The Skinny Confidential Him & Her Podcast - Lauren Santo Domingo - Lessons On Success From Vogue, Personal Style Development, & How To Hustle

Episode Date: November 25, 2024

#780: Join us as we sit down with Lauren Santo Domingo – Co-Founder & Chief Brand Officer of Moda Operandi, Artistic Director of the Tiffany Home collection, & former editor at American Vogue. A visionary in high fashion, Lauren set out to create a platform where women worldwide could shop entire runway collections. In this episode, Lauren dives into fashion trends, the evolution of personal style, crafting the perfect tablescape, & exclusive insights from behind the scenes at Vogue!   To connect with Lauren Santo Domingo click HERE   To connect with Lauryn Bosstick click HERE   To connect with Michael Bosstick click HERE   Read More on The Skinny Confidential HERE   To Watch the Show click HERE   For Detailed Show Notes visit TSCPODCAST.COM   To Call the Him & Her Hotline call: 1-833-SKINNYS (754-6697)   This episode is brought to you by The Skinny Confidential   Head to the HIM & HER Show ShopMy page HERE to find all of Michael and Lauryn’s favorite products mentioned on their latest episodes.   For a limited time, use code SKINNY for 10% off on ModaOperandi.com.   This episode is sponsored by Cymbiotika    Head over to Cymbiotika.com right now for 25% off + Free Shipping sitewide.   This episode is sponsored by Prolon   Go to ProlonLife.com/SKINNY to get 15% off a Prolon 5-day nutrition program.   This episode is sponsored by Primal Kitchen   Visit PrimalKitchen.com/SKINNY and get 20% off your whole order with our personal code, SKINNY, at checkout.   This episode is sponsored by Aura Frames   For a limited time, visit AuraFrames.com and get $45 off Aura’s best-selling Carver Mat frames by using promo code SKINNY at checkout.   This episode is sponsored by Rhoback   Use the code SKINNY on Rhoback.com for a generous 20% off your first order.   This episode is sponsored by  Woo More Play   Get your sexy on with Woo More Play and visit Nordstrom.com to shop Coconut Love Oil this Holiday Season!   Produced by Dear Media

The following podcast is a Dear Media production. She's a lifestyle blogger extraordinaire. Fantastic. And he's a serial entrepreneur. A very smart cookie. And now Lauren Everts and Michael Bostic are bringing you along for the ride. Get ready for some major realness. Welcome to The Skinny Confidential, him and her.

Aha! You know, when I graduated from college and you wanted to work in fashion, the job was, you know, I want to work at Vogue, right? That was the job. And so I wanted to create a company that when girls were graduating from college and they were like, where do I want to work? I want to work at Moda. Lauren Santo Domingo is on the show today. She is the co-founder and chief brand officer of Moda Operandi. She's the artistic director of the Tiffany Home Collection. And she also happens to be a former editor at American Vogue. You've probably seen her on Instagram. She goes by at the LSD and she has a very unique point of

view, which I love. On this show, we go through all the things, the demands of working at Vogue, what to do if you get sat next to a boar, how to set a table, work ethic, style, the grit of the next generation cultivating style leadership at vogue anna met ball even reflections on the fashion industry and of course we get into balancing work motherhood social dynamics and i have to tell you lauren sent me her lauren's winter beauty box and it is the most beautiful beauty box i have ever seen in my life. You guys have to check it out if you're looking for a really major gift for someone. So it's on modaoperandi.com. You can just search Lauren's Winter Beauty Box. And it has some really amazing products. There's an Hermes rosy lip enhancer. There's also one of the best brushes ever. They have like a lash tint,

something from Sicily Paris, a lot of really beautiful products, and she handpicked all of them. So go stalk that on her site. I get lost on her site. I could literally be on it for hours. There's so many good pieces. For a limited time, be sure to use code SKINNY for 10% off at modaoperandi.com. That's M-O-D-A-O-P-E-R-A-N-D-I.com. I would go on there and literally get some of your holiday shopping done. There's so many beautiful pieces. That's modaoperandi.com. With that, let's welcome Lauren Santo Domingo to the show. This is the Skinny Confidential, him and her. I just told you off air that I have stalked you to come on the podcast. I'm so happy you're here. You're looking so chic. I think we'll start out with your story for the audience because you have a pretty unbelievable story. How did you first start working at Vogue?

Let's see. I first started working at Vogue after not getting a job at Vogue maybe two or three times. I'd applied for different jobs at Vogue and I didn't get them. And then finally, which I understand later, they just weren't the right jobs for me. So when I finally got the job at Vogue, I was so happy to be there and so grateful to be there. I felt like I, you know, I was so, I was so grateful. Is it wilder than everyone thinks working there or is it less wild? Like, what's the real temperature on it when you started there? So I would say, I mean, if you watch the movie, A Devil Wears Prada, it's almost like a National Geographic documentary. It's that accurate. It is that accurate.

