FERRAGAMO & THE CITY - SJP BACK IN THE SPOTLIGHT

SARAH JESSICA PARKER WEARS SALVATORE FERRAGAMO -C MAGAZINE - NOV. 2014 - PH: RICHARD PHIBBS There are few stars of the small screen that have had a bigger impact on the way women dress than Sarah Jessica Parker and her co-stars of the global sensation - Exit 37 - METALLIC KNITWEAR DRESS WITH ACCENTUATED WAIST DETAIL - $3,830.00Sex & The City.   (Often referred to as Sex in The City.. even by some major media outlets.. but it was all about Sex and New York City).   When the young women of Gossip Girl were still in grade school, these four stylish characters were living big lives in NYC.

Sarah Jessica shines on the November cover of C-Magazine in Salvatore Ferragamo Runway (Fall 14 exit 37). RUNWAY SANDAL BOOTIES - $1,450.00  The metallic knitwear dress is as luxurious as it gets - the perfect ultra-luxe item to roll up and take away on a holiday getaway.   A dress to accessorize when more is more, or keep is simple when you are just enough.  CHIC MINAUDIERE IN BLACK RESIN WITH GOLD HARDWARE - $2,050.00 - HAPPY NEW YEAR!The intricate detail of this wrapped waistline is a runway calling card, and oh-so-flattering to the woman that wears it.  For someone like Sarah who has a teeny tiny waist, or a much fuller figured woman, this dress flatters every body type.   * The long sleeves, long skirt, and high neckline also make this dress absolutely appropriate for any social or religious event.MINI FIAMMA IN EXOTIC PRINT HAIRCALF -$2,800.00

Sex & The City originally aired on HBO aired from 1998 to 2004 on Sunday nights.  The show was an immediate hit with the fashion world and all those who followed pop culture.  Once the show began airing in syndication globally in edited down, mainstream episodes, the show would take on an epic and cult following.   Women around the world took notice of the smart, educated, liberated, and accessorized characters who's lives and lifestyles in NYC were a fantasy to most - and a dream for fashion designers that would end up worn on the show.  Many would make (still make) pilgrimages to the West Village neighborhood of New York to see the townhouse where the fictionalTHE LEADING LADIES OF SEX & THE CITY SHOP 5TH AVENUE Carrie Bradshaw lived.  ( In real life, Parker herself lived just a few blocks away).

Sarah Jessica Parker is a great example of a women who uses style to accentuate her positive attributes.  Once cast of the "nerdy, cute girl" in film after film, Parker consciously built a more glam image of herself overTHE ONE AND ONLY - PATRICIA (AKA PAT) FIELDS a number of years before landing this career changing role as Carrie Bradshaw.    Sarah Jessica as Carrie Bradshaw would not only change her own life, it would catapult fashion houses into iconic status.  Shoe houses like Jimmy Choo, Christian Louboutin, and Manola Blahnik were all catapulted into the spotlight week after week.   The late, great, Oscar de la Renta also benefited  being introduced to a whole new social set that wasn't so familiar with his everyday dresses.  SJP as Carrie Bradshaw showcased his party dresses as an ultimate fashion acquisition.

PAT FIELDS CONSULTS WITH MERYL STREEP ON THE SET OF THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA (SHE DOES!)The woman behind the iconic looks that would impact so many women :and the fashion industry,  is a fashion icon herself.   The one and only Patricia Fields.  Pat Fields and her namesake Greenwich Village boutique was a fashion fixture and staple for club kids, drag queens, and countless shoppers looking for decades.   Fields Manic-Panic Red hair is one of her signatures.  SATC would also catapult her career.  After the show wrapped Pat would go on to style one of the most iconic films about fashion - The Devil Wears Prada in which Meryl Streep played a "fictional" fashion editor to Anne Hathaway's assistant-in-distress. WAXED CALFSKIN IN PALISSANDRO -$1,690.00 Streep would win an Oscar for best Actress for the role, and Pat Fields was nominated for Outstanding Costume Design.  It was Fields that taught Sarah so much about fashion while working on the show.  It changed Sarah's life forever. FOR THE WOMAN WHO GETS TO THE POINT -POINTED STILETTO IN MUSK -$850.0

Parker is back in the spotlight this month for the launch of the third season of her "SJP" shoe collection, available at Nordstrom department stores.  Her in-store appearances at Nordstrom locations coast to coast created retails sensations for the department store that began as a shoe retailer. 

