Ashley Bickford ~ Miss Connecticut

I found this to be amazing.

While in Boston, I attended a wonderful fashion show presented by Eye Candy benefiting the Massachussetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (M.S.P.C.C).  Three previous New York Sartorialist featured individuals; Christina Pierce, Amy Patt and Elena Kollarova were walking in the show- how could I resist? It's for a good cause after-all.

I met up with Ashley Bickford after the show and found her to be charming, gracious, accommodating and sincere.

Yes, she's Miss Connecticut USA 2010. Attending college in Rhode Island, she won Miss Rhode Island 2007 and as a result was that state's representative for Miss America. Ashley's only the 7th "Triple Crown" winner in pageant history to have won her state's title and competed in Miss Teen USA, Miss USA and Miss America.

It would be a big mistake to stop there. O.K. Ready? Classically trained ballerina since childhood. Undergrad degree in Accounting. MBA. Professional print and runway model (including Town and Country Magazine and New York Fashion Week). We're still going... Audit Committee for the Hope Funds for Cancer Research Inc., previous volunteer for AmeriCorps, television host of "Northeast Adventures" and recently in the film "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past" with Matthew McConaughey as one of the "future" girlfriends.

Here's the kicker. Remember I mentioned that degree in Accounting and the MBA? For the last two years she's worked as an accountant for Price Waterhouse Coopers, one of the "Big 4" accounting firms. Accounting. My father was an accountant. I know accountants. Ashley is not in the same universe of the stereotypical accountant. All of this and she's 24. Her ability to expand time as if in slow motion to accomplish so much is striking. How would you like to have Ashley sitting in the cube next to you at work?  

When you think of pageants, it's easy to stereotype those participants as well. Who can forget some of the notoriously bad moments of the occasional ditsy answer to a question that's later played repeatedly in the media? Ashley, her intelligence, graciousness and energy should be an example of why it wouldn't be fair for any of us to make assumptions about pageant participants, models or for that matter- extremely attractive individuals.

The look: The form-fitting two-tone dress is very flattering. I didn't ask but it looks like it may be a Parker dress. Crush Boutique in Boston featured a flattering Parker Tuxedo dress in the Eye Candy show that had a similar two-tone pattern, so there's my best guess. The sandals. I have seen a number of beautiful woman wearing these heeled sandals with minimal straps including Alessandra Ambrosio and Adrianna Lima. Needless to say, I approve. I'm seeing too many flip-flops and flats these days for my taste. Those can ruin, or at least detract from an otherwise perfectly stylish summer ensemble. I hope others will follow the lead of these three beautiful ladies.      

Christina Pierce

Do you ever have one of those moments you see someone you know but you can't place them right away because they're in a different place or element than you're accustomed? Something like that happened with me recently. I was at an event last week and two friends, Joe Miceli-Magnone and his partner Ed Garou were showing me pictures from Providence StyleWeek. There was an event photo taken with a beautiful lady that I knew. I just couldn't put it together! Joe and Eddie live in New York. After a few moments, it dawned on me the third was Christina Pierce, friend from Boston. NYC fashion crowd, Boston fashion crowd. Together. It took a moment but I got it. In a related note, I heard nothing but rave reviews on the Providence show. I'll definitely make it a point to make it next year.

Christina Pierce lives fashion. Growing up the north shore from Boston, she attended Boston University where she graduated from the School of Management. Taking her love of fashion and combining it with her business degree, she worked for a major clothing retail conglomerate for three years. Working as a buyer, stylist, marketing and projecting and spotting fashion trends- she learned a tremendous amount about not only fashion but the business of fashion. It's a rare combination for one to understand both; usually it's all fashion or all business. 

Christina and her entrepreneurial spirit set out on her own after realizing she had learned One of the great things about having your own business is that no one will put you in a box preventing you from exercising all your skills, talents and passions. Having good business sense helps to ensure monetizing those talents to the greatest possible degree. For example, Christina works with larger companies, hotels, boutiques and designers to help with the fashion side, business side or both- all falling under the large umbrella of fashion consulting. Many designers are fantastic at designing but fall short on the business side. This is where she adds tremendous value by bridging that gap.

Christina's personality mirrors her background. She can be the fun bubbly blonde or she can be deadly serious and businesslike. It's a great balance. Very kind, gracious and thoughtful- a delight. Today is Christina's birthday (June 24th). I think she's been celebrating all week, which is good since she's working two shows tonight. Not surprisingly, with her beauty she's asked to walk runway at a number of shows as well as perform her duties as a stylist for the designers. I have the good fortune of seeing her on the catwalk tonight on her birthday. Good thing that celebration was a week long... no rest for the talented and hard-working Christina Pierce. In my small way, my Birthday present is having this published today. Happy Birthday!

