Lauren Conrad: Allure May 2011 Cover Girl

She's fresh off the signing of a new three book deal, and the always-popular Lauren Conrad was selected to cover the May 2011 issue of Allure magazine.The "Hills" hottie was styled up by Stephane Marais while photographed for a gorgeous spread in the mag's first iPad issue by Carter Smith.

In the accompanying interview, LC dished on the way in which she sees herself, telling, “I’m not a sexy person. I’m OK with it. I’ve never been the sexy girl. Whenever I’ve had a boyfriend, he’s always been like, ‘Oh, you’re cute.’”She continued of dealing with figure issues, “It wasn’t ‘Lauren Debuts Her Line’; it was ‘Lauren Debuts a Fuller Figure,’ and I was like, ‘Oh, no!’ because I’d put on a few pounds….If I’m shopping and I see paparazzi, my bag goes directly to my thighs.”As for being called a ‘reality show talent', the 25-year-old said, "They called me that, and I’m like, ‘What’s my talent?’”

Photo Credit: Carter Smith for Allure

Nick Verreos at the 2010 Golden Globes Gifting Suites

2010 Golden Globes Gifting "Dishing" FIDM Hills: Lauren Conrad and Nick Verreos at the 2010 Golden Globes Kari Feinstein Style Lounge, Zune LA

The days leading up to this year's Golden Globes, my schedule was packed. First, there's my Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising/FIDM classes to teach, then draping dresses and making patterns for my own collection and meeting with stylists for possible gowns for the upcoming awards. And somehow I found time to get out of my "Nick Cave" and venture to a couple Golden Globes Gifting Suites I was invited to.

First Stop: The Kari Feinstein Golden Globes Style Lounge, Zune LA
The Kari Feinstein Style Lounge is always an "A" list Suite and I am always very honored to be "on the list". It was held at Zune LA and is always sure to be a place to spot a celeb or two...or three. On the day I went, I had just gotten there when I felt someone pinching my "Nick Bootie". I turned around and it was none other than my friend--and former FIDM student--Lauren Conrad. Looking GORGEOUS I might add! Of course, we proceeded to do some "girlfriend dishing" and catching up as only Lauren and I can do. She was there with her friend Lo Bosworth from MTV's The Hills. I also said "hello" to actress and former Miss USA Ali Landry, whom I had designed a gown for YEARS ago--and spotted Molly Sims as well, while I was there.Bulging Biceps: Nick Verreos and the Retro Sport T-shirt Mascot, Kari Feinstein 2010 Golden Globes Style Lounge

The Kari Feinstein Gifting Suite also had great running shoes from Reebok as well as stylish ties and scarves from Vineyard Vines (I will wear them at an upcoming TV shoot or appearance for sure!) and cute vintage t-shirts from Retro Sport . Designer Alan Aldridge--who has worked with The Beatles-- was there showcasing his famed concert graphic designs, my favorite being "The Who" t-shirt. Model Dad: UK Artist Alan Aldridge and Nick Verreos holding one of his t-shirt designs, Kari Feinstein 2010 Golden Globes Style Lounge

Another fun fact: One of his daughters is supermodel Lily Aldridge, whom I met at the Victoria's Secret NY Runway Show and actually got to interview her (she's also the girlfriend of Caleb from Kings of Leon). My last stop here was with Rasta Taco, who had a taco stand set up at Style Lounge. It was 3 PM and I had not had lunch yet so needless to say, I was SO HAPPY to see them and had a couple of their most delicious chicken and carne asada tacos. Delicioso!

Next Stop: Madison and Mulholland Golden Globes Charitable Suite, Beverly HillsCharitable Scene: Madison & Mulholland Charitable Gifting Suite, Beverly Hills

Next, I traveled to a private home in Beverly Hills for the Madison & Mulholland Charitable Gifting Suite. Amongst other things, what makes this Gifting Suites special is that they put together a Gift Bag for a Charity of your choice. I put together a great bag which will be auctioned off at Clothes Off Our Back with proceeds going to my charity of choice, The Trevor Project. I drew a fabulous fashion illustration and autographed a pair of REUSE JEANS for my "Charitable Bag". Besides clothing, there were also lots of cosmetics and beauty products (the AMAZING Sakura Silk Exfoliating Gel was my fave!) and delicious cakes here. If you like cocktails, then this Gifting Suite was your place, with Casa Noble Tequila, Eagle Castle Winery and Adult Milk Chocolate all present, offering "cocktail hour" all day! I also loved the sexy and very stylish handbags and jewelry from Charlie Lapson. I snagged the BEST luggage tags for all my travels!Desert Anyone? A Golden Globes Cake at the Madison & Mulholland Charitable Gifting Suite Beverly Hills

Well, after one Adult Chocolate Milks too many, I knew it was time to head back to my non-Gifting suite life back at the NIKOLAKI design studio in Downtown LA-- Signing off from the Golden Globes Gifting Suites---see you next time!

