Welcome to Working It, where Racked follows street style into the office. Forget pedestrian khakis and button-downs—these fashionable professionals take dress codes to a whole new dimension. Quick, somebody call HR!
Veronica is wearing a Pixie Market sweater, J.Crew Collection pants, Christian Louboutin heels, an Elizabeth and James ring, a Madewell necklace, and an Isabel Marant bracelet. All photos by Driely S.
Way back when "blogging" was a dirty word in the fashion industry, New York Magazine launched an online companion to its print coverage of New York Fashion Week. Two times a year, Show & Talk would document what was happening on the runways; the rest of the time, it was quiet. In 2008, NYMag relaunched Show & Talk as The Cut under the auspices of editor Amy Odell (now at Cosmo digital). What emerged was a humorous, informed, must-bookmark site for any and all fashion news and gossip.
Two years ago, The Cut made another editorial pivot, transitioning from a focus on fashion news to a more expansive purview that included women's issues, sex, health and politics. But its core fascination with and obsession over fashion remained. Racked recently paid a visit to The Cut's offices to document what the women behind the website wear to work. Scroll down for their favorite shopping destinations, most regretted purchases, fashion industry horror stories and much, much more.
Veronica Gledhill, Senior Market Editor
What is your go-to store?
"That's a really hard question to ask a Market Editor, but for everything, I'd say Zara. For quality along with price, and being on trend, you can't get better. But in terms of editing and perspective, I really like La Garçonne. Also, Maison Kitsuné and Jung Lee."
Who are your favorite up-and-coming designers we should look out for?
"I think Rosie Assoulin, Iris Arfen, and Wes Gordon are really promising talents."
What's one splurge purchase you'll forever regret?
"A runway look from Saint Laurent. At a sample sale, I got a runway dress that is super-cute in theory but just looks terrible on. It was from Fall 2007 or 2008. The construction of it—a gold coil wraps around the hem—was poorly executed and I've sent it to a tailor to have the coil restitched, but it's a losing battle."
What's the craziest thing you've done for a story?
"When I was working at Vogue, I had to try to remove a gigantic Balenciaga couture ballgown from an art crate that was literally 10 by 10, the size of a room. I had to use a crowbar and a tool kit. We had to remove the dress and somehow have it airlifted to the location in the Hamptons. It was just part of the job, but it was a lot of fun."
Stella Bugbee, Editorial Director
Stella is wearing a Gianfranco Scotti blazer bought on sale; a Tibi camisole; her husband's old A.P.C. jeans; Givenchy shoes; jewelry from Etsy, Cartier and Delfina Delettrez; and By Terry lip gloss.
Who are your favorite designers?
"Céline, Proenza Schouler, and Steven Alan."
What is a splurge purchase you'll forever regret?
"I bought a Comme des Garçons raincoat with no arms. It looked amazing in the photographs, I bought it online and it was on sale. And I thought it was going to be amazing, but I really deeply regret it. You need arms for a raincoat."
What's the craziest thing you've ever done or assigned for a story?
"I showed up on the last night of the McQueen show at midnight at the Met. I was there at 10pm and waited on line and stayed 'til 2 in the morning. On a lark I just ran over there. It was fun. The craziest story we've ever assigned was probably sex and Spanx. You should read that one."
What's a beauty item you swear by that might surprise people?
"I do home beauty remedies like putting honey on your face. Those things that you did in seventh grade, I still do. I do an egg-white mask and then wash it off and do a honey mask. It totally works. I also do raw organic lemon juice on cotton balls like once a week."
Kathleen Hou, Beauty Editor
Kathleen is wearing a Zara top; an ASOS skirt; Sergio Rossi shoes; Dior tribal earrings; a Movado watch; NARS Villa Lante satu lip pencil and NARS Jardin de Plantes lip pencil; Maybelline 120 plum shine lip gloss; and Essie Raspberry nail polish.
Who are your favorite designers?
"Narciso [Rodriguez], Proenza [Schouler], and Suno."
What is one splurge purchase you'll forever regret?
"Five years ago, I went to the end-of-season Manolo Blahnik sale and totally lost my mind and I bought these gold, sequin sandal shoes which I have no reason to ever wear. And every time I do wear them I think that if one sequin were to fall off it'd essentially be $10 falling off. I wear them very rarely and only to events that I know there won't be any grass or super-extreme pavement situations. They are also a half-size too big, which makes them even worse."
What's the craziest thing you've done for a story?
"I assign more crazy stories than experience them. A few weeks ago, we were curious to see if people wanted Jared Leto's hair so we assigned a nice, straight, young writer to wear a Jared Leto ombré hair wig for a week and document reactions. That was crazy because he never wore a wig but people were really receptive to it. I think the answer is that everyone looks better with Jared Leto hair."
What is one beauty item you swear by that might surprise people?
"I just got back from a trip to Asia, and every time I go there, they have all these crazy face masks in the drugstores. I don't even know what's in them sometimes but it's exciting because it's like, 'bee pollen, collagen, honey, unicorn.' I'm always nervous I'm going to get an allergic reaction but every time I do it, I'm like, that was $3! So I bring them back for editors and friends."
