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( More hopeful days at the Republican convention)
It seems that the entire Palin family, most notably Pa Palin – Chuck Heath, is getting in on the double speak about Sarah’s expensive taste in clothes.
Here’s how Maureen Dowd ( NYT) describes it:
“Palin’s father, Chuck Heath, told The Associated Press over the weekend that his daughter was “frantically” trying to sort out the clothes she got as Eliza Knowlittle so she could send them back.
“You know,” Heath said, “the kids lose underwear, and everything has to be accounted for.”
As Michael Shear reported in The Washington Post, on top of the $150,000 first cited in F.E.C. filings, Palin spent “tens of thousands of dollars” on more clothes, makeup and jewelry for herself and her family, including $40,000 in luxury goods for the First Dude. The campaign was charged for silk boxers, spray tanners and 13 suitcases to carry the designer duds, Shear reported, adding that one source said, “She was still receiving shipments of custom-designed underpinnings up to her ‘Saturday Night Live’ performance” in October. Silk boxers and custom-designed underpinnings? Sounds like Sarah and Todd were treating the vice presidential run as a second honeymoon.
Palin should follow her own reformer precedent and put the borrowed underpinnings on eBay. The windfall would undergird her new presidential bid.”
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See also Palin’s double speak
I just had to laugh – here is what Gawker had to say about this performance.
Listen up, voters: It was not Sarah Palin’s idea to try and fool you by wearing fancy clothes she would not normally have anything to do with! The Republican National Committee bought an opulent $150,000 wardrobe for her and seven family members before she even showed up at the convention, the former vice presidential nominee told Fox News Channel’s Greta Von Susteren Tuesday night. The legendary MAVERICK was just “goin’ with the flow… if that’s the way they do this.” She’s never even been to a Saks or Neiman Marcus. Why on earth is she telling everyone this now? Read More…
Not only is Sarah Palin blaming it all on the stylist - but it seems that perhaps in the current financial meltdown the first frippery to go will be the stylist. Read Vanessa Friedman ( FT) for greater insight into the subject. It seems that women of a certain Hollywood bent will take the great risk of styling themselves rather than continue to fork out their hard earned but rapidly diminishing returns to this particular member of the maintenance entourage. She came to the conclusion whilst looking at photographer Mark Seliger’s work. Whilst some musicians and Hollywood types were quite obviously styled, others were somewhat in the raw and this shocking fact led her to her musings. This along with a spot survey conducted in the beauty and hair salons these high mainetnance women and men might frequent.
Exhibit 1 : A classic Seliger portrait of Anne Hathaway – caught somewhere between stylists.
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Oh dear – I fear that even though the New York Times reports that the Amy Winehouse costume is second only to Sarah Palin’s look this Halloween ( although not every punter has $150 000 to spend on the Palin effect) Amy Winehouse is living the scary reality. Apparently the dear, troubled girl was checked into hospital on Saturday night- looking the worse for wear and positively ghoulish. Her spokesperson was desperate to disavow any rehab connotations but the pictures are quite telling.
I don’t know I wish she would just get over this stuff – Halloween should be a transient condition not an ongoing one.
Perhaps Amy should do Cindy Crawford doing Amy Winehouse and just wake up all clean cut and substance free in the morning – the mole wouldn’t hurt either.
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In a desperate bid to regain her folksy appeal which her designer closet undermined Sarah Palin has disingenuously manifested in her jeans – ( and a killer platform heal I might add).
Me thinks the lady does protest too much – but here is the story as reported on AP for what its worth. I also loved Maureen Dowd’s put down – Valentino Barbie anyone? ( Miaoow)
Sarah Palin’s designer clothes sent back into the closet
(AP) Anne Barrowclough
Sarah Palin is to forgo the designer wardrobe bought for her by the Republican Party, and will go back to wearing her own clothes, she has told supporters.
