Smashing Darling Blog

I recently had the pleasure of catching up with Erin Crumpacker, spokesperson for jack + bill. The new PR firm that just last week held a two day open casting call to see who would be the lucky recipients of their services for the next three months to help launch them to fashion stardom.The votes are still being tallied to see who the lucky winners will be. You will have to keep checking in to find out who will be the next IT in fashion. For now here is what Erin had to say about the company, the importance of social media in fashion, and how the internet is changing fashion. Check out the jack + bill blog to read snippets during the casting call and the after thoughts.

Trish: Can you give us a little background about how the company was formed?
Erin: The concept and plan for Jack + Bill all developed very organically. It started with a small brainstorm initiated by a few staff who wanted to find a way for Porter Novelli to help young up-and-comers in the fashion industry and find new ways of reaching potential clients. We all have hard working friends in the fashion industry who are so busy creating that they don’t have the time or know-how to self-promote their brand. New York is a competitive market and if you’re not out there showcasing what you got, it’s easy to be overlooked. So, we designed a pop-up agency concept, launching with a casting call to search for new designers, models, and stylists. So far people have jumped at the chance to have an experienced team from a top PR agency promote their brand— especially at no cost!

And, that’s how Jack + Bill was born. The agency is comprised of eight, twenty-something staffers who are extremely passionate about the project and very tapped into what’s happening culturally today in New York.

Trish: How does Jack + Bill’s PR approach differ from other fashion PR companies?
Erin: Jack + Bill is run by a young, energetic team who not only offer experience within the fashion industry, but also have worked on a variety of industries and accounts, including Fortune 500 companies and smaller non-profits. Our style credentials include representing fashion brands, working in fashion photography, running runway shows, casting calls and New York Fashion Week parties. What makes out approach different is that we are extremely tech-savvy individuals with experience running social media campaigns, which thus far has really helped drive interest in Jack + Bill.

Trish: How important is it in your opinion for emerging designers or models, photographers, event planners to be using digital and social media to help get the word out?
Erin: Today, it’s just as important to build a personal presence online as it is to breakthrough into traditional print and broadcast media. There are a lot of people online participating in the conversation and if you’re not than you’re missing out on a large, continually growing audience. Artists should automatically correlate social media with social networking – it’s an easy way to quickly communicate and build an audience for your brand. Additionally, there are so many ways to begin a conversation online, so if one way doesn’t work, it’s easy to try another, but it’s important to be smart and strategic with what you put out there.

Trish: Have you noticed an increase in of new faces trying to break into fashion?
Erin: Certainly, especially with all of the different resources online – nowadays, there are so many ways to express one’s own personal style. Even if someone isn’t plugged into the industry directly, they can build an audience by offering their authoritative opinions on style and trends. Personally, I have a few friends who are aspiring stylists who have created a unique online presence with their own personal blogs to build an audience. Their work online has opened doors for them into mainstream fashion and media industries. Also, online communities like the one you’ll find on Smashing Darling are great because they connect designers with other designers, which can lead to a potential business connection.

Trish: Do you see things changing for the fashion industry in the future because of the internet?
Erin: Yes, the industry has elevated itself in a way because now the conversation has gotten broader. Aspiring fashionistas around the world are contributing to the conversation and expressing their sense of style through online forums, personal blogs, social networking sites and are selling their designs via online boutiques. The Internet allows for more conversation, more personal networking and provides more flexibility for any small business to get their brand out there. In the future, I for see more niche fashion brands popping up because it’s so easy to hone in on a particular niche and target audience online. There’s also the cost factor to consider – the Web allows designers and stylists to introduce their work without renting a physical retail space– everything can be done digitally, personally and at little cost all at the same time.

Trish: If one of our designers wanted to become a client, what would they have to do?
Erin: If they’re based in New York and are interested in receiving free PR, we’d certainly like them to attend our casting call today and tomorrow and be part of the selection process. You can learn more and register for the casting at JackandBillpr.com. If they can’t make the casting, or they don’t make it through the selection process, we are interested in representing designers under a small retainer fee. Jack + Bill is structured like a boutique agency, meaning we’ll assemble a team to work on their business at a flat monthly rate.

Trish: If you could share with our community of indie/emerging designers one piece of advice what would you tell them?
Erin: Be sure to communicate the meaning and unique purpose behind your design. There are so many brands out there, so it’s important to explain why you as a designer care about your collection. There are many elements to consider when speaking to media and building your brand, but if your collection is well-designed and tells a meaningful, interesting story it can help really sell it to buyers, consumers and editors both online and off.

