The Style Scouts will be the face of American Rag and spread their goodness and promote positive self-image to all who will listen.

To enter, create a video that shows your personal style and music inspirations/aspirations and submit it here by March 16, 2010.

Three lucky ladies will win and all expenses paid trip to New York City or Los Angeles, the opportunity to model for an American Rag advertisement seen in the September 2010 issue of Seventeen, the chance to star in an American Rag All – Access video, and VIP access to report for a Warped Tour 2010 date of your choosing.

I’m not sure if I would be more excited about the ad seen in Seventeen or the VIP Warped Tour reporting. I guess it depends who is playing Warped this summer— why haven’t I checked yet? ]]> http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/2010/03/09/contest-alert-american-rag-all-access-contest/feed/ 0 http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/2010/01/05/prc-in-style-sample-issue-5/ http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/2010/01/05/prc-in-style-sample-issue-5/#comments Tue, 05 Jan 2010 16:08:36 +0000 Chelsea Rae Simmons http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/?p=1564 I’m featured in the fifth edition of Style Sample magazine in the ‘Blogs to Watch’ section (p. 8-9).

Thank you, everyone at Style Sample. You’re wonderful, and I can’t wait for the next issue!

In fashion, there will always be a newer, hotter trend, designer, or style icon, but it’s the controversies that really get people buzzing. First it was all about the lack of diversity in the fashion industry, but it seems plus size is the new black for 2010.

The lines are drawn, skinny vs. curvy, but I’m not sure which side to take. V Magazine is playing the part of Vogue Italia with their Size Issue which hits newsstands January 14th, 2010. The images from the Terry Richardson shot “One Size Fits All” photoshoot pits Jacquelyn Jablonski against Crystal Renn in a zero vs. not zero, no-holds-barred, pose-off designer duds, in an attempt to prove designer clothes will look good on anyone— who can afford them, that is.

Now, they’ve just released a second photoshoot entitled “Curves Ahead,” and it wasn’t the pictures many of the models wearing next to nothing and looking fierce as all hell that piqued my interest. It was the comments I read on OhNoTheyDidn’t, the first of which was “gross” followed by a “mte” (my thoughts exactly), that made made me stop and think.

Since when was it not okay to have a full figure and be proud to show it off? Isn’t confidence supposed to be sexy?

To be honest, I know what designers mean when they say clothes hang better on tiny, tall girls, but I also realize it’s unhealthy and sometimes down-right impossible for most girls to be a double-zero. I’m not saying I’m about to buy my official team curvy girl “Booty is Beauty” t-shirt because, let’s face it, I’m not really all that curvy, but I do think women can be beautiful no matter their jean size.

The most disheartening comment was written by someone who claimed to also be plus size, “as a plus sized person…this array makes me want to go puke up my coffee and crisps.” A comment that led some to express shock, while the commentor went on to say, “yes well i have lots of hate for my own body. seeing it in picture form only makes me feel worse…i’m munching on new years candies and silently berating myself while enjoying and loathing every bite!”

It scares me that western culture’s ideal of beauty has become so skewed women not only loathe their own curves, but other’s because of what it represents to them. Part of me feels as if V Magazine is only giving this size debate lip service to cash in on a new trendy controversy, but another part of me hopes this makes some small impact not only on the fashion industry but on all of western society.

Photo Credit: Oh No They Didn’t

I really appreciate Rachel and everyone who took the time to feature Pink Rock Candy this summer. Read my interview with Rachel where I talk about my love for bassists, first posting about my sister’s death, and types for starting a fashion blog, among other things.

If you would like to interview me about Pink Rock Candy feel free to email me at pinkrockfashion@gmail.com.

Naughty me. I’ve been too consumed with my own stuff to actually try to figure out why everyone was so stoked about The TeenVogue Handbook, a title that’s been on everyone’s lips for the past few weeks. I initially thought it was yet another unnecessary coffee table book I’ll buy and absently gush about it’s creative views when guests come over.

This is where I apologize, to TeenVogue, Amy Astley, and all my friends who work at the magazine.

From what I can gather via this video, The TeenVogue Handbook is my salvation and will be that of thousands of other girls looking to get their foot in the fashion industry door.

I’ve had, and am having, some amazing experiences working in Fashion Public Relations, and having had such experiences I know the good doesn’t come without a lot of hard work. That is one reason, the rosy picture so-called reality shows like The Hills and The City have put on the fashion industry annoys me to no end.

Young girls watch the episodes and may think to themselves that fashion is this glamorous industry where you play with clothes, go to parties, and take 4 hour lunches, when in reality, the extent of playing done, in Public Relations at least, is imagining if a celeb or model would look awesome in the garment you actually dream of wearing. As an intern, parties are generally attended only if you’re working them, and you’re lucky if you’re able to pop out for a quick bite before getting back to work— sack lunches all around!

I’m not saying there aren’t glamorous aspects of the job, like when the samples are out of season you get to take a piece or two home, but no job is all fun and games, even in the fashion industry. I hope, when I pick of my copy of The TeenVogue Handbook on October 5th, I find that they present the industry as it truly is, full of hard work, long hours, and majestic pieces of wearable art.

I’m not talking about her body, because it looks phenomenal whether it’s airbrushed or not. Jess is amazing whether she’s plus or minus 10 lbs.

