The NY Times today has a profile about Lolitas, a fashion subculture of young women that began in Japan and has been appearing around New York of late. Lolitas seem to alternate between dressing overly innocent with bright pastel dresses and bows in their hair and then dangerous, taking on a more goth appearance, a clash reminiscent of the "kinderwhore" look sported by many 90s female punk bands in America. A handful of Lolitas talk......

More budget and waistline conscious New Yorkers around the city are packing lunches at least a few times a week. Aside from sporting a Spongebob Squarepants lunch box or re-using shopping bags, there are plenty of stylish and eco-friendly options out there. Restaurant mogul Mario Batali just launched his own line of lunch totes (is there anything that man doesn't have his hands in?!), ranging from mini-totes to messenger bags, depending on your style and......

Move over Madonna, you may be 50 now, but newly divorced Christie Brinkley's 54 and sans scary arms, in fact, "her hair is thick and golden, her skin is tanned but only just. Her teeth are gleaming, her waist is narrow." That's all according to the opening paragraphs in the uptown girl's cover story in New York magazine's current style issue. Rafael Nadal graces the back cover, and we learn all about his pirate look,......

The critical darling 1960s ad agency drama Mad Men and its "Man in the Gray Flannel Suit" fashion inspires a NY Times look at what passes for advertising agency style these days. Boutique ad agency Droga5 CEO Andrew Essex sums it up: “Today, it’s the man in the artisanal T-shirt, selvaged denim with holes in them and really expensive vintage sneakers from a small boutique in Japan. The personalities haven’t changed that much, just the......

Clearly sensing an opportunity among fashion-minded new mothers, a Seattle-based company is making sure babies are at their most fabulous. Baby booties, shaped like high heels and available in a variety of styles (leopard print! patent leather!), are coming to NYC from Heelarious. Heelarious, "her first high heels," calls itself "extremely funny, completely soft, fully functional high heel crib shoes for babies 0-6 months" and was inspired by co-creator Britta Bacon's thought, "Wouldn't it......

The Observer has spotted a hot new non-trend: The Urbane Tomboy. The style says, “Sure, I’m still turning heads...but don’t think it took me more than 5 minutes to get out of the apartment.” It's utilitarian chic, and women city-wide are finding solidarity in sweatpants. Or rather, $500 designer jeans. And occasionally a "giant blanket." Next up? The return of the couch dress. Since mystery lurks behind heavy makeup and designer dresses, there's apparently an......

The NY Times looks at some of New York's indie elite in their Men's Style Magazine this weekend. So incase you were wondering what last night's SNL music guests, Vampire Weekend, wear when they aren't decked out in their Columbia University alum apparel, now you know: Marc Jacobs. Or at least that's how The Times translates it. They include a tip to aspiring designers as well, those "searching for indie cred need look no further......

Director of the legendary hip-hop documentary Style Wars, Tony Silver, died last weekend after battling an irreversible brain condition for several years. Shot in New York City in the early '80s and originally airing on PBS in 1983, his documentary is considered to be the first film about hip-hop culture. While the 70 minutes covers rap and breakdancing, its main focus is on graffiti, which at the time was viewed by some as a groundbreaking......

Gucci has been touting its love (or ♥) of New York with a new "Gucci ♥ NY" line of luxury products and 46,000 flagship store on Fifth Avenue, but its legal department never cleared the usage of the trademarked "I ♥ NY" logo. According to the Post, the Empire State Development agency was never contacted for permission. Accompanying another Post article about the "I ♥ NY" logo being used for cigarette and ashtrays, it turns......

Okay, so you don't want to go out to watch the game and cooking is not an option. What can you order besides pizza? Plenty, as you already know (hey, we live in New York City, folks!). But we've found some particularly mouthwatering Super Bowl delivery specials, many of which involve pork. Mmmm . . . pork. Momofuku will deliver their glorious bo ssam -- a whole pork shoulder cooked to tender perfection. It comes......

