Diary of an SF Girl at New York Fashion Week (Pt. 2)

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In which our intrepid contributor Michelle infiltrates New York Fashion Week and lives to tell.

Sunday, Feb. 14, at Bryant Park — by SF Indie Fashion Contributor Michelle Ruiz

It’s Valentine’s day and, lucky for me, love (ok sparkly runway clothing) is sitting waiting in the Bryant Park tents. After some shopping in SOHO this afternoon, I am trying to find my way back to 42nd and 6th and having a difficult time at that. A twinge of guilt tickles my hands holding a Madewell as I think maybe I didn’t have time to shop during Fashion Week. Nonsense, it’s 4:30 p.m., and I can make it to that 5:00 p.m. Tony Cohen show.

5:15 pm: At the tents, no more room at Tony Cohen even with my invitation in hand. Drats!!!! All of that rushing from SOHO (no cabs around, it is Valentine’s Day, after all), first taking the 3 in the wrong direction, then the 6, finally to arrive on the F.  Subways, they are not a girl’s best friend.

5:45 pm: I try to find the right people to see if I can snag standing room for Custo Barcelona. I get an email from Jenn, (she has a Valentine’s dinner date) and passes along her invite. Score!!! The show starts at 8 p.m., and if I go to it, I will certainly not be able to get in line for Vassilios Kostetsos at 9. Decision time. I chose Vassilios.

6:00 pm: I decide to take up date offer from boy I met last night at Rachel Zoe party. He is nice, not in fashion, a medical resident. It’s a nice change of pace. We go to a place called Jacks, and it is yummy.

7:30 pm: I’m back inside the Bryant Park tents with my Vassilios invite. The show starts at 9 p.m., so I hit up the “Rum of Puerto Rico” counter for some kind of rum strawberry mixture that tastes like sugar. It’s free. No food at NYFW, but tons of free alcohol. Hmmmm.

8:00 pm: I  meet a photographer. He encourages me to join him in the media pit. I do not have a pass, but he says they will not notice, and it’s the best seat in the house, he says. I am scared, but have made friends with many of the security guards anyway, so I doubt they will club me if found.

8:15-8:45pm: In the photographer line outside the Salon where Vassilios show will be. All of the photographers look absolutely exhausted and are living off of Power Bars, speaking different languages and barely notice me. It’s roped off in the section right outside the tents, not where the public waits in line. The photographers get in first.

8:45-9:15 pm: I am in the media pit. Rad. We are at the end of the runway on risers. I’m on the second step. I’m a little scared with all of the big cameras surrounding me, accents, Red Bull cans. I see the whole tent before the audience is being let in. They start letting the important people like Anna Wintour in, and she’s sitting front row center. Everyone is so well-dressed. Lots of fur coats. My stuff is being stepped on but I don’t care because the show is about to start.

9:20 pm: The show starts, the lights go on, the music is very much like I’m in a European club, the whole thing feels very foreign, but Vassilios is from Greece. The models start to head out one at a time. They are all so tall. Something about them feels retro, but the clothes are very reminiscent of that film the Fifth Element. Men in red leather jackets, women in sparkly numbers with Princess Leia hair. A very interesting sight to see, especially with my little point and shoot, and the clothes two feet away from me. I get smiles from the photographer to my left. He’s from Argentina, and shows me his last shot of the shoes. I’m still stuck on the runway that slowly begins to turn dark after all of the models do their second walk and head back behind where we can’t see. Vassilios steps out briefly and then is flooded with press headed back stage. I fall over.

[Photo by Michelle Ruiz]

Read part 1 of Michelle’s adventures here…

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Diary of an SF Girl at New York Fashion Week (Pt. 1)

In which our intrepid contributor Michelle infiltrates New York Fashion Week and lives to tell.

Day One At Bryant Park — by SF Indie Fashion Contributor Michelle Ruiz

Today I am going to see two shows at New York Fashion Week and am excited to spend all day in the tents, even with nine shows going on and only two invites! I still can’t believe I have been invited but, it just goes to show you, writing a nice article makes the right PR people think of you and, a couple of months  later, you are inside the tents at Bryant Park. I wonder who I will see.

10:30 am: I enter into the tents showing my Georges Chakra invitation on my iPhone  to the security guard. I’m let right in — hmmm easy enough.

10:35 am: I head to a folding table labeled  “Georges Chakra” in the middle of the foyer and show them my invitation for standing room.

10:39 am: I am given a white postcard with an “S” on it and shoved to wait in a long, long line. I see Tim from Project Runway talking with some designers (I can’t make out which ones) and would feel too much like a stalker to take photos, so I just watch from the line.