Her face on the other hand looks retouched up the wazoo. Maybe her makeup is just off or something. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but it’s disturbing.

I love her trophy jacket though!

p.s. Read some interview spoilers, including predestined comments about her and Tony on PopCrunch. ]]> http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/2009/08/05/whats-up-with-jessica/feed/ 4 http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/2009/08/03/ask-and-you-shall-receive/ http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/2009/08/03/ask-and-you-shall-receive/#comments Mon, 03 Aug 2009 15:21:55 +0000 Chelsea Rae Simmons http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/?p=1188

Just days after I complained about not having images of the Anna Sheffield for Target collection, my fashion prays were answered. This pretty ribbon necklace is the first image I’ve seen from the collection, and I kind of like it. It’s not the metal-heavy lovefest that characterizes Sheffield’s Bing Bang collection, but it’s satisfying enough.

The issue is finally out, and I’m stoked. Also, make sure to read the pieces about NYC’s Bubble Fight in Times Square and the Silent Rave at Union Square. How on Earth did I miss those two events?

Thanks Flavia!

I was asked by one of my best buddies, Secretista, who’s interning at TeenVOGUE to be one of their ‘Bloggers of the Moment’. I was totally stoked at the thought, but seeing the article on the TeenVOGUE blog is beyond my wildest dreams.

Read about the lovely Secretista, here.

It is no secret that weight is an ever present issue in the fashion industry not to mention life. For years, the industry has been criticized for promoting and/or ignoring the issue of the ever-diminishing waistline on the runways and between magazine covers, but it seems the Voguettes are fighting back with vengeance.

Not only can Vogue editrix Anna Wintour be seen, in an outtake from her 60 Minutes interview, likening people she saw in Minnesota to “little houses” while referencing the stereotypical obesity said to be an epidemic in middle America— sort of cliché Winnie— but Teen Vogue’s Editor-In-Chief, Amy Astley also comments on the skewed commentary on weight issues in the June 2009 Editor’s Letter:

“Teen Vogue, like many fashion magazines, takes heat for photographing thin models. Guilty as charged— professional models are nothing if not tall and absurdly lanky… I am not the only person in the fashion industry who thinks these girls would be even more beautiful with a few additional pounds on their bodies. But outrage over even the boniest of celebrities and mannequins seems to obfuscate the more urgent and widespread story about Americans and weight. Only 1 percent of women in this country are anorexic…[while] one in three U.S. children and adolescents are either overweight or obese.”

Am I saying that Wintour and Astley are right and we’re concentrating on the wrong issue? Absolutely not. We’re complex beings, and I’m sure we can take down two issues at the same time. Furthermore, I question the credibility of the info given by Astley. The statistics may be correct, but you have to look at exactly what she’s comparing. She says, “only 1 percent of women in this country are anorexic.” What about other eating disorders, and what about men and children. Also, she says, “one in three U.S. children and adolescents are either overweight or obese,” but what about the obesity rate in adults?

I’m not trying to under mind her initiative, but I’d simply like all the information because I personally go back and forth with the weight issue. On one hand I can see how lithe models can give us normal folk a skewed perception of what a “normal” body looks like and what is beauty, but at the same time I can’t help but wonder if pandering to the anti-size-zero-models crowd is taking the focus off the fact that we live in a would-you-like-fries-with-that world and nine times out of ten the answer is, “Hell yes! But, give me a diet soda, I’m watching my weight.”

As I looked through the online edition of the 16th Bi-Annual issue of Another Magazine with Tilda Swinton on the cover, I was stopped dead in my web-tracks by a haunting pictorial featuring pieces only from the Dolce & Gabbana Spring/Summer 2009 collection. To be honest, I hadn’t paid much attention to that collection, but the D&G clothes, as per usual, are magnificent.

As splendid as the clothing was, it was the actual juxtaposition of the elaborate, decadent dresses with the models undead stares and possessed poses that made me do a double and triple take.

I can just imagine a socialite sticking pins in and a voodoo doll of another overly-privileged socialite who wore the same Dolce & Gabbana dress as her to an event.

When I first saw the May 2009 cover of i-D with Chanel Iman on it, I almost flipped. For some reason, I adore Chanel. She reminds me of my little cousin, and perhaps her relatability is the reason why she has risen to model-fame so quickly. She’s super cute, and you just can’t help feeling proud of her accomplishments, even when you obviously had no part in them.

That being said, I’m slightly disappointed with her pictorial in the issue.

It isn’t the the Kayt Jones shot photos aren’t pretty, but considering it is i-D, I was just hoping for a little more than pretty. I already know Chanel can do pretty. I want to see her in a pictorial that slightly confuses and maybe even offends, but not in a sexual way— offends in a “who’s brain did this come out of because I think I might be in love” kind of way.

The most interesting photo of the lackluster bunch is the one where model, Tallulah Ormsby-Gore is collared and seemingly being dragged being by Chanel with a giant chain, and the only reason that shot catches the eye is because of Tallulah’s intense glare.

Maybe I’m just being overly critical. Take a peek at the photos, and tell me what you think.

Photo Credit: The Fashion Spot

p.s. I know I was slightly M.I.A. last week, but it was Spring Break. What can I say?