Wear What When

Donna Karan’s Urban Zen at Baby and Co.

The new traveling collection will be at First and Virginia from April 26 through 29.

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Apr 16, 2012 at 07:00AM 0 Comments

Photo: Urban Zen

Donna Karan’s Urban Zen philosophy: Improving the health of the planet via extra-large and/or asymmetrical swaths of indulgent knitwear.

Her collections sometimes evoke old-school Armani, and sometimes Helmut Lang in bed with Jason Wu. What gets me is when her collections feel like Rick Owens in a mellow mood, or when she seems to be retooling something like parachute pants.

New York designer Donna Karan’s main line has a more than 25-year history of being classic, and a little bit complicated. And as of late, it’s become even more of both.

On Thursday, April 26 between 5 and 8, fans of exotic influences, the interplay of fit and drape, and easy but asymmetrical wardrobe staples will gather at Baby and Co. to fete Karan’s buzzed-about recent launch, Urban Zen.

The new line (or rather, “philosophy of living”) and foundation are all about gorgeous cashmere, exotic accessories, neo-modern worldly furnishings, and this mission statement: “The Urban Zen Foundation creates, connects, and collaborates to raise awareness and inspire change in the areas of well-being, preserving cultures and empowering children. We design forums, partner with existing organizations and bring together experts to define solutions and implement action.”

There’s a dot-com and a dot-org, you see; ten percent of proceeds from the former go toward the latter.

While there are, at present, a small handful of concept stores showing off the now-factor home furnishings and modern, yoga-to-office-to-cocktail-party knits, Urban Zen (the dot-com) wants to travel around and provide a different sort of buying experience. It wants to operate as a nomadic showroom, and it’s Seattle’s turn to host.

Baby and Co.‘s Jill Donnelly met with Karan’s people on a recent buying trip in New York. The two parties connected over philanthropy and design, and these four very exclusive days were planned.

After the opening, the trunk show will stay at Baby and Co. through April 29 during normal business hours; true to both Donnelly and Karan, ten percent of the proceeds will benefit the Mockingbird Society, a favorite cause of the local shop owner.

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Tags: Seattle Trunk Show, Baby and Co.

Shop It: Baby and Co. Winter Sale

Take 30 percent off all collections.

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Dec 06, 2011 at 07:00AM 0 Comments

A look from Lilith, 30 percent off at Baby and Co.

Where: Baby and Co.

What: Save 30 percent on all collections in this worldly Seattle sanctuary of classic style and edgy grace.

Translation: Get a great deal on strong, feminine layers from Lilith, Peachoo and Krejberg’s Indian-Dutch deconstructed street style, and more.

When: Thursday, December 8 through Sunday, December 12

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Tags: Baby and Co.

Report: Fashion’s Night Out

Here’s what went down where we were at last night.

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Sep 09, 2011 at 01:15PM 2 Comments

Photo: Adria Saracino for The Emerald Closet

Slideshow: Seattle style blogger Adria Saracino from The Emerald Closet shared a few of her snaps from #FNOSea, as I’ve come to call it. Check her blog on Monday for more of her shots.

Though generally speaking I’d have to be categorized as anti-man bag, this fellow here is definitely an exception to my admittedly short-sighted ‘rule.’ I like that he’s just full-on owning it with this great clutch.

View Slideshow » Photo: Adria Saracino for The Emerald Closet

Slideshow: Seattle style blogger Adria Saracino from The Emerald Closet shared a few of her snaps from #FNOSea, as I’ve come to call it. Check her blog on Monday for more of her shots.

Though generally speaking I’d have to be categorized as anti-man bag, this fellow here is definitely an exception to my admittedly short-sighted ‘rule.’ I like that he’s just full-on owning it with this great clutch.

View Slideshow » Photo: Adria Saracino for The Emerald Closet

Love that Adria got a picture of this gal; I had seen her also but then she was gone by the time I crossed the street. It’s a completely agreeable look from top down; love the cropped tee.

View Slideshow » Photo: Adria Saracino for The Emerald Closet

If this woman wore those shoes all over downtown for the whole of Fashion’s Night Out, I’d like to buy her a cocktail. Get in touch, lady!

