Get Your Fashion Fix With "W"
Written: May 26 '02 (Updated May 26 '02)
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Pros: All the latest trends in (almost) everything.
Cons: none for moi!
The Bottom Line: This magazine is the bible for people in the fashion world and those who wannabe in it!
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| ed_grover's Full Review: W |
I started to read Women’s Wear Daily (WWD) on my first job in display in the 1950s at a upscale women's dress shop in Milwaukee called Muntain’s. I was hired one day after I dragged my little sister in to get her prom dress; she was the Queen and it was a big deal. Back then we spent the unheard of sum of $75 for her dress. It was great looking for the time.
This strapless affair was made of shocking pink tulle with a cream-colored moiré bodice and a sort of apron thingie that tied in a huge bow in the back. She wowed her King and the corn-fed country prom-goers. she had a matching pink net stole and I got her silk heels dyed to match. Little did I know that it was really me that was the queen and I was mentally dressing myself up. Oh well, what we don't all learn and realize after we've come out!
The owner was in a black jersey Hattie Carnegie wrap-around dress; she had it on backwards. It had lots of black braid and dangling tassels. She wore the same thing every day with flat black mules that slapped against her feet as she made her way through the fitting rooms making sure her “ladies” had everything they wanted. I can still hear her: flap, flap, flap - pause - flap, flap, flap! I learned later that she had three of these dresses; there was always one at the cleaners. What a character she was; she smoked incessantly and had a grilled salami on rye sandwich every noon.
In between instructions on how to dress a mannequin properly and how to display jewelry and cosmetics in the cases, she informed me that I needed really to know what was going on in the fashion world if I was going to make a career of this; I should read WWD (Women's Wear Daily) every day. She shoved some old copies at me to take home, and thus a habit was born. When I moved downtown to the bigger windows of Gimbles (their first store in the United States was in Milwaukee on the corner of Plankinton and Wisconsin Avenues, not in New York City), I continued to read WWD, and I continued reading it when I went on to work at Lord & Taylor in the Big Apple.
In 1980 when I was home recuperating from a serious illness, a friend sent me a subscription to W. At that time it was just a big newspaper with articles, but it had the bones of something better. My friend kept that subscription coming for years and I soon saw the first issue that was formatted as a magazine. What I loved then, besides the gossip and the inside fashion news, were the drawings that were featured on the cover and filled each issue; they were great! Some of those artists went on to become fine artists in their own right. Don’t ask me which ones because I can’t remember that far back, but I did see some huge paintings in a gallery recently.
A few weeks ago, someone gave me three issues of W. They were huge, with glossy, excellent quality paper, the photographs were all in full color, and they were filled with gossip (Suzy), columns and wonderful ads. These monthly issues are now 10 inches by 13 inches and are from one-half to three-quarters of an inch thick. There were no drawings in these publications, and they were a far cry from the newsprint issues John Fairchild put out.
Patrick McCarthy, the former Paris Editor, has been elevated to Sainthood. Mr. Fairchild is now Editor at Large. My what titles we have all gotten for ourselves. I always referred to myself as just a display queen, and I was happy enough with that. Now display is called Visual Merchandising and Mr. McCarthy is the star. I think I read about all the fuss in one of the big magazines I occasionally see these days, or was it on some TV special? Yes, I think that was it, it was one of the of fashion designer series hosted by Lauren Hutton on Bravo a few years ago. It was about Yves St. Laurent, and tied in nicely with his biography by Alice Rawsthorne, which I reviewed early on in my Epinions career. That needs to be re-posted, too.
After I was finished reading all the Suzy columns (up to seven pages of the latest gossip with photos of all the ladies with money), I started to read some of the specialty columns. In WBeauty Flash, I read about “The Baron of Botox.” I always wondered what that stuff was when I would read some catty remark about it in the “Intelligencer” section of New York magazine. Notice that I say New York as opposed to The New Yorker; I like t hat magazine much better.
Back to Botox: it’s the brand name a “highly dilute form of botulinum toxin, derived from the bacteria that causes botulism. . . . .” As of spring 2002 I’ve noticed a few specials on the TV talk-show circuit and the news programs have featured stories on the trend. Someone’s getting rich off of this stuff!
The FDA has approved it as a corrective for neuro-muscular disorders, but not for the temporary paralysis it causes” in smoothing out forehead furrows and other facial wrinkles.” The article, about his and hers Botox shots is written by Scott Teitler. There’s a picture of Dr. Frederic Brandt lounging on a sofa. There’s not one wrinkle in sight. The article is all very tongue-in-cheek, and snide comments are made about all the clients. It borders on being outright b*tchy. I loved it.
The article continues on with the good doctor, the modern-day version of Ponce de Leon, visiting a series of rooms in his clinic in Miami. Wouldn’t you just know that our fashion victims would find something poisonous to use in the search for the fountain of youth? It seems that even Ms. Hutton, Madonna and Cher, not to mention Sly Stallone, have not been immune to dropping in for a visit here and there.
Next there was a jewelry spread called “Spring Is Here And The Accent Is On Style.” It seemed to go on forever and had lots of elegant enameled gold and platinum stuff studded with colored gems and diamonds. There were also some watches of the kind I’d die to have; the kind I’ve never been able to afford (it’s just as well, I can’t even keep a Guess? Calendar Watch long enough to have the date change). After that spread there was an article on jewelry made my Mick and Bianca’’s daughter, Jade Jagger. She was pretty. The jewelry wasn’t.
After a bit of the real stuff from Harry Winston, I ended up with another kind of Jewel: Aix-en-Provence. “The Pulse of Provence” told me all about what Frederic Fekkai, the Über hairburner of the moment, thought about his hometown. This is the place that inspired Cézanne’s landscapes. It has a hearty cuisine based on fresh ingredients and I think I put on a few pounds just reading about it. Then, we had a nice visit with artist Elsworth Kelly, and actor Brendan Fraser who made a screen splash in “George of the Jungle.” He also played the boyfriend of a gay movie director in Gods and Monsters. These profiles reminded me of something from a slicker version of Town & Country.
As to W’s mainstay--FASHION, well, everything is gorgeous even if I don’t agree with the current styles. I like women to look like women--stylish women--not waifs or mermaids or street tramps. The photographers were famous; Richard Avedon, Bruce Weber and lots of other names I didn’t recognize. I’ve been out of the business for so long I’ve lost track of everything. It’s sort of like any business--if you don’t use it you lose it!
The last thing in the magazine worth reading is of course W's Last Laugh a funny sketch signed by Louise J. Esterhazy who is in reality none other than the aforementioned John Fairchild doing drag. One piece was about attending a reception given by the President of the French Republic. It’s a slap at Clinton’s attempts to be social at the White House, and is very funny. In another piece Louise/John laments the decline of good manners and the rise of cell phone use in restaurants and other public places. I couldn’t agree with Louise more. You go girl!
Each issue is available at your fave newsstand for $3.95 or you can get a year’s subscription (12 issues) mailed to you for a measly $17.95. Not at all bad for those of you who must keep up with what’s new on the fashion horizon. All in all I enjoyed revisiting W and haven’t regretted any of the time I spent over the past years reading it or it’s mother publication, WWD.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
ed_grover
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Member: Ed Grover
Location: Milwaukee, WI
Reviews written: 332
Trusted by: 400 members
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