Irina Aleksander

Richard Fuld Jr., who recently sold off 16 works of art at Christie's, is not the only former Lehman Brothers executive selling off his assets. The financial firm's former president, Joseph Gregory--who has already sold his apartment at 610 Park Avenue for $4.4 million and the private helicopter that he used to commute to work every day from Huntington, N.Y.--has had no luck getting rid of the eight-bedroom Bridgehampton mansion he placed on the market in September for $32.5 million (half a million dollars less than his 2007 salary), reports Page Six Magazine. And now, desperate to make a profit off the property, Mr.  read more »

Before Penn Badgely acquired his sarcastic smirk, before Leighton Meester had a stylist, before Blake Lively's breasts became the lead characters on Gossip Girl, before Taylor Momsen's '80s glam hair, and before Ed Westwick mastered the Chuck Face, the young actors on the CW show were, shall we say, not quite as polished.

Digging through old photos of the cast, the Daily Transom discovered that the group of twentysomething lead actors--or teenage actors in Ms. Momsen's case--that have become the beautiful young fixtures on red carpets over the past year were once just goofy teenagers with bad skin and terrible fashion sense.  read more »

British socialite and Nylon magazine columnist Peaches Geldof has unveiled her 10-piece capsule collection for the label PPQ that, according to yesterday's Women's Wear Daily, is made up of "chiffon, velvet and lace dresses with a Gothic edge." (The collection does not appear to include decorative headbands.)

The Williamsburg-based Ms. Geldof told WWD that the collaboration came about through a guy she dated (before she married Harvard grad/musician Max Drummey) who was signed to PPQ designers Percy Parker's and Amy Molyneux's music label, 1234. The socialite says the designs are heavy in lace and include capes (!!) inspired by the novel Dracula, which she recently read. 

When the Daily Transom contacted Ms. Geldof in September, after she relocated to New York and made a debut at Fashion Week, the socialite explained a few things about the way she dresses.  read more »

The boys of Proenza Schouler are launching their first bag collection in December, named PS1 after the New York City public school system. [Vogue UK]

H&M has teamed with up with Matthew Williamson for its latest designer collection, which will arrive in stores in April. [WWD] 

Alice & Olivia designer Stacey Bendet Eisner gave birth yesterday to a baby girl named Eloise Breckenridge Eisner. [P6]   read more »

On April 29, 2007, Socialite Rank—the menacing website that stacked socialites against each other in a controversial weekly rating system—closed for business. A month or so later, after much speculation and finger-pointing, its founders were exposed to be nearly identical Russian step-siblings Olga Rei and Valentine Uhovski (sometimes called Valentine Rei) , who were both 23 at the time.

Immediately after the site shut down, the duo, who identified themselves as former child stars in Russia, talked about making their clever social experiment into a book. They planned to call it The Year of The Rank; a documentary was rumored.

Instead, earlier this month they launched an astrology website called Astro Crack.  read more »

“Hugh [Jackman] is so at peace with himself—like a John Wayne or a Clint Eastwood—and she’s like electricity. Together, they are such a classic couple. And, well, he is the sexiest man alive!” said Australia director Baz Luhrmann, glancing in the direction of actors Nicole Kidman and Mr. Jackman (who People magazine recently deemed the "Sexiest Man Alive") at the premiere of his new film on Monday, Nov. 24, at the Ziegfeld Theatre. 

Mr. Luhrmann revealed that during filming on location, the temperature was so high, and the scenes so action-filled, that both actors suffered fainting spells. Ms. Kidman, wearing a black and gold sequined dress, confirmed her director’s story.  read more »

Diane von Furstenberg on plastic surgery: "I know that a lot of people look at me and think, 'Why doesn't she do something to that face?' But I made a decision. I do yoga and I hike, but I won't do Botox. I know if I start doing things I will get insecure. You wear your own face. It is a little bit of your history, a little bit of who you are." [Vogue UK]

An email from a PR employee at Holly Dunlap's Hollywould line sent out to press earlier seems to indicate that the line is closing: "Many of you have heard that Hollywould is up for sale. Sadly, the press office is closing, and today is my last day... As of now, I do not know where I will be going, but I will stay in touch." [P6] 

Marc Jacobs has designed a limited edition Bugaboo stroller that sells for $1500. [Racked]   read more »

It's no longer enough just to wear a headband--now everyone wants to lay claim to having started the ubiquitous trend. According to PopCrunch.com, actress Mischa Barton, who has been working on a line of headbands (apparently in lieu of a successful acting career), is peeved that her friend Nicole Richie has announced that she will too design a line of decorative headbands under her line, House of Harlow 1960.

