SPRING 2012 LOOK BOOK

Hi Everyone!

Deepest apologies.  Insanity doesn't even begin to describe the busyness.  What happened to October??  Seems that everyone is in the same boat for some bazaar reason.  Everyone seems to be as stunned as I am that it's November 11th already, 6 weeks away from Christmas, 65 degrees outside here in NYC...what is going on here?

Well, the good thing about busy is that busyness usually produces something beautiful in the end.  We at Overton Monroe have created our second collection - Spring 2012.  We hope you love it! 

Promising to do a better job with the blog posts. Thanks for your ongoing support!  Onward to Fall 2012!

Post 75 - Bliss

No excuses! Just busy like everyone else I guess. Not much to report on the OM front. We are plugging away. So we by-passed the Resort 2011 season for obvious reasons; that being no sales yet and little capital to develop that season. HOWEVER, Spring 2012 is a MUST. That said, Jerry has sketches ready to go. We are keeping it tight and targeted to 2 groups. We need to be careful and do not want to Waste time or dollars by overdeveloping. That'll kill a biz before even getting off the ground. So 2 groups it is and they are super cute. Sketches to follow.

But....I absolutely need to share my incredible experience from last evening. You all know Bob Mackie, right? I mean really, who doesn't. Well, last night I attended an event put together by the man himself, right here in his NYC offices. In a gorgeous office on a gorgeous floor of an iconic NYC building right at Grand Central, pure bliss! Loads of artwork, costume designs, Collection designs, furniture and OMG this was my heaven. Bob and Edith and the others in their league (though not many can touch that level of talent) are my idols. Some people drool over movie stars and rock stars. For me? Just show me some costume designs drafted for Mitzy or Cher and I'm set. Don't get me wrong, I have the same geeky excitement toward the big leaguers in the Fashion Industry of course! Somewhere deep down, that love for costuming is totally still hanging around. Hmmm, Hollywood perhaps?? Damn...time just seems to keep on slipping right through my fingers. There's a reason mankind has been seeking immortality, the fountain of youth and all that good stuff. I can't imagine I'm the only one thinking "how the hell am I gonna fit into this life everything I want to do?".

See y'all soon!

Day 74 - NYLON Mag

Hi Y'all,

China last week...deepest apologies for the lengthy delays between posts.  I think about "From Start to Fashion" all the time but indeed, life seems to be busier than I think it should be right now!  How does that happen?  Hmmm...thank goodness it's all good stuff, really keeping me on my toes.  But you know?  Sometimes you just need a break from it all. 

Well, we are really happy about our Nylon Mag article!  Check it out!  I bought several copies and so did Jerry.  Our sales guy reminded me that we just might want an extra one to have framed in our corner offices one of these days. Never do know I guess!  Here's hoping....enjoy!

http://www.zinio.com/reader.jsp?issue=416167068&o=ext

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Day 73 - USA! USA! USA!

I'm embarrassed to say that I was sleeping when this tremendous news filled the airwaves! But so happy to awake to my husband whispering "They got Osama!" This hits home for all Americans I'm sure. For thousands who suffered a loss on September 11 and those who have lost precious loved ones since as a result of Osama's evilness, much more significantly than others. For me, I'm thankful that my beautiful brother was safely returned to us from his tour in Iraq. I had a cousin there, lost a childhood friend, prayed as my best friend fought twice, and then heard her cries when the love of her life died at war. There are no words to describe the feeling of emptiness or helplessness. And we were the lucky ones. Anthony came home to us. There's not a day that we don't recognize that gift. Today, I am so proud to be his sister and so proud to be an American.

Day 72 - Mag Hag

And....we're in!! Thanks to a good friend's girlfriend's 1st cousin's wife, we got NYLON! Woo hoo! And couldn't be more excited.

So to all our friends out there, pick up the May issue of the poshest magazine on the newsstand. Get your NYLON mag and read all about it!

And possibly more good stuff soon. We hit up several SoHo hot spots about a week ago. People are interested in the line and agree that there's a definite void in the market for this product category. The good news is that it's reassuring to know that others (particularly store owners & buyers) recognize the need. The hard part is clinching orders. To date? No sales. But we are certain of the future for Overton Monroe. We know that there's room in the marketplace for us. The sky is the limit and we love looking up.

Day 71 - Here goes!

Wish me luck today tout le monde!

