JBCStyle: Melting Into Winter

The Romans celebrated the first day of Winter with a feast they called Saturnalia, and the Romans were a stylish crew. You know what they say. . .

When in Rome Style.

Obviously we had to add a little JBC spin on the traditional feast and decided to celebrate the shortest day of the year ice ice baby style. Shana's pals at Urban Daddy tipped her off about meltbakery (it's a dope site, we try not to link gratuitously). Finally, a 24-hour ice-cream sandwich delivery service for all of Manhattan, started by Julian Plyter and Kareen Harmady. Nikki B. went big spenda style and ordered meltbakery for the entire office.

Who's your daddy now style.



Julian arrived before the scheduled 3:30 time and it was all out excitement Bethleham style and then Julian was drowning in a sea of women (well, Luigi Maestro attended as well) as he announced the heavenly flavors: Cocoa Daddy, Elvis, Bunnyfeet, The Big Whoop. . .it went on and on and it was amazing.

Thank you, Shana, for the UrbanDaddy tip, meltbakery for both your inception and your existence, and Nikki for making this short day the sweetest thing.

Enjoy life. This is not a dress rehearsal style.

JBCStyle: B. Robinson Visionary Style

Thank you to B. Robinson's Lori Robinson for your kind words. We work with companies of all sizes, but there is a special place in our hearts for a family-owned and operated business which dates back to 1926.

You  had us at "We answer our own phones."

The age-old business philosophy of putting people first is somehow never dated. We know you are committed to creating the best in eyewear and sunwear, but we also believe that the manner in which you conduct your business is nothing short of visionary. Old school style.

I have had a long term relationship with Bryan and his team at JBC. Since we are a small family business, we do not have an HR department and therefore our relationship with JBC is even more critical. Finding the right team members for a small, "hands-on" organization is not always simple. I can always rely on JBC to bring us good, qualified candidates that are right for the position and are a good fit for our company. We have gotten many of our long-term employees from JBC. Not only are they a pleasure to work with, but they "get us" and understand our needs and always find excellent candidates. I value our relationship with Bryan and his team and I know JBC will be our partner for many years to come.

- Lori Robinson, Co-President, B. Robinson Optical

JBCStyle: Romy Gold Girlfriends Style

Lisa Goldstein and Romy Jagid started Romy Gold in 2009 for the same reason any two girlfriends may decide to design a handbag line - they wanted to create chic, edgy bags they weren't seeing in the stores, and make them available at a reasonable price. Handbags costing more than the GDI of small nation?

Over it style.

Add a little bit of luck and a keen eye for style, and hello Hollywood. And Bergdorfs. And Intermix. And Saks. . . the line is everywhere and it rocks. JBCStyle girls love a great bag. . .especially the Biker Slash Tote with Wood Handles. Accents on the bags include fur, spikes and slashes and they can be carried by wooden handles or crossbody with a detachable shoulder strap.

It's currently sold out, which makes us like it so much more.

Cabbage Patch Kids style.

Guest post Nikki B.

xoxo

JBCStyle: Featuring Marks + Frantz and JBC Top 10 Favorite Home Decor Sites

Carrie told us she has been "cheating on fashion with furniture," but the real secret is HOW fashion managed be sexier than Mr. Big, and who brought the sexy back to home decor?

JBCStyle: SONY WILLOUGHBY, SHIN STYLE

Renowned photographer, film maker, TV personality (America’s Next Top Model), humanitarian and Sony Ambassador Nigel Barker and Willoughby’s Creative Director and Real Housewives of New York star, Alex McCord, opened the SONY Boutique at Willoughby’s, marking a marquis partnership between two iconic brands in photography. The Opening, immaculately orchestrated by ShinAdvisors, also celebrated fashion photographer and SONY Camera fan, Nigel Barker’s first book, NIGEL BARKER’S BEAUTY EQUATION: Revealing a Better and More Beautiful You. Nigel recounted his 20+ years as a fashion photographer and noted that “no matter how one seems on the outside, unless you believe, the beauty can’t come through.” The book guides readers, armed with their own cameras, through a series of self-portrait challenges which help them discover their inner beauty by building confidence and self- esteem and in turn, enhance their outer beauty. The audience had a chance to put Nigel’s theory to the test, as they were gifted Nigel’s book, along with red-velvet Sony cookie-topped cupcakes and Willoughby’s gift cards.