View Slideshow » Photo: Adria Saracino for The Emerald Closet

Somehow this captures the mood of the night, which really felt more like a ‘day,’ or at least an evening, owing to the gorgeous weather and the slightly surreal giddiness of shopping en masse.

View Slideshow » Photo: Adria Saracino for The Emerald Closet

Skirt length: past the knee. Let’s do this.

You know you’ve had a good time in downtown Seattle when your parking tab at Pacific Place is $26.

We definitely started Fashion’s Night Out early. We were checking in on shops like Nancy Meyer well before anything you would have called “Night,” but we had serious ground to cover and we were determined to make all the requisite stops.

And here’s the thing: making those stops, especially early on, afforded us the opportunity to chat with shopkeepers, not just about #FNOSea but about, well, life in general. And the block party aspect of the event—the whole get-to-know-your-local-retailers thing—is integral to what Fashion’s Night Out is all about.

Of course, FNO is also about a good time. Wherever we went, as we ran into friends and acquaintances, the first round of questions concerned where we’d been, what they were doing there, and what they were pouring. At Mario’s, for instance, it was vodka cocktails, spiked with a photobooth.

But just as important as the booze was the activity, celebration, and/or parade of fashion; what FNO’ers really wanted to know was where the action was. They were looking not just to shop but to do or see or partake—at Alhambra that meant watching as models in fresh fall gear posed rather valiantly in the First Ave windows, while all manner of passersby got up on the glass to inspect them. At Baby and Co. it meant wrapping up in a scarf-tying demo. At Barneys it was a party vibe with a DJ and inventive snacks; at Nordstrom, the savvy department was flooded with friend groups getting in on some newfangled, editable, digital step and repeat situation.

While there was plenty of good stuff going on, it wasn’t necessarily easy to sense the critical mass of it, simply because it just isn’t possible to be everywhere at once. Trucking from, say, First and Union to Sixth and Pike, you were bound to miss moments of retail bliss, sartorial celebration, and fashion-on-the-loose here and there. Even with our early start and extra hours built in, it wasn’t easy to get to all the stops let alone take some time to stop, shop, and enjoy them. And send up a few Tweets about it.

“Are you seeing lots of people? Is everyone here?” That was another thing we asked each other—only that too was difficult to gauge. Same reason.

Only solution: Next year, every single downtown retailer and restaurant stays open til 9 and we really turn this thing inside out. Or, maybe by then science will have made some progress on the whole being-two-places-at-once thing.

Still, when we wound up at MistralKitchen at the end of the night (have you had the Thai popcorn there? insane) there certainly weren’t any regrets. Sure, it would be cool to be in New York for FNO where the event kicks off New York Fashion Week (and $26 buys you twenty minutes of parking), but walking down Westlake last night and looking up at the moon in our uncluttered, clear blue-black sky, I wouldn’t have wanted to be anywhere else.

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Tags: Mario's, Nordstrom, Barneys, Fashion's Night Out '11, Baby and Co.

Guide: Fashion’s Night Out

Follow us, literally and digitally, for good times and great outfits.

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Sep 02, 2011 at 09:00AM 4 Comments

These fold-out Fashion’s Night Out maps, with full info on all participating stores, are included in our September issue; if you’d like one, feel free to stop by our offices on Western Ave and pick one up. Thanks to the amazing UK-born Seattle-based fashion illustrator Izzie Klingels for the artwork on the map.

Whatever the reason, there’s a sort of critical mass this year as far as Seattle and Fashion’s Night Out are concerned.

The Bravern is doing it, U Village is doing, heck, even Alderwood Mall is doing it.

And downtown Seattle is most definitely doing it. And so are we—we being a pack of Seattle Met’sters and friends. Mia Harrison from Fashion Network Seattle and Melissa Middleton from JeNeSeQua are joining Ethan Miller and Jamie Fish from Heffner Model Management and our Seattle Met posse as we do the shopper’s version of a pub crawl at a fashion-centric block party.

