Changing Room Thoughts

The diamond industry has sold us a narrow vision of romance — one that equates love with the size, sparkle, and price tag of a center stone. But what happens when we question the 4 Cs, the obsession with diamond size, and the idea that bigger means better?In this episode, we dive into how the diamond monopoly reshaped our expectations of engagement rings and why it’s time to break free. We’ll explore antique and vintage rings as sources of inspiration, challenge how feminism and gender equality get tangled up in ring culture, and imagine what it looks like when a ring becomes a true symbol of your love — unique, empathetic, and radically personal.✨ If you’ve ever wondered what an engagement ring could be beyond the diamond, this conversation is for you.

It doesn’t take a fashion-head to reach the conclusion our clothes are about to get more expensive with tariffs looming. According to CNBC, 97% of our clothes are made outside the US and it’s estimated that our clothes will get 67% more expensive. Now more than ever, how do you decide what’s worth your hard earned money? In trying to produce sleepwear, I’m learning a lot about the nuance from the generation of the fibers (what we usually discuss in sustainable fashion) to the resulting fabric (so many steps happen here that aren’t well documented or understood). If you’re interested in my idea of sustainable (to the best of my ability) sleepwear for the female fantasy, drop me your email below and I’ll reach out when the slips become available to purchase: https://drowzistudios.com/And here is the instagram :) https://www.instagram.com/drowzistudios?igsh=MXFycDVmNnZlZXAxNQ==

Call me crazy but a piece of jewelry is really that deep. Shana Cave conveys her profound understanding of the chaotic albeit beautiful experience of adolescence and adulthood as a woman. Uncanny that such complexity is so intuitively understood by women world wide through metal and stone, but Shana Cave’s ideas are as precious as the materials she uses in her work. An impishly knobby Viking Princess ring, Topaz vines blooming on the wrist, delicate lace cut out of chunky sheet metal, rubies and sapphires sprouting from earrings, Shana Cave’s pieces touch the “I’m just a girl” that’s hiding deep in every woman’s soul. Check out her collection Dec 6-8 11-7PM at 434 E. 9th St.

First solo episode back! It's good to talk 1:1 with you guys again :) This time I get real about fashion week and whether or not it adequately serves fashionphile's love for the art and subject of clothing. (Hint: I don't think so) I'm trying to be more comfortable being opinionated in general. I feel like I try my best not to be one of those judgmental, b*tchy "fashion people" for the sake of being a diva, but I also think people don't follow me to hear me regurgitate unorginal takes or deliver bland content for the sake of being neutral and avoiding offense. I acknowledge the podcast has been uploading inconsistently lately. I'm trying something a bit new, and also wanting to show up to the podcast whenever I have a genuine desire to yap and not because I just forced myself to word vomit for the sake of meeting this week's upload "quota". Though, you will be seeing a sudden influx of episodes coming out soon as I've had a LOT on my mind.

Join us for a multi-faceted and inspiring episode as we delve into the worlds of fashion, creative expression, and personal resilience. Our conversations with Henry and Marco of Undermind span everything from their collective's ventures in fashion magazine publishing and music production, to tales of early techno raves, the power of community, and the importance of positive manifestation practices.Don't miss the exciting launch of Iconic Magazine on June 5th!

