Now Wearing…

The sun was shining this past Sunday and it was the perfect time for me to head up to The Met Museum for one of my rare trips to the Upper East side to see some art and head to the rooftop for one of NYC's best views. Fall is definitely in the air and it is without a doubt one of my favorite seasons. Time to pull out the jeans and booties and enjoy the glorious day.

As Jeff mentioned this exhibit is awesome and it really is the type of interactive art that I love. I sacrificed my phone screen and poked a little snag in my jeans but I still enjoyed it and the reflective surfaces made for some photographic fun! Click after the jump to see what I'm wearing, more photos and where I've been.




Plaid Peplum Top - Vintage
Krista Super Skinny Jeans in Amnesia Metallic - Courtesy of Hudson
Tissue Tank Top - Courtesy of Petit Bateau
Eagle Ring - Fallon
Compass Necklace - My friend got tired of it and passed it on to me
Buckle Wedge Booties - Stella McCartney (snagged at Barneys Outlet!)
Lulu Tote - Courtesy of Katherine Kwei
Nails - Zoya Dea on the tips, NCLA Bel Air Trophy Wife as the base



So the past few months I have been more than at little M.I.A. on the blog. Truth be told I just underwent some personal trials as the US economy still struggles to make it's comeback. After nearly 5 1/2 years of working at one company I was laid off. Something that I thought would never happen to me - but as I am learning is the new reality that so many people are facing. No job is forever or at least not anymore. Within a short while I was hired back by my same company, but without the security of knowing how long the budget for the position would last and without benefits. And while I was there again for months, I never felt settled or comfortable.

So shopping, sample sales and blogging all sort of went out the window as I sought to find stability again in my life. I took it as a time to re-examine what has been important to me, my career objectives and I saw it as an opportunity to motivate myself to try something new and find something I love. I at long last was able to work on my portfolio again. I applied to jobs on end, interviewed and interviewed again, worked on endless "projects", tried to reach out to everyone I knew, worked with recruiters but there was a lot of false hope and feelings of rejection. After a while it started seeping into my sense of self worth and I feel like I couldn't motivate myself to do very much at all at times. Thankfully I have many wonderful people in my life who continually encouraged me and helped lift me up from my many self-pity spirals.

After months of uncertainty, life is finally looking up and I have the chance to learn and grow again. It's been a long road but one that I hope has been worth it. Now I feel free to live my life again and enjoy the things I love again. So I'm back again New York City!

Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations–Inside the Exhibit

Last week I went to the Met for opening day of this year’s Costume Institute Exhibit - Schiaparelli & Prada : Impossible Conversations.  The idea for the exhibit was based upon Miguel Covarrubias's "Impossible Interviews" for Vanity Fair in the 1930s.  The exhibition explored the similarities and differences between the two designers by comparing their approaches to different themes including "Waist Up/Waist Down," "Ugly Chic," "Hard Chic," "Naïf Chic," "The Classical Body," "The Exotic Body," and "The Surreal Body".

Director Baz Luhrmann created simulated conversations between the two designers by having actress Julie Davis playing Schiaparelli, using the designers own words from her autobiography Shocking Life, and Prada playing herself.  Through these films the viewer is invited to enter the world of the two designers like a fly on the wall in a private dinner setting.



Although they have different approaches and aesthetics, both of these Italian women have an interest in an untraditional approach to what is beauty without resorting to overt sexiness.

We learn why Schiaparelli focuses on the waist up with the creation of amazing intricate jackets and unique surrealist hats because of the strong cafe culture at the time had women sitting most of the time.  Any additional detail on the bottom would have been redundant.

Prada however focuses on the waist down with an emphasis on skirts and shoes because she believes so much of what is important for a woman happens from the waist down, including sex and child birth.

Garments with similar colors, fabrics and themes are placed side by side so the viewer is invited to see the similar embellishments and details as well as contrast the design emphasis between the two.   In certain pieces like the Scroll Jacket by Schiaparelli and the skirt by Prada or the Ugly Chic suiting by the two designers the similarities are uncanny.

The exhibit finishes with rows upon rows of glass cases that contrast garments with illuminated photos when the original garment was not available.  Some of these photos move their faces which I found to a little creepy.

The exhibition was much smaller than last year's McQueen exhibit and was more similar in scale to previous exhibitions like Poiret or the Super Heroes exhibit.  While I did find the contrast and comparison to be interesting I feel the exhibit was curated in such a way to show such similarities that I felt like some hallmarks of Schiaparelli's fame like shocking pink and her unique buttons were not highlighted or showcased to the extent that I wish they were.  It was also kind of interesting to see current season Prada merchandise such as the Spring 2012 Flame shoe in a museum setting.  However it is nice that the museum continued McQueen's armadillo shoe miniature by making a Prada Flame shoe miniature for purchase at $30.

The exhibit is worth a visit if you are in the NYC area.  To see more of the videos see below: