Meeting the Men Behind Gossip Girl, Nine West

Eric Daman on left, Fred Allard on right

Talk about a dream come true. It’s not many who can say they’ve personally met, shared an afternoon with, and have been complimented on their outfit by the stylist (costume designer) for hit TV show Gossip Girl.

And it’s not every day that the creative director of Nine West personally recommends a particular shoe for you, and asks what you think about it, and thanks you for your purchase of said pair of shoes.

Eric Daman & I dicussing black vs. tan

Holy. Cow.

What a dream, what a dream…

I heard they were coming in town only a few days beforehand, by the Nine West PR Gals on Twitter, and nearly had a heart attack when one of the 4-5 cities they were traveling to was none other than the sprawling, smoggy, fashionably-overlooked metropolis that is my hometown.

I dragged my best friend with me to the event that day, and tweeted one of my fashion-forward classmates, and we three had a ball of a time! There were times I would be talking with Eric or Fred about shoes, or my philosophy on fashion (that is, the return to feminity–and Eric feels the same way), or the fact that black shoes are not in right now (who knew?), and I’d get this nagging thought in the back of my ADHD-riddled mind that would whine, “Kristina, why aren’t you filming this?? THIS IS TOO COOL! FILM. IT. NOW.”

Nine West's Fred Allard chatting with me about--duh--shoes!

Since I can’t put into prose the rest of the awesomeness that happened that wonderful Saturday, I will leave you with a list of non-sequitur thoughts, and of course the video above of the entire experience (so you can feel like you were actually there – and I wish you were!). Is it just me, or did you notice how although there was quite a crowd during the fashion show, Eric Daman and Fred Allard were speaking directly to me (& my lovely friends, Tracy & Mary) throughout most of the show. Coolness!!

Thoughts on an Awesome Day

1. Eric Daman complimented me on my outfit, remarking that it aligned with their “Neutrally Calm” trend
2. Eric also complimented me on my grey nail polish
3. Fred Allard drew me a picture of a shoe! And it was fabulous!
4. Eric autographed my copy of his book: “Kristina – keep the fashion alive in Houston!” and then begged me to join him on the set of Gossip Girl
5. (Just kidding about that last part)
6. Fred says you should pair linen with lace. And you need to do what Fred says.
7. I think at one point, in my initial star-struck haze, I used the word “symbiotic” with Fred. I’m not sure what came over me. { Sorry, Fred. }
8. Eric & I contemplated over a pair of black versus tan shoes of the same design–and eventually mutually agreed the tan was better. I am pretty sure I threw out the word “Santa Fe” when trying to describe the style.
9. Senior Marketing Director Whitney Alan is such a doll
10. There were pink peonies everywhere. I was in heaven.
11. Among the hors d’ouevres proffered to my friends and I were: ginger lemonade, truffle oil grilled cheese sandwiches (tiny cubes, of course), something delicious involving chicken(?) with cranberry(?) on a stuffing(?)-type-thing
12. Fred & Eric seemed to be speaking directly to me during the fashion show — I felt so special!
13. Leighton Meester is an amazing writer – she wrote Eric Daman’s introduction in his new book, You Know You Want It
14. Fred Allard is such a nice person. His enthusiasm for fashion–and life–is positively infectious.

Thank you to Eric Daman & Fred Allard, and the Nine West team for an amazing event and for speaking with this girl at length about fashion!
Photos in this post, with the exception of my personal photo with Eric Daman, provided courtesy of Nine West PR.