Pierce Mattie Public Relations New York & Los Angeles

Millard Drexler, who was formerly CEO of Gap and is revitalizing J. Crew Group Inc. as its chairman and CEO, is developing a new chain of casual women's clothing stores called Madewell.

J. Crew officials confirmed a Women's Wear Daily report published Tuesday that the New York-based clothier will be unveiling the first Madewell store in August in Dallas, followed by another store in Los Angeles. The company is seeking to open a third location this year, according to Margot Brunelle, a J. Crew spokeswoman. She declined to say how many stores the company envisions.

"We see Madewell and J. Crew complementing each other, not competing with each other," said Brunelle, noting that she expects Madewell will cater to the younger female customer because of its lower prices and style.

Le Tigre may be classified as a "retro" brand, but Ryan O'Sullivan, president and chief executive officer, is only looking forward.

The line is in the midst of what O'Sullivan calls "a mandated evolution." The affects started to become evident in March, when he poached Jenny La Fata from Sean by Sean Combs to be design director of the women's and men's collections, and infused both for holiday and fall with modern takes on the basic silhouettes for which Le Tigre has become known.

Having outgrown its home in the Garment District here, the company will move in July into new 14,000-square-foot headquarters at 149 Fifth Avenue. A month later, Le Tigre is to unveil its e-commerce Web site. The brand also is aligning itself with art projects and music groups and venues to target its core customer.

Every summer, we see a brand new trend or group of styles that are all the rage. Last year, terry cloth moo-moo dresses, and lots of hanging, loose peasant type clothing. This year, fashion takes a turn for the more classy looking outfits.

1. Eyelets- This classy look gives off rays of beauty and purity. It reminds us of a virgin porcelain doll during the 50’s time era. BCBG, Betsey Johnson, and Shelli Segal all have their renditions of the eyelet.

2. Puff or Bubble Dresses- Straight from the 80’s, this summer ’06 trend could be called the puff, balloon, or poof. Basically, the style calls for a magnified hem at the bottom of a dress, shirt, or skirt- giving an enhanced ladies figure. Nicole Miller, Cynthia Rowley, and H&M all have renditions.

Forget the dirt on Michael Jackson - lets talk jewelry. Yes the queen of glam is at it again and this time - it's diamonds, pearls and gold, oh my. Actress Elizabeth Taylor appears above in an exclusive interview with talk show host Larry King on CNNs Larry King Live at the CNN studios in Los Angeles showing her latest project; House of Taylor Jewelry collection.

Launching this week at the JCK show in Vegas. JCK Mag reports:

True Religion Apparel, Inc. a maker of high-end denim jeans, said Monday that Mark Saltzman, chief operating officer and director, is stepping down from his post for undisclosed reasons, and named Daryl Rosenberg to replace him.

Rosenberg formerly served as vice president involved in production at l.e.i., a sportswear and denim business owned by Jones Apparel Group. His appointment was effective June 1.

True Religion Apparel Inc. Names Daryl Rosenberg as Chief Operating OfficerTrue Religion Apparel, Inc. to Relocate World Corporate Headquarters and Distribution Center to Accommodate GrowthBombay Announces New CEO Saltzman will stay on as a consultant until September 30.

This week, Polo Ralph Lauren unveiled the new uniforms for Wimbledon in which umpires, line judges and ball people will be donning on the Centre Court this year. Apparently, Polo signed a five year contract for the first ever apparel provider in the tournaments 129 year run. The uniforms are conservative yet encompass the Polo style. Women will have crème skirts while men will wear trousers and all will have classic polo shirts. Of course, the Polo pony logo will also appear on all items. While I can appreciate Polo branching out to the sports world I find it a little tacky and odd that Wimbledon agreed to move forward on this project. Wimbledon is one of the most prestigious tennis tourneys in the world. Although I am a major devotee to fashion and have never once thought it to be frivolous, I think this crosses the line. How do we make the distinction of cheap and tacky branding to high fashion and art? Seriously, is Ralph going to include this on the runways in Olympus Fashion Week? Doubtful. While I understand the profitability this union will bring to the Polo Company, I think it lacks class and prestige, although I know that my idea of prestige may differentiate from that of Ralph himself.

