Hourglass Atelier

The New Luxury

2011-09-15T07:00:00.001-05:00

Luxury no longer only means expensive and elite. Luxury tastes are changing and are infused with a dose of ethics.

We've already seen this shift happening in food. Artisan is the key word, producing the imagine of sun-drenched farmer in a small farm near the city, plucking organic crops and delivering them to the urbanite, a lady bug on a juicy tomato for added authenticity. Or a cheese shop hand crafting new varieties for the discerning foodie.

The slow movement popularized in food is now shifting to the apparel and accessories market. Instead of mass fashion, unique is the focus. Sustainability in materials is important, but so is fair wages and limited production.

Take for instance the exhibition-cum-pop-up shop, aptly titled "SHOP: Like You Mean It." The exhibit curated by Pratt Institute's chair of Fashion Design, Jennifer Minniti, opened on the new consumption holiday Fashion Night Out. Covered by Forbes fashion writer Raquel Laneri, the show at the Underline Gallery hit on something sorely missing from the fashion scene as triumphed by Vogue. It featured works by 19 artists reacting to the unoriginality of mass production and fast-fashion distribution.

The terms artisan, hand-crafted, limited-edition, and authentic are going to mean so much more in the luxury-fashion market in the future. As the price for fiber steadily increases, we're going to see less emphasis on fast fashion and more on design that means something and can adapt to our lives.

Unfortunately old-world artisans who were highly specialized textiles and finishings are fading quickly. In a world concerned with immediacy, we have no time to wait while these masters create opulence. Nor the funds to pay for it. Instead designs in the future must think less about extravagance and more about creative utility.

Think small. Power fashion houses are on their way out. Many equate them to the too-big-to-fail banks that led us into financial decline, and much of the work they produce is stagnant. Independent designers will do best to stay nimble, focus on their client and deliver innovative work that sends an authentic message.

Strong Showing

2011-09-14T11:55:00.001-05:00

Have you seen the Museum at FIT's roundup of fashion-related exhibitions? If you haven't, check it out asap. The range and depth of the ongoing and upcoming shows are proof that fashion exhibitions are seeing strong support right now.

The Start of Something Good

2011-09-06T13:37:00.000-05:00

Collage by Sonia for Rookie

The internet is abuzz that Tavi Gevinson's new website, Rookie, went live yesterday. I'm excited about it, even though it's targeted to teenage girls rather than a woman in her late 20s.

Tavi is growing into a mature, intellectual, and articulate woman whose interests are shifting from fashion obsession to literature and feminism. I think this can only mean great things for teenage girls today who desperately need points of view outside of the Cosmo-type camp.

I can't wait to see what Rookie becomes.

Twitter Roundup

2011-09-02T12:55:00.001-05:00

illustration from Lucky Magazine

Over at Lucky Magazine, John Jannuzzi has compiled a list of fashion bloggers — "The Ultimate Twitter Fashion Directory." Designers, bloggers, models, and a miscellaneous group of commentators make the list. I was a little disappointed to see few critics and no fashion theorists or historians. Who do you think is missing from it?

UPDATE: Lucky tweeted Tuesday (Sept. 5) that it will take suggestions for inclusion on the directory. Email lucky.twitter.guide@gmail.com to recommend a tweeter.

via Refinery29

The New Look for WWD

2011-08-04T10:19:00.004-05:00

Women's Wear Daily launched a new website design today. Featuring a light grey background, the change is refreshing from it's former black facade.

The top of the homepage at first glance feels a bit overwhelming — it's cluttered with pictures and a blinking "Just In" headline box. Scrolling down, the headlines are more neatly arranged under section headings.

I'll be curious to see how easy the site is to navigate. It felt impossible in the old design to find exactly what one was looking for. Hopefully this new one will be more intuitive, even though at a first glance it still seems too clutter and busy.

Midnight with McQueen

2011-07-28T10:30:00.004-05:00

In an unprecedented move, the Metropolitan Museum of Art is extending its hours for the Alexander McQueen retrospective during its last two days. “Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty” will be open until midnight on August 6 and 7.

Women's Wear Daily reported that almost 550,000 people have seen the exhibition since it opened in May. The exhibition has already been extended an additional week.

If this doesn't body slam it home to museum administrators that fashion exhibitions have to power to bring people in, I don't know what will.

Dressing in Dakota

2011-01-31T11:47:00.002-06:00

When I first moved to Fargo, I knew some elements of my wardrobe and shopping patterns would change. The first and most obvious would be limited access to trendy and au courant fashion stores. I would be quite far from my favorite boutiques and designer studios.

In some respects, this is a very good thing. If I showed up in the latest fast-fashion look from H&M, I would: a. freeze and b. get some looks. The newest styles are a bit slow to arrive in these parts — many students told me in a recent essay that they feel most fashionable when they wear leggings.* It does not make a lot of sense to embrace the same type of attire that one might see on a fashionista in New York City. I want people to take me seriously here.

The temperature forces me to dress for a higher level of comfort than I have before. This is acceptable to me because as I mature I'm inclined to enjoy warmth, physical ease, and freedom from pain. I have a new appreciation for chunky sweaters. I lucked out that they were popular this winter season.

I am less focused on being "fashionable" when I dress in the morning. Rather I have found myself honing my personal style. My wardrobe is undergoing some subtle but transformative changes. I look for the unique and quirky now. I aim for every ensemble to have one or two distinct features. Fit and construction are important backbones.

I am shopping online more than ever before. I think it's helping me make more critical decisions. Because I don't have to decide on the spot in the store, I can find a garment online one day, think about it overnight, return to the site a day later to look at it again, email a friend for feedback, put it aside and ponder for a few more days, and then buy later when I am sure that it is something that will be worn and will fit into my wardrobe well. I'm buying less things, but what I buy I really love.

Unfortunately it has been more difficult to buy directly from my favorite designers because it involves packages shipped back and forth to try sizes and styles out. Luckily my designer friends are very accommodating and trusting. They are learning my preferences and what looks good on my body better than ever and sending exactly what I will love even if I don't realize I will like it based on lookbooks pictures alone.

However, even after this focus on personal style and great fit and construction, I still get some looks. I get numerous compliments in person about what I wear, but I feel the burn of some stares while walking the university halls at work or in the grocery store. At first I was taken aback. I wasn't wearing anything bizarre — quirky yes, but not shocking or ugly. Over time I learned more about the northern plains personality. People here are incredibly stoic. Even if their faces display a lack of total interest when I give lectures, I hear later from students in one-on-one settings that they found the topic fascinating. So I'm chalking up the looks my outfits get to stoicism. Perhaps they actually think my ensemble is appealing, but their faces have learned not to betray inner feelings. At least, that is what I'm telling myself today while wearing my very full and somewhat flouncy rose-colored multi-circle skirt and thick knit black tights.

*I have been "over" the legging trend for at least a full two seasons now.

Worried About Another Culture War

2010-12-02T10:34:00.006-06:00

It is a scary thought that the United States could be moving back into a culture war. With the government on the hunt to cut funding, it seems an exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery has been garnering negative press attention (from those like extremist Glenn Beck), Catholics, and Republican politicians.

