Carla Braccialini started her handbag company in Florence, Italy with her husband Roberto in 1954. She is the epitome of a self taught designer and craftswoman and therein lies one of the taproots of her success. I was fortunate to interview Ms. Braccialini after her presentation announcing a charitable initiative between Braccialini, Parsons the New School for Design, and the wonderful charity Bottomless Closet. Braccialini is spearheading a program where Braccialini customers donate their gently used handbags to Bottomless Closet, with a story about how the bag was a part of their life. Those...  Read More..

Some people you meet in your lifetime make you wonder if they have managed to cut a deal with the Universe for a few extra hours in their particular day? They accomplish so much and are effective in so many endeavors that it seems that they have discovered some secret. Hillary Flowers makes you wonder these things. Fashion designer, singer, store owner, event planner & promoter, and brain surgeon…okay I fibbed on the last one but you get my point. Hillary owns and operates her Lower East Side boutique that showcases emerging design talent during many of those hours. Her space features...  Read More..

Earning power = real power. Power is often thought of as a negative word but it’s not it is a neutral, or in other words it’s all what you do with it. Fashion makes money, so therefore fashion has power, this coming Tuesday night at the Audi Forum on Park Avenue in New York City, Fashion Fights Cancer puts the power of healing on the runway. This five year old marriage of charity and designers raises money in honor of the memory of Cindi Solomon and this year’s proceeds go exclusively to the St. Jude Children’s Hospital. This exemplary event is the creation of Hope Meredith...  Read More..

What does it take for a designer to move beyond convention, and more importantly, to get everyone else to follow them? Convention is a tricky word, especially when it comes to shoes, for in shoes a great deal of the design potential is lost because…people have to walk in them. I learned during my interview with white-hot rising shoe design star Camilla Skovgaard that accepting that a great portion of shoe design is what you do after you satisfy the demands of the foot and the physics of simply walking. One look at Camilla Skovgaard‘s footwear and you know she’s not satisfied...  Read More..

Here we are in the blender. Many of the downtown up and coming designers and the clients that wear them are consistently combining the rebellious looks of the past as a way of striking out at the homogeneity that was constricting fashion. What happens when designers like Jordi Scott and Starr Rinaldi of Jordi Scott get a hold of the uniforms of rebels past is they become style terrorists and use design to attack the numbing fog of blandness that is commercial fashion. As with many designers who have been marginalized and denied exposure, for Fall/Winter ’09 there was a strong sense that...  Read More..

Applause is due to Tia Cibani of Ports 1961 for shifting her inspirational focus to a climate that is far, far away from both her home and the home of her last Fall/Winter collection. The choice of India was a risk as far as fabrics and cuts. I really liked the softness of the color palette and the materials looked very soft and luxurious. Being luxurious these days is akin to a mortal sin as well, so hats off to Tia for that choice as well. Some of the dresses were lovely and feminine, but overall far too many of the pieces looked as if the cuts had just missed the mark in terms of fit. I am...  Read More..

In this strangest of seasons where everyone felt the pressure to reinvent themselves, and a great variety of reactions to that pressure have been on display. The designers who have been the most interesting to watch have been designers who have a fairly traditional, and therefore commercially acceptable, aesthetic. They didn’t need to change for cash but they still had to not appear insensitive. Everyone under the Bryant Park circus this season seemed to change at least a little, simply because they knew that everything else had changed…a lot. So it was with Rebecca Taylor, she used...  Read More..

The single most effective thing in standing out from others is how you dress. It is entirely possible to attract the attention of dozens of people by simply walking into the room wearing the right thing. The woman who commits to having a style that truly expresses herself without fear will have a huge advantage in getting noticed. In a city as vast and varied as New York it’s very difficult to be unique…oh wait actually it’s not; just go to the corner of Avenue A and East 3rd Street. MoMoFalana has occupied that address for 9 years. They have been carried by Henri Bendel’s...  Read More..

“I have so many different sides, I can never see being just one thing.” That quote is a great starting point in understanding Anya Ponorovskaya one of New York’s fastest rising fashion stars. In her short 5 years as a designer she has opened three stores and is eyeing her fourth. Anya’s designs are, in her own words, “feminine, powerful, and elegant with a little hint of sexy.” The hallmark of all of her clothing is her great talent for creating fitted and shapely designs. Anya bases much of her design aesthetic on balancing negative and positive space. When...  Read More..

Tucked in on the smallest section of Mulberry Street in downtown New York City, Debut feels more like a high end art gallery than a traditional retail store, which is exactly how it should seem to be an expression of owner Lisa Weiss’ vision. Weiss believes that fashion is art, so she is showcasing the emerging design talent that fills her store with a beautiful, warm and bright space. Weiss believes that, “designers learn only by doing”. She feels it is essential for designers just starting out to have an environment that allows them to take risks as they express and explore their...  Read More..

Whenever there has been an aesthetic revolt against existing culture, fashion has always been out front. This does not happen because of any grand plans, it’s simply born out of a burning desire to be different mixed with anger and a rejection of what’s in. That fierce spirit was stamped all over Jordi Scott’s Spring/Summer ’09 collection. The collection was equal parts N.Y ’70s punk & ’80s L.A Sunset Strip club glam. Iconic images of counter culture soldiers from the past mixed with sexy tailoring and bold fabrics. The collection flowed strongly from Jordi...  Read More..

Mieko Mintz is a creative, quietly passionate designer who possesses a genuine love of and joy in her work. She has an eye that is both instinctive and experienced and her vision goes to work starting with her unique choice in fabrics. Mieko puts it this way: “I have always been attracted to beautiful, ethnic fabrics. Wherever I go whether in Europe or Asia, I am always looking for new material.” She is inspired by fabrics and loves the challenge of “puzzling” her non traditional fabrics into her uniquely beautiful creations. “My particular pleasure is making unique, beautiful apparel...  Read More..

The absolute hands down favorite part of my job is discovering new designers in my travels around New York City. A few weeks back in the Alphabet City section of NYC, I came across Jordi Scott‘s wonderful, punky, and daring designs in Mark Montano Boutique. Her clothing ranges from wild tees to glamorous and sexy evening wear. Jordi worked for Betsey Johnson before launching her own line, but her fashion leans more towards that wonderful classic punk aesthetic. Scott and her business partner, Starr Rinaldi, have created a line of affordable boldness that cuts its own swath across the fashion...  Read More..