Ms. Behave.

New Yorkers are constantly surrounded by the best of the very best. How quickly we forget, in other cities ordering cigarettes + swedish fish for delivery at 4AM is unheard of.

Just like the jaded New York dwellers, women today tend to forget what it meant to be a woman, not so long ago... challenges + obstacles that we babes take with a grain of salt; things that no longer effect us + ideas that seem so very old, yet were fully present just 2 generations ago. 

This month New York Magazine takes a look back at the women + the publication who helped push them forward + allowed their work to go beyond just a movement to become life as we know it.

How Do You Spell Ms.
Forty years ago, a group of feminists, led by Gloria Steinem, did the unthinkable: They started a magazine for women, published by women—and the first issue sold out in eight days. An oral history of a publication that changed history.


Full Article HERE.

One Hot Second

photo courtesy of: Wendy Bevan

Work, friends, secret identities... and men; the usual suspects created a barrier that I couldn't seem to break. Before I realized, New York Fashion Week was over. The magazine editors, accompanied by far too many members of the blogosphere, threw back tiny glass-bottles of Russian vodka, while en route to London Town. Winter in the city seemed never-ending and yet somehow, felt like it had flown by.

The 'modern woman' I am most certainly not. How anyone is able to successfully manage both their work and personal life boggles the mind. Busy with a hundred-million projects, my life seemed to slip through the cracks. With 18-hour days prepping for shoots, shows and whatever else, there was little desire or energy to make it out for a nightcap, let alone anything else I was desiring, including sex.

Working weeks without a break, I'd spend my one day off sleeping more consecutive hours than imaginable. This was not the life I was used to living and these were most certainly not the days of tanning poolside at the Thompson; laptop open with an iced coffee and/or cocktail in hand.

What's a 'Chloe' to do...?

Chloe Does New York Fashion Week:

ALEXANDER WANG

Asymmetry to a whole new level; adore. White, sheer, splashes of metallic, the collection was a lighter version of traditional athletic-wear. It was revealing in a sexy understated way through sheer fabrics and unique and unexpected cutouts. Wang, we heart you.

ALTUZURA

Love the boob trend going on, love the asymmetry, not into the fit. Clothes should always fit the models; if it doesn’t fit a model, it sure isn’t going to fit a real person!

CYNTHIA ROWLEY

For me it was all about the wide silk trouser and the sheer ‘sweaters’, nothing revolutionary but a delicate elegance non-the-less.

EDUN

Snakeskin print is one of the most difficult prints to execute and this sustainable label cracked it out in an impressive way. Shown as an asymmetrical leather skirt and shorts romper which I fell in love with, as well as less impressively a long flowing day dress. I cannot say that the styling was my favorite; however there were other stand out pieces such as a sleeveless trench coat and a metallic round shoulder, boxy fit blazer, which I would be quite happy to own.

JASON WU

Very Oscar-esque and beautiful, sheer tops paired with everything. The turbans took me back to Prada circa 2007 but did add a wonderful splash of color to an otherwise neutral pallet. 

JUAN CARLOS OBANDO

Silk 1950’s inspired dresses with full skirts, cut far too many inches above the knee to ever be worn in the 1950’s, were shown in the most beautiful tie-dyed colors; sky blue twisted with pink, stormy gray woven through lavender and leafy green mixed with forest green. The structured silk taffeta was shown as a structured evening blazer paired with a long flowing chiffon skirt. The cutout trend was carried out in a major way on dresses, skirts and pants. A favorite look was a black long sleeve cutout shirt, paired with silver silk flared trousers. Very 1960’s and very chic.

OHNE TITEL

Loved the soft flowing silk paired with hard stiff leather details. The athletic inspired collection was still very much feminine, but the stronger more kick-ass kind. The leather came in forms of pockets, bodices and bodysuits. The lip was orange, a big spring trend on many of the runways; although it seemed to make even more sense here as the color pallet featured its complimentary color, indigo. After seeing the collection you can’t help but want to ‘be that girl’. 

ORGANIC

The butter suit has to be a favorite look for the season. Loved the color pallet, neutrals with the right amount of juxtaposing color. Sheer hidden-button, sleeveless blouses were an important piece that can definitely be worn on and off the runway with ease. The coats and jackets were particularly beautiful and wearable. The stone anorak, linen trench and silk double-breasted blazer are my personal favorites; I intend to own all three by the time next summer rolls around. **Note the shoes by Dieppa Restrepo, they are amazing. 

PHILOSOPHY

The collection was undoubtedly beautiful. When it came to the trend, truth be told I get it; no need to beat me over the head with it. The pattern design was unbelievable; the way each piece was cut to maximize the beauty of the fabrication is something only the most talented design team could pull off. The painted straw hats were also a favorite item for me, I have been dying over it since my trip to Hong Kong last year. The one question that was left unanswered? What on earth was that trench coat doing in the show? Talk about ‘Cheese stands alone!’