Like her office is accurate. The hallways, the way people dress, the meetings, the everything, everything, the coming in and out of the office. Everything is is I would say, with the exception of the townhouse, everything else is really accurate. The one thing that is different is that in the film, Miranda Priestly is inconsiderate and she sort of pit people against each other. And I would say that Anna is kind and thoughtful and she's determined and deliberate, but she is not cruel. And listen, there was some hazing that went on in the office with, you know, between us, us girls, but on the whole, it was a very supportive place. Everyone got along really well. My father, once came to visit, he thought it was really funny. We called everyone by our, by the last names, like a sports team, you know, it was like, Hey, Boster, hand me the Galeano. Like, okay, Davis, you know, I need you down on four. So it was, it was, it was, but it was a great, it was a great place to work. I really loved every second of it. And there wasn't a single moment that I wasn't like, you know, pinch me. This is amazing. But we worked hard. What does that actually look like when you say you worked hard? What are the hours? We worked hard. I mean, back then you would be the first one in the office and the last one out. You wouldn't dream of leaving before, you know. So if there was a single senior editor in the building, you wouldn't leave. You sat at your desk. This was, you know, you would, the desk always had to be manned. I think there was a scene in Devil Wears Prada, there always

had to be one person at the desk to answer the phone. So if you wanted to go to the bathroom or lunch, you know, you would have to coordinate. So yeah, late, long hours. And then it was also physically grueling. We're picking up garment bags and huge gowns full of shoes and trunks of clothing and accessories. So it was physically demanding. We're doing all of this in, you know, all of these in, you know, high stilettos at the time. And it was, you know, what we felt was doing, we felt it was really important. It was important work. And my job was to get the clothes to the shoots. So I would call the fashion houses, I would get the samples, and then we would bring them in for the actual photo shoots. So it was a lot of negotiating. I recently watched, um, the TV show industry and it felt like a lot of like, like equities trading. You were, you know, really trading samples, trying to get this Galeano, I'll give you look 14. If you give me look 32 and you know, I need it. So it was, it was just a lot of, you know, samples

shuttling back and forth, but very, very demanding. Once, I can't remember, it was either my mother or my father, I was complaining about some editor was losing their mind about, you know, some dress that didn't make it to a shoot and how they were so crazy. And my mother said, well, you know, if you were working in a hospital and, you know, a heart transplant didn't arrive, would you say, oh, that's so ridiculous. The heart didn't make it like, you know, and my mother or my father, one of them said, you know, this is the industry you are in. So you need to treat every single piece of clothing as if it were, you know, an organ for transplant, because this is your job. And I think that kind of stuck with me forever that, you know, what we are doing while it's fashion or, you know, it's important. It's an important fashion is an industry. This is a designer's collection, their dream, their livelihood, people that work in that for that company. This is their livelihood. It's their passion. So just understanding that while it may be a superficial industry,

what we're doing is important. And I always felt that at Vogue. I always felt what we were doing was important. What are the things that your parents instilled in you before you went to Vogue to have these tools to be so multifaceted and good at your job? What are the things? I was going to ask the same thing because it sounds like your parents maybe instilled in you before you went to Vogue to have these tools to be so multifaceted and good at your job? What are the things? It's funny, I was going to ask the same thing, because it sounds like your parents maybe instilled work ethic. Yeah, it sounds like your parents really did a good job. Oh, yeah, I think they did. You know, I really understood, my father worked for, he worked for Perrier, which at the time also had like Calistoga and Arrowhead. And so he would actually bring me to his office when they were doing

interesting things so if they were recording a jingle or uh you know a radio program you know he would sometimes bring me so i really understood that work could be fun and could be interesting and so i was always seeking out a job that you you know, was, was interesting, but no, my parents, I listen, I, I always, I don't know if it's like nature or nurture. I just always wanted to be doing something. I always wanted to be working. I got a little hustler in me, you know, like there's always sort of a, you know, if my friends were making friendship bracelets, like I would start a friendship making business. You know, I just always wanted to, I guess I can't do anything in moderation. So I'm always trying to like, you know, make a business out of everything.

Where did you grow up? So I grew up in Connecticut, right outside New York City. Okay. And I think having the access to New York also, it was so close, like I could almost touch it, but it was still so far away. Lived in the suburbs and lived in a place where it was pretty conservative. It was definitely a commuter town, so people were commuting in and out of New York City. So I always felt that was my destiny. I couldn't wait to get to the city and to have a job. And I also was in a place where, you know, it's kind of like preppy and,

you know, things like sailing and golfing and tennis were really important and lacrosse. And I wasn't good at any of those things. I was never going to be the scholar athlete. So I always felt like I was in a place where I sort of set up to fail and I couldn't wait to get to a place where all I wanted to be was glamorous and fabulous and living the high life. And so I couldn't wait to get out of my itchy wool sweaters and- The story of my like itchy wool sweaters and, you know. The story of my life. Yeah, duck boots and like get to somewhere, you know, really fabulous. Were you always stylish in high school?

And when you were really young, do you look back and see where the style comes from? I don't think so particularly. I don't, I'm not like being self-deprecating. I was always interested in following trends and what was new, you know, whether it was like neon in the 80s or jams or vans or, you know, when Madonna came, whatever it was, I definitely was aware of trends. But I wouldn't say that I became particularly confident and being like, OK, I really feel like I've found my style.

I've nailed it. I would say until late 20s, early 30s, I think working at Vogue was probably what sealed that deal. But before I was like kind of a mess, but also it was the time, you know, like the 2000s were a weird time. What looked good back then in retrospect does not look good now.

So I guess I looked great then, but looking back now, it a pretty tragic I feel I feel like that's every time I look back and if you're at a previous version of myself yes and at the time I was like man this is the coolest thing ever and every time I look up like oh man that was not great is there like in any area you look back like that looked great no hopefully this one I hope I hope when you look at Vogue and everything you did there and you look at how hard you guys worked and you look at the discipline and how you're in the office longer than anyone and all these things, all the work that you had to put in and you look at kids now working. Is there a difference?