Poshmark's head of merchandising, Chloe Baffert, has been featured in Vogue, Elle, Daily Mail for her trend predictions. And if you've had the privilege of watching any of her TikToks, you'd know her refreshingly honest takes from 2023's trends being 2010's references to calling out Staud's overpriced and unoriginal Cleo Peppiat dupes. Her content belies just how much the girl knows how to shop. Chloe is a bonafide e-commerce queen. Not only has she led merchandising at Poshmark, but also product management at Macy's leading digital style strategy and even contributed her fashion taxonomy expertise to The Yes--an AI powered shopping platform startup that sold to Pinterest for 80 million in 2022. As a techie girl and fashion nerd, I cannot explain my delight To have Chloe join me on changing room boss today. Check out her IG and TT here: https://www.instagram.com/chloebaffert/?hl=en https://www.tiktok.com/@chloebaffert Undermind is an innovative collective and music label whose continued growth includes recent Latin Grammy nominations and a collaboration with NYC's iconic venue, Elsewhere. Soon, they'll launch the second issue of their magazine, Screens Don't Capture Reality, at the legendary Iconic Magazine in NYC. Drawing inspiration from techno warehouse culture, Undermind encourages its community to embrace the present. The magazine will also be available across retailers in South Korea and Japan. I've had a sneak peek into the contents and it is some serious fashion eye candy. Thank you, Henry and Undermind, without which today's episode would not be possible. Check them out here: https://undermind.xyz/ https://www.instagram.com/undermindnyc/?hl=en

Join the⁠ Changing Room Thoughts Discord Server here Follow Nail Fairy on IG here https://www.instagram.com/nailfairy_nyc?igsh=MTltcHNsd2E2Mnd0Mw== I have NEVER in my life been stopped and asked about my nails more. I have been stopped at least a dozen times (not exaggerating) about my latest Nail Fairy manicure. The nurse at my checkup, the girls working at the MAC counter, literally EVERYONE and their mothers wants to know where I get my manicures done. It makes one wonder: who is behind such magical manicures? This is a video about the beautiful and mysterious founder of Nail Fairy: New York's most artistic and talented nail salon growing at breakneck speed. If you've wondered about a NYC hot girl's editorial, fashion mag-worthy manicure of perfection, they're likely done by Leyla Mir or one of her talented Russian-speaking Nail Fairies. Join me in diving into this smart, creative, young and successful woman's life story as we uncover what it's like opening and owning 2 nail salons within a year in one of the most expensive cities in the world at the age of 25. 0:00 Intro 02:31 identifying a gap in a crowded market: quality dry-file manicures + creative nail art 05:03 opening a nail school 06:52 learning nails as a college side hustle 08:41 from graduating with a major in biology to opening a nail practice during COVID 11:08 being a 25 YO entrepreneur 12:14 nail art friends across the world 13:48 finding inspiration for original designs 16:42 Growing up in Uzbekistan 20:12 Girl boss mom = girl boss daughter 22:08 moving to America 23:08 no one spoke Russian or knew where Uzbekistan was from 24:30 the history of the Russian Manicure craze 27:22 what good customer service is for a nail business 28:44 what's next for Nail Fairy? 31:12 nail art and fashion 33:01 working with Dior and RebelMac 34:50 Gentle Monster x Nail Fairy dream collab 35:48 two girlies that DJ! 38:22 techno music and techno nails 40:24 NY house and techno spot recs

Join the Changing Room Thoughts Discord Server Follow @newyork.ccc on IG for more events like the one we did at the Met Gala's exhibit: Women Dressing Women "The Craze for Feminine Rage" by Emily Tom "Your Satin Ribbons Will Not Save You" by Salome Sol Women Love Power - Feminine Archetypes Dark Feminine Designers/Brands Mentioned: Elena Velez Mirror Palais SS24 Alaia by Pieter Mulier

You might cross Faith on the street and think to yourself, "My goodness, what a beautiful and well dressed girl!" But dig a little deeper and you'll find that Faith Nathanie isn't just a pretty face. Her youth belies her maturity, experience, and entrepreneurial prowess. Years before she was known as @faithnathanie, the certified social media star sitting at 134,000 followers on Instagram. Years before she started running her own creative services business. And right before moving halfway across the globe to live her dream of studying fashion at LIM in New York City, Faith was running her own sustainable fashion business from Perth, Australia at the ripe age of 19. I myself had discovered Faye Studios In late 2021, much to Faith's surprise when I later ran into her in person at a fashion event with emcee Studios in New York. Now armed with a degree in fashion business from LIM and years of PR experience as both influencer and creative services entrepreneur--Faith is looking to relaunch Faye Studios and today we're going to learn all about it. Please join me in welcoming the inimitable Faith Nathanie. 0:00 CRT 20 | What it takes to build a sustainable fashion brand from scratch with Faith Nathanie 00:37 Introducing Faith 03:13 Being Australian 03:49 Ambition stems from funding expensive taste 05:34 Why start a sustainable fashion brand? 07:11 Crushed dreams 08:33 You dont need to be an illustrator to design 09:37 Google is free 11:53 Why move to New York? 13:52 Tips to improve production efficiency 16:07 Finding a sustainable manufacturing practice for small brands 18:58 The goal is to learn not just achieve 19:48 Building effective brand marketing 25:28 Launching Nathanie 28:48 Postgrad Plans