Ii just makes me wonder where fashion is headed. Are we going to see a boom in designer uniforms? Are doctors going to be clad in Roberto Cavalli scrubs? Maybe waiters in Versace suits? Seriously people, I am all for designer studs but this is simply crossing the line. I hope there will be plenty of television coverage on these oh so stylish uniforms during the tourney—I mean really, who cares who wins anyway, as long as the umpire is donning his Polo Ralph Lauren uniform all should be well.

Increasingly the fashion industry is starting to acknowledge their complicity in a host of ecological ills. And while any industry has a responsibility for making the world a better place while adding to the bottom line, fashion has the potential to steer us towards not only a more beautiful future but a more sustainable one.

Excitingly there are many people already steering us in that direction. Fashion Blog Fiftyrx3 points fashion consumers towards some of the most exciting trends and designers in eco-fashion land.

Increasingly this blog will focus on trends in eco-fashion as we wish to show our commitment to a better and more beautiful future. We will explore innovative brands like prAna who use reusable energy powered by wind mills and and work to incorporate organic cotton, PET and hemp fabrics. Trendy denim line Bread Denim contributes with its environmentally conscious non toxic dyes at the wash house.

There are so many facets to living a more sustainable and conscious life. Little changes add up even while there are trade offs from one fabric choice to another. There are no clear cut answers on how to live consciously but exploring the many possibilities for a brighter future is a responsibility shared by us all.

Few decisions weigh more heavily on a young consumer than that of a watch purchase. We want something trendy, stylish, and edgy but equally we want something that is high quality. We don't need watches that will set us back as much as a down payment on a house, we just want something that fits our fashion or mod that day. Fom men it is a key accessory. And finally they have many affordable option to dress up that pair of jeans and t shirt. Please let me introduce you to STORM Watches.

All STORM timepieces are made with high grade stainless steel in matte, brushed or polished finishes. Models feature Japanese or Swiss movements, are anti-allergenic and use scratch resistant mineral glass.

They have quite the celebrity following as well with a storied brand history starting in the UK.

If you are like me, you hold onto that favorite shirt, skirt or pants that are geared more towards hotter temperatures than they are for the approaching 40 degree weather. Sometimes Fall can be tricky, warm in the 70's one day and somehow plunging down to the 40's the next as you stand there watching snow flurries out your window. Here in the Northeast, it is always a guessing game.

I have a very bad habit of just keeping those warmer weather clothes in my closet "just in case," and often still leave my sandals lying around holding out a glimmer of hope that I will be able to wear them one last time before the weather takes it's final plunge into the lower digits and remains there for the next few months. Can you relate?

In the past twenty years there has been a change occurring when it comes to Halloween. Back when I was growing up in the 70’s and 80’s, Halloween was a specific children’s holiday. Then in the mid-eighties things began to change and Haunted Houses and adult costume parties began to take off.

Adult costume parties and Haunted Houses continue to increase in popularity every year. What has gone from a one night event, now becomes an entire weekend of parties solely reserved for the young at heart and a month-long event for Haunted Houses and Haunted Hayrides. Even farmers have cashed in by offering haunted labyrinths through a corn maze.

From around the blogosphere, here's what everyone is talking about:

Fashion: From The Blogosphere's "Best" Fashion Blogs

+ Fashiontribes offers offers tips on how to create Antonio Berardi’s Fall Runway Show for less.

+ She Finds talks about the latest trend; leggings.

+ The Manolo offers a reader a recommendation on which boots would look best with her sexy witch costume.

+ Almost Girl reports on Fashion Group International Night of Stars. In attendance: James LaForce of Laforce and Stevens, Constance White Style Director of ebay, Valerie Steel and Linda Fargo of Bergdorf Goodman

Beauty: From Bloggers Who Are Passionate About Beauty

+ A Girl's Gotta Spa! reviews Joico's K-Pak Liquid Reconstruction.

