J Brand and Christopher Kane Team Up for Resort 2012

Christopher Kane; Genes@Co-op

Yesterday Christopher Kane and J Brand hosted a blogger breakfast on Barneys newly revamped eight floor and let me just say there are few more exciting ways to start off your day than with neon denim and a chit chat with Kane! One of the sweetest designers I’ve ever met Kane told me that he could see me in his orange neon jeans with my hair down before telling me he loved my Alexander Wang Devere Satchel and had been looking at it since I walked in! Kane is known for working with neon, “it’s in my DNA” he said adding that he’s been wanting to get into sportswear for awhile so he was excited about the opportunity to work with J Brand on a denim line. The range includes bright yellow, hot pink, and orange as well as basic white, black and denim washes in classic J Brand silhouettes (Kane told me “you don’t change something that’s great and J Brand is my go-to for great denim cuts”).

Kane said the yellow was his favorite color in the new Resort denim range, but that pink always sells the best. “It’s always a hot seller when I put pink in one of my collections because it’s feminine.” Surprisingly while the designer was dressed in a dark outfit, he’s not only a fan of seeing women in color, but he loves wearing color himself. He also told me that he loves wearing women’s jeans! “There’s too much excess fabric in men’s jeans and it can look too drop-crotch-like” the designer exclaimed enthusiastically. With that the crowd moved into Barneys new cafe, Genes@Co-op. While I’m still partial to Fred’s on the ninth floor, the new cafe is very cool. It’s made up of one communal table that seats 30 diners and the table has a glass top under which there are 30 computer screens (one for each diner) allowing diners to digitally order off the menu and scroll through Barneys’ digital content while dining. Over a breakfast of coffee and cranberry-topped oatmeal, J Brand founder and CEO Jeff Rudes interviewed Kane and among the additional things I learned is that Kane’s favorite fast food item is french fries and that his favorite American TV show is True Blood. Did I mention the designer is awesome!?

Check out the J Brand x Christopher Kane collection here and in stores at Barneys. Prices range from $235-$285. The stand-out in the collection for me were the high waist skinny neon jeans which strike as the most flattering and comfortable given that they’re made with stretch denim.