Every year we look forward to the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund to identify emerging designers with the greatest potential. It’s one of the major ways the CFDA nurtures American design, and one of the reasons NM and Target jointly donated $1 million to the CFDA this season. This year we can all follow the finalists’ journey, via a documentary series on Vogue.com. New episodes are loaded on Tuesdays.
This animation accompanying NM’s 2012 Christmas Book makes us a little giddy for the upcoming season.
Illustrator Elvis Swift collaborated with art director Janet Longstreth, who directed model Karlie Kloss based on their vision, then Janimation, a Dallas-based company, brought it all together. Look for more Elvis Swift illustrations from NM throughout the season.
Heritage Hen Mini Farm
The arrival of the Neiman Marcus Christmas Book each Fall is widely considered to mark the official start of the holiday shopping season; and the 86th annual edition was unveiled today in Dallas. Without further ado, here are this year’s most spectacular and unique holiday gifts. Including one with a Target twist!
Heritage Hen Mini Farm, $100,000
Inspired by Versailles’ Le Petit Trianon, this is the poshest hen house ever. The buyer will receive an initial farm consultation and grounds survey and two additional onsite visits from Heritage Hen Farm expert, Svetlana Simon, who will select three to ten heritage-breed hens carefully selected to suit your region. Installation includes two custom raised vegetable or herb garden beds. For every Heritage Hen Mini Farm purchase, NM will donate $3,000 to The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, a nonprofit organization that protects genetic diversity through the conservation and promotion of endangered breeds.
Annie: The Musical
Annie: The Musical Walk-On Role, $30,000
The recipient of this gift will take the Broadway stage in a walk-on role in the revival of Annie: The Musical. After your curtain call, you’ll sit down with one of the show’s producers for a five-star meal. Includes six show tickets. Only one package available; participant must be 18 or older. The proceeds of this gift will be split equally between Pedigree Foundation, whose mission is to help dogs in need find loving homes by providing grants to shelters and dog rescues, and Pajama Program, which provides new pajamas and books to children in need.
McLaren 12C Spider
2013 Neiman Marcus Edition McLaren 12C Spider, $354,000
Your Neiman Marcus Edition 2013 McLaren 12C Spider—one of just 12 made—is heralded as the most technologically advanced supercar ever. Carbon-fiber MonoCell one-piece molded chassis, Formula 1 brake steer, 616 horse-powered V8 twin turbo engine, zero to 60 mph in 3.2 seconds, maximum speed of 204 mph (196 mph in convertible mode). Includes a McLaren luggage set and a business-class trip to England for a VIP dinner with McLaren Chairman Ron Dennis and a tour of the McLaren Technology Center. For each sale, NM will donate $3,000 to Big Brothers Big Sisters. Reserve by calling 1-888-756-0775, precisely at noon EDT on October 24, 2012.
Pinel & Pinel Arcade PS Trunk
Pinel & Pinel Arcade PS Trunk, $90,000
The ultimate gaming toy, the custom-made Pinel & Pinel Arcade PS Trunk is all you need for an evening of high-adrenaline entertainment. Handmade in Paris and encased in calfskin, this trunk furnishes you with Formula 1 racing seats with Thrustmaster T500 RS Force Wheel, a selection of 24 PlayStation3 games, Bluetooth wireless music system, SingStar microphones, PlayStation Move controllers, PlayStation Eye Camera, fighting sticks, DUALSHOCK 3 wireless controllers and more. Not a gamer? It’s ideal for karaoke too. For every purchase, NM will donate $3,000 to Big Brothers Big Sisters, the nation’s leader in providing mentoring to children.
Bulleit Woody Tailgate Trailer
Bulleit Woody Tailgate Trailer, $150,000
Tailgating will never be the same after you roll up with the Bulleit Frontier Whiskey Woody-Tailgate Trailer. Created by interior designer Brad Ford with sleek leather furnishings and details from Moore & Giles, rich wood finishings (handcrafted from reclaimed Bulleit Bourbon casks), elegant glassware and barware, and a Sony entertainment system including a flat-screen TV, Blu-ray disc player, and state-of-the-art sound system, plus a one-year supply of Bulleit Bourbon and Bulleit Rye. Ten percent of the proceeds from the purchase will benefit amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research.
