Winter Vacation

Such a Winter eve. Now for a mellow fire,

some old poet's page, or else serene philosophy.

H.D. Thoreau

Newly Vintage From YSL

Yves Saint Laurent Jacket, $2,250, Shirt, $1,490, Bustier, $850, and Pants, $850. Available at Yves Saint Laurent New York, call (212) 980-2970.

Only YSL can make vintage as good as new. After the success of not one but two environmentally feel-good capsule collections, New Vintage, initiated by YSL’s creative director, Stefano Pilati, and Julie Gilhart, is having another go. New Vintage III’s moxie is quite simple: reclaim, recycle and sustain. “The collection is materially comprised of garments made from recycled fabric and from existing patterns instead of new ones, to start a dialogue with the market using known codes and a common language that are reassuring and familiar,” says Pilati about the 180 pieces that will be available this week. Metallic wide leg trousers, velvet tuxedo suiting jackets and leopard-print wrap dresses with a hint of disco pay a refreshing nod to Saint Laurent’s iconic 1970s designs. You’ll have a second chance to finally own that missed ready-to-wear piece, and no doubt appreciate the brand’s intelligent use and reuse of its existing resources. Via The Moment

Joyeux Noel

Alber Elbaz, head designer for Lanvin, was chosen to create the windows this year at Printemps. The theme is Noel au Chateau, and represents the famous Chateau Mr. & Mrs. Lanvin lived in. Marionettes styled after Mr. & Mrs. Lanvin dance their way through the various rooms of the chateau in each window with one of them being haunted by ghosts. Actress Kristin Scott Thomas was the mistress of grand opening ceremony last month. 

via (eyepreferparis)

(Love the pink!)

These windows top to bottom are pure genius,

from the concept and design to the detailed execution...

flawless,  yes?

Cheers!

Pop Up Shop- ok...Pop Up Igloo- Oh Yes!

Kate Spade is not joking around with the holiday cheer this year. In addition to a cute campaign and some decked-out stores, the label is hosting apop-up igloo next to the park's Citi Pond skating rink. The igloo opens at 10am every day, closing at 10pm during the week, 11pm Friday and Saturday nights, and 8pm Sunday. 

In my world, Kate and Andy Spade can do

 no wrong. I know it's weird but, from the way it looks,

they are the reigning Queen and King of the deck.

Don't believe? Take a look at what The Selby 

found when he came a callin.

xo

American Inspiration

Recently, Michael from A Continuous Lean met with
Hitoshi Uchida in Tokyo and took a tour of his vintage store,
J’Antiques. The shop, with considerable opinion in accession,
just may be the 
Best Vintage Store In The World-
with uber creative, detailed merchandising,
the overall look is something out of 
Ralph Lauren 101, or perhaps vice versa.

Forget the fact that much of what is here 

could be found and laboriously curated stateside,

the key here, bold passion meets creativity.

Enjoy!

xo

Windows of New York: The Big 6

Saks 5th Avenue

Lord and Taylor

Barneys

Bergdorf Goodman

Henri Bendel

Bloomingdales

Now that the Big Six of New York department stores—Saks, Lord & Taylor, Barneys, Bendel, Bergdorf, and Bloomingdale's—have all unveiled theirholiday windows, it's time for our annual poll. Which store best captured all that is magical and joyous about New York City in late December? And which stores need to step it up next year? It's your call. But first, take a moment to reacquaint yourself with the contestants.

· Saks Fifth Avenue took us to a magical word of bubbles and snowflakes
· Lord & Taylor gave us a peek into city Christmases
· Barneys celebrated foodie culture with chef caricatures
· Henri Bendel created an ode to The Nutcracker
· Bergdorf Goodman asked us to come along and ride on a fantastic voyage
· Bloomingdale's displayed holiday messages via computer animation

Who wins the Battle of the Holiday Windows?

	Saks
	Lord & Taylor
	Barneys
	Bendel
	Bergdorf
	Bloomingdale's

Skip to current results →

via Racked

It Seems Like Yesterday

It seems like yesterday
 but it's been a year now,
since the Wilkes Bashford store we all new and loved,
ceased to exist (to me).
At one time and really, from the beginning, the
store was one of the most exciting,
beautifully merchandised stores-
housing some of the most coveted and best edited
collections, of luxury clothing in the country.
It's been a year now...
and  it is different (to me).
The bones are still there, but
the soul is gone (to me).
The name is still there, for now,
but the signature has been wiped out (it seems).
The bag is still there, but,
the colors have both faded (to me).
Could it be,
soon customers will no longer have
 the coveted orange and brown shoppers,
to carry like a badge of honor,
a show of patronage?
It's been a year now...
out of respect, I will reflect and realize
it was never perfect, but
the aim was always high and genuine.
It was like a daily theatrical performance,
for which, there will be no encore.
xo

Rolling Down The Tracks

How cute is the idea of a Pop Up shop

for Lionel Trains at Bryant Park NYC?