+ Dorit Baxter New York Day Spa Blog tells you how to create your own Pumpkin Beautifying Mask.

+ Bon Bons in the Bath gives you step by step instructions on how to achieve the No Makeup--Makeup Look.

Jewelry: Jewelry Industry Posts

+ The Bling Blog talks about the lucky vacationer who found a Canary Yellow Diamond.

+ The Jewelry Weblog wants to know what you think of the new Ethnic Collection from Ethos.

+ The Jewelry Blog talks bracelets.

Wearing denim has always been in style, but celebrities can’t seem to get enough of it. Skinny jeans are all the rage, and if you are a celebrity and have all the means to hire a personal trainer, why not show off your body in the hottest brands?

Lindsay Lohan has been known to strut her stuff in J Brand Jeans, as does Angelina Jolie, showing the world that not every mom has to wear “Mom Jeans.”

Kate Moss is the queen of denim and is known to love Bread Denim. Not familiar with Bread Denim? Come get introduced here.

While the guys love to wear denim, they seem to love designing them even more. Justin Timberlake just launched William Rast, a new denim clothing line he co-created with best friend/business partner Trace Ayala. While Tommy Lee’s tattoo’s were the inspiration for People’s Liberation September launch of “PL for TL” collection at Bloomingdale’s.

Do you have a love affair with denim? Which celebrity do you feel has the best taste in denim?

How many of you have purchased something that was a knock off? I admit it, I purchased knock off Chanel sunglasses this past summer from a vendor next to me at a local fair. Imagine my surprise when I came across this blog and the video it shows.

The buying and selling of counterfeit products is costing American businesses $200-$250 Billion dollars a year and the loss of 750,000 jobs according to The U.S. Chamber of Commerce. This is not only the knock off of sunglasses, purses and watches you can find on any New York City street corner, but it also carries over into cosmetics, movies, music and even clothing and footwear like Air Jordans.

Life Clever (tips fro design & life) by Chanpory Rith: 5 Writing Tips That Don't Suck (via) Copyblogger

A PR Guru's Musings: Q&A on innovations in public relations

John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing "Longs for a good publicity stunt"

BusinessWeek.com: Wal-Mart: A "Reputation Crises" The giant retailer has been trying hard to improve its image and reignite sales

Idea Grove: Introducing Spin Thicket: Media Orchard "Easier way to keep up with the news"

Eric Eggertson:
Mutually Inclusive PR and Strumpette: Backlash Against Crayon's Second Life Launch

Pearls Of Joy is considering an update of it's header. I can relate to this as I am in need of some updating on my other blogs. Which header do you like best and why? (Vote by commenting)

Here is a larger image of version one of pearlsofjoy.com. I like that it's simple and clean, not too "glossy," but I do favor version two, I think it reads better upon quick scanning of the header. They could move that burst in my opinion, perhaps all together and have the 800 number in the blue bar top left, but what do I know?

Don't get me started about pearls, young and old, most of the female population shares the endearment with pearls (men, listen up). I believe it is a right of passage when you are a little girl and get into your mother’s jewelry during dress up. The thing most girls want to wear is a set of pearls. Pearls are classic and refined, but exhume simplicity.

On my wedding day, my mother gave me a set of pearls to wear with my wedding dress. Somehow those pearls just added to the elegance of my dress and made me feel like the little girl playing dress up had now grown up.

As we are now going into Holiday mode, the one thing that comes to mind for dressing up for Holiday parties, is wearing pearls with my outfit. It will take me from my normally casual mom look to an upgrade in style.

From around the blogosphere, here is what everyone is talking about:

From those who live for Fashion:

Kristopher Dukes is talking about the Christian Louboutin Ankle Boot (that seem vaguely familiar from that of my youth).

The Bag Snob shows you a great little black dress for the Holiday's.

The Budget Fashionista exposes Isaac Mizrahi's Holiday 2006 line at Target.

