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Style
Jun
22
White House Advisor, Melody C. Barnes Jumps The Broom
Filed Under Obama Posse List, Style • Leave a Comment
At the moment broadcasters proclaimed Barack Hussein Obama the next president of the United States, a friend cued Sam Cooke’s, “A Change Is Gonna Come.” Yesterday, we couldn’t help but recall those lyrics as we read The New York Times Sunday Vows column featuring President Obama’s chief domestic policy adviser, Melody and her new husband, Marland Buckner Jr.
The song opens with Sam explaining, “I was born by the river…” as was Mrs. Buckner whose birthplace rests on the James River.
Oh and just like the river I’ve been running ever since.
MELODY C. BARNES and Marland Buckner Jr. first bumped into each other about a decade ago in a breezy chance meeting on Capitol Hill. …Ms. Barnes, now 45 and President Obama’s chief domestic policy adviser, was then chief counsel to Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts. Mr. Buckner was a legislative aide for Senator Charles E. Schumer of New York. “I was a random junior staffer so she quite appropriately paid me no mind,” Mr. Buckner, 42, said…What he didn’t know was that Ms. Barnes, who is known for her sharp mind and impeccable dress, was still searching for a soul-mate.
It’s been a long, a long time coming
But I know a change gonna come, oh yes it will
It’s been too hard living…
She and her friends often joked about the cast of characters who came courting, including the date who announced that his primary passion was whittling. But one of those conversations left Ms. Barnes in tears, recalled Laurie Rubiner, her good friend.
“We laughed about it, but it was heartbreaking,” Ms. Rubiner said. “Here is a 45-year-old woman who is so successful, yet the one thing that really defined success for her, family and love, was something she didn’t have.”
More details of the romance and a bit of Sam Cooke after the jump. Read more
Nov
13
The Return of the Interview Suit
Filed Under Style • Leave a Comment
Semantiks at Nordstrom
The New York Times features the headline above along with a picture from the 1959 film “The Best of Everything” in which a group of tight-sweatered secretaries admire the suit worn by lead actress, Hope Lange. We are pretty sure that the two-piece, white-shirt, boring-shoes ensemble has never ceased being the uniform of would-be barristers the world over, but now everyone is on notice.
From the NYTimes:
Pants or skirts? Opinions vary, but all agree on a more formal look for these sobering times.
…with the unemployment rate in America at a 14-year high and more than half a million jobs lost in the last three months alone, there has been a detectable shift in the way people are dressing for work. In the financial sector, certainly, the tone has become more serious, and as a predictable result, somber suits are making a comeback. Companies like Men’s Wearhouse and Tahari are reporting an upswing in suit sales, particularly for those classic navy or gray pinstripe styles they classify as “interview suits.” Arthur S. Levine, known as the suit king of Seventh Avenue (who now designs a collection of women’s career clothes in a joint venture with Mr. Tahari), said he sold 1.8 million outfits this year, almost 10 percent more than he had expected.
Theory at Nordstom
Clearly the 50’s weren’t “The Best” time for black women of color who for the most part were excluded from corporate offices (as they are from the picture the NYTimes shows). While we can’t do anything about that, we do offer you these looks modeled by two lovely women of color.
If you are one of the few remaining black attorneys in BigLaw or flush with cash from a resent tort settlement, you need not shop for yourself. From the ABA Journal:
Being well-dressed costs money. But for a lawyer, looking tailored and professional in an attractive, well-fitting suit is a worthwhile investment, Tony and Tara Costanzo say.
Semantiks at Nordstrom
That message has put the 30-something married couple in business, helping several hundred clients including numerous lawyers in the New York area, order the right clothes without ever having to shop for them, reports the Connecticut Law Tribune in an article reprinted in New York Lawyer (reg. req.).
The Costanzos will meet busy clients as and where needed, and once held a clothing consultation in a courthouse restroom. Then they order the right clothes, in the right size. Ready-made suits start at just under $500; custom-made suits begin at close to $1,000 for men and $1,500 for women.
We can’t say we buy (pun intended) that being well dressed has to cost THAT much money. Not to beat a clothes horse, but why not simply use the FREE personal shoppers available at upscale stores? Or, better yet, tap your firm’s best dressed receptionist to cruise online catalogues on your behalf.
