Today's original Coutorture editorial, shot by photographer Wayne Liu, took place in the 168th street subway station. We took the 1 train up together, pieces from the Fall 08 Steinunn collection in tow, and spent the rest of the day underground. Funnily enough it was the first day of Spring in New York.


To learn more about Liu, check out our interview and his first photo shoot with us called, Haunted. After the shoot we asked Liu to write us something on what would become 'The One Train'. Below, his narrative, and the shoot with Steinunn Fall 08.




'Ms. X appears, on the silver screen or right next to me—I cannot know the difference. I am no stalker, no, I’m too disinterested to even try, but perhaps we’ve talked at some point, and perhaps the static air of our whispers is what remains stalking me. We connect on the topic of ephemeral relationships and their malcontents; then she drifts, tugging her hair, or maybe her bonnet, and begins to straighten her blouse. She pretends not to notice the gum dried on the track, nor the glance from the edge of my eye. These matter not to her, these flirtations exchanged. She enjoys herself for reasons I shall remain oblivious to, so it seems with her eyes desiring couture endlessly that I can relate in my obsessive collecting of her images, presented here for a future Ms. X.' -Wayne Liu

In today's original Coutorture editorial we've pulled together what we consider Fall's top five trends and depicted one vintage and one modern interpretation for each. We know mixing price points is an important consideration, especially in this economic climate, and we thought it neat to show two versions of the same trend in order to display just how accessible the Fall 08 looks are, no matter what your budget. Our stylist and Network Partner, Liz Baca from the website M.I.S.S. Crew, came up with some amazing looks and we'll break those down, later this week, with corresponding trend galleries from the Fall 08 catwalks. Baca was able to come at the project with strong insight from both the modern and vintage perspective because, in addition to styling shoots and writing about modern fashion, she also sells vintage to the hippest boutiques in the Lower East Side. We'll be posting an interview with Baca soon, where she articulates the challenges of being a vintage buyer and her perspective on the Fall 08 season. We'll also be posting behind the scenes photo galleries, beauty spreads, and an interview with the husband and wife design team, Shannon Sinclair and Bryn Bowen, who photographed and made set (respectively) for today's shoot. Stay tuned for all of these great pieces of Coutorture content. We're off taping a few pre-fashion week video interviews and sneaking in one shoot before New York Fashion Week kicks off so expect lots of exciting things popping up on our front page, from here all the way through the Spring 09 Paris shows.

For some instant gratification, check out the spread below with some of the items we pulled from eLuxury, Net-a-Porter, and Shobop for today's shoot. We don't pull current season by accident...we know there's something to be said for immediacy in fashion.

For today's original Coutorture editorial, our lack of inspiration was our, er, inspiration. It's been a steady ninety degrees, sample sale season has been in full swing for months, the fall clothing has yet to deliver, and Spring fashion week is not yet upon us--time has been kind of dragging by. Top that off with a recession and being located in a city predominately void of air conditioning and you've landed yourself in crazy town. Lately we've been wearing our one-piece bathing suit to work (with shorts of course) and broken the cardinal rule of never wearing havaianas beyond the deli on our block. Yes, it has been that bad. We're sure most of you are right there with us.

After our poolside shoot we had not much left we felt really excited about, save for the editorials that will crop up closer to Fall (i.e. next month). Shortly thereafter, we saw this dress and a light bulb appeared over our heads. Yes, ombre would save us. Ombre has been a trend for a couple of seasons now and, in truth, it's not really going anywhere. Editorializing ombre might be a bit boring, if it weren't that it makes the perfect analogy to our current situation. What happens to your perfectly constructed style when the forces of nature (and/or the economy) are fighting against you? Well, it fades away...

If you want the goods in our The Sun Doesn't Care photo shoot you can have them at anywhere from zero to eight hundred dollars. You can also have them for Resort 09. Yep, we're all over the map this week. Our spread below includes those current season goodies in our shoot courtesy of Shopbop--all will undoubtedly work for fall (heck, some of them are fall). From the pink sequin ombre frock to the elegant purple blouse, it's all up for grabs. As for the clothing in the shoot not shown in the spread below, well that's Pencey and we'll be bringing you the low-down on that line and the Resort collection later today.

Finally, anything randomly ombrized (oops, we just made up an awesome word) well, that's our styling skills with the help of e-commerce aficionado and former Anthropologie display coordinator, Stephanie Draves. From the chain and feather necklace, to the purple rope necklace, and its matching ascot necktie, it came from us--we dip dyed in our bathroom until the wee hours of the morning with the help of Ms. Draves. There's not too much DIY advice to give aside from making sure you don't splash your roommate's white towels with a giant orange ombre bow (soaking wet). We just hope that you take our interpretations as encouragement to embrace the sweltering weather, buddy up, and get wild with some drug store dye.

Three key pieces made our Island Life shoot from eLuxury. Namely, a hot pink Marc by Marc Jacobs bag, and a patchwork bag and pair of patent peep-toes by Dolce & Gabbana. Our concept for the shoot was swimwear and acessories: the only purchases outside of a sample sale that make sense this time of year, and so these pieces made our wishlist from the e-commerce site. A rundown of their draw, below.

Dolce & Gabbana Runway Miss Pocket Patchwork Bag: Clocking in at four grand, this bag is intricately detailed and luxe in the best sense of the word. Narrow horizontal panels of genuine snakeskin make up the exterior of the bag and a super-soft grey suede trim adorns the frame. Trust us when we say this bag, in person, is a show-stopper. Each panel of snakeskin has its own unique color, sheen, and perforations making it look, from afar, like a beacon of exotic skin dangling off the arm. On the practical side of things, there's a cell phone pocket inside and has (we love this in a bag) a long strap and short handles, so you've some styling options at the end of the day.

Marc by Marc Jacobs Pretty Nylon Little Tate Tote: This bag certainly falls in a different category that the patchwork number but it still made our wish list for eLuxury nonetheless. We thought the $158 dollar nylon tote, for its color and size, would be an apt accessory for the remaining summer months. One thing we hate about the generic canvas tote is how supple the material is and how dirty they can get in a matter of days. This bag is easily washable and would not pick up every grain of sand it touched. Furthermore, the Tate Tote is quilted, giving it more girth than your typical beach-tote (which makes it feel more like an actual handbag).

Dolce & Gabbana Patent Lace-Up Bootie: Reasonably priced and Fall-ready, these shoes made our list for their sheer end-of-summer appeal. Because they are open-toe, these booties are more than appropriate in warm weather and, come fall, could be worn with a sheer sock or pair of stockings just fine. They're sexy, masculine, and trend-appropriate shoes and they are, indeed, something to swoon over. For the shoot, our pairs were grey and snakeskin but the shoes also come in patent black. As we know, seven hundred dollars in today's world can buy you one sick pair of shoes.