Simply Retro Chic

My trip to NYC made me realize that, well, I am right to love retro. Specifically Mid Century Modern chic and having confirmation by one of my favorite design houses, makes me all the more giddy. Ralph Lauren has a gorgeous set up that feels oh so nineteen fifty fab, Or 40 fab, I mean… Look at the picture! He even had a very art deco display with a gorgeous peacock and lots of greenery and a red purse in the middle. Read more

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Trend Watch Summer 2007

After speaking to Paul in June of 2007, about where I think the trends are heading in fashion and media, I speculated that, we will see a lot of 50`s and 60`s influences. However, I feel we may even see 20`s and 30`s in the mix.

My validation? A nice remake of one of my fave movies, Hairspray, AND the Summer 07 Vogue magazine, a very flapper like Natalia Vodianova, as the fashions gear to the retro starlet mod. Also the very steady sprouting of sites like Madam Talbot.

But on my portfolio, Fashion Flips has a very distinct 50`s-60`s look blended with modern colors and patterns, making it in my view a very classic and timeless site. I predict this site will do very well with women of all ages as it depicts what a classic, stylish woman should wear.

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Eye on Design-Mid Century Modern Makes a Classic

Remember The Beetles, The Kennedys and The Space Race? I sure don`t- go ahead, laugh! I`m just not old enough- but the 60`s are making a very tasteful comeback. From the beautiful hand drawn pieces to crazy decor, you have to notice that is not quite 70`s and not atomic 50`s. The 60`s are in fact the last decade of innocence and many artists try to recover that in children illustrations and Dr. Seuss-y like drawings.
Inspired by these, a new generation of artist and cleaner looking sites are emerging. From www.milkfresh.com to www.dailycandy.com, these simple, whimsical yet very mature and classic depictions of hip-ness are certainly worth mention. Not only I think they are chic, but they are changing the internet landscape and making it beautiful. I didn`t design them, but I wish I had! The perfect computer made illustrations are changing for a more, handmade, Sunday afternoon drawing session style.
I feel the girly character design fad is sure to fade if artists who stick to only one style. I have been playing around with the style and love it. If you are interested in something like this, please email me.

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Lost in E Minor Feature

I am so happy that I have featured at Lost at E Minor.com. Lost in E Minor has featured some of the most distinguished and cutting edge artist in fashion, film, music and design. They have featured designers, musicians and illustrators like Mark Ryden, Cold War Kids and THE one and only Paris Fashion Week.

I am humbled, thankful and honored to have been featured. There is a voting feature there and if you vote for me, my article gets bumped at the top of the page. You totally don`t have to, but it is appreciated. I rather celebrate my joy with you and share with you that my dear friend Paulette pushed me to do it (I love you Paulette, you rock!) and Morgan Mckean dressed me up for success and submitted my info. If you are going to hire someone, she is the gal for you.

Lots of love,
Elaine
P.S. Uncle Bronchitis is finally moving out. Cousin NQuill has been sleeping over!

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Advertising Zen Finding Branding and Market

It amazes me sometimes how some business owners do not think of advertising as a essential part of branding. Give this some thought, if you still watch regular TV and not TIVO, have you ever taken the time to see how many commercials are you watching? Regardless how conditioned you may think you are to ignoring them, if the right pair of shoes are flashed at me, I am there for the shoe sale. The same goes for sites.

Manufacturers are ever wiser, placing product labels clearly visible on to your favorite movies and shows. Like E.T. and Reese`s Pieces and most recently Everybody Loves Raymond and Turkey Hill Ice Cream ( The only reason I know this is because I live nearby Turkey Hill Dairies).

So how do you get smart about your ad dollars and finding your market?

• •Make it clear and present. That logo you paid through your nose for, better be clear and present in that banner. It must be legible and sized so no one has to squint to see it.
• •Clean up your act. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, when you advertise with a company, make sure their layout is not messy and cluttered by other ads so much that your banner is lost. A neat and clean lay out will be worthy of your advertising bucks.
• •Reach and withdraw. Too much of a good thing it`s never good. Just like an annoying person that is always everywhere, an ad that is constantly displayed will become like a plug in fragrance dispenser. Forgettable. Have your ad set to give between 4-5 impression as this has been the proven method for branding effectiveness.
• •Bigger is indeed better. Sorry boys, I am talking about banners. Those tiny buttons do nothing. A 125×125 banner is good but a 468×60 banner is your best bet.
• •Be a prime time queen. Make sure you know when your TARGETED audience will arrive at your banner. Most advertising sites like adbrite.com will tell you what times are best for the demographic you are targeting.
• •Brand the Face. Humans are programmed to recognize the human face anywhere. Even when it`s not really there.(Have you ever looked at the sky and saw a face?) Having a face in your banner specially when the banners are small, it will help you get noticed!

