In New York, Halloween seemed to come early this year: black is everywhere. While it’s not unusual for NYC fashionistas to be clad in black year-round, it is highly irregular for everyone from hair stylists to office workers to have shiny black fingernails. Quelle horreur! Though it may sound scary, when not worn by someone in full Goth regalia or sporting a nose-ring, black nail lacquer can look surprisingly chic. Chanel’s limited edition “Black Satin” ($18) has become a hot commodity, giving new meaning to the words “black market.” “I’m going to buy it when I go to Paris, and then sell it on eBay!” said one entrepreneurial friend, who shall remain nameless. If you don’t have shady friends or an “in” with someone at Chanel, popular alternatives to the elusive “Black Satin” are Essie’s “Wicked” and OPI’s “Black Onyx.”
The daily uniform of many New Yorkers, black has extra potency when taken out of its concrete and steel context. I always felt a bit out of place when transporting my largely dark wardrobe to my native North Carolina. A concerned relative once asked me if I was depressed because I was wearing black at Christmastime. I suddenly realized that to eyes having more contact with nature than the mean streets, I was coming across not as stylish, but as the figure of Death in a Bergman film. I now try to have some floral prints or at least some primary colors on hand for visits. Point being that the black nail varnish trend may be a bit severe depending on your context, so use your best judgment. Rather than go all the way, you might try alternatives that offer a similar effect. OPI’s “Lincoln Park After Dark” is a beautiful deep purple, one shade shy of ominous.
Gentlemen Prefer Tweed
For a Thanksgiving jaunt into the NC countryside, what does seem quite appropriate this season is tweed. A fall fashion trend given an extra boost by the movie The Queen (which features many scenes at Balmoral Castle in Scotland), tweed has a unisex appeal but is particularly becoming to gentlemen. For hunting, fishing or general rambling around the countryside, higher-tech and more functional clothing options admittedly exist. As A.A. Gill writes in a recent Men’s Vogue, “A decent tweed jacket can suck up to three times its own weight in liquid and then retain it like a miserly camel. It will also smell like a miserly camel.” But the allure of tweed is not its practicality but rather its patina and aura of respectability. In Britain, woolen tweeds, the staple of hunting and riding costume or “kits,” were often handed down through generations. Such a classic is always a wise investment, and fortunately, today’s tweeds can go to the dry cleaner. One needn’t be landed gentry to wear Burberry Prorsum’s herringbone wool trench ($2500) or a bespoke brown plaid sport coat by Hickey Freeman ($1095). Polo by Ralph Lauren’s three-piece tweed suit ($1550) evokes an Oxford University student right out of Evelyn Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited.
True Confessions
As every reader of British novels knows, where there is an aura of respectability, there is almost always a skeleton in the closet, or at least a closely guarded secret. And secrets are the subject of several new books in which beauty editors spill the beans. In Allure: Confessions of a Beauty Editor (Bulfinch, $24.99), Linda Wells, editor in chief of Allure, the number one beauty magazine, gives up tips she’s gleaned on the job. Nada Manley’s Secrets of the Beauty Insiders: Simple and Straightforward Top to Toe Tips for the Rest of Us (Sourcebooks, Inc., $14.95) is a new and sure-to-be-indispensable resource that features firsthand know-how from beauty gurus around the globe. (Full disclosure: Nada and I were co-editors of a magazine in Boston, and I can attest that she approaches aesthetic well-being with the rigor of a scientist.) Lucky beauty editor Jean Godfrey-June’s Free Gift with Purchase: My Improbable Career in Magazines and Makeup (Harmony, $21) chronicles her crazy days as a tester of fragrance and lipsticks and the personalities she meets along the way. It’s a tough job, but someone has to do it. Stiff (and well-waxed) upper lip!
The Skinny on Fall Denim
by Tricia Horatio
You can try to ignore the return of the skinny jean. After all, ’80s fashion trends were hard enough to get through the first time. But there is no denying that this sexy, tight-fitting style is back and in favor with skinny and not-so-skinny fashionistas.
After much searching, stretching and squeezing, we identified three variations of the skinny jean for you to choose from: the slim skinny, the cigarette and the super skinny.
The Slim Skinny
A straight leg jean with a slightly tapered opening averaging 14.5” or greater – this style is ideal for those who want all the sophistication of the look without the commitment. Try the clean styling of True Religion’s Johnny stretch straight-leg jean or one of our favorites, Radcliffe Denim’s NW1 skinny leg jean with a 14.5” leg opening.
Radcliffe at Uniquities, Chapel Hill; True Religion at Saks Fifth Avenue, Raleigh.
The Cigarette
Think Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn and Sandra Dee: These are the icons you will evoke in the cigarette style. Also known as the stovepipe and the peg leg, the cigarette, slightly narrower than the slim, ramps the look up a notch, offering a 14” leg opening and much more sex appeal. Worn by Sienna Miller and Kate Moss, these jeans look good over a fabulous pump or tucked into a great boot. Try the must have Sass & Bide Frayed Misfits Stove Pipe; JBrand’s 14” cigarette leg; Adriano Goldschmied’s Casablanca; Paige Denim’s skinny stretch; and Joe’s Jeans cigarette leg.
