BrandHabit

Friends with Talent

by Carla Morton

 

There’s nothing I love more than discovering a unique talent that one of my girlfriend possesses.

Some of my friends simply possess personality traits I admire. 

 

My friend Sonia for example; she is as deep as they come but she can turn a depressing conversation into a fit of hysterical laughter with her ironic point of view on any situation.   I’ll want Sonia by my bedside when I am dying because I will then die laughing. 

Or, take my friend Chal who always has the most diplomatic point of view on everything.  She always keeps her cool and never get’s her panties in a bunch (like yours truly). 

My girlfriend Jenny, aside from being gentle and sweet is an incredibly creative collage artist.  I love her work and encourage her to do more all the time!

While many women may get jealous of other women with talent,

 (What? that bee-ach thinks she’s so smart!)

I relish in their unique genius and feel grateful to have so many wonderful women in my life.

When I started working out with a new friend Jules about a year ago, I knew very quickly that she was a good story teller.  But it wasn’t until months later that she told me she writes a blog called “mind of the married mom”.   Check it out:

 www.mindofthemarriedmom.com

Not only is Jules a great story teller but she is a hysterical writer!  I only WISH I could be so raw in my blog, but, I guess I do have a public image to uphold.

Then, just as I was discovering Jules' writing talent she told me she was planning on opening a “ Tween Center” in Fairfax , Ca, called Club BeTween.  It’s a center for kids between the ages of -12 to hang out in.  … pure genius! 

Hats off to you my friend!

The Luckiest Girl you know!

By The Devil Wears Marc Jacobs

Waking up in beautiful Paris every morning is no small feat, first there are the buttery pastries baking daily floating by my window tempting me out of my slumber, then there is deciding which gourmet bistro to dine at, and lets not forget the clothes. When a girls closet is this big and this assorted, whats a girl to where? I am so glad to have found La Garçonne, an amazing selection of only the best designers streamlined to cater to the most fashionable of girls!

My flat overlooks the Eiffel Tower and chic boutiques nearby, I pear out my window to see what goodies Paris has for me today. I spot beautiful people everywhere, the sun has crept up over the land and illuminates all in path. It's going to be a beautiful fall day, now what shall I wear? I just got my order in from La Garçonne, I'll try on my new fabulous finds!

I have to start with my top, when I saw it I instantly was drawn to the vibrant color. Zero Maria Cornejo Cloud Cardigan  I love how it drapes over my frame, this French diet of truffles and wine is really working! Next up cigarette pants, the Preen Saddle Puff Pocket Pants. The pockets on these are genius, and so uniq ue!  Now how about some jewelry (the bigger the better), and this 3.1 Phillip Lim Leather Sequin Collar fits perfectly!   Ha, even the girls at the Chanel store will envy this one!

It's pretty chilly out there, I better bring a coat, should I bring my fur, or my flare coat? The Vanessa Bruno Rabbit Fur Coat is marvelous, and I adore the collar , maybe the Opening Ceremony Classic Flare Coat  , gosh sometimes its hard being this chic! I think I'll go with the fur. To wrap the look up the perfect flats, don't the tourists know, that in Paris you stick out like a sore thumb is you wear high heels? Oh well.

7:30AM (Alarm blaring!) What the....Oh my god, was that just a dream? So I don't live in Paris anymore, my great great grandparents didn't invent Champagne, where are my buttery croissants?!?!

Well at least I can look like a Parisian, where's that website, I need that Cloud Cardigan asap!

BedTime Ritual

This isn't going to be a post about the things I do before bed;  the cleanser I use, the lotions and potions I put on my face to prevent (or repair) the wrinkles, the designer lingerie I wear (not). 

This is actually a post about my favorite time of day; the bedtime routine I do with my nine year old daughter. Tonight was hilarious. While the routine is always the same, what happens in between is magic. I'll underline the parts that are "routine" so you can see how exact the routine is.. even the words we exchange with each other are the same each time.

Every night, I struggle to get my daughter into bed and settled in without jumping up to do a impromptu skit, or a last minute spaz flip into the bed.. (8 or 9 times)

When she is finally in bed, I say, "Okay, 5 minutes starts now."

