izzi blog

The official izzibag blog

So we all know that social media is a powerful medium these days for finding anything from a plumber to a hair dresser! the one thing I never really use it for is to find clothes, why you might ask? well that is because I think you have to always try them on. What you see a size zero girlie wearing in a magazine or on line, thanks to air brushing does not always reflect what it will look like when you see it on your not size zero body!

Anyway I came across this brand of jeans called Marc Allison in California, the owner of the brand is Marc Flashberg, who developed a driving passion for premium denim , he says ‘that it is perceived that fit and comfort are achieved primarily through the pattern’ however he believes that the pattern alone cannot offer fit and comfort. ‘It cannot be just a beautiful looking fabric, the fabric needs to be able to move with the body, retain it’s shape and look fashionable’. Personally I could not agree more, I go to buy jeans and pick up around 10 different brands and take them to changing room only to be disappointed. They are either too tight in the thigh, baggy around the rear end, or even worse the waist line is way too low showing every little bit of cellulite a woman of my age has!

I am looking for a pair of jeans that actually start at my waist, not hug my thighs to the point of loosing blood circulation and are not ten feet wide at the hem…. so where was I going to find this perfect pair of jeans? Well Marc Allison came to the rescue and sent me a pair last week to test drive and here is what I thought of them….

When the package arrived I was a little nervous knowing that I am a fussy ‘jean wearer’ and I opened the package with a little apprehension, the soft feel of the fabric was the first thing that I noticed and so I began to relax a little. The jean material was really quite smooth and the color was a fabulous dark blue. When I spread them out they were not drain piped, so I was hopeful that they were not going to have to be painted on to my thighs.

I could not wait any longer and ripped off my clothes and pulled on the jeans…..Perfect they were really a lovely fit, my waist felt like it was inside the jeans not fighting to find a gap to hide in, my thighs were screaming out ‘hey look at me’ and to be honest I felt like I was a size smaller… The proof would be in the pudding so to speak and I walked to the full length mirror in my bedroom to take a look.. I actually thought the mirror said something like ‘You look hot’ but that would be stupid right ?

Marc Allison Jeans

Well all I can say is, you judge for yourself what do you think I look like and don’t be afraid to let me know. Thank you Marc Allison Jeans I am a fan….

In the name of pure madness here we go again it’s that time of the year, Yes it’s fashion week 2011……

I was very kindly sent a range of hair products from Joshua Ladner actually they are Paul Mitchell but Joshua sent them to me… I have to say that I love all things hair and there fore they were gladly received and used immediately. Even Mr izzi said he liked the easy to squeeze bottle and the smell. I pampered myself no end on these and I encourage you to check out his web site as he writes about all things fashion…..

Paul Mitchell

Next up is a brand new line of make up that you my friends are going to adore it’s call JingAi Skin.

Donna Cristino is the founder of Jing Ai, which means Pure Love.  Jing Ai is an eco – chic beauty brand inspired by timeless memories of the pure love received from her grandmother Rose who died of  breast cancer.  The ranges of pure, organic cosmetics are named after different types of roses from around the world.  Every Jing Ai product is formulated with the finest-possible certified- organic ingredients including botanical and flower oils, natural mineral pigments, coconut oil and is 100% Gluten free. Every product is packed with high  concentrations of proprietary signature compounds made from certified- organic Champagne Grapes from the Napa Valley and Wild Roses from Brazil; the one for its superb antioxidant/anti-inflammatory/anti-aging properties and the other – the “Elixir of Youth” – for its rich multivitamins, Omega  3s and Omega 6s that heal and regenerate. Seriously you have to try this wonderful makeup, my favorite is the concealer and the lip gloss, costs start at $19. Donna will be at Henri Bendel’s on Fifth Avenue from February 27th through to March 4th for her first trunk show, so if you are living in New York please go and see her.

JingAi Skin

A highlight of my week was receiving this wonderful StarkWeather Umbrella. So here is what they say about it….

The vision behind the Starkweather Umbrella is to give the user a sense of comfort. The hand is a naturally ergonomic shape, and the experience of holding a hand provides a sense of companionship. What would you rather hold on a dark and stormy night?

