Tag Archives: New York
Prabal Gurung SS2011
Prabal Gurung has been named one to watch by many influential fashion editors, and his show for spring, full of bright, color blocked looks and high tech materials, lived up to his promise. A number of high-power fans, buyers and stylists came to the show.
Lynn Yaeger in a billowy, boho skirt. Loved her recent article on how she deliberates so much over each purchase that at one point, salespeople burst into applause when she finally bought something. (more…)
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Tagged #NYFWSS2011, fashion week, Kate Ciepluch, Lauren Santo Domingo, Llincoln Center, Lynn Yaeger, Meredith Melling Burke, New York, Rachel Zoe, Sarah Lerfel, Sarah Rutson, short shorts, SS2011, street chic, Susie Lau
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Fashion’s Night Out, September 2010
As amazing as the fashion is at the official Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, you can’t help be struck by the lack of diversity at Lincoln Center. Intentionally or not, Anna Wintour’s Fashion’s Night Out this past Friday opened up the playing field to African Americans, who dressed for the occasion in everything from designer labels to club clothes. (See Eric Wilson’s article on the changing demographics of the New York fashion world – still about a generation behind the diversification of American colleges.) On Prince street, throw in an Intermix party hosted by socialite Byrdie Bell and attended by several more socialites and you got a sense of the actual demographics of New York fashion – a true melting pot of style.
Maximalist style: a leopard jumpsuit and turban with lots of accessories. (more…)
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Tagged #NYFWSS2011, Eric Wilson, fashion week, Fashion's Night Out, fur, maxi skirts, New York, short shorts, SS2011, street chic
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Nautica Men’s SS2011: The Guests
For men in particular, a lot of sportswear seems to be aspirational. You can dream of that Slim Aarons way of life without stepping foot in many of the locales if you just dress the part. So the job of selling that dream to the public comes down to these editors, buyers and taste makers that attended the show.
Patrick McDonald may not seem like the prototypical coverboy for Nautica, but he has always had a flair for taking traditional menswear and giving it a spin that’s distinctly his own – here with a conservative three-piece suit mixed with purple suede shoes and an oversize gray fedora. (more…)
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Tagged #NYFWSS2011, fashion week, Lincoln Center, Nautica, New York, preppy fashion, SS2011, street chic
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Nautica Men’s SS2011: The Presentation
Actual sailors find the fashion world’s idea of what constitutes “the nautical look” pretty hilarious. In editorial spreads and advertising, it’s always a sunny, warm day when you’re on a boat, the men are often shirtless and wearing white short shorts, and women wear perhaps a nautically striped mini dress, designer oversized sunglasses and heels. In reality, dressing for the water – yes, even yachts – means preparing for exposure to the elements – think board shorts, breathable rain gear, shirts that fend off the wind, and non-marking deck shoes.
So Nautica’s practical approach to sportswear is a welcome relief. Even if you aren’t on a boat, these clothes will protect you from the elements come spring – lashing rain, or even a cloudy cool day or two. And when you’re ready to hit the water, board shorts are the way to go, not white Euro shorty bathing suits that would tear at the first encounter with rigging – oh my. (more…)
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Tagged #NYFWSS2011, fashion week, Lincoln Center, Nautica, New York, SS2011
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Fashion Week Goes to Lincoln Center
Though fashion and the Upper West Side seemed an incongruous concept at first, Lincoln Center has surpassed expectations as a new setting for Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in New York. No wonder this spot still inspires some to dress in black tie even in denim-clad times: the soaring facade of the Met, open plaza and dramatic fountain in the center provide the perfect backdrop for an equally dramatic ensemble.
Making an entrance. (more…)
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Tagged #NYFWSS2011, fashion week, Lincoln Center, maxi skirts, New York, SS2011, street chic
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Seersucker
Have you ever discovered a new favorite place only to see it splashed all over the New York Times several days later? That’s what happened to us with not one but two places last week. Our only hope is that the Brooklyn location will keep (some of) the masses from swarming them.
Place number one is Seersucker, a refined little Southern restaurant that recently opened on Smith Street in Carroll Gardens. Behind an unassuming exterior with stained glass and plants in the window, the inside has a modern farmhouse feel, with polished exposed brick walls, plain wooden tables, lab stools at the bar and Wilco on the stereo. (more…)
Posted in American, Carroll Gardens, food, New York restaurants, restaurants, Southern
Tagged bars, Brooklyn, New York
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Ca Va
While the number of new restaurants opening this fall is exciting, it’s also a little worrisome. Can top chefs and restauranteurs still maintain a hands-on, personal approach while building out more and more new places? Unfortunately, one of the most notorious examples in the negative has been Todd English, the chef who had all of Boston swooning with his enchanting Mediterranean place Olives in the ’90s, then fell flat with the bland W hotel version of the same in 2000s New York.
The latest addition to his cadre of projects does little to rectify that situation. While the French-Mediterranean food at Ça Va is solid and the atmosphere an improvement on almost everything else in the theater district, as a whole the restaurant comes off as slick and corporate, like a fragrance that’s been focus-grouped into the generic. Even the name betrays a certain tone-deafness: “ça va” can be loosely translated as “it’s okay,” versus “ça va bien”: “it’s going well.” (more…)
Posted in food, French, Midtown West, New York restaurants, restaurants
Tagged bars, New York, Todd English
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Transition Wear, Fall 2010
Dressing for the transition from summer to fall is always a little tricky, but a few rules hold true every year. Bright colors cede to black, white, and neutrals, and for fall 2010, patterns are giving away to minimalist looks in solid colors. Many women are opting for outfits of all-black or all-white, or mixing neutrals with either. Hemlines may be dropping to maxi-length later this season, but for now you’ll still see plenty of short skirts and shorts still around.