The whole lot of us will be armed with mobile devices to Tweet and Facebook what we see and who we see; we’ll be looking for FNO’s Best Dressed, tagging and uploading contenders to the Seattle Met Facebook page and my Twitter feed.

Meanwhile, the Heffner crew will be scouting for new faces. So bring your top model dreams, your summer-to-fall style, and let’s hang out.

Be sure to like us on Facebook and follow me on Twitter now so that when we cross paths and digitally verbalize our mutual admiration, we can tag and “@” you and all that.

And, be sure to use the Downtown Seattle FNO hashtag, #FNOSEA

Here’s our itinerary. (Warning: it’s a lot to take in; we’re completists and we’re intent on getting to all the spots at all the right times—backtracking be damned.)

+ 2:45 to 3:30 Swink Style Bar Where else would we start? As I don’t have much hair to blow out, I’m just getting my makeup done. I’m thinking liquid liner and nude lips.

-3:30 to 5 Pacific Place vendors: Ann Taylor, J.Crew (those who spend $150 or more on FNO get a free custom Fashion’s Night Out tote), and True Religion Brand Jeans (gift with purchase!) to Nancy Meyer (yes, absolutely, underpinnings are an essential element of fashion) to Eileen Fisher (more champagne! sweet treats! raffle prizes!) to Mario’s (for a spin through the photobooth while the DJ plays our song; they’re starting early—4!—and ending early—7!—so don’t miss out, and do check out small bites, signature cocktails, exclusive Fashion’s Night Out merchandise, and prizes from Hugo Boss)

-5 to 6:45 Columbia Sportswear (to check out their new City Collection) to The Finerie (for Fashion’s Night Out specials, signature cocktails, and a chat with designer Abigail Glaum-Lathbury) to Free People (we’ll see who’s enjoying the 20 percent discount and complementary feather extensions—with purchase of course) to Alhambra (where there will be a live fashion show, live music, and champagne—and, for those who spend $200, a $50 gift certificate) to Baby and Co. (we’ll take 10 percent off of the scarf bar and some “how to” demo’s, yep, thanks).

-6:45 to 7:15 We’ll be at RN74, refueling, even if we have to pay full price. The buzzed-about joint is offering a late night happy hour from 9 to close for FNO’ers; all items on that menu will be $5.

-7:15 to 8 Barneys New York, where they’re doing it up party-style with Trophy Cupcakes, light bites from Alan Davis of Scout Provisions, and a DJ (store manager Chris Nardi promised me Boy George—or was it Culture Club?). Please note: Barneys is outta here at 8. We’re sort of hoping they’ll let us flip the ‘open’ sign to ‘closed’ … or something like that.

-8 to 8:30 Morton’s the Steakhouse where bar bites are $6, but depending on how rigorously you’ve been shopping, you might just go for the steak and seafood three-course menu for $54.99.

-8:30 to 9 Ah, how many nights have we been at Nordstrom for last call? They’re serving up entertainment, refreshments, prizes, exclusive merchandise, and, of course, the latest trends. We’ll be there.

-9 to ? MistralKitchen, because, c’mon, we’ve only just begun. The official after-party spot is offering specials on food, cocktails, and champagne from 9 to midnight.

Of course, we certainly won’t be the only thumb-typing style hunters out and about on September 8. Seattle fashion bloggers and of-the-minute shopping news updaters Jess Estrada from Fresh Jess, Tina Witherspoon from Glamspoon, Ashley Breckel from Style Umbrella, and the Emerald Closet folks from the blog of the same name will all be out and about. Hope you will, too—we can’t wait to connect!

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Tags: Mario's, Nordstrom, Barneys, Fashion's Night Out '11, Baby and Co.

Fashion First

Get your tickets for Seattle’s fall fashion boutique event.

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Aug 18, 2011 at 09:30AM 0 Comments

Photo: Fashion First

Tickets are on sale now for Fashion First on September 15 at Showbox Sodo.

It’s that time of year again.