JetLev R200
Part sci-fi, part British secret service agent, your water-propelled jetpack is about to send you soaring at speeds up to 32 mph. It runs for up to 4 hours and 80 miles on a single tank of high-octane gasoline. The package includes all the gear, plus a CFI 1 Pilot Certification Training & Safety course. For every JetLev R200 sold, NM will donate $2,500 to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Broward County, an organization that helps young people reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens.
Robert Wilson's Snowy Owl
Snowy Owl by Artist Robert Wilson, $70,000
In his Video Portraits series, artist Robert Wilson features animals and people who appear static, as if in a painting, but the viewer is caught off guard when the subject unexpectedly breathes, blinks, or shifts. This modern riff on the eighteenth-century tableaux vivant beautifully pushes the boundaries between reality and imagination. The buyer of this limited edition, hand numbered and signed artist’s proof will choose the color combinations for the polka dots. The purchase of a “Snowy Owl” benefits the Watermill Center, an interdisciplinary laboratory for performance art and a unique environment for young and emerging artists.
Left to right: Thomas Keller, Jerome Bocuse, Daniel Boulud and Richard Rosendale
Chef’s Dinner For Ten, $250,000
Nine of your closest friends will gather at your home, where four world-class chefs—Daniel Boulud, Thomas Keller, Jerome Bocuse, and Richard Rosendale—will prepare a feast. (Don’t worry, a professional event planner will arrange and oversee everything.) Bertha Gonzalez, the world’s first female maestra tequilera, will kick off the evening with a Casa Dragones tequila tasting and provide the party favors: personalized, engraved crystal bottles of Casa Dragones. Fine wines will accompany all courses after the cocktail hour. This epic culinary event is limited to just one NM customer. All proceeds will benefit the Bocuse d’Or USA Foundation, an organization dedicated to inspiring culinary excellence in young professionals.
Van Cleef & Arpels "Poetic Wish" Watch Set
Van Cleef & Arpels ”Poetic Wish” Watches and Trip, starting at $1,090,000.*
The “His & Hers” fantasy gift tradition continues this year with the Van Cleef & Arpels “Poetic Wish” watches and trip. The watches animate a Parisian romance between a tiny man and woman. Their cases are 18-karat white gold and set with diamonds. The new owners of the watches will also receive a trip to Paris and Geneva to tour the Van Cleef & Arpels boutique, atelier, and watchmaking workshops. Neiman Marcus will donate $10,000 for each His & Hers 2012 gift sold to The Norman Mailer Center, which supports writers.
Target Mystery Package
As you surely know by now, Neiman Marcus and Target are collaborating on a holiday collection featuring items by 24 designers from the Council of Fashion Designers of America. You can avoid the crowds and the jockeying on December 1 by ordering the Mystery Package now. It includes the entire collection, which has items for men, women, children, pets and the home. The package will arrive after December 1, with free shipping. Call 1-877-9NM-GIFT to order. Only 5 packages are available and the offer expires midnight CST on October 15, 2012. NM and Target made a $1 million donation to the CFDA, supporting the development of American fashion designers.
In Monday’s episode of Sundance Channel’s “All On The Line With Joe Zee,” Elle’s creative director has enlisted the NM fashion direction of Ken Downing and Ana Maria Pimentel to evaluate designer Korto Momolu, a former contestant on “Project Runway.” Joe wants Kortu to pare back her overdone designs and rebuild her team to design a dress for Mary J. Blige and present a collection to the NM team.
The full episode airs October 1.
Nancy Gonzalez CEO Santiago Barberi Gonzalez commissioned ten world-class contemporary artists to create works out of the brand’s crocodile Leaf Tote, in partnership with TWO x TWO, the noted Dallas based organization behind the annual TWO x TWO for AIDS and Art, an annual contemporary art auction held in the Richard Meier-designed Rachofsky House in Dallas, benefiting two organizations—amfAR and the Dallas Museum of Art. Artists include Raqib Shaw, Jenny Holzer, Lawrence Weiner, Will Cotton, Josephine Meckseper, Richard Phillips, Kaws, Jim Hodges, Dr. Lakra and Mickalene Thomas. Sotheby’s held a preview during New York Fashion Week, attracting an exciting mix of art-world influencers and fashion insiders.