The exhibition, called Hide/Seek, is called the "first major exhibition to focus on sexual difference in the making of modern American portraiture" by the National Portrait Gallery. Featuring artists and cultural figures who were gay or are believed to have been gay, it has the potential to expose Americans to more diversity and address gay issues in American portraiture. Surely the time is ripe for an exhibition like this.

Unfortunately our national dialogue seems to be controlled by knee-jerk reactionists who don't take the time to learn about what they are talking about. They ignore the context of a piece of art and go straight on the attack.

The piece drawing controversy, A Fire In My Belly by David Wojnarowicz, is a video of ants crawling on a crucifix. According to NPR, "Martin Sullivan, director of the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery, says the artist created the piece as a response to the 'agony and suffering' of his partner who at the time was dying of AIDS. Using 'vivid colors, and some fairly grotesque scenes, it's more a meditation on the fragility of the human flesh,' Sullivan says."

But without considering its context and the importance of art that pushes the boundaries about what we know about human suffering, these conservative reactionists are calling for the exhibition to be taken down and funding cut for an important national source of culture.

According to NPR, Catholic League president Bill Donohue said, "Why should the working class pay for the leisure of the elite when in fact one of the things the working class likes to do for leisure is to go to professional wrestling? And if I suggested we should have federal funds for professional wrestling to lower the cost of the ticket, people would think I'm insane. I don't go to museums any more than any Americans do."

These kind of comments terrify me because they betray a gross misunderstanding of how Americans take part in culture. Cultural destinations like the National Portrait Gallery are not only an economic engine, but also source of knowledge and discovery. I cannot comprehend how high ranking spokespeople and politicians can claim that museums who provoke and educate are immoral. Most countries take pride in the production of culture in their country and encourage it. Unfortunately, culture has somehow become a shameful and dirty thing in the United States and not worth of our taxpayers' dollars.

Museums like the National Gallery are not for the elite. Just because Donohue chooses not to experience culture in his daily life does not mean the majority of Americans do not find worth in attending a museum or concert. It is true that low culture is very relevant in today's society, but that does not mean high culture has no place. Instead, take a look at the major museums across the country who are initiating and ramping up new outreach programs to disenfranchised populations. Take a look at all the Americans who visit places of culture on vacation and who maybe choose to visit specific locations based on the museums or other cultural centers found there.

It is shameful that the Smithsonian, who controls the National Portrait Gallery, has caved to this pressure. They removed A Fire In My Belly from the exhibition, teaching conservatives that they still have power to dictate what the American public is allowed to see in its national museums. I agree with CultureGrrl that it is not the easiest video to watch and perhaps work of this type might not belong in a federally-funded museum. But the conversation surrounding the piece scares me far more than the video itself. The dialogue is eerily reminiscent of the culture wars of the 1980s sparked by exhibitions like Robert Mapplethorpe: The Perfect Moment that was funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, which almost cost it its funding.

More reading:
NPR — Smithsonian under fire for gay portraiture exhibition
NPR — Gay portraiture exhibit sparks funding debate
TMP — Ant Jesus: An Anatomy on the latest war on Christmas scandal
CultureGrrl

Top of the Fashion Chain

2010-12-01T07:00:00.000-06:00

The Refinery posted their picks for Fashion's 50 Most Influential yesterday and invited readers to vote on their favorites.

The list includes designers, bloggers (naturally), celebrities and models, magazine editors, etc. It's an interesting who's who of the industry.

What do you think of the list? Any standouts you think definitely should or shouldn't be on it?

Exploring the 90s

2010-11-30T16:33:00.003-06:00

Looks by Ann Demeulemeester, Photo By Dominique Maitre for Women's Wear Daily

It seems apropos that #why90srocked is a trending topic today on Twitter because “An Ideal History of Contemporary Fashion, Vol.2” opened today at the Les Arts Decoratifs in Paris.

The exhibition focuses on nineties style and includes a strong showing from the Belgians, the Japanese, the Brits, and the French. According to Women's Wear Daily, "single creations by Margiela, Issey Miyake and Alaia form the central backbone of the ground floor display."

It's exciting to hear that a curator is tackling such an interesting but misunderstood fashion decade of recent past. The curator, Olivier Saillard, is quoted about the Nineties saying, "that luxury was not necessarily synonymous with ostentation but rather experimentation and research, a kind of laboratory.”

For more: Back to the Nineties at Les Arts Decoratifs, WWD.com

The Fashionable Exhibition

2010-06-04T12:51:00.003-05:00

I'm curious about the recent influx of dress exhibitions in museums. It seems like dress exhibitions are indeed fashionable, and I am curious why. Obviously, I'm quite thrilled about it, but it makes me wonder whether it is economics are driving this boom, more attention to the serious scholarship in dress studies, or if it's just a trend that will cycle out of style in a few "seasons."

Also, the idea that there are more dress exhibitions also brings into question the role of fashion/dress/costume curators. Are there more of us employed at institutions, more independent curators freelancing, or are curators in other fields becoming more interdisciplinary when it comes to dress studies?

I don't have the answer to these questions, just things I've been pondering lately. I'm interested in your own thoughts on the topic. Any ideas?

Fashion Exhibitions: London Edition

2010-06-02T09:44:00.006-05:00

The popularity of fashion exhibitions is soaring this summer with a plethora of exhibitions around the world. It seems Londoners have it especially good right now.

The Enchanted Palace
Kensington Palace
March 26-2012

"Kensington Palace is being transformed. As the walls of the palace are being shaken by a £12 million renovation project the rubble and the dust is unleashing powerful and secret stories about the lives of Kensington's princesses.

"The Enchanted Palace reveals the emotion and drama running through Kensington Palace’s history. Contemporary fashion collides with the Royal Ceremonial Dress Collection and real stories from the palace to create stunning installations, fashioned by world famous designers including Vivienne Westwood, William Tempest, Stephen Jones, Boudicca, Aminaka Wilmont and Echo Morgan."

Grace Kelly: Style Icon
Victoria & Albert Museum
April 17-September 26, 2010

"This exhibition shows the spectacular wardrobe of Grace Kelly, one of the most popular actresses of the 1950s. Featuring dresses from many of her films as well as the gown she wore to accept her Oscar in 1955, the exhibition will examine Grace Kelly's glamorous Hollywood image, the evolution of her style as Princess Grace of Monaco, and her enduring appeal as a fashion icon."

The Concise Dictionary of Dress
Blythe House, V&A's reserves
April 28-June 27, 2010

"Located within the working store for the V&A’s vast reserve collections of furniture, ceramics, glass, jewellery, textiles, fashion and fine arts, The Concise Dictionary of Dress begins with a journey through a turnstile, into an industrial goods lift and up to the first in a sequence of intriguing definitions in a walk-through dictionary of dress…

"Cast objects and photographs, tableaux of clothing and accessories are arranged amongst the rolling racks and wrapped objects stored at Blythe House, the former headquarters of the Post Office Savings Bank in Olympia, west London. The anatomy of the building reveals surreal and evocative interventions in unexpected places; metaphors of repression and ceremony; fragments of the clothed body briefly glimpsed.