Completely. Yeah. I mean, it's like night and day. Yeah. And I think we were maybe the last generation of of that sort of um of that grind I loved the grind because it just it made me feel like I was always doing my doing my best working my hardest so if something didn't go perfectly which it doesn't at least I felt like okay I gave it my all I enjoyed that grind I think listen there's like a lot more

balance now and I wouldn't want to say young people are soft but um Michael will say it well you don't want to say people are soft but I think if you the way that I think about it is if you threw the average young person into that environment now, it would be like throwing somebody on a Normandy beach, right? They would be like, what's happening? What's going on here? What do you mean we're staying? I mean, I run a company and it's great and I work with amazing people, but sometimes it's like I have to remind myself that I maybe come from a different age and era and I'm like, okay, I got to just like my delivery has to be softer. Yeah. And I try not to text people on gotta just like, my delivery has to be softer. Yeah.

And I try not to text people on the weekend or after hours, like things like that. I'm very considerate. But, you know, I guess even at the time, there were people that dialed it in and didn't work as hard. And, you know, I guess in a place like Vogue, the cream rises to the top.

Yeah. And there were plenty of girls who sat there and kicked back and, you know, didn't really lean in and they didn't make it very far. And that was it. They had a wonderful experience, probably got a lot of bridesmaids out of it. And, you know, great contacts at all the Madison Avenue boutiques. But, you know, they didn't they didn't stick around in the industry very long. So and I suppose today I recognize the people that, you know, I recognize the people that are working really hard. And to be honest, I really see this like younger generation, at least the ones that are just graduating from

college and are in the workforce. I see a lot of parallels to when I graduated from college and we had immediately like the dot-com boom and all my friends got jobs in the dot-coms and then they went bust and had to sort of restart their career. There was a recession. So I feel like these kids sort of, you know, they've had COVID, there was a recession and I see them working. I have a couple of girls in our office that were working like two remote jobs while they were seniors in college and then moved to New York and picked which one made the better offer. So I do see this next generation of really working hard and understanding that they're sort of coming of age in a rough time and you need to work. You got to have a little grit.

You got to have some grit. You got to hustle. You have to want it. And I think that's really what defined my generation. And, you know, you really had to want it. What was it like working with Anna on a day-to-day basis? Is there like a certain coffee order that she has? Is there particulars and specifics? She's very, you know, she's very specific. And, but I feel like that's probably very, you know, probably the greatest lessons that I got from her as a leader that I tried to instill in my, in my own business and, and in Moda as, as the brand is that Anna was very deliberate and she knew what Vogue was. And we all had a very clear idea of what Vogue was and what it stood for and what it meant. And so it was very easy to do our jobs because we knew if something was Vogue or wasn't Vogue.

Good leader. Good leader. And that was very decisive. So, you know, you have this army that's just going out and trying to execute that vision. And it was very clear. And I try to do the same. I want in our, you know, at Moda with our, you know, our buying team and our editorial team that they can look at me like, that's Moda or it's not. And it makes your job easier when you know how to do a good job. How did you develop your own point of view and your own style being at Vogue? Did that happen at Vogue? Did it happen after? Did it happen before? It sounds like you said when you were

younger, you didn't feel like you had the style. Did that happen at Vogue? I think I didn't realize that it was, I guess I didn't, yeah, I think I definitely sort of found my style probably working at Vogue because I was able to sort of, you know, try on so many different hats and roles and figure out, you know, it really comes down to like what suited me, I suppose. I think maybe I wasn't as aware about style as even though when I was in it, it didn't, I didn't really see how it related to me. I would maybe, you know, want to have like the right bag and the designer dress. But I wasn't quite sure of how to put it all together. And I think it's just training. You know, it was a matter of training my eye and. Probably just being around the culture of Vogue, you just probably pick up so many little tiny things that you wouldn't pick up at a regular job. what always what I always go back to in my head you know it's not it's not something I learned at Vogue but you know it was again my mother when when I was growing up and you know we went through

the grunge phase and the hippie phase and the 80s phase whatever it was and my mother never really gave me too much advice or direction or you know didn't come down to me too hard. All she would say was, just try to look nice. Just try to look nice. And that was it. And, you know, she allowed me to make mistakes and express myself, but she always said, just try to look nice. And I think I always have that in the back of my head when I'm getting dressed. I'm not saying, oh, try to look trendy, try to look cool, try to look chic, try to look cool. Try to look chic. Try to look elegant. Try to look rich. Try to look fancy. Try to look. I don't I don't have any of that. I just in the back of my head, I'm saying just try to look nice. There's an effortless and an effortlessness to that that I think is cool. Yeah. You know what I mean? Yeah. So if someone

is sort of building a capsule collection in their wardrobe, and let's say they're shopping on your site, what are the things that you absolutely think that they need? Let's see. I think you need great tailored pieces. Oh, you and Michael are going to get along great. Great. Well, because. This is a snob. Keep going.

Okay. I'm not a snob. I'm not saying it's snobby to have tailored pieces. I'm just saying he's very snobby about tailoring. Go ahead. Oh, good. Okay. As you should be.

Because men, that's all they got. Let's be honest. Well, I think also it's like, you know, you don't want to just pull something off that's not really dialed in for you. Yeah. And men also, it's about like texture and quality and fabrication. So I think for men, that's key. Whereas women, we can, you know, wear synthetic fabrics and things like that so long as it looks cool.

Yeah, I think great tailoring. I think probably the question that I get asked the most is about jeans and shoes because we're living in a time when jean shape is always changing. Is it mid-rise? Is it high-rise? Is it skinny? Is it straight? Is it flared? Is it mid-rise? Is it high-rise? Is it skinny? Is it straight? Is it flared? Is it bootcut?

