Golden Globes 2009

In a totally lackluster red carpet showing last night, I have decided to only do Top Three and Bottom Three.

Thus: Amy Adams, Kate Winslet, Maggie Gyllenhaal top it for me.
It all comes down to personal taste, so I don't expect others to wholeheartedly agree. It's possible that these were the only two black gowns from last night. Beige was everywhere and became a total downer in its ubiquity; black seemed classic and refreshing. Go figure. As for adventurous, I found Maggie G.'s to hit the nail on the head. An interesting shoulder without being a big red bow (á la Nicole Kidman at the Oscars a while back) and a fun pattern without being over-the-top. I liked it, others won't...and that's fine with me.


The bottom consists of Renée Zellweger, Cameron Diaz, and Debra Messing. While I feel it's self-explanatory, I will briefly air my grievances.

Grievance #1: Hair. Ladies, what is up?! Renée, ringlets are supposed to be romantic and soft, not stiff and haywired. And in the opposite direction was Cameron, who popularized this messy beach 'do in the 90s and has stuck by it ever since. Loyalty is one thing, a rut is another. Brigitte Bardot managed to evolve her beach hair, so it can be done. Then there is Debra. All those jokes about how horsey her face is (they did that joke on Will & Grace, right?) and here she adds fuel to the fire. A different angle shows just how mane-gy her hair was.
(As an aside: I'm giving Drew a pass this time because she was at least livin' it up, as she does crazy well.)

Grievance #2: Taffeta. Cut with caution, ruch with extreme caution, wear only with protection and a certificate course.

Grievance #3: Stand up straight and smile, Renée! Stop sticking your bum out and posing with your lips pursed. Just because you have on Carolina Herrera and don't show your teeth doesn't mean you have class or style. It shows you are frightened. And if we smell fear, we will devour you. With Cameron, we just want her to move on from this haute-couture-even-if-it-doesn't-work-for-me-and-my-beachy-hair-decade-long-phase look. And Debra made a misstep, but usually looks stellar; at least she's beaming - with a smile that nice, sometimes you just overlook the rest.

But, Renée, you are very quickly falling out of our good graces. You have made your point that you, Renée Zellweger, are not in fact Bridget Jones--the chubby, oft-erring bunny we all wanted you to be. But you have altered and frozen everything about you that we also have forgotten that you were Gina rocking out in Empire Records. Or Chris O'Donnell's one-true-love in The Bachelor. Hell, even the Jerry Maguire you-complete-me girl is gone. I'm skeptical that New In Town will bring back the love, so why don't you do it first by banning the Botox and flashing those pearly whites. Real love you don't earn, but this isn't real love.

60th Emmy Awards

While fashion week(s) forge on, the Emmys have provided a nice and easy look at some fancy fashion. I've decided to stick to a 'Best Dressed' list because sometimes being negative doesn't help. Also, I'm trying to grow as a person and the less catty, the better. However, if you want to personally rant about the decision to wear jeweled necklaces in your hair or the choice to don a caplet, head on over to Style.com, E! or Yahoo TV to see loads of pictures.

As for the awards themselves, I was particularly pleased with Zelijko Ivanek and Jean Smart's wins. This summer I have become obsessed with both Mad Men and Damages; Ivanek was brilliant as Ray Fiske and his character's arc was the most compelling to watch, which is saying something. Jean Smart won for Samantha Who?, another personal favorite and it's largely because of her. The chemistry between Smart and Applegate is hilarious and spot-on. I wanted Smart to win the last two years when she was on 24, so this was overdue. Maybe Damages and Samantha Who? will get big ratings bumps and everything will be hunky-dory.

Top 5 Dresses
Marcia Cross, in Elie Saab
I initially thought this was a Monique Lhuillier, Marchesa or Reem Acra gown, but I'm still surprised it's an Elie Saab. If you've noticed from earlier posts, I am not an Elie Saab fan. However, Saab left the confines of sex and glitter to create something soft and feminine, while not verging off the cliff to girlishness or fairy princess. The color and the length were perfect for her--especially on camera--and I'm a sucker for tasteful lace and tulle.



Mariska Hargitay, in Carolina Herrera
I was impressed with the bold color choice (even after I saw numerous others donning this near-neon shade) and thought it worked best on her because of her coloring. Nothing sets off honey-olive skin quite like police-tape yellow.



