At The Store with Rachel

You may be coming by the CV flagship in Silverlake for the bags, but I'm always inspired by our shopgirls' style. I have to admit - they're all so darn cute :) This week I wanted to do a post on Rachel, who works in the store, and who is always adorably dressed in her signature high-waist jeans. I always love stopping by to see what she's wearing - and how she styles her CV. 

Q: What CV bag are you wearing now?

A: The store's 1-year anniversary tote - I just can't retire it!

Q: Which bag are you most looking forward to for Spring?

A: The Kenya and the Julie, they're looking so good for Spring.

Q: What are you wearing today and how'd you style it?

A: It is simple and I feel comfortable in it, for me that's half the battle with style. I always want to wear something where I don't think I will look back and cringe.

Q: What's your favorite part about working in the store?

A: I really enjoy talking to customers that come in, they are so excited about CV. A lot of the time they have been coveting a specific bag for a long time, so it's fun to be a part of that. I really have met lovely people here.

Q: What's your favorite place to eat in Silverlake?

A: Sqirl or L&E Oyster Bar.

Q: Any Silverlake recommendations for someone who's new to the area?

A: I would tell them to just walk, there are so many random gems that you'll miss by driving.

Q: What can you be found doing in Silverlake when you're not working at the store?

A: Most likely walking/running the reservoir with my dog or at the army supply store - I'm keen on their wool pants when I can track them down.

Isabel, Steven, Demy and Julia: I get by with a little help from my friends :)

Alexis has asked me to document what I wore while in New York for 3 days this week.

I usually love this in publications, for me it's like a "What's in your bag" feature and I cannot help myself from reading the whole thing - must be the slightly voyeuristic aspect. However, I feel a bit bad about doing it this week, as it was so cold and snowy, my clothes were really not that interesting. But without further ado, here was my wardrobe for NY Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. 

First of all, I was very happy that I had the forethought to order a new winter coat from the sale at La Garconne to be shipped to our store in NY (this Isabel Marant parka was waiting for me Sunday night when I arrived) because boy, did I need it.

Arriving at the hotel at night, I slipped right into these soft and beautiful pajamas from Chance. A wonderful line started by my friend Julia, and if I could I'd own one of everything Chance makes in every color. I never knew I could be such a PJs junkie, but after getting used to these (I have two pairs) and a pair of Sleepy Jones, I'm hooked on nice jammies. Great.

Monday was cold, but no snow. Under my parka I wore a big luscious Isabel Marant cashmere scarf, Demy Lee boatneck navy cashmere sweater, Seven jeans (a gift from my friend Peggi at the denim maker - they've become my favorites), and No. 6 lace up clog boots.

Of course I also carried my new favorite work bag - CV black herringbone grand duff.

The second day, I wore the WRONG shoes - my Acne ankle boots should have never seen the light outside my suitcase this trip. It said it was going to snow - but I didn't think it would snow ALL day long. I thought I'd try to look nice that day but as soon as I left my hotel in my Vanessa Bruno pinstriped blazer, perfectly threadbare vintage chambray henley, cropped navy wool J. Crew trousers, I knew I'd made the wrong shoe choice. Heavy snow falling, slip sliding my way down the streets failing miserably to get a taxi, I was too late for my first appt to go back and change. I thought, too bad, I would tough it out with Acnes, I am from MN after all, I knew how to get around in snow!

That decision lasted until the end of my first meeting when I went immediately to Steven Alan in Tribeca and bought these. It snowed about 10 inches that day and these IM snow shoes saved my feet (and life) for the rest of the trip.

On Wednesday, I was back to my casual attire - same Seven jeans, a big chunky Isabel sweater with a pale pink, Steven Alan cashmere gauze scarf.

Back in LA now, it was 75 and sunny today. I wore a Steven Alan shirtdress and some Acne loafers - sockless. I hate to complain, but I'm just gonna say it: I do, I miss the layers. (Also seen here my never-travel-without CV Weekender.)

Manuel P. Guerrero

This is my father. He passed away last week of a heart attack the day before he was due to have open heart surgery on January 8 (my birthday). He lived in MN and I was on my way to see him, I was going to spend the day with him before the operation. I missed him by a few hours as he passed away in the wee hours of the 7th. But I spoke to him on the phone the previous day and we discussed the novel The Goldfinch which we'd both just finished reading. We loved it and had fun talking about it. I'm happy I got to share that with him. I read the last paragraph of the novel at his funeral, it seemed extremely fitting in so many ways and I think he would have found it perfect. Here are some of my favorite pictures of him and with him.