Nigel Barker, Cristen Chin, Susan Shin, Elaina Casanova, Adrian Goteau

JBCStyle: Top Two Style Secrets Everyone Needs This Holiday Season

Beauty secrets on Style.com today. WWD is focused on the plight of the Brazilian blowout.  Sigh. Once again, the secrets of true style are left to us, and once again, like Atlas, we shall bear the burden upon our shoulders. Who cares about makeup and hair - it's Christmas season, and we want to know how to garner poreless skin and get our Ugly Sweater chic on. And Nikki B. (yeah that's a link on her name) just leaked the JBCStyle Secret Cyber Department (a team of minions working out of an undisclosed factory on the Upper East Side) the answer. JSCD response time: nothing short of baller.




After some air-brushing from Lana at Bloomberg, hit up this amazing site and then. . .well. . . it's like SHAMWOW STYLE:

JBCStyle: Skid Row and the Top Ten Posts We're Feeling This Morning

If you were born around a certain year, Skid Row's "I Remember You" can still send you back. . . it's inexplicably awesome. We're listening to a little Skid Row this morning and going back to some of our favorite posts. . .it's approaching year end, and even though we're only four months old, we wanted to celebrate the laughs with those of you who have read us from day one - vintage style, and take a little walk down memory lane for those of you who are new, or are just coming today for the first time.

New content is for amateurs who don't know how to reflect (or link).

Skid back, style.



JBCStyle White House Style
Not allowing dogs in your office? Not very patriotic.

JBCStyle Batter  Up Style
Only good bosses put their employees in a cage.

JBCStyle Be Stupid Style
Considering being stupid.

JBCStyle Ann Taylor Reinvents Herself
Ann Taylor does a little rap.

JBCStyle Boys of Summer Style
The hottest boys of summer, in case you missed them.

JBCStyle Most Eligible Men in Fashion Style
Refinery29 follows suit with a "Most Eligible Men in Fashion."

JBCStyle Willie Randolph Style
The legend gives us an exclusive.

JBCStyle Wass Stevens Style
Legendary for being private, he gives us an exclusive into his home and favorite ways to spend time when away from the velvet ropes and the movie screens.

JBCStyle Observing the Pope
The Observer, Kyle Pope, and pretty pink paper.

JBCStyle J. McLaughlin Style
Somebody has to dress the Upper East Side, and now Westport is getting outfitted, too.

I remember you, style.

JBCStyle: Tuleste Market Style

California natives Satu and Celeste Greenberg began Tuleste Market in 2007, a collection rooted in their love of all things vintage. The pieces are multi-functional; necklaces can be layered or linked together, doubled and tripled, and go from jeans to evening wear with an effortless, albeit wickedly edgy flair. The line is available in over 100 stores worldwide including Intermix, Henri Bendel, Shopbop.com, Alice + Olivia, Fred Segal Rocks, American Rag, Bloomingdales, Harvey Nichols in Hong Kong, and online favorite Shopbop.com. The sisters were finalists at the 12th Annual Fashion Group International Rising Award in the Accessories category, and Derek Lam used their jewelry for their Resort 2010 lookbook. The girls combined experience includes editorial work at Elle Accessories and W Magazine, retail experience at Jeffrey New York and Giuseppe Zanotti and fashion show production and casting for Derek Lam, Jason Wu, Carolina Herrera, and others.

Rhianna, Paris Hilton, Whitney Port, Kim Kardashian, Alexa Chung, and girls all over town have been spotted in their statement pieces.

Ciara, Nikki, and Anisha (along with Harold Moscowitz and JBCStyle newcomer Luigi Maestro) went on one of the most delicious office field trips to the Tuleste Market showroom for a little mid-afternoon retail therapy.

Luigi's lunch? A good chunk of Tuleste Market's line sheets. Harold Moscowitz wants him fired. Immediately.

Celeste points to a piece we admire - "That's in InStyle this month" - so of course we had to see!

Christmas trees are so last season. It's all about returning to the office and decorating the file cabinet style. . .