Isabel Wilkinson, Senior Editor
Isabel is wearing a Proenza Schouler shirt; Acne pants; a YSL belt; Gianvito Rossi shoes; OPI Linkin Park After Dark nail polish; and jewelry by Anndra Neen, Céline and Delfina Delettrez.
What's your go-to store?
"Recently, Opening Ceremony. Reformation. And Dover Street Market, to look, because it's basically a museum. Also, I like Wanelo. I haven't bought anything, but it really helps me organize my thinking. I haven't been on any other sites since I started."
What splurge purchase will you forever regret?
"Any pair of shoes that I convince myself I can walk in when I'm in the store that I cannot walk in in the street. More specifically, I bought a peach, floor-length '70s kaftan from a vintage store in London that was not cheap. Obviously it's not my lifestyle and it's not exactly something I can wear around the rainy streets of New York. I think I'll use it as a tablecloth one day."
What's the craziest thing you've done for a story?
"When I was an intern at WWD, I had to put a baby mannequin into a duffel bag and send it in the bottom of a Hampton Jitney to charge on delivery to a designer in the Hamptons. They asked to check the bag and they found baby bodies with disembodied heads and I had to explain. I got some serious questioning."
Molly Fischer, Associate Editor
Molly is wearing an Eileen Fisher top; Hope pants; Rachel Comey shoes; and jewelry from Isabel Marant, Bird, Castor & Pollux, and Catbird.
What's your go-to store?
"I can browse at Bird forever—and do—but that's mostly just for sale stuff and splurges. As actual, normal shopping goes, I usually have good luck with the sweaters, scarves, and boots at various second-hand stores in my neighborhood."
Who is your favorite designer?
"Rachel Comey."
What's a splurge purchase you'll forever regret?
"I don't really have any splurge purchase because I am a very strict shopper. I don't buy anything unless I want to wear it immediately. I also have spent enough time being broke to not have had many opportunities to buy tons of stuff. Even the suede shorts that I bought when I was totally broke out of college, I feel good about in retrospect because I got a lot of wear out of them."
What's the craziest thing you've done for a story?
"For a while I was a party reporter at the Daily News and just having to go out every night is a crazy enough commitment. I only lasted nine months, I think. It's just grueling. It actually might have been seven or eight."
Kat Stoeffel, Associate Editor
Kat is wearing a Talbots sweater, Tibi pants, and Nike x A.P.C. sneakers.
What's your go-to store?
"I really like American Two Shot. Every time I go in there, I reconsider all my previous life choices. I also like Everlane."
What's a splurge purchase you'll forever regret?
"I bought A.P.C. jeans with zero stretch at my lowest weight ever, which just seems mean to my future self. I don't regret the money as much as the masochism. I gave them to someone else who looks great in them."
What's the craziest thing you've done for a story?
"For the past two Fashion Weeks, I've done a story about how Fashion Week affects people's sex lives which means bothering a lot editors, designers, and celebrities to get them to tell me if they are getting laid or what their significant other thinks of them disappearing during Fashion Week. That's always memorable."
Allison P. Davis, Blogger
Allison is wearing a Joseph Abboud jacket; an Acne button-down shirt; J Brand jeans; Jil Sander shoes; a necklace from the Williamsburg Flea; and H. Stern and In God We Trust rings.
What's a splurge purchase you'll forever regret?
"Three years ago, coming to New York City, living in California at the time, I bought a sequined Marc Jacobs jumpsuit that was long-sleeve with a v-neck back. It was like $800, probably more. I used my mom's Neiman Marcus credit card and she'll never forgive me. It's like 15 pounds, you can't pee in it, it's the worst thing to wear during a snowy New Years Eve night when you can't get a cab. But I won't get rid of it, I don't know why. It's still hanging in my closet, taunting me."
What's the craziest thing you've done for a story?
"My first long feature for The Cut was following around a matchmaker named Janis Spindel. We went on a manhunt on a bar, a hip bar in Montauk, me and this 60-year-old woman with body glitter in spandex pants, trying to pick up guys. That was the craziest thing I've done in a while."
What's your go-to store for shopping?
"There's this little store in Fort Greene, French Garment Cleaners. It's super-easy and they have all these great brands I love."
Maggie Lange, Blogger
Maggie is wearing a BCBG dress, Uniqlo tights, Dr. Martens boots, Collette Ishiyama necklace, Tom Ford "Summer Fling" lipstick, and Essie No More Film nail polish.
What is your go-to store to shop?
"I really like thrift stores in cities that are not NYC. It's a lot less competitive. Here, I like Beacon's Closet. That's where I get most of my stuff. Most is from Uniqlo-ish brands, simple and plain, and the exciting stuff is from random places."
What's the craziest thing you've done for a story?
"I went literary speed dating, which was really cute. It was like show-and-tell in kindergarten, everyone brought a book. And I ran around and tried to interview them and interrupted all their dates. Also, I interviewed 30 boys about why they love Love Actually. It wasn't crazy but it was the most adorable collection of boys I've ever spoken to. Getting boys to talk about rom-coms will restore your faith in humanity."
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