POLLY POINTERS, FAREWELL NO, NOs By Polly Guerin

When you’re given the boot on the job or for that matter in a personal relationship it is easy to at first want to seek revenge, criticize or condemn the person or the organization. This should be the furthest from your mind. I’m a proponent of the old adage, “Don’t burn your bridges.” In other words savvy fashionistas take a stiff upper lip approach, smile and when questioned by peers or friends with inquiries like, “What happened?” They just smile and say, “I really cannot discuss it at this time,” or “It was an amicable agreement.” And don’t let the conversation go any deeper than that.
KEEP RELATIONSHIPS POSITIVE One of the first rules of farewell savvy is 'honey is sweeter than vinegar.'  When it comes time to end the relationship (or you were given the pink slip) try to keep as friendly a relationship as you possibly can with co-workers or individuals. WHY? Okay good question. Because you would be burning bridges with people with whom you may find yourself working with again at another firm. Or when a couple splits you’re bound to run into one of the partners again and their friendship may still be important to you.
REVENGE BACKFIRES Some people just cannot help themselves and criticism seems to be their best revenge, but it is the worst thing they can do. Whenever someone tells me a nasty piece of business or criticizes a company or fellow worker I immediately wonder, “If they can say this and that awful thing about their colleagues, what are they saying about me?” On the other hand when someone departs and is no longer a couple I wonder what they saw in that person in the first place when they criticize with such vengeance and assassinate that partner’s character in such a degrading manner.
NASTY SECRETS Sometimes it gives the ousted person an opportunity to tell nasty little secrets, which they think will align the listener to their sympathies. This shows very poor judgment and besmirches their reputation. People usually react to revealing office gossip, secret affairs or confidential company business unfavorably, and may wonder shy such a jerk ever was hired in the first place. A public dressing down of a company's executives, your boss or the firm itself can actually get you into legal trouble, particularly if you have signed an agreement with the firm that you won’t malign the company’s reputation. On the personal side of the secret compass you're better off keeping mum. Best policy, do not reveal any juicy details of a couple’s personal life that may have been given to you in confidence. Keep your dignity intact and refuse to listen. Such secrets should be kept in the vault and never discussed.
HIGH END EMOTIONS Many people just can’t wait to set the record straight and make the mistake of sending retaliatory emails at the height of their emotions. Okay, go ahead; you need to vent those disappointments or rejection. However, be sure that you don’t press the send button. Save that email or any written communications as a draft and then read it over and over again the next day and see how you can soften the blow and chose words that show that you’re a straight shooter. Remember that you should always keep your communications on a friendly basis because you never know when you’ll need to reconnect with someone at the office or on a personal level.
SAYING GOODBYE LIKE A PRINCE OR PRINCESS Even if you think that you have been wronged, hold your head up high and sail forth on a sea of positive outlooks. Remember, maybe getting fired was the best thing that happened to you, because it forced you to press onto a better situation. If you must communicate then sit yourself down and write an email to your colleagues and tell them what an honor it was to have worked with them, but don’t point anyone specifically out for commendation, just be magnanimous about how much you learned at that great company. On a personal level, think how lucky you are that it is over. Try to remember the good times and don’t have regrets. The flame of love may have died but you still don’t want to burn the bridges of friendship or possible reconciliation.
Last word to the wise. In all situations keep your emotions in check, think before you speak, before you email or write and most of all keep yourself dignified and confidant.