Tuleste Market created a riot in our office - everyone wanted one. They're unique. They have personality. They take jeans and a cardigan into a different stratosphere. And yes, we know it's too cold to venture outside these days, so if you want to check out the collection and add a little sparkle to your winter wardrobe, it's as easy as visiting their Ecommerce Store. . .just wait till you see the shoes they have in store for 2011.

Trippin' for Tuleste Style.

JBCStyle: Condé Nast Traveler India Edition Style

Dubbed the "Bible of luxury travel" in the eye-opening Time Magazine feature "Travel Industry Wooing Tourists from India", Condé Nast Traveler's debut Indian edition hit the stands in October.  Nicholas Coleridge, Vice President of Condé Nast International, continues to be a devout believer that luxury is recession proof, and indeed with the number of Indians with net assets of $1 million or higher jumping by over 50% just in the last year, the timing could not be more ripe. Alex Kuruvilla, managing director of Condé Nast India, shared with the Financial Times that the magazine will target roughly two million households in India with incomes over $100,000, beginning with a distribution of 15,000 issues every two months. Former Voguette Divia Thani Daswani has been appointed editor - you'll love her Editor's blog and we loved our JG Melon catch up during her last Manhattan visit!

And who else but former Miss World, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, photographed by the incroyable Pascal Chevallier, to grace the glossy maiden issue? The Bollywood star (sounds like Hollywood, but attracts a global audience of over five million people, twice the reach of Hollywood, Big "B" style) enthusiastically takes readers on a tour of her favorite city in the world.

La Belle Epoque, Bollywood Style.

JBCStyle: Nicole Miller Bacchus Style

"I know what is to come by the principle on which it is built. The creator stands on his own judgement. I am an architect."

-Howard Roark, The Fountainhead



If you go to her website, you will discover (in the designer's own handwriting) that Nicole Miller loves mid-century furniture, collecting contemporary art, and is inspired by the modernist and fluid works of reknowned architects and industrial designers. John Lautner is a favorite. The standard biography exists but is not necessary; she's been at the vanguard of American fashion for nearly three decades. Being at the forefront, however, has involved a delicate, yet precise ability to navigate between tradition and modernity in order to charter a bold, new path. A graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design and the prestigious Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne, Nicole has been a pioneer from the beginning. Her 1986 Madison Avenue boutique was a harbinger of the designer retreat from large department stores to eponymous boutiques in search of creative freedom and independence. She was the first to put actresses such as Minnie Driver, Gretchen Mol and Jilly Hennessy on the runway in lieu of models, and created a Fashion Week sensation. Today the line includes outerwear, bridalwear, golfwear, accessories, cosmetics, a Bed Bath & Beyond home line and has boutiques nationwide. She is the little black dress.

JBCStyle: Nicole Romano Style

Designer Nicole Romano photographed by Richard Bertone

Nicole Romano stopped by JBCStyle's New York office to give us the latest scoop on the project she's most excited about these days - "JBC gets the exclusive" the Italian beauty grins, and we can't wait to hear what she's got up her sleeves. The protégé of Nicole Miller, and a favorite of legendary Sex and the City stylist Patricia Field, the unassuming, doe-eyed designer pulls up a chair in our conference room and dishes about her latest client, Arthur Izzo. 


Nicole's client list includes Rhianna, Mary J. Blige, Jessica Simpson, Kate Hudson, Jennifer Anniston, Drew Barrymore, Lindsay Lohan, Jessica Alba, Tyra Banks, Gwen Stefani, Sarah Jessica Parker, Alicia Keys (the Cadillac Key earrings Alicia wears in her video "If I Ain't Got You" are vintage Romano!) and the list goes on and on. . . but Izzo, Nicole's first male client - and first male recording artist to be signed under LL Cool J's new record label Platinum Harvest Productions - has been rocking pieces designed exclusively by Nicole. "Arthur Izzo is lyrical in every way," Nicole muses seriously. "He has an artistic approach when writing all his own material. His creativity lends an edge to this exciting new collaboration." Izzo, also a Rhode Island native, shoots back, "Nicole dares to create while others follow. Each of my pieces from her are their own eye-catching works of art. They capture the attention of on-lookers and force the question, 'Where did you get that from?'"

JBCStyle: Waffles Style

Once in a blue moon an individual comes along rocking such amazing style that we can only stare, mouths agape, and wonder, "How?"