Starkweather umbrella launched in 2010 with it’s first model, Bridget named after the model whose hand was cast to create the line. Each handle is cast from the original and sculpted into shape for a comfortable fit. After the handle is moulded and cast, it is sanded by hand to a satin finish. Assembly and finishing are completed manually, this ensures that all mating surfaces are perfectly matched. The subtle differences that these manual processes create add to the individuality of each piece.

The Umbrella body is imported from Italy, the fine woven canopy complements the solid handle and polished metal hardware. The Umbrella is designed and manufactured in Brooklyn New York and I have to say on first impression I was a little unsure of what I thought about holding a hand, but I want to tell you that I have not been able to put it down and what is more important is that my husband and niece who is staying with me for a week also has had to keep picking it up. The cost is $349 and can be purchased on their website www.starkweather.umbrellas.com . So all I need now is the rain so that I can try it out……

Starkweather Umbrella

Finally for this blog post, last night I went to the Style Coalition Fashion 2.0 awards which was a really fun evening, hosted by Yuli Ziv and Robert Verdi, of course as always the joker in the pack, Robert told so many of his funny stories that had the audience giggling and ducking for cover when he threw several pairs of his new sunglasses into the auditorium.

It was really nice to see Norma Kamali at the event and to hear her thoughts on where things are going within our industry. It was great to see DKNY and Prada at the forefront of Social Media getting awards. I attended the event with my niece Katie and my good friend Bhavna Juneja of Jammu the wonderful Cashmere and Silk Scarf company.

Bhavna Juneja, izzi bag Anne Agoren and Katie Dixon

So now let the fun begin as the 2012 New York Fashion Week gets under way and I so look forward to seeing what the designers will bring to the table.

If you have followed my blog over the years, you will know that I very rarely advertise someone else’s work. This blog post is totally different, I have to tell you this story, I was invited to attend a networking / Christmas Fare in early December, unfortunately the day i was supposed to go I couldn’t because I had just flown in from Los Angeles and I was drained beyond belief. Normally I would just have said sorry to the organizer and moved on, but on this occasion I could not do that, firstly because the organizer was a good friend Kimmie Smith and she had gone to great pains to put this event together.

Bhavna

So having said all the above I made izzi come into the city with me and left him browsing around his favorite store B&H on 9th and I went off to the ink48 Hotel on 11th Avenue to see what products Kimmie had put together. I was instantly drawn to the corner of the room where this stunning Indian Lady was standing amongst an array of Silk and Cashmere scarves. Everything else seem to just fold away, I had to talk with her, I wanted to touch the fine silks and soft cashmere. Please do not ask me why I had this urgent need to talk to her I have no idea. Anyway her name is Bhavna Juneja and she is one of two sisters, brought up in New Delhi, India by a single mother. She came to the USA and got married and had two children, she now is also a single mother. I know so much about her already, I feel like I have known this woman half my life, oh and before I forget her company is called Jammu Style

The Story of Two Sisters

I spent a lot of time asking her about her scarves, asking where she got her inspiration from, where the silks were made, how she printed the soft cashmere. I wanted to know everything about them, Bhavna told me that she has been inspired by the Indian Maharajas and it shows through in the prints on the scarves. The silks are hand rolled to perfection and the cashmere is not only hand woven but dyed in the spring waters of Kashmir. She has even encrusted her new collection with Swarovski crystals. Her collection of silk twill scarves have been printed with ceremonial swords, timeless timepieces, royal jewels and royal classics. There are truly amazing and the colors are so vivid.

See the Vivid colors and designs

I left the hotel feeling really inspired by Bhavna and her story and felt that our paths would cross again, little did I know that she had felt the same and the next day she contacted me and we agreed to have lunch. When I met her again we talked for more than two hours and realized we had a lot of synergy in our lives. I have to tell you that Bhavna is an amazing woman and I for one think that you my readers must check out her website as soon as you can. I ask you to pass the word to your friends about her, she needs all our help to make this business a success and I for one will talk about her often. I count her now as a friend and wish her every success for her future, the next time I see you, I hope you will be wearing one of scarves from the Jammu Style collection.

This is my Favorite Scarf