When Fashion (Designers) Fade, Style is Eternal

Yves Saint Laurent must have been anticipating a global recession when he said, "Fashion fades, style is eternal" because that's exactly what's happening now.

My real-life Becky Bloomwood friend Stephanie was out this week perusing through the racks at the high-end stores in Yorkville, picking up a Pucci scarf on her way.  She came to a vacant shop and wondered what could have closed down there.  With a horrified look on her face she realized that this exact spot, this desolate area once belonged to Hazel Luxury for Women.  She immediately sent me a BBM detailing her nauseating discovery and frankly, I was not so surprised to hear about the store's demise.   A rep from the store declares that Hazel had succumbed to "the vagaries of the economic climate which engulfed her."  Boasting fashions from designers including Giambattista Valli and celebrity clients including Kim Cattrall, this little fashion house seemed to be here to stay.  So what is to be said about the state of the fashion industry during this grim time? 

This week saw the collapse of French designer Christian Lacroix which makes me wonder what's in store for the rest of the European fashion brigade.  "I skipped the last buying trip to Paris altogether," says Erin Crandall, head buyer of designer collections for online retail site ShopBop.com. "The cost of the trip would have outweighed the money we'd have made on the lines."  ShopBob chose to replace French and Italian designers with collections from American brands such as Derek Lam, Chris Benz, Rachel Roy, and Tory Burch.  The hottest thing coming from Europe right now is none other than the affordable-chic superstore H&M.  Among the H&M imports, there are smuggled (I mean guest designer) pieces from sell-out designers such as Viktor & Rolf, Roberto Cavalli and this season Matthew Williamson.  

A Fashion-Forward Nursery Rhyme

This little piggy went to Prada,

This little piggy went to Cannes.

This little piggy dined at Nobu,

and this little piggy, Hakkasan.

And this little piggy went "wee wee wee wee!"

all the way home because she had a fat bottom!

I'm My Own Personal Trainer - Thankyouverymuch

In my renewed vow to get fit, I decided to join one of those super flashy, super glamorous fitness clubs.  Upon joining I was offered a complimentary assessment and I obliged.  I sat for an hour with the trainer who seemed completely interested in my health and well-being; I was wrong.  It was clearly a ploy to lure me into taking up personal training sessions with him.  Now, personal training definitely has its benefits and I don't know anyone who has a personal trainer who looks less than fabulous.  However, I am a J-school grad searching for a job and I just cannot afford the extra $55/week.  He continued to badger me about the sessions exclaiming that the only way I would be able to attain my goal was to have him by my side.  That day I left the gym feeling less confident and petrified of the condescending weight area.

I read this article in The Huffington Post about how personal trainers aren't always as qualified and knowledgeable as they seem.  Some even try and use the same program on every client - yikes!

So, as a last resort, I turned to Women's Health Magazine.  Inside I found pages upon pages of workout tips - and guess what - no trainer necessary!  Good health and a good body are all I need as motivation.  Thanks, but no thanks Mr. Trainer.

Kate Gosselin - Wifezilla

I promise that this will be the first and last post about Kate Gosselin.  I just want to point out that their marriage could not have always been this hindered.  The picture above was taken during the first season of the show and you don't have to be a body language analyst to see that they were super in love.  However, a few seasons and plenty of blonde hi-lites later, Kate seems super oblivious to her once humble appearance.  I mean, really, does she actually need a bodyguard following her around?  

Twetiquette 101

Twet-i-quette; noun - the customary code of polite behaviour in Twitter society.

There is a certain tolerance level that people have when it comes to social networking sites.  I personally don't like it when my friends bombard my Facebook wall with nonsense nor do I take kindly to dirty old men flooding my MySpace inbox with impious messages.  While I find Twitter to have the least amount of spam, there are some gripes I do have.  This is my Twetiquette 101 lesson for all the new Tweeps or for those who are still wondering why you frequently lose followers.  

Do: Get Engaged.  Unless you're Oprah, chances are people are not going to flock to your Twitter page.  You must keep your updates interesting and relevant.  Check out the trending topics and add your unique and fabulous input.

Do: Use hashtags (sparingly).  For example, when the Toronto Blue Jays are playing a game, fans use the popular hashtag #gojaysgo to clump all the Jays tweets together.  This is a great way to find people with common interests and vice versa.  However, there are some Tweeps who go way overboard and use hashtags (#) in every word in their tweets - that's super annoying.

Do: Read @replies.  After the whole @reply controversy with Twitter this week, you are unable to see @replies from people you are not following unless you are using Tweetdeck or other Twitter platforms.  However, this does not stop you from seeing @replies from people you follow, so if you see a tweet directed at you, kindly reply.  It all goes back to the engage aspect; it's called social networking for a reason.

Do: Post an avatar.  The little brown smiley face avatar is rather mundane.  I'd much prefer to see a picture of you - so post one, please.