These are not the sorts of adorable headbands that Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester) wears on CW's Gossip Girl. The headbands at the center of this conflict are the headbands that are worn straight on top of one's hair, in the style of a 1920s flapper meets 1970s hippie meets 2008 downtown "it" girl.  

But the West Coast's young Hollywood gals will have to compete with the East Coast's headband girls, who continue to enthusiastically wear the trend on a daily basis despite it reaching a tragic saturation point.  read more »

Last we heard of Silda Wall Spitzer, she was back to lunching at Michael's with her old friends, gracefully leaving that messy little scandal involving a hooker and her husband behind. We thought it was a good sign and predicted that her public outing meant that she was done hiding and would reclaim her spot in the world of charity committees. 

Turns out, we were wrong--Ms. Spitzer was preparing for a much greater comeback. In fact, by the time she made an appearance at Michael's in October, she was probably already in the last stages of interviewing for--if not settling into--her new job with Metropolitan Capital Advisors, a Manhattan hedge fund, as  read more »

Target has announced two new collaborations: a handbag line with Felix Rey designers Lily Band and Sulaika Zarrouk to launch on March 29 and a shoe collection with footwear designer Trish Carroll, called Miss Trish of Capri for Target, for April 5. [WWD] 

When asked about her possible retirement, Anna Wintour asked a reporter from The Cut to leave her alone and please go away. [The Cut] 

Stylista contestant Kate: "What you see on television is a 100 percent accurate depiction of me and the entire cast." [Racked]   read more »

This morning, 25-year-old Georgina Bloomberg—daughter of Mayor Michael, little sister to 29-year-old Emma, accomplished equestrian—made a Page Six headline for claiming she was "not rich" despite owning nine horses and a BMW. Naturally, she got teased by a few websites for saying this. 

The quote was pulled out of an upcoming profile of Ms. Bloomberg in Page Six Magazine, to be published Sunday. But it also prompted a question: What do we really know about the young Ms. Bloomberg?

We've read things over the years about her being a professional equestrian and, oh yes, she was part of Jamie Johnson's Born Rich documentary.  read more »

According to The New York Post, a 31-year-old woman is suing Upper West Side nightclub Brother Jimmy's after suffering second- and third-degree burns at the bar in March when a bartender failed to execute a stunt with Bacardi 151. The bartender was reportedly prompted by the song Great Balls of Fire coming on the jukebox, at which point he poured the rum across the bar and set it on fire. The flames blew back into the bottle and into Lauren Sclafani's face. Ms. Sclafani was rushed to the hospital and treated for burns on her hands and face.

The spokesman for the bar chain happens to be Berk Communications President Ron Berkowitz. This is not the first time Mr. Berkowitz has had to deal with public litigations at the various nightlife spots he reps, which have included Crobar, Libation, Pink Elephant, PM and Jay Z's 40/40 Club.  read more »

Avon has signed former Mademoiselle editor Mandi Norwood to write the Michelle Obama Style Guide for next spring. [P6]

There were rumors that Anna Wintour might leave Vogue for a "cultural" position in Barack Obama's administration, but Ms. Wintour's rep says it's totally not true. [MSNBC via Gawker]

Gwyneth Paltrow graciously approached PETA vice president Dan Matthews at the Fontainebleau Hotel opening in Miami and apologized for wearing fur in her ad for Tod's. [Us Weekly]  read more »

According to the Wall Street Journal the art market has officially burst. With prices dropping 30 percent and auction houses' stocks plummeting, layoffs are inevitable. Galleries are closing. And the effects are rippling through the community of collectors, dealers, and the artists themselves.

Mary Boone keeps telling us that last week's disappointing auctions were actually relatively encouraging. Only 20 percent of works sold at auction '89 she says, so this, in comparison, is not so bad.

But what does this all mean for those who have funneled money into outrageously priced contemporary and modern art works in the past decade, hoping to flip them?  read more »

Wednesday evening at Pier 60, the dedication of the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge (formerly known as the Triborough!) attracted a long list of high-profile guests—Sarah Jessica Parker, Carl Bernstein, Matt Dillon, not to mention gaggles of politicians and Kennedys. And Archbishop Desmond Tutu! The Daily Transom wondered what kinds of Manhattan landmarks this sort of crowd would like to be named after them.

