New York City Ballet soloist, Ellen Bar. Photo courtesy of J.Crew
Remember those dashing real guys from
J.Crew's
November catalog? They've met their match in a group of real-life ladies featured in the upcoming March mailing (out this week).
Creative director
Jenna Lyons gives
StyleList a sneak peek at the company's new "muses."
In good Grecian style,
J.Crew highlights nine muses, each with an arty bent. The creative team selected these women for their inventive and inspiring tastes. None are professional models, but each has a keen aesthetic sense which shaped their catalog ensembles.
Lyons plucked a few of the muses from her own circle of friends, including author and fashion consultant
Amanda Brooks and interior designer
Celerie Kemble.
Stylist
Dianna Lunt was recruited after the J.Crew team saw her picture on the
Sartorialist street style blog. "I have pictures of her on my wall," confesses Lyons. "We cold-called her because we've been personally stalking her style."
A couple of muses cropped up in J.Crew's own backyard. Molly Carey is a designer for the line who creates bib necklaces on the side.
Mei Tao, a photographer who works with the company, "wears J.Crew like no one else," promises Lyons.
And who's that girl that you can practically hear laughing right in the center of the catalog cover? Naomi Beckwith, a curator at
The Studio Museum in Harlem, whom Lyons met at a museum event.
Each of these women reveal more about their personal style and their creative endeavors on the
J.Crew site. These aspects influenced their catalog looks. "We created outfits for them that they'd be comfortable in, that would make them feel like themselves," explains Lyons.
For instance, the polished
Kemble appears in a pencil skirt and chiffon-and-petal embellished cardigan. Tougher-edged Lunt, on the other hand, rocks a bomber jacket.
Further into the catalog, the professional models step in, posing in the
new season's line. While glimpses of a boat, palm fronds and azure water evoke warm weather, the shots focus on a feeling rather than a location.
"We used the outside more like a studio," said Lyons. "We wanted you to feel that intense sun when summer comes around."
How about one of the biggest seasonal trends: shorts? The catalog is full of them, paired with everything from a boyfriend sweatshirt to sequins.
"Shorts right now are the skinny jeans of summer," counsels Lyons. "If you have the legs for it, by all means, go for it! No holds barred. I think a big oversized men's shirt and little shorts is so sexy."
The menswear pages, meanwhile, also have special guests: The men of "
Monocle," a London-based global-culture magazine. J.Crew's
CEO Millard "Mickey" Drexler has known "Monocle"'s editor-in-chief Tyler Brûlé for years and gradually the idea of a catalog feature developed.
The "Monocle" staff agreed to let J. Crew do the styling; the photos were snapped in the editorial offices and in front of the brand's shop. "Tyler has an office full of smart, interesting, adorable boys!" enthused Lyons. "What more could you want?"
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J.Crew's March Catalog
Jenna Lyons gives a private tour of J.Crew's March 2010 catalog. (Coming to a mailbox near you this week.)
J.Crew
WireImage.com
J.Crews March Catalog
The front cover of J.Crew's new spring catalog spotlights nine "muses" -- all real women in the art, fashion and design worlds, rather than professional models. Each muse has a personal style that signals creativity and a brilliant personality.
J.Crews March Catalog
Curator Naomi Beckwith met Jenna Lyons at a museum event and the two clicked. "She's incredibly dynamic and funny... and making a name for herself," says Lyons. "She's a natural, great in front of the camera." Here, Beckwith wears a drapey yet lean blazer in a new wool blend.
J.Crews March Catalog
This dramatic pink-and-white dress practically begs to be danced in, so Lyons hit up the New York City Ballet. Ellen Bar, a soloist and co-creator of a film version of the Jerome Robbins dance "NY Export: Opus Jazz" slipped on the silk chiffon and did the honors.
J.Crews March Catalog
Lyons warns that photographer Mei Tao is far more than meets the eye. "She's soft-looking and there's a beautiful, slouchy way about how she wears her clothes." "Then she opens her mouth and talks like a truck driver with a Brooklyn-Chinese accent! And she's hysterical!" She wears a J.Crew exclusive -- the women's Baracuta jacket in a special slim cut.
J.Crews March Catalog
Rather than emphasize a particular location, the catalog uses scenic details to evoke a spring mood. "The palms have that beautiful silvery-ness to them, that white reflection," Lyons points out. "Mixed in throughout, this gives you a sense of sun without so much of a sense of place."
J.Crews March Catalog
The swimsuit pages also soak up sunlight but skip the cliché beach scenes. This bikini is done in the season's new "rose vines" print -- a dainty gray floral with dashes of strong pink. The pattern also shows up on an office-worthy button-down shirt and, most surprisingly, a romper.
J.Crews March Catalog
Introduced here in a metallic nubuck, the "Beacon" carryall has been dubbed the "tobo," a hybrid of a tote and a hobo. Its pouchy like a hobo bag, yet filled with pockets like a tote.
J.Crews March Catalog
Monocle magazine editor Tyler Brûlé and his staff played models-for-a-day. Brûlé shows off J.Crew's signature high-low mix with broken-in chinos, a chambray shirt, wing tips and a pocket square.
J.Crews March Catalog
This season's menswear standouts include pants, shorts and polos in sun-faded shades. "It's all about the wash, the subtlety of the color," notes Lyons. "It's such a different thing with women, who have all the bells and whistles; for men we obsess over subtle things. We take care to wash all the samples before we shoot them so that you see how they'll look when you wear them."
J.Crews March Catalog
And read about J.Crew
going global via Net-A-Porter.