Do: Make sure you speak to your boss or place of employment about what you can and cannot disclose on Twitter.  WSJ issued an exhaustive code of conduct for social networks this week and I wouldn't want anyone's job hindered for misconduct.  

Do: Keep your tweets short.  I know what you're saying, '140 characters is short enough'.  Hear me out; sometimes you read a phenomenal tweet, then try and re-tweet but can't because that would be going over the 140 character limit.  Use abbreviations and contractions whenever you can.  People re-tweeting is another great way to attract followers.

I'm no Twitter police but here are a few tweet don'ts:

Don't: Use @replies as a means of having a back-and-forth conversation with someone else (that's what instant messaging is for).

Don't: Beg for followers.  People should follow you because they like what you say, not because you offer prizes to the 100th follower (I've seen in done).

Don't: Forget to treat Twitter as a micro-blog.  Filter your tweets by asking yourself, 'Will my followers care about this?'  

When used properly, Twitter can be a phenomenal site for networking and staying in-the-know about pertinent topics.  If you haven't already joined Twitter, you can do so here.  

Craigslist Curse

Yikes!  From ongoing scam listings, to the alleged 'Craigslist Killer' last month, the classifieds giant has been facing plenty of bad publicity lately.  Craigslist posted a blog today issuing the discontinuation of the 'Erotic Services' section, substituting it with a new section, 'Adult Services'.  Any postings submitted to 'Erotic Services' will be null in void and in 7 days the entire category will be removed.   To avoid any dispute about future violent crimes, the site plans to manually review each posting before it appears on the site.  This is to ensure compliance with craigslist posting guidelines and terms of use. New postings will cost $10, but once approved, will be eligible for reposting at $5.

Check out the complete Craigslist blog here

Victoria Gotti - The New Face of Recessionista

Hi-lights, extensions, furs and fake tans will have to be severely cut down for the mobster princess Victoria Gotti as she faces foreclosure on her Long Island mansion.  Gotti allegedly owes JP Morgan Chase $650,000 and has failed to make any payments in over 2 years.  Not surprisingly, Gotti has someone to blame for this disaster; none other than her ex-husband Carmine Agnello.  

Looks as though Victoria and her three orange toned, porcupine-looking spawns will be living life a lot differently from what we saw on their repugnant reality series 'Growing Up Gotti'.  On second thought, this may be a genius idea for a spin-off series featuring life in the ghetto.  They're mobsters, right?  I'm sure they'll survive.  

Rain, Rain - Go Away

It's a super gloomy Saturday in Toronto.  The rain is falling, the thunder is booming and the lighting is not helping my headache.  Weekends are short as it is and inclement weather often hinders our chances to enjoy Saturdays and Sundays.  So, I've thought of some things I enjoy doing on rainy days and wanted to share:

1 - Tweet Tweet Tweet.  This is your perfect opportunity to really browse the Twitter world.  Check out links tweeted by people you follow (a lot of the time there are fantastic articles and websites that are recommended).  It's also a great chance to scope out new people to follow; check out trending topics and you'll likely find people with the same interests as you.

2 - Watch movies.  So you can't make it to the big screen to catch the latest flick but you can certainly put on your coziest pj's, shut all the curtains, find some ice cream and spend the day watching movies at home.  With thousands of titles, great prices and convenience the iTunes store is the most ideal place to buy or rent your movies.

3 - De-clutter.  Spring cleaning happens in the spring because there are so many rainy days.  No one wants to waste the first warm sunny days of the year cleaning so the best time to get rid of junk is on a rainy day!  Take out the summer shoes and pack away the cashmere turtlenecks - I promise, the weather will get better soon.

4 - Read a book.  I get overwhelmed when I go to Chapters because there are so many titles that sound intriguing.  Check out Blipper to read review and recommendations made by your friends.  Try reading in an eco-friendly way with Amazon's Kindle DX - I totally want one!

5 - Jump in puddles.  I'm not kidding.  Buy yourself a pair of rain boots, Hunter boots are my favorite, and jump around.  As juvenile and ridiculous as it sounds, I guarantee you will feel less stressed and bummed that it's raining after puddle jumping.  You may want to avoid the sport if there is lightning. 

Enjoy your Saturday xo 

Phew! Thank Goodness for Unlimited SMS

I thought that my commitment to Twitterberry was long-term until I woke up this morning to see that Rogers and Fido had restored their Twitter via SMS service.  Starting today, Tweeps will be able to use the short code 21212 to tweet, re-tweet, direct message, follow friends at no additional charge (unless you do not have an additional text plan).  You can also subscribe to friend updates (via text) from specific people you follow - but if you follow someone like @nytimes, you'll be getting an abundance of texts.  