"A dog park!" replied actress Glenn Close, who during the dinner would be reading alongside Matthew Broderick and Harry Belafonte from Ariel Dorfman's play Speak Truth to Power: Voices From Beyond the Dark. "Or maybe a theater, that would be nice. Or the Empire State Building! But I guess that should actually be named after a guy."  read more »

Chicago-based Hart Schaffner Marx, the suit retailer favored by Barack Obama, has added this to its homepage:  “Dressing Presidential. Pick Your Power Suit. President-elect Barack Obama Found His at Hart Schaffner Marx.” [WWD] 

Marc Jacobs would like to marry Lorenzo Martone, if the latter will have him. [The Cut]  

Karl Lagerfeld has released a Chanel bag based on the house’s quilted 2.55 classic released in the '90s and celebrities like Katie Holmes, Milla Jovovich and Lily Allen are already wearing it. [WWD]  read more »

Last week, we told you about 50 new retail locations (or expansions) opening up all over the city, as was detailed in a brochure from Prudential Douglas Elliman. We discovered that companies like Burberry, Rock & Republic, West Elm, and Vera Wang are fearlessly trudging ahead with new outposts despite current economic conditions.

Following this somewhat encouraging news, in the last week we've heard about small boutiques struggling to stay alive, and Macy's and Saks Fifth Avenue reporting $44 million and $42.8 million losses respectively in the third quarter. But this didn't seem to faze Elliman chairman Faith Hope Consolo and executive vice president Joseph Aquino of the firm's Retail Leasing and Sales division, as they are now marketing five new retail spaces to the few companies that currently have the means to expand.  read more »

So you know how Marc Jacobs' shows are really cool because they take place at the 69th Regiment Armory instead of the tents at Bryant Park? 

Well! In February, New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo was considering charging the designer with bribing Armory officials in order to secure the space for his shows. Back then, Mr. Jacobs was reportedly refusing to cooperate with the investigation. But now, according to TMZ, Mr. Jacobs has agreed to pay a $1 million fine after being investigated by Mr. Cuomo. 

The documents acquired by TMZ indicate that Mr. Jacobs has been giving bribes to James Jackson, the former Superintendent of the Armory, and others over an eight-year period to use the space run by the state.  read more »

At the Moth Ball on Tuesday, Nov. 18, Salman Rushdie was awarded the 2008 Moth Award for his storytelling abilities and everyone wore silly hats in the tradition of the whimsical literary organization. But the cocktail chatter centered around the question of: Was she or wasn't she? 

"Well, has she been yet?" Mr. Rushdie asked when the Daily Transom inquired what he thought about Barack Obama offering the Secretary of State job to Hillary Clinton. "I have no idea. But I think it's very interesting that he's looking for ways to involve his former rivals and create that kind of unity. In that sense, it's good. But until I know it's real, I can't really say."  read more »

Socialite Maggie Betts hoped that there would be a secret photo shoot with a wind machine at the CFDA awards dinner last night and there totally was! [FWD]

Former Project Runway contestant Christian Siriano was asked to make a guest appearance on Gossip Girl, but he's still considering. [E! via The Cut] 

British design couple Mary Eley and Wakako Kishimoto have departed as the design duo behind Cacharel, citing creative differences and brand vision as the reason. [WWD]   read more »

"I have only one criteria for putting things into the quarterly, which is that the writing is good. It's not so much about it being academic," declared Lewis Lapham, editor of Lapham's Quarterly, at a reading hosted by the literary journal at the National Arts Club on Monday, Nov. 17.

Mr. Lapham, his round tortoise-frame spectacles resting firmly on the bridge of his nose, was talking about his recent efforts to get more young people to attend readings and events hosted by the quarterly. "For the fun of it," he explained.

"My editors are young, they are all under 30, and I trust them," said Mr. Lapham. "When people get to be of the older demographic, when they get to be 50, they tend to read history and watch the History Channel. When I conceived the quarterly I thought that would be the audience, but I was surprised to find out how many young people liked it."  read more »

In an ideal world, if Leighton Meester and Ed Westwick, the young actors who play the evil but secretly good Blair Waldorf and Chuck Bass on Gossip Girl, were to appear in an ad campaign, it would be for Marc Jacobs or Miu Miu or even Chanel; those are just the kind of labels we imagine Chuck and Blair promoting. 