"Commissioned by Artangel, The Concise Dictionary of Dress re-describes clothing in terms of anxiety, wish and desire, as a series of definitions created by psychoanalyst Adam Phillips and accompanying installations designed and assembled by fashion curator Judith Clark."

Maison Martin Margiela '20' Exhibition
Somerset House, London
June 3-September 5, 2010

"Somerset House is proud to host Maison Martin Margiela ‘20’ The Exhibition, a major exhibition celebrating 20 years of one of contemporary fashion’s most influential and enigmatic designers. This ambitious, multi-layered exhibition captures Margiela’s unique aesthetic and vision, incorporating garments, installations, photography and film. This exhibition was initiated by the Fashion Museum Province of Antwerp and Maison Martin Margiela.

"Young as its history is, no other fashion house has had quite the same impact on our understanding of fashion and its relationship to history, craft, commerce and innovation. 20 years on, Maison Martin Margiela’s radical questioning and rethinking of what fashion is, how we clothe the body and ideals of human beauty, are still as groundbreaking as ever."

The Consumer Labyrinth

2010-03-03T17:14:00.006-06:00

Upon walking into Macy’s from State Street, one is immediately bombarded with an overload of senses. The historical architecture clashes with the discombobulation of marketing signage and products in every multitude of color and design. None of the packaging relates to one another. Each competes for your attention. Hip hop music blares from overhead, and you are immediately swathed in a disharmonious arrangement of perfume fragrances. This experience seems lightyears away from the building’s first incarnation as Marshall Fields, a stately and elegant place to do your shopping. Back then a shopper was greeted and waited upon at every stage, instead of inundated with products competing for attention.

We currently live in a consumer society in which we satisfy our needs and desires by consuming commodities and services.1 Consumption has become a mode of entertainment — people wile away the hours in malls and outlet stores hunting for something that they do not know exists yet.2Products and their packaging send subliminal messages through colors, graphics, logos, etc. to convince us we need a product.3

The scene unfolding before you in Macy’s upon entering takes your eyes, ears, and nose in every other direction. It is a wonder consumers are able to make any purchasing decisions at all without giving up completely and buying nothing. Perhaps Macy’s wants to overwhelm the consumer. Through overstimulation, they think the consumer will loose their physical orientation in the store and be forced to consume ad nauseam till they find their way back out. Envision a lost person shopping their way out of the labyrinth that Macy’s has become — grabbing a pair of jeans from the denim section, a men’s tie as the enter menswear, a bottle of perfume from a cosmetics counter until at last they reach a door leading outside and away. As this consumer leaves, the trance is lifted and they suddenly become aware of the dozen shopping bags they now carry. The social researcher Rob Shields claimed, “that this loss of orientation has taken all control from us and we drift around more or less passively in the shopping centre.”4However, according to Lars Svendsen this argument does not hold up in reality. He said, “surveys of people’s ability to orientate themselves and their consumer behaviour, where more traditional shopping centres have been compared with more ‘postmodern’ ones, indicate that people do not seem to have much trouble finding their bearings.”5 Macy’s, formerly Marshall Fields, has been transformed from a traditional shopping center — the stately department store — to something of a postmodern market experience, where products run the gamut from expensive and well made to cheap and celebrity endorsed in a disorganized setting with few clerks to assist the shopper. But Svendsen argues that this does not encourage shoppers to consume nor disorient them into a state of passivity. He said consumers “tended rather to try and find their bearings — and did so quite quickly. Nor did they seem to be stimulated to consume more than usual, shopping in accordance with their usual preferences.”6If Svendsen’s position is true, the Macy’s experience will not fool consumers into buying more than they intend to and that their ability to find their way out of the consumable maze will nullify impulse purchases.

However, for a first-time Macy’s shopper, I can see how getting lost in that store could easily happen with its multitude of floors, departments, and limited availability of salespeople. And for the tourist, who has not entered the store with a specific product purchasing goal in mind, finding themselves in a section of the store they would not have deliberately sought out could create a temptation effect. It must be acknowledged that a good portion of Macy’s shoppers are out-of-town or out-of-state tourists, who come to the store because of the building’s historic reputation. They come to see what all the fuss is about and are in a state of mind to consume for entertainment purposes. A good deal of the rest of Macy’s shoppers are likely there for entertainment excursions as well. The sociologist Zygunt Bauman appropriately wrote, “Not being bored — ever — is the norm of the consumers’ life.”7 It seems to reason that these consumers are not there to window shop but to actively consume, and, with entertainment as the objective, are open to suggestion from the glittering and swimming pool of consumable products.

Interestingly, Macy’s profits are up for their fourth-quarter sales, which include the last three months ending January 30. Women’s Wear Daily announced that Macy’s earned $466 million compared to a year ago when they had a $4.77 billion loss.8 As the retail sector ever so slowly shakes out of the current recession, it will be worth noting what stores like Macy’s choose to do with their stores. Could a return to elegance and consumer assistance be on the horizon to combat the bad business practices that sunk them in the past few years? Or will over saturation of product options, no congruent theme, and lack of on-hand salespeople become par for the course?

1. Lars Svendsen, Fashion: A Philosophy (London: Reaktion Books Ltd., 2006), 111.

2. Svendsen, Fashion, 113.

3. “In the Vernacular,” Art Institute of Chicago, 111 S. Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60603, 16 February 2010.

4. Svendsen, Fashion, 117.

5. Svendsen, Fashion, 117.

6. Svendsen, Fashion, 117.

7. Svendsen, Fashion, 113.

8. Vicki M. Young, “Sears, Target, Macy’s Profits Rise,” Women’s Wear Daily, 23 February 2009, Business section. Online edition.

Beene reviewed

2009-11-13T09:37:00.003-06:00

I'm thrilled for my former boss Dennita Sewell from the Phoenix Art Museum. This morning a review of her newly opened exhibition, "Geoffrey Beene: Trapeze," by Women's Wear Daily landed in my in box. Venessa Lau writes, "what makes “Geoffrey Beene: Trapeze,” which opened this weekend and runs through March 7, different from his other shows is Tarr herself. 'We’re not just looking at Beene and his work,” says Dennita Sewell, the museum’s curator of fashion design, “but looking at it through the eyes of a dedicated wearer.'"

Montrose Beach

2009-09-25T11:32:00.005-05:00

I did a photo shoot with Justin Goh a few weeks ago. Here are some of my favorites:

The Target effect

2009-09-18T09:17:00.006-05:00

It seems designers these days can't get enough of Target. This morning Women's Wear Daily announced that Jean Paul Gaultier will join the ranks of other capsule collection designers for the megastore.

"A Gaultier collection wouldn’t appear in the stores for some time, but Target, said sources, has the ball in motion. "

Currently Anna Sui's collection is on Target's racks. I have not had much of an opportunity to view it in person, much less the cash to buy (I guess that's the mark of a true graduate student). After Sui, Rodarte is scheduled to for December 20. That is a collection I'll be truly interested in investigating. I'm wondering how their aesthetic will translate to the Target customer.