Back in my day, it used to be trends would take a really long time. They had a long tail to them, where now things happen so quickly and they spin around so quickly that if a couple of years ago, a bootcut would have been strange, but now you have a boot cut again. So I just tell people like, wear what suits you. Because if it's not in fashion at this exact moment, it will be again in a matter of weeks or months or, you know, so to find really what suits you, what makes you feel the most comfortable. And I think the one thing that you can, you know, a good thing to play around with is like jean lengths and jean. I think the sort of the way the thing that you can play around with your denim would be, you know, with a boot or a shoe. And those are things that you sort of cycle in and out more. Whereas jeans are so personal and you want to find something that really like you feel comfortable in. And then from there, I'm really into, you know, I sort of growing up in Connecticut

on the East Coast, I'm definitely more sweaters, leather jackets, tweed, things like that. Kind of like a preppy East Coast, more classic vibe in the winter. I don't think you can go wrong with the classics. And then in the summer, I definitely like more color, shape, skin. You know, I have a lot more fun like that. What are nose? What are like, be honest. I know you have your nose. I have so many nose. I have so many nose. Tell TikTok all your nose. Okay. So there's this thing where it's like a leotard that goes from the toes all the way up. Okay. Didn't you wear that this morning? No, excuse me.

I wore a jumpsuit to work out. It's like a little thin strapped. She's not talking about that. She's talking like a fashion nova situation, I think. And like the wraparound sunglasses. I think if you match your Cybertruck, you're wrong. Like that's the... I don't have a Cybertruck.

Like anything too turbo, right? Okay. Like anything too turbo, I'm not into. Again, just try to look nice. Just try to look, just try to look nice. I bet there's some cringy ones where you look at it and you're just like, oh, some trends. You know, there's some, there's some, but I feel like it's all part of an evolution. Like if I were to go and look at some things, you know, but I'm definitely, you know, for me, I think where I have the most fun getting dressed up is probably like evening, like a gala or a cocktail party, you dresses, fun shoes, sparkly bags. I think that's the time you can be sort of

ridiculous and silly and overly feminine or, you know, just, you know, I find it easier to express my mood during the day. I'm like just trying to get through the day, right? I don't, I'm just trying to look nice, trying to make it. But at night, I feel like sometimes that will set the set the vibe, you know. What did your transition look like from Vogue to what you do now? Because it seems like you're very entrepreneurial. What does that look like leaving Vogue and and launching what you've launched? So, you know, one of the great things about Vogue is all of us really went on to do things in the industry. And it's a really close-knit group of people. So we all started together at some time, you know, picking up safety pins off the floor and stuffing garment

bags, packing trunks, things like that. So we all really know each other. There's always a moment where I can't believe like, oh my God, we're the adults in the room now. This is crazy. But I was working at Vogue and, you know, it was my job to look at all the shows, the fashion shows in New York, London, Milan, Paris, and follow really closely all the collections, what was going down the runway. I had access to the runway, to the designers, to the designer showroom. I could borrow looks, whatever I wanted. So whenever I was going to an event or a party, I would just call up the designer. I'm like, can I borrow that finale look 32 for the night? And that's just sort of how we, you know, that's just sort of how it was back then. And I had this access to fashion that was very unique and very rare. Did you realize that at the time? At first, no, I took it for granted. And then as I started making friends in New York City that were maybe outside the fashion industry that worked in

all different industries and had great jobs and worked really hard and they resorted to, you know, browsing a department store floor for, you know, the best looks. And it was very apparent to me that the things going down the runway had absolutely nothing to do with what's in the store and that you're seeing in the, on the shop floor, sort of a watered down commercial version based on what sold the year prior. And so it was just very clear to me that there is a really big disconnect between, you know, the clothes going down the runway and the clothes that women were actually available to buy. And, you know, so this was also during the recession.

So department stores were buying very safe. And then also, I don't know if you remember, but it was this time where it was just in very bad taste to be sort of shopping because so many people were suffering. And the economy was so bad. And so, you know, a lot of stores took away their, you know, where you're walking out in like plain paper bags and things like that, just to be considerate of the mood and the environment that we were in. So things like shopping parties and trunk shows and shopping events were really canceled across the board. And a lot of the designers, that really hurt their business. So, you know, I was hearing

from them, Lauren, can you, you know, can you organize something? Maybe can you invite your friends to come to the showroom to order? Because, you know, we miss this, not only the business, but also the interaction to a certain extent with this, you know, with this customer. So for me, it was just this real, you know, wanting to connect, um, to connect the two. I am very much like a sharer, whatever is the opposite of a gatekeeper. Like I am, I am the opposite. If for me, nothing is good until it is shared. I'm just like an overshare. If I find something good, I want to share it with everyone, which is, you know, I think not everyone's impulse. I just, I share everything. So I think that was it. And I loved the fashion industry. I loved what I did. I loved being a part of it. I thought it was just, I wished everyone could work in fashion. It's the best job. Why wouldn't you want to? So I just wanted to bring more people along for the ride and to be a part of this world and a part of the fashion community and see these clothes up front. And so the idea was to take

the traditional trunk show, which is when designers would, every season, they would pack up their clothes in trunks and travel around the country or around the world with their runway collection. And women would shop it, place orders. And that's just sort of how the very chic Upper East Side women used to shop. That's how it was done. So we just took that very simple concept and put it online. What year was this that you did this? This was like 2011. Okay. So we just took that very simple concept and put it online. What year was this that you did this? This was like 2011. So we still do that. The designers have changed. Many have come and go. So we have the established designers that you know and love that are going down the runway, like Bottega, Valentino, Prada, Carolina Herrera, Oscar de la Renta.