Lauren Conrad and Nick Verreos: Fashionable Holidays!

"The Hills"---in West Hollywood...plus another Boutique Opening!Three's Company: Lauren Conrad, her high-school friend Jillian and Nick Verreos, at HERE Lounge

The weekend in LA for some people means relaxing, nice brunches at Quality, House of Pies or the hipster hangout 101 Coffee Shop/Hollywood and, of course, some last minute Holiday Shopping---yeah, I did that. But it also meant "Oh Dear, more Holiday Parties!" Over this last weekend, I was invited by my dear friend, Woody Woodbeck, whom I originally met over a year ago filming a "Where Are They Now?" Project Runway segment. We immediately hit it off and since then have been friends. He had his first Annual "It's A Woody Christmas" event at the HERE Lounge in West Hollywood and of course I wanted to be there.
As soon as I dropped my toy off in the "toy box" (it was done in association with Toys For Tots), I posed with a US Marine (in full uniform, who seemed very comfortable being amongst "The Gays") and made a beeline inside to the bar/club. The place was packed and I soon spotted my former student at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising/FIDM and now friend, the one and only Miss Lauren Conrad. I Love a Man In A Uniform: Nick Verreos poses, with his gift and a "Toys For Tots" Marine

Lauren was in a roped-off "VIP booth" with one of her best friends from high school, Jillian. When I saw Lauren, of course, I turned into a 16 year old screaming girl and screamed "Heeeeyyyy". Lauren and Jillian were both sportin' Urban Outfitters (you know I asked what and who they were wearing and they said "Urban!"). I guess they had gone shopping earlier that day and were showing off their purchases. I would be too. On the other hand, I was wearing year-old Dolce and Gabbana (no shopping for me unfortunately). While we were hanging out, she received a phone call and it was Brody (Jenner). She had another party to be at and so we soon double-kissed and said "Goodbye"!

Gordon Henderson Boutique Opening
Shopping For a Suit: Marc Jacobs' John Wade and Nick Verreos meet up at the Gordon Henderson Store Opening

On Sunday--after a day of shooting my entire NIKOLAKI Spring 2009 Collection for my upcoming new Website (and Look Book), I got a call from my friend John Wade, inviting me to be his "date" at the store opening of the new Gordon Henderson Boutique on Melrose. It took me about 2 minutes to figure it out but Gordon Henderson is---as Victoria Beckham would say---MAJAH! Not only did he apprentice with Calvin Klein, he also won the prestigious Perry Ellis Award back in 1990, and had his own exclusive line of practical, sporty separates through Saks Fifth Avenue. He was also one of People Magazine's Most Sexiest Men---in 1992!!! He is doing Menswear and has a fabulous new store to showcase it. The vibe of the store, and his line of Saville Row-looking hand-finished suits and shirts, were very "Out Of Africa"--like a stylish expat living in Nairobi. Nonchalant tailored chic. He also "collects" vintage menswear pieces from Brooks Brothers as well as other brands and revamps them. So great, I even bought a piece (I know, I cannot help myself at a store opening!). If I was a rich British soccer player with style, I would definitely hit up Gordon Henderson! Just sayin' David Beckham....

FIDM Spokesperson Plus DEBUT 2007

And the drum roll please........ I am proud to announce that I just "inked" a deal with the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM) to be their "Spokesperson" for 2007-2008. It brings me immense joy to represent the college I teach at as well as where I received my formal education in fashion design studies. FIDM is kind enough to recognize the value I have in possibly inspiring future students of design wherever they may attend school--and I know that that students all over the country still want to hear "inside dish" on "Project Runway".

Besides still doing my duties as an Instructor at FIDM, I will now also represent the school in several of their important marketing and recruiting events, not only in their Los Angeles campus, but also San Francisco and San Diego. The details are still being discussed but I will make "special appearances" at certain FIDM events, such as their "Open Houses" and will write a column for their popular "Prom Advice" website. I will also still be able to travel all over the country and speak to other design schools and universities. I have planned appearances in Tampa, FL and possibly Seattle this year and I will provide more information on those later.

Last week was the beginning of my first "official" duties in my new position. I was the Special Surprise Guest Speaker at the FIDM Debut 2007 Fashion Show, held in Santa Monica Airport's Barker Hanger. DEBUT 2007 is the gala finale show for the top fashion and theater costume design students. Here, they get to showcase their very first 10-12-piece collections or costume designs in front of thousands of Industry leaders, designers and all-around Hollywood glitterati. Over a decade ago (now I am REALLY aging myself!), I was one of those 10 "Debut" students that were handpicked to show their collections. There is a video of this which should be permanently put in a time capsule.