All handbag photos above are by Naoya Fujishiro and Akihiro Sakai.
Neiman Marcus is the presenting sponsor of TWO x TWO for AIDS and Art, and helped merge the forces of Santiago and Nancy Gonzalez with art philanthropists Howard and Cindy Rachofsky. We captured this moment between Santiago and Cindy in New York, as they reflected on their project.
NM: How did this all start?
CR: Santiago was in Dallas on business and Jim Gold [NM president of stores] called and asked, could I bring a vendor?
SG: A vendor?! That’s so tacky! [Laughing.]
CR: “He’s Nancy’s son and he’s a contemporary art collector, and I’d love for him to meet you and see your house and your collection.” Well, it was just an immediate romance and bromance. Santiago offered bags, and I said, let’s ask artists. Well that’s all he had to hear. He and our chairman Amy Phelan called every artist they have a relationship with and those artists said yes within days.
SG: Then we had to turn down people! Because everyone said yes.
NM: How did you identify the artists you wanted?
Eloise Cheung styles the hair of Ford model Veranika...
While Stephine Caranza does the makeup.
Photographer Brian Edwards gets low.
Pencey dress.
Thanks to art director Nick Moore for the snapshots!
See more Pencey dresses at NeimanMarcus.com
Earlier this year we road tested Spring men’s wear in Miami with IndyCar driver EJ Viso, but he’s a very busy man these days, with the IndyCar racing circuit nearing its season’s end. This weekend he competes in the Go Pro Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma. Next it’s on to Baltimore, then back to California. And not only does EJ race, but he manages other drivers. Busy! So when our friends at Tumi started shooting their Case Studies, a look at the packing habits of stylish globetrotters, we put our favorite speedracer forward. We can all learn something about packing from a man who has this little time to fuss around.
Earlier this summer, we cheered EJ at the Texas Motor Speedway.
Sure looks like sand...
By now you must know the story—how Brunello Cucinelli started with Italian cashmere sweaters and has developed into a head-to-toe, casual-luxe lifestyle brand, produced by cherished artisans in a medieval town in Italy. (If you’re unacquinted, you’ll enjoy the video here.) There’s an unmistakable Cucinelli look nowadays, comprised of delicious layers of ultra-soft, wonderfully textured, neutral-colored separates that bridge urban sophistication and country coziness. The September Book from NM contains an insert dedicated to the women’s Fall collection, photographed by Alistair Taylor-Young. It shows two women, swaddled in Cucinelli, contemplating the change of seasons on a windswept sand dune. Except that’s not a sandy beach, it’s a studio filled with semolina—the wheat particles used in pasta.
Not sand.
Somehow semolina seems appropriate, since Cucinelli’s company is renowned for its outstanding employee cafeteria, and the epic industry dinners that it hosts in Italy every season.
The plumed necklace is exclusive to NM.
You may also notice the plumed necklace worn throughout the shoot—it’s exclusive to NM.
Up Close: Brunello Cucinelli runs through August 26 online and in NM stores.
The Fall collection from 3.1 Phillip Lim was inspired by the spirit of comic books, or graphic novels, such as Sin City and V For Vendetta and the neo-noir heroines who inhabit them. The comic book is the natural medium to tell this story, so Phillip Lim co-wrote Kill The Night, an original comic book, with John Ostrander. Jan Duursema of Star Wars comic book fame was commissioned to draw it. “A story of duality and metamorphosis, day and night, black and white, love and betrayal,” it’s the world’s most fashionable comic book—says so right on the cover. Visit 31philliplim.com to reserve a copy.
3.1 Phillip Lim accessories at NM San Francisco
“Kids are a blast to work with! We look for lots of personality and the ability to take direction well. With the little 6-month-olds it is tougher, but they did great in this Burberry shoot. We try to schedule them first thing in the morning so they have lots of energy. We also try to funnel any photo direction through one person (either the photographer or the on set stylist) to avoid things getting too overwhelming or confusing for the little ones.” —Kathy Cunningham, Art Director
Photographer: Matt Hawthorne
Styling: Nikki Trizza and Joyuan Kao
