ITSF meets McMarden + RB of McD

I took advantage of a cool and unique opportunity a few weeks ago when I was contacted by the creative director of McMarden (through none other than Instagram- welcome to 2014 folks.) I guess this sort of thing can happen almost anywhere, but after a little cyberstalking  digging into the brand (and discovering its equally awesome sister brand, RB of McD) I quickly realized this wasn’t the kind of opportunity that came around anywhere other than Los Angeles. This brand represents LA in a way most people outside this city may not understand; it embodies the unique “it” factor and effortlessly chic style LA fashion continuously brings to the table. It felt right and something told me that emailing him and seeing what came of this was the next step. And thankfully, the good vibes kept coming!  I was pleasantly surprised by every email we exchanged. His promptness, level of professionalism, and passion for what they do was evident through each cyber interaction, and I respected that. About three minutes into my drive to meet him the potential risks of meeting a total stranger off the internet finally hit me- complete with the image of my “missing persons” ad flashing through my mind. I decided I would assess the stranger danger once I arrived because I was already on an LA freeway and not fighting traffic, which is basically a miracle in itself…and therefore clearly a good omen! Any skepticism I may have had washed away as I shook John’s hand and he still seemed all he was cracked up to be. I drooled over every handbag I touched and was blown away by the detail on every item of clothing I put on. Seriously, between leather so buttery it should be spread on toast and gold hardware of the highest quality (I’ve never cared about nor assessed a zipper so up close and personally in my life) I was beyond impressed. I later learned that McMarden had just hit Barneys New York stores on the East Coast and was rapidly on it’s way to the golden state (it’s here now!) I have to say though, I truly feared I wasn’t cool enough to rep this brand, but looking at the photos I feel their collection must have brought out every eensy bit of “cool” factor I had stored up. 🙂

Head to Barneys to pick up the McMarden pieces featured here as well as all the other items in their collection. McMarden: website and Instagram. Rb of McD: website and Instagram.

xo

-If The shoe Stiletto Fits.

All photos by: John McDavid Lehman

This week I’m linking up with Style Elixir and Still Being Molly.