We're gonna tell you how he does it. . . and it has nothing to do with hairspray.

Waffles. . . no air-brushing

JBCStyle: Justin Bieber Bling Style

We're not sure if it's the Jimmy Dean credo I am here for a great time, not a long time, or designs that target Gen X, Y and Z just right, but men's accessories brand Chandon Lucién (gloves, weekend bags, small leather goods, men's jewelry and scarves) may have tapped into that  rarified je ne sais quoi that translates into retail gold.

Ecommerce? Natch. Mouse click replacing the 'ol swiple style.

JBCStyle Gobble Gobble Style

JBCStyle: Checking in on our Doggies Style

What's more stylish than checking in with the JBCStyle dogs and seeing what's up? Melissa's little baby girl is real. . . even though she's so cute and well-dressed she looks like she could easily be on a shelf at FAO Schwartz.

Daisy Dot

JBCStyle: Lindsey Belle Style

Photographer Lindsey Belle caught our eye as we were checking out the Hunter Dixon ecommerce site. . . who took the amazing pictures for their campaigns? Sometimes a cold email sent through the hallowed halls of cyber space can work wonders. . . we googled Lindsey Belle, checked out her website, and sent her an email telling her we thought her photographs were dope.



LINDSEYBELLE from Lindseybelle on Vimeo.

JBCStyle: Bryan's Bloomberg Broad Based Style

Bryan Zaslow was on Bloomberg the other day to discuss retail trends with Gigi Stone and looks like a lot of people sat up and payed attention; the piece was picked up by The Washington Post, The Philadelphia Enquirer, and several other media feeds.

JBCStyle: Dorrian's 50th Anniversary

You that would judge me. . . come to this hallowed place where my friends' portraits hang and look thereon. . .think where man's glory most begins and ends and say my glory was I had such friends.

-William Butler Yeats

Upper East Side institution Dorrian's Red Hand is celebrating its 50-year Anniversary, and festivities begin tonight with famed karaoke night and continue through the week. It's almost impossible to track Jimmy Dorrian, who admits, "Phones have been ringing off the hook. It's overwhelming." And here it goes again, you think - another obsequious homage to the Preppy Pantheon where ribbon-belts, Republicans, and Nantucket Reds reign. Where the Trinity and Dartmouth grads and the Buckley-cum-Deerfield boys go to consecrate, well. . . themselves (and hit on blondes drowning in a potpourri of Lilly Pulitzer and pearls). Or, perhaps, a desecration of an institution because an E! True Hollywood Story sniffed out a scandal in an island where nothing bad has ever happened anywhere else, like, ever. 

You think you know, but you don't know. Come again style.

JBCStyle: Delman Style

You can tell more about a woman by the shoes she wears than by reading her palm.

-Herman Delman, 1945



What do Audrey Hepburn, Blake Lively, Marilyn Monroe, and Ann Hathaway have in common? Mary Robertson, Director of Publicity for Delman shoes, gave JBCStyle the scoop, and a tour of their beautiful office. Click here to peruse FIT's Scandal Sandals and Lady Slippers, an homage to the footwear label of choice of style icons through the decades. . .


Audrey Hepburn



JBCStyle: Blonde Ambition Beads Style

Samantha Wenig

Samantha Wenig is blonde and smurfette has style and ambition. The beads started as so many great style stories do - when the designer's motivation is simply to create something they want to wear. Sam wanted to rock a pile of bracelets with charms - peace signs, stars, all that girly good stuff we all secretly love - and the response was overwhelming: "People were literally buying them off my wrist," Samantha recalls.

Blonde Ambition was born.

Today the beads are sold in stores all over the country, and designs change seasonally - "I also take custom orders," the designer adds. "People love to personalize their charms. It brings a sentimentality to the bracelets. Other fun orders I have filled have included custom orders for camp and bunk presents, Bat Mitzvah party favors and Sweet Sixteen gifts."

They are fabulous in sets of 3 ($40) or individually ($15 each) and obviously we have the hook up style. . . subscribe today to win a set of the ultra chic Blonde Ambition beads - three black, beaded bracelets with the sweetest gold charms:

Enter your email address in the VIP Style box to the right

We're announcing a winner tomorrow morning at noon - if you're in New York, you can walk over to the office and say hi. (We do mail, too)

They’ve been spotted on Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, the Kardashian Sisters (Khloe, Kimberly, and Kourtney), J-Wow and Snookie from the deliciously addictive Jersey Shore, and many more….

