Required Reading: Lou Doillon in ELLE

Perfectly Parisian and pedigreed like WHOA (her mama is Jane Birkin), Lou Doillon is high on my list of girl crushes. So, obviously, I abandoned a Powerpoint deck mid-slide this afternoon to cruise on over to the ELLE.com preview of her interview in the November issue in the magazine. A choice quote from Lou:

“My role models are Patti Smith, Nina Simone, and Fiona Apple—the girls who have the balls to say they’re girls. In a modern world where a majority of women say, ‘I don’t need you, I’ve got my money, I’ve got my stuff, ’ I say, I desperately need men. My whole album is a tribute to men. It takes a man in me to tell you that I’m on my knees for men.”

The November issue of ELLE hits newsstands October 21.

How About We... Let E. Jean Carroll Set Us Up?

By all accounts, I'm a pretty together woman, guys. I have a career that I love, a wide social circle, diverse interests, my own apartment, lots of designer shoes, blah, blah, blah. But like many women - particularly New York women - I have a life "blind spot," if you will, and that's clearly relationships. After years of dating - and trust me, I DATE - I'm no closer to finding a solid partner than I was when I was a MUCH more marketable woman in my late 20's. A solid third-party intervention was required.

Enter the HowAboutWe-powered ELLE Dating and the brilliant, witty, vivacious, I'd-trust-her-with-my-life-if-she'd-let-me E. Jean Carroll. For those not yet indoctrinationed, Carroll is the long-running (20 years!) advice columnist for ELLE Magazine and best known for dispensing no nonsense, clever and empowering commentary on life, love and relationships. Clearly, a woman well-equipped, nay BEST-equipped to find me, if not a relationship, a solid start to one.

The ELLE Matchmaking process was simple. E. Jean and I connected first via email and then via phone. We chatted not only about what I was looking for in a man - we've all got a list, ladies, admit it - but more tellingly (I discovered later) about ME, my lifestyle, my interests. And that was clearly where the magic lied. A week or so later, I received a curious, mysterious email from E. Jean outlining my first date - an afternoon rendezvous in front of Van Gogh's Starry Night this past Saturday.

Now, a lady never kisses and tells, but I will say that Saturday's date was easily the best I've had in recent memory. Handsome, accomplished, interesting and complete with an Italian accent, Mr. F and I had a CURIOUS amount of things in common - all thanks to E. Jean's careful orchestration and ELLE Matchmaking's high-touch, bespoke approach to online dating.

As I often say, there's something to be said for leaving things to an expert, friends.

ELLE Dating subscriptions are priced by month or as six or twelve month packages, while ELLE Matchmaking's services are $499. For that premium, you'll gain access not only to E. Jean's stable of (sexy, sexy!) bachelors, but more importantly, her expertise and incredible filter. 

Absorb E. Jean's wisdom on ELLE.com and via Twitter, and learn more about ELLE Matchmaking- sign up for an adventure, do it! - here.

Pin Your Way to NYC with PINK & ELLE!

The SoHo PINK store is one of my favorite downtown shopping destinations. Regardless of your age, it boasts killer loungewear, colorful, fun and comfy bras (this multi-way push up is a savior, but I digress), AND, on the last weekend of each month, a bling machine for free custom bedazzling on PINK gear purchases over $50 – sweet, yah?

And NOW, PINK is expanding its footprint in Manhattan, taking over a full floor in the mega-sized Herald Square Victoria’s Secret flagship in Midtown this November. To celebrate the impending re-opening, the brand is marrying two of my great loves – NYC itself, and Pinterest – and challenging fans to share their city pride and Pin their way to NYC!

To enter, simply create a board inspired by what YOU love most about NYC (think creatively…could it be fashion? Food? Art? Broadway?) for a chance to win a trip for two to the Big Ap, a $1,000 shopping spree in the brand spankin’ new PINK Herald Square store and a styling session with an ELLE stylist. 