Julia Louis-Dreyfus, in Narciso Rodriguez
Again, a great color choice on the right skin tone. Also a more playful take on an inherently simple and classic shape with the addition of the cut-out. Julia always wears Narciso, it looks like Narciso, and yet Jay (from ANTM and E!) couldn't even fathom a guess when he didn't catch the name. He's all about 'fashion', no?

Cynthia Nixon, in Calvin Klein Collection
It would seem I'm a huge fan of color this year. I thought it was a simple shape, a great color, and just all-round 'right' without being boring. Though I do wish she would have kept the Miranda-red hair, her natural shade makes her seem younger.



Olivia Wilde, in Reem Acra
The main reason Thirteen made the Top 5 was because I had such a great initial reaction to the dress. There are many quality runners-up, but I loved the simplicity of the dress and thought that, even though she easily could have looked like a skeletal Rose Byrne, this dress made her see more womanly and elegant.

Sound familiar?

People moving out,
People moving in,
Why, because of the color of their skin,
Run, run, run, but you just can't hide.

An eye for an eye,
Tooth for a tooth,
Vote for me and I'll set you free,
Rap on, brother, rap on.

Well, the only person talking about loving thy brother is the preacher,
And it seems nobody's interested in learning, but the teacher,
Segregation, demonstration, intergration, determination, aggravation, humiliation,
Obligation to our nation.

Ball of confusion,
That's what the world is today, hey.

The sale of pills is at an all time high,
Young folks walk with their heads in the sky,
The cities aflame in the summertime,
And oh the beat goes on.

Evolution, revolution, gun control, sound of soul-shooting rockets to the moon,
Kids growing up too soon,
Politicians say, "More taxes will solve everything,"
The band played on.

So, round and around and around we go,
Where the world's headed, nobody knows

Oh, Great Googamooga,
Can't you hear me talking to you,
Just a ball of confusion,
That's what the world is today, hey.

Fear in the air, tension everywhere,
Unemployment rising fast,
The Beatles new record's a gas,
And the only safe place to live,
Is on an Indian reservation,
The band played on.

Eve of destruction, tax deduction,
City inspectors, bill collectors, mod clothes in demand,
Population out of hand, suicide, too many bills,
Hippies moving to the hills,
People all over the world are shouting, "End the war!",
And the band played on.

Great Googamooga,
Can't you hear me talking to you,
Just a Ball Of Confusion.

Ball of Confusion (That's What The World Is Today) by The Temptations in 1970

Frank O'Hara

My eyes are vague blue, like the sky, and change all the time; they are indiscriminate but fleeting, entirely specific and disloyal, so that no one trusts me. I am always looking away. Or again at something after it has given me up. It makes me restless and that makes me unhappy, but I cannot keep them still. If only I had grey, green, black, brown, yellow eyes; I would stay at home and do something. It’s not that I’m curious. On the contrary, I am bored but it’s my duty to be attentive, I am needed by things as the sky must be above the earth. And lately, so great has their anxiety become, I can spare myself little sleep.

“Meditations in an Emergency” by Frank O'Hara from Meditations in an Emergency

Vogue Italia goes black

I can finally say that I own a copy of the most-wanted magazine. Immediately sold out in my usual locales, I eventually scored due to a massive reprint and unfailingly consistent perusals of the magazine stand. The July edition of Vogue Italia (edited by Franca Sozzani with photography by Steven Meisel) will either become the tipping point for less prejudiced high fashion or a stab into the darkness (should I say whiteness?) of the fashion industry. It's definitely causing a stir, but whether it translates to real change is anyone's guess; I choose to hope for the best.

Cathy Horyn's article aptly associated Sozzani's views of the American presidential race with diversity debates that occurred last fall during fashion week in New York. The noticeable drop of models of color compared to the '80s and '90s has sparked numerous discussions, but nothing as prominent as Vogue (US) or Anna Wintour have done much to change the debate. Status quo is America's true motto. Sozzani, on the other hand, thrives on controversy and pushing the envelope. Vogue Italia has the good fortune to have a small circulation that allows radical thinking, but also has the pedigree to be highly influential. To that end, Sozzani decided to do something about it in February, coinciding with the Fall Ready-To-Wear shows, and brought debate-enthusiast Meisel aboard.