Follow Samantha on twitter at SBrookeW720 or connect on the Blonde Ambition Beads facebook fan page for all the latest updates. For party favors, gifts, or a custom order just for yourself,  you can email Samantha directly at NYDiva720@aol.com.

Or subscribe to VIP Style and wait and see - who knows, we may have a surprise for you in your inbox tomorrow morning!

Blondes always have more fun style. . .



JBCStyle: The Influencers Style

Check out this trailer, written and directed by Paul Rojanathara and Davis Johnson - and tell us who influences you?



Intrigued? Watch the full documentary here - it's fourteen minutes, and it's just a gorgeous snapshot of New York city. . .in the way only a New Yorker could love this city.

It all begins here style.

JBCStyle: Pomega5 Power at Henri Bendel Style

Pomega5 creator and founder Tzeira Sofer has the front center counter at Henri Bendel, and she's manning her own counter there for one more day tomorrow before returning to California. It is the FIRST line of pure, biodynamic skincare to feed and nourish the body and the skin from the outside in. Okay, that line is from their website, but we went and checked out these little golden capsules - Tzeira has them open in a massive jar on the counter - and two days later we are convinced she is giving away free gold. One capsule on dry, cracked cuticles and they are butter soft and healed in 12 hours. On the lips, under our eyes, cracked soles. . . the line is pure magic. The science of this amazing oil has been captured, harnessed, and absorbs readily into skin (you can use it over makeup - seriously) and there is no greasy residue.

One of the most powerful antioxidants known to modern science, in a jar, at Henri Bendel. Set your alarm clocks style.

On Friday JBCStyle invited 35 of our VIP clients to Henri Bendel to meet Tzeira and receive a complimentary skincare regimen. Tzeira had guests captivated as she spoke of the line and how it was developed. 

JBCStyle: Gigi Stone Bling Bling Style

New Yorkers all love a little pre-noon Emily Smith style. A cup of coffee, InsiderStyle, and the New York Post. . . .morning break heaven. What's new today?

The girls at Page Six always have a finger on the pulse. But since we're InsiderStyle, we're gonna throw in a picture of the gorgeous (and freakin' COOL) couple. We love Ian's dry sense of humor, mean ping pong game, and killer down-to-earth style.

Our favorite new couple at Gigi's birthday party 

As for Gigi? That slightly creepy old man in the 1958 film Gigi which her mother named her after said it best:



Thank heavens we still live in a world which celebrates love on the lake style.

JBCStyle: Paper Magazine Style

The sky is all moody blues this morning, but let's begin the week with a little Monday Funday, shall we? Paper Magazine's Editor at Large Peter Davis took a lighter approach when he sat down to chat with Bryan about running a fashion recruiting company. You can always depend on Peter for some cheeky, clever style, and Bryan was absolutely down with his request: "Tell me about the freak show applicants." (That's really what we all want to hear, anyways. What could possibly be more awful on a Monday than hearing about someone better than you?)

JBCStyle's Fashion Job Faux Pas Files   

By Peter Davis



JBCStyle, which has offices in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Orange County, is one of the leading recruiting companies that finds people jobs in fashion -- often big time jobs. But of course, there are always the freak show applicants and horrifying interviews. And as much as fashion loves a freak they don't always want one running their store or showroom or heading up their PR department. JBCStyle president Bryan Zaslow shared some of the wilder moments with me on the fashion job hunt frontier. For more fashion bloopers, check out JBCStyle's blog, too.

Thanks for the InsiderStyle blog shout out, Monsieur Davis. And to read up on all the freak show applicants (anecdotes include flying staplers and flying snot) check out the write-up on PaperMag. Oh, and if you're not a freak show applicant, please visit our site and check out what's new and exciting in the world of fashion - your dream job might be a mouse click away.

Happy Monday Style.

JBCStyle: Pierre Cardin, 60 Years of Innovation Style

Prosper and Martine Assouline celebrated Pierre Cardin and the United States launch of his book Pierre Cardin, 60 Years of Innovation at the Assouline atelier at The Plaza with a cocktail reception and book signing.