Shop DAWANG here There is something so undeniably gorgeous about the Qi Pao. The refined, structured tailoring. The divine hand-feel of silk brocade. As a Chinese American -- it's always been a shame to me that I felt I could only celebrate the beauty of my heritage's sartorial culture on rare occasions. You may have seen traditional Chinoiserie at weddings and graduations, but on a day-to-day Chinese Americans don a more "practical" and "casual" dress as dictated by our obviously euro-centric culture. In comes DAWANG -- a shining beacon of expressive hope for fashion-forward Chinese Americans who can finally fill this hole in their closet and their hearts. After taking a class on subcultures, Chinese-born Daisy Wang realized that nobody was making the type of elevated Asian streetwear that she wanted to consume—comfortable, ready to wear, and not a gimmick. DAWANG's brocade patterns in lavender, periwinkle, cobalt, and orange are sewn into practical streetwear silhouettes--allowing the wearer to enjoy the beauty and heritage of Chinese sericulture day to day. DAWANG (大王) means "Big King" and is a New York-based contemporary streetwear design brand that draws influences from East and West. DAWANG is committed to celebrating a modern interpretation of traditional Chinese aesthetics. Later joined by her best friend Abby Li in 2022, with their similar background growing up, having absorbed aesthetics from both American and Chinese cultures, they meticulously joins traditional chinoiserie apparel and Chinese fabrics with Western tailoring techniques and trends. In addition to fostering a creative space for Chinese and Chinese Americans, Daisy and Abby's aim is to invite people of all backgrounds to partake in the beauty of #ModernChinoiserie. The intention to create a melting pot of culture surrounding modern Chinese streetwear is more than apparent in their diverse casting choices across runway and e-commerce models. I hope you enjoyed this episode as much as I did -- this one is really special and personal.

Personally I feel that the connection between one's spiritual practice and their fashion comes quite naturally -- but if this is a novel idea to you I encourage you to keep an open mind. For those that think, perhaps a little too much, about the clothes they put on their bodies -- adopting some aspects of spiritual self reflection, self awareness, self love, and self care can uplevel not only our clothes, but the way we feel in our clothes. In my quest for finding a more sustainable relationship with clothing: environmentally, financially, emotionally I've found these core principles offer great clarity and helps me maintain high standards with the clothes that touch my skin everyday. If you think about it that way -- fashion is indeed quite intimate. Instagram Youtube TikTok

Welcome back to Changing Room Thoughts! In this episode, recorded at the fabulous P&T Knitwear studio, I dive into the transformative practice of reinvention and finding personal style for the upcoming year. As 2024 approaches, I want to curate a wardrobe with intentionality, ethical consumption, and sustainability. In this episode we explore what the meaning of personal style even is--and how it's discourse on TikTok can be a bit misleading sometimes. Lastly I break down a step-by-step guide on how I plan to develop and refine my own in preparation for 2024. From setting budgets to creating mood boards, I hope today's episode offers a thoughtful approach to fashion, ensuring your style reflects your unique identity.

Happy Cyber Monday! Today, I discuss the TikTok-fueled boycott around companies tied to the Israel-Palestine conflict. I question its practicality, urging you to explore and support local businesses. Join me for a unique take on conscious consumerism in a global crisis. Boycott list here: https://boycott.thewitness.news/browse/1