The Time Out New York blog
Your up-to-the-minute guide to New York City events, restaurants, bars, nightlife, ticket alerts and NSFW ephemera.
Your weekly sample sale update
Wed Feb 11
Jumelle
Spring cleaning seems eons away, but that isn't stopping this hip Williamsburg boutique from purging its extensive inventory. Take advantage of the shop's annual "closet cleaning" and save up to 75 percent on such covetable labels as Karen Walker, Alexander Wang and Sonia by Sonia Rykiel. A.P.C. plaid coats are $189 (were $420), Rachel Comey hand-knit sweater dresses are lowered from $485 to $195 and 3.1 Phillip Lim silk dresses with leather-bejeweled necklines are $384 (originally $850). 148 Bedford Ave at North 9th St, Williamsburg, Brooklyn (718-388-9525). Subway: L to Bedford Ave. Thu 12--Sat 14 noon--7:30pm, Sun 15 noon--7pm, Mon 16 1--7:30pm.
Vans checkered lace-ups
Classic Kicks
Jimmy Choos and Manolo Blahniks may look nice, but for those of us who actually walk around the city, stylish sneakers are a better bet. You'll have no problem finding a discounted pair that strikes your fancy at this winter blowout, because the entire store is 40% to 50% off. Nike...
Book of the Day: Patrick deWitt's Ablutions
Wed Feb 11
Patrick deWitt's Ablutions is a whiskey-soaked novel, tracking the life of a frequently drunk L.A. bartender who serves washed-up stars and bleary-eyed hipsters, but its pleasures will be evident to drinkers, teetotalers and those in between. The story comes laced with some of the poor-judgment ethos that makes other down-and-out books so hilarious (Denis Johnson's Resuscitation of a Hanged Man comes to mind): At one point, deWitt's hero punches a horse in the face. But this isn't some hackneyed Bukowski-esque uplift-through-squalor. DeWitt writes with a style that's honest, compelling and hilarious, and he hits his topic from an artful slant. The entire novel is presented as a series of notes for a writing project—"Discuss Brent the unhappy doorman"—that go increasingly off the rails. The risk pays off. It captures the sensation of being drunk and haranguing yourself while staring in the mirror, nails a sort of unhinged ambition and hints at an entire other world—the one where the...
Portraits! Get your real portraits here!
Wed Feb 11
[node:]
A photo portrait used to be a big deal. If you wanted your picture taken, you put on your Sunday best and headed over to the local photo studio. In some areas of the country you can still do this—at Sears. My in-laws did, even roping me into it. I'm hanging on their wall in suburban Illinois. Caroll Taveras's Photo Studio project doesn't so much invoke Sears as it does a mom-and-pop operation of the sort that is basically extinct. She's set up shop on Atlantic Avenue in a storefront space lent by Atlantic Assets and Art Assets (praiseworthy programs that aim to attract retail tenants with the lure of temporary exhibitions and the foot traffic they bring). For the past three weeks, a hundred or so visitors have posed for Taveras—friends, couples even a kindergarten class. The best part: no megapixels. She uses a large-format 4x5 view camera, lights and a backdrop. The cost is old-school too—only $5. For me, it was a nerve-racking experience. What am I wearing? Should I sit or...
Designer spotlight: Toni Maticevski
Wed Feb 11
Toni Maticevski
Australian-born Toni Maticevski was recently named 2008's Fashion Designer of the Year at the International Design Awards, where he also picked up the award for Best Women's Couture Designer. We tracked down Maticevski (who's furiously prepping for his fall '09 fashion show on February 16) for a little TONY--Toni chat about his favorite places in NYC and fashion trend predictions.
Time Out New York: What's the inspiration for your fall '09 collection?
Maticevski: Do you want the bullshit answer or the real one?
TONY: The real answer!
Maticevski: It's not something I really sit down and say, "Okay, this is going to be 1940s." It sort of evolves, starting with fabrics and textures and things like that, and then it kind of dictates a silhouette, or things just start kind of merging. I can usually look at it in the end and go, Oh, okay, it's got that sort of reference; it's got that kind of element to it. But there's never a real starting point.
TONY: How...
Your pass to Fashion Week
Wed Feb 11
The tents last February.
Wanna see Fashion Week up close? No, we don't have tickets for you. But you can tune in to Videofashion Daily for full coverage of the event on NYCTV. It's teaming up with Glamour magazine's executive fashion editor-at-large, Suze Yalof Schwartz, to report on all aspects of the shows. From the beauty of the runways to the hassle backstage to exclusive interviews to who's protesting outside, every bit will be covered. Which is more than we can say for some of the models.
Videofashion Daily premieres on NYCTV Sun 15 at 9pm and airs daily through Feb 26, with 72 hours of New York Fashion Week coverage.
Send tips and cat photos to:
- Senior Editor: Amy Plitt (@plitter)
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