After a turbulent couple of months at Gawker, the New York Times Style section is checking the media website’s pulse and wondering, with equal parts hope and desperation, if Gawker has finally jumped the “snark”. The Times’s uptick in Gawker stalking mirrors their aggressive game of catch-up with “teh internets” by increasingly emphasizing blogs on their website, and the article finds the Gray Lady digging a nice, cozy grave for Gawker owner and editor Nick......

Recently, legend became reality when a 10-story building in SoHo was being converted to a luxury condo. Unearthed in the walls was a large mural created by graffiti pioneers Fab Five Freddy and Futura 2000.The artwork contains a variety of images and writing executed in spray paint, grease pencil, magic marker and whatever else was on hand — in silver, gold, pink and red. There are cartoonlike pictures of a bomber airplane, images of a......

You might have had a copy of Strunk and White's The Elements of Style on your desk in high school or college. It was your go-to reference book whenever you forgot (yet again) where you should stick that damned apostrophe. Michael Ruhlman, food writer, trained chef, and most recently, judge on the Food Network's Next Iron Chef, has created his go-to reference guide for the kitchen, The Elements of Cooking: Translating the Chef's Craft for......

Need a last minute costume idea and in a New York state of mind? Here are a few NYC-themed ideas for your Halloween fête... R.I.P.ped from the Headlines • Thor Equities Need: Winged Thor helmet and hammer, brochures or maps (which can be printed out) of Coney Island -- and something to destroy them with. • The Staten Island Ninja Burglar Need: Ninja outfit, complete with nunchucks. Fake stab wound to the chest. Map......

It sounds like a Project Runway challenge: create a look Princess Grace would have worn. However, the six gowns that are currently being displayed in the windows of Saks Fifth Avenue were created by some of the top designers -- each being paired with a specific look to be reinterpreted in a modern way. To help mark the 25th anniversary of her death, and to raise money for the Princess Grace Foundation USA (which......

People planning weddings - or people wondering why they've seen so many weddings outside lately: Theres a nice article about the trend towards weddings in parks and other public spaces in the city in today's NY Times Style section. With parks - complete with dazzling views - getting cleaner and safer, couples are getting married in Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park in Brooklyn and Gantry Plaza in Queens. The most important thing to investigate is......

MUSIC: Last week Craig Finn made a solo appearance amongst the books at Barnes & Noble, tonight he's with his rock band, The Hold Steady, playing another free show. Joining them are the Old 97’s, and newer band, Illinois. A triple-threat lineup with a can't-be-beat pricetag. 5:30pm // 7 World Trade Center [250 Greenwich St] // Free READING: Possibly known more for her role on Project Runway than her fashion direction with ELLE magazine, Nina......

New York City is in the middle of Fashion Week, and last night was Ralph Lauren's 40th anniversary as a designer. And, as Style.com reports, he "staged an extraordinarily lavish runway show and black-tie after-party in the Central Park Conservancy" last night. It was such a big deal that Mayor Bloomberg and his lady friend Diana Taylor stepped out! New York magazine's Show & Talk blog wrote this:Ralph himself seemed blasé. Standing by an......

Tim Gunn's Guide to Style officially premieres tonight, but Bravo served it as a surprise aperitif to Top Chef last night. The gist: Gunn gives a makeover à la What Not to Wear's Stacy and Clinton, the Queer Eye guys, and the popular girl that takes the ponytail out and glasses off of the unpopular girl in every teen movie. His first challenge: a woman that wears Juicy Couture sweats. There is no way to......

Just after Pet Fashion Week comes to an end (seriously), New York's (human) Fashion Week begins. The official start is tomorrow, but heels will be hitting the runway before that. Though far from fashionistas, we've been to a runway show or two in the past - and have always heard amazing things about Imitation of Christ's unusual showings. Tonight IoC's Matt Damhave and Tara Subkoff will be at Snitch (which is still open?!) showing off......

