Features

It’s time for upfronts, that magical season where the major networks announce their programming for the next year of television. While this can be a joyous time, it’s also fraught with peril. What if your favorite show doesn’t come back? Fans of cancelled shows like Better With You, Hellcats, Mr. Sunshine, or Chase (JK! No one is a fan of Chase!), I’ve been in your shoes and I’m here to tell you: it gets better. Behold, my three step plan for getting over the loss of your favorite show.

1) Wallow
It’s my firm belief that to get over the loss of anything, you need to first allow yourself to feel sad. Sure, the process of getting over the cancellation of your favorite show is (hopefully) a lot less intense than getting over, say, a breakup, some of the same policies still apply. Watch those old episodes you kept on your DVR. Commiserate on fan forums. And hey, eat some ice cream. It’s as good an excuse as any.

2) Let Go
The most brutal part of having your favorite show canceled is that you’ll never get to find out what happens to the characters. Sure, they’re fictional, but it still stings. Here’s where you need to do some research. Find out what else the show’s creator has made. Get into that. Decide which characters are the future versions of the characters on the show you loved. Feel satisfied.

3) Get Back Out There!
Sure, a lot of shows got canceled this year, but even more got picked up! Check out the extended promos for shows like Smash, Up All Night, and BFF and get excited for next season!

By Leila Cohan-Miccio

I cannot hide my satisfaction at being on the distribution list of some of the most prominent large public relation companies. Of course I’m sure that there are some other 2999 bloggers on their books too, but I choose to believe that I am more than just a name, and that they actually read my articles from time to time – or that at least they come to check out our comprehensive list of sample sales!

I spent many years of my life moving between various schools, getting degrees and learning generally useless things in so many fields that there are too many to count, but my degrees are not in literature, English or journalism. And yet here I am publishing this magazine, being responsible for what thousands of eyes glance at every single day. An intimidating task, one might say, but never more so than when I publish something that is not considered mainstream or when my Eastern European sarcasm takes over and I don’t seem to share the enthusiastic American way of looking at things.

I dearly love this planet we all call home and yet, when it comes to eco-issues, I am not really involved in any conservational activity to speak of. On the other hand my mailbox is permanently swamped with emails from PR companies bragging about their client’s eco-friendly programs and initiatives. And from there comes the thorny question: do these companies “go green” to bring attention to their companies and increase sales, or do they do it to for the right cause? And does it even matter why they do it, as long as the end result is a positive one?

I was once again flipping through the Financial Times this weekend when I came across an article written by Vanessa Friedman. Entitled “Earth Day and a sea change,” in it she makes a similar point to my own: are brands using these issues just to increase sales? This is what Friedman had to say on the matter:

“The cynic would say such brands are simply using these issues as window dressing to drive sales, and to a certain extent I agree – though at the same time, responding to these issues to any extent, even for self-interested reasons, is a good thing. After all, if someone gives money to a cause to assuage their feelings of guilt, it still has a knock-on positive effect on the cause. I mean, April is also the beginning of benefit season, and you can’t tell me that all those hedges spend thousands on tables at this and that black-tie gala are doing it just because they feel deeply about the charity involved; they are also doing it for social/political/cultural power. But that doesn’t lessen the amount of money they raise.”

And I have to say that agree with her; if, as they say, “the road to hell is paved with good intentions,” then perhaps it’s also true to say that the road to making money is paved with good intentions too, whether rightly or wrongly.

By Mirela Gluck

Image credit: Annie Leibovitz, WWD

Though the Boutique on 57 promotional effort has centered around the shoe offerings (Jimmy Choo, Ugg, etc.), the clothes are actually the most interesting thing here. The prices aren’t cheap, but the pieces are classic and, if you have a little to spend, the investments might be worthwhile.

Case in point: a beautiful camel-colored strapless MaxMara wool dress for $550. Pair it with a grey blazer for work, a prim cardigan for dinner with the significant other’s parents, or a statement necklace for a night out. Need something more unequivocally evening? Go for a See by Chloe little black dress ($495), plain up top, with a skirt enlivened by a subtle bow. More whimsical pieces are also on offer: take a cheery floral Moschino blazer ($250) for a spring color pop. Or what about a beautiful striped Biba skirt in muted greens and browns. Full and pleated, it’s both subtle and a statement.

Of course, the shoe selection isn’t bad either. We spotted a pair of black satin open-toed Mary Jane Manolos straight from The Vogue Closet, and a steal at $275. A pair of brown perforated leather slouchy boots ($110) were so classic, we were beyond shocked to realize they were Uggs. There’s also a nice selection of bags, including several Pradas. The best deal is likely a classic black nylon bucket tote for $599.

Leila Cohan-Miccio 

There was a lengthy line outside the Escada Sample Sale; it seemed like everyone from the Tri-State area had come out in search of a bargain. But the 45 minute wait was well worth it for most of them because once inside there were deals, dresses, and bargains galore! This is definitely a sale worth traveling to if you’re looking to find Escada clothes at the best prices. Whatever your taste, you’re sure to find something.

A super well organized sale, there were stickers on every piece of clothing telling you how much each one was marked down – 60-90% was the range. A lot of things seemed to be going for 70% off – the hot pink for example – but the black was as priced. There was lots of confusion about those two, but luckily they have two tables dedicated to price check, so if you can’t calculate the percentage, or want to double check, then you have a facility where you can price check those dresses.

The dressing room is the best I have ever been to at a sale. The line was only 5 minutes, and then when you get in there’s one mirror and two racks for each person, all in their own little well lit space. There are no doors or anything, so be sure to wear undergarments! You have some privacy as well as plenty of space and organization, but most importantly your own mirror. Yes, a genius must have designed this dressing space!

I did not see many gloves, scarves or other accessories. Literally, there were maybe 3 pieces of each. There were some Escada Sport handbags, and I saw some Boots that were $150. Shoes were a little bit less at $100, but they weren’t anything too extraordinary. There were also lots of sandals with diamonds or leather heels – pretty boring!

Look to spend at least $80-800 on most items at this sale. Running on the cheaper end there is the Escada Sport clothing line, and those are only going for 70% off of about $200, so not too great of a bargain for lounge wear. There was some overstock at 70% off, mostly grey suits, but the real finds were on the dozens of racks filling the Metropolitan Pavilion ground floor.

I found an $8,000 dress that apparently Blake Lively wore on Gossip Girl. It was marked at $750 with a yellow tag so I went up to the price verifier and it kept scanning at $25! I thought God surely wanted me to have this dress. Did I mention it fit like a glove too? At the cash register, Escada’s underpaid employee said it must be a mistake and there was no way it was on sale for $25. She said she wasn’t sure of the correct price, but that she had just sold the only other one for $799. Which reminds me, some of the items are marked at two or more separate prices. I noticed that before I even went to the organized, relatively short line at the register to buy my $25 steal.

Alas, they did not give me the dress for $25. I was momentarily grief-stricken at the realization that I wouldn’t be wearing this dress to any of my upcoming summer weddings. So much so that I forgot to ask about restocking and price cuts. I have a feeling there will be both – there usually is.

WHEN: 3/24 – 3/27, Th-F (10-7), Sat-Sun (10-5)

WHERE: Metropolitan Pavilion
110 West 19 Street, (6-7 Avenues) Ground Floor; (212-852-5446)

Bargain Jenny