And then we have, you know, really new and up-and-coming brands, like Coperni just showed in Disneyland with Kylie closing it. You know, lots of great brands out of Paris, like Dave Femme and Coperni. Upcoming designers like Magda Bertram, Paris, Georgia, Attico, just like really, also really cool brands. So it spans the spectrum. And that is, you know, that's always been what, that's always been my, you know, what interests me is, you know, working with designers, finding designers, and then helping them tell their stories, connect them with

customers, and then helping women, you know, making them love the industry and love and just getting to see the best clothes that there are and not seeing like a watered down assortment and having fun. And I think taking it a little less seriously and having fun with it. try and be as healthy as possible, which is why I'm so excited to talk about Symbiotica. What I love about Symbiotica is they have such an array of products that can help support your entire body, your entire system. It is a time when, like I said, we are eating a little bit more than usual, drinking a little bit more. There are different viruses going around. It's that time of year when people are getting sick. So what better time to boost your immune system and make sure your body is able to handle all the things that you're going to throw at it during this holiday season. Some of my favorite products that Symbiotica

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But then I found out about Prolon. Prolon is a revolutionary plant-based nutrition program that nourishes the body while making the cells believe they're fasting. So you're essentially tricking your cells. It's not a diet, it's science. And it's science based on Nobel Prize winning discoveries and medicine. It's a five-day program. So what I did is I was going down to Cabo. I wanted just to feel really great in a bikini and I wanted to try fasting at the same time. So I got the kit. It has snacks, soup, beverages, all designed to keep your body in a fasting state. There's like these little olives they give you too. You don't feel like you're

literally just fasting on water. You have all these little things to take and eat. And I honestly didn't feel deprived. And I have to tell you, when I got into that bikini, when I went to Cabo, I was feeling great. So much so that I actually did Prolon the second time I went to Cabo. So I actually went back to Cabo and did the same thing. I loved it. It wasn't just about tightening up though. It was about seeing how I felt in a fasted state and just seeing what it was like and experiencing it. I think it's really fun to test it out, especially if you're overwhelmed by fasting. This is science-backed and designed to help you thrive. Right now, Prolon is offering the Skinny Confidential, him and her show listeners, 15% off their five-day nutrition program. Go to ProlonLife.com slash skinny. That's P-R-O-L-O-N Life.com slash skinny for this special offer.

That's ProlonLife.com slash skinny. Lauren and I were just talking today in the car on the way to the studio, and we were talking about how hard it is, even with the resources that we learn about on this show, to stay healthy, to make sure you're getting the cleanest ingredients, to make sure you're putting the right foods in your body, and to just live in a healthy way. You really have to be your own guru, do your own research, and make sure you're eating the right foods in your body and to just live in a healthy way. You really have to be your own guru, do your own research, and make sure you're eating the best ingredients that you can eat. This is why Lauren and I love Primal Kitchen so much.

For all the other parents out there, you know how hard it is. Feeding a family can feel like a full-time job, and finding something that's nutritious and actually tastes good isn't always easy. That's why we're huge fans of Primal Kitchen sauces and condiments. They're our go-to for making the real whole foods we love taste even better. Like I said, Lauren and I are really careful about what we feed our kids, what we feed ourselves. And with Primal Kitchen, we know we're getting ingredients that we can trust. We have had the founders of Primal Kitchen on this show multiple times talking about their journey and how this incredible brand came about.

We love seeing real food ingredients like California grown tomatoes and the ketchup, organic cage-free eggs and their mayonnaise, and their dressings are made with good fats from avocado oil, no corn syrup or artificial sweeteners, no soy, no canola oil, and all of their condiments taste incredible and make the food that you're eating even better. So check them out. You can find Primal Kitchen products at Target, Walmart, or your local grocery store. We stock up at Whole Foods all the time. Or you can go to primalkitchen.com slash skinny and get 20% off your whole order with our personal code skinny at checkout. Again, that's primalkitchen.com slash skinny. How did you know how to build the infrastructure of a company and do the business side of everything

you're doing? Because it sounds like you had the fashion element. Did you learn that? Did someone help you? Do you have someone on operations? What does that look like? I mean, we are right now, we are a hundred and I want to say 175 people are our business. Wow. It's been a long time. In 10 years? Yeah. Yeah. You know, I think we have the most talented, best in class team that you could hope for. You know, when I graduated from college and they were like, where do I want to work? I want to work at Moda. You know, I had the other day, like a family friend came up to me. She said she really wanted, she's, I mean, this is, she had an offer at JP Morgan, at Goldman Sachs. I mean, like a really clever girl. And she said, I think I want to work in fashion and skip finance. I'm like, this is amazing. And I'm like, well, you know, there's an amazing, you know, executive program at Estee Lauder. There's one at Chanel. You know, these are, you know, would love someone as smart and clever

and as you and, you know, I can connect you. And she was like, well, thank you. You know, that's really nice, but I just want to work at Moda. Like, okay, we'll take it. So I think that, I think that's probably for me, like one of the most, you know, proud moments. And, and so we do it, we attract, we attract great talent. And when it comes to the fashion industry in New York, I think we are the center of all things fashion and creative. So we really have an incredible, incredible team. What does a day in the life look like for you? And I'm sure it's different every day, but give us a little behind the scenes peek of your week. Let's see. Yes, it's different every day. I'm very much a go where I'm needed. I know what I

can do and what no one else can do. So if there's something that other people can do, I let them, but I know where I'm needed. What are some of the things that you feel like you're absolutely required for at this point? I mean, if it's interfacing with either a really top client or a really top designer or executive, that would be at some point I am required to be there attending fashion shows, which is very time consuming. That would be at some point I am required to be there attending fashion shows, which is very time consuming. That looks exhausting as somebody who's like, I don't know that well. It is exhausting, but it's fun. I'm still not bored of it. I'm like, when I get bored, that's when I know it's time to retire. It's in your blood, I feel like.

