Sperry + J. Crew = Topsiders (Top-Siders)

Hello and Happy New Week!

We have spent most of the day driving halfway across the state and back, so we shall do some quick headlines, starting with an update on one of the Royals we enjoy watching, England’s Princess Eugenie. It seems she has been a little rambunctious.

In fact, one recent headline reads:

Watch out Harry! Princess Eugenie’s about to steal your hellraising crown

PHOTO: Focus Pictures

It seems the Princess (one of Sarah Ferguson’s daughters) paid a visit to what we shall call a ‘Gentlemen’s Club’ recently; the Daily Mail is just one of many papers reporting the antics in this story:

“…rocking down to the (misleadingly named) SophistiCats Gentlemen’s Club, a strip-dancing joint where men pay £20 for a girl to twist suggestively in front of them, as Eugenie did last week….

“It was 4am — an hour before the bar closes — when Eugenie and her friends turned up…. when Eugenie and her friends turned up and started tucking into a £165 bottle of Bollinger.”

“She then bustled over to the podium where girls in G-strings were working the poles and asked if she could have a go.”

Not surprisingly, there was no comment forthcoming from either Scotland Yard or the Duchess of York.  In the ‘Good News for the Princess’ category, the young lady did pass her driving test last week. Back to the ‘Bad News’ side of things: we are declaring a “When Pink Goes Bad” alert on the pink eyelashes the Princess is sporting in the photo above.  (We’re betting that Europa Fox has the inside scoop on this story.)

BTW, the always fun Shoe Blog shared the new Eugenie heels from Christian Louboutin.

Eugenie by Christian Louboutin

As we are speaking of footwear, Brooks Brothers is doing their Women’s Shoe Clearance, with styles now 75%  off the original selling price.

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Our next headline needs little explanation; it also typifies the “picture telling a thousand stories” axiom:

PHOTO: News of the World (UK)

Why do we have a sinking feeling this photo (which Mr. Phelps has verified as authentic) is already plastered on a batch of tee-shirts somewhere?

The superstar athlete has also issued an apology:

“I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public it will not happen again.”

The IOC and two of the swimmer’s sponsors have expressed their support for Mr. Phelps, including Omega, who said they consider the issue a private matter and a “non-issue.”  What do you think? Does Michael Phelps have to adhere to a stricter code than other twenty-somethings, or is this a private event that the media is blowing out of proportion?

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We jump back to the topic of shoes with our next tidbit.  For one fond of both Sperry and J. Crew, this should be a godsend: those two companies getting together to collaborate on the ultimate pair of Topsiders. There are two different styles: the Men’s Broken-in Original Suede Sperry Top-Siders® in Dark Wood…

and the Men’s Broken-In Khaki; both retail at $98.

All styles are lined in J. Crew’s cotton Chambray, and all have been given a broken-in look. There is also this Original nubuck chukka Sperry Top-Siders® in Espresso; this style is $125.

As described on Crew’s website:

“The original boat shoe is back and better than ever. We custom-colored each pair (in collaboration with Sperry, of course) and lined them in our famous cotton chambray—details you won’t find anywhere else.”

If you can just give us a moment here we shall dig out our photos of the Women’s version of the Top-siders.  Give us just a sec…ummm… hold on, we’re still looking…. uhhhh, well, we can’t find them. Why can’t we find them? Because they are not available in Women’s.  Oops. That’s why we said above the collaboration “should be a godsend.” Our thanks to Hypebeast for the original information on this one.

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Someone leaked a memo from the Bank of England to WWD and it’s fascinating, as it contains directives as to how female employees should dress for work.  From this story in WWD:

“Look professional, not fashionable; be careful with perfume; always wear a heel of some sort — maximum 2 inches; always wear some sort of makeup — even if it’s just lipstick.” Shoes and skirt must be the same color. No-no’s include ankle chains — “professional, but not the one you want to be associated with;” white high heels; overstuffed handbags; an overload of rings, and double-pierced ears.”

And we thought our wardrobe tilted a bit toward the stodgy!

Until next time!

The Michael Phelps Sports Illustrated Cover & Are Those 8 Gold Medals Helping Chicos Sales?

