

Hood by Air is most often is referred to as a “Streetwear” label, but that moniker, which is about as diluted as the word “cool,” has come to characterize a style which connotes comfort, ease, and casualness. It is not news that high fashion has been steadily moving to corner the streetwear market, and with the explosion of Normcore and sneakers being as ubiquitous as heels, it is only fitting that more commercial brands are adopting this ethos.

An hour later at DKNY, a brand which self-identifies as streetwear, ponytailed girls clad in stripes sauntered out with ease thanks to the thick-soled sneakers festooning their feet. The collection erred more toward the girly and flirty than past seasons, but still capitalized on the sporty, clean silhouettes intrinsic to the brand’s aesthetic. The garments play into the widespread understanding of streetwear; they’re laid-back and comfortable.

Oliver’s designs, by contrast, subvert and disrupt our senses in their simultaneously utilitarian and hyper avant-garde feel. He plays into the idea of streetwear as a subculture, one which projects an ideology rooted in self-expression and individualism, championing the outrageous and absurd. His collections seem to  unite his fervent fans who, when the show concluded, leapt out of their seats– not in a mad dash to the exit, but rather to give Oliver a standing ovation.

Runway images via The Cut  

A Day in the Life During Fashion Week

A few days during fashion week can feel like a huge, 72-hour blur, which is why I feel it necessary to tell you that my dad drove me to Derek Lam Sunday morning.

Let’s flip it and reverse it from there, starting Saturday morning at 7:00 AM.

I wake up early to write my review of Suno, Cushnie and Zimmermann. I should have done this last night but nothing thrills me more than the stress of a deadline. That will either be my epitaph quote or biography title — probably the latter since earlier this summer Leandra and I decided I should call my first book, “I Was Told There’d be Crab.”

10 AM: The first show of the day is actually a preview for Adam Lippes. It’s by my house so I decide to walk – a great idea as I cut through scenic Washington Square Park to take in the sights of the lingering summer days. Oh look, bubbles!

It’s a decidedly terrible idea by the time I arrive sweaty and frizzy at a beautiful townhouse on WSP North. 90 degrees can bake a muffin, you know. And my hair tie broke.

The collection, however, is gorgeous. There are tassels on red and navy silks, crisp white shirts and fine, razor-frayed edges that I had to lean in to detect on the otherwise pristine garments. Everything is touchable, everything is covetable. Hot pink culottes are somehow not so much a shock as they are a smile in this room of clean lines and mature colors, proving that Adam Lippes is the type of designer who mixes craftsmanship with pleasure and also, I’d assume, the kind of person who wouldn’t blink twice if someone were to drink red wine in his all-white, perfect apartment.

11 AM: I hail a cab from Adam to Dion Lee where I complain about my hair and offer a parmesan scone that I panic-ordered earlier to both the Elle.com and Harper’s Bazaar team. Elle.com claims half and a kind soul lets me borrow her hair tie, which we all know means mama just got a brand new scrunchie.

11:30 AM: I just remembered that yesterday my friend got shit on by a bird after leaving Milk Studios so I start laughing to myself. It’s a good look.

12 PM: Next up is Prabal Gurung. “Prabal” if you’re busy. This is the first day I haven’t been with Leandra from start to finish and I’m not going to lie, I miss her freaky ass even if she doesn’t know the difference between a remote control and a chop stick. It’s weird.

Prabal is showing in the big fancy post office that tax procrastinators favor because it stays open the latest. New York 1 News always has some poor reporter standing out here on April 15 at 11:59 PM as people run up the billion stairs like they’re in “Rocky” even though this is Manhattan, not Philadelphia. It’s pretty fitting considering that everyone is late to this show too — or at least cutting it by the skin of their teeth while the rest of us sweat because now it’s 101 degrees.

The show is cool, though.

1:00 PM: I found Leandra at the exit of Prabal and together we ran to the open arms of our freezing cold car. It’s an Escalade if you must know, and I marvel at our driver’s ability to parallel park it. We have some time to kill so we get a drink. This was mostly fun for me because Leandra forgot her ID like an idiot and has to show the waiter her WIKIPEDIA PAGE. Sometimes I think she thinks she’s Tom from MySpace. Sometimes I think she’s right.

2:00 PM: Ostwald Helgason just ended. We both agree that it was pretty fantastic and decide to celebrate their success with another drink. It’s Saturday guys, please stop judging. She uses her “ID” again. It works.

3:15 PM: I’m seated Tibi and excited — designer Amy Smilovic’s clothes are chameleonic, adaptable to the wide aesthtic variety of New York women (and a much larger demographic, I’m sure, but New York is what I know). You want to wear her clothes because they’ll make you look good. Through a palette of mostly grey and navy and black and white (though a touch of sky blue and pale pink were present here too), Tibi is staking its domain in the realm of downtown cool without forgetting about the customers who still love the brand for its pretty. The first and fourth knits were near perfect, the flared, cropped pants were awesome, the fringy flats and giant top hats were just weird enough to remind you that this is still fashion, while a hunter green suede top and accompanying skirt highlighted my earlier sentiment: that Smilovic designs for her army of Tibi fans while adding subtle, do-able, double-dares.