"No wait Mom, we're not in position!"   We need to spoon first.

"Okay then, get into position quick or I am starting the 5 mintues anyways"

My daughter talks through the steps as if the Space Shuttle is taking off from NASA.

"Knees up!  Butt out!  Arm Wrapped!  Lock and Load"  This is the coziest feeling in the world. I know this won't last forever.

"Okay, 5 minutes starts now,"  I say again.

"Hey Mom?  I just have one thing to ask you..."  It's a delay tactic.  We chat for a few minutes.

She rips a fart.  My dog has been farting up the room all night and I am gassed out already.

"STOP!" 

"Mom, that's mean!"

"What do you mean, 'that's mean?" We are spooning and you are farting on me!"

"I couldn't help it. It popped out."

"Popped out?"  (I am laughing but still kind of mad) "That's not true. You always push them out. You need to learn how to control your farts honey!"

"Mom's know how to control their farts but I am a kid and kids fart. Still. You could have been nicer about it and said, 'can you please stop farting?' rather than yelling, 'STOP!"

"Oh Jeeze.  Okay, there are 3 minutes left on the 5 minutes" I remember we are trying to sleep.

"Mom!  I said, 'Pause 5 minutes!'"

"No you didn't!.  Okay, 5 Minutes starts now."

"Ohhh Grandma's cookin a pie in the oven!"  She wiggles her butt. "I think it's ready to come out!  Five. Four. Three. Two. One!!  Ding Ding Ding!!"  She acts as if she is going to force another fart out.

"STOOOOPPPP!"  Oh my god, my daughter is too funny!   She has the most random sense of humor.
I am laughing hysterically. 

I remind myself that now 20 minutes have passed and continue with our ritual:
 "Okay, 5 minutes are up."  I pause on cue.

"Two more minutes"  My daughter says.  I don't know when we started it but it's always 5 minutes and then 2 minutes.  Sometimes there is talking in between.

The 2 minutes pass and I get out of bed. 
"Hey Mamma? I just have one question..."  Yep this is part of the routine too.  Another delay tactic. But she is drowsy now, so it's short.

I am not sure when this next part of the routine was added but now it's a must.

"Okay Mom, Flatten out the blankets... no, really flatten them out"  Oh no, she got the obsessive gene from my husband.  "And, then come around the bed and give me a hug."

"Okay, good night honey.  I love you!"  I give her a kiss and another hug good night.

"Good Night Mom... If I need ya, I get ya!"

" Always sweetie.  Good night!"

Come on!  What could be better than snuggling with your daughter who is sweet and funny and farts on you?

Someday I will miss this routine!

Walter & My Free Friday/Saturday

Friday is my day to just wander around.  I go to a hot yoga class, stop into DSW (which I JUST discovered!  Where have I been???)  and then later in the day I visit Water of Walter – Walter Baker. 

I tell Walter that he is my niece’s favorite designer.  
“ You KNOW Walter???” My niece exclaimed one night when I mentioned I have met him several times.
Walter is flattered and offers her a gift.  He brings out the hippest silver cropped jacket with a side zipper.   Something I could never pull off but will look fantastic on Lindsay. She is going to DIE. 

Later in the evening I meet my Cousin, and her daughter for dinner at Apizz, a long time New York favorite, hidden on the lower east side.  I have completely gone off of my food and exercise routine this week… In fact, I am busting out of my dress as I have been carbo-loading with some of the best epicurean indulgences NY has to offer.  So, for the last night I might as well indulge all the way: I order a butternut squash ravioli dish that is beyond amazing.  It’s rich, sweet and dripping in butter.  It tastes more like a dessert than a main course.   Next week I’ll get back to the healthy routine I am used to.  It’s all been worth it.

Alas, it is my final day in NYC.  I’m tired for no reason at all really.  I didn’t go out and party like a crazy person but with the travel, the time change, the cocktails with dinner every night and the carbo-loading, I needed a good long nights sleep.  I sleep in till 10 then wander out into the spitting rain to my local neighborhood coffee shop: Café Borgia.  I sit with my laptop and listen to at least 5 different languages spoken around me.  The waitress recognizes me and welcomes me back.  I feel like I am at home again in New York.  I am not here as a tourist but as someone who feels the city is my own. 