If Sozzani is the brains behind this operation, Meisel is certainly the heart. During Horyn's interview he said, "I thought, it’s ridiculous, this discrimination. It’s so crazy to live in such a narrow, narrow place. Age, weight, sexuality, race — every kind of prejudice." He also fought to use a larger model, former ANTM contestant Toccara Jones. "I wanted to say something about weight, and I’m never allowed to do that. I met Toccara and thought, she’s beautiful. What’s the deal with her? She’s great and she’s sexy." I even compare this spread with Carson Kressley's show How To Look Good Naked. It might be like comparing a Bentley to a Kia, but -with all these roads converging- the timing is ripe for a reassessment of how society defines beauty.

Naomi Campbell may well be the most recognizable supermodel next to Kate Moss. (Tyra Banks does not count, as she has turned to reality television to increase her fame.) As such, Campbell was given a 9-photo spread. The beauty of the photos is undeniable, but it turns to disbelief when her age (38) is factored in. The same can be said of Gail O'Neill and Iman. This is due to Meisel's ability to capture true beauty and character, rather than just hiding or altering youthful inexperience.


The editorial content of this issue proudly declares that black is beautiful, black is creative, black is timeless, but the most jarring element of the issue is not the use of all black models; it is the almost complete lack of any models of color in the advertisements. The 346-page issue is nearly half ads and only three include a black model. 3. Out of the hundreds of advertisers, only two are solely a black model (Pinko, featuring Naomi Campbell, and Yamamay), while one other (Quodlibet) includes a black model with two white models. Clearly a vicious cycle is occurring where fashion editors, advertisers, runway directors, and designers all follow each other. Image is everything and the image consumers see is decidedly white.

Ultimately, the "shock" that this issue has created is depressing. It is no question that prejudice -racial, gender, economic, and otherwise- exists, but I suppose I expected more from my generation, my country, and my culture. I am from one of the first generations that never saw legal segregation, so clearly divisive subjects have just gone underground. Fashion magazines, the preeminent depiction of elegance and wealth, need to start realizing that minorities are elegant and wealthy, too.

For a more thorough look of Meisel's photos, go to Jezebel or the NYTimes.

Supplemental Savvy | Fashion Editors

I like fashion, as some of you may have gleaned from previous posts. I don't necessarily live it or religiously read WWD (Women's Wear Daily, the true fashion bible), but I do enjoy fashion as an expressive art form and a cultural weathervane. So I will briefly lay out the people I see as the dominant forces behind what people wear. (Forbes made their own list, but only included American magazines.)

Vogue is considered by most to be the preeminent destination for top fashion and the highway to success. The magazine is more traditional than edgy, focusing on designers that are more likely to be fashion mainstays than one-hit wonders (case in point: Vogue features Christopher Kane and even Gareth Pugh, but leaves out Henry Holland's ubiquitous t-shirts). Running the whole show is Anna Wintour, the original Devil Wears Prada. She makes the rules, cuts the trashy, and tends to push for more of the same. With Wintour making the call, you can be assured that Mario Testino or Annie Leibovitz will photograph Gwyneth Paltrow or Nicole Kidman wearing Balenciaga or Oscar de la Renta. Wintour's right-hand "man" and Vogue's Creative Director is Grace Coddington. She is largely responsible for the more exciting spreads, the May 2008 'Daring Do' piece the most recent example.



Vogue has a stellar supporting cast that could make it as leads anywhere else; André Leon Tally (ALT, as he is oft referred to) is a large, beaming black man that can get away with wearing capes. Long, flowing purple ones. And Candy Pratts Price and Alexandra Kotur head the burgeoning website, style.com. Pratts Price likes to promote ridiculously expensive watches and rings, while Kotur singles out the top ten outfits each week, usually a daring choice or an outfit worn by the new 'It' girl.

My favorite fashion writer is Sarah Mower. She is a frequent Vogue and Telegraph contributer and critiques the shows for style.com. Mower adds a dose of realism to an ever increasing trendy and skinny world.