Yeah. I like to, to be honest, when I'm doing scheduling, I like to do in the beginning of the week, anything, you know, that's sort of a repetitive thing I do in the beginning of the week. So, you know, some of the more boring, business-minded, mundane, finance-related stuff like that towards the beginning of the week and then towards the end. So it gives me something to look forward to. And I also feel I'm just maybe a little freer, a little looser. That's when I want to do things that are more creative and brainstorming, going over editorial, looking at designers and lookbooks. And I try to do that towards the end of the week. You know, I read once someone, maybe it was like Bob Iger, you know, an executive of a creative industry. And it just clicked.

And I, because I do find at the beginning of the week, I can be a little more stressed out and not as loose with ideas. For my own selfish self, I want to know how you balance everything you're doing with motherhood. How does that work? Do you have like sort of, I don't know,

pillars or bullet points that you live by when it comes to kids and work? I set the expectations very low for myself. I tell my children that I will drop them off at school on the first day of school and I will pick them up from school on the last day. And then anything in between is like a surprise. So I'll be there, you know, a random Wednesday picking them up and my children will run across the playground and hug me because they are so happy. Meanwhile, the other moms who are there every morning

and every afternoon and like don't even get a high five. They're like, what this is? And, uh, and so I've been a little distance, a little bit surprised. So they're excited, you know? And so I just, I set expectations really low for myself, for my children. I never pretend to be, um, you know, like a perfect, a perfect friend, a perfect boss, a perfect mother. I, you know, so when things go wrong, I can sort of laugh and it's expected. I'm like, oh, well, you know, of course. And then when things go right, like, that's great. That's also, you know, that's a surprise. So I just, I keep expectations really

low. I think that's a healthy way to look at it. I think if you, when you put that kind of pressure on yourself as a parent, you're always, in my opinion, going to fall short of it because there's always something going on. Well, and then I think your kids realize one day they're going to wake up and realize that you're not perfect. And that's such a jarring awakening for children. So I'm like, I just get a level set. So my children know from the very beginning so there's never this like you know falling off the pedestal moment of what but instead they'll just be like oh you know my mom's my mom's cool and she did the best she could and she loved me and she was there whenever she could

and I think that yeah just having really low expectations for myself and and having others have low expectations that's good that's what you do want your kids to say when they're older is my mom did the best she could. I saw her work or do what she loved. I saw, I watched that in front of me. I mean, that's, that is sort of the goal. Before we got married, a buddy of mine was, I was asking him advice because he was married for a while. And I was like, what do we, like, what do you, what's your advice?

He goes, listen, buddy, set the bar low. He's like, if you, he's like, if you come in too hot, too heavy, too high in the beginning, that's your bar. You come in and then you work your way up over time. This is good to know. I totally agree. You know what I mean? Because if not, you're constantly falling short. But once in a while, maybe I'll surprise her with something that's like, whoa.

Yes. I totally agree. I totally agree with that. A hundred percent. When you have a dinner party, we were talking about this last night. What makes, or what do you do when there's a bore?

A bore? A bore at the table. What do you do? I'll take the bore. You'll take the bore? I'll take the bore. Yeah. Oh, you'll take the bore? I'll take the bore.

Yeah. Okay. Yeah. I always, you know, it's funny. I always laugh that like, if I'm going to a dinner party, cause I can talk to anyone that, you know, I always laugh. I'm like going to a dinner party, because I can talk to anyone, I always laugh. I'm like, I'm either seated next to the best, most important person in the room,

or the worst, most horrible person in the room, because I can handle both. Oh, now that you're saying that, people are going to be wondering which one they want. I'll look at her Instagram. Who's the boar? That's what, I mean, that's... People that have been at dinner parties at the hour will be like, shit, which one was I? You know what the thing is? The boar doesn't know.

The boar doesn't know. That's what makes them a boar. That's what makes them a boar. So what do you do with the boar? What are your tips? You know, I get up and smoke cigarettes as often as possible to live. No, I, you know, it happens. There's probably something lovable

about them. You can always find something lovable at some point. What does your morning look like? Do you have any wellness, beauty, skin things that you do? I am like the least wellness, like woo-woo person ever. I try to be more woo-woo. I really do. But I'm pretty simple. I would say there's like a bunch of coffee shops in my neighborhood. I live in Gramercy. So it really like depends on, I would say my day starts my first decision it's like where am

i getting my coffee there's different coffee it's more like a smooth easy morning cappuccino other ones it's like jet fuel like rocket fuel what's the jet fuel order jet fuel is irving farms irving farms but what is the specific order when you go there i do cappuccino skim cappuccino it's always a cappuccino always but it's just a strong cappuccino, skim cappuccino. It's always a cappuccino. Always. But it's just a strong cappuccino. Yeah. Yeah. Irving Farm is very strong. Then you have Devosian.

You have Daily Provision, Hutch and Waldo. There are so many. Bluestone, all within 500 feet from my house. So that's really my first decision. And it sets the tone of the whole entire day. So I usually start out the week with like rocket fuel and I end with a nice smooth, you know. I drink a lot more coffee when I'm in the city.