MONOCHROMATIC, FASHION NEUTRALITY(c) By Polly Guerin

Do you want to stand out in a crowd of geometric and flower prints? Well, nothing is more dramatic or eye-catching than monochromatic fashion, that all-in-one, top-to-toe neutral color scheme that evokes a highly personal style of dressing. It’s fashion’s newest message but it is one that often the average fashionista has discovered to be difficult to pull off with confidence. It takes courage to go the monochromatic route, but it has its unfussy appeal. Monotone beige, washed out pinks, water aqua, pale grey, simple beige and warm champagne are the latest crop of neutrals. Pure white is yet another story. It is challenging to take the leap into top-to-toe white, but it’s dramatic and makes a ‘WOW’ entrance.
DRESSING EFFORTLESSLY The monochromatic look is simple, sharp and totally individualistic. It’s an effortless answer to color-coordinating garment pieces with a singular message that spells chic, rich and iconoclastic. It could also be less expensive on the fashion budget. For the timid, the simple beige would be a good starting off point. Brazil-born designer Francisco Costa’s spring collection for Calvin Klein evoked the clear neutrality of Lalique vases. Diana Vreeland, the famous fashion icon, wore head-to-toe red and adorned her apartment in the same color. A fashion designer I totally admired stood out from the fashion crowd because she always wore simple beige from her beret right down to her matching shoes.
SHOPPING MONOCHROMATIC Shoppers need only keep focused on one color scheme. Nothing looks more modern or chic than a matching trench coat tossed over a matching jacket and pants. It looks couture, it looks like you can afford the dry cleaning bill. Color-coded accessories also figure into the mono look and complete the total image. Just think about it, with such neutrality there are no distractions. People will focus on You, not your clothing. Take White, for example, it is the personification of purity and honesty. These are messages you would want to convey in business. It says you’re a high-minded person with scruples and integrity.
COLOR INTERPRETATION Blue has always been a perennial favorite and even the palest blue monotone evokes a sense of honesty within the core of its coloration. It lifts one’s spirit and says that you are a steadfast and reliable person. Pale pink may be too girly for career women, but its inner strength is red mixed with huge dollops of white. It is warm and inviting and sends out messages of nurturing and love. As for pale grey, it has the foundation of black creamed over with a lot of white and it is a no nonsense color that works well in the office. It evokes neutrality, a peaceful player in corporate hi-jinks. Not every monotone works on every woman. It depends upon your complexion and hair color. Before plunging into a specific monotone evaluate the effect on your total image.
MONOCHROMATIC IS STYLISH AND SAFE. IT CUTS RIGHT THROUGH FASHION CHOICES AND CONVEYS A UNIQUE LOOK THAT CAN BE CULTIVATED TO BE ENTIRELY YOUR OWN IDENTITY. RECOGNITION OF YOUR MONO LOOK ATTRACTS ATTENTION. AH!, ONE MIGHT SAY, ‘THERE SHE IS IN A SYMPHONY OF BLUE.’

PANTOMANIA, FASHIONISTA STYLE (c) By Polly Guerin

Pantsuits spring into action as a fashionista's stylish expression of freedom and panache. There will be more busy print pantsuits and busy pants mixed in with solid coordinates at retail to let you walk on the wild side of fashion. Geometric, faux snakeskin, aquatic swirls, jacquards, pop-art and abstracts hit the runways at Prada, Peter Dom, Louis Viutton and Jean Paul Gaultier heading the pack. The pantsuit couldn't be more modern, than it is today, coming full circle with a coordinating coat or jacket to set a woman free and to complement a woman's demanding lifestyle:

