The "Help me, Nina!" Winners!

Darlings, can you ever forgive us? We were so swamped with our move that we neglected to announce the winners of the "Help me, Nina!" contest. The truth is, we kept putting it off because we've been so run down, what with the packing and the unpacking and the soothing of shell-shocked cats and we knew that we really had to sit down and focus for the judging that we do so well.

We got a TON of replies and we narrowed them down based on need and/or creativity. We have two runners-up, both falling under the "creativity" banner.

SECOND RUNNER UP is fellow GayBoy, Thom of the utterly divine Fabulon :

"I Need Nina's Little Black Book of Style Because...September 7th is my birthday, and it would be a pleasant change to have something fabulous happen that day instead of the traditional lapsing into a near-suicidal depression that can only be mildy numbed by pills and liquor.

Love,
Thom"

Haha! That Thom! Such a kidder! While it certainly sounds like he has a desperate need there, it was his brevity and directness that won the judges over. Now happy birthday, you old queen and lay off the pills! Look what happened to Judy!

FIRST RUNNER UP just had to be Sewing Siren's entry, which blew all others out of the water for the creativity factor. Clickie to make biggie:


Is that not tres adorable? Are you not all flabbergasted at the talent and style? We were. Unfortunately Siren honey, as good as your entry is, there were two gals out there who expressed a deep NEED for Nina's brand of hard-edged bitchery and we simply couldn't decide on just one of them.

THE WINNERS:

"Boys, I live in the middle of flyover country, where our Macy’s looks like a low-rent JCPenney’s. I have a tiny budget for clothes, and am currently on the job market after staying home with a kid for six years. HELP ME, NINA, HELP ME, PLEASE!

Karla S."

"At 30, I'm still dressing the way I did at 18, which is when grunge was fashion. I can get away with wearing jeans and hiking boots, so I do. I am plotting to leave this two-horse Midwestern town for the bright lights and glamour of… somewhere dressing with style will matter.

Mary Kate"

Ladies, you sound positively desperate! Your books will be on the way just as soon as you email us back with your addresses. Congrats and throw out your shitty clothes immediately!

For our other contestants, we have a lovely parting gift for you:

Bravotv.com is proud to offer you exclusively the first chapter of Nina Garcia's new book The Little Black Book of Style here.

(Photos: Courtesy of Bravotv.com)

Nina Garcia - The Little Black Book of Style

DARLINGS!

NEENAGAHCIAFASHIONDIRECTOROFELLEMAGAZINE has written a book!


Harper Collins describes it thusly:

"A Fashion Director at Elle magazine, Nina García knows trends –– from the return of oversized sunglasses, to the rise of cropped jackets, to the advent of all things pink –– she has seen it all. While some fashion trends are constantly changing, some just stay the same––the little black dress? Timeless. A pair of skinny jeans? Absolutely necessary. Those adorable sling back heels? Essential to any woman's closet. Balancing the classics with the trends is what style is all about.

An exploration of attainable elegance, The Little Black Book of Style provides the essential rules for fashion that every woman should know. From definite fashion faux–pas to pointers on how to create your own sense of style, to uncovering what makes you look and feel good, Nina García offers readers the ultimate guide to follow when it comes to dressing their best. Including tips on how and when to wear an outfit, occasion appropriate wear, advice on how to combine colors and textures, and inspiration on how to achieve your own signature look, this hand–book is a must have."

The book will be in stores on September 4th and you can catch up on her book tour dates here.

But that's not the most exciting part! We're having another of our famous contests, kittens! It's called

HELP ME, NINA!

If you want to receive a copy of Nina's book, you need to write an essay entitled "I Need Nina's Little Black Book of Style Because..." In 50 words or less, tell us why you need this fashionista's advice so desperately and send it to theprgayboys@gmail.com with the title "HELP ME, NINA!" by September 1st. We will use our highly advanced judging skills to determine the top two entries and those bitches get a free copy of the book. We will announce and publish the winning entries on September 7th.

Get to it, ladies!

(Photo: Barbara Nitke)

CFDA 2007 Fashion Awards and the PR Connection

"In its effort to recognize the outstanding contributions made to American fashion by individual from all areas of the industry and related arts, the CFDA hosts the annual CFDA Fashion Awards. Awards are given for journalism, creative vision and lifetime achievement."

More here and here.

But enough of that. What about the clothes, darlings?


Heidi in Michael Kors (which sounds so dirty). Hmmm. Not so much. Actually, if it weren't for the got-my-sleeve-caught-in-the-limo-door look, this dress would be hot.


The Duchess with Debra Messing. He cleans up well, doesn't he?


She's also wearing Michael Kors and we have to say, she looks stunning. It's a gorgeous dress and the color looks beautiful on her. She's always held up as some sort of fashionista, but we think she's usually more miss than hit. This would be a hit.

Anyone else sick to death of those "Starter Wife" commercials, by the way?


La Nina. Fabulous.


If this dress were on anyone else, we'd be ripping it to shreds because, let's face it, she looks like a centerpiece at a baby shower. But this is Diane Von Furstenburg, bitches, and she can wear whatever the hell she damn well likes because she could wrap herself in toilet paper and still come off looking fabulous.


Lorenzo doesn't like Iman's dress, but this is another instance of someone so flippin' fabulous that she could pick her outfit out of the quarter bins at Goodwill and still wind up looking better than anyone else in the room.

David? You are looking tired, girl.

So much for our vacation.

Entertainment Weekly has named Project Runway one of its Top Entertainers of 2006. Everyone looks gorgeous in the photos even if we question some of the styling choices.

What you probably didn't know is that a couple days before the photo shoot, Laura called us and said "I need my gay posse there!" Just guess what we said.

Anyway, fate, torrential rain and an overturned tractor trailer on the Jersey Turnpike prevented us from getting to the shoot on time. We did however arrive in time to get one rain-drenched photo.


After that, we went back to Laura's for a while and then on to Malan's party. We do it all for you, darlings.

By the way, Laura made her own dress and if we recall correctly, Uli is wearing Vera Wang.

Edited to add:

Watch the Access Hollywood video about the EW photo shoot here.


Also, don't miss Bravo's exclusive behind-the-scenes video at the EW shoot. It's a great video!

Nina: Pure Simplicity.

What happened to La Niña?

It's just not like our girl to wear something so frumpy-looking. Did she pick up the wrong drycleaning or something? She looks like she's going to a picnic. In 1964.

She's got the look of a woman just scanning the room, waiting for a chance to say "Oh, this old thing? Why, it was the first dress I ever made! The classics never go out of style - and it fits me just as well as when I was fourteen!"

Querida, it pains us to say this, but we don't like the proportions on this dress; the color isn't working for us, and we fear you haven't thought about how this will look on a woman's body. Your woman's body. We -- we can't believe it's come to this, but...

It's not aesthetically pleasing.

Chica, what happened?

"Haha. I know, right? My ex-assistant picked it out."