New York Survival Guide

Perusing my ex-aunts double doored apparel sanctuary, I cam across a vampy black Dolce and Gabana corset. Rather than hidden in the lingerie isle, this little number was oh so unassuming amongst her suit accessories. “What is this?” I asked holding it up to my chest, after all, we’re about the same size. By the time she came around the corner to see what “this” was, I was in deep admiration at the leather trim, thick satin and imported french lace overlay. She took it from my hand. “An investment piece,” she answered. Then she paired it with jeans and white, fitted blazer, then with an light navy suit and black leather heels. “See?” she asked as I wiped the drool from my mouth.

We aren’t talking classic brown trousers or the proverbial little black dress here people. Give us some credit, we are way more creative than that! While these investment pieces may not serve as a building block of every outfit for fall, like the black corset, you will have them forever. You should have them forever because these timeless pieces will circulate the trend wheel over and over again. And that, my friends, is why they are worth the price.

 
Feeling sexy is always in style. You can figure out various ways to tone it down sexy, edgy pieces later. For the Fall 2009 collection, Yves St. Laurent has leather bustiers and Versace has an entire collection of sexy something to spice up your attire portfolio.

Autumn and winter will also provide ample opportunity to sport over-the-knee boots – a shoe must have that will keep coming back time and time again. The same uber tall boot, the same sexy thighs, the same drooling street glances – an opportunity you might not have again for several years. This fall’s it boot comes courtesy of Stella McCartney and slides all the way up to your…

A leather jacket. (I mean, duh.) Don’t be afraid to get a little crazy here ladies for this fall, like last – see I told you they were investments – the traditional leather jacket sports updates sure to come around again. From shortened sleeves to diagonal zippers, there plenty of ways to amp up your dingy old bomber.

Color! The recession left us clad in drab blacks and greys, but amongst the sad faces of fall, we can find some color. Thank God for John Galliano who popped Dior’s Fall 2009 ready-to-wear with hot reds and pinks. Poorly made color pieces can look cheap and overwhelming, but a precisely tailored red suit or fine fitting pink dress will make you the talk of the town time and time again.

Emma Dinzebach

It was a rainy June in Gotham; and coupled with lingering worries about our economy, early summer yielded even more setbacks for retail. While the losses were less than previous months – Saks reported minus 20% for May, but only minus 15% for May and June combined – retail still struggled to regain footing. Summer months are expected to remain tough and hopefully (fingers crossed) pick up for back-to-school, under normal circumstances, a busy season for retail.

Unfortunately, these are far from normal circumstances, and everyone from fashion mavens to magazine editors know it. In fact, this year’s Fashion’s Night Out, scheduled for September 10th, is gaining more participants than ever.  Worldwide, participants are scurrying to register and provide details of their upscale designer-salvaging plans – proof that desperation prevails in the sagging global economy.  Malls in Beijing, Avenue Montaigne in Paris, Via Della Spiga in Rome and a multitude of high end stores in New York City aim to lure shoppers to purchase designer duds despite their dwindling savings.

In Gotham, Fashion’s Night Out kicks off New York Fashion week and is hosted by The Council of Fashion Designers of America, NYC & Co., New York City, and of course, Vogue. Anna Wintour’s brainchild, Fashion’s Night Out’s purpose, she says, is to “remind everyone how wonderful shopping can be.” Um, thanks. Events are slated for celebrity appearances and aim to lubricate consumer’s consciousness with – wait for it – alcohol! But can we really expect Sienna Miller and a cosmopolitan to shift the minds of bargain hunting buyers to expensive retail therapy in a matter of months. Probably not.

Stores are hoping just getting consumers in the doors will lure them into purchasing spicy fall trends (above), but the tactic may just rub consumers the wrong way. While shopping has declined, when people do shop, they search for a bargain.The mode of consumers now is deliberate, conscious purchasing with emphasis on quality and cost. Sample sales and websites such as Rue La La and Ideeli realize this and are offering reduced prices on trends but also classic wardrobe essentials. And with sales at nearly every imaginable retailer – this week alone, our calendar highlighted retail sales at Calvin Klein, Derek Lam, Marc Jacobs and Kate Spade – large fall purchases seem, well, unrealistic.

Nevertheless, if the end of August leaves you yearning for fall trends and in dire need a drink, hit up one of the 300 participating stores in the New York area. You can have a drink and figure out what you don’t need to buy for fall.

I was hoping I wouldn’t have to re-report the success of Restaurant Week in light of our lovely recession (although retail sales have been up for the past two months), but here we are. Same shit, different day.

So it’s restaurant week, and I’m trying my best to impersonate someone who is actually enthused about this. In fact, I reached to the bowels of food reviewer hell to look up the website and pick a restaurant just trek to in the rain and fake feeling happy about eating…for less.  A daunting task, but some poor sap’s gotta do it. Here’s what I’ve come up with. Excuse the moaning and griping; I’ve been hanging out with a lot of French people.

My picks for the week are 10 Downing and Bond Street. I saw DBGB on the list, but A) Been there. Done that, although yet to report. and B) You can afford it without restaurant week. Yeah, newsflash to places like Club Room (puke), Restaurant Week’s original purpose, which has since been madly muddled, is to bring normal ‘ol folk exquisite cuisine that, under normal circumstances, would break the bank.

Why? 10 Downing because you can enjoy art while you eat, the pleasant atmosphere keeps for an even keeled, but never boring, crowd, and  the striped bass makes me want to float on a heavenly cloud to that dream diner in the sky. Maybe you can afford it without restaurant week, but their menu rocks. Do it.

And Bond Street because I’ve had their Restaurant Week menu several times as well as eaten there more times than I can count, and think it’s in the running for the best sushi in New York City. If it weren’t so cliche, I’d call it my favorite restaurant in New York. The carpaccio makes me teary and every piece of fish melts in my pretty pink mouth. Do it too.

Oh, riiiiiiiight… I seem to have overlooked you newbies. For those of you who haven’t eaten at all of the classic Restaurant Week spots yet, I’ve pulled them from the ghastly Restaurant Week list. You can thank me any time.

In no particular order: Megu, Tao, Le Cirque, The River Cafe, Morimoto, Nobu – if and only if you are absolutely broke and cannot go sans Restaurant Week, i Trulli, China Grill, and Delmonico’s.

These classics have graced the Restaurant Week list for years, so book in advance because the tourists are going to be swarming. Newbies take note, write these down and visit some this week – or month- and the rest the next time Restaurant Week comes around, which, in this economy, will be here before you can say “2009 was the most boring summer ever.” Then breathe easy knowing you can forget about Restaurant Week like the rest of New Yorkers.

NYC Restaurant Week  July 12-31  Average dinners $35 & lunch $25

Bon Appetite!