Europeans have always considered themselves more provocative; Vogue Paris and Vogue Italia make sure that they continue to believe so. Vogue Paris is run by Carine Roitfeld. She is thought to be the younger, hipper update of Wintour. Wintour 2.0, if you will. She champions a darker look, slightly messy, and doesn't care for rules or handbags. Vogue Italia's Franca Sozzani, on the other hand, likes to be socially provocative. The spreads tend more towards art than fashion and the most recent issue is all black models. The timing of the issue has many wondering if runway casting directors will follow suit and stop the trend of the blank-stared, nondescript pale models that became so popular after a Prada show so many years ago.



In my youth, YM and Seventeen were the height of magazines and mainly featured work-out plans and new hairdos to try. Then Teen Vogue was introduced and budding fashionistas everywhere have somewhere to turn. The queen of this court is Amy Astley and she is widely regarded as a demi-god who can look equally chic in H&M or Hermes.

Newspapers are still alive and kicking and have retained a quality bunch of writers in Suzy Menkes (International Herald Tribune), Hilary Alexander (Telegraph), and Cathy Horyn (NYTimes). And even certain bloggers hold a certain amount of power, namely Scott Schuman of The Sartorialist. For those wanting a more refreshingly funny look at the inanity of some celebrity fashion choices, head to the Fugly girls for a laugh.

Name Game

These days, everyone seems to be having fun naming their child. Some might think it's solely a celebrity phenomenon, others might say that celebrities began a trend, but I feel that these celebrities are just an indicator of a wider happening.

Freakonomics has a great chapter devoted to the economics of names and notes that unusual names begin in the upper-class and within a decade can become one of the most commonly used names (e.g., Madison. In the 1990s it was considered a 'High-End' name and is now the third most common name in the US. Amber and Brittany had similar trajectories). Celebrities are some of the most visible of the upper-class, all of whom desire to set themselves and their family apart from middle America. The easiest way to become distinctive and different is with a name. Thus, Sunday Rose Kidman Urban and Honor Marie and Everly Bear (not to mention Shiloh and Suri). Granted, celebrities often tend toward the extremes with names such as Audio Science or Pilot Inspektor, but there are many more OrangeJellos and Senators that haven't had as much press.

There are plenty of 'High-End' names that fall into the unusual category along with the Sundays and Everlys, such as Maeve or Waverly, and Asher or Harper. Now seen as haughty names, some will undoubtedly strike a chord with middle-class women hoping to name their child something wealthy and successful-sounding. So as much as we scoff at the choice of Apple or Moses (Gwyneth Paltrow's children), a fruit or day of the week may become one of the more popular names in the country within a decade.

But for those still wishing to have a fully unique name, head over to ThinkBabyNames.com. This wonderful time-waster has a genius feature known as the 'Random Baby Namer'. Ideas will swirl around your head after names have been chosen for you. Let's give it a whirl, shall we? For a boy, what about Seminole Walid? Native American and Arabic, how exotic. Seminole too Floridian for you? Maybe Roarke Balfore then? See what fun naming babies can be?! And to ensure that your daughter will be Homecoming Queen, what about Leota Heloise? French, mais oui. Something more gender neutral? Perry Daveney. And you can do this for hours.

I feel the best names to use are family ones. If the child ever complains, you can always blame it on history rather than your whim brought about by pain, exhaustion, and that name from that website that for some reason is the only one that comes to mind.

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!

R. Nadal defeats R. Federer 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-7 (8-10), 9-7 in 4 hours and 48 minutes with two rain delays. The king is dead; long live the king.



The summer of 2008 may well be the most celebrated in Spain for years to come. 44 years after their first and only Euro Championship, Fernando 'El Niño' Torres scores for Spain. They overcame both Italy and Germany, two major rivals, in an historic win. With the curse now broken, what else would go Spain's way?

It had been 42 years since a Spaniard had won on the grass at Wimbledon. Many had picked this year to be the year Rafa dethroned Federer, but things are easier said than done. (A small few picked Federer over Nadal at Roland Garros, but that was a task that was far too great. Roger was beaten more soundly than he had been in probably a decade.) With Nadal's 2 set lead slowly disappearing, one wondered if he could rise to the occasion and prove that Spaniards win everywhere, not just on clay. One more curse broken.