It’s been a few weeks since we’ve had a photo critique, so let’s get back into the swing of things and take a closer look at this week’s volunteer, a very cool jewelry boutique called Rutigliano Design.

Bullet Proof Shield, $440.00

To start with, we absolutely love this boutique … the jewelry is simply outstanding. The first thing that we notice about the photography is that there’s a bit of a mixed bag for the main images … some are low key, some high key, some model shots. In general, the images are very nicely done, but we feel that a bit more of a consistent approach might be helpful here. One approach may be to keep the main image as either a low or high key product shot (to keep things looking clean and professional on the main boutique page) and include a secondary model shot for every piece as an alternate view.

Plume Earring, $118.00

The low key images look great, and really make the products pop, but some of the high-key images could use a little lighting help. The designer says this about her images:

I think the main thing I always have trouble with is keeping the true color of my stones while maintaining the clarity of a picture.  For example, The Ruby Necklace, and then some of the beaded earrings.  I can never seem to get the lighting right.  It is either too grey and you can see the stone ok, but it’s a dark picture, or I get the picture to be light enough and it washes out the stones.

One approach to this problem that might be helpful is to light the background and product separately – this will allow you to tweak the lighting of each independently, getting the lighting just right on the jewelry as well as the backdrop.

In general, we think this designer is doing an excellent job representing her products … she obviously puts a lot of effort into her photography. We truly don’t have a lot of negative things to say here, which is always nice! We would certainly recommend using a few more alternate views whenever possible, as well as more model shots. Many of the item descriptions don’t give exact sizing, and the model shots are a great way to give shoppers an idea of scale. And, of course, it’s always fun to see how things look on!

Keep up the great work, and we look forward to hearing what others have to say about this designer’s photography.

Questions? Comments? Email us at julie[at]smashingdarling[dot]com or feel free to comment below. Thanks as always to our community for your insight and support! So, who’s next? Would you like your store critiqued? Email us at the above address and let us know what you need help on with your photos.

The first person to go on the hunt inside of smashing darling and tell who the designers are of these items will win a student smash up item! Happy Hunting!

With our current Sugar and Spice issue, over at Cause a Scene magazine we’ve gone decidedly girly, and with summer holidays just around the corner, we decided to pink up our packing! This delightfully stylish luggage tag brings a-list bling to drab terminals, whilst this versatile scarf is a beach must… so pout those sugar lips, think fluffy and feminine, and wave bon voyage to beachwear boredom!       post by Sarah-Jane

Sarah-Jane is fabulous and so is Cause a Scene. Don’t forget to join them on Myspace (or Smashing Darling for that matter) When you check out the magazine you can see an intro video from Mandy Murphy. She is doing a video blog for Cause a Scene about her adventures of being a model so keep tuning in to check out new episodes on that. Other monthly shows will include Jamesson, Ethel Hallow, Luke Blake and Tarrie Noir.  Also you can read tips for selling as an indie designer by yours truely every month, as well as PR tips, modeling tips and more in the columns section. You can check out their O-fficial blog and read about all the yummy reviews they have been getting….but most importantly read the magazine it is full of amazing fashion and a lot of it is indie. See you there!

Community News and new darlings Woweee – things sure have changed around here! Well Darling’s, don’t be shy, what do you think about our new look? If you are having a problems at all, please be sure to give us a heads up. Our heads have been spinning with new boutiques opening around the site. Here is an abbreviated, literally, list of where some of our new designers are from: NYC, MO, MN, PA, CA (SF and LA to be exact), and Chicago, IL. A Darling welcome to all! Are you in NYC and want to learn more about the mystery world of Fashion bloggers? Meet all of us Darlings -imagine that- next week at the second Fashion 2.0 Meet Up, click here to see the who/what/where/why/when.

Jump into new organic Laura Dawson

It’s too hot to get dressed – new Sandmaiden

how to – SHOUT IT OUT Our new Event Calendar is live! Now we can all be in the know. Take advantage of spreading the word about events you are having or other indie fashion events in your area. Just click on events on the Darling homepage. It is super quick and easy, and you can load up a pretty little image to go with. Anyone in Miami? Don’t miss the KRELwear sunset garden party this Monday night to debut her new Resort Collection, go to the events page to get all the details!