Advertising is indeed a part of branding. Working your money smarter will get you better results. Knowing these tips will not only help you get noticed, but will amount to excellent branding and catching that elusive sale.

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Image Improvement-Content and Graphics Part 1

Think for just one moment about these questions, What do I sell? How is my website`s presentation? Better yet, how is the presentation of me? Think back to when you were starting your store, what was the feel you wanted for your store? Is your about me page`s content matching that feel?

Web content writing is hard. When you are on the web, you rely on as few words to give you the information you need. Bloggers are not faced with the same agenda, since blogging is a type of journaling. However, long blog post are lovingly called haikus and the hate of reading them is posted all throughout the web.

Here are a few tips to get it right:

?Web content delivery to the point. I want you to visit Michael Kors.com and look at how they have written their product description. Descriptive words are ok. Just remember descriptive words are like frosting on cake, too much frosting and you start missing out on the cake. (Read: Cake=$$)

?A picture is worth a thousand words. Imagine you are called in for an interview to be a top exec in a prestigious company. Are you going to wear jeans, or your Chanel suit? If you said the Chanel suit, then you understand the value of first impressions. Every time a new customer comes to your site, they are going to “hire” you for your product. Then why would you put in pictures of your product that is less than perfect? You will in fact lose money each day product looks like it was photographed on your bed linen.

?Go Feng Shui on your writing. I include myself in the bunch for this one. I wrote in an earlier post, how something that may mean a thing to you and nothing to your customer. In writing, what means something to you, will mean something else to your customer. Ergo, if you write on your about me page “I am a stay at home mom,” and to me that means someone with a home business or home office. To a buyer, it may mean you are working in the middle chaos of home and you are distracted and perhaps would not buy from you.

?Minimal sophistication- My mother has this gross Spanish saying, that literally translated means that a closed mouth gathers no flies. This is a lesson on less is more. Less does equal to sophistication.

?Your website is a frame to your items. Not the other way around! Would you buy an over embellished picture frame for a very classy black and white picture? I recently had the opportunity to rework mychicthings.com, a site that was very tastefully adorned, in hind sight, too adorned. The tone on tone color and graphics were blending her product into the site. Her new, cleaner color scheme is a step up from the last version.

There is much more I could say on the matter. Everyday I shop on the web and find myself tangled in confusing information, straining to see images and assaulted by color. Nonetheless, you have a choice. Choose wisely grasshopper!
Love,
Elaine

©2008 elaine biss. all rights reserved.

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Is pink still in? New Color Trends

“Think pink!” “Pink is the new black!” “Only real men wear pink!” Is the pink frenzy gone? Are we all pinked out? Although it is still widely used, it is not as a popular choice as it used to be. Once the boys play with pink, it loses the girly factor. Oddly enough, China` color for boys is pink! Read more

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Feng Shui Your Site

Although some may argue that is impossible, I feel some of its concepts can be applied to web design. Feng Shui means water and wind, implies the seen with the unseen and is a term that has been used for over 3000 years.

I heard someone describe it as finding the acupuncture points on a land or home in order to have a specific effect. Another guru mentioned that it is the art of arranging a space in order to attract things. You get very well acquainted with a similar concept, when you start to learn design. It`s called accessibility.

Feng Shui chinese characters-Dreamstime.com

I have always felt that your site is your home on the web. I have clients who obsess about intro pages, wanting a particular font or are completely stuck on one color. Every thing you own and love is connected to you by a memory or a feeling. Even a font can have the same effect!

Per example, my husband gave me a one carat diamond and gold pendant when we got married. The pendant is very dear to me and I often find myself touching it when I need comfort. The pendant connects me to the energy (chi) of the memory and its consequent effect is one of calm and center. I am sure that the effect would be the opposite if I had divorced him.
<—A feng Shui room.Dreamstime.com

Although a web site is either a place for information or shopping, some of the concepts can be applied to web design. Here is a little guideline!