Similar results seem to be finding Spaniards in other sports. In cycling, Alejandro Valverde is the current yellow jersey in the Tour de France. Spain has had many Tour victories, including the last two years, and a victory here would put the final stamp on the summer of amazing feats.

My beef with Elie Saab

Haute Couture—French term meaning ‘high dressmaking’. The phrase is protected by law in France and may only be used if granted permission. Part of that process is meeting three specific requirements:

• Design made-to-order for private clients, with one or more fittings.
• Have a workshop (atelier) in Paris that employs at least fifteen people full-time.
• Each season (i.e., twice a year), present a collection to the Paris press, comprising at least thirty-five runs with outfits for both daytime wear and evening wear.

I mention these facts because each couture season I am reminded that Elie Saab has no business being mentioned in the same breath as Christian Lacroix, Christian Dior, and Chanel. And yet, there they are - the myriad of his dresses parading down the runway as if it were Hollywood. 'What's wrong with that?', you might wonder. Plenty.

Every season Saab sends out the same sparkling dresses, the same flowing material, the same cockiness of someone who thinks all he creates is beautiful and a sight to behold. Case in point: the looks on the left are from his 2006 Fall Couture show and on the right from the most recent 2008 Fall Couture show. It is one thing to play with recurring statement pieces (Chanel and the tweed blazer, for instance) or ideas (Lacroix and French history), relying on the inherent knowledge of the viewer/wearer to understand the design. However, Saab is doing something entirely different. He is resting on his laurels. Saab realized that once he found something that buyers seemed to like, he'd continue to make them in various colors until they stop selling. So goodbye, artistry. Goodbye, evolution of talent. Saab has decided to see what everyone else is doing and repeat. These don't resemble anything Lacroix ever did in 2004, do they? Or maybe Valentino for the spring of 2006?



As much as I dislike the repetition and boring drapery (remember Rami?), my primo tender beef with Saab (too literal?) is that he caters to Hollywood and the red carpet. And by this I mean that he caters to the stylists of the stars and "style editors" of US Weekly, People, and E!. Hollywood is actually conservative, if you think about it. There, anyone who wears something remotely risqué or even daring is lambasted, where in the fashion world it's really not a faux pas unless it is worn awkwardly or without confidence. Stars strive to get more face time in magazines so that the public will feel an emotional bond with them and want to see them in more movies. And to get into these widely read magazines they wear what stylists have brainwashed middle America into thinking are great dresses. Boring dresses is more like it.

Where something feminine, but not too much. Where something black, white, red, or maybe a jewel tone as long as it's not shocking. Think less is more and then add jewelry. Does anyone remember how Nicole Kidman's chartreuse Dior Oscar dress was supposed to shake everything up? Yeah, and then she went back to the safety colors. In Hollywood, fashion is business. Fashion needs to be glamorous, but relatable. That is why there is a massive amount of time and energy put into having both fall and spring ready-to-wear shows. But haute couture is strictly dressmaking in the truest sense: art. And when was the last time art was mainstream?

Haute couture has the luxury of being avant-garde and pushing the limit. The people who can afford to buy your clothes, who will buy your clothes, love fashion for fashion's sake. They appreciate and understand the artistic genius of it all. They want to wear a work of art. Celebrities and those that admire them tend to go for the safe option. But let me tell you something, Saab - the people who read US Weekly and People and who wholeheartedly agree that she did look lovely in that dress do not buy your clothes. The clientele you want just see a guy relying heavily on heaps of fabric and a bedazzler.

July Mix

July 'Summer Hits' Mix

1•Disturbia by Rihanna
2•Pretty Please by Lissa
3•Dangerous by Kardinal Offishall
4•Low by Flo Rida
5•Damaged by Danity Kane
6•Walking On Air by Kerli
7•American Boy by Estelle
8•GWB (Fuck You Very Much) by Lily Allen
9•Rockstar by Prima J
10•I Kissed A Girl by Katy Perry
11•Got Your Number by Nadia Oh
12•Shake It by Metro Station
13•Tambourine by Eve
14•Lolli Lolli (Pop That Body) by Three 6 Mafia
15•Out Here Grindin' by DJ Khaled
16•The Way I Are by Timbaland
17•Forever by Chris Brown
18•Body On Me by Nelly
19•Hero by Nas
20•Swing by Savage