I feel like I'm drinking so much coffee here. I know. I do. And you drink a lot of coffee here. I don't know what it is. Because it's everywhere and it's so good. It's so good. We got the best pizza. I mean, it's the greatest city in the world. It is the greatest city in the world. It really is the greatest city in the world. I've been slowly trying to convince Lauren. I'm convinced. It's the greatest city in the world. I mean, it's the greatest city in the world. It is the greatest city in the world. It really is the greatest city in the world. I've been slowly trying to convince Lauren. I'm convinced.

It's the greatest city in the world. I mean, I'm convinced. We're going to open an office out here just so I can slowly sneak more time over here. Good. I'm in. Great. She seems pretty convinced. I could never.

So we grew up in California. Yeah. And I always felt- We're in California? We're in San Diego. Oh, cool. That's pretty nice too. And then went to LA.

But I never felt at home in LA okay and even like I love California there's a lot of great things about it but I just felt like I feel much better here

like if you drop me here like just like let me go LA is my mistress I'm the same it's a mistress you just you fuck LA

you let it suck you and then you get out well I'm like if we're gonna be in a city let's be in a real city yeah I don't wanna sit in a car for 45 minutes

to go you know see you know a wave or something yeah i listen i go to la i'm like this is so nice yeah this is this is whether you can up and then you know like four or five days later i'm ready to go home but it really is you know i think to be able to if you could figure out a way to do both and be like actually bi-coastal i mean that's the dream now in, isn't it? Now I'm in Texas. Better work harder, Michael. Yeah, on it, get on it. Yeah, you better work harder. No, I'm on it.

Tomorrow I'm going to go look at, I was the reason I asked him. I'm going to go look at some stuff tomorrow. I bet she knows the places. I know all the, I'm, I, um, I've always wanted to be a matchmaker and I've never succeeded, but I can find you a job

and I can find you an apartment. Like I can do that. Well, if this podcast thing doesn't work out, I'll call you for the job. Great. What are the, the little beauty skin nails? I see you have a nail color. What are the things that you're reaching for right now?

Hair products? Let's see. I was a triple process blonde for many years, and I'm slowly weaning myself out of it. So getting my hair to be really healthy has been kind of my priority. It's probably the most wellness thing that I've ever embarked on in my hair journey. But I use Olaplex. I've been really into the K-18. K-18 is fantastic. Milbon. I'm really taking care of my hair with conditioners. But I would have to say, and I'm probably the only person that's going to mention the name Nutrafol without getting paid,

but I have, everyone's getting paid by Nutrafol. I am not paid by Nutrafol. Nutrafol.com slash skinny. That's a free one for you, Nutrafol. It's incredible. It's absolutely, you say to take four a day so i take eight just to be safe and the multivitamin and it is a game changer um so that's my hair journey um and then because of it without even realizing now i have to have my nails done because they're growing so much because of the neutrophil i'm also having to like re-laser my legs from the Nutrafol. Oh my God. I didn't even think of that.

Yeah. My leg hair is so long right now. Poor Michael. Yeah. You know what though? Shaving needs to be done. Low expectations. Low expectations.

It's like down to my toes. I mean, poor thing. That's maybe the Nutrafol. I don't mind it as long as when you shave it, you don't use my face razor. That's the- Fair. Fair enough. It's horrendous. Fair enough. They always get so when you shave it, you don't use my face razor. That's the- Fair. Fair enough. It's horrendous.

Fair enough. They always get so mad about that. Why is that such a big deal? I have no idea. Okay, let me ask you this. You want me shaving my body with your razor? I wouldn't even notice.

I'd just rinse it out. I wouldn't notice either. I don't care about that. I feel like the hair fall. I feel like you're not supposed to mix those things. It's a thing. It's a thing.

I don't think it's real, but I know. Well, because you guys probably don't care because it's going under the legs. I have to put that on my face. I'm like, where's this thing been? Okay, fine. That's valid. That's true. It It's a thing. I don't think it's real, but I know. Well, because you guys probably don't care because it's like going under the legs. I have to put that on my face. I'm like, where's this thing been? Okay, fine.

That's valid. It gives you a little rugged. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay, I get that. On the face. Yeah, yeah. Not to be vulgar here. We just met,

but what if I was like shaving my balls? Well, you do shave your balls in the toilet. Yeah, but I don't use your razor. Well, you have your own quirks, so let's not be judgy. Yeah, but I do with my own

equipment. Okay. That's fair. That's fair. How do you balance being married in all of this? Do you guys have date night? Is he coming in the office? Are you going and hanging out with him? What's the balance there? My husband's just a really great guy. So, you know, the, the longevity of our relationship and the health and happiness is purely because of him, because he's just a really nice, easygoing, good guy, probably like here. Right. Exactly how she describes me. Um, and, um, and that's great. You know, I just have to say he's like very, um, um you know he's just super supportive of everything i do and just thinks i'm great and you know can do no wrong you're saying 25 years before we started that's that's rare yeah yeah so we met i was like 21 and he was 19 in paris in paris that's such a

good story yeah it's almost like you wrote it right yeah it's a good one it's a really good one um yeah I mean we live in New York we try to enjoy it and do as much as possible and um like we live in Gramercy we're really close to the to the you know Lower East Side and the East Village there's always new restaurants opening like we go to Hole in the Walls we're not going to like you know fancy restaurants but there's a new like Korean restaurant or taco restaurant or, you know, hamburger shop. Like we'll, we'll try chicken. We'll, we'll go, we go to plays and museums and, um, really taking advantage of the city. Like we actually during COVID when we were away and, you know, stop doing all of those things. I really made a, you know, I sort of made a pact