From those who live for Beauty:

The Mineral Makeup Blog reviews Monave Mineral Cosmetics.

Hello Dollface discusses her review of Scott Barnes Beauty.

Beautiful Makeup Search lets you know that Covergirl Outlast, outlasts them all.

From those who live for all things perfume:

The Scented Salamander talks about Eau D'Italie Le Sirenuse Positano's Italian land and history's inspired scents.

Perfume Critic reviews Tom Ford's Black Orchid.

Indie Perfumes discusses the upcoming movie "Perfume, the Story of a Murderer."

Do you know of a great beauty, fashion, jewelry or perfume blog that deserves a little attention in the Weekend Pulse? Post me a comment so I can check them out!

I love Diamonds. Whether or not Diamonds are a girl’s best friend, I'll leave that up to you. I'd take a true best friend over a diamond any day, but diamonds are "cravable" so it is important to be choosy and educated when picking out a diamond when you are ready to take that big step in your relationship. When my husband and I got engaged, he let me come with him to the jeweler to pick out my diamond. I had never purchased a diamond before, so I didn’t know what to expect and I certainly didn’t have any idea about color or even the terms used for clarity. I just knew I wanted a Princess Cut diamond that wasn’t cloudy looking.

I know this isn't exactly breaking news for everyone. However, for those who have lives and don't live and shop online exclusively, this may be news to you, it was to me. Many "recommendation" sites are popping up all over the Internet, yesterday a Fashion blogger referred me to one that is getting kudos in the New York Times; ThisNext.com. I was impressed just how organized this site was and even more impressed to find fashion and beauty bloggers I know doing Shopcasts there, such as Kristopher Dukes, The Jewelry Weblog, and Lola is Beauty.

What's a Shopcast? It's basically shopping and broadcasting combined. It's a playlist of products you recommend and you run them on a badge on your site and they also run on the ThisNext site, as well. You can create wishlists and also make recommendations by downloading a few buttons for your browser.

There are some really great recommendations just waiting for you to discover them, or if you feel so inclined, for you to make them at ThisNext.com

Two years ago, by chance, I came across Elke von Freudenberg on a group that we both happened to be apart of. Without knowing too much about her, beyond her love for cosmetics, we began a friendship. One that I cherish deeply.

So when Elke told me she was asked to be the Makeup Artist for Harper's Bazaar China, I knew that when the November edition came out, I wanted to be the first to proudly boast about it to the world.

Today I had the chance to briefly interview Elke:

Do you seem to be losing customers lately? Is your customer base and sales simply not increasing? Consumers are telling you all of the time what they want, but are you paying attention? Do you genuinely listen to what they want? Or do you feel comfortable with the way things are?

Here are five things that consumers want from a business both online and offline:

Any woman can tell you the color and scent of a Victoria’s Secret store. Branding a business by color has been around forever, branding a business by scent deliberately is a rather new practice.

We have become inundated with never ending commercials, advertisements, pop-ups and infomercials, smart, progressive businesses realize that the use of scent is another way to make their business or brand not only stand out, but be remembered and associated with a certain positive experience or product.

While color may be an easy branding tool and will surely distinguish you from your competitors, such as that yummy, chocolate brown trademarked as "UPS Brown", scent can be a little touchier. Scent can either turn someone away or reel them in. It's a scientific fact that women are attracted to an ever so slight smell of skunk. Too much, and they are repulsed. Repulsion can be a good thing if your an international airport and you need to clear a building fast. Scents of danger need no interpretation. The scent of coffee can calm people, the new car smell increases sales of vehicles, Victoria’s Secret puts you in the mood the minute you walk into their store with the scent of a woman (or a man in drag) that remind you of romance and desire. Pierce Mattie's Media Oasis has a branded scent, complete with a high tech scent delivery system. Scents that relax you and put you in the mood to shop can increase a businesses bottom line.

Donovan McNabb is more likely to be compared to Joe Montana, John Elway and Dan Marino than Hugo Boss, Giorgio Armani or Gianni Versace.