I don't know what it is about trains

and Christmas, but, whether

you're looking for a keepsake gift 

for a fine young one, or 

a moving element for under the tree-

you've got to go with a train. I mean,

 you can't play with a Radio Flyer wagon

under the tree, right?

Cheers!

Peeping Into The World of Hermes

Hermes Window Design Director Leïla Menchari has done a nearly magical job of turning displays of handbags and silk scarves into fantastical dreamscapes that sit right at the intersection of art and commerce, season after season, for more than three decades. 

Here are a few of the windows  from over the years.

The creativity can now be enjoyed all of us, as 

Hermes recently uploaded more than 50 photos of Menchari’s Paris windows to its Facebook page.

Enjoy!

xo

Canvas Is The New Tweeds? Maybe!

LANDS' END CANVAS
They call it 

"Authentic Inspiration...

Classic Interpretation" .

I call it Tweeds redux and I love it!

Remember Tweeds? The catalogue which had a good

 five year run from about 1987 - 1993.

It was started by a couple of J Crew discontents

 and had a solid  following.of funky, cosmopolitans.

 It was acquired by Hanover and then, 

eventually disappeared -it happens..

All was good, for a while,  because there was still

 J Crew- which was coming up with 

season after season of solidly

elegant, casual looks for the prep wannna be,

while their merchandising and styling
continued to be solid and and well rehearsed. .

Until, within the last two years or so, 

when the styling has looked more like young urban 

bag lady than the American sophisticated casual  they

 had always oozed.

Where was that warm and fuzzy,

modern, sophisticated, lived in sensibility 

that I loved about Tweeds.

Enter Canvas by Lands' End...

I think CANVAS  is pretty 

familiar and cool, like an old friend.

Right? 

Suzy Menkes + Karl + Karl = Genius

I've had so much respect for Suzy Menkes 

from the International Herald Tribune for many years

and of course, who on earth does not 

recognize the inherent genius talent of 

Karl Lagerfeld?

Recently, at the IHT Luxury conference

Suzy Menkes sat down and  Karl

and discussed his career and the history of Chanel.

What I love and respect about him, is the 

reverence he has to those that have come before

and the creativity and genius he brings to every aspect of his life.

I can never get enough of listening and watching 

this genius- at work, at life.

 The Day Before at Fendi on Sundance

and here behind the scenes at the opening 

of his photo exhibition at PACE/MACGILL gallery.

Karl Lagerfeld from FLY16x9 on Vimeo.

XO

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like...

For those in 'the biz' (retail) we know that

 THE HOLIDAY SEASON is  a

year round project and that goes 

triple time for the world of 

visual merchandising.

I first wrote about 

Simon Doonan's plan for Barney's windows

back in March, just after the concept was revealed.

Now, as we get closer, the inner workings 

are opening up and here- via  racked and feast,

I present the beginning of the installation process.

Barneys unveils its food-themed windows two weeks from today, but a few sneak peeks have already made their way online. NBC food blog Feast has a slideshow of the chef windows, which are still being constructed at the Barneys workshop. From this early vantage, their caricatures of famous cooks look a lot like last year's Saturday Night Live display.

T magazine, meanwhile, got a close look at Miss Illy, a mannequin modeling a gown made entirely out of recycled Illycaffè espresso packages. She's also wearing Illy’s new Francis Francis X1 iperEspresso machine on her head, but don't be fooled by her finishing-school demeanor—Simon Doonan tells T that "she’s no Italian aristocrat, she’s a nice Jersey girl.” Illy's also sponsoring a nice little pick-me-up for holiday shoppers: From November 17 through December 31, they'll be serving free espresso and cappuccino on Barneys ninth floor.
· And Now, A Sneak Peek at the Barneys "Have A Foodie Holiday" Windows [Feast]
· Simon Doonan’s Very Foodie Windows [T Magazine]
· In the Window: Barneys is Having a Witty Holiday (R

 ****

On a similar but (very)different note,

         I found these signs of the (local), impending season:

.

               and

don't worry,...

-the good, the bad and the ugly will always prevail.

Cheers!