Specs
Age 47
Accomplishments Judge on Lifetime’s Project Runway; fashion director of Marie Claire; author of The Little Black Book of Style, The One Hundred: A Guide to the Pieces Every Stylish Woman Must Own, The Style Strategy and Nina Garcia’s Look Book
Base New York
What’s the first information you consume in the morning?
I wake up at 6 a.m., and during the window of time that I have in silence, before the kids wake
up, I love to read the paper. I’ll start with The New York Times, skim The Wall Street Journal and Women’s Wear Daily. I’ll do a quick read of my Twitter feed and browse through my emails.
What do you read or watch or listen to at the breakfast table?
Breakfast is family time—I need to make sure my 5-year-old is ready for school and the baby is being fed. There’s enough noise in this house, trust me!
What occupies your mind in the car, on the subway, train, or bus?
The commute to work is fairly quick. I’ll usually sneak in a few calls to the office and prep my team for the day and send some important emails.
Are you a TV junkie, or on an airtime-restricted diet? What do you watch and how?
I have become more of a TV junkie with the iPad, because I can download all of the shows that I want and watch them when I travel. Right now, I’m into Homeland and The New Normal, and I’m waiting on Game of Thrones and Downton Abbey. To be honest, Project Runway is the only show that I watch live! The judges are only privy to what we tape, so there’s always an element of surprise in seeing what’s happening behind the scenes.
Which is more nutritious: print or Web?
As an editor, I still love the heft of the printed magazine and the newspaper experience. I’m very old-fashioned that way. Only when I can’t get a magazine or I’m traveling will I then go to the app. But in terms of research and speed, the Web is a no brainer.
Give us the skinny on your favorite app.
I adore my iPad, and I have apps for everything. In terms of shopping, I love the Net-APorter app. For my kids, I love the Martha Stewart Cookies app. It’s beautiful and brilliant in its simplicity. From a practicality point of view, I love apps that make my life easier—Spotify or Pandora for music, Uber when I need to get someplace, Zite and BuzzFeed for reading.
What fashion or design blogs do you follow?
Tons! I like The Fancy, Fashionista, Refi nery29, Fashion Gone Rogue, The Sartorialist, Tom and Lorenzo, and I’m obsessed with The Cut. Pinterest has a lot of content and sources that help me discover new blogs, like my newest discovery, The Pursuit Aesthetic.
With such a bloated media universe, how do you cut out the fat?
What resonates with me are people who have authentic voices, are experts in their field or have a strong perspective. And, of course, it has to be visually appealing.
