Barneys, Balenciaga and Bugs

Some of you may remember that the last time I was in Barneys in New York, mom had a rather funny encounter with a bee and a Prada bag.

Well, it seems that the Prada department on the ground floor of Barneys has some sort of critter problem, as this past weekend, something equally troublesome was afoot in amid the overpriced bags. As I entered Barneys and wandered over to the Prada dept., I witnessed the salesgirl fleeing away from behind the counter and shrieking, "Ewww, Omigod, Omigod!"

"What?" I asked, horrified and amused at once. "Is it a bug? That happened last time I was in this dept.!"

She shook her head and her eyes were wide with fear. To me this translates to one thing: Rodents, capital R. As you all know, I have a thing about Rodents. In fact, they are one of the main reasons I was driven out of Manhattan, the Rodent capital of the country.

I asked the saleswoman what she'd seen and she just shook her head and kept running. Hello, enough of a cue for me to move over to the Balenciaga section. I often have to aid and abet mom and her friends in their fashion purchases.

"Steph, what will I wear this with? Can I wear this with jeans? Is this too young? Will this go out of style in a year? What do you think?" they often ask. Of course I always tell them the truth and they often buy the pieces and wear them for years. Such was the case with mom and all her Habitual, Citizens, Seven and Marc Jacobs jeans, and often is the case with Lynn. This time, I talked mom into another pair of jeans (she seems to think five pairs is "enough"), faded brown Habitual ones, after I lost a bet with her in which I proclaimed, "Mom, they just don't make jeans in brown anymore." Well, imagine my chagrin when I found just such a pair, by my favorite jeans-maker nonetheless, at Barneys. You can't win em all.

So I would love to start a personal shopping advisory business to cater to my mom and her friends, and others interested, but this is just a dream at the moment. In the interim, they get my profound wisdom for free. As do you;)

Anywho, such was the case as mom and I moved away from the rodent and into Balenciaga-land. I have been trying to convince mom to bite the Balenciaga bullet for a few years, mainly cause I love the bags, they are super-soft and lightweight and she desperately needed a large every day bag. (Plus, when she gets sick of it, I'll be the lucky recipient.) This time it worked, and as is always the case when my advice is sought by her in fashion matters, she is wary at first and then happy. She lurves this bag as much as I do. Check it out:



I myself didn't score so big this time—just a new pair of Habituals, a new pair of Nikes for the gym and two shirts at Bergdorf's, which I actually purchased myself, a first among shopping expeditions with mom—thanks to a clandestine rule/deal crafted between my dad and my therapist, for which she will be read the riot act. I mean, shopping is one of the pre-eminent bonding rituals between mom and me. So, brilliant therapist or not, she can't take that away from me. And, finally, I got a good shot of my mom's beloved (on my behalf) Chopard watch. I got to wear it New Year's Eve, and proceeded to stroke and kiss its beautiful face throughout the evening. Yummy, yummy, yummy, I've got love in my tummy for this watch.


And this is the facade of the Cartier store through the window of a cab, which I just thought was pretty.