JBrand at Gena Chandler, Raleigh; JBrand and Paige Denim at Uniquities, Chapel Hill; AG at Saks Fifth Avenue, Raleigh; Joe’s Jeans at Beanie + Cecil, Raleigh.
The Super Skinny
Created for true fashion mavens, the super skinny is just what the name implies. With leg openings ranging from 11” to 13”, the super skinny has a punk vibe that is the ultimate in skinny jean perfection. Try Siwy’s Rose 11”, True Religion’s Stella 12”, Juicy’s Penelope 12”, Diesel’s Matic 12”, Rock & Republic’s Berlin 12”, Joe’s Jeans Chelsea 13”.
Siwy, True Religion, Juicy, Rock & Republic at Saks Fifth Avenue, Raleigh; Diesel at Wardrobbe, Raleigh; Joe’s Jeans at Beanie + Cecil, Raleigh.
Worried that you have to be skinny to partake? Not true. The skinny jean works for a variety of body types, but when donning this style, think proportions – full over slim. Grandfather sweaters, slouchy tops or tunics will help balance the look. As for shoes, skinny jeans pair well with rounded-toe heels, flats, and of course, boots. So rather than buck the trend, embrace your inner rock star.
In Spectacle (Phaidon, $49.95), the architect David Rockwell, in collaboration with designer Bruce Mau, explores the allure of larger-than-life events that take place around the globe. From the running of the bulls in Pamplona to the Holi Festival in India to deafening - and dangerous - NASCAR races, Spectacle considers what it is about these “shared, live experiences” that transforms not only the way we see the world, but also how we connect with each other. Spectacle was edited by Molly Fulghum Heintz, Metro’s own style editor, who also serves as Research Director at Rockwell Group Architecture, Planning and Design in New York.
An unprecedented tour of over 60 far-flung and fleeting, beautiful and bizarre manmade events around the world, the dynamic visual essay highlights the power of real-time, real-space events in today’s highly mediated world. Spectacle is illustrated with over 200 color photographs and features interviews with award-winning authors, producers, directors and performers including: Muhammad Ali, champion boxer; Kurt Anderson, novelist and essayist; Simon Doonan, author and creative director; Dave Hickey, art critic; Quincy Jones, legendary music and event producer; Guy Laliberté, founder of Cirque du Soleil; Julie Taymor, film and theater director; Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown, architects; John Waters, filmmaker; and Steve Wynn, Las Vegas mega-developer, with a concluding essay by critic Herbert Muschamp. The book offers statistics and sidebars on the history of featured events, providing layers of information that add depth and context. A thought-provoking journey into the world of events on a grand scale, Spectacle is bound to encourage not only conversation but also participation.
FASHION NEWS
In collaboration with the Monet in Normandy exhibit at the North Carolina Museum of Art, fleur will hold a Fashion Tasting on Nov. 9 from 5-8 p.m. Join wine sommelier Inez Rubistello, formerly of the World Trade Center restaurant, Windows on the World, for a showcase of red wine from Normandy. Between tastings, guests can shop the latest contemporary European looks from designers like Philosophy di Alberta Ferretti, See by Chloe and Paul & Joe. Bring your NCMA exhibit ticket and receive 10% off of store purchases; Cameron Village, Raleigh, 919.828.0602.
In addition, Vermillion is inviting Triangle women to A Day of Monet, complete with the latest fashions from the store’s up-and-coming designers and French inspired food and wine refreshments from North Hills’ neighbor, Bistro 607, on Nov. 18 from 4-8 p.m.
Vermillion will also host a Lela Rose trunk show on Nov. 2-3 and a Tory Burch trunk show on Nov. 15-16; North Hills, Raleigh, 919.787.9780.
Glam Lounge, Raleigh’s newest upscale hair salon, will offer clients the chance to recreate that freshly blown look long after they’ve left the salon with Glam Lounge’s GlamUP 101 styling tutorials. The start-to-finish classes cover brush techniques, hot irons and simple up-do’s. Fees are $100 per class or $250 for a package of all three. Clients enjoy a 15% product discount on the day of service; Raleigh, 919.832.0095.
Join Elaine Miller Collection for a number of exciting events this month, including an Elizabeth Locke Trunk Show on Nov. 6-7; The Mazza Company Trunk Show on Nov. 16; and a SeidenGang Trunk Show on Nov. 28-29. Customers are also invited to A Pearl Event detailing everything you always wanted to know about pearls from selection to care on Nov. 17-18; North Hills, Raleigh, 919.571.8888.
Celebrate the opening of Alexia’s Bridal Boutique’s Vera Wang Salon with a cocktail reception at Alexia’s on Nov. 2 from 6-9 p.m. The posh Vera Wang Salon will be the only other salon of its kind in the South, other than in Florida; 1051 Darrington Drive, Cary, 919.481.6633.
Join Fine Feathers for an Anne Pederson knit trunk show on Nov. 9 & 10. Chapel Hill, 919.942.3151.
Visit Hamilton Hill Jewelers for a trunk show on Nov. 3-4 featuring Gellner: The Spirit of Pearls & Herbstrith: The Finest Chains in the World. Return to the store on Nov. 10-11 for A Diamond Extravaganza with the Original Radiant Cut Diamond Corporation & Dec.1-3 for a Bikakis & Johns trunk show, featuring jewels and 22 karat gold; Durham, 919.683.1474.