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Red, White and Health Care

Posted on September 10, 2009
Filed Under Only in Washington | Leave a Comment

Photo via CNN

Photo via CBS

Last night, when I wasn’t marveling at the way Michelle Obama can wear a cupcake-frosting-pink skirtsuit – and matching hi-beam lip gloss – and look both ladylike and in charge, I was distracted by the nonverbal message being sent by the tableau front and center stage. The President, along with VP Biden, Speaker Pelosi, and, unmistakably, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, were all wearing what would appear to be the various elements of Old Glory: red, white, and blue to be sure, but even the stars, in the form of the Speaker’s oversize pearls, and stripes in the President’s tie. With so much pressure on getting this plan passed, the outfits had to speak louder than the words (the President’s, and, as it turned out, Rep. Wilson’s). Make no mistake: these outfit choices were carefully curated as a way to tell viewers back home: this plan is the right plan for America.

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Fashion’s Night Out – the Neiman Marcus Party

Posted on September 8, 2009
Filed Under Around Town, Events, Only in Washington | 3 Comments

Fashion’s Night Out, the brainchild of Vogue here and abroad, is making its splashiest fashion splash this Thursday in New York, but retailers in our fair District are taking part, too. The idea is to promote retail, boost the economy and to celebrate fashion through innovative, lively events, while supporting local charities.

I’m thrilled to be hosting the Fashion’s Night Out celebration at Neiman Marcus. Here are just a few of the awesomely fun things to expect:

** Carla Hall, celebrity chef from BRAVO’s “Top Chef” will host a tasting of her signature Fashion’s Night Out Red Velvet cookie (I’m already hooked on red velvet cupcakes, so this could become a huge issue)

** Walk the catwalk and have the paparazzi capture you and your friends. Have the Neiman Marcus Stylists get you red-carpet-ready with makeup stations, blowouts, brow specialists and more. And of course, you’ll receive a picture looking your most fabulous

** The “Red Hot Runway” visual media presentation by local artist, Adrian Loving and models with body paint dancing to the music he’ll be spinning

** “Fashion Rules” trivia game and style competition with local fashionista panel judges (I’m one of them!). We’ve invited local charities to compete in the styling contest and a $1000 donation will be made to the charity whose team is the best Rachel Zoe-to-be. There will be play-for-prizes in the Fashion Rules trivia game for all guests with certificates to Hela Spa, Equinox gym, PR at Partners, Neiman Marcus gift cards, Georgetown Cupcakes and more!

** plus DJ Neekola, plus local mixologists and food all with fashion themes, PLUS a chance to lay your hands on the official Fashion’s Night Out tee, with proceeds to benefit the September 11 Memorial and Museum.
…and may more surprises and goodies.

Make sure to RSVP and SEE YOU THERE.

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Give me Grace!

Posted on September 4, 2009
Filed Under Everything Else | 3 Comments

The big lie of the marketing surrounding The September Issue is that it’s all about Anna. The other lie is that it’s all shoes and glamour and slick camera editing – like a Vogue magazine set to video. It’s not really any of these things, though it does dish up doses of screechy Andre Leon Talley.

In the film, Creative Director Grace Coddington, with her eccentric pouf of red hair and all-black Marni/Balenciaga/Prada outfits, emerges from her favored out-of-the-limelight spot as the soul of the magazine and this movie. Delightfully open, there’s something wonderfully maternal about her, like you’d feel awful disappointing her if you broke a rule and she found out. A bit frustratingly, Anna Wintour remains as elusive and unapproachable as ever (we often see her with a cardigan over her shoulders, as if she’s constantly chilly, doing nothing to dispel her “ice woman” image). The portions with Wintour and Coddington are so different (Wintour is often taped in a staged, sit-down appointment setting) that you wonder whether this was an imperative handed down from the editor herself or a choice made by the director, R.J. Cutler to highlight the differences between the two women.

The movie’s biggest strength is the unique relationship between these two equally opinionated and hard-working women, but also the backstory of the creative process. They are the yin and yang of fashion marketing: Anna is all business, and she believes in the power of putting celebrities on the cover. Grace is concerned with beauty and fantasy, and some of Vogue’s best pages are the result of her work. In an industry that has become heavily saturated by marketing schemes and parties and branding, it’s incredibly powerful to witness the ultimate point of the film, personified by Coddington – that fashion is supposed to be about passion, inspiration, and fantasy.

There’s a wonderfully evocative scene in which model Raquel Zimmerman is posing at Versailles for a spread to be included in the magazine. Tall, impossibly thin and strikingly beautiful, like Coddington once was as a model, she also has a wonderful goofiness about her. Some manner of gorgeous French pastries are brought in, and to watch her indulge, at the urging of Coddington, is pure delight. It’s a refreshing reminder to do what pleases you, in life and at work.

The movie reminded me of a favorite Vogue spread, from the August 2008 issue, inspired by the editors of the magazine (among them Elissa Santisi and Tonne Goodman, who also make cameos). These photos are from that shoot, and feature Karen Elson as Grace Coddington. Enjoy!

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Around the Way Girls

Posted on September 3, 2009
Filed Under On The Street, Women | 4 Comments

Saw these girls waiting at the bus stop looking terribly sassy and cute. Hat tip to LL Cool J for the title.

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Win Tickets to The September Issue Advance Screening

Posted on September 2, 2009
Filed Under Around Town, Events | 34 Comments

Today is your lucky day! You can be among the first in the city to see R.J. Cutler’s much buzzed-about fashion documentary, The September Issue.

There’s an advance screening of the movie tomorrow, September 3, at 7:30 p.m. at the AMC Georgetown, and I’ve got 20 tickets to give away (each admits two). That’s right: you, a friend, and a truly lovely and thoughtful 90-minute look at the world of American Vogue.

To enter, leave a comment about what you love about fall, fashion or otherwise. What rituals do you enact when you wake up to that first fall morning? What’s topping your fall wish-list, and how and where would you wear it? I’ll contact 20 lucky winners via email at around 10:00 this evening. Happy entering!

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