The look: The above image shows her sporting a beautiful brown dress with a pleasant sheen from the Boston boutique Bobbles and Lace as well as Chanel heels. Love the look. Simple and elegant.

Below, Christina's sporting a very different look with J Crew shorts, H&M suspenders and Giuseppe Zannotti with serious bling! It's fun. Thought the American flag was a nice touch for the all-American girl look with a twist.

Additional Credits for both images:
Necklace: Tiffany & Co.
Bangles: Alex and Ani
Earrings: Chanel

Jennifer Layne Cardon

It’s a New York story. I was in my regular home-away-from home, office away from the office: Starbucks. Shocking for those of you who know me I’m sure. This perpetually busy Starbucks had its typical perpetual line to the lone restroom. In a related note, kudos on the renovation and adding another one. Countless patrons (as well as non-patrons) appreciate the addition.

When you frequent a place enough, you get to know the regular crowd. As it happened, the usual suspects were congregated in the back. I was holding court. The line of ten-deep for the restroom were a captive audience if they hoped to reach their ultimate destination. I have no idea what the topic was but my recollection was it was fairly humorous. Some in line were listening in, some were busy playing with their phones; needless to say their options were limited.

One person in particular seemed to be mildly engaged in the insanity, smiling at the humorous moments. An eclectic group, one friend leaned over and said “wow, she’s a knockout!” He’s a master of stating the obvious. Line moving slowly, the banter continued. I was in rare form that evening. Perhaps not rare enough but I digress. More than happy to add participants, I rattled off questions for the unsuspecting restroom patron. “What’s your name?”, “Where you from?”, “Are you a model?” (not an odd question for this particular locale) and clearly dressed for a night out, “Where are you off to tonight?”

Playing along and politely answering the barrage, it was finally her long-awaited turn for the restroom. As she came back out, I introduced myself as well to the rest of this ragtag bunch, one of which she clearly recalls thinking was a homeless man. Did I mention eclectic group? For the record and in the event he reads this, he’s not homeless- he just seems to enjoy dressing like one. He probably had his two Apple laptops in front of him, but that did little to alter his impression. I’ve long given up on trying to help him along in the style department. Only in New York.

We exchanged cards so we could connect online and stay in touch. This is how I first met Jennifer Layne Cardon last fall.

As it turned out, we knew a lot of the same people. It was a wonder we hadn’t run across each other before. Perhaps it was inevitable but the circumstances were odd enough to make for an interesting story.

Some personalities are easier to describe than others, although I admit never adequate enough. Jennifer is outgoing, a bit of a free-spirit. She speaks her mind and is definitely fun. Plenty of depth, highly intelligent and always on the move. An idle moment and she begins to get antsy. This I fully understand. Sometimes images can do more justice than words for illustrating someone’s personality, I only hope these begin to do justice for Jen.

A native of Richmond, Virginia she just knew NYC was the place for her. New York is a place where a bunch of misfits in more conservative environments can finally feel free to be themselves. Just as I, she had always felt a bit like a fish out of water. Not so in New York. It’s home; a place where you can be an individual and not be looked at like you have three heads (except perhaps by tourists). Jennifer went to the University of South Carolina. Having spent my fair share of time in Columbia, I know it’s not too different from Richmond; conservative and not quite big enough to remain anonymous. There’s plenty of opportunity for those with the inclination to attempt to squash a free-spirit into their societal conformity. Two years ago, she settled into the City. Taking on a variety of different jobs and working her way up with each one, Jennifer’s enthusiasm and hard work are in Public Relations.

The look. It’s hard to go wrong with white for summer. The dress is has a sexy edge. The white frames her face beautifully with her darker skin tone and hair. The blue platform stilettos are a show-stopper. The blue blouse also was a perfect color for Jennifer. Well accessorized, Jennifer owned this look and did it perfectly.

This is one truly special lady, inside and out. Thanks to Starbucks for that long, slow line. For the chance to meet a great friend I adore, I owe you one.