I've began wondering how all these capsule collections at Target and those with Swedish fast-fashion chain H&M will affect the cannon of fashion. How many of these types of garments will find their way into museums or fashion history books? In 40 years will they be a forgotten thing or become a niche area in the serious study of dress? Now seems a ripe time to begin collecting and documenting this trend amongst designers and mass-consumption chains because it doesn't seem like it's a short-lived blip on the fashion radar.

The battle over batik

2009-09-15T12:32:00.004-05:00

Score One for Indonesia in the War Over Batik
by Peter Gelling, NY Times

'“It is so important that the world finally recognize and acknowledge batik as an Indonesian heritage,” said Obin, one of the country’s leading fashion designers. “It is a part of our soul.”'

Last week the United Nation's Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization added Indonesian batik to its list of Intangible Cultural Heritage. Batik is a type of fabric with beautiful patterns created through the use of wax-resistant dyes. This story is a very interesting look at competing cultural heritages, as Malaysia and Indonesia compete in batik production.

from NPR's news blog

2009-08-24T18:42:00.000-05:00

What Can You Do With A Synchrotron? Art Conservation, Apparently

Taking on Coco

2009-08-14T17:13:00.003-05:00

This article is a few weeks old, but it's an interesting mix of movie review for Coco Before Chanel and a short synopsis of Chanel's life. It's worth a read.

Coco Before Chanel: unravelling a fashion icon
by Lisa Armstrong, Times Online

The day I've been waiting for!

2009-08-12T09:28:00.004-05:00

FTC Charges Four Firms With False Bamboo Labeling
by Liza Casabona, Women's Wear Daily

"WASHINGTON — The Federal Trade Commission has charged four companies with selling clothing and textiles deceptively labeled as bamboo that were actually rayon and with making false environmental claims on their products.

The FTC also indicated that the advent of bamboo as a “green” alternative natural fiber in recent years could be called into question.

The FTC said Tuesday that it filed cases against Pure Bamboo LLC; Sami Designs LLC, which operates as Jonano; CSE Inc., doing business as Mad Mod, and the M Group, operating as Bamboosa. Three of the companies settled the charges and agreed to fix the problems. Litigation against the M Group is pending.

According to the FTC, the companies made unsubstantiated “green” claims and did not accurately represent the fiber content of their products when they were labeled as “100 percent bamboo fiber.”

The FTC said to manufacture soft textiles out of bamboo, the raw material usually goes through chemical processes that turn it into rayon, a man-made fiber, and strip it of natural antimicrobial properties and biodegradability. In addition, the process requires toxic chemicals that release pollutants into the air, the FTC said..."

When I saw this come through my inbox this morning in my daily Women's Wear Daily email my soul leaped. Congrats to the FTC for finally, finally, finally cracking down on those who market rayon made with bamboo fibers as 100% bamboo (which is the vast majority of bamboo fabrics by the way).

When I was working at the American Textile History Museum and working on curating its eco-textile exhibit, this kind of thing made me so mad. Especially after I went to the FTC's conference on sustainable fabrics and building materials. Hearing the stats from the experts first hand really drove home that someone really has to step up their regulation. So even though it look more than a year for the FTC to do something about it, I'm really excited by these first charges.

The September Vogue

2009-08-11T10:06:00.003-05:00

The new September cover of Vogue has leaked. NY Mag's got a picture over here. It features Charlize Theron looking pretty beautiful, I must say, and heralding the '40s inspired fall look (which I have a growing interest in).

I love my man bag

2009-08-07T09:24:00.006-05:00

Women's accessory shoots are always a little surreal. Especially handbags. I appreciate their artsiness, and some of them are really dynamic images that are fun to look at. And obviously the focus needs to be on the bag, but they can get a bit absurd and sometimes somewhat awkward.

But men's accessory shoots just take the cake. I am endlessly amused by this shoot from WWD. The model at the left really loves his Etro bag. Don't mess with his baby.

Photo by Robert Mitra, from Women's Wear Daily.

Deinstalling

2009-08-05T13:03:00.007-05:00

So this summer I am interning as a costume collections intern at the Chicago History Museum. Sadly, last week the great exhibition Chic Chicago closed and we had to deinstall. It was such a well put together exhibit and the gowns in it were dazzling, so it was a bit depressing taking everything down and boxing it up. But it gave me a chance to get up close and personal with the dresses at least.

Our web guy Enrique put up pictures from deinstallation on Flickr. Check them out!

[Thankfully the one from when I fell head first into the Charles James box (which could fit about 5 or 6 of me in it) didn't make it online. And, for the record, it was empty at the time.]

Horyn's "The Bigger Picture"

2009-06-12T13:19:00.005-05:00

"The fashion world is made up of people – designers, editors, managers — used to doing things one way, without questioning notions like perfection and taste, which have widely been democratized and discounted in recent years. Is that not a problem?"

Cathy Horyn, fashion critic for the NY Times, recently spoke about fashion, the economy, and the future of the industry for the 6th annual Citi Women & Co. event. As always, her words were elegantly crafted, and she showed a great deal insight into how the industry has evolved in the last decade or so and how it needs to adapt to the current market. I highly recommend giving her presentation a read through over on her blog, "On The Runway".

Heat saving strategy

2009-03-11T16:16:00.003-05:00

Any idea where I can purchase this fabulous contraption?

Secret message

2009-03-11T00:37:00.002-05:00

How great is this story from the Chi Trib?

"After 150 years of rumors, museum reveals hidden Civil War message engraved in Lincoln watch"

2009-02-25T23:19:00.005-06:00

The High Cost

I simply love this article which ran in the magazine Physical Culture in August 1930. The writer, who may be noted is male, argues that women are most beautiful when they are able to move freely — a very modern notion. He says that women are all the better for throwing off the constraints of restrictive dress, enumerating corsets, bustles, large sleeves, etc. as examples of clothing elements women have already rejected and no longer think twice about. The focus of the article rests on women's unflattering and unhealthy loyalty to high heel shoes, against the very ideals of free, independent womanhood. He deems high-heeled shoes crippling and does not see how any woman aiming to present herself as a beautiful thing (clearly the writer is still steeped in notions of gender definitions) would continue to follow such a ridiculous style. Honestly, I was impressed by his argument's attention to the physical/medical problems associated with heels and to the concept that women should not allow themselves to be restricted by dress because it is not a rational thing to do. When women submit themselves to inhibiting fashions it does render them weaker physically. I do appreciate his attraction to the notion of a free, liberated woman — this is very refreshing, especially considering the date. It is also very American. This article is of extreme note today, when we've seen high-heeled shoes on the runways of women's hegemonic fashions growing to infeasible dimensions in the last few years. One can only wonder if our society will ever ditch the high heel shoe.

Ode to the University Museum

2009-02-22T15:05:00.005-06:00

"All the shows are fairly small. All are, in different ways, beautiful. All are closely researched studies on fascinating subjects we know too little about. Yet each is just a shade too specialized or unglamorous or experimental to find a home in our public art institutions. If it weren’t for academic museums, these shows wouldn’t happen. And that would be a real loss."

from the New York Times, four reviews of exhibitions at Yale museums

Motivation

2009-02-22T00:50:00.005-06:00

"People said, 'I would have punched her around too,' " Matanmi said. "And these were girls!"