September 3: West Indian–American Day Carnival Some may go for the dancing and general festivities, but some of us will be headed to this celebration for the food. The Eastern Parkway service roads will be lined with stands selling dishes from throughout the Caribbean, including jerk chicken, oxtail, fried flying fish, curry goat, roti, callaloo, and more. 8am–6pm, Eastern Pkwy between Utica Ave and Grand Army Plaza Brooklyn. For more info or directions, visit wiadca.org.......

This afternoon's temperature has been bouncing up and down as the sun struggles to come out behind the cruddy clouds. This morning's clouds were leftover from a bit of convective activity to our south last night. A line of showers is approaching the city from the west. Some of those showers may be intense, as they hit the city later this afternoon and into the evening. A high pressure system behind today's cold front will......

Today's new and narrow NY Times Metro section features a battle over pizza propriety. The Times reports Papa John's Pizza is opening right next door to Johnny's Pizza, a 39-year-old Sunset Park institution. John Miniaci Jr. whose father started the pizza parlor in 1968 is none too happy about this development and not just because Papa John's is a blight upon the very word pizza: Miniaci's father died just a month ago. In fact John......

Senator Hillary Clinton has never been on the cutting edge of fashion. Nor was she ever meant to be (okay, she was on the cover of Vogue in 1998) and she's poked fun at her fashion choices (have pantsuit, can rule the world) before. But this past week, everyone's got an opinion about her style. During the Democrats' YouTube debate, when asked what he didn't like about the junior Senator from New York, Senator......

COMEDY: This weekend marks the 9th Annual Del Close Marathon. Del Close, if you don't know by now, "was the driving force behind improvisational comedy in Chicago for over 30 years influencing Bill Murray, Tina Fey, Mike Myers, John Belushi, Chris Farley and the Upright Citizens Brigade to name a few." The annual weekend began after Del's passing in 1999. All Weekend // Various Times // UCB Theater [307 W 26th St] // $10 shows,......

This Sunday there will be a screening of the 1983 classic Wild Style at Summerstage, followed by performances by some of the rappers in the movie. Busy Bee, The Cold Crush Brothers, GrandMaster Caz, Fab 5 Freddy and more, including some special guests. More info on the event, which is celebrating the 25th anniversary of the movie, is here, but let's take a look back to when it was filmed. Wild Style was the first......

Burdock root, also known as gobo, tastes something like a nutty artichoke potato. The long, slender, flexible roots don't look like much, but they have a lot of flavor if you slice them thin and braise them to bring it out. Don't bother peeling off their thin skin, which is both tasty and good for you. When we went foraging with Wildman Steve Brill last weekend, he brought this dish as part of his......

Brooklyn’s sprawling Chinatown, concentrated on 8th Avenue from 62nd to 42nd Streets, has an array of bakeries, dim sum houses, noodle take-out shops. Mixed into the neighborhood are some Malaysian restaurants, Vietnamese sandwich shops, and even a branch of the chain Hong Kong Supermarket. Lower Sunset Park rents and smaller, rentable square footage make it ideal for a crop of modest, decent restaurants. Because it’s less touristy than Manhattan’s Chinatown, it is also a great......

Yesterday was not a great day in the Rodriguez household: Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez left the game with a strained hamstring and his wife Cynthia was raked over the fiery NYC media coals after wearing a tank top with a swear-word on the back. Yankees manager Brian Cashman told reporters he had discussed the situation with Cynthia, "She's part of the family and obviously, we'll just keep that in-house." The Post believes C-Rod bought......

The Post didn't shy away from printing a photograph of Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez with a blond stripper friend on a May cover, and they aren't shying away from showing Mrs. A-Rod, Cynthia Rodriguez, in an PG-13-rated shirt today! Cynthia Rodriguez was spotted at Yankees Stadium wearing a white tank that said, on its back, "F--- You." The Post notes that she was sitting with her 2-year-old daughter and that many young fans saw......