THE FASHION TREND If you are timid about prints, the key to wearing this print trend is ‘do not tread into uncharted territory,’ stick to traditional solids and throw in a jazzy new jacket to update the look. If you can go full throttle and carry off wearing a matching jacket-and-pantsuit style, in one of those audacious prints, be careful what kind of print you choose to go head-to-toe. You could be perceived as very daring, a ‘take notice of me,’ type of gal and that might work in social occasions, but the office critics might put thumbs down on the look.
FASHION HISTORIAN The pantsuit was introduced in the 1920s, when a small number of women adopted a masculine style, the ‘garcon,” boy look, including pantsuits, hats and even canes and monocles. Seems to me that with such a shortage of men, who were sacrificed in WWI, women just needed to have some semblance of a man around. When WWII came about and Rosie the Riveter and her friends worked in factories it seemed a practical solution to climb aboard in ammunition and airplane building work wearing pants for modest distraction. Fashion designer, Andre Courreges introduced trousers for women as a fashion item for women in the late 1960’s.
YSL’S PANTSUITS In 1966, designer Yves Saint-Laurent introduced his Le Smoking, evening pantsuit for women that mimicked a man’s tuxedo. In 1968, the designer’s line of “Safari” suits, transformed the functional hunting outfit into town wear for women, and by 1970, with the acceptance of trouser suits, the Western woman’s silhouette was assured for career wear. By the way there was a time when restaurants would not seat a woman wearing a pantsuit or trouser. Such an event happened to me at one of those tony French restaurants.I had to run over to one of the department stores to buy a skirt. Nothing like that happens today; because ‘boy’ would they lose business. So uptight was the reaction to pantsuits that until the 1990s, women were not permitted to wear pantsuits in the United States Senate.
A LOOK AT THE PAST Trouser, harem pants, pajama style has been acceptable as an element of Orientalizing ensembles, for sport, as lounge wear and beachwear. Trousers were popularized as an expression of iconoclasm by celebrities like Greta Garbo, Marlene Dietrich and Katharine Hepburn. Today, fashionable women opt for the lady pantsuit in bold and adventurous prints with accessories to coordinate. Miuccia Prada, for one, included patterned shoes and purses to match some of her pantsuits in Milan. Such bold and pop-art prints that are offered today are not meant for the faint-at-heart fashionista, but the choice of an individual who can carry off such bravado. Aside from being fashionably correct one great advantage of the pantsuit is that you cannot be a victim of upskirt photography or accidentally expose yourself by leaning over or sitting awkwardly in a short skirt at a television interview or board meeting.

For what it is worth, remember that it was Amelia Jenks Bloomer, who created the first feminine garment approximating pants called ‘bloomers.” The outfit liberated women from skirts, whalebone corsets, petticoats, bustles, and created an unprecedented freedom. Bloomers did a lot to influence the popular feminine bicycling costume of the 1880s and from then on women sprang forward mobilized into the future.


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Polly Guerin
http://www.pollytalk.com/
pollytalk@verizon.net

PIXIE CUTS, HEADY BOYISH STYLE (c) By Polly Guerin

The dictionary explains Pixie as a small pert, mischievous person who is playful, impish and whimsical. So what does that have to do with the current comeback of the boyish cuts, the pixie style and other incarnations of lacquered spiked hairdos? Well, Pixie style is not for the faint of heart. It takes a gutsy gal, preferably one with a cute, youthful face to pull the Pixie hairstyle off with pizzazz. Otherwise short no-nonsense unkempt hair just looks downright dowdy. Well, in a nutshell maybe those starlets like Hally Berry and Mia Farrow can get away with the Pixie look but as Noel Coward decreed, “Please Mrs. Worthington, don’t put your daughter on the stage.”
ART DECO CAPS IT ALL The chic cap-like hairdo with short bangs and its side curlicues was all the rage with the flappers of the 1920s and in a sense as hemlines got shorter so did women’s hair. Short mannish bobs may have had their incarnation as a reaction to the loss of thousands of men who had been sacrificed in WWI and the over population of women. It was an era of the gamine, the boyish look. Tamara de Lempika the famous painter of the era depicted her streamlined beauties flaunting their new independence with short sleek hair. On the silver screen Louise Brooks, pictured here, personified the capsulated look that even the most conservative woman could easily adapt. Mary Martin with her impish looks could certainly convince us that Pixie hair was the style of the moment.
ACCENTING THE POSITIVE The best advantage of a Pixie cut is its wispy nonchalant attitude. It can create an elegant swept up look that enhances one’s cheekbones and gives ample room to accent the eyes with a smoldering or innocent look. Audrey Hepburn’s Pixie cut was indeed the personification of the ingénue look as she gazed out at us from Breakfast at Tiffany. For one thing her marvelous bone structure took center stage and if you’re lucky enough to have such an advantage then go ahead and chop away but please remember to look in the mirror and ask yourself, “Is this right for me?” Maybe you should try a wig on first to see if it’s ‘You.’
SOPHISTICATED CUTS Don’t think that all you need do is to step into the nearest barber shop and demand a Pixie. It takes a talented hairstylist to generate the delicate layering, the wispy tendrils that caress your face and taunt viewers with your whimsical prankish hairdo. And it really isn’t maintenance-free because the Pixie, boyish cut needs to be regularly maintained to perfection, or else it just sags and drags you down. Twiggy said it all when she made the scene and transformed herself into a fashion icon but my all time favorite pixie sprite is Kate Moss whose gorgeous face simple overpowers the pixie cut.
Enough said. One thing to remember is that the Pixie is charming on the right face and on the right age of a woman who is young at heart, is perky and has a pixie sense of humor.

EMAIL THANK YOUs...I HATE THEM!!! (c) By Polly Guerin

I hate “Thank You” emails. They miss the beat on social etiquette and reveal a person who thinks that an email is all that is needed when a written note is most likely the correct thing to do. For every step forward in electronic communications it seems that we have stepped backward as social communicators. People know how to use the computer and high tech devices but have forgotten how to connect with one another. That’s because thank you emails have no real voice, they are so impersonal, they lack sentiment, they make me feel like my largess is tossed off as if it meant so little that all that the sender need do is to email a one-liner thank you and be done with it. Nothing doing. Polly Manners says that if you want to make the right impression consider becoming the fashionably correct in these uncivil times.
THE BIRTHDAY LUNCHEON/GIFT When you have been invited and treated to a birthday lunch and a special gift is given as well it would behoove you to send a written thank you note as soon as possible after the occasion. That note, which in the old days was called, “a butter note,” can be brief, but it should include something about the gift and what pleasure you expect to derive from it. You might start your note with a one-liner, “Thank you so much for the special birthday lunch, sharing it with dear friends made it so special. I am also deeply touched by the gift of the (blank, blank) and it will bring me years of pleasure. I shall never forget this warm and touching expression of your friendship.”
THE DINNER INVITATION It may not be a special occasion, like a gala, but even if you are invited to dinner at someone’s home, the afterglow of the event should inspire you to send a written thank you note. If you are lucky enough to be invited to as a guest to a gala, a fund raiser dinner, or an organization’s annual event it is sufficient to say that a courteous hand written thank you note on your finest stationery is appropriate. For a gala you might say, “It was a pleasure to attend the (blank, blank) gala, and I thank you most heartily for inviting me to participate in the celebration, which was so impressive, and, for me, a memorable occasion. Sincerely, Your Name.
QUALITY NOTE PAPERS It is a good idea to invest in some quality note paper and letterhead, which can be individualized to your specifications. Or you can find some nice note cards at the Metropolitan Gift Shop with a gold icon of a butterfly or heart motif. Always have different quality note cards handy to dash off a thank you note. You can’t imagine the pleasure the recipient has upon receiving such correspondence. It actually makes a person feel that their effort to include you in a dinner or gala really resonated with your finest sensibilities. A note like a letter should express some quality of yourself in the language used and the form you choose in the shape and style of the paper, the color of the ink, and even the design of the postage stamp.
PLEASE AND THANK YOU I have noticed plenty of executive men and women who do not know how to hold a knife and fork properly, but the lack of kindness and consideration is far more egregious. The inability of people to relate to one another has really deteriorated. There are far too many people today that have not learned how important it is to take time to say, ‘I’m sorry’ and ‘Please’ or ‘thank you. A gentleman friend of mine related how he held the door open for a woman who sailed through and never said, ‘Thank You.’ I recently stepped aside to let a senior person pass onto the bus before me. You bet, no thank you came forth.
FIRST NAMES BOTHER ME If you’re like me there is the inevitable phone call from a firm and the person on the other end of the line, a perfect stranger, addresses me by my first name. I’m immediately annoyed with this overstepping the boundaries of social etiquette. They might at least, ask first, ‘Do you mind if I call you by your first name?” I most probably would say ‘Yes.’ However, I never let my college students call me by my first name. It was always Professor Guerin.
Enough Said!!! If you are deeply moved by some experience, write a thank you note or brief letter. It will give the recipient great pleasure. Of course, the obligatory note can be avoided by the simple expedience of a brief telephone call, but it should recapture the moment and, yes, be sure to include your impression of the event that made it so memorable. But, don't blow it away and leave a message. You would have to call back when your host/hostess is available.

PEPLUM...Trendy Fashion Revival (c) By Polly Guerin

What can we say in favor of the peplum? “The dictionary describes it as a short full flounce—an extension of a garment below the waist covering the hips.” In one way it accents the waist and conceals a small tummy but in another more egregious way it just adds more fabric to a part of a woman’s body about which she is most sensitive.
POLLY'S OPINION In my opinion the peplum is a carry-over from another era and fashion designers' penchant to reinvent a woman’s figure. Whatever the reason, the peplum has re-emerged in red carpet fashion shows and while the look is stunning on model-like figures, if you are short or slightly overweight there is no way you should consider bringing more attention to your figure flaws than is necessary. So ban the peplum…but if you’re model-skinny the peplum is a charming new way to wear your fashion.
BLAME DIOR When the celebrated “New Look” made its debut in 1947 the picture of a fashionable woman presented a silhouette with nipped-waist jacket that had rounded hipline creating as it did, the dernier cri, hourglass silhouette. Full skirts, curves and slightly padded and nipped waistlines recall the elaborate designs of the 19th century. If you are a model-type like Kate Middleton, who has been spotted wearing peplum dresses, you can get away with wearing anything and it just looks perfect, but oh that flirty peplum gives me pause to reflect on my not-so-perfect figure.
THE CURRENT PEPLUM REVIVAL The craze for the peplum was more vividly popular on television in the 1980s. Remember the TV soap operas “Dallas” and Falcon Crest” and those female fashion victims with their broad shoulders and peplum silhouettes. Women viewers got the message and peplums were fashionable again. I ask you, “Is the peplum a reincarnation, a modernized throwback to the bustle of the Victorian era? Yet, for spring fashion collections pay homage to the peplum and for many women the peplum poses a problem. If you are not runway-model slim the peplum will just accentuate your hips and if you have a short waist the peplum only exaggerates how short your waist actually is.
KUDOS TO THE PEPLUM Some praise is needed to thank the peplum for accenting the waist and making it look smaller. It is a refreshing change in silhouette but I protest adding anymore fabric to my body than is necessary to look fashionably chic. However, there are still those fashionistas shoppers out there falling prey to the peplum craze, even if the look just doesn’t work for them. So I ask you. “Are they going to wear the peplum fashion to impress their girlfriends?” Believe me no man concerns himself about whether you are wearing the latest fashion trend; he is more interested if you are interested in ‘him.’ Yes, of course, darling you should look band box pretty, but consider seriously whether the peplum is right for your figure type.
NEED I SAY MORE…ADAPT FASHION’S LASTEST TREND WITH CAUTION!!!

