Inconspicuous Consumption
Every season is defined by a few conspicuous key items. Last spring we had the Prada lipstick skirt and all that logomania. This year, there are grommets and Marc Jacobs’s buckle flats. While it may be fashionable to wear this stuff now, there are those who argue that it’s more stylish (and far less slavish!) to buy it, hide it, and slowly roll it out a few seasons later, when everyone is being spoon-fed something else. One fashion editor has plotted her purchase of a Louis Vuitton-Stephen Sprouse bag, which she plans to carry sometime before 2005, but not, God forbid, this spring. And it’ll soon be safe to bring those logo-covered items back out. “Wearing logos,” says one glossy stylist, “is such a faux pas that it’s cool again.”
Dressed to the Nine Irons
Like the once-stodgy sport of tennis before it, golf is getting a sexy new edge. These days, Generation Y golfing magazines like Schwing! aren’t just being sarcastic when they feature “Hotties of the LPGA.” At a recent tournament, leggy Swede Catrin Nilsmark (perhaps aiming for the Anna Kournikova award) raised eyebrows by strutting around in a pair of black hot pants designed by fellow countryman J. Lindeberg. Male pros Jesper Parnevik and Adam Scott are also sporting Lindeberg’s colorful On Course golf line – which includes purple plaid pants, fuchsia argyle sweaters, and fitted brown, purple, and plum polos with gold Lurex stripes on the cuffs. After all, nobody wants to fade into the links. “For decades, golf fashion was an oxymoron,” admits Maximum Golf editor-in-chief Michael Caruso. But no more. Wonder what Tom Ford could do with that stuffy green Masters jacket?
ARIC CHEN
Search for Destroy
Has Pucci lost its status as the most sought-after vintage brand? Old Vivienne Westwood has punk-loving fashion types scouring New York and London for a bit of authenticity. “I saw Dan Macmillan” – British playboy – “in a Destroy T-shirt,” says Katy Rodriguez, the co-owner of the Resurrection boutique (and of a T-shirt that once belonged to Sid Vicious), “and I have a Seditionaries dress. But it’s really hard to find.” Kate Moss has original Westwood witches’ boots, and Katie Grand (fashion director of The Face) has a scarf from the Pirates collection. Cecilia Dean turned heads at the Frick’s Tartan Ball in old Westwood plaids. But if you can’t get the original – if it was worn properly the first time around, after all, it may not be in the best shape anymore – settle for the updates. Both Chanel and Celine have done buckled boots that call Westwood to mind, and Clements Ribeiro has a sash that is evocative of the Pirates. Mohawks and dog collars, however, you’ll have to supply on your own.
Smart Set
Fran Marchese
“I love Rivington Street!” says Fran Marchese, Lower East Side can-do girl, with typical enthusiasm. Just over two years ago, Marchese and cohort Lisa Gartner opened Welcome to the Johnson’s, a cozy neighborhood bar with wood paneling and portraits on the wall. After that, the pair launched Tiny’s – perhaps the world’s smallest sandwich shop – two doors down from the bar. But after working so hard to get the bar and grill off the ground, Marchese had a revelation. She’d all but stopped shopping. “I wanted to have a boutique so I could buy lots of things!” she exclaims. And so Loisaida was born. The inventory at this hip boutique is unique and, in a nod to people who actually live in the neighborhood, affordable – most things are under $150. This spring, she’s ecstatic about an Estevan Ramos grommeted denim jacket and Lucy in the Sky handmade leather goods. In May, she plans to have “Swap Don’t Shop” nights where friends and customers can come in, hang out, and trade gossip and clothes. And then, perhaps, relax with a drink next door.
MONICA SCHWEIGER