Despite my desire to be ALONE. (and to some degree I have been), I am now beginning to feel lonely and am craving the demands of my day-to-day life.   It’s time to get back to my routine:  Wake up, get my daughter out of bed, make her breakfast, make her lunch, drive her to school, work, come home, make dinner, shower, go to bed… do it again.

New York will be here for me and I’ll have my time in the city again. 

Back to life. Back to reality.

Bona Drag... what the?

By The Devil Wears Marc Jacobs

Bona Drag is a quaint on-line boutique with a showcase of independent and hard to find designers including select vintage!  I noticed that their name, Bona Drag, actually means "nice outfit" from a secret language used by the gay culture in London during the swinging' 60's.

 Dressing yourself in the hip designers from this store will make it look like your best gay helped dress you with all the style and none of the gaudy showiness! One of my favorite pieces, and the number one reason I wanted to showcase this site was this Eden Fringe Dress by With Hearts in my Eyes (click on link above for more shots.) Its such a pretty dress, think of all those holiday parties to attend, do you really want to wear the same sparkly frock everyone else will be sporting? Be a maverick, the hostess will be so jealous she didn't see this site first!

If your more of a pant gal, check out the Faithful Pantsuit, by She-Bible (local San Francisco designers.)  This lovely one-piece is fabulous. Putting this outfit on just commands the attention in the room, very sexy!

Now if your a mini skirt kinda of lady, and I have been looking for the perfect one all season, this is my pick. The Zipper Skirt by Sophomore.   The whimsical zipper front is right on trend with the season! The skirt comes in three colors and I will take one of each!

We can't go out in the cold with our fabulous self freezing, so how about a cover-up? I found this Motorcycle Jacket   for a cool $95! It would be perfect to edge out a frilly holiday dress, or punk out in all black, New Yorker style! Either way it's a classic staple you won't regret investing in.

As I was searching through the accessories, I found one bracelet that really stood out. The Keerstin Wintrup Braided snake bracelet, an intricate soft braided leather bracelet with brass snake head and tail. It also comes in the belt, and can be worn low, or wrapped around twice near your midsection.  

Bona Drag has all the fabulous designs of a huge name brand store, but the homeyness of your favorite local boutique, they have made a loyal customer out of me!

 

Editorial Suite

We are set up in a suite at the Bryant Park Hotel.  8 Designers:  Laura James Jewelry

Tucker Paisley,

Baggu, WishWrap.com, 

Red Start Designs

   

,Brilliant Earth

 Sirao,

   

And Tori Richards.

Amy from Big Picture PR has editors booked solid every half hour.   The editors work for every media vehicle from Shape to W, from Parenting to the Today Show.  Laura James and I (both 5’7) comment on how tiny these girls all are.  It seems like a height of 5’2” is a prerequisite for the job.

No other group is a better study on what “look” is happening in New York.  And for this visit, it’s not just the editors but once again, almost every gal you see on the streets is wearing the same look:  Leggings with flat boots (or skinny jeans tucked in), long shirts or short dresses with a long sweater or cropped jacket for the layered look.  Also:  Gray is big.  Lots of Gray. All of the editors wore grey handbags. There is no denying it, the 80s look is not just a passing trend.  I could recycle my New York wardrobe from 1985 and I would be all set. (except for the fact that I finally got rid of my 80’s wardrobe in 2000.) 

Now, you have to imagine that aside from assessing the trends, I had to pick my favorite outfit of the day.   Naria Morales from Lucky Magazine was my favorite.  She had on a gorgeous pair of black patent high-heeled oxfords, beautiful gray tights, a darling short belted flowy gray dress (which she told me she got at Zara!) and a cropped navy military jacket.  She looked darling.  The day is a big success. Each designer seems to capture the attention of at least a few editors. 

Prairie NY, Light by Debra Skyler, Priestess NYC

Wednesday morning, I get up, head out to Café Borgia with my Mac Book Air in hand. 

The Mac Book Air gets more attention than you could imagine. Everyone "oohs and ahhs" when they see it.  People are constantly stopping to say, "Wow, how is it? Do you like it?? Can I feel the weight of it?"  It just kills me however that a NEWER version came out 2 weeks ago. 

After coffee, I walk up through the west village, through the meat packing district and up to 2 showrooms.  I stop in to see Risa , my friend who was previously at Goldenbleu, and is now running PR at Prairie NY.  The Prairie NY Spring collection looks fresh, fun and flirty.  I want to order something but it's always a risk to order off the racks because I can't try anything on. I order a black square necked top with a flowy ruffle that sits on one shoulder and flows down the waist.  Okay: there is my "ruffle" effort for the season.  Let's see if I can pull it off. Black is pretty safe. 

Wednesday afternoon, I stop in another local pub in SoHo and chat with one of the last remaining artists living in SoHo (which is now a mall) and then head back up town to meet with my cousin Debra. 

Debra has come out with a new collection of gorgeous chakra jewelry.  She adorns me with layers of necklaces and bracelets so I can show it off to the press tomorrow at the editorial suite.

Next, I head to the West Village to meet up with Priestess NYC‘s Creative Director, Cody Ross. We meet as his Brownstone-cum-atelier where he gives me a fabulous tour and lets me preview SS’09 styles.

Cody is a study in juxtapositions. He is a totally handsomehipster-boy with spiky-blond Billy Idol hair and talks like a Venice Beach skateboarder. Yet he was educated at the venerable London School of Economics and speaks flawless Mandarin, Chinese (he also has credentials from Central St. Martins!). Despite the economic slowdown, he talked enthusiastically about global retail, NYC’s fashion scene and told me about some of his favorite inspirations including Alexander Wang, Vivienne Westwood and Jeremy Scott.

Now, if you weren‘t already in the know, Cody designs Priestess NYC -- a rockin range of womenswear clothing and accessories (www.priestessnyc.com) that’s garnered the attention of the ‘coolest of the cool girls’ including Tyra, Bjork and an impressive cadre of A-listers from LA to Shanghai.

The clothes are sophisticated, impeccably crafted and come in a wide range of crazy colors with wacky and provocative prints. Cody’s stuff is straight-up fab and captures ‘urban girl whimsy with futuristic accents.

The line sells at upscale, edgy boutiques and department stores around the world and appeals to girls ‘who are a bit radical and totally directional’ (as Cody says)

Keep your eyes peeled for this boy because he is a creative tour de force who understands the market and delivers the goods! ... I'd call him a quadruple-threat: Smart, Ambitious, Charming and Creative. My guess is that Priestess NYC will be a marque to be reckoned with because Cody has the vision, the connections, and a unique blend of international business know-how to make his label stand-out ... even in the toughest of times. Priestess NYC is in it's 3rd season and going strong!

I will be sending out a newsletter all about Priestess NYC this month.

Stay tuned!

Election Night

Upon arrival at JFK, I head straight to an election night party at the home of Peggy Northrop; editor-in-Chief of Readers Digest, formerly of MORE Magazine.  Leave it up to Peggy to have a gaggle of interesting and creative people at her party:  Peggy is so multi-dimensional herself.  In the course of just a few hours I chatted with: Peggy’s darling husband, a wrier (who makes amazing Pozole I must say), a choreographer, a painter, a gilded glass artist, a T.V producer, a few publishing gals, one who shares my experience of being married to a “conservative” man (gasp!)...

I leave Peggy’s house at about 10:30 EST and take a car to SoHo.  Upon arriving at my apartment (that I get to stay in ALONE, I blissfully repeat) I hear the streets erupt with cheers.  Obama must have just taken Ohio. It’s a done deal.  Phew, we don’t need to endure another 4 years of a Republican president.   