Polly Guerin
www.pollytalk.com
pollytalk@verizon.net

VUITTON, LV MONOGRAM ROYALTY(c) By Polly Guerin

Louis Vuitton, one of the world’s leading international fashion houses well known for its LV monogram is one of the most counterfeited brands in the fashion world due to its image as a status symbol featured on luxury trunks and leather products to fashion ready-to-wear accessories, jewelry and footwear. It is the subject of an exhibition, “Louis Vuitton-Marc Jacobs” at the Museum Les Arts Decoratifs in Paris and runs through Sept. 16, 2012. Marc Jacobs, as you know, has been Vuitton’s artistic director since 1997. The multimedia exhibition examines the vastly different periods in the fashion industry: the 19th century world of steamer trunks by founder Louis Vuitton, and the exuberant global business generated by Marc Jacobs. VUITTON ON THE PARIS RUNWAY Vuitton’s originals were always luggage, steamer trunks and cases meant for elite travelers and Marc Jacobs’ Paris show took off with a spectacular presentation that harkened back to the glory days of travel and suitcases. At the recent Paris showings two massive steel doors parted and a full-scale 1890s navy blue locomotive with the name Louis Vuitton on the tank in gold lettering, pulled into the temporary LV station at Cour Carree du Louvre in a bath of steam. Elegant models disembarked one by one wearing richly adorned dresses; each greeted by her own uniformed porter with armloads of Vuitton bags. It was a fantasy production with even a suitcase-inspired crocodile train cases with giant Swarovski closures and baggage that went from miniature to oversize in a spectacular display of Vuitton workmanship. Viva Vuitton!!! It just made me want to board the Orient Express, piled high with LV luggage. THE LUXURY BRAND Louis Vuitton Malletier, commonly referred to as Louis Vuitton is a fashion house founded in 1854 by Louis Vuitton who introduced his flat-bottom trunks in 1858 making them lightweight and airtight and easily stackable. It is curious to recall that before the arrival of Vuitton’s trunks, rounded-top trunks were used, generally to promote water runoff, and thus could not be stacked. Within short time luggage makers began to imitate Louis Vuitton’s flat-bottom style and design. To protect against duplication, Vuitton changed the Trianon design to beige and brown stripes and copywrited the lightweight, waterproof trunks in 1867 with the “marquee L. Vuitton deposee, which translates into “L. Vuitton registered trademark to curtail imitation of the famous Vuitton look. The famous monogram, LV, as we know it today was produced in 1896 as an homage by Georges Vuitton to his late father.LOUIS VUITTON REVISITED Louis Vuitton did not merely step up to the stage of celebrity luggage maker, he honed his skills. After spending seventeen years apprenticing at one of Paris’ packing specialists, house founder, Louis Vuitton set up his own operation on Rue Neuve des Capucines in Paris, France, noting “English Spoken” on his first label. It was the Golden Age of luggage when well-to-do women would change dresses up to seven times a day a dozens of trunks were required for a voyage. The exhibit in Paris clearing illustrates this point with a trunk from 1888 bearing a plaque from the House of Charles Frederick Worth, considered the father of haute couture. With the genius for marketing in 1897 Vuitton participated in the universal exhibition in Paris as well as other exhibition venues which contributed to establishing the company as a worldwide corporation. THE MARC JACOBS ERA The street-smart New York designer enlisted to launch Vuitton into the international marketplace with ready-to-wear and fashion accessories also gets his due recognition at the exhibition. Louis Vuitton may have seen a world mobilized by travel and industrialization, but it was Marc Jacobs who represents modern communication and global expansion through collaborations with celebrated artists. Stephen Sprouse, for one, in collaboration with Marc Jacobs designed a limited-edition line of Vuitton bags that featured graffiti written over the monogram pattern. In 2003, Takashi Murakami, in collaboration with Marc Jacobs masterminded the new Monogram Mulicolore canvas range of handbags and accessories in 33 different colors on either a white or black background. Murakami also created the Cherry Blossom pattern. THE LVMH HOLDING COMPANY Louis Vuitton worldwide sells its products through standalone boutiques, lease departments in high end department stores, and through the e-commerce section of its website. 1987 saw the creation of LVMH. Moet et Chandon and Hennessy, the leading manufacturers of champagne and cognac, merged respectively with Louis Vuitton to form the luxury goods conglomerate. http://www.louisvuitton.com/.