As allegations of battery swirl around the famous couple [Rihanna and Chris Brown], experts on domestic violence say the response from teenagers just a few years younger shows the desperate need to educate this age group about dating violence.

Their acceptance, or even approval, of abuse in romantic relationships is not a universal reaction. But it comes at a time when 1 in 10 teenagers has suffered such abuse and females ages 16 to 24 experience the highest rates of any age group, research shows.

from the Chicago Tribune

This is exactly what I need to work to end. How can I get involved and combine work of this sort with art?

Librarians 2.0

2009-02-17T23:58:00.005-06:00

I love librarians. For a short time, I toyed with the idea of going to graduate school for library science. Obviously that's not the path I choose, but there is still a soft spot in my heart for the work they do. Especially now, as our culture moves to an increasingly digitized future, librarians must augment their services to capture children's attention, teach them the advantages and perils of online research, and renew interest in those musty old things called books.

This is a nice article, "In Web Age, Library Job Gets Update," from the NY Times championing some of this sort of work by contemporary librarians.

Magazine in my mailbox

2009-02-17T23:39:00.003-06:00

My copy of the March issue of Elle arrived today. Overall I liked it — they had some interesting takes on spring that I dig. Especially after experiencing my first winter in Chicago (which by the way, seems like it's never going to end), I can really use a new style transformation. But seriously, why on earth would Joe Zee feature the girls of "The City" like they are some kind of fashion trendsetters? I can't be the only one who believes their entire wardrobe is bought and styled by someone from MTV? Right?

Great reading about Chicago arts

2009-01-24T17:06:00.003-06:00

So the new semester is about to start, and I've already received a number of articles and various readings to do before class begins. For my Alternative Curatorial Practices class, we were asked to read "5 Questions about Art in Chicago." It's a great read, so I'm recommending you check it out. A bit long, so save it for when you have some time to devote to it.

Michelle Obama to Wear Isabel Toledo

2009-01-20T09:10:00.003-06:00

From WWD:

First Lady-to-be Michelle Obama will wear an outfit by Isabel Toledo at the swearing-in of her husband Barack Obama as the nation’s 44th president on Capitol Hill this morning, her office said today. There were no details of the outfit provided by Michelle Obama’s office, which has been tight-lipped about her fashion choices for the historic events today. Toledo is a Cuban-born designer who has worked under her own name for more than 20 years and briefly served as creative director for Anne Klein. Michelle Obama has worn her designs in the past during the presidential campaign. Her choice continues a penchant for the First Lady-to-be for designers of Cuban heritage – Michelle Obama wore two outfits by Narciso Rodriguez to the pre-inaugural events on Sunday.

Palin Clothes Spending Has Dems Salivating, Republicans Disgusted

2008-10-22T10:49:00.005-05:00

From The Huffington Post

Palin Clothes Spending Has Dems Salivating, Republicans Disgusted
October 22, 2008 01:30 AM
by Sam Stein

"Since her selection as John McCain's running mate, the Republican National Committee spent more than $150,000 on clothing and make-up for Gov. Sarah Palin, her husband, and even her infant son, it was reported on Tuesday evening.

That entertaining scoop -- which came by way of Politico -- sent almost immediate reverberations through the presidential race. A statement from McCain headquarters released hours after the article bemoaned the triviality of the whole affair.

'With all of the important issues facing the country right now, it's remarkable that we're spending time talking about pantsuits and blouses,' said spokesperson Tracey Schmitt..."

WWD 2.0

2008-07-25T19:09:00.002-05:00

Women's Wear Daily, the daily rag dedicated to fashion industry, revamped its Web site today. There has been a mention of it in its daily headlines newsletter for quite some time, so I was quite curious to see what they would do. It seems like a lot of fashion and beauty sites are either upgrading or relaunching recently. WWD's site seems nice and modern with a black background. It's not too cluttered, but there still is a lot going on on the home page. I don't really know where to start. They also reformatted the daily headlines newsletter to only include the headline without the subhead/lede (which is a real hinderance when you have to click to each story to find out what it's about, since WWD likes their nondescript, pun-filled headlines). Plus, I don't really have a paid subscription, so it's not like I can read more than the lede anyways. Oh well. I guess I'll explore the site some more and see what I have access to before I make any more judgements.

Wedded Bliss

2008-07-24T19:30:00.002-05:00

I just wanted to comment briefly on the great exhibit I saw last weekend at the Peabody Essex Museum, in Salem, Mass. It's called Wedded Bliss: The Marriage of Art and Ceremony and presents a vast variety of art inspired by the wedding. It's broken down into sections addressing courtship and engagements, white wedding dresses, other types of wedding ensembles, the ceremony, anniversaries, wedding jewelry and a lot more. I have to say it's an interesting slice of culture to compare art that is inspired by this topic. This exhibit took years to put together and it obviously shows.

I spoke with the curator briefly (I was on a tour for Costume Society of America members) about Queen Victoria and the white wedding dress. When she married Prince Albert in 1840, women typically wore any color of dress that they liked best. After the wedding, the dress often became their "best dress" and was worn for fancy occasions. But Queen Victoria choose white, setting off the biggest wedding trend ever. The curator said through research they found out that it took about a month for news to travel from England to the United States that Victoria had married and what all the details were. During that time, the notion of white as a symbol of purity and innocence was brewing, so that may have been an element to the queen's choice. But most people do not give Victoria the credit she deserves for being such a fashion forward young women. She kept with the trends, and, obviously, set a few of her own. Her decision to wear white made waves across the British Empire and the rest of the world.

Anyways, I highly recommend the exhibit. It'll give you quite an interesting perspective to see the juxtapositions of all the cultural wedding paraphernalia and gorgeous clothing. It's just to bad they couldn't get Victoria's gown. But I promise the ones in the exhibit are very beautiful as well.

Toting my Veggies

2008-06-18T17:43:00.001-05:00

I just learned about these great totes from SKN over on Ecofabulous. On closer inspection, I've found you can get them in conventional or organic (a little pricier) cotton, they are made in the USA, the company plants a tree for every bag sold, and it ships with USPS, because USPS has achieved Cradle to Cradle certification at the silver level.

I had no idea USPS was so eco. And if you don't know about Cradle to Cradle, please run, don't walk to pick up this book. It is the eco bible, and it explains how we must create design that is sustainable. Basically when a product reaches the end of its life, instead of going to the "grave," it should actually become the materials for a new product. Hence cradle to cradle. And this should happen over and over and over, so nothing ever ends up in a landfill! OK, so this is VERY hard to do, but it's great to hear USPS has received a silver certification in it, whatever that means.

Anyways, back to the bags. They are totes cute, with a variety of fruits and veggies printed on them. I think I'll get the Blueberry Bag for my mom — she loves the blueberries.