I’m exhausted but I can’t possibly sit in an apartment with no TV and celebrate this momentous time in history ALONE, right?   So I make my way to a bar I have walked by a million times. A dive bar that I am determined to go to because I am sick (quite frankly) of the empty vibe and vapid people I tend to meet in “Chic” bar.  This bar in SoHo, is more of a dive than I imagined.  I was in the mood for a good ol’pub scene with a television but this place felt more like the basement of a bad cafeteria.  Someone next to me smelled pretty bad but we chatted about the election regardless.  Funny:  you never know who you are going to meet in a dive bar.   After chatting politics with a young boy standing next to me, I discover he is a window designer for Scoop NYC… (For those of you who don’t know Scoop you should!  It’s a fabulous store that now has 14 locations) Very cool.  My trip to New York , alone and on my own time has only just begun.

Alone in New York

I’m in New York for a business trip.  But this time I am here alone. ALONE. ALONE.  I never realized how much I would appreciate being alone before I had kids and a husband. 
Usually, I travel for business with a colleague.  But this time I am here doing an editorial suite at the Bryant Park Hotel where BrandHabit is presenting a few designers to the press.  Amy Cunha of Big Picture PR has organized the suite so all I have to do is show up at the suite tomorrow and talk to fashion editors. The rest of my time here is my own.  Don’t get me wrong:  I am not here just to wander around on vacation, but I am keeping my schedule fairly loose. 

I fly in to New York on election night on Virgin America, a hip, cool new airlines that tries to feel like a night club with purple lights, house music and hot airline stewardesses.  I am loaded for bear with magazines but stumble upon reality TV show:  Real Housewives of NYC on my personal TV.  Within minutes I’m sucked in and I watch an ENTIRE season… (oh my god. How did I do that?).  The entire time I wonder if I relate to the qualities in any of these women.  I came to one conclusion:  While I do like nice things and I am in the fashion business, and I do go to social events, I could care less about the strategic social climbing or keeping up with the Jones’s like these women do.  I also remind myself of how NOT to dress (at my age).  I posted a blog about this awhile back but hear me out again.  Once you are 40, don’t wear big bold prints, too much bling, too much cleavage (especially if you have big boobs) and don’t wear skirts above your knees without tights, unless you are a supermodel.  I’m sorry… it just looks stupid.  Check out Ramona who repeatedly embarrasses her darling daughter with her trying-to-be-young fashion choices.

Betheny (while she probably isn’t 40 yet) seems to get it right… classy, understated…

Luanne is okay most of the time and she owns her age well and Alex needs a personal stylist. 

Run Stylishly to the Polls! Time is running out!

By the Devil Wears Marc Jacobs

E-Day is here! After eight loooong years of waiting to finally vote for a change we can believe in!!!  It is your civic duty to go vote, so get to it if you haven't already. And you better run, you only have hours left. As you figure out what clothes to wear I can help with your shoe options. I found a site, called GoJane, they sell SHOES, apparel, accessories, formalwear and even swimwear, and everything on site is relatively inexpensive!

You probably want something with no heel to run to the polls in. My first and only no heel option is a lace up fringe boot.  Perfect for a brisk walk or jog, can you picture it, the fringe flapping in the wind as you race to the polls with only seconds before eight! Did I mention they are only $34, crazyiness!  Another fab fringe option is the lace up fringe ankle bootie, for those allergic to flats! These are too amazing for words, and at $23 these velvet booties were instantly put in my shopping cart.

Moving right along, it would only be fair to speak about those right winged heels, oops I meant the right heels for fall! 

Since the opening of SATC the movie, women have flocked to shoe stores in search of the gothic like black gladiator sandal Carrie wore in the movie. Many impersinations have been made, but I found one with a great zipper detail that takes the cake, the Strappy Zipper t-strap Platforms ($30). These are stunning, I'll practically look like Naomi Campbell in these, (well at least in height) the four and half inch heel will definitely bring me closer to model status!

For those of you out there who usually only wear black, I have a heel for you. The Ankle cuff heel ($20) comes in three shades, but silver is by far the best color.  This shoe would compliment an all black ensemble very well, worn over black tights, its perfection! And last but not least, the Pleated Suede Heel ($20) would be fantastic for all those upcoming holiday soiree's, your feet will be the talk of the town!

Now that you have voted, reward yourself with one or more of these treats! Shipping is on them with a purchase of $50 or more, or use the code gojane10178 for 20% off!!!