A (Model's) Night at the Museum

The rain in New York did not stop the models and celebrities from strutting their stuff at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute Gala last night.  The opening of the exhibit, 'The Model as Muse' has been one of the most anticipated and glamorous fashion events of the year with dinner seats costing $7,500 to start; no recession here.  The exhibit is a refreshing twist because not only does it pay homage to the designer, but it showcases models and their critical contribution to the fashion industry,  Models have faced plenty of criticism this past decade with their questionable stick-thin figures and the lack of colored models on the runways.  An important acknowledgment in the chronological history of fashion showcases Beverly Johnson, the first black Vogue cover girl, in 1974.  

Marc Jacobs, however, insisted that model scrutiny and the 'celebrity status' that some models endured has taken away from what fashion is all about; the clothes.  “It was hard to sort of overcome the bigness of some of those personalities, or to bring those personalities sort of down, you know?” Mr. Jacobs said. “Now fashion is about looking at the clothes and not the girls.”  Funny, wasn't Marc Jacobs the designer who brought the Queen of headlines Kate Moss to the gala as his date?  Oh those designers!

The above photos are my favorite pieces of the evening: Rihanna in Dolce and Gabbana, Kate Beckinsale in Marchesa, Anne Hathaway in Marc Jacobs and Mary-Kate Olsen in Christian Lacroix Couture.  

Frankenstory

I promise you'll be rolling on the floor laughing after playing this writing game.  All you need is an e-mail address, a friend with an e-mail address and a short story idea.  

You write the beginning of the story in 40 words (not characters) then send it to your friend who only sees the last few words of the story.  They have to continue the story in 40 words, then send it back to you.  

The story allows for you and your friend to contribute twice, after that you'll both receive e-mails revealing the entire story.  

Here's one that I wrote today - http://frankenstory.com/stories/f97146f2

Speaker's Corner 2.0

 I remember traveling all the way from the suburbs just to go into that little booth, give my opinion then anxiously watch the episode of Speaker's Corner to see if my comment made it to air.  I also remember being intoxicated and cramming way too many of my friends into the booth and ranting belligerently.  When I found out that Speaker's Corner was going off the air, I was devastated.

In my social network joining frenzy, I found a site where you can record 12 second videos, post them and share with your followers.  A Twitter and Speaker's Corner collaboration; it might as well be called 'Crystal's dream site dot com'.  I immediately joined http://12seconds.tv eager to stream my 12 second videos.  The great thing about the site is that you can record videos straight from the homepage, saving you the task of uploading from imovie (or whatever program you use) however, you need to have Adobe Flash Player installed.  Check out the video that I made with the help of my puppy, Chico.  You can also record videos from your mobile phone and upload straight to the site.    

The Jack Dorsey's of the world are trying to eliminate information overload by restricting the way we communicate to 140 characters at a time.  The guys that created 12 Seconds TV restricted video time because they claim, '12 seconds is an ideal time to keep things interesting'.  I'm not sure where these geniuses were when I spent sleepless nights writing 14-20 page essays for my undergrad classes but I am ecstatic that they are here now.  Don't forget to follow me on 12 Seconds - http://12seconds.tv/channel/crystalgibson 

Are You a Twitter Quitter?

An article published in yesterday's Globe and Mail revealed that a disappointing 60% of Twitter users deactivate their accounts within the first month of signing up.  Now I won't gloat about my net savvy ways because frankly, I'm fairly new to social networking sites myself.  However, I've found Twitter to be incredibly useful and often insightful.  I've been able to follow journalists and other affiliates of the media and I've sent many of them direct messages asking them for their advice about succeeding in broadcasting.  Global TV's Leslie Roberts was remarkably helpful and responded really quickly (check out Leslie on News Hour Final at 11, he does a segment where he reads tweets and I manage to make cameo appearances a few times a week).  

I understand where people are coming from when they Twitter-bash; the site does seem like the verbatim of narcissists.  Globe reader, Mojo Nixon, posted his comment in response to the article, "The continuous status updates on twitter (and those on Facebook as well) appear to be for those addicted to empty boasting about how great things are, and how exciting their life is. How adolescent. No one cares; please grow up."

  Frivolous banter is exchanged between one another (face-to-face), at least that's what my conversations entail when I am not discussing precautionary measures taken to ensure H1N1, formally Swine, influenza is not spread and other 'important' non-boasting topics.  It's evident that Mojo Nixon is obviously not following the right people; I don't think I follow one person who mindlessly tweets about themself all day.  Matt Singley is one of my favourite people to follow (@mattsingley); he is a social media analyst offering comprehensive information about, well, social media.  He recently posted a blog entry titled, '5 Ways to Follow Good People on Twitter' which was super helpful and a must for anyone new to Twitter.

Here my 5 ways to know if your Twitmance will work:

1 - Can answer the question 'What are you doing?' in 140 characters?

2 - Are you keen on being in-the-know about news, music, technology, food etc?

3 - Is networking a asset in your job field?

4 - Do you like reading opinions and giving yours?

5 - Do you know what @replies, RT's, DM@, #followfriday's, #musicmonday's are?

If you answered yes to all of the above then its in the stars for you and Twitter.

Don't forget to follow me - www.twitter.com/CrystalGibson