4:00 – 7 PM: From here it’s a whirlwind. We drive to the moon and back then stop by the Edie Parker presentation – a chunk of the cult hardshell clutches were South Asian influenced and I almost stole about 10. After this it was off to the Band of Outsiders store opening where I oohed and ahhed at the multicolored stripes, tiny lady bugs on khaki and the overall vibe of a Los Angeles-dreamed, new wave prep (the store itself was a Whit Stillman set), and I’m just like, Scott Sternberg, it’s true. I love you.

7:20 PM: We get to Milk Studios just in time to do a drive-by of Isa Arfen (fringe, it seems, is trending). The vibe is late 60s/early 70s and suddenly I’m furious for not owning a pair of sunglasses that tie in a giant bow at the back of my head. After Isa, Leandra and I do a loop at Jonathan Simkhai — it is tailored and feminine and the pencil skirts are a quiet type of sexy. 7:45, time to bounce.

8:00 PM: We are at Altuzarra and everyone’s whispering about Rihanna. She’s in the crowd but I can’t see her because her body guards are 6’11 and stoic. The Altuzarra Spring collection breaks my heart because it’s so beautiful.

I fix it that evening the only way I know how — with “The Notebook” on TV and my laptop on my belly, writing a story for Man Repeller that I’m thinking about titling, “A Day in the Life: Me, Rihanna, and my Dad.”

One Sentence Reviews: Yigal Azrouël, Edun, Giulietta

Flirty but sophisticated girly-ness was front and center at Giulietta with pops of pink and white roses — and no, we’re not just talking about the two toddlers sitting in front of us on their fashion-edtior mothers’ laps. – Emilia Petrarca

Pajamas-as-streetwear are always welcome at our house, but Yigal Azrouël did it so exceptionally well with his specific tailoring and clean, black piping that it was only apparent the opening top and bottom combo were meant to evoke sleep clothes when, 13 looks in, stitched goose down feathers hinted at a confirmation of my earlier guess — however you wouldn’t actually want to sleep in these clothes because they are clearly meant to be lived in; the paneled paisley-lace closing dresses meant to be danced in; the striped sportswear meant to be seen in and the palm tree printed fabrics meant to be enjoyed, perhaps in the sun, with a nightcap-come-early in hand.

At Edun the models walked like backslashes with legs in dizzying loops before shooting back down the runway, creating a pedestrian roundabout that looked equally as complicated to navigate as the ones cars drive through — but since you came here for the clothes I should tell you about the elegant tunics worn over cropped trousers in an Edun-esque palette of black, white and red (with a bit of navy, royal blue and leopard spots tossed in), some of which were tied together with — you guessed it, waist belts! –the piece de resistance being a pearl silk coat with a slab of black and white stripes so thin that from the other side of the dizzying loop the blend appeared grey. And don’t be mad because I know this now makes this a two sentence view, but this is important: Rihanna was there sitting front row. – Amelia Diamond

Images via Style.com

Revenge of the Nerds: Ostwald Helgason

It’s always the quiet ones.

At least that’s what they say; that underneath buttoned up collars and bookish, thick-rimmed meek demeanors hides subversive, anarchist ideals and latent sexuality. It’s the Librarian cliché. It offers a warning or reason to not judge a book by its cover.

I always think about Jason Segal’s character from “SLC Punk,” Mike, who looks like total nerd but is — per Matthew Lillard’s character — “one of the most hardcore guys in the scene.” You can’t believe it until he smashes a guy’s head into the wall, all in the name of good moshing.

That more or less describes the brand Ostwald Helgason: collars done right up to the throat, knit polo shirts, modest hems and flooded pants, but kind of emo punk rock, as though Pinkerton-era Rivers Cuomo did the styling back when he was still angry and thrashing around at local shows.

Last season the designers went in a slightly different, moodier direction which was underlined by the screen-printed “bad apple” motif. It was their playtime with texture and uneven hems. The boyswear suiting of look 19 was great and the lineup as a whole was cool, but somehow it just didn’t seem completely them.

Not that I know them. But when you like a designer you tend to assume that you do, similar to a celebrity you watch on your favorite TV show. When Khia’s “My Neck, My Back,” blasted through the speakers at the end of their Fall 2014 runway, however, that seemed very “them.” It was reassuring.

This season it feels like the designers Susanne Ostwald and Ingvar Helgason of their earlier collections are back. They didn’t go away in the first place, and no one was exactly concerned about the change in direction. Maybe I’m the only one craving the comfort of familiarity (like at Suno) as opposed to the neon-lit concept of NEW! There is simply value in not fixing what isn’t broken. Authenticity and trademark — especially when establishing a fairly young brand (although being founded in 2008 hardly makes them rookies) — can have just as high a currency as being ground breaking.

The knit polo shirts were there this Spring 15. The buttoned collars, the low hems, the Girl Scout meets prep school boy with a bloody nose from some bully…or from moshing — all there. New were the crochet flowers knit on to khaki pockets. New were the dropped waists and the digitalized grandma’s-wallpaper prints and the overall paired-down simplicity. It was sophisticated without losing impish charm. It was mature, but at the same time contemporary. The merger, I think, were the ankle socks worn with sandals. It was at the same time geriatric and youthful: grandpa shuffling around old carpeting versus some kid at camp in shower shoes. This was absolutely one of my favorite shows of the season.

The only thing missing was a dirty song at the end. They replaced that with a librarian’s wedding gown.

Images via Style.com