Fashion + Pizza = Life in NYC

Hello my fellow readers...

   I am so sorry for the delay in blog posts, but don't worry! I am still living, still breathing (although I try and not to inhale too heavily... for fear of numerous odors becoming far too pungent on the subway).

Here's what my boss instagramed one day when our client brought her dog in...

   As some may know, I got a promotion in January at Barneys and have been working my ass off for this country's most spoiled people. Slowly my boss is getting to know me and get the hint/accept that I am indeed, quite the smart-ass (yet a funny one) and I would much rather wear a dress with converse high-tops than a pair of Prada heels (but don't fret...i will totally accept the Prada heels if I was offered them). It has taken some getting used too, but me and "the boss lady" are starting to get into a groove of sorts. I find ways to still be "me" while catering to this county "most spoiled people."

The current apple-of-my-eye designer at Barneys is    

I showed up to work as the "ballerina punk. 

Dries Van Noten.  He has completely melted my heart with his collection, which drew inspiration from the grunge Kurt Cobain punk scene. He made the plaid-on-plaid and plaid-on-floral patterns somewhat of a wearable art. The whole collection walking down the runway isn't for an alluring spectacle, but for buyers to see the actual pieces that will arrive in their stores, he has repeatedly said that he only shows what can be sold.  His work is about wearable garments...not the "spectacle" that a lot of designers have turned their collections into.

"It's more interesting to have just a picture of a small detail 

- then you can dream all the rest around it.

Because when you see the whole thing, what is there to imagine?"

- Dries Van Noten

"I think now you can be dressed in so many different designs and so different many styles and still look very fashionable. And I think that’s the fun thing of fashion for the moment" (Van Noten). 

 

Yes...that's right, Dries Van Noten taps into the energy Cobain

If you can't wear designer fashion...then clearly you have to have a photoshoot in it! Here my co-worker and I, Chris, took a photo-shoot for our boss's XMAS gift. We framed these gems (decked out in our Balenciaga leather and Lanvin get-ups) and put them in her office! Security later told us that they saw us on their video, but just didn't say anything...

Besides learning and working in a fairly upscale fashion scene, I come back to reality when I find myself scrounging my floors for quarters roughly every Wednesday morning. Why might I be in dire need of change on "Hump Day?" Well...paychecks come into my bank account at around 3AM Friday morning and usually...its all gone on that Wednesday. It's all good though...pizza slices are cheap and spaghetti is even cheaper.
With my paycheck allowing this my pizza fetish to flourish, I have become somewhat of a Connoiseur within this concrete jungle.

I pride myself on finding the best slice in the city and traveling to far distances to get that slice. At times, I must admit that my hangover will take over my brain and I will go for the $1 Joey Pepperoni slice that is 4 steps away. Why might I subject myself to this sad attempt at a slice of pizza? Well...I usually don't have cash after a night out and just that one bite of grease prevents me from yaking all over New York's streets! Desperate times calls for desperate measures.

On the other end of the spectrum is a little place called Joe's Pizza. Now this is the must-east slice of Manhattan. The sauce is sweet, the slice is simple, the cheese is perfection and the grease is well-rationed. This slice is truly an art form. I must warn all you "Joe's Pizza Virgins,"  to not be too ambitious when your slice comes out of the oven because YOU WILL BURN EVERY TASTEBUD OFF YOUR TONGUE.
It's a "fold and go" type slice and when you live in New York City where you constantly feel as though you are in a rush...this slice is perfection.

Artichoke's Margarita Slice

The other slice I have to mention is Artichoke's Grandma Slice. This isn't your traditional "New York Slice," but ask any New Yorker and they will tell you that this is a damn good slice of pie. The bottom is crispy, the sauce is fresh (topped with basil leaves), and they used an aged mozzerella/parmesan combo that leaves a "party in your mouth."