Bound for New York.

I'm moving to the big city. I live right near it, and love it as if it were my own, but I've always been a Jersey Girl waiting for the day when "I live in New York." was not a statement of proxy, but rather a truism. It sounds cliche--little girl dreams of big city--but cliches exist because they are so often so true for so many. My New York envy runs deep and has always coincided with my love of fashion. I used to get dressed up to visit Miss New York. I'd put on my coolest clothes and actually do my hair to go hang out there and I'd watch as all the other city dwellers dressed up in their own ways; business suits with ties, stompy boots with rubber dresses, fur coats and too much blush, anything "it" and of the moment. New York is a fashion parade and a people watching paradise. I can't wait to fall asleep in my bed, hovering above its electric current of everything everywhere moving in every direction. I'm almost as excited as the two girls in this 1954 TWA film. Almost. I'm definitely jealous of their cute skirts and hair pin dos. You have to watch this.



Wasn't that special? Loves it.

Feasting On Scraps.

Another series of raw seams sealed a second superlative for Milan Fashion Week. After Prada's remarkable postcard to sunless beaches of the past (or future?), Raf Simons's collection for Jil Sander played the game of hide-and-seek better than any other in recent memory. The understated sexiness of the collection was a marked difference from the va-va-Versace revival that's hitting the catwalks in other house presentations, but it was infinitely more alluring.

The show opened with straightforward shift dresses making good use of the fabric leftovers they were scissored out of. Scraps of dress material were attached to the opening cream sheath for a minimalist's method of embellishment. There was a black version, and a couple more in sheer or shiny fabrics that floated themselves down the runway.

The shimmering violet and golden version appeared to make it's own light, and was exactly what I would picture a dress made of sunset soaked water vapor would look like. The black net version, austerely adorned with rectangular bits of it's own material, was a darker version of and for night.

The sheer, wide-legged pants that floated under burlap looking jackets were a light and loose version of the slouched, transparent tights that made it onto so many runways back in New York. The jackets themselves, some of which were bisected and melded with a see-through second half, were so sexy. The models were suited up in sheer and the juxtaposition made the visible bodies seem strong and soft at once. Like a real woman at work.

How Simons managed to make a duo of mylar-look dresses appear minimalist is mind boggling, and speaks loudly to his talents as a designer. The woven dresses and tops that hid and revealed skin in a game of show and tell were offset nicely by boxy, big suit jackets, skirts, and shorts that concealed enough to give the show balance.

In fact, the wearability and functionality of many of the pieces was so practical and smart of Simons. It was smart, but not sell-out. None of the pieces felt forced or inserted into the lineup to give the department stores something to sell. Instead, the whole collection remained cohesive despite the strong differences between some of the adjacent looks. Again, this shouts (in a whispered way) design talent.

The tied, knotted, and wrapped dresses that came near the end of the show were fond odes to artist duo Christo and Jeanne-Claude who famously tied up monuments, museums, and buildings throughout their collaborative career. The match of aesthetics is apt. Both the wrapped monuments and the wrapped dresses are revealing and concealing. They conceal their exact complexities and reveal the talents of their makers. Also, the shoes in this show were striking and gorgeous. Wood, iron, and snipped fabric? It all works so well.

Excellent, excellent show.

All photos from Style.com.

Resepect Your Elders

I'm a big fan of the more wise among us. I love the stories I hear and the lessons I learn from those with a few more years under their belt than me. I noticed this year that the golden set were getting their due respect in the fashion arena, and I couldn't have been more pleased. The Moment, which is The New York Times fashion blog also noticed as part of their year-end wrap-up of fashion trends. In their post called "Fashion Grows Up" I found a link to Advanced Style and now I'm hooked.

This street style blog distinguishes itself from the many on the market by covering the stylings of senior scenesters. I'm such a fan of older people maintaining their sense of style. When I was younger I thought that there was an age that you reached where your pants had to be hiked up and your hair had to be fluffed and your bags had to be fanny packed. It scared me. I'm not scared anymore, kids. I'm ready to grow up. Well, in due time of course.

See-Line Woman

There almost aren't words for how much I love Nina Simone. Almost. The High Priestess of Soul sang emotion into songs like no one else. Whether it was her exuberant joy or bone-breaking sadness, you can feel it hit your eardrums and go straight for your gut. Her music is simple and made of pure talent, it defies time and genre. Today Simone's songs are inspiring fresh art. The contemporary remixes of her older works are some of my favorite sonic experiences and shouldn't be missed, but nothing compares to Ms. Simone doing Ms. Simone. With a glittering shimmy, a sly shake, and a firm grasp on everyone around her, Nina takes her song "See-Line Woman" for a live ride:

I love how much she's glittering, but how tough she's being. This video only confirms my theory that everyone needs a little Nina in their lives, even babies. If you've got a tiny tot to dress, get them in a Nina Simone onesie from Reckon pronto.

They'll be shimmying and shaking in no time. Well, they'll probably do that anyway, but now they'll look super-cool doing it!