…more feature how to Between gas prices, AC, and customers preferring to be lying on a beach this is quite possibly a brutal time for retail. Ugh. Unless, of course, you have a boutique right in the center of Beachtown, USA…or you have a Smashing boutique! Customers can still go to the beach, save on gas, and buy from you! We see Summer Sale signs popping up everywhere…you can create your own summer promotion right in your store, here’s how: Login>Click Your Boutique Name> Click Promote > Click Run A Promo. Go check it out and give your customers a special treat!

Romantic and retro from Amanda Archer

Green Peace from Spirited Hands

Photo Finesse It’s summertime, are you hanging at the beach, or working hard to take amazing pictures for your Darling store? Maybe you can do both…hey work with us, we’re idealists around here! Grab some friends/models and product, hit the beach for that wonderful light and snap away! Then be a peach and send your store to JulieDarling to critique. It will help you, and all the darling designers, to read a new perspective and get new ideas, then we all feel more comfortable to volunteer too…c’mon take one for the team!

Have any questions? Just let us know:
trishandjulie@smashingdarling.com

cheers ~ the Darlings

Christine Rinere of Madison, CT is an active mom on the go. While raising three children, co-chairing the board of Friends of Madison Youth, running her own business and making sure to exercise to stay healthy, a simple idea struck her during the colder New England seasons. The idea was for her fabulous line Go Girl Wrapperz. Great skirts to keep you warm and fashionable after a work out when you are on the go.

SD: When did you start the line Go Girl Wrapperz?
CR: Go Girl Wrapperz was officially incorporated only a year ago in July 2007 but the idea of the original Gogirlwrapperz skirt has been in my head for about 4 years. As I am not a trained fashion designer, it took me that long to “go to school” on pattern making and the technical aspects of working with stretch fabrics and the different machines used for different functionalities. I sent samples to pattern makers in NYC and didn’t like what they came back with. I hired several different sample makers and they didn’t capture the cut and style correctly. Then I finally convinced my “master sewer” Elvis Alejandro to work with me and its been all fun since!

SD: Where did the idea for the company come from?
CR: I am ALWAYS cold. I used to play year round tennis, and in the colder months I couldn’t stand wearing sweatpants under my cute tennis skirts or having to go to the locker room to change. With three kids I was always in a rush and needed a solution that was warm, cute and convenient. That’s when I came up with the idea of sports wear that velcros on and off made from tech fabrics that felt great next to your skin, were warm in the winter and that you cold throw into the washing machine and dryer. Necessity is the mother of invention. When people started seeing them they proved to be useful for any activity to throw on over yoga wear, dance wear, sports uniforms, any workout wear at all. You can wrap it on after a workout and go out and meet friends for lunch, go do your errands around town and not look so sloppy in your sweatpants!

SD: Where do you turn for inspiration for your designs?
CR: All of my ideas have just come out of my own head as items I would like to have in my life that didn’t exist yet. I love the beach sarongs because they are always tied and draped perfectly and you never have to fuss with them again, just velcro on and off. So easy. Fabric is really important to me too. I am really sensitive about how things feel next to my skin.

SD: Who is your customer?
CR: My customers are women and girls who live an active lifestyle and are confident in themselves to wear a new product from a new brand that isn’t main stream yet. There are so many supportive women out there that when they meet you and learn that you created this product and brand just think its the coolest thing and they want to support you. I love that!

SD: How do you market yourself and your label?
CR: Well, I have only been at this “officially” for a year. I created the www.gogirlwrapperz.com website, hired a great photographer in Rebekah Butler and put together some great marketing materials. Early on I received some great press and was a guest on Better CT on CBS. I love to network with other entrepreneurs and did lots of shows around the holidays last year as well as the Hartford Marathon Expo. That drove business to my website and I had pretty steady on line business right through the holidays. I was thrilled to run into Trish this spring and be introduced to Smashing Darling. I received my first order through the website this week and was so excited! This week (June 25) I will be featured at the Madison Beach Hotel at their Beach Boutique night, I will be in South Hampton, NY on Aug. 30 at the Shecky’s Girls Night Out Event and I will be at the Women’s Expo in Hartford in Sept. I also joined Corp. Kiosk which allows me to set up a on site boutique at Corporations that have large numbers of employee traffic that fit my demographics.

SD: Where are the garments made?
CR: The garments are made right in my basement studio on industrial sewing machines and sergers.