But somehow, Mr. Westwick's and Ms. Meester's agents don't seem to get all of this. And instead of a high-end, Chuck-and-Blair-appropriate ad campaign, both Ms. Meester and Mr. Westwick are promoting sneakers. Sneakers!  read more »

Those rumors that Pamela Anderson would be featured in ads for Vivienne Westwood were correct. Ms. Anderson has reportedly signed a six-figure deal to be the face of the designer's spring 2009 campaign. [Vogue UK] 

Trays of shots replaced birthday cakes at the joint birthday party at Indochine for Julia Restoin Roitfeld and her father Christian Restoin hosted by mother Carine (editor of French Vogue) and brother Vladimir. [WWD] 

Tallulah Harlech, daughter of Karl Lagerfeld's muse Lady Amanda Harlech, has been cast in a short film for Chanel by the designer. Her mother's words of advice? "Don’t pout like Keira Knightley." [WWD]   read more »

When we saw Lydia Hearst’s French Playboy cover last week, we wondered what the extended Hearst family might think of the young socialite's nude spread.

According to Ms. Hearst's publicist, who stressed that he only represents Ms. Hearst, not the whole family, the Hearst bunch is in fact very supportive of her modeling gigs. Nude or not. 

"Her family is very close and has always been very supportive of Lydia," wrote Ms. Hearst's publicist in an email to Daily Transom. "French Playboy is very prestigious and they frequently do supermodels and actresses for covers/spreads."

He then added, "Her family is very sophisticated!"  read more »

Late last week, the Daily Transom received an email from the Kabbalah Center. It was addressed not to our Observer email account, but to a personal email address where press-related materials generally do not arrive.
 

The subject of the email read, "Kabbalah Introductory Lecture in Hebrew." The body of the email contained an invitation, written in Hebrew, over an image of clouds and an open field; on the grass was a television set showing seemingly busy urban people rushing to work.

The Daily Transom was able to enlist the aid of a Hebrew speaker to translate the missive. "Do you believe there is more to life than being preoccupied with day to day anxieties? Looking for genuine fulfillment?" read the first line of the email. It continued: "The wisdom of Kabbalah contains the keys for achievement of real emotional, spiritual, and financial change."  read more »

Donna Karan will launch an 18-piece maternity line in the spring called The Happy Birth-Day Collection. [WWD]

Sisters Laura and Kate Mulleavy of Rodarte collected a prize of 100,000 euros at the Swiss Textile Awards. [Vogue UK]

Luxury goods makers like Chanel, Versace, Christian Louboutin, and Chloe are cutting their prices in the U.S. by 8 to 10 percent. [WSJ]

   read more »

While Women's Wear Daily keeps reporting that retail sales are "plunging dramatically" and that retail space vacancies are increasing along Madison Avenue, it seems that designer boutiques are not holding back from opening new locations. 

In a brochure called "The Faith Report" that the Daily Transom recently received from Faith Hope Consolo, the chairman of retail sales and leasing division of Prudential Douglas Elliman, some 50 stores are highlighted that are either expanding or opening new outposts all around the city this fall. Of course, no one knows whether stores like Otte, which recently opened a branch on the Upper West Side, or Comptoir des Cotonniers, the French clothing store that recently opened its first U.S. outpost in Soho, will be able to stay alive in the coming year. And we're curious whether those stores that haven't yet opened will reconsider and delay the opening a few times, before finally axing the new locations altogether. 

Until then, here are some highlights from the 50 retail newcomers.

   read more »

Last night, when we spotted petite power-gallerist Mary Boone enjoying a cocktail at the Guggenheim (where the biannual Hugo Boss prize was awarded to Palestinian multimedia artist Emily Jacir), we wondered what the woman who contributed to the overhyped art scene of the '80s thought of the the currently deflating art market.

Just a few weeks ago at the Whitney Museum gala, Ms. Boone told us that in 1989, shortly after the 1987 market crash, only 20 percent of the artwork being put up for auction was selling. And while this week's auction at Sotheby's and Christie's seemed somewhat disappointing--68 percent of the offerings sold at Christie's on Tuesday--Ms. Boone pointed out that the figures were rather encouraging in comparison.

"I don't think they were underwhelming at all. Actually, they went better than I thought," said Ms. Boone. "People who remember the early part of the '90s are able to embrace what's happening now more quickly. It's just about how to handle it to reduce the panic."  read more »

Several sources say that photographer Steven Meisel recently shot Madonna for the spring Louis Vuitton campaign. [WWD] 

As everyone scrambles to find new job, the classic interview suit might be making a comeback. [NY Times]  

Jon Hamm appears very un-Don Draper-like in the new Gap ads, smiling and being hugged by his girlfriend Jennifer Westfeldt. [Racked]  read more »

When we ran into former Project Runway contestant Jay McCarroll at The Humane Society of the United States' Cool Vs. Cruel Ceremony at the Bowery Hotel last night, we had to ask him about the little miscommunication he--or rather his impostor--had with a reporter at Tina Brown's the Daily Beast.