The five-time Pro Bowl quarterback took a break from tossing passes for the Philadelphia Eagles to launch his own line of casual men's clothing under the Reebok label. He hosted a fashion show Tuesday to introduce his "Super Five" apparel.

Here's what has hearts pumping around the blogosphere:

From those who love Fashion:

+ Coquette shows you different ways to wear a scarf.

+ I am Fashion bids Happy 90th Birthday to British Vogue.

+ eBelle5 The Bag Blog talks about the Spring 2007 Style.com Trend Report.

From those who love Beauty:

+ The Beauty Brains give you 5 ways to reduce enlarged pores.

+ The Beauty Hatchery reviews some mascara’s with the newest trend in plastic moldable wands.

+ The Organic Beauty Expert reviews Ablutions Spa Body Butter.

From those who love Perfume:

+ Now Smell This review’s Anat Fritz, a new fragrance at Luckyscent.

+ Aromascope reviews Metallica/Metalys by Guerlain.

+ Perfume Posse inquires what three fragrances you want for Christmas.

Know a great beauty or fashion blog that I need to take notice of? Please be sure to post it in the comments.

Three cheers for men who know what it is a woman wants...and then delivers.

I found an article today about a straightening iron set up like a vending machine, and found in public bathrooms. You pay a small fee and can then defrizz your hair with the straightening iron, basically saving women everywhere from a bad hair day.

This product is called the Straight Up Vending Machine and is made by Beautiful Vending Company. However, this item can only be found in the United Kingdom right now. Still, this just shows that people respond when you deliver a product that provides a solution to a problem. In this case, it is women who want perfect hair all of the time, no matter where they are.

Wal-Mart has gotten itself embroiled in yet another Nazi-connected scandal, selling T-shirts depicting a skull that had been used, according to this Bent Corner post, by the Nazi 3rd SS Division Totenkopf during World War II. (You may remember other incidents such as the book-burning (sub req'd) incident last year.)

What's interesting about this story is the pace that it gathered, and the speed of Wal-Mart's (via Edelman) response. It's clear that Consumerist, the Gawker-family consumer affairs blog that helped the Bent Corner story gain visibility, is a site that Edelman is checking every minute, and while there have been previous spats between the two (summarized in part here) one does see the necessity of keeping your friends close, but your enemies closer. Get the whole scoop on PRWeek or the Consumerist

A well planned exit without the use of a publicist? Atoosa Rubenstein, Editor-in-Chief of Seventeen magazine announced last week that she’ll be leaving the publication. Her next move is to launch several teen-centered projects including a web business, a book and a consulting firm.

She told the New York Post, “I’m a risk taker. I don’t play the game in a safe way. I’ve never been driven by power or money. I’ve always had a very strong relationship with our audience, and I hope to develop that in a more immediate and visceral way.”

Before her announcement to leave Seventeen, Rubenstein already started branching out of her Editor-in-Chief post positioning herself as an advocate for teens by appearing on MTV’s Miss Seventeen reality show and also as a guest judge on America’s Next Top Model, a favorite show among Seventeen readers.

Is Rubenstein leaving Seventeen another sign in the decline of teen publications? In the last two years, YM, Teen People, and Elle Girl have been shut down. Teen People and Elle Girl are still online – a good move since most teens are tech-savvy. At least we’ve still got COSMOgirl! and Teen Vogue! We’ll have to wait and see who will take over the EIC post at Seventeen.

Read more about her decision to leave Seventeen on her MySpace page and some speculations from Jossip.

The fashion world was a abuzz today with the announcement that Calvin Klein will be placing television advertisements this Christmas for its Calvin Klein White Label.

A commercial featuring models Doutzen Kroes and Gabriel Aubry is slated to break on November 20, featuring Holiday 2006 merchandise from an array of the brand’s product lines, including the men’s and women’s sportswear lines. The 30-second spot brings to life the current print ad campaign and marks both models’ first broadcast work for the CKI brand.

While the brand spends $220 million annually on advertising Tom Murry, president and chief operating officer of Calvin Klein Inc, described this ad buy as a "significant spend."