10:45 am: We are let into the Promenade Tent. I am standing with some other girls who are not celebrities, most likely assistants to PR people or something like that. I tell the lady usher that if a seat should become available, I would be so grateful to get one!

10:50am: Score! I’m sitting in the fifth row, section C, next to a blond girl who looks like she’s from Laguna Beach. I ask her. She is  not. She’s a writer from HollywoodLife.com named Jenn. She asks me if I see any famous people. We become friends.

11:20 am: The show starts, and I am trying to see over everyone’s heads. I have a pretty good view of the runway and think the clothes are beautiful, but more in an artsy way, not in an everyday wear kind of way.

11:25 am: I love that they list all of the names of the pieces! Brilliant so I know what they are called, and what they are made of. My favorite is “look21” Black Crepe Cocktail Dress with laser cut ruffles.

11:35 am: The show ends and everyone rushes to the runway and backstage to see the designer, but I am still with my new friend Jenn, and we walk outside the Promenade Tent to the hallway to see if we can get any pictures of famous people.

12:15 pm: Jenn invites me to be her guest at The Academy of Art University show at 3! Yay! We take a break to go outside and see all of the people walking in and out of the tents.

2:30 pm: Jenn and I are in line for one of the smaller venues simply called “The Tent.” We have seats and still have to wait in a long, long line to be let in. She is snapping photos left and right, asking me if I see any celebrities. I do not.

2:50 pm: We are let into the tent and seated in second row, section A. Great seats!

3:10 pm: The show begins, and it is far different than the Georges Chakra show. There are a lot of long coats, sweaters, grays, blues and the fabrics drape to the floor. The music is much artsier, like the kind you would hear at an art exhibit. A little distracting.

3:30 pm: The show ends, and I loose my program with all of my notes and the names of the looks. Damn. Everyone rushes out of the tent. Maybe they are going to the next show, maybe they are going to the front area to mix and mingle.

3:45 pm: We go to the bar inside the foyer and get two free cosmopolitan-type concoctions. They don’t card us. Hmmm, I have seen some 14-year-olds running around, but most are escorted by their parents.

4 pm:  I meet a writer who is not given a press pass because of her age. She’s 14. Her name is Maggie, and she writes and produces her own zine in Pennsylvania called Maggie-zine. Age-ism? Maggie feels lucky to be there after befriending Fern (creator of MBFW) last year outside the tents. She doesn’t appreciate Fern’s harsh criticism of her zine, though.

5 pm: I go to check in for the Twinkle show, and it’s packed. I am carrying my coat around because a coat check is out of the question unless you are Mena Suvari or Julia Stiles.

5:30 pm: Still waiting in line for Twinkle and can’t wait to be let in!

5:45 pm: Finally let into Twinkle and am sitting in row four, section A.

6:00 pm: The show starts on time. I love every single look that comes out, particularly look 34, the “Everglade long-sleeved dress with lace yoke in mustard.” I love that all of the models are petite and look to be in their teens.

6:20 pm: The show ends, and I head out to the foyer. I go back to my friend’s apartment and then return at 9:30 pm for the QVC Rachel Zoe  party. I haven’t been invited, but decide to go anyway.

[Photo by Michelle Ruiz]

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Indi Denim: Conclusion (Dangerous Curves Ahead)

Warning: certain of the images you are about to see contain disturbing material. In fact, I would even recommend reading this post on an empty stomach, perhaps with a friend or loved one nearby for comfort. Because what you are about to see is not pretty. I am personally still recovering (as is my injured muffin-top). Perhaps I shouldn’t be so disturbed, because it’s my pasty white stomach and borderline cameltoe (there, I said it) that I am about to show you. And I should probably be comfortable with them by now. But you, well, that’s another story. You didn’t ask for this. And for that, friends, I am truly sorry (not that you didn’t ask, but that you have to suffer through this viewing). But once I begin an investigation, I don’t stop until the mission is complete.

As you may know, about a month ago, I decided to try out Indi Denim, an East Bay company promising $135 custom jeans cut to customers’ measurements and designed according to their specifications. For background, you can read my two previous posts on the ordering process:

Indi Denim: Part 1

Indi Denim: Part 2

Last week, I finally received my jeans. They arrived on Wednesday June 25, just shy of a month after I placed the order on May 31. They were neatly packaged and arrived carrying all the details I’d requested (back pocket flaps, distressed edges, etc.):

But the fit. Oh, man. It was terrible. I’d taken each measurement several times using a dressmaker’s tape measure, so I was surprised at how off it was.

Against my better judgment, I now reveal to you the tragi-comedy that ensued as I stepped into these jeans:

I know. You can say it. Oh MY god. As my husband said with his characteristic matter-of-factness, right before shielding his eyes, “The fit is not good.”

