Acclaimed fashion designer Robert Rodriguez visited the Neiman Marcus in Las Vegas to promote his Spring/Summer 2010 collection. He generously spent some time with me and we talked about fashion and technology. He even signed the Robert Rodriguez bolero jacket I was wearing. Here’s how our shop talk went.

LS: I found you on Facebook. So I “fanned” you.

RR: Thank you.

LS: But I couldn’t find you on Twitter. Are you on Twitter?

RR: I might be.

LS: You don’t know?

RR: I don’t know. I personally don’t tweet.

LS: So, how do you feel about new media and its impact on fashion?

RR: With all the tweeting and all that?

LS: Yeah. A lot of designers are on Twitter tweeting, and a lot of fashion bloggers are being invited to sit front row at fashion shows….

RR: Well, I think it keeps it interesting. It allows people to communicate and to see what you’re doing and meeting new people and really getting to know who that face is. It opens up a lot of doors for a lot of people.

LS: I feel like your pieces are so conducive to mixing it up with something else. For example, I’m wearing your jacket with a Target t-shirt and a vintage scarf. Are you planning that when you’re designing or is it just that your pieces inspire a woman to mix it up?

RR: When my customer goes to my department and buys a piece, it’s more of an emotional buy. So, I really like to give her the option of dressing it up or dressing it down. So, when I’m designing I’m like, “Well, she can wear this top with jeans or she can wear this top with a pair of leather pants, or a skirt….” So, when I’m designing I’m thinking about all those things, and her lifestyle. I think every woman has her certain lifestyle. Not everyone dresses the same. There’s soccer moms and there’s the girls who go out all night, and I try to balance it out and give each woman something different.

LS: As far as technology goes, what do you use to keep yourself organized?

RR: I am old school [laughing]. I don’t like cell phones. I don’t like computers. I am totally not into that. I like to be creative and my creativity comes from within. So, I myself stay away from the computer because I want to be creating something and I do it the old way.

LS: Well, having said that, do you have an iPod or an MP3 player?

RR: I do have an iPod.

LS: Okay, so what’s on your iPod?

RR: Lady Gaga, Madonna… all the fun stuff.

Interested in purchasing some Robert Rodriguez Spring and Summer 2010 fashion? Go to NeimanMarcus.com or check out the widget I created below. Happy shopping!

Robert Rodriguez

I’m doing something a little different now with Outfit of the Week, and I hope you find it more useful than my past Outfit of the Week layouts.


When I put together an outfit, I actually build it. There’s a foundation, a focal point (which is your statement piece) and the added decorations (accessories). So rather than give you detail shots, I thought my readers would best benefit from my insight, strategy and the forethought that goes into building an outfit.


So for this particular outfit, I had to put something impressive together because I was headed to meet the fashion designer Robert Rodriguez. I own the cutest Robert Rodriguez linen bolero jacket with a gorgeous, intricate, cutout design. This jacket was my statement piece and became the center around which I built my outfit.


I started off with a pair of re-styled shorts. These were originally cropped pants, but I decided they would look better as shorts. I hand-stitched the hem myself. And let’s face it. You can tell. I really need to learn how to sew and get a sewing machine.

Next, I added a basic graphic tee. The shorts and tee are my foundation. Alone, it’s actually a pretty bland outfit. But then I add my focal point and some accessories.

Now I’ve added the jacket, a skinny belt and the shoes. Clinton Kelly says the shoes complete the outfit. I agree. I tried on two different pairs before I decided these were the right ones.

Additional accessories add the Lollie touch. The scarf really makes this my own outfit, my own style. And it makes the eye travel up, so no one notices what a poor job I did sewing the hem on my shorts. The first thing that Robert Rodriguez noticed was that I was wearing his jacket!

The Outfit: Bolero Jacket by Robert Rodriguez; Target T-Shirt; vintage scarf; Larry Levine re-styled shorts; Carlos Falchi handbag; shoes by Faryl Robin.

This skirt is a recent purchase. I got it while at First Friday, which is a community arts event here in Las Vegas that occurs, well, every first Friday of the month. Located just outside the gates of First Friday is The Gypsy Den, an eclectic vintage store with great finds and featuring art, jewelry and photography from local artists. Las Vegas is short in supply of vintage stores, so I am very grateful for the  The Gypsy Den and encourage you to make the trip downtown to shop there next time you’re in Vegas.

I’ve made some recent purchases that I’m really excited about and want to share with you. All of which I am wearing.

First is my Hayden-Harnett for Target bag, which my friend, Grechen’s Closet, requested to see “in action.” Next are my latest designer label finds and my new cocktail ring.

I wore this outfit on day one of Word Camp: Las Vegas, a wonderfully educational two-day “camp” covering WordPress, blogging and social media. If there’s a WordCamp in your area, you must atttend. But also consider taking a trip to glamorous Las Vegas and attending next year’s Word Camp.