This is him at my uncle's ranch in Arizona. It was one of his favorite spots in the world. I love everything about this picture: him, the glints of sunlight, the green bench, his hat, the cotton and color of the shirt and the worn out Levi's. He was a great dad, a stellar human being - gentle, loving, kind, smart, sane. I loved him very much and will miss him dearly. 

This is us just a few months ago on the Highline in Manhattan - the morning after our store opened there. I'm so happy he was able to come to the opening.

Here we are a few years ago at my niece's graduation. I always liked how much we looked like one another in this photo  He was always such a smart dresser and with his suits he always wore bow-ties. He played a huge part in my aesthetic life, in my design choices, in my career path. He was probably one of the few people in my life with impeccable taste. One of the most influential things he'd ever said to me was, "You can be whatever you want to be, baby." Somehow it just seemed with that phrase he was giving me the strength to do and achieve anything I wanted. I was his baby, the youngest of his 6 kids, so he always affectionately referred to me as baby.

On a walk in St. Paul in his beautiful Cathedral Hill neighborhood last winter.

This is an old picture as Oscar is now ten, but I will always love this image of him - so handsome and O looking so proud to be with his Papi. If you would like to read more about him, there was a piece in the St. Paul paper here and there's a wonderful audio interview of him on the Minnesota Historical Society's website (as well as the transcript.) 

A Q&A With Clare!

Hi, it's Alexis! I work with Clare and I've hijacked her blog this week so that I could interview her to find out some of her favorite things from 2013...and what she's looking forward to most in 2014. Read on to see what's on her mind.

Q: What's your favorite memory of 2013?

A: Opening the store in New York...it was a great day!

Q: What was your favorite holiday present?

A: A beautiful pair of Grace Lee earrings that she was kind enough to give to me.

Q: What was your New Year's resolution this year?

A: I don't make resolutions but I am trying to do a Pressed juice cleanse right now.

Q: How did you ring in the New Year?

A: With old friends in Joshua Tree.

Q: What are you looking forward to  most in 2014?

A: There are some exciting new collaborations in the pipeline (like our Steven Alan collaboration sunglasses coming out this Spring!), a trip to Korea and some great events we'll have in store like our Spring '14 Poster Event.

Q: What CV bag are you wearing right now?

A: Right now it's the Louise in Chocolate Croco with Navy Fur flap.

Q: What bag are you coveting?

A: I can't wait to start carrying the black Sandrine when it comes out for Spring.

Q: What item can't you stop wearing?

A: It's been a steady rotation of my black Acne ankle boots, No. 6 Shearling clog boots, a high-waisted pair of grey jeans from 7 For All Mankind and my new Acne Pop Kapital cropped jeans.

Q: Whose closet do you want to raid?

A: Emmanuelle Alt of Paris Vogue.

Q: What restaurant can you not wait to get back to?

A: Bestia in Downtown, LA, for their branzino. 

Q: What is the next trip you have planned?

A: Aside from my back and forth trips to New York, I have an upcoming trip to Korea. And I have dreams of getting down to Mexico with my family.

Q: What's on your iPod right now?

A: Happy by Pharrell and Devil or Angel by Lou Doillon.

Q: What's on your DVR right now?

A: The Good Wife, Downton Abbey and Jimmy Kimmel.

Q: What's your favorite movie of awards season?

A: American Hustle, and I'm going to watch Robert Redford in All Is Lost and August Osage County.

A Look Back at 2013 - Incredible!

This year has been full of so many amazing experiences as CV has continued to grow right in front of my eyes. So amid the holiday frenzy, I wanted to stop for a second and look back at the best moments of 2013 - the ones that made me scream with excitement and blink my eyes in disbelief! 

I loved seeing this photo of the always chic Jules of Sincerely Jules accessorizing her amazing fur-topped #NYFW look with the leopard Flat Clutch. Set against that crazy Fashion Week snow storm, it all looks too good. Even Fifi Lapin thought so, putting this adorable sketch on her blog.

Back in April, I traveled to Japan for the very first time to visit all of my store accounts there. It was an incredible experience filled with street style inspiration (just look at these school girls!), incredible food, and fun at the new Steven Alan store in Tokyo. 

I did a double take when I got an email from GOOP earlier in the year talking about a collaboration since I was already a subscriber and I love anything and everything Gwyneth. We did some super cute clutches and even a herringbone duffle this season that's exclusive to GOOP. Such a big moment for our brand.