I have to add a personal facet to this story.  I worked on Sex & The City for three seasons.  SARAH JESSICA PARKER WEARS A DOLCE & GABBANA COAT-$7,745.00, J BRAND JEANS, CHANEL NECKLACE AS BELT-$2,300.00, AND SJP PUMPS -$355.00 - C MAGAZINE -NOVEMBER 2014 In another chapter in my very strange life, somehow I found myself cast as the stand-in for most of the male love interests of Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte, and Miranda.  ( I'm a SAG member).  While the leading ladies each had their own doppelganger stand-in, Mr. Big, Burger, Steve, and "The Russian" for the most part had me!  The experience was like a dream.   I was called in to a casting on a Saturday, booked for that Monday.. SALVATORE FERRAGAMO RUNWAY BOOTIES - WAXED CALFSKIN - $1,550.00and worked for the next 3 years whenever the show was in production.   There are too many stories to tell (ask me the next time I'm in your store for some!), but it was a fashion fantasy. For me, it was like being paid to go to Harvard!  My job was to work with the director, lighting, sound, and makeup teams to block out scenes for the principal actors.  This was the hottest TV project in the world, with the best fashion!  Once I was leaving the set in dark sunglasses and a tailored army jacket when one of the producers, Michael Patrick King yelled to me across Lincoln Center Plaza "You look like a spy.. a fashion spy"..  Actually I was! BLACK CALFSKIN RIDING BOOTS WITH GOLD CHAIN DETAIL -$1,250.00 - **SO VERY GIFTABLE** 

One night Alber Elbaz  showed up on set.   He was just about to start designing at Lanvin.  Of course he was friends with Pat Fields and wanted to meet the cast.   I had known Alber from his previous work at Krizia.   Everyone knew how talented this man was, and that he was about to explode!  I had known Pat Fields for years and coincidentally had helped her choose an important outfit for Samantha's character during the first season of the show.  I was consulting with the Milan based GENNY at the time, and helped make sure Samantha wore a Genny Tropical wool skirt suit with python trim and matching Python Bustier (that she would drop on camera) when she tried to seduce a real estate agent to get a great apartment.   That story line was just one example of how true to New York, and how relevant to fashion the show was.  *This is a great example of why I always tell people to pay attention to everything.  You never know how important someone you meet today will affect your life in a month, in a year, etc.

Sarah Jessica Parker is one of the sweetest people I've ever met.  Seriously.  She always went out of her way to be polite and friendly with the crew members.  (not always the case).   One day, at least a year after the show had wrapped, in a very crowded Starbucks in Chelsea, I saw her again.  I was writing a blog on my laptop, when I saw her sweep in and everyone take notice.   I really was not going to say hi ( She meets SO many people).. I was completely taken aback when Sarah crossed the cafe to come and say hello.  She was beaming.  "HOW ARE YOU" (loudly).. big smile.. big hug.. big questions "what are you working on".. etc etc.   She really is a class act.   You can only imagine the look on everyone's face when she left... Priceless!  NEW YORK TIMES -T MAGAZINE COVER THE CHUNKY TREND IN FALL KNITWEAR

It's thrilling to see SJP looking like a million dollars in Salvatore Ferragamo on the cover of the November issue of C Magazine. She dazzles Ferragamo Runway, of course.

Take a cue from Sarah and don't be shy to suggest metallic accessories or shoes with metallic knits. Also, take note of how versatile a knit dress like this is.  Worn with heels or high boots.. depending on the event and the women - this dress has so many possibilities.   Just like Sarah Jessica Parker & The City.  

*Why not spend some time with your associates dressing the fictional characters from Sexy & The City. FERRAGAMO RUNWAY - CHUNKY MOHAIR KNIT $870.00- OVER A KNIT DRESS - $2,670.00 - ON TREND FOR FALL It's amazing to think that Ferragamo can dress all 4 of those style archetypes.. from the Vamp to the uptown girl.  This will be fun!!  - While I love the Millennial version of SATC aka GIRLS, it's just not the same - on so many levels- especially the fashion!

MESSENGER BAG OF THE SEASON - CALFSKIN - $2,050.00What a difference a few weeks makes!  It seems like yesterday the New York Times ran an article on "When it's not cold enough for a coat".  Notice how on trend Fall 2014 Ferragamo knits are!  Now just a few weeks later, snow has hit at least 50% of the United States.   You might be selling an outerwear coat in Florida, or slinky heels in Washington state - you just never know these days.   Make it a point to study your PK book.  There are ALWAYS styles in the book that you might miss, or not see in person in your store.  *Sometimes those items can make you a real superstar to a key customer looking for that unique item*   Let your clients know there are always more styles "off the floor" - this increases your own relevance to her, and increases her need to have a relationship with the boutique.   That's golden!

Any minute now shoppers will start working on that list.   You know the one - the gift list.  Your boutique has never had more options - for so many women and men with varying styles.   From Wall Street to Main Street, Ferragamo has styles that are coveted in any location.   This is one of the biggest assets of the brand.   While a brand like Gucci for example might seem a little too "slick" for some settings, Ferragamo fits in.  It really is a fashion chameleon.  Understated luxury - even when it's ultra-luxe.   That's a delicate line to balance.    Let's be thankful for so many things this year!