Each fall, for eight years now, Fashion First gathers local shoppers and puts them in front of a runway decked out with newly arrived fall fashion from local boutiques and/or designers. At the same time, via ticket prices and an auction, the show raises money for worthwhile local charities. On the runway for 2011: La Ree, Baby and Co., Ragamoffyn’s, and more.

This year’s celebration is Thursday, September 15; doors open at the Showbox in SoDo at 7. Tickets start at $50 and can be purchased via the Fashion First website.

Here, three questions for Fashion First’s Joan Kelly.

WWW: What was your original goal in starting the show and how has it morphed into more or become exactly what you wanted it to be?

JK: The original goal was to create a marketing platform for independent retailers and designers. Since then it’s grown and we are able to offer the participants a ton of marketing with all the changes in the industry. Issaquah-based designer Lizzie Parker handles all the back-end. She is all over the boutique owner’s visions, making each set truly display the individual branding. She has a very sophisticated taste level and she is always pushing it to the next level. She brings a show that won’t disappoint. It is going to be the best we have ever seen in this area.

Helping make up the Fashion First crowd that Joan Kelly says is the best in Seattle and the Eastside, Sway and Cake owner Tamara Donaghy.

As the ultimate insider at FF, what’s your favorite part: Seeing things come together backstage? Watching the front row revelers? The after party?

Watching the crowd deliver. They can BRING IT. Not only their donations to Rise n’ Shine but also their outfits. The best crowd in Seattle—or the Eastside. It’s a party. As my Grandmother always said, “Eat before you drink.” Good words to live by.

Most importantly, what are you wearing?

There are so many great shops involved in Fashion First, I would have to change my outfit several times that night to showcase the best of them. So I’m still deciding. For now, just the YSL Tributes in olive brown (they rock, BTW ) and perhaps the robe I wear to water aerobics.

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Tags: Seattle Fashion Show, New for Fall, Baby and Co., Fall Fashion 2011

Fashion’s Night Out Update

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Aug 05, 2011 at 02:15PM 0 Comments

Those of you saving September 8 for Fashion’s Night Out in downtown Seattle will be pleased to know that the first round of good-time, nighttime shopkeepers and restaurant/bar owners is in and a really fun night on the town is starting to take shape.

Joining Mario’s, Barneys, and Nordstrom in extended hours, special promotions, and general fashion and snacks-and-cocktails merriment are Alhambra, Ann Taylor, Columbia Sportswear, Free People, Baby and Co., J. Crew, True Religion, Nancy Meyer, The Finerie, Eileen Fisher, Swink Style Bar, Morton’s, RN74, and Mistral.

At the risk of sounding like a cliche, there really is something for everyone, especially those who still think there’s no fashion scene in Seattle.

More to come on how, specifically, each store will be celebrating, and how we Wear What When’ers will be joining in.

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Tags: Special Event, Fashion's Night Out '11, Seattle Style Headlines, Baby and Co., Baby and Co.

Shop It: Baby and Co.’s Closet Sale

Save the date for a warehouse sale and consignment store-like pop-up from some of the most stylish and worldly women in Seattle.

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Aug 02, 2011 at 09:15AM 1 Comments

A recent look from the French line Lilith gives you an idea of the directional, well-cut, easy-to-wear, earthy but urban aesthetic on offer at the Baby and Co. Closet Sale. August 11–14.

Where: 2004 First Ave, Seattle, 98101. (Bonus points if you can tell us what Japanese-inspired ‘80s-errific women’s shop used to be in this space.)

What: There are a number of shop owners around town who will come to your home and help you clean out your closet (all the better to help you fill it back up), but Baby and Co.’s Jill Donnelly takes it one step further.

This is the third year that Donnelly has hosted a pop-up shop based, more or less, on a consignment model. She’s visited the well-stocked (over-stocked?) closets of some of her best clients, and taken neatly packaged offerings from those who do their own wardrobe editing, and names like Lanvin, Marni, and Comme des Garcons are being used to describe the booty.

I’m not too shy to say that I blew my month’s shopping budget and more at last year’s sale, and as much of a boon as it was to encounter those favorite and exclusive lines, I also loved discovering pieces by small Parisian lines and Italian-made shoes. Donnelly’s crew are world travelers, and the sale reflects that in literal and figurative ways.