Last week, the Daily Beast ran an article that was supposed to display concept drawings by former Project Runway contestants for Michelle Obama's inaugural gowns. By mistake, a reporter named Hailey Eber contacted a Jay McCarrol, a musician in Canada, instead of Jay McCarroll, the Project Runway contestant. Mr. McCarrol, the musician, went along with it, getting a friend to do a drawing of a gown and leading Ms. Eber to believe it was authentic. The drawing was posted alongside other designs, but was soon found out for what it was--a hoax--by the Smoking Gun.

"I’m over it now. It’s guess it's funny," said Mr. McCarroll, the real reality show contestant. "I guess it keeps my name in the spotlight, doesn’t it? And I didn’t have to do anything—zero!"  read more »

In late September, shortly after Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy, "terminated" Lehman CEO Richard Fuld Jr. and his wife Kathy Fuld put up a small collection of postwar drawings for auction at Christie's. Estimated to be worth between $15 million and $20 million, the 16 works included drawings by Arshile Gorky, Willem de Kooning, and Barnett Newman.

Christie's made the mistake of guaranteeing the Fulds $20 million for these works, but as we learned from the art auction at Sotheby's on Tuesday, Nov. 11, where only 68 percent of the offerings were sold, art is not selling so well these days. The Fulds' 16 works of art were sold for an underwhelming $13.5 million, according to ABC News.  read more »

The CW's Stylista has been on for a few weeks now and from a critical perspective (that is, ours), the show is kind of genius. So why doesn't it have the ratings to match?

It has all the requisite reality show ingredients: The bitchy Megan has more personality in one strand of her stringy hair than all of the current contestants on America's Next Top Model combined. The 20-year-old N.Y.U. journalism girl, Devin (who thought she had the fashion magazine world figured out because she edited the school fashion magazine for some time), sadly reminds us of the way we were coming out of the very same institution.  read more »

Diane von Furstenberg is launching a blog tomorrow called Inside DVF on her website DVF.com that will include news, images of new items, horoscopes, and "cultural advice," as well as posts by Ms. Furstenberg herself. [Fashionista]

American Apparel CEO Dov Charney is being sued again, this time by a former employee who says he was pressured to fix the books by Mr. Charney so that the company appeared to be doing better than it was and could attract investors. [NYP] 

Helpful guidelines for the Comme des Garcons sale at H&M tomorrow! [Racked]  read more »

You know how there was always that one kid in school whose parents packed him a lunch of Ritz crackers and celery sticks? And so you always gave him half of your turkey sandwich or Oreo cookies and downplayed the cost of your new sneakers?

Well, it seems that New York's upper class is experiencing a similar sense of guilt--"Status Guilt," as it is described in the December issue of Details magazine. All over Manhattan, your friends and co-workers are apparently lying to you about the price of their designer handbags, where they had dinner the previous night and where they plan to vacation this year, so as not to make you feel bad. 

Pierce Mattie, a CEO of a PR company quoted in the piece, took off his one-carat pendant diamond necklace before party guests—many employed by Lehman Brothers—arrived at his Fire Island home in September.  read more »

The last time we checked in with Jeff Goldstein, the sometimes testy, but always charming former club promoter who parlayed throwing parties while still in high school with friends like Shoshanna Lonstein (who went to the all-girls school Nightingale-Bamford) and Claire Bernard (who went to Riverdale) into a hip clothing store for the party kids that have since grown up, he was talking about making Blue & Cream on the Bowery into a "lifestyle." He told us that he doesn't see Blue & Cream as a just a store, but more of a place where high-end designer clothing is "showcased" alongside works of art and as the sort of place where friends like Charlotte Ronson can stop in, hang out, and maybe pick up an Alexander Wang dress on their way out.  read more »

When asked about the kind of dress Michelle Obama should wear at Barack Obama's inauguration on Jan. 20, designer Mario Pinto, who designed the stunning red dress the future first lady wore on her visit to the White House yesterday, said: "I see her sleek but with more froth. It’s right for the moment. I don’t see her in a big, poufy ball skirt.” [WWD] 

The earrings Ms. Obama wore on Election Night with her red and black Narciso Rodriguez dress were designed by Loree Rodkin and cost $11,000. (They were not, however, paid for with campaign funds.) [Vogue UK