Special Thanks:

Hair: George Crittenden, Celebrity hair stylist from Pierre Michel

Sultana Perovic, Chanel Analyste

Clothing: Big Drop Soho

Suzy Malick

Suzy Malick

Everyone is unique. That said, there are individuals that fall into an exceptional sub-category. For me, the true artist is a special group. It doesn't seem to make a difference which artistic medium it is, they make them all look easy. The artistic mind looks at the world in a different way; the world is a blank canvas of possibility. Whether it's painting, literature, music or the vast array of other creative endeavors, the artist seems to move with impunity from one to another with an ease that the rest of us find unfathomable. Call it "right-brained" or whatever you wish, I dare say we all know people who fit this description.

All evidence tells me that Suzy Malick is one of these rare exceptional individuals. Beautiful? Unquestionably. It would be a mistake to simply stop at this obvious point, as  pleasant as that may be. 

A native of Detroit, she spread her wings and began modeling at 18; work which took her all over the world. By her own admission, as well as it was going and in the face of high demand she couldn't help but get what some would consider sidetracked. Sidetracked with what? Artistic endeavors of virtually every kind. As a result modeling was on-again, off-again. There seemed to be an artistic void that needed to be filled with more.

Acting came naturally. Even with all the natural talent in the world, tremendous hard work must accompany that talent to become successful. Suzy works hard, no issue there. Her acting career blossomed as her modeling career had. Commercially a dual threat- what next?

In idle moments some people like to do crossword puzzles or play solitaire on the computer. Suzy wrote poetry; she just enjoyed doing it. Expressive, enjoyable and a natural thing to do. One day a friend pointed out that music and poetry are in many ways one in the same. The seed that was planted began to grow and eventually bare fruit.

Suzy Malick's first live concert was... in front of 40,000 people. Thrilling? Oh yes. Nerve racking? You better believe it. She thanks God it was for a song she wrote and for her acting experience to help get her through it. She came through with flying colors. Currently she has music which she wrote and performed coming out in a few new films. She's working on two more singles at the moment and will be releasing her first album. 

Suzi has been and will continue to make touring appearances with EMI Music's Latin-crossover band "Sussie 4" for their new CD. The new CD, "International Sonora" was nominated for the best disco/dance album by the Indie Awards only 3 months after its release. Appearances with the group have been taking her back and forth to Mexico on a regular basis and shortly she'll be going back for a 6-week stint. I didn't detect the Mexico appearances bother her in the least as she's found an oasis on the Yucatan Peninsula coast. It sounds unspoiled and serene... so I won't spill the exact locale.  

Her website is still trying to catch up to her but should be worth keeping an eye on. One of Suzi's singles, "Sunday" from Sussie 4's album "International Sonora" is available, so its worth a visit.

Couldn't go all this way without noting the look. She's wearing a beautiful and classic dress designed by New York designer Elliot Mann, who has a boutique in Manhattan's East Village. The color works perfectly for her hair and skin tone. The dress has a subtle sparkle to it which is a nice touch (you may need to click on the image to enlarge and see the detail). As your New York Sartorialist, I'll be planning a trip to check out the rest of the line and report back. Overall, a classic look that transcends time and "fashion".

Did I mention she's still modeling? A little "oh by the way"... in the next couple of months Suzi will be on the cover if Maxim Magazine in Latin America with a multi-page spread and interview. May take a little looking but I'm confident we'll find a copy in the international newsstands. It's OK if we can't read the language, we got an interview here- we can just enjoy more photos. Now we know how much more is behind the beauty.

Suzy Malick

Takara Sewitt

Takara Sewitt

In the middle of a marathon of work that looked to be stretching into a 36 hour day, I caught up with up-and-coming actress Takara Sewitt.

Her look underscores how simplicity in dress can really work. Seemed like the only simple thing for her in this day. Next stop was a 7:00 PM to 5:00 AM shoot for an independent movie. Growing up Takara didn't envision a life in entertainment, she thought it would be in business. Along the way she started acting and found she had a tremendous passion for it. Whoever thought being an actor or actress was easy have been greatly mislead. Tough, tough business. Even on no sleep and none to come soon, there were no complaints. Passion works that way.

For all practical purposes, Takara's a native New Yorker (family moved here when she was 6). She mentioned her mother was Australian, so I asked an otherwise unusual question- "So how did your parents meet?". I'm glad I asked.

Turns out her father managed KISS and they were in Australia on tour. Her mother was a beautiful model and was asked to come to dinner with the band. Running late to dinner, in Takara's words "she got stuck sitting next to my father". That started a long-distance relationship that led to her mother moving to the States four months later. Taking a big chance on a wing and a prayer, it obviously worked out. Now that's cool!

Tired but still moving forward, next stop- that 7:00 shoot. After that? We'll have to watch.