2008-06-16T20:39:00.000-05:00

"Recently, fashion has developed a very fashionable conscience. The current environmentally minded zeitgeist is permeating the industry, and its once hairy-hemp image is now nothing but a ghost of fashion’s hippie past. In its place are “eco-luxe” and “eco-chic” and a stylish array of environmentally friendly and ethical alternatives to mainstream fashion. But just how deep does the greening of fashion go? Beyond sustainability, the green movement marks a paradigm shift among consumers towards the need for a more valuable product – which should be music to the ears of the luxury sector.

But in an industry that thrives on newness, what will next season’s trend be?..."

"It's not easy being green" by Fiona Harkin, Financial Times

Taking Fast Fashion Further

2008-06-06T20:55:00.000-05:00

Swedish fashion giant H&M is taking a few steps forward toward sustainability. Vogue.com UK is reporting:

"H&M is continuing to take its ethical commitments seriously, announcing "a big venture" into organic cotton for autumn/winter 2008-9 - as well as plans to source other sustainable materials, including organic and recycled wool and polyester."

Which is only a plus, and they are definitely going in the right direction. Fast fashion is probably the antithesis of eco-fashion, but people do like cheap, trendy clothes real fast. I have to admit, I'm guilty from time to time too. This isn't the ideal situation, but I do think we are moving there, slowly.

So this is why I can't wait till H&M really kicks it into gear and goes 100% organic and recycled. Even better — start collecting clothes for recycling!

Meeting Ms. Mod Green Pod

2008-06-04T23:32:00.000-05:00

Today I had the pleasure of meeting Lisa Mims from Mod Green Pod (for a project for work — more about that later). She is half of the design team that makes stunningly chic, modern, and eco home fabrics and wallpaper. Lisa handles the business side of the company in Massachusetts, while her sister-in-law Nancy does the designing from Texas.

Lisa is an incredibly stylish woman herself. I loved the trendy little denim jeans she was sporting by Del Forte. I'm totally going to have to get myself a pair now. We traded eco-rumors and she gave me a whole list of new companies and green developments I need to check out.

She also gave me more of a scoop on the Mod Green Pod line. I have to admit, seeing the designs in person is soooo much better. They are totally cool, and the colors are a lot brighter in real life. All of the fabric is 100% organic cotton. They print everything, because as Lisa told me, printing is better for the environment than dyeing. It's all down by hand out in the Berkshires. How cool!

It's great to hear success stories from small American textile companies. Even better when those companies are eco-friendly. I definitely expect more blogs about this brand in the future — hopefully near future.

Greenwashing alert

2008-05-30T18:03:00.001-05:00

There are some rumors coming out of Taiwan that recycled polyester manufacturers are buying brand-new, never-been-used-before plastic bottles straight from their manufacturer and converting them into fiber. Ecotextile News has a report about it here.

"One reliable industry insider, who refused to be named, has claimed that the demand for used bottles, from which recycled polyester fibre is made, is now outstripping supply in some areas and certain cynical suppliers are now buying NEW, unused bottles directly from bottle producing companies to make polyester textile fibre that can be called recycled."

If this is the case, which wouldn't surprise me, than this makes it harder to know whether the clothing you are wearing made of recycled polyester is truly green. Isn't anyone keeping tabs on these companies? The increasing popularity of eco-chic is allowing corporations and manufacturers to exploit the green movement for as many bucks as they can. We need a dramatic shift in textile transparency so we know how our clothing is really made.

"India Recycled" Exhibit

2008-05-28T20:27:00.001-05:00

The Horniman Museum in London recently opened a photographic exhibit about the life of recycled clothing in India that runs until January of next year. The Guardian has put together a companion story highlighting some of the images.

Apparel given to charity shops in the UK is sorted and divided up for different uses, such as resale, pulped for mattress filling and upholstery, or for export for recycled textile production. Most of the garments going out of the country must be shredded because the sale of second-hand clothing is illegal in some places. The shredded garments are broken down into pulp and turned into yarn. The yarn is woven and knitted into new products. It's amazing how global recycled textile production has become.

Breaking It Down

2008-05-28T06:57:00.000-05:00

The WSJ had a lovely article in Saturday's paper called "Shades of Green: Decoding Eco Fashion's Claims." It breaks down who is doing what, and how eco friendly it actually is. Check it out for yourself. Better yet, commit it to memory or save it to your computer to refer back to it before shopping trips!

Women's Wear Daily Excerpts

2008-05-22T19:09:00.000-05:00

Eco Movement Hitting Its Stride
Thursday, May 22, 2008

By Khanh T.L. Tran
As the market for environmentally friendly DENIM GROWS, manufacturers are employing a widening variety of dyeing and finishing techniques in response to consumer demand.

For the early eco-friendly pioneers, the transformation has been rapid. Starr Dailey-Webb, a former model who started an all-organic line of denim called Aoki Jeans in 2004, recalled the difficulties in bringing her idea to life...

Natur Boy
Thursday, May 22, 2008

By Venessa Lau
When it comes to the green movement, Miguel Adrover knows exactly where he stands. And please don't use the word trend. "It's all about marketing now," he said of the eco-craze blanketing the industry. "We need to distinguish between trend and real life." At a Tuesday presentation of his debut collection for the Germany-based Hess Natur, Adrover noted that the company, for which he's now creative director, has both "an ecological approach as well as a sociological one." And indeed, the business uses many organic materials and belongs to the Grameen Foundation, an organization that's a proponent of microcredit as a means of fighting poverty...

2008-05-22T18:00:00.000-05:00

"The flag of the next industrial revolution, the clean revolution."

William McDonough (1995)

You say you want a revolution

2008-05-21T18:59:00.000-05:00

I was perusing Fashionista.com today (get off me, so what if I like my daily fix of fashion news and rumors, hehe) and I came across this column:

"Our list of fashion pet peeves used to go like this:

Sunglasses with crystals on the lenses.
Any pant with a drawstring closure.
Shorts with thigh highs.

But now there's something more serious on our radar, and it's become our biggest fashion vice yet:

Clothes that say "Recycle!" or "Earth day is every day!" or whatever - that are made in factories with synthetic materials.

Of course, the number one offender is Forever 21, whose latest graphic tee screams, "What's your carbon footprint?"

I don't know, F21, what's yours? Because between shipping your clothes from factories in Asia, using chemical dyes and fabric treatments, and handing out giant yellow plastic bags to every customer... well, you get the idea."

I have to agree with them — in a big way. There are companies producing clothing in unsustainable methods and pretending it is eco to satisfy a current consumer trend. A lot of these clothes are not made of sustainable fibers, like organic cotton, hemp, etc. or recycled polyester. They aren't dyed with low-impact dyes or made of color grown cotton. Like Fashionista said, they are produced half way around the world and made by people who don't make a living wage. I think it's fantastic Fashionista has brought up this conversation.

The fact that companies are producing clothing that is in no way eco-friendly but pretend like it is with catchy slogans, is not only misleading and hypocritical, but damaging to the movement. They're doing this just to cash in on a trend, because it appears that being green is the hot button issue of day.

