Always Late but Worth the Wait...

..."Late" as in it's been two weeks since the Betsey show and I have YET to do any proper blogging about the experience. But shit has been CRAY CRAY even after the show is yesterday's news. I have honestly probably NEVER left the office before 7:30 pm since I started 6 weeks ago. And the best part about it is on a day like today, I sit on Illustrator/Photoshop all day, get home at 11pm and find myself on Illustrator just for fun. I think I've definitely gone to the dark side...

But on the real tip, I just had a moment of clarity today that I have learned a SHIT ton even in just the short time I've been @ Betsey. Again, I hate to beat a dead whorse but I am just overwhelmed with gratitude for having this experience come into my life. Everything is going so fucking well, I am STILL (a month and a half later) pinching myself daily that this is my life. I am so completely ecstatic and rejuvenated on life as a result of making the decision to come here.

Anyhow. Enough of the sappy bullshit. Enjoy some photos from the Fall 2011 Betsey show. <3 These are some of my favorite looks and my personal contribution to them. :)


....Absolutely love this acid wash group. (Added a hook and eye closure that was missing on this corset).


....Sourced the fur for this look in midtown Manhattan ...but sorry to break it to you... the super top secret go-to spots for faux fur are highly confidential. Insider shit. I'm sure you understand. :)


....Just did the CAD sketch for this jacket today, and am sourcing the felt flowers (used in the entire runway show) tomorrow in hopes that they can produce them.


LOVE this shit.


Another of my favorite looks from the show....


I hand stitched on the lace trim on the sleeves and hem of this coat.


...Also sourced the fur for this coat. You don't want to know the price per yard. It's completely fucking ridiculous.




...Again, handled finding all the fur for these (which Betsey and team LOVED). Char: 10, Other Interns: 0.



...And the task of scouring midtown Manhattan in search of the perfect vintage lace (used on this dress) put me in the "in" crowd with the new Design Director. Holler!


And at a total tie for 1st place in my book for favorite look, feast your eyes on these fuckin' broads....




And the debut of the new Diffusion line "Pink Patch", modeled by the lovely works of Betsey Johnson...


Petra (Public Relations Assistant).


Lizzie (Design Assistant, Freelance). Cutest Brit I've ever met.



Gina (Design Associate). Love this bitch.


Heather, the homegirl. Probably the most bitchin' chick I've met in New York so far. (Design Assistant // Partner in Crime)


Ashley (Graphic Designer)....





Betsey's famous for her whimsical sketching style and handwriting... so she always makes colorful fun signs that go backstage at the shows. I had the lovely task of going out a few days before the show to restock on her specifically requested markers to make these signs. The day before the show, I was hand sewing at the table and Betsey is sitting next to me drawing these signs, when she says in reference to another designer who's show would be the following day....

"Do you think Carolina Hererra is coloring signs right now?" --Betsey Johnson

Fucking love her.



The hot shit.



Model cards I slaved over until wee hours of the morning the weekend before the show....


Giftbags. One thousand and fifty of them to be exact with about 20 hours of labor and a team of ten people involved in putting them together and putting them pristinely on each seat at the show. Before the doors officially opened, 7 gift bags were swiped. GHETTTTTTTTTO.







Ummmm yea. BJ kinda does rock a lil' bit. <3

East Coast Vs. West Coast...

It's been a hot two weeks. Not anywhere NEAR hot as in weather, (I'll leave that to the LBC with BULLSHIT 90 degree February days)....but hot as in fast and rad. Been coming down from the momentum of New York Fashion Week and was stoked to have my first West Coaster up in the mix this past weekend. Definitely covered some major ground. Experienced a delicious vegan homecooked meal care of the homegirl Brianna. Hit up some Brooklyn bars. Ate at the Life Cafe in the East Village (birth of our favorite movie/play of all time, Rent). Showed sis dawg the ol' BJ officina. Popped into my roommates sexually driven art show ((awkward)). Made an appearance at a friends graffiti art show in the East Village. Saw the musical "American Idiot" written by Billy Joe from Green Day... he was in town so played a role in it.... Extremely mixed feelings about the show... A little bit poser... a lot of a Rent rip off. But still had to check it out for myself. Some dweeb asked to take a picture of my dermal anchor. An older black man on 7th Avenue asked me to marry him. We found THEE street in NYC that is the infamous piano slangin' street. We stopped into a store full of pianos, because after 6 weeks away from any ivory tickling opportunities, I'm wondering if I'll still be able to play at all. Middle age richies were shootin' the shit about buying and I rolled in with my fingerless gloves and lingering hangover. One of the gents told me to take a seat and play a song, and I said I play in a rock band... probably different than what he's used to hearing. "Oh cool! Are you gonna play Creed?" .........Actually that was EXACTLY what I was gonna play, Mr.Millionaire. And if I play it well, please throw down $60k and have that shit delivered to Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn. Thanks. <3

Ate some 99 cent pizza. Had gelato from Grom (the best Gelato in Italy... also available in NYC). Took a couple wrong turns and wrong trains, but who's countin'. Made a stop in FAO Schwarz. The piano from BIG is SUPER blown out by this point in my life. But Barbie fashion shows were definitely IN.

So grateful to be able to share everything with someone who knows me. While I've met (and continue to meet) amazing new friends on the East side, there's nothing quite like having someone around who knows you for what you are and what you've always been.

And in other news, relocating this weekend to the other side of the tracks (well, a microscopic improvement in neighborhood) and grinding away at the Betsey gig. Tonight also marks an epic day in New York history: I went to a grocery store after work and didn't get lost. Times they are a' changin'.



I'll take one of each....



Even if you can't be the best girlfriend, daughter, dancer or friend, there is still hope for you at a shotty NYC souvenier shop.




A black market ciggy shipment from my partner in crime on the West side...





Had to give the dollar pizza a try for novelty's sake... Ya' get what you pay for.



xoxo

Best.Valentines.Day.EVER.

...and if you didn't catch the live stream, check out the full runway show at www.betseyjohnson.com,... but take note, the music dubbed on the vid ain't the real deal, so you're definitely gettin' a bit of a bum rap. But I'll post the live video footy if I get my lil' mits on it.

Pins and Needles // Needles and Pins...

I've spent the last two days (almost entirely) digging through, organizing and photographing all the vintage collection BJ works off of. Her design aesthetic in and of itself is amazing... super fun and girly with a mix of rock n' roll... but I like the fact that she references old vintage for new design inspo... either vintage finds or her own vintage designs from the 60's, 70's and 80's. So I've been going through racks upon racks (upon racks) of these garments in an effort to build some kind of organization/cataloging system (....this is where my obsessive list-ing quirks become helpful, I suppose).

...Pretty sure I also stumbled today upon the first safety pin ever created...


If you're a vintage shopper you know the dirt that flies when you're handling this shit. But I'd say dusty paws is a small price to pay for the chance to go through all of these old pieces and see these archives first hand.

Some of my faves...












...and I was going through all the lingerie inspired silky old pieces, I got a total flashback of a story from my kiddy days. When I was a lil' gal I had the normal stuffed animals; coloring books; Barbie's with the limbs torn off of em', naked, helpless and missing Ken... but my favorite thing around the age of 4 was my mom's old silk nightgown. I called it "my nightie" but it came out more like "my Nike" (speech therapist, anyone?) I carried that old ratty thing around everywhere because I guess I just liked the feel of the fabric. From what I hear (from the storytellers), I threw a complete tantrum at pre-school, screaming and crying,... the teacher told my Mom that I wanted my Nike...

Years later I guess I haven't completely lost my obsession with my Nike (amongst other garments).

<3