And while the justification for this particular ad buy is that the White Label line only recently reached critical mass from a distribution standpoint, one still has to wonder if average television viewers will be amenable to seeing this sort of advertising. Gap and Old Navy are about as fashion forward as a typical fashion focused televison ad. Is the general public really fashion conscious enough to bother bombarding in their homes?

In a day and age when fashion fans can find their fixes in so many new ways, it seems silly to harken back to the grand old days of Brooke Shields telling the world that no one gets between her and her Calvins. Times have changed and so should Calvin Klein's method of reaching out to their core consumers.

Today I had the privilege of attending Isaac Mizrahi's Couture Showing at his studio on 10th Avenue. It was quite the elite affair with editors from every magazine in town coming to pay their respects to one of the best known names in design.

While I was blown away with both the quality of the design and the craftsmanship of the clothing, it did bring up several questions for me. You see, we throw the term couture around a lot in fashion but few of us actually understand its true meaning. Many people even believe that anything we label "designer" can somehow also interchangeably be called couture. But in fact the definition is quite a bit more limited than that.

According to Wikipedia the term "Haute Couture" can only be used in very specific circumstances

Haute couture is protected by law and is defined by the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture based in Paris, France. Their rules state that only "those companies mentioned on the list drawn up each year by a commission domiciled at the Ministry for Industry are entitled to avail themselves" of the label haute couture. The criteria to which a fashion house must adhere in order to be categorized haute couture were laid down in 1945 and updated in 1992.

According to the paper of note, fashion's most outlandish designer John Galliano will be the guest editor for French Vogue's December Issue.

After Kate Moss, Sofia Coppola and Catherine Deneuve, Dior designer John Galliano is the next guest editor to do his thing for Paris Vogue's December issue. The title, edited by Carine Roitfeld, traditionally invites a personality to tweak the holiday book by playing a hand in everything from styling shoots and choosing photographers to sharing their personal proclivities.

Such big news should surely warrant a bigger write-up, but alas there are no details to be found about how the funky fashion troll's influence will be found at the chicest book on the planet.

We can only hope he makes it out of this world!

One would think that products geared at pregnant women would be very well covered. Simply mention stretch marks and you automatically think Palmer’s Cocoa Butter, whose name is synonymous with the thought of being pregnant. However, I have to tell you, quality and quantity of products in this department are severely lacking.

When it comes to fashion, pregnant women are thought of last. While everyone says they think pregnancy is “an amazing time,” the fact is it is not an amazingly fashionable time. If you don’t have a never-ending wallet and can afford A Pea in the Pod, which does have amazing designer fashion for mom’s to be, you simply have to settle for over sized shirts that look more like Moo Moo dresses and jeans that might look swimmingly on a short statured person like me. I am always so frustrated by the lack of decent fashion during these 9 months and even more frustrated when I have to try to fit into simply small, medium, large or extra large. Gone are actual sizes, but instead generalities in size. So if you try on medium, you may risk being uncomfortable, however large may make you look frumpy. Heaven forbid you are short, the pants are always made for women of “average height.”

Today's PRO-file is with Lianne Farbes, a former Model, current Makeup Artist and blog owner of The Makeup Girl.

Your bio says you got your start as a model. What made you decide you wanted to be a model and how long did you model for?

Actually I didn’t decide! My mother sent my photos around everywhere. I grew up in St. Louis and I don’t really remember how it happened, but before I knew it I was modeling for Stix Baer and Fuller (now Dillard’s) and Venture (like Target) everyday after school. When I moved to New York for college, someone saw me at a club and I started doing runway shows, and later moved on to catalog work. In all total, I think I modeled for about 12 years.

What was the first job that you finally felt like you were a makeup artist?

Oh that one is easy, when I started working as a custom blender for Prescriptives. I was able to really get the colors perfect and build looks around that.

Who are some of the makeup companies you are worked for?

Clarins, Prescriptives, Princess Marcella Borghese and Lancome.