Saturday, January 31, 2009

T by Alexander Wang

“Necklines are stretched and armholes are strategically lowered so that it looks worn in. It’s like sleeping in a T-shirt and then wearing it the next day. It’s not this crisp little T out of the dryer. It’s draped and kind of wilted."
- Alexander Wang on his diffusion line, T by Alexander Wang


That's right ladies and gentlemen, the new alexander wang diffusion line has finally arrived. I was super excited when I first learned of the line, and finally seeing the product has only made my anticipation grow. And the best part? the prices. Nitrolicious reported that they would be selling wholesale for $26 (tanks) to $40 (dresses). WHAT??? I am soo there. When I learned that saks had them on preorder I clicked over as fast as my fingers could type. Imagine my dissapointment when even the sleeveless tees were selling for $74. I've worked in retail, so I have some compassion for the stores- they definitely have a lot of costs- rental, wage, electricity... but that's over a 280% markup!

Maybe that's the norm, but if so, I think that there's going to need to be some industry-wide restructuring. Maybe saks has an exclusive contract with alexander wang, but it doesn't seem like it'll be very long until a web-only store pops up that can undercut saks

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Domino's manifeto

found this online...

Domino’s Manifesto

  • Home Should Make You Happy!
  • We swear by the 3 R’s: repaint, repaper, reupholster
  • Steal ideas from other people’s houses
  • Even the insides of the closets & cabinets can be beautiful
  • It’s ok to NOT BE finished
  • TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS—ALWAYS!
  • A chandelier is as timeless as a black dress
  • Renters need not be second class citizens
  • Sometimes your mistakes become your greatest inspirations
  • DON’T BE AFRAID TO MIX STYLES (Louis XIV and Eero Saarinen should hang out more often)

the death of domino

Domino dead? a sad day indeed.
expect an upcoming post with some of my favorite images

Sunday, January 18, 2009

History in the making



I'm going to DC for inauguration- so excited!

Saturday, January 17, 2009

“Necklines are stretched and armholes are strategically lowered so that it looks worn in. It’s like sleeping in a T-shirt and then wearing it the next day. It’s not this crisp little T out of the dryer. It’s draped and kind of wilted."
-Alexander Wang on his new diffusion line, T by Alexander Wang


Yes Please!! As a longtime Alexander Wang fan, I was super excited to learn about his diffusion line. I was even more excited to learn that wholesale prices ran $28-$40. And it was available for preorder at saks! Starting at $74 dollars. Holdup, what? Having worked in retail I have some compassion for the store's situation. They have overheads to pay for- like rent, wages, electricity... but this is almost a 200% markup. Maybe that's the industry norm, but that doesn't exactly seem like the way to lure customers, especially if it's a strictly online venture. I understand paying a bit of a markup when I am actually able to benefit from helpful salespeople and being able to try clothes on. But if all I'm doing is ordering from a website paying an extra $46 seems unreasonable.

Friday, January 16, 2009

"Rather than trying to keep the machine running by pumping out high-price hand bags, watches and other goods, he proposed the unthinkable: the entire luxury industry should slash prices. “We need a return to reason, decency, discretion, beauty and creativity — in other words, to true values,”
-Mr. NĂ©marz, New York Times



Mr. Nemarz, chairman of the prestige jewelry firm Mauboussin, said what I've been thinking for a while. This fashionista post definitely got me started thinking along this track, and it's been something I've been pondering for a while, because we've all got to admit that prices for clothing have gotten a little out of control recently. $1385 for Wedges? $595 for a pair of sneakers?

I don't want interesting, innovative and new companies going under. I don't want the people working in the fashion industry to be left jobless. As an econ major I've learned about deflation, and I certaintly wouldn't want us getting stuck in a quagmire like Japan did.

But that being said, a little bit of rationality might not be such a bad thing. Being able to get a pair of balenciagas for less than $1000? should that be as outrageous as it sounds?