SD: What does your average day entail?
CR: Do any of us have an average day? Seriously, I don’t have an average day which is what I love about this business. Some days I will focus on cutting fabrics and components in preparation for the next days production. Other days involve more administrative functions, marketing, writing press releases, researching the internet, ordering supplies, shipping orders, etc. If I have an event coming up I will spend time, tagging, pricing, packing, etc. Plus, I have 3 kids, 2 dogs and a husband all of whom need my attention in one way or another. I am very blessed.
SD: Describe your personal style?

I am pretty ecclectic. Some days I love to dress really funky and other days you might find me in khakis and a preppy polo. It depends on my mood. I do love skirts. I am definitely a skirt girl.

SD: Who are your fashion icons (past or present)? Do you think they influenced your personal style?
CR: I love Audrey Hepburn and have a big canvas of her hanging in my closet. I love Dian Von Furstenberg dresses and Trina Turk too. Ms. Hepburn definitely influences me. Whenever I don’t know what to wear, I look at her and it always reminds me simple and classic always works.

SD: Do you have any current fashion obsessions?
CR: Tory Burch has a new pair of brown wood sandals that I am coveting. I never met a Trina Turk dress I didn’t like. I really like the chick-a-boom stuff on Smashing Darling. I have a bag in my shopping cart I need to go and execute my order on, really cute with the green Gogirlwrapperz sarong that you put together on Polyvore.

SD: Is there anyone in the Smashing Darling community you have a question or comment for?
CR: Since I wasn’t trained in the fashion world I always feel like a stranger in a foreign land in terms of how to get my line out there to people. Whenever I have done events the feedback is always extremely positive but I don’t know how to necessarily convert all the online traffic into sales. My other question would be how do you get around the retail business and wholesale pricing? I can’t afford to open my own shop yet and I can’t afford to chop my prices in half to sell to retailers. What do other folks do?

Do you think you have what it takes to be the next big thing in fashion? If you do, you are going to want to get to the casting call being held by Jack and Bill a New York fashion PR agency. They are holding auditions July 15th & 16th. You can get all the info here (the details are also located in the events section of Smashing Darling). PR Couture got the inside scoop about the company if you want to know more than just the details of the event!

Speaking of PR Couture, we are in good company as monthly contributors to Cause a Scene Magazine. We will be giving tips about selling online. PR Couture will give tips on how to approach fashion media. So stay tuned for those, you aren’t going to want to miss them. Other are fashion trend setting contributors are Trend de la Creme, The Model’s Portal.

Bust Magazine is celebrating their 15th anniversary! It will be held August 12th in NYC. Get all the details and tickets to the concert here.

Reminder: There are only a few days left to subscribe to Venuszine and be in the running for a gift certificate to Smashing Darling. 25 random people will be chosen to receive one of the gift certificates plus other fabulous gifts. You have until July 15th so hurry!

Just waned everyone to be on the look out for the new Smashing Darling’s new badges, buttons and avatars. You will see them popping up all over the place!

We have changed gears. New site, new game. Sorry to all who look forward to guessing the quote of the week. We are now taking you on a little scavenger hunt. The first person to comment on the blog w/ the correct name for each of the designer boutiques(from Smashing darling) these three items came from gets a Student Smash UP item of your choice. Good luck and happy hunting!

I am so excited and happy to have Jennine aka Lady Coveted, as our guest editor today. For those of you that do not know her or her blog go to The Coveted. Her blog is amazing and is built around her personal style. When I think of Jennine, Brave is a word that really comes to mind (stylish is just a given). She uses her blog as a way to connect and share all the beautiful things life has to offer. I stole most of that last line from her ‘about us‘. As her tagline states- be stylish • be lovely • be coveted- So without further adieu I give you editorial and picks from Lady Coveted.

One of my favorite pieces is this button up blouse with bold black and white stripes. It’s so simple yet, it’s such a strong, graphic statement. While the black and white combo is nothing new, it’s also timeless. I can always mix with other elements, patterns, checks, gingham, florals, polka-dots. I picked these three pieces because they really emulate how I’m feeling at the moment, feminine silhouettes, effortless Parisian trousers, ruffles and lace. – Jeninne

Clockwise from the top these are her picks from our smashing designers:
1. Bye Bye Birdie by Dahl by Project Runway’s Alison Kelly
2. Amsterdam in Navy Stripe by Misile
3. Ginsburg Trouser by Laura Dawson