The Princess apologizes for showing so much ‘Beefcake’ these last two days, but it can’t be helped if we are to do the public service of supplying readers with the most current fashion and lifestyle news. And there you have it:

The most current news of some kind, we are not completely clear what kind it is, other than the photographic sort. But evidently these covers of sporting magazines are quite a topic of discussion following major sporting events. Of course, there isn’t a precedent for an athlete winning 8 Gold Medals at an Olympics. The closest of course, was Mark Spitz.

But that photo of Mr. Spitz up above on the left didn’t make the cover. Mr. Spitz was on three different SI covers as best we can count, while Mr. Phelps has already been on five. Below we share another example, but that’s all. We can’t have people thinking this blog is nothing but a flesh factory! To see the other covers of Mr. Phelps and those of Mr. Spitz, or any other SI cover, just click here.

It never ceases to amaze the Princess how powerful the impact of a Gold Medal athlete can be, for things completely unrelated to the accomplishments of the athlete. Consider for a moment the clothing worn by Debbie Phelps, mother to one record-breaking, mind-bending Team USA swimmer.

Did you pay much attention to it? Wonder where it came from? Where you could buy it? (Neither did we.)

We were too busy marveling at an amazing Mother who piloted her son through a life spent chasing a dream, and then helping him in its ongoing management following his success at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.

But someone paid enough attention to find out where Michael’s Mom *did* purchase her apparel, and apparently all, or a good portion of her Beijing wardrobe is from Chico’s. If you aren’t familiar with them, they are generally put in the same group that includes Talbots, Ann Taylor, Coldwater Creek, and a few more catering to women a bit beyond their teens or early twenties. The company also owns White House | Black Market and Soma Intimates.

According to reports from a number of sources, Debbie Phelps shopped at a Chico’s store in a Baltimore suburb before leaving for Beijing. However, there isn’t any ‘sponsorship’ arrangement between the retailer and Ms. Phelps according to a recent Forbes story online.

There is no official sponsorship deal between Debbie and Chico’s. “Fortunately for us, she just likes the brand,” says Bob Atkinson, vice president of investor relations at the women’s specialty retailer.

That doesn’t mean Michael Phelps’ success in the pool and the reflected scrutiny of his mother hasn’t been good for business. Another Chico’s executive shared her thoughts with Access Hollywood:

“Ever since Debbie first wore Chico’s in Beijing, our phone lines have been ringing off the hook. Women everywhere want to know how to get Debbie Phelps’ look!” Michele Cloutier, Chico’s Brand President, said in a statement released exclusively to Access Hollywood.

It turns out that Debbie Phelps will be filming a commercial for Johnson’s Baby division tomorrow; the company named her their “Mom of the Olympic Games”. She is already active outside of her many roles as a middle school Principal in Baltimore and Mom of three; she is the national spokesperson for a Facebook group called ADHD Moms. The group can be found on Facebook.

Access Hollywood also managed to find out that Mr. Phelps will be on a cereal box, actually two cereal boxes: Kellogg’s Corn Flakes and Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes. Those hit store shelves in September, and heaven only knows what deluge of Michael merchandise we’ll see before then. (Just another reason to have Cook make up an extra batch of Scotcheroos!)

Mr. Phelps has not enjoyed much down time following that last appearance on the podium. His list of sponsors is already lengthy, including Omega watches, Visa, and Hilton Hotels. Now that the competition part of his Beijing stay is completed, many have expectations of Mr. Phelps. For example, yesterday it was the Speedo Athlete Media Day.

And having been to, and around, so many of these type functions for years, TP can assure you it is not all fun and games, despite appearances.

It can be very tedious indeed. And as Mr. Phelps was estimated to be earning between $3 million to $5 million a year through his endorsements *before* Beijing, at that level you know the sponsors must be taken care of.

Michael Phelps (2nd R), Ryan Lochte (2nd L) and Australian swimmers Eamon Sullivan (L) and Grant Hackett (R)

Enough of the Speedo shenanigans or we’ll be back to the Beefcake and we won’t sink to that level.

In fact, at this point it is rather enough of all the swimming and things and we’re off to a League function! We hope you enjoy a splendid evening!

(BTW, the photo credit for this most recent SI cover goes to Simon Bruty.)

NOTE: We have corrected Mrs. Phelps’ title, which was originally and mistakenly published as ‘teacher.’ This redacted version of the post now accurately reflects her professional status as a middle school Principal. Our thanks to Becs’ Bohemia for enlightening us on this one!