JBCStyle's Dabney Mercer with Prosper Assouline

Born in 1922 in San Biagio di Callalta (near Venice) Pierre Cardin immigrated to Paris in 1924. After working briefly with Elsa Schiaparelli, Cardin joined Dior in 1946 and opened his own couture house in 1950. He was a pioneer from the start, creating a design-based, architectural fashion with a futurist sensibility. The book is a tribute to the extraordinarily innovative and iconoclastic designer, taking a primarily visual perspective highlighting his contributions to the world of couture, fashion, and perfume, reflecting his spirit and energy as well as the brand's international presence.

Assouline was packed, the lights were hot, and we could barely breathe, but wait we did because this kind of opportunity comes around very rarely. We were honored to have our book signed, and Pierre Cardin left us with the most stylish impression of all. . .In a world where so many who have accomplished so little (we won't name names but comment away we're into first amendment style) manage to act so snooty, here is a man - a living legend in his own right  - who took the time not only to sign every book, but to personalize each signature with a special message  and a thoughtful quote. He shook Harold Moscowitz's paw and told him he has seven dogs. He smiled. He was gracious. We're more in awe than ever before.

It's always the ones who have done so much who have so little to prove.

We're over the pretentious peeps in this town. Let's get real.

Pierre Cardin Style.

JBCStyle: Blog Traffic Pioneer Style

Eyeballs are the currency of the new world.

Sree Sreenivasan

Dean, Columbia Journalism School & Digital Media Professor

We've been about honesty style from day one. Let's get real - whether you are an individual, a company, or an empire, you create a blog because you want traffic. Motivation can vary across the board - monetary, advertising a new product, self-obsession - the list is endless but there is always a reason. Otherwise we'd all just keep a diary or a journal seventh grade style and call it a day. And if Dean Sreenivasan, named 20 Most Influential South Asians by Newsweek and 25 Media People to Follow on Twitter by AdAge (in short, if Cyber Space is Mount Olympus, this man is Zeus) is spending his days - and career - thinking about it, we're thinking about it, too.

We didn't create InsiderStyle to tell you about fashion trends - there are a million sites that do it daily, and some, (grudgingly, we admit) occasionally seem to do it better than us. And some (gleefully, we admit) are pompous, annoying, sanctimonius, and need to get a virus and go away.

We created InsiderStyle because we are committed to creating an honest space in cyber space where we give you cool information about cool people who do cool things better than most people. This afternoon we have Justin Tupper of Peak Performance Swing (the most successful golf site in the country) and John Reese (dubbed the Marketing Pioneer of the Internet - he made over a million dollars in under eighteen hours - google him, we're not kidding) coming in to chat. We're going to take notes. And then we're going share some of the tips they share TO VIP SUBSCRIBERS only. (Yes, we want more subscribers, and this is a ridiculously valuable bribe).

Just enter your email address in the VIP box to the left - and then you have to click on the link that shows up in your email and enter those annoying letters and numbers that require fighter pilot vision to see. We hate that, too, but c'est la vie, dude.

Straight talk, from InsiderStyle.

Blog traffic is the epitome of stylish. We'd take 100,000 hits over Louboutins any day.

SubscribeStyle.

JBCStyle: WWD Style

Since 1910, Womens Wear Daily has represented absolute excellence in the world of insider fashion reporting. It's the trade paper of the garment industry and the first thing on our desks in the morning. Quirky, serious, funny, and always ten seconds ahead of even the best jack rabbits in this industry for a full century, InsiderStyle salutes our favorite moments on the red carpet at Cipriani's 42nd Street Bash last night. We know it's all over cyber space today, but for those of you who have come to know us and our style, there are certain moments we seek and celebrate more than others. . .

Fashion is, first and foremost, about joy and love style:

Tommy and Dee Hilfiger

Evelyn and Leonard Lauder

Vera Wang and Ralph Lauren

To the greats who continue to live greatly, red carpets and cameras will never dictate where they walk or who they look at. . .there were a 1000 pictures to go through from last night's events, and these were the three that touched us most.

True Naturals Style.

JBCStyle: J.McLaughlin Opens at Westport

It's back to the future style and we're taking you to New York's Upper East Side. The year is 1977 and brothers Jay and Kevin McLaughlin have just opened what will be the first in a series of stores all over the country - right next to NYC institution for "burgers and bloodies," J.G. Melon. An American empire is born. . .