PRABAL GURUNG

Color. Asymmetry. Cutouts. The silhouette was all about the new length, mid-calf. Backless and cutout-back eveningwear in bright colors stole the show. Loved the hair and makeup, thick white eyeliner paired with a dusty white shadow applied on and below the eye created a balanced look to the color pallet. Ponytails with leather detail made it modern and touched on the dominatrix-y trend seen in many shows.

RAG & BONE

Ob-fucking-sessed. Where to begin… Metallic. And not just in the details, but tops, pants and skirts. This space-aged looking fabric was finished with soft girly details. A lingerie trend seemed to take over the show, but not in the traditional way; this time sporty-dominatrix-esque pieces could be seen under blazers, over dresses and peaking out from beneath sheer shorts and skirts. The backpack made a return appearance and fit in perfectly with the sport inspired lingerie straps. The shorts were short, the skirt long, and everything beautiful. Orange played an important role along side the otherwise neutral and metallic pallet.

SUNO

A huge trend popping up this season is a the super short, shorts suit. Suno put their expert pattern-mixing twist on it, as usual and showed it on one of my favorite models this season, Mariana. Delicate raw edged lace shorts and a tiered floor length cotton dress were shown with piles and piles of Lizzie Fortunato’s jewels. I’ve already placed my jewelry order, now I know what I will be wearing it with! 

VENA CAVA

Adored the orange lips and turban-esque headbands; after all, orange is my power color. The double necklines on the flowing dresses seemed to be on point with the cutout trend. The stone colored shorts romper was a standout favorite piece.        

     

All In Favor?

There are two types of extramarital adventures; ones that are about sex and ones are more like affairs. The difference? Sex.

Monogamy has been the unintentional subject of most of my conversations lately; these conversations have taken place with women and surprisingly they do not seem to be in favor of it.

What changed that has made it acceptable for women to be open about not wanting to be with one man? Are women truly open, or is it something they disclose only in secret to their close and trusted friends?

If women and men both secretly crave physical and sexual encounters outside their committed relationship, why does society still look down on it; why are we shaming these people who know what they want and are not afraid to go get it?

The Photographer and I have quite the ideal situation. When I first began to see him my friends would ask, “don’t you feel bad for his wife?” My response was clear. No, I do not feel badly for her. If The Photographer actually ‘liked’ me he would call me to chat, he would want to go for dinner; he would want to go away with me. He doesn’t, he just wants to have sex.

Well, okay. Not JUST sex, amazing sex; mind-blowing sex. The kind the makes your toes curl, gets you instantly turned on, tingling, aching for more. For me, The Photographer is NOT cheating on his wife; he is NOT having an affair. He is just having sex and that does not make him a bad person. He is careful (minus those steamy videos he cannot bring himself to delete) that The Wife will never know. 

There is something about the camera that gets me turned on. Maybe it takes me back to the days before I moved back to New York where we would both lay in bed naked, on I Chat and watch each other get off. I loved knowing that he would watch them later, and get off on us.

The Photographer won’t get caught because he doesn’t want to. The Editor on the other hand, now that is a different story… 

Right On Time

New York is a busy place. A ‘New York minute’ is most definitely not just a saying; the question stands, is it a saying that you want applied to your sex life?

For me, that answer is NO.

I adore sex and I adore it with many men. Lately, I have been feeling like all the sex I have is ‘scheduled’. Perhaps this is a symptom of not having a boyfriend and not wanting to date the men I sleep with. However, it feels as though every time I have sex it is scheduled between meetings, lunches and drinks.

Don't get me wrong, the sex is still amazing; you know because you’re privy to all the dirty details, but I am desperately aching for some spontaneity. Perhaps this lack of spur-of-the-moment sex is due in large part to the lack of men that can hold my interest, or perhaps it’s because I have become fairly addicted to The Photographer of late. Either way it has been eating away at me and the thought of having scheduled sex with John Galliano Guy (as amazing as he was) or any of the others, makes me shudder.

My phone buzzed on the table, ‘Meet me in 20?’ John Galliano Guy’s name appeared in tiny letters at the bottom of my mobile screen. I had been anticipating him for what felt like weeks, but surely was only a few days. Out schedules were complete opposites and there never seemed to be enough hours in the day.

Taking a long sip of my soy late, I collected my belongings and headed down the block to his East Village digs. With each step I took I could feel heads turning to stare; what an empowering feeling knowing you can stop men dead in their tracks just from the way you walk.

I buzzed his door and held my breath that The Neighbor would not be home; the last thing I was in the mood for was to explain why I was hanging with John Galliano Guy. He opened the door to his apartment, half naked as usual. He had a black bandanna tied around his head and he looked smoking hot. John Galliano Guy looked me up down so expertly that one without a trained eye may not have even noticed. I loved that he didn’t ogle me like the men on the street.

It was one of those sweaty New York pre-summer days and the cold air in his place tickled my skin sending shivers down my spine.

I strolled into his bedroom and sat at the edge of his bed; he didn’t waste anytime. Following my lead he got down on his knees and pulled my lace panties down to my ankles. My smooth, tanned legs were on either side of his shoulders and I couldn’t wait to see if he was all talk, or as I had hoped all action.