How He Wore It: Vince

A few weeks ago, I made a quick but mighty trip to NY to get in a bit of work and play. While there, I spent a lot of time hanging in the East Village, and convinced a friend and supporter of The Co-Op to hang out in the sticky city heat (in a suit, on his day off) to shoot a spread.

Meet Vince. He's a Bronx native, and one of those New Yorkers that knows everything about the city, and feels a certain way when the word Westchester gets brought up in casual conversation.

#typical

We started snapping shots as he explained to me that the crazy silver rooftops are some weird Bloomberg initiative. The idea: silver doesn't absorb heat into the buildings like the black tar found on most roofs, thus keeping the buildings cooler.

Ok, sure.

From the new fall product lineup, he picked out the Dobby Corduroy tie in Olive ($50). With a well cut navy suit and chestnut colored brogues, it's got character, but conservative enough for his finance gig.

This is the part when we learn how one dance move translates to any Sean Paul song.

Oh, wave hi to Jess!

You can pick up an Olive Dobby tie on the site, and also now (woohoo!) at skate and lifestyle shop Seams in Long Beach, CA.

Scenes from NY

How He Wore It: Album Art Confessions

Meet Marcus: One half of Dynastee, art director, and album art designer for some of your favorite mixtapes and LPs.  He's pretty prettttty good.

I met up with Marcus in New York last week to talk projects, try out some of our new products, and catch up in his work space one evening.

He's into the new Dobby Corduroy tie from The Co-Op in a color we're calling Almost Maroon. What's dobby corduroy you ask? Nope, we didn't make it up.

 It's a more modular (in contrast to linear) pattern made from the style of weaving in the textile creation phase.

All that really means is that you see patterns instead of lines, but still great corduroy autumn feeling to the touch. Yep, dobby.

So that's it. Dobby, music, design, and some great new talent. All in all, an evening well spent. Check him out where he tumbls, and get the goods.

Back to the Future: Governor's Island

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Every year in New York on Governor's Island, there exists a great spectacle and time known as the Jazz Age Lawn Party.

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The great part about it is that it's just beautiful, nostalgic fun that brings out the romance of a time past.

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Some people get really into dressing for the day.

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Which makes the whole day seem even more electrifying.

I can't think of a better combination than summertime, live music, great style, and friends.

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Spotted in the City: Spandex

I've been away from New York too long, so it was thoroughly refreshing to get back to this city and see what crazy style concoctions people are coming up with these days.  One look I saw a few times that stuck out in my mind was the use of spandex shorts under tunics. Not in the 80s dancer kind of way- this was more downtown-chic.

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They function as bottoms of sorts, under tunics and longer tops.  I assume it allows these girls to feel like this excuses the increasingly rising hemline on the streets.  But I must admit, styled well, it looks amazing.

The Journey Continues

If you follow me on Twitter (which obviously you should because then you're up to date with all of my (mis)adventures instantly (@RachelABrooks)), you'll know quite well that I'm working from New York this week.  It's a bit of a multi-functional trip.

Helped a friend move into a new place... across the country.

Went styling with the insanely talented Cameron Forbes.

Did a photo shoot with the help of the also talented Suhaly of Culture of Creativity.

I make a little appearance in it as well.

And I did a LOT of talking about The Style Cooperative with some fantastic folks.  There is some great news coming up about it, so do stay tuned.  It won't disappoint!

Film Bliss: Schmatta

2 things that I really can't get enough of are the fashion industry and documentaries. HBO really hit the nail on the head with their newest documentary film, Schmatta: Rags to Riches to Rags Again. I hear it just premiered this week, and while I don't get HBO to my apartment, I'm diligently looking for a way to see the film. It discusses, among other things, director Marc Levin's take on New York City's Garment District and the unfortunate downward spiral its been experiencing for some time now.

It talks about the good:

And the bad:

Have you seen it? No spoilers please, but is it incredible... or merely a little meh?

PS: For those of you who don't know what "schmatta" is... it translates to "rags" in Yiddish. Don't worry... I, too, had to google it as my Yiddish is a little rusty these days ;)