a look at the new Rockefeller Center J.Crew and a hint of things to come?

standing at attention

30 Rock

Curious, I popped in for a fast look, noticed that the little army of faceless mannequins standing at attention has sent a detachment from the Fifth Avenue Flagship (they take that Commander in Chic business seriously here), and started snapping away. Bad decision. Since I'm sure you don't want to look at pictures of my fingers, here is a link to a a story that recently appeared in thefeast.com, with much more interesting pictures.

Comments: yes, it is nice to be able to sit down while trying on shoes. By the way, if you're tired from walking around on a hot NY day, the old trick of sitting in the shoe department, removing shoes, and telling anyone who asks that someone's looking for your size or getting something works here.

The story in thefeast.com ends on a puzzling note. The writer has been given reason to believe that J.Crew is getting rid of the Red Phone in favor of some more advanced technology. Brrr. Nothing was said about updating the inventory system. And as I have read only praise for the Red Phone service and its results, I don't see losing it as a good omen. That brrr you heard was me shuddering at the spectre of dueling updates.

What do you think?

another copycat in the Inbox

Michael Kors once had a distinctive look. This morning's email from the folks at Kors, and its links, suggest that the distinction may now emanate from J.Crew. Oh, well, at least they aren't borrowing from the boys. Yet. The Copywriter from Space may have more interplanetary cousins in search of paychecks. These days, who doesn't?

I am sooooo ready for fall clothes, for that first cool morning in August that makes me want to buy notebook paper and yellow pencils no matter how my age continues to advance.

borrowing from who? I mean whom? I mean why?

I'm still undecided about too rich or too thin, but concluded long ago that a girl can never have too many store credit cards. 

 Mind you, this is not general advice. It works for me because I absolutely pay the bills on time. The very thought of credit card interest gives me nightmares. And I have quite a few cards that rarely see action. These emerge from hibernation once or twice a year, stumbling and blinking, when there's a really good sale. In the interim, they rest and while at rest, generate mailers, catalogs, emails, sale alerts, even phone calls from optimistic personal shoppers hoping I'll be in their part of the country again real soon. Maybe I will; more likely I won't. Meanwhile I have all these correspondents I've never really cultivated but would probably miss. 

Of late more and more of the correspondence is getting "personal" or "personalized". Someone at Amazon thinks that because I bought a teakettle a year ago, I'm ready for another few now. Well, no. Either Amazon has no confidence in their merchandise or their algorithm needs work. And I've taught myself not to take it personally when the head of Interior Design at Restoration Hardware tactlessly reports that my living room could stand freshening up, make that a total redo. Four or five times a year. This from the purchase of some marked-down placemats? To bra merchants, we're all saggy, bulgy or flat, and romance-deprived. Well, don't we all have days when this is not just marketing, it's life. 

So I wasn't surprised to look at this morning's emails and learn that my dear never-met friend at Neiman's, Ken the fashion director, knows just what I need and want for fall. Of course he does. This is his job. Neiman's has been around a long time, so you would think they know how to pick smart, original Fashion Directors. However, perhaps someone at Neiman's is not so original. Guess what? Although Ken does not have ugly eyeglasses, Ken has picks.

Here's a shot of some of the email message from Ken.

COULD YOU READ THAT? KEN IS BORROWING FROM THE BOYS!

And here - oh, when will it stop! - is some of the copy on this outfit that appears after a few curious clicks:

A look as fresh and fierce as this Stella McCartney ensemble says something about the woman who wears it: she is fashion-forward, effortlessly elegant, and poised. This long jacket, sequined tee, and skinny jeans combo make great impact together, but you'll also love how they enhance your other looks

OK, I get it. I have choices. I can try to stop getting these emails, which is not as easy as it sounds. I can tell my computer that they're spam, which is dangerous, because the computer is easily confused and the last time I blocked a message about enhancing a body part I don't have, the computer blocked everything that came from AOL (I know, I know, I probably did something wrong, but I don't want to take this chance again. Easily Confused Me + Easily Confused Computer = Dangerous Instrumentality).

Or I can shudder and moan and wait for the trend to pass. Ken or his copywriter the Mercury Kid of the Wild Wild West must be under the impression that a stale expression recovers its freshness after a rest. A lot of guys are. This is why, when you drop off magazines at the nursing home, there's an old fella in the lounge who winks at you and says "Hot stuff, Kiddo!"

J.Crew Fall Lookbook Board

Screen shot:

is there a film critic in the house?

Finished sorting this afternoon's mail. I have received the latest issue of a publication called The Thread. It has Pictures and Words. The cover picture shows a woman in a dark blue woolly knitted romper. Said romper also appears in the April J.Crew catalog. I don't think it's worth trying to add anything to the previous discussions of adult rompers that have appeared on this blog in the past day or two, and I hope that the J.Crew people will reach romper saturation shortly as well.

Inside The Thread, we find More Pictures! More Words! Many not lined up in a comprehensible order! Have fun, Grammarians. I breathlessly await the tweed and sequin loafers. I do tend not to wear tweeds in the summer heat, dahlings, nor sequins, nor this combination, but you go ahead and express yourselves. Spring is coming, tra-la.

So anyway the fashion news for Fall 2011 is that the Bonnie and Clyde look from the 1930's (by way of the 1967 movie) and the Great Gatsby look from 1974 (yes, we know the book was published in 1925, but the book did not have Nifty Outfits or Cool Accessories), were the inspiration for "flared '50s silhouettes in trenches, skirts and dresses."

Well, I haven't even shopped for Spring 2011. As a matter of fact, yesterday we had snow, sleet, hail, thick fog, rain, 40-mph winds and bright sunshine, all in the same 90 fun-filled minutes, so I'm not sure I'll get to shop for Spring 2011. Maybe I'll just wait for Fall 2011. Cinematic inconsistencies aside, I like the idea of clothing with fuller "silhouettes," being of the rather fuller persuasion myself. On the other hand, my recollections of Faye's, I mean Bonnie's, and Mia/Daisy's skirts and dresses do not include "full". Slouchy, yes. Slender, indeed. Sleek - perhaps you get the picture. When I think of the '50s, I think of Peter Pan collars, circle pins, pleated skirts, circle skirts, button-down collars, Black Watch.... and shirtwaist dresses! Those I'd bring back in a minute!

I expect snippets of the copy and pics from The Thread will appear in catalogs and e-mail-ings over the next few weeks... Have you received The Thread? Wouldn't most people rather receive the April catalog before reading about next fall? Or is this a Kindly Warning in Disguise: don't spend too much now, it's going to look old, old, old in a few months.