Which brings us to what may be the biggest problem facing the eco-movement today — calling it a trend. Trends are popular for a season. The next season inevitably comes with new trends and the old ones are discarded. But come next season the Earth is still going to be facing an environmental crisis. We will still have out of control pollution problems. It irritates me each year when the glossy magazines pretend to be eco for a month in honor of Earth Day. You have Nina Garcia over at all Elle touting fashionable green products and clothes. Vanity Fair has it's annual "We Have to Solve the Climate Crisis But We Aren't Really Going To Do Anything About It" issue. But then the June issues hit the newsstand and all talk of the environment conveniently disappears. Why can't these magazines keep up even a small amount of coverage 12 months a year?

Obviously this issue is not going to go away if we ignore it. So we need fashion magazines and other media outlets to wake up and take the eco-movement seriously. We need companies to invest in sustainable methods, not because it's "cool," but because consumers demand it year-round. Educate yourself and think before you buy. I don't mean to sound like an after-school special, but everyone needs to do their part.

2008-05-20T17:14:00.000-05:00

"The natural environment around me is a huge inspiration. I try to design in harmony with that. We take the environment into account and are developing this area on a daily basis throughout the company. Not killing fellow creatures helps."

Stella McCartney, fashion designer

Ortolan Home Goods

2008-05-20T06:52:00.000-05:00

I stumbled upon these clever napkins a few months ago and am just dying to buy them for a summer clam bake (if I did those sort of things). Ortolan sells products for the kitchen, bath, and bed that are made of 100% organic cotton. The pillows are filled with kapok fiber too, for animal-conscious buyers or those allergic to feathers. All of their packaging is recycled material as well. Most of the products are made in the U.S., with the exception of their hand-made blankets which are crafted in Peru. The line comes with a high-end price tag, but it's probably worth it for the sophisticated look. Check Ortolan out here.

Rogan for Target

2008-05-19T18:20:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I made it to Target to check out the Rogan for Target collection that just launched. I know there's been a lot said about this particular Go International campaign, but I'll throw in my two cents as well.

Apparently, two years ago Target approached Rogan to be part of its Go International series of guest designers. Rogan, who is a very sustainable designer (and he just won the Council of Fashion Designers of America annual award), said no because Target does not produce very environmentally-friendly clothes. Throughout the last two years, Target and Rogan worked to create a method of producing clothing for the mass retailer that fit sustainable standards.

I was interested to see the clothes in person, try some on, and see what they were made of.

Surprisingly, most of the shirts and dresses I tried on ran normal for women's clothing and weren't sized for juniors (like most of the Go International designers clothes are). Although one look at the shorts told me they would never fit my booty.

Most of the clothing was made of 100% organic cotton. I also saw there was linen and organic silk used too. Strangely, the bathing suits in the collection did use nylon and other synthetic materials, so that wasn't very sustainable (unless perhaps it was recycled fiber?). But there was no bamboo, thank God, since bamboo is not the eco-material it claims to be. The clothing was manufactured in China, so that was the only component that gave me pause. Hopefully Rogan also made sure the workers were paid livable wages.

The tags are cute. On the care instructions it says, "Washing Instructions (if you must)." On the flip side it lists some materials that the "garment may soon contain" including "grass, dirt, oil, paint, sweat, tears, rain, mud, etc. but that is up to you." These clever little lines will hopefully encourage people to wash their clothing only when absolutely needed, to cut down on the negative affects laundry detergent and the amount of water consumed has on the environment.

I picked up two new pieces -- a tight-fitted pale blue blazer lined with white leopard print and a black shirt dress. Both were 100% organic cotton. I'd love to post pictures, but alas, my camera is MIA. If I find it shortly, I'll get some up.

But I encourage everyone to go check out the collection and make some purchases. We need to send a message to Target and other mass retailers that consumers want sustainable design!

2008-05-16T06:43:00.000-05:00

"I’ll be the first to admit that I’m no Al Gore. What I am, though, is a working mom who’s trying to adapt to our changing world by changing her lifestyle. Think of me as your eco-everywoman."

Cindy Crawford in Vanity Fair's eco blog Green Beat, April 15, 2008

2008-05-15T17:37:00.000-05:00

Today is ride your bike to work day! I bought a cheap bike off of craigslist.com a few weeks ago and I'm loving it. I can already feel my legs toning up and I love the thrill of passing cars idling in traffic. Plus, I already can tell I've cut down on my spending since I buy a whole lot less gas.

Masquerading in Chicago

2008-01-14T18:09:00.001-06:00

I've been quite inactive lately. My apologies. But here are some pictures from a photo shoot I did a few weeks ago in Chicago with the ever wonderful Moises Martinez.

2007-12-10T18:39:00.000-06:00

I have just discovered Hedi Slimane's photo blog. At first, I thought it was just OK. But I kept scrolling and then fell in love.

Hedi Slimane

Shades of green

2007-12-07T21:17:00.003-06:00

I'm extremely jealous of anyone who gets to attend Art Basel Miami Beach this year. The annual international art fair is the sister event to Switzerland's prestige Art Basel show. A weekend of going to art galleries, exhibits and cocktail hours and taking in the most innovative art, music, fashion and design sounds like just what the doctor ordered. A dear friend of mine asked me this morning why I didn't go. Ummm, it's in Miami and I am working in Massachusetts, I told her. She suggested we should go together next year because Florida in December would be brilliant. Well of course it would be, but alas, I am poor and, hopefully by then, I will be in graduate school.

But this is the exhibit I'd be going to first if I was there.

What?

2007-12-07T07:29:00.001-06:00

So the first Sex and the City Trailer is out. I was initially excited when I first heard that it had been released, but after watching it, I'm greatly disappointed. It tells us nothing about what happens in the actually movie and is just an odd montage of clips from it. The theme is friendship. But take a look and see for yourself.

Sex and the City: The Movie

Hopefully the next trailer will be better. And hopefully this isn't an omen about the quaility of the movie.

NYC bound

2007-11-13T18:10:00.002-06:00

Tomorrow I'm going to NYC for work to see a discussion panel on eco-fashion. I've been fantasizing that I'm on The Hills and that I'll be jet setting off in a red eye (except that I'll be on a bus). But I hope to have some really interesting information to report back. And I also plan on going to a few museums, and especially seeing Chic Chicago, since I missed it when it was at the Chicago History Museum.

Tomorrow is also the "most important religious holiday of the year," as Jezebel.com coined the premiere of the fourth season of Project Runway. It has potential to be possibly the most flamboyant and heated season yet. I just hope they can create innovative clothes and that no one sends a model down the runway with a basket on her head.

And speaking of fashion — since this post has turned out to be all about it — why are there still people in the world who think Rachel Zoe has actual fashion sense? The supposed celebrity stylist steals fashion styles and calls them her own. It's fine to find influence in what other people are wearing, but to say that European girls are actually copying celebrities like Lindsay Lohan and Nicole Richie is a joke. Didn't anyone tell Zoe that Europe is at least one year ahead of the U.S. in terms of style? When I was in Scotland three summers ago, all the hip indie girls where running around wearing leggings with denim mini skirts, a full year before Zoe dressed any celebrities like that. But someone without a clue decided to publish a fashion book by this woman. And she is also featured in a small clip in December's issue of Elle, where they called her a "fashion headliner." Elle is my favorite fashion magazine, but they've definitely lost some of my respect.