I’ll be kicking off my board today, but if you need a little inspiration, check out PINK’s NYC Love Pinterest board here, and see the official contest rules here*. Don’t forget to pin PINK’s contest image and at least one other image from the PINK NYC Love board, then copy your board's URL and submit it by October 18 at www.elle.com/vspink.

Visit the new PINK destination at Victoria’s Secret this November in Herald Square, or if you simply can’t wait, visit one of the two exclusively PINK stores in NYC – SoHo or Kings Plaza in Brooklyn.

*NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. Open to legal residents of U.S., D.C., Puerto Rico 18 years or older. Enter between 10/2/12 and 10/18/12. See rules at Pink.VictoriasSecret.com/ElleContest for details.

While all opinions expressed are my own, this post was produced in collaboration with PINK, ELLE and Style Coalition.

Drink It In: Stolichnaya® Vodka + ELLE’s Most Original Design

If there are two things I’m best known among friends and Twitter followers for loving, they’re likely fashion and vodka. Interpret that as you see fit. Either way, when I learned that ELLE had partnered with Stolichnaya® vodka for a very special campaign this New York Fashion Week, I got a little excited. 

Dubbed ‘The Most Original Design,’ the Fashion Week-specific partnership was created to fete the world's first salted caramel flavored vodka - new Stoli® Salted Karamel™. Inspired by the ever-popular confection (one of my personal favorites!), Stoli® Salted Karamel™ offers the perfect balance of sweet and savory - golden brown caramel delicately enhanced with salt. It’s just the latest in a long line of amazing and original flavored vodkas from the brand (there are 15 in total!), and they’ve decided to celebrate in a very special way - by having a top-tier, NYC-based costume designer create looks inspired by nine of those flavors.

Once complete, sketches from the costume designer will be uploaded to an ELLE.com gallery, where readers can then vote for their favorite look per flavor, with the winning look ultimately walking the runway at the ELLE Style 360 show this Spring ’13 Fashion Week. It’s the ultimate fashion democracy, friends –and in an election year, none the less!

Stoli® Salted Karamel™ is available now. To explore drink recipes or submit your own for a chance to win tickets to a very special New York Fashion Week event, visit stoli.elle.com.

While all opinions expressed are my own, this post was produced in collaboration with Stoli, ELLE and Style Coalition.

 

A Denim Date with ELLE and Lucky Brand

One look at my Looks to Emulate board on Pinterest, and it’s clear – denim is my go-to wardrobe staple. With the exception of the steamiest summer days, it’s rare that I want to wear much else. So, when Lucky Brand and ELLE invited me to an Exclusive Denim Fitting Party at the brand’s New York showroom, I cancelled all other plans in the books and headed straight into Midtown.

There, I mixed and mingled with fellow bloggers including Wendy of Nitro:licious and Karen of Where Did U Get That? and best of all, the Lucky Brand Design team, including Creative Director Nico Peyrache (below, with moi!) Nico met with each of us individually to help us find the perfect fit in Lucky Brand, and of course, to chat denim needs and desires.

As previously discussed, I’m committed to this all-American fabric (actually – that’s a lie, denim is from de Nîmes, France… #themoreyouknow), so I’ve got a closet full of dark denim and full color silhouettes that range from skinny to flare. BUT, what I don’t have is an amazing boyfriend jean, and that’s where Lucky Brand truly delivered, with the Sienna Cigarette.

Made of the softest denim imaginable, the Sienna Cigarette walks the line between easy Sunday denim, and dressed-up, date night denim. They’re truly the only flattering “boyfriend” style I’ve ever put on my body. I plan to wear cuffed with everything from my Isabel Marant wedges to my studded Christian Louboutins – after all, with denim like this, it’s all about embracing the contrast.

Explore the denim democracy that is Lucky Brand (they’ve got styles for all body types) online at LuckyBrand.com.

While all opinions expressed are my own, this post was produced in collaboration with Lucky Brand, ELLE and Style Coalition.