Next up, my impression of Bret Michaels, only without the massive unit. Just check out this pick from Rock of Love 2, and I think you’ll get what I’m sayin’.

I would show you more, but they are really embarrassing. So I won’t. Because I am not sure my fragile self-esteem can recover from knowing that tons of strangers have seen my denim-swaddled crotch region in this compromised state (or any state, for that matter).

To be fair to the folks at Indi Denim, they do offer customers the option to reorder for free, but I didn’t feel like expending the energy to re-enter all my measurements, fit choices and specifications. On top of that, I wasn’t that impressed with the fabric. So I’m returning them to the company, which does offer a refund within 30 days, minus the cost of shipping.

And that, folks, is all I have to say about that.

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Indi Denim: Part 2

(** See Indi Denim Part 1 for the ramp up.)

Earlier in the month, I decided to embark upon an experiment and try out Emeryville-based Indi Denim and offer up my experience for anyone out there who might be thinking about placing an order. The proposition is an intriguing one: for $135, design your own custom jeans online and receive a pair unlike any other out there, fit perfectly to your measurements, within a few weeks.

After placing my order on May 30, I received an email on June 4 informing me that there had been a delay in the shipment of my order due to the “quality assurance process.” At the time, the email I received estimated the ship date for my jeans as July 11. Needless to say, I was like, man, I really have to wait six weeks for them to ship? That kind of went against my need it, want it, get it now sensibilities. But I resolved to be zen about it.

So yesterday, June 18, I was surprised to receive another email letting me know that my jeans had shipped and would arrive within 5-7 business days. That’s certainly better than July 11. But I was surprised to read this on shipping email: “Please note, indi orders ship from Mexico, and it may take a few days before your tracking number is found in the domestic UPS system.”

I’ve never seen a message like that on a shipping confirmation email. It struck me as a little strange – but not all that worrisome.

But here’s what I found to be a bit of a letdown, but I didn’t realize the jeans were being made outside the country and shipped in – and that’s less desirable to me for many reasons. I try to buy local or from independent folks as much as possible – it’s sort of a point of pride for me. So I was a little like, uh-oh, am I in sweatshop territory here? Who knows. I looked on the site again today for any information about the manufacturing process, location, worker conditions, etc. I didn’t find anything. That’s not to say that the company is doing anything untoward – they may be running the best little factory in all of Mexico for all I know. But the point is that I don’t know who made my jeans or what conditions they are working in while making them. And I think about that kind of stuff.

And here ends the update. I’ll be back with images and a final review once I receive my pair.

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SF Indie Fashion News Roundup

Wow, does anyone else feel like people got back from Labor Day and started to go nuts with the work pace? I’m snowed under with like five assignments due this week and everywhere I look, there’s another cool indie or fashion event that I should be blogging about. But deadlines persist, and I’m feeling a major drain on my blogging time. And that makes me a leetle sad. Sniff. But here are some things that have popped up on my radar in the last few days. I want to get the word out, even if I can’t use as many words as I’d like to do it:

Fall Designer Showcase: On Thursday evening, check out 440 Brannan Studio’s Fall Designer Showcase featuring some local indie rockstars like gr.dano, Verrieres & Sako, Vex, Saffron Rare Threads, the 615 Project and Hieros.

Arts and Media Discussion Salon and Reception: Pandora’s Trunk founder Rachel Hospodar sent news about another cool event happening Thursday night at CELLspace. This free event features Miranda Caroligne, The Sampler’s Marie Kare and Melissa Alexander, the new Executive Director of Black Rock Arts Foundation participating on a panel about the arts, media and the intersection of non-profit and for-profit ventures, how they work for and against each other, etc. The discussion will also touch on the fate of CELLspace itself. There will be a lot of other cool stuff going on during the event as well – even a sewing workshop – so check out the site to get all the detes.

Michaelangelo Gallery Fashion Show: Feel like a little trip to Santa Cruz? Friday night’s the night to go. Designers include some of my local faves (Amanda Archer, Donna Lou, Bari J.), as well as plenty of fab indie fashion and accessory designers from outside the City. Check out the full list of participants.

Macy’s Passport Show: Irene Hernandez-Feiks wrote in to remind the peeps about Macy’s Passport 2007 Opening Night. It’s the 25th anniversary and will raise over $25 million for HIV/AIDS research. Tickets are $85 and up.

Tobi T-Shirt Contest: San Francisco-based online retailer Tobi announced the five winners of its t-shirt design contest in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Each of the five designs dreamed up by independent artists and designers from around the country will be Tobi exclusives throughout October, and 10 percent of the proceeds from each shirt will donated to Susan G. Komen for the Cure San Francisco.

**Apologies if I skimmed over any important information – I just wanted to get these things up as soon as possible. Happy indie living…

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