2007-11-06T18:17:00.000-06:00

Sorry for taking such a long hiatus from the blog. But I'm back and I've found the most interesting article from today's NY Times.

The story follows public health researchers studying the correlation rap music and sexual activity in today's youth. They discovered, sexual lyrics were not a very strong influencing factor on sexual behavior. In fact, most of the girls participating in sexual forms of dancing maintained control over their own body and personal space. However, it was the content of the rap lyrics that objectified women that were the biggest contributing factor towards sexual activity.

I guess that's a bunch of mumbo jumbo which means rap music doesn't make kids have sex. I wish parents and authorities would take the time to get that through their heads. Banning a certain type of music without understanding how kids and teens relate to it doesn't help. The key is to understand what rap music actually means to them and find ways to use it to teach.

I can personally attest to this. I listened to rap in high school. I "freak danced," as they used to call it (and got in trouble for it once at a school dance). But did that cause me to become sexual active? Absolutely not. It's the same thing as teaching kids about safe sex as opposed to abstinence only. I learned about birth control, but I wasn't rushing off to have sex.

Adults really need to take this research seriously and develop methods to teach kids about healthy sexual activity. Then perhaps the rate of teen pregnancy and ST will drop significantly.

2007-10-17T18:28:00.001-05:00

On November 14 my life will have meaning again.

Book Binge

2007-10-02T21:32:00.001-05:00

This weekend yielded a number of trips to bookstores in the area. I love walking the aisles with no real sense of mission. Just strolling and finding random books I otherwise would never think to look for. And boy did I come across some good ones.

I ended up purchasing three books, which I'm just over the moon about:

"A Guide to Quality, Taste & Style" by Tim Gunn — For any Project Runway fan, they know that Tim Gunn, former chair of the Fashion Design Department at Parsons The New School for Design and current chief creative officer for Liz Claiborne, has an eye for — well — quality, taste, and style. His discretion when it comes to fashion is typically spot on. Now, I can't say that I agree with him whole heartedly in every fashion matter, but it's true that he knows what makes women look good. This book is a do-it-yourself wardrobe makeover infused with Gunn's witty banter and tips. Actually it's more than just tips; he's really trying to convert the reader to a completely new mode of shopping and dressing. I'm not far into it yet, but I love it already. (I must admit I felt really guilty at lunch today when I read a section about work clothes — I can't say that my wardrobe met Gunn's expectations, and now mine as well.)

"Modern Love" edited by Daniel Jones — I've been a big follower of the New York Times "Modern Love" column found in the weekly Sunday Styles section for some time now. They used to podcast the essays and the tag line always was "on matters of the heart." But it's so much more than that. Not only does the column cover romantic love and lust, but there are stories about parents and children, friendships, and more. They are all nonfiction and are truly extraordinary — you won't find any tired cliches. This is exciting, fresh storytelling at its best. I can't wait to dive into these essays from all different types of writers.

"All I Did Was Ask" by Terry Gross — If there is anyone better at conducting interviews, I have yet to discover them. Terry Gross is the host of Nation Public Radio's Fresh Air and she is amazing. The thing I love about Gross is her interview style. She gets right to the most important matters with her guests and is never afraid to ask the personal questions. But her style never seems intrusive, like Barbara Walters. Gross is intellectually stimulating. Sometimes her questions are even more interesting than her interviewees' answers. This book is a compilation of conversations with people in the arts field, such as writers, actors, musicians, and artists.

Flip flop

2007-09-28T08:26:00.000-05:00

Yesterday the NY Times reported that Verizon was not allowing a Pro Choice organization from setting up a text-messaging program because of "controversial or unsavory" messages that their users might get. Of course that over looks the fact that people have to request these messages to get them.

But today the Times is reporting, oops, Verizon changed its mind. The Pro Choice group CAN send those messages. Heaven forbid the company actually does something to limit users' options. (grumble grumble)

Godless messages

2007-09-26T11:56:00.000-05:00

The lengths people will go to to justify inflicting suffering and death astound me. Using one's religion to hurt another human being is disgusting. Religion is supposed to be about finding God and listening to what God tells you to do. And around the world, all religions aim to teach us to embrace love.

Unfortunately it seems that the lines of communication are getting crossed. People think they are following God's "word," but in reality they are doing the exact opposite of what God wants. They commit these horrible crimes against other humans in the name of God, but if you stand back and look at it they are really acting on behalf of a darker power. They are so blinded by what they think is faith, they forget actually being a "good" person is what is key. It's like, God told me to love and worship, but you don't love and worship the same way I do, so I'm going to blow you up.

Now I don't claim to know what the answer to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is. It's steeped in so much history and religion and it seems neither of the ruling groups wants to make a compromise. And it's not a new thing that children often get caught in the middle. But it just makes me so sad that innocent children at play in Gaza are being shot down because Israel can't tell if they are planting bombs in the ground or flying a kite...

But this story has given me a little hope — that someone who claims to be a minister of God and then inflicts a loveless, incestuous, rape-filled marriage on a 14-year-old girl, a girl who hasn't even fully gone through puberty, will finally go to jail and be prevented from doing the same to other innocent children.

Maybe in prison he will finally listen to the real message in his religion.

First hints of fall

2007-09-21T20:30:00.000-05:00

So I'm sure you've noticed the slight crispness in the air in the mornings now. And if you are paying attention, you might have seen that a few of the leaves at the top of the trees are that perfect orange-reddish color.

In honor of the seasonal change I'm looking up a list of local cider mills. Mmmmmmm apple cider, fresh donuts, caramel dipped apples. No wonder I love this season so much. Not to mention the fact that I have a reason to go shopping for new clothes.

Amen autumn.

Elle's fashion superlatives

2007-09-21T20:20:00.001-05:00

Another reason why Elle is the best fashion magazine currently on stands: its Web site. They've just released a list of superlatives for NYC fashion week. And it's got claws — they called out Marc Jacobs for being a drama queen. But it's also got some really nice insights about which shows you definitely need to check out if you haven't already.

Watch the slideshow here: Runway Superlatives

Gossip Girl premiere

2007-09-19T07:14:00.001-05:00

Gossip Girl, the new show from CW, premieres tonight and I couldn't be more excited. It's one of the few new shows I'm actually pumped for this season. It looks a lot like the OC, but set in Manhattan and the characters seem even more evil and manipulative. And unfortunately I normally work on Wednesday nights till 9:45, but it seems the CW Web site will host entire episodes to watch online. That is definitely something more networks need to start doing!

My new think tank

2007-09-13T20:08:00.000-05:00

Welcome to my new blog Hour Glass Atelier. An atelier is an artist's workshop or studio and, as a writer, I plan to use this space as such to experiment with thoughts, opinions and words. It'll be my place to expound about everything on the tip of my tongue: art and culture, fashion, museums, style, photography, sex, pop culture, politics and current events. And sometimes I’m sure those will overlap from time to time. I'll post some short stories I'm working on as well.

So let's get this little experiment started...