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The Insider: Julia Rubin
There’s no one we like bumping into on the street more than Julia Rubin. No, really—the whip-smart TeenVogue.com editor always has a smile on her face and a stellar ensemble on her person. A sweatshirt and a vintage mink? WHY NOT. Get the scoop on all that (and why J. Biebs might be her style icon) below. —carlye wisel
Q: Is there anything that totally blows you away about teenagers these days?
A: I think the one thing we’ve all been whoa-ed about is what teenage fandom has become. When we were teens, which was not that long ago, you had posters in your bedroom and you had all the magazines and you’d read all about them, and but it wasn’t a public thing. Now, seeing the way girls and guys react to when we put someone from One Direction or Justin Bieber on the cover—the stuff these fans tweet and comment is just, like, insane. They feel a connection—and maybe we always felt this about celebrities when we were that age—but now it’s so public. That’s been crazy to me, to see the level of fandom these girls have achieved.
Q: What’s the most embarrassing TV show that you watch?
A: I am a huge Pretty Little Liars fan, which is not embarrassing at all, because it is the scariest show on TV. 100%! It is terrifying! Almost to the point where you’re like, “I can’t believe this is marketed to teenagers.”
Q: If we were going to raid your closet, what do you love too much to let us have?
A: I would be devastated if you took my fur coat, which I inherited from my aunt—it was her great aunt’s — and I wear it seriously from the second it gets cold enough until it gets just warm enough not to. I wear it all the time, and it’s kind of a big joke—my friends are like, “You’re seriously wearing this big mink coat with sneakers?”
Q: What’s the coolest thing you’ve ever made with your two hands?
A: I’m really short, so in a pinch, I’ve had to do some last-minute alterations that I’ve been pretty proud of. I have this tiered ruffle dress I wanted to wear to a formal in college, and I don’t know how to sew—I really don’t know how to do anything domestic!—but I cut off the last two tiers and was able pin it up so it looked like this was actually where it was supposed to hit. Anything where it just involves a safety pin here, and a safety pin there, I can do.
Q: What’s the worst movie that you own?
A: I don’t know if I would call this the worst, but in my apartment right now, I still have the VHS version of Cruel Intentions. When I was in eighth grade, I was home sick a lot one semester, it was the movie I would rent from Blockbuster. My mom finally said, “I’m going to buy this for you. This is so crazy—why do we keep renting this dumb movie?”
Q: What’s the last thing you saw that really amazed you?
A: Well, actually, last week I went to a screening of Before Midnight, and I loved it. I’m obsessed with the first two movies. I watched Before Sunrise right after I graduated college, which is right when it takes place in the character’s life, and found it so dreamy and relatable and amazing.
Q: Do you own any Of a Kind editions?
A: I own the Academy Jewelry dipped coral necklace, which I love—it pairs very well with all the sweatshirts I wear. I also have the Clare Vivier leopard bag, which fits more than you think it would. I have stuff from Wren [Ed: Including that fly dress she’s wearing in her pic!] and Dusen Dusen and Erica Weiner from all the various Of a Kind sample sales that I like to frequent. I’m an Of a Kind super-fan. Seriously!
Q: You love—love—sweatshirts. Do you have a favorite one?
A: I came across a paparazzi photo of Justin Bieber, and he was wearing this sweatshirt that said “Doing Real Stuff Sucks,” which I thought was hilarious—it was in this really great font, and I’m a huge typography nerd. I did some crazy research, and found the sweatshirt on this Polish website. I couldn’t even tell you what the translation was. I’ll wear it with the coral necklace, I’ll wear it with a Lizzie Fortunato big crazy necklace—it’s sort of a defiant teen message, but I was seriously inspired by Justin Bieber’s style. Anything that a boy would wear—pair it with a lot of jewelry and lipstick, and you’re done. Sweatshirts forever!
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Of a Kind
The goal: an occupation where this Adam Lippes outfit makes sense. Newest hire at Olivia Pope & Associates? —erica
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Of a Kind
Leather Lips Clutch by Welcome Companions for Of a Kind
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Explore Crazy-Cool Projects in Laurel Consuelo Broughton’s Portfolio
Why stop at stuff you can wear?