To emphasise the point that she really does have simple tastes, the Alaskan governor appeared at a campaign stop in Asheville, North Carolina last night dressed in jeans. Her own. Read More…
( The Great Depression )
Well everyone knows that the old school fashionista is hackneyed – but who has replaced this outmoded freespending creature with a yen for instant fashion gratification ? Elle is punting the Sytlista but there is a term that might be much more relevant in our current economic climate – the recessionista. This is a person whose tastes and retail interests might aspire to designer goods but whose diminshed means make such aquisitions a little more tricky. Savvy shoppers have taken to finding the cheap and chic version of the goods their little hearts desire and they are blogging up a storm about it.
This article from the New York Times chronicles the phenomenon ….
Stephanie Diani for The New York Times
COST CONSCIOUS Mary Hall started a blog to chronicle her cheap and chic choices.
Consider the $1,235 patent-leather satchel with golden hardware designed by Anya Hindmarch.
Mary Hall, a marketing manager at I.B.M. in Redondo Beach, Calif., heard its siren call. Then she went to Target to purchase a similarly shiny purse, made out of polyvinyl chloride, by the same designer. Price: $49.99.
“In the current economy, I thought I would reform,” Ms. Hall said.
Welcome to “recession chic” and its personification, the “recessionista,” the new name for the style maven on a budget. That the word represents the times could explain why Sarah Palin’s new wardrobe ($75,000 at Neiman Marcus and nearly $50,000 at Saks) struck some as distasteful.
Read More…
I just have to comment on the fact that $150 000 spent on making Sarah Palin a sartoriallly believable candidate – never mind her extended family – pales in comparison to the excesses of Cindy McCain - who spent twice that on one outfit.
I for one am not the friend of Sarah Palin’s working girl look – then again I am not running for vice president. Apparently though this is one style makeover that wasn’t – all she has done is up the designer label ante, so instead of shopping at Target ( like Michelle Obama briefly ) she has taken to some pretty traditional Washington old school options – like Oscar De La Renta and Escada. Peculiarly it is also one makeover that is not having the requisite uplifting effect – political pundits are saying that the average working class bloke her folksy yet super sexy mumsy was meant to appeal to, has been put off by her designer excess. So much the better I say – Obama’s my homeboy.
Here’s a great analysis of the makeover that wasn’t.
I quite liked what Cindi Leive editor on chief of Glamour magazine had to say “My first reaction when I heard about this was, ‘Honey, I could have dressed you for a lot less than that. If you asked me to figure out where the $150,000 went, I’m not sure I could tell you.”
Read More…
Ah those It girls – eminently practical – Peaches it was reported by Heat magazine is playing perfectly to type. Could this be the plot of a chick lit novel? I had to comment on this given that we have previously discussed this subject at length. Anyway the 19 year old lass has thought long and hard on this question and concluded that her starter marriage to drummer Max Drummey won’t “last forever”. If only because two ridiculous appelations in one familty are two too many….
She said: “I’m realistic, you can’t ignore divorce rates. Every friend of mine has parents who are divorced. I didn’t go into it with Max thinking, ‘This is going to last forever,’ but I did go into it thinking, ‘I love him right now and I know that I’ll continue to love him for a long while.’ He thinks the same.” – “I’ve never been swayed by looks. I mean, you’ve seen some of the people I’ve dated in the past! I’m not the type of girl who will chase after a Brad Pitt look-a-like. I like intelligence. “Max is amazing. He has this magnetism – I suppose I fell under his spell.”
( This is the Heat magazine shoot)
Well she’s not the first child bride or the last – just look at Sarah Palin’s plans for her teen pregnancy issue
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So much for sticking to my convictions about not saying anything more about the chick with the shotgun and bikini who would be VP. I just read the funniest article in the New York Times – they tracked down the lady who gave her the up do that has spawned a million up do copy cats….
Apparently conversation turned regularly to the joys of hunting – Nice!
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