to myself when the city gets back to normal, I'm going to take advantage of it. And, and, you know, I'm going to Carnegie Hall tonight. I'm going to, you know, there's a new show at the shed, Luna Luna, like a Warhol show coming up. They also have like King Lear. You know, I go to a lot of Broadway shows. And, you know, I just try to use the city as as much as I possibly can. What's the LSD guide to restaurants here? Like what are your your I know you said hole in the walls, but what are the top three restaurants that everyone needs to know about? I mean, I do real like I said, like hole in the walls um i would say s&p um the former eisenberg's diner it's now it's like a proper sandwich shop with like a you know a sandwich

bar it's in flat iron i want to say like 21 and fifth let's see yellow rose has the best tacos on 13th and third are they proper tacos because i? Because I will say. Well, listen, you're from California. Okay, I shouldn't even, I shouldn't even, I shouldn't even mention that. Okay, okay. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Because we haven't had

a good taco here yet. I know. Who's going to do a taco? Listen, it's the best, there's no burritos here, first of all. So don't even, don't even try it.

But the yellow rose tacos are, I think, incredible. Okay. You'd be the judge. Okay. But still no burritos. We're not there yet okay you know maybe another 100 years or so yeah and what's your third um what would be my third

um i would say i love um what about it would be a tie i would say um um madam vo does foe in the lower east side and then there's the dragon cafe um in chinatown it's like a diner but the most delicious diner food you've ever had um dragon cafe yeah dragon cafe sounds good i see from your instagram that you're a huge reader yeah and i like screenshotting all the books in your book recommendations what are the books that you're obsessed with lately or maybe ones that you've read in the past that our audience would love so right now i do a lot of like his uh like a lot of bios and historical fiction like that's sort of like my go-to like my safe space i'm trying to get you into historical fiction, Lauren. Telling you.

Well, he likes historical fiction too. Oh, really? I'll give you a list. Don't you think historical fiction writers are some of the best writers? Because they have to write about fact and fiction and leave a story. Yeah. This is his favorite. Yeah.

I love it. I love it. And I also, it just, I love, I was a history major. So there's just something about history. It takes you, it takes you back. And I'm also like quite cynical. So no matter, even if it's just a novel, I'm already like finding all the holes in the story. Whereas like you can't do that when it's actual, you know, history.

Let's see. I really like, I'm really drawn to books with like really flawed female characters where there's like the women are actually horrible. Okay. But you still love them. So I like, like, for example, like I would say custom of the country, there's this Edith Wharton, there's a character Undine Sprague. She is just like a gold digging, social climbing monster and like, you know, stepping over each husband to get to the next.

And she's just awful. And she's one of my favorite literary characters ever. There's another one, House of Mirth. The character Lily Bart is also pretty awful. Probably the worst character ever would be Dominique Franken from The Fountainhead. Awful. Oh, I got to read that. The love of her life, Howard Rourke. She destroys him, literally destroys him. Sounds fine. Beautiful.

Don't read these books, Lauren. And you know, like the obvious one would be like Scarlett O'Hara, Gone with the Wind. It's a beautiful book. She's horrible. She screws over. She steals her best friend's husband. She has an affair. She lies. She cheats. She steals. She's miserable.

She's great. So I love those kind of characters. So I reread those books all the time. I'm reading one right now about Pamela Churchill. She was a socialite in New York, but before that she actually had a pivotal role sort of in the secret service in British intelligence during World War II. Was she related to Churchill? She married Randolph Churchill, who was Winston Churchill's derelict son, Randolph. And then she continued to marry

upwards and seduce along the way. I love a wicked woman. I don't know what to say. I love it. Tell us about your Tiffany collab. You said you're the creative director of the home. It's so funny you say that. I've been buying all my gifts lately for my friends on Tiffany. Oh, great. Well, as you should. I'm buying all my gifts. It's like where I go now. Yeah. So growing up for me, Tiffany really was that. It was a place where you go to mark any kind of milestone in your life, whether it was like, you know, a birthday, first communion, 16th birthday, graduation, engagement, wedding, first child, you know, Tiffany, like all of those experiences were always marked at least in, you know, in sort of the American lore with that blue box. And so I think it's just always been central to my life. I mean, whenever we would go to a wedding, we would drive into New York City and buy

something from the wedding registry. And so that was just very much part of my upbringing. And also a part of it was also Tiffany Home and Tabletop. So it was like you had to have Tiffany on your table growing up in Greenwich, Connecticut in the 80s. That was it. That was the end all, be all. And still kind of is, I think, at least their archives, pulling out a lot of famous and iconic patterns and silver patterns, and then also introducing some new ones. So I think we'll really approach it where, you know, definitely it's all these giftable moments celebrating all of these, you know, incredible highlights of your life, that Tiffany's always there at these beautiful moments in your life, all these important milestones. And then it's really, you know, honoring the heritage of New York, of American

design, of Tiffany. And then we'll introduce some like fun, you know, tabletop should be fun, entertaining should be fun. So a lot of, you know, exciting, kind of more trendy and, you know, exciting pieces also. I have the gift for you. This is a gift that my mother-in-law actually gave me. And I absolutely love it. I think it's genius. So it's called Aura. And Aura is a digital picture frame. So this was named the best digital picture frame by Wirecutter. And essentially what it does is it makes it incredibly easy to share unlimited photos and videos directly from your phone to a frame. So what my mother-in-law did, she was so cute, is she got everyone in the family one so we could all share photos.

I really like this because I'm someone who likes fresh photos, but I also want to see like old photos of Michael when he's little. So she kind of mixed it in. It was really fun. And you can gift it to anyone. You could just get one for yourself if you wanted