I attended a special "Pink Party" for FIDM's Fashion Club members, held in a tent near the Hanger with a DJ, make-up artists and Marie Antoinette-themed models. I brought my friend and favorite model, Amara to the event. She wore a gold/metallic linen bolero and tulip skirt suit from my line, NIKOLAKI,of course. There were hundreds of students who lined up to pose for photos with us. It was a delight meeting each and every one of them.

Afterwards, I introduced the "Debut 2007" fashion show to a screaming crowd of over 2500 high school students from all over the country. The kids were yelling so loud that I felt like Justin Timberlake!! It was an amazing experience which then lasted after the show, when I posed for more photos with hundreds of kids who were not at the "Pink Party" beforehand. The experience was repeated on Friday with similar results.

The "DEBUT 2007" Fashion Show itself was great! It began wth the Theater Costume designers who were given a "Circus" theme to work with. The production, and the costumes were fabulous! I could see the awestruck faces on the visiting Junior and Senior students out in the audience. Then , the Advanced Fashion Design students showed their collections and I was surprised. It was a definite step up from previous years, where frankly the designs looked awkward and "fashion--student-esque". I could name the page number in the pattern book where the the jackets came from (not a good sign). But not this year. The collections looked fresh, WEARABLE and still creative. Kudos to all the designers. There was even a fun children's collection that brought the house down. Britney's most recent ex-boy toy, Isaac Cohen, also modeled in the show (to more yelling and screaming from girls--and boys--in the audience) One of my favorite collections was from Angelo Estrada. His "Matrix-meets Dominitrix-meets-Secret Berlin Spy" collection (that's what I'm calling it) in wools, leathers and furs, combined the creativity of a futuristic Hollywood blockbuster with the realism of having great sellable pieces.

The "Debut" weekend ended Saturday evening with the black-tie Gala dinner show, hosted by FIDM grad, designer Randolph Duke. Besides my date, David, my dinner buddies included former student, Lauren Conrad from MTV's "The Hills", her lovely sister and her beautiful mom. We had a great time dishing on the show, her former girlfriend, Heidi, and her future plans to launch the "Lauren Conrad" fashion empire! Move over Beyonce, Gwen, and Jessica...

For more on my appearances with FIDM click HERE

Instructing "The Hills"-Part Deux

Before the Fall Quarter began late last year, I was called into "the Principal's office" at FIDM. My stomach quivered, thinking that I had done something wrong. I almost felt as if I was fifteen years old and back in Junior High School, having been called in for that pen I stole from Suzy. OK, of course I lie. I don't think I was ever called in to any Principal's office back in my adolescent years and I did not know anyone named Suzy and no, there is no "real" Principal's office for the Instructor's at FIDM. But you get the picture! I was called in by one of the Department head's of the school who informed me that Lauren Conrad "LC", from MTV's hit show, "The Hills" was returning to FIDM to take some classes, one of which was a Fundamentals of Sketching course that I, in fact, teach. Would I mind , a) Being filmed while teaching for "The Hills", and b) Be Lauren's instructor.

Of course I said "Yes", as long as the filming did not disrupt the environment of the class and the student's. Having had a bit of prior experience with "Reality Shows" and production, this was not going to be, as I famously said "My first time at the Rodeo". I also knew that they would not show much of me on the show, since I know that "The Hills" is more about Lauren and her day-to-day interaction with her girlfriends and paramours, as opposed to concentrating on her attending school and the classes she was taking at FIDM.

The class she took is one in which I teach students in the Product Development Major, how to sketch flat/technical sketching--a very important skill to have under your belt. Since approximately 98 % of the sketching one will do in the "real" world of fashion involves flat/technical sketching as opposed to stylized fashion illustration. For ten weeks , I show students the basics of how to learn this skill and eventually know how to sketch technically by hand. Afterwards they take another class to learn how to to this through the aid of a computer.
It is not a difficult course, per se. I always joke with my students that "this isn't Rocket Science kids!", but some students just cannot grasp the fundamentals of eye-to-hand coordination and have a difficult time progressing from crooked stick figures. Lauren was exceptionally good, however. I asked her if she had taken some classes in drawing or art, and she told me she had. Well, you could tell. She had a great sense of proportion and caught on pretty quickly in terms of the work. It is interesting to watch the show, since I did not discuss with her anything beyond school work and did not get into her private life. Obviously she had a lot going on besides school, but then again, so does everyone. That is what life is about, managing it all and somehow making it all work.