In addition to the excellent new-to-you items, you’ll find past season merchandise from the French line Lilith, one of Donnelly’s favorites. So, add to the consignment vibe a warehouse sale kind of thing, and start socking aside some spending money now.

When: The sale kicks off on Thursday, August 11 from 11 to 6 and continues until Sunday, August 14.
CASH ONLY
Park at the Macy’s garage at 3rd and Stewart and bring your ticket to the sale to receive a voucher for $3 parking for two hours.

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Tags: Seattle Consignment, Sales and Discounts, End of Summer Discounts, Downtown Seattle Shopping, Baby and Co.

Baby and Co., Coupe Rokei, Elle Magazine

Belltown boutique and hair salon team up with beauty experts from the national mag.

Posted by: Seattle Met Staff on Jun 28, 2011 at 07:00AM 0 Comments

Photo: Wella Hair Products

Where: Coupe Rokei Salon in Belltown

What: Beauty representatives from Elle magazine and Wella hair products roll through town to get you excited about their take on your tresses. Get gratis hair color consultations, tips and tricks on the latest tress trends, and a look at new accessories from Baby and Co.

Snacks and sips? Of course.

When: Thursday, June 30 from 5 to 8. RSVP to ellebeauty5 (at) hfmus.com

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Tags: Baby and Co.

Trunk Show: Baby and Co.

It’s a circus at downtown’s Parisian street style-angled boutique.

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Oct 25, 2010 at 10:00AM 2 Comments

Do not adjust your screen. This lady is attending a circus party at Baby & Co.

Where: Baby and Co.

What: All the World’s a Circus: a trunk show of bohemian and bold jewelry and art by Elena Korakianitou and Joanne Sugura of Pariscope Studios, and an all-out celebration including live music, fire dancing, festive drinks, and classic circus shenanigans. The jewelry and art will be on parade at the shop through the end of December, but this big top event (“trunk show” doesn’t quite cut it, eh?) is a one-night only affair.

Oh, one more thing: owner Jill Donnelly wants you to know that circus attire will be rewarded.

When: Thursday October 28 from 6 to 10

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Tags: Baby and Co.

Jill and Co.

There’s a new shop owner on the corner of First Ave and Virginia.

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Jan 07, 2010 at 06:00AM 0 Comments

New owner Jill Donnelly chats with a customer amid deeply discounted European imports at Baby & Co.

Baby has left the building.

The Burstyns, Baby and Uri, recently sold their 30-plus year old boutique to its heir apparent, longtime shop manager and buyer Jill Donnelly. But before you get too concerned, know this: The relaxed yet highly styled European aesthetic that colors Baby and Co. will remain more or less the same.

Much of the mood comes from the high ceilings and Portobello Road via some statue-studded piazza space, but lines like Marithe and Francois Girbaud, Lilith, and Peachoo and Krejberg are what bring a part-Parisian, part-Bohemian, part-studied, part-intuitive vibe to Seattle streets. Donnelly borrows from lifestyle design It-girl Anya Hindmarch and calls the look and feel cozy cool. And she doesn’t intend to change it.

Sure, some elements may fade while others are played up.

At least one wall has already been repainted. Just imagine if your boss left the company in your hands … But Donnelly leans on a legacy of the unexpected as she plots the future. Just as Baby brought in true military-chic from Belgian army-navy surplus shops and Kiehls products way before they were a household name, Donnelly has big ideas about evolving what has become a home-away-from-home (closet-away-from-closet?) for so many stylish, worldly women — several of whom, within the space of the half an hour I spent in the shop yesterday, either came in to congratulate her or dropped their big gorgeous leather shoulder bags to cover her in hugs her upon hearing the news.

This would be a great time to stop by and do the same yourself. Just about everything in the store has been marked between 30% and 50% off, which is a big deal when you’re talking about exclusive designers, small-batch ordering, and well-constructed pieces that’ll look as cozy, cool, current, and timeless in Ballard as in Brussels and beyond.

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Tags: Baby and Co.