Beige gets a lot more exciting for fall 2010 fashion. (more…)
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Tagged Madison Avenue, maxi skirts, New York, short shorts, street chic
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Street Chic: Sonic Youth Concert
There’s long been a crossover between the fashion world and Sonic Youth, the post-punk band that put on a surprise performance at a recent Marc Jacobs show. Though “rocker” is considered a category of dress now, this genre-bending band can’t be pigeonholed into a singular style, musical or otherwise. Along with dark rocker looks, they embrace the bright colors and plastic sunglasses of the early ’80s, and their fans followed suit at a concert in Prospect Park this past Saturday.
Proof that you can combine feminine and rocker looks, this outfit of a floral romper, combat boots and plenty of tattoos is classic concert wear for summer 2010. (more…)
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Tagged Brooklyn, New York, street chic
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Vapiano
This first branch of this rapidly-expanding Italian “fast casual” chain in New York, Vapiano fills a void left by Dean & DeLuca when that panini and coffee shop closed just a couple blocks down on University Place, and it will probably become to the neighborhood what Dean & DeLuca was: a go-to place for a simple lunch or dinner. What will keep it from closing like Dean & DeLuca did? Vapiano has a liquor license, a spacious bar and a knack for marketing.
The light-filled interior, with soaring ceilings and sleek Italian design throughout, sets the stage for what’s actually a very back-to-basics dining experience, though at first glance it seems high tech. After picking up a key card at the door, you take a tray and collect your meal yourself, selecting panini, salads, pizza and pasta from various food stations, where they prepare each dish in front of you and scan the card. If your college dining hall went gourmet, this is what it would be like. (more…)
Posted in food, Greenwich Village, Italian, New York restaurants, restaurants
Tagged bars, beef, lunch, New York
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Xi’an Famous Foods
Ever get a yen for a cold, spicy salad made with…lamb face? Chances are you haven’t, but once you’ve had this and some of the other unusual offerings at the new Xi’an Famous Foods on St. Mark’s place, you may start to crave it.
A welcome addition to a street that’s already rife with Asian food places, Xi’an Famous Foods ups the ante by upping the spice content, a lot. One bite of cold buckwheat noodles ($5, item A3), above, and you may start to cry – for a good reason. The amount of fresh horseradish is intense, counterbalanced by cilantro, bean sprouts and sesame oil. As with the fat, hand-pulled noodles that go into many of the dishes here, the buckwheat noodles are made fresh every day. (more…)
Posted in Chinese, East Village, food, New York restaurants, restaurants
Tagged lunch, New York
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The Lion
The Waverly Inn may be one of the most celeb-packed restaurants in the city, but some of us actually went for the food. Sure, the scene is thrilling – particularly the time that Owen Wilson came out from the back room to mix with us civilians at the bar – but the thing that made the aggravating attitude at the door tolerable was the reward of those flaky, golden, melt-in-your-mouth biscuits. Without fail, they would be plopped down on your table as soon as you sat down, a light at the end of the tunnel.
Turns out I must not be alone, because many patrons of the Waverly Inn have followed chef John DeLucie here to the Lion. Mick Jagger caused a stir on a recent night there, and now the flashbulbs of paparazzi outside the door greet anyone vaguely famous-looking. Alas, the Lion’s democratic touch that enraptured Jay Cheshes at Time Out is already fast disappearing, and you may find waits of two hours or more now for one of those walk-in tables in the front room.
Posted in American, food, Greenwich Village, New York restaurants, restaurants
Tagged bars, gastropubs, New York
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Street Chic: New York, Late July
It may be the dog days of summer, but street fashion marches on. As these New Yorkers demonstrate, when you’re wearing less during the summer, it’s the little details that count: rolled cuffs, bright lipstick, and eye-catching accessories.
Great individual style, mixing neutral grays with a pop of coral on the lips and turquoise-framed sunglasses. An artfully-draped sheer paisley scarf can fend off the AC inside. You can find bright, saturated lipstick shades from the new Tom Ford beauty line. (more…)
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Tagged Eric Wilson, New York, street chic
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Ninth Ward
A “destination store” is one that inspires shoppers to make a special trip there, either because of specialized merchandise or deep discounts, but also arising in the city right now are destination bars – though they get the term for a different reason. If your summer vacation plans don’t include a trip to Polynesia, you can always hit up one of the many rum bars gaining a foothold in the city, like Painkiller. Or just stop by Mayahuel or Cienfuegos in lieu of that jaunt to Mexico or Cuba.
Ninth Ward is the latest bar that aspires to take us away, this time to New Orleans, though once you arrive, you may think you boarded the wrong plane. As far as the controversial name goes, “Ninth Ward” is really not the same as “Ground Zero.” This New Orleans neighborhood has a rich history of jazz and Creole culture that came about way before Hurricane Katrina. (Watch Treme for the full story.) But the similarities between the actual Ninth Ward and this new bar end at the name and the cocktail list. (more…)
Street Chic: Madison Square
How do you stay cool and still look chic in hot weather? A few fashionable folks demonstrated how in Madison Square and environs on a 90-degree afternoon.
If you have silk pants or a silk jumper, now is the time – they feel light as air, even in extreme heat. These red, white and navy striped pants make a vivid statement on a hot day. (more…)