Sure, Laurel Consuelo Broughton might be the mastermind behind the quirky-minimalist accessories line Welcome Companions, but that’s just the tip of the creative iceberg. Through her studio practice Welcome Projects, she conceptualizes iPhone cases…and houses. “Design is an opportunity to create a world view through the physical things you put in the world, so I like to imagine that I am creating some sort of world,” she explains. Get a tour of Planet Laurel right here. —monica derevjanik
Shed House
“The studio’s work ranges in scale a lot. The Shed House right now is the very biggest scale—it is an architecture project that I’m working on in collaboration with the interior designer Michael Boyd. The house, which is made up of two rotated shed shapes (hence its name), is in Malibu, and we are excited to be breaking ground this summer!”
Have Your Cake and Ear It Too
“Kind of tongue-in-cheek: Have Your Cake and Ear It Too is an iPhone case that we are producing. I love the idea of people walking around talking into slices of cake.”
TheVillage
“TheVillage is a speculative architecture project— imagining an urban plan that is made up of common objects that are scaled up to become different types of buildings. Here, a cordless phone becomes a high-rise apartment building. In many ways, all the projects I do are connected.”
Meglophobia
“This project came about after a conversation about the multiple pieces of land art that are located in the Southwest and how far apart they are. I started to wonder about the possibility of making a folly where all of them exist in one place, albeit shrunken in scale, requiring visitors to take very different physical positions in order to experience them. To illustrate it, I made a series of images. This one is Nancy Holt’s Sun Tunnels.”
Laurel’s (way-cool) Of a Kind edition is here! This clutch is about as fun as they come.
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Of a Kind
How cool would it be to replace the blah buttons on one of your shirts with these amazing Nikolai Rose ones? —erica
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Next Level: Seersucker
Is there a fabric that screams “summer” more loudly than seersucker does? (That’s a rhetorical question, you guys.) Here, four ways to work it as we head into the weekend that kicks off the season. —erica
LEVEL I: A Pret-a-Surf bikini so classic in an Ashley Judd sort of way.
LEVEL II: This Rag & Bone tank leans toward sweet—but wearing it with some ragged jean shorts counteracts that.
LEVEL III: Seersucker, two ways, brought to you by 10 Crosby Derek Lam.
LEVEL IV: Oh, WELL. Didn’t see the leather shawl collar on this Boy by Band of Outsiders blazer coming.
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Of a Kind
Let’s all chip in and get this Khai Khai ring for Lucille Bluth. THERE’S ALWAYS MONEY IN THE BANANA STAND. —erica
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See All the Cleverness Behind a Welcome Companions Collection
Cheeky, adorable, and practical to boot.
Though Laurel Consuelo Broughton pours a lot of intellect into the pieces she makes for her L.A.-based accessories line Welcome Companions, the end results are also meant to make you smile. “There’s a kind of playful spirit embodied in them,” she explains. So how does she decide to translate strawberries and hands to leather and canvas? Get the scoop on her past collections below. —monica derevjanik
WAGON
“The WAGON No. 1 was one of the first pieces that I designed on my own after working for a long time at an architecture firm. I was interested in the idea of bricolage—that two things could create something new when they’re juxtaposed. A kind of ‘the whole is greater than the sum of its parts’ idea. In this case, the traditional mason bag and the wheeled chassis are both functional, and it recalls a child’s red wagon in a pleasantly silly way. It starts to take on a pet-like character.”
Mr. Knife, Miss Fork
“Mr. Knife, Miss Fork was inspired by the 1927 surrealist novel, Babylon by Rene Crevel. It’s a story about a little girl who imagines that the knife is her father, the fork his mistress, and they are running away together. I was interested in appropriating surrealist icons, but mixing them up and making the objects usable in an unexpected ways. For example, the hat being a handbag rather than a hat.”
Part-time Picnic
“Part-time Picnic was based on the simple idea that the picnicking spirit should be part of everyday life. What better way to do it than by channeling the picnic into a collection of accessories? Each piece ends up being a character at the picnic. And we are super excited about the new addition of our Of a Kind piece! [Ed: Get it now!]”
Navy Yard
“Navy Yard is our upcoming collection arriving this fall. The collection evokes a convivial rivalry between two gangs, the Squares and the Animals. The Squares are minimal, yet military, and the Animals are soft-sided and sporty. The Navy Yard Shuffle is a stop-motion animation we made in the studio to celebrate the new collection. In the video, the Squares and the Animals have a friendly West Side Story-style dance-off.”
Are you ready for Laurel’s edition?! It has a lip-shaped pocket. Yes, really.