J.McLaughlin style.

In celebration of the brand new J.McLaughlin Westport store which opened its doors today, JBCStyle was excited to speak with Jay McLaughlin for an exclusive InsiderStyle feature.

Kevin and Jay McLaughlin

"Our family has always had an entrepreneurial spirit. In 1977 my brother and I decided to collaborate on a project and we opened our first store next to J.G. Melon. We basically built it ourselves and decided to create a label that would be known for classic clothes, but with a twist. We're never pretentious or stuffy. My brother Kevin is the design force behind the company and I tend to oversee the merchandising, operations and new store construction."

John, Julie, Joan, Jay and Kevin McLaughlin at Lexington Avenue store opening

Steven Siegler, Jay McLaughlin and Quest Magazine founder Chris Meigher

In one of the toughest retail climates in history, Jay must be doing something right. As stores shut down and vacant windows rest idly, J.McLaughlin stores seem to be exploding. A new store in Brooklyn Heights: "They grew up in Brooklyn. They like to set up shops in neighborhoods as opposed to malls and large shopping centers. Community is very important to the brothers," shares J.McLaughlin's Jack Lynch.

"I would describe our look as classic, but with a twist. An undercurrent of humor. Take a look at our courduroy pants. If you look at the waistband you will note that it's lined in a silk; these little details make something special. We study what everybody is doing and we have enough restraint to tone it down; we know our customers well and they in turn feel comfortable and trust us as merchants. The product has to stimulate us."

As we enter into holiday shopping season, we can't help but agree. A skull and bones tie, socks or belts featuring cocktails make for perfect, whimsical gifts.

Who can forget the sensation these babies created? Refinery29's editor wore this preppy bad boy at the Jelly Pool concert series. No time to get to a J.McLaughlin store? Buy them now at their E-Commerce site!

Talk about sense of humor style. . .

"The Westport store which opens today is a new prototype for us," Jay continues. "A normal JMcLaughlin store is about 1200 square feet. This is 5,500 and we are committed to providing the best shopping experience possible. It will be what Henri Bendels was fifteen years ago: the shop of shops."

Let's take a peek:

"For example," Jay elaborates, "The Equestrian area for women will feature the jodphur pants and quilted jackets. The French garden room will feature holiday looks including our famous ribbon skirts and dresses as well as the short, taffeta skirts. Instead of being bunched together in baskets near the counter, our accessories will finally have their own section. There will be an urban area. People usually think of us as all color and prints; our urban section will feature more greys and blacks. I particularly like the wallpaper featuring reproductions of silk scarves. I find that very unusual. The store gives us the opportunity to differentiate our brand."

"The increased space will also allow us to have a larger emphasis on our men's line. And we believe our customers will appreciate that the resort section will be a permanent fixture - they can always pop in before a vacation for anything they need. If you're in Manhattan, though, go straight to the Lexington Avenue store. It's indicative of everything new and special at J.McLaughlin."

Will do, Jay - we enjoyed New York Shopping Diary's piece on the 72nd and Lexington neighborhood favorite. But we're kinda partial to the Palm Beach store!

JBCStyle's Creative Director Anisha Lakhani loves the label because, "There are always surprises to be found at the store. I like that the line features staple pieces, but there will always be a top or a dress in an unusual print. One of my favorite resort pieces is a J.McLaughlin tunic that I wear as a dress. It has a vintage print and I've worn it for years."

Jay is partial to the ribbon skirt because "I enjoy the three dimensional aspect to it. It's very labor intensive to create; it involves joining actual ribbons together. It looks great on any woman - especially with a classic, crisp white shirt."

"And the silk scarf tops have been a top seller. They just fly off the shelves."

Jay certainly has his hands full these days, and we can't wait to make a little road trip to see the store ourselves. As for down time - in the rare moments when Jay is free - how does he like to relax? Music? Books?

"You'll have to ask my son John about music," Jay laughs. "He's the expert. When I have a free moment, I like to read a book by Lee Child. I really enjoy his writing. Or, believe it or not, browse through some fashion publications to see what everyone else is doing these days."

So he can do it better?

Why not? It has always been the American style.