A Passion for Carolyne Roehm!

When it comes to great Amercian style, Carolyne Roehm is in a class by herself. Yes, she's absolutely gorgeous in person. But what makes her more than simply stunning, is her devotion to creating beautiful things. I can speak about this with authority as I have had the pleasure of working with her on her collection of dresses for Best & Co.

From our very first meeting in her breathtaking NYC apartment, I was struck by her warmth and approachability. She extended the same graciousness to my entire staff and it didn't take long for me to realize that every member of the Best & Co. office (including my dog, George) had developed a crush on Carolyne. In fact, I always knew when she was paying us a visit because the office and everyone in it would get a little more dressed up for the occasion!

After all, we are talking about a woman who worked for her mentor, Oscar de la Renta, for ten years, launched her own eponymous successful fashion house, and served as the President of the CFDA. Let's just say if I had a resume like that . . . I might be throwing around a little attitude . . . but not Carolyne! The most we could ever get her was a cup of coffee (and Dunkin Donuts was just fine!) Frankly, Carolyne was much more interested in the design process and using her time and talent to create the most beautiful girls dresses I have ever seen. From her sketches to her trim choices, Carolyne's eye for detail and quality is unerring and exact.

The designs that Carolyne created for Best & Co. were inspired by her life long passion for all things blue and white and happily coincided with the publication of her ninth book, A Passion for Blue and White. You can purchase a signed copy of the gorgeous book from Carolyne's website.

http://www.carolyneroehm.com/

While we plan an official launch and in-store event with Carolyne for Mother's Day, due to demand, we are previewing a portion of the dresses right now on our site. I think they capture Carolyne's love for quality and beauty perfectly. We all feel very lucky to have shared this experience with Carolyne and hope you will too!

Spring Photo Shoot

While it is literally freezing here in New York today, I have spring on my mind. We recently shot our Spring 2009 catalog and we are now finalizing our lay-outs. Here’s a behind-the-scenes tour of the fun and chaos created by children, parents, nannies, stylists, dogs, dog handlers, and one president hovering with a digital camera . . .

Even before we arrive at the studio, my team spends days creating story boards, planning each shot, sourcing props, and casting models.

Here’s Halston’s rack. Just like the “big girls,” our models visit our showroom for a final fitting before the shoot to ensure that the clothes fit just right.

We photographed two of our Spring 2009 collections – “Nautical” and “Picnic.” As a result, we had an interesting mishmash of props at the ready including a massive antique ship’s wheel, vintage butterfly nets, masses of fresh flowers, and dozens of fresh cupcakes . . . which Ava got to sample when her shot was finished.

It takes a village! Here’s my team getting everyone set for the shot and simultaneously making sure that we don’t crush any of our precious models with the giant ship’s wheel!

Isn’t there a saying about working with small children and animals? At Best & Co., we throw caution to the wind! The Scottie has been Best & Co.’s mascot since 1879. (In addition to the fabulous outfit – we will be offering dog collars and leashes this year. This set is in blue and white gingham – so cute!)

In between shots, our models pass the time in low-tech ways . . .

And in high-tech ways . . .

Ava* multi-tasked on her i-phone while getting her hair done . . . actually, the phone belonged to the stylist (thank goodness!)

*We had three little girls on the shoot named Ava!

At the end of the (very long) day – we were thrilled with the results of our shoot. I can’t wait to share them with you in February!

The first two mock-up’s landed on my desk this morning (see below) . . . . stay tuned!