I was happy to meet Katherine Schwarzenegger in New York this year through a mutual friend, when she returned to LA, she said she wanted to come to our studio and she stayed true to her word - and brought her mom! We were all so excited. I think Maria's Zip Wallet looks pretty good with the "MS" monogram. 

I always love when new collection samples come into the studio and we're all crushing on Spring '14. Jocelyn took this tote for a spin, featuring the new spot print that our Graphic Designer Lizzie drew by hand. So excited to see these babies in stores. 

Our summer trip to France is always a highlight of the year. I always love visiting my sister-in-law in the seaside town of Saint Gilles Croix de Vie. Here's one of my favorite shots of the trip, at the Fête du Poisson in town. 

A piece in Vanity Fair - does it get any better? West Coast editor Krista Smith interviewed me for their "Private Lives" section and I got to chat with her about where I started and where I'm headed, I still pinch myself about this one. I have to say I couldn't have picked a better issue to be included, I mean, HOVA was on the cover. 

 But our biggest moment - even bigger than a feature in VF :) - was in October when we opened a store in NEW YORK! We chose this sweet little storefront on Elizabeth Street in NoLita and my friend Simone Shubuck created this cool collage wall that turned out even better than I could have imagined. The crowds turned out, the press was great and everyone seems excited to have a bit of Clare V. in NYC. 

The day we shipped our very first box to Net-a-Porter was another big one for the studio. They made our bags look amazing - their styling is genius. 

And the most recent big piece of news in 2013 (that's still going!) is our special collection for Apple. I started my line with laptop cases so to be able to come back full circle with the brand that I've always loved with this collection was a dream come true. 

2013 has been such a fun and exciting year for CV, so thankful for everything and everyone involved. 

Happy new year everyone. xox cv

My Gift Picks for the Holidays

We're now offering extended holiday hours through Christmas! So please stop by, say hi, & snatch up all the gifts you need to get! (New store hours listed below.) My own holiday wish list is full of chic items online at ClareVivier.com and in our stores! Here's what I'll be gifting (illustrated with images plucked from Instagram) - and hopefully getting for Christmas.

The new hair-on Sac Bretelle just arrived in the studio and the girls went loonies! It's a great cross body style that's so easy for anyone to wear - I'm still deciding between navy and black! 

Heather Taylor Home linens are the perfect holiday gift for the friend or family member who entertains. I've always loved the pairing of bright colors and natural fabrics - the perfect setting for a festive holiday feast!

Monogrammed Wallet Clutches are a super cute gift for my girlfriends this year. I especially like these ones at the store that feature fun phrases and French film titles. I was excited to see Vogue West Coast Associate Editor Jessica Kantor picked one up and here she is modeling it for Teen Vogue - part of her Look of the Day! 

 If you're looking for a great gift for your guy, I think you can't go wrong with the monogrammed card case. It's handsome and the gold lettering lets you personalize it for anyone in your life.

 Every time I walk into one of our stores, I'm reminded just how much I love the scent of the Chateau Marmont candles we sell. The scented blend of florals and spices, gardenia and vanilla make the perfect hostess gift. 

I can't not get something for myself, right? I like to think that my Maya Brenner necklaces look even better when layered, so I'm always happy to receive another one. 

And Grace Lee has equally irresistible jewelry. My wrist and fingers are never without their monogrammed signet ring, delicate gold bangles and beautiful bands, which are sweetest when stacked. (Also pictured on my digit is the Lena Wald rose gold hearts ring.)

Extended Holiday Store Hours:

Clare Vivier Flagship, Silverlake

3339 West Sunset Boulevard

Los Angeles, CA 90026

Monday - Saturday, 11-7

Sunday, 12-6

Clare V. NYC, NoLita

239 Elizabeth Street

New York, NY 10012

Monday - Saturday, 11-7

Sunday, 12-6

Headed To Chicago and Dallas with Steven Alan!

This week is another big one as we gear up for the holidays! I'm headed to Chicago to join my friend Steven Alan and Alaina and Danielle from The Everygirl for a monogramming event at his store. Make sure to swing by and get free monogramming on some of our favorite pieces - including the exclusive pieces I designed for SA.

Next up is Dallas, where I'll be hanging out with A Piece of Toast bloggers Sally and Molly (and Ori, our monogrammer extraordinaire) for a fun party celebrating our exclusive collaboration with Steven Alan. 

We've been dying over the new quilted leather bags.

And who could resist the complimentary monogramming? Kickoff the season with a little visit. Hope to see you there!