MrB and I went to the Broadway production of hot-hot-hot musical Hamilton tonight. Despite the uniformly rave reviews for Lin-Manuel Miranda’s hip-hop interpretation of Ron Chernow’s 2005 biography of Alexander Hamilton, I was dreading the evening a little. I was originally supposed to see Hamilton on March 26, when it was downtown at the Public…
Recommended Reading: Manufacturing Realities
I’ve been meaning to share this for so long! Back in July, Michael Hobbes wrote an enlightening story called “The Myth of the Ethical Shopper” for the Huffington Post. There’s a cycle here in the U.S. (and other Western countries). We as consumers want inexpensive goods, which means manufacturers need to avoid steep U.S. /local…
My Best Dressed at the 2015 Emmys Is …
Television folks don’t do a red carpet the way the music industry does. After all the eye candy at the MTV Video Music Awards last month, the Emmys were a big letdown. I’m going to give my coveted Best Dressed/Wear What You Want combo award to Scandal‘s Kerry Washington, though her phresh out the runway,…
China at the Costume Institute, Zang Toi at NYFW
Earlier this month, I squeezed in a visit to the record-setting “China: Through the Looking Glass” exhibit just before the end of its run at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute. What Wendy Wore to the Museum Dress: James Perse (purchased between 1998-2002; previously seen here) Shoes: Dolce & Gabbana (2015) Purse: Yves Saint…
Throwback Thursday: Todd Oldham and ’90s NYC
I’ve been wondering what 1990s fashion designer Todd Oldham has been doing since 2009, when a short gig as creative director of Old Navy came to an end. View image | gettyimages.com Todd was always a favorite of mine. He was one of the young stars of the exuberant New York fashion scene of the…
Bonus Points for Topless Iggy Pop
I’m not a big fan of fast fashion, but I do like this H&M ad. It does strike me as a bit odd that this was done to promote H&M’s clothes-recycling program. Companies like H&M popularized disposable fashion in the first place and now they’re trying to look noble by offering a quasi-solution to the…
The Golden Girls Turn 30
Thanks to the always highlarious Michael K of Dlisted for pointing out that The Golden Girls first aired on Sept. 14, 1985. As he says, it’s a national shame that this isn’t an official holiday that involves eating cheesecake and sitting on a lanai. The Golden Girls Get More: Comedy Central A few years ago,…
The Week in Review
In case you missed it, here’s what I posted this week. For anyone who enjoyed the movie Straight Outta Compton, my Huffington Post story on N.W.A founding member Arabian Prince is a must-read. Here’s what appeared on my own blog. Monday: Princess Diana’s 1980s style looks fresh again. Tuesday: Some outtakes from my Huffington Post…
Fourteen Years, and Marcy Borders
Last month, Marcy Borders died of stomach cancer. She had had a difficult life since Sept. 11, 2001. On that day, she was 28 and had been at her job at Bank of America for just a month. Her office was on the 81st floor of the north tower of the World Trade Center. She…
Pet Peeve: Celebrity Profiles and SANS FARDS
I’ve been wondering if it is possible for a writer to profile a famous woman for a magazine without mentioning in the first paragraph that the woman in question is SANS FARDS (without makeup). The answer: It is not possible. Here is the first paragraph of Lynn Hirschberg’s profile of model Gigi Hadid, who is…