Day 70 - We Might!

Very quickly....

We MIGHT have a posh NYC boutique on board!

And

We MIGHT just be lucky enough to have an article in an awesome magazine!

But...you didn't hear it from me!

Don't wanna risk it until confirmed so my apologies in advance for the secretiveness but to be revealed very soon.

Thanks for following!

Day 69 - Helper Outer

Hi All!

Still not much to report. We are plugging away trying to beef up our exposure on two fronts: 1) Editorials and 2) Sales. We've decided definitively to attend the next round of trade shows, most likely Project in Vegas. So we are starting to talk about prep for that. A little nervous to put out the expense but mostly just excited about the opportunities that Project could open up for us!

Just a quick thought for today....yesterday was something amazing. In fact, the weekend was inspirational really. What are you doing with your life? Aside from your professional path, which may or may not involve some type if giving back, there is more we can all do, right? And this weekend proved just how easy it is to make a big difference in the lives of those around us, some strangers, some very close to our hearts. I mean, fewer than 10 people working together to raise a lot of $$ for a family in need? It's so easy! Just make some meatballs and serve it to a pile of hungry Italians in Hoboken and DONE!

Think about it...if you're not doing what you love, what's the point? That's the professional side. And if you're not sprinkling in doing some bit of good for the world, again, what's the point? This is where your purpose comes in...and we all definitely have a reason for being here. But what is it??

I think I just might have figured out the purpose, at least the purpose of my life in this world. I have to say, I feel liberated and really lucky to have found it. I hope you are all seeking it out too. I mean, really, aren't we all? Because it is an amazing sense of fulfillment when that purpose is discovered, truly an epiphany. All the rest is, in a sense, fluff. Don't get me wrong, all the rest can make life awesome and fun and fill up your world with experiences, memories, and basically enhancing your time here. But what are you doing with your life? Who will remember you and how will they remember you?

My secret? I think we are all here to carry on the good. If the nice people aren't put here, then the bad ones takeover. And, as you know, there are a lot of bad guys out there. I can think of several.  But I think there are a lot more good people, far outweighing the bad. Thank goodness! We need all the the soldiers we can get.

Day 68 - Bust

It's snowing....I mean, c'mon Mother Nature, haven't we had enough torture for one year?  And it's not just flurries...it is actually piling up.  What the hell??

Alrighty, so moving on, Bendel Open See is likely not gonna work out for us.  They are clear that no apparel can be shown.  Damn it!  But fair enough, they are an accessories retailer so...

Jerry is working.  Got a great job!  Congratulations to him!  We are working through how to manage our time and still push forward with OM.  Gotta keep a good balance, which we've handled quite well so far.  I don't foresee any problems with this, as we can both manage heavy workloads at work and with OM quite well while keeping the responsibilities 100% separate.  Plus, we LOVE this stuff, all of it.  The more, the better.  We love being enveloped in the world of fashion.  It's in our bones, it's our air.

We started talking with PR companies...now we have to figure out if and when we can afford it.  I mean, I had no idea this stuff was so expensive but I also know it is a necessary expense if we want to expedite the awareness and subsquent success of OM.  So, we'll bide our time and ensure that we make a well informed, well educated decision.

Thanks for following!  More to come.

Day 67 - Hiatus

Ok....so sorry about that unexpected break. Here's why:

What do you do with 2 Irishman in NYC for St. Patty's Day? Well, actually I should say St. Patty's Week? Well, party of course! So we've been entertaining our guests and having a great time doing so. But time to put our noses to the grindstone. Party time is officially OVER!

Here's the latest OM news:
- The Etsy store is up and running.
- We are starting back again trying to get into a showroom for Resort 2011.
- Emails and phone calls are going out to buyers and editorial contacts practically on a daily basis.
- And we are starting to look into PR companies to help us get these pieces in magazines and/or on celebs.

Not much else to report at the moment. Oh! One more thing! Jerry is heading to the Henri Bendel Open Call on Friday morning. Its an opportunity for new designers to present their line to the Bendel Buyers. Overton Monroe will be there with bells on. Never know! It could be amazing for us! So that's really exciting. We have no idea what to expect, so we'll go with a positive attitude and an optimistic outlook and roll with it!

Those side projects mentioned previously?? Well still in work and under wraps for a bit longer. I need to make some headway before I can share anything worth mentioning.

A bientot!