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. 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.
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.
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!
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