• ?Craddle in the comfort and safety of a chair-Just because I love my 9 inch heels doesn`t mean everyone else does. Highly adorned websites may look cute to you, but are not effective at what you want, which is selling your items! Look at gap.com or victoriassecret.com. These sites make purchasing a breeze and evoke safety. That doesn`t mean you can`t have graphics, because they have fantastic visuals, but I don`t feel assaulted by neither color or patterns. The previews are large and attractive. I am comfortable, safe and invited to shop.
• ?Change is good-Declutter! I am totally guilty of this as I recently had a third eye visit my site and critique my working space on the web. The repetitious pages are extremely counterproductive. Time is the new currency, being able to provide information at one glance will not only allow for a much simpler layout, but will make buying much easier.
• ?Honor yourself, Honor your visitor -Are you cheating your customer of the experience of shopping at a boutique? I love, LOVE, buying from pinkparisdesign.com. Paul takes extra care in the packaging, sending her cards in a fabulous pink box, tissued with damask paper and the cards come in a frosty pillow box tied with a silky ribbon and hang tag that is shimmering with german glass glitter. Even her notes resembles silky frosting! A neglectful box is a sign of someone who doesn`t care. If you don`t care about packing, why would you care about selling? You are as good as your store!! Honor yourself! Attention to detail honors the customer, and in turn customer honors you.
• ?Environment displays consciousness-This pertains to the reason of displaying art or furniture and why we hold on to it. In the case of my site, I wanted to display all I can do and say everything in one go-my front page. WRONG! When you open your door, do you give your resume to a stranger? No, you introduce yourself! My front page now has a paragraph introducing me. Also putting improper personal information on your site is as bad as walking into your house and finding a bra in the middle of the living room. Why would you let everyone know what age are your kids or what was your school mascot? Usually those are your security questions on different sites,. You might as well put up a sign that says “Stalkers wanted.”
• ?Honor and respect create beauty-No one likes a messy room, same goes for a site. A logical category order is imperative if you plan to make money with your site. Although in our every day, we will add items, rework category order and rewrite information, your site cannot remain in a state of creative chaos. If you do, not only will you not feel creative and motivated to work on your site, but you will lose money each day you let it go. You must organize, organization is beauty. Beauty equals money.
• ?This means something to me-Great! That, which you are holding on to, means nothing to your customer. Ponder even deeper, why do you hold on to it? Imposing the presence of an item, artwork or pattern because it makes you feel good, may be completely having the opposite effect. I recently met with a client who had wanted an all pink site. Why? “I love pink!”She says. The shade of pink she wanted was very baby pink and her high end, sophisticated items would suffer the association of “baby”, small and not adult. Think of what your store is representing now and what YOU want the store to represent. If you have a large discrepancy between the two, then it`s time to change.

Feng shui is a discipline that can take a lifetime to master. I know enough about it to make a few calls here and there. However, the more and more I learn about, I can`t help but think that this sound advice can be applied in every aspect of your life.

Feng Shui Lucky bamboo-Dreamstime.com
©2006-2008 Elaine Biss. All rights reserved.

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What I learned from Fashion Week

John Gilliano is bringing back the Jackie O.
Dior Line 08/09
How I would design a website based on this-Mod is back. Black is always classic. Having a nice pattern frame out the actual content, will frame the goods well. In this case, her face and hair.

Bruno Pieters makes ties trendy again.-YEAH!!
Fall Winter 2008/2009
How I would design a website based on this-Feminine design can be serious too! Gray is the best neutral, but it`s drab alone. A touch of red accentuating the main areas creates an attention point, highlighting what matters. Tone on tone also makes the piece visually interesting. A girl can play like a boy and look good too!

I love this one! Designer Rajesh Pratap Singh sets up a white stage, a bright color and a neutral.
Fall Winter 2008/2009
How I would design a website based on this-If you are going to use bright colors in the main content area frame them with white and/or black. Neutral colors offer the eyes a resting place when the colors are bright. Bright colors should be used lightly!

That to pull this Martin Margiela look you need to be 6 foot 3 inches and 90 pounds.
Fall Winter 2008/2009
How I would design a website based on this-Well… I love earthy neutrals. They will always and forever be chic!

What is out for fall winter 2008/2009- prints, crazy backgrounds, over embellished pieces.
It`s really easy to keep your designs fresh. Although it is easy to look to peers for inspiration, the best anyone can do is just to look around! If you can draw inspiration from a rock, you got a gift. If what your inspiration produces is beautiful, you got a classic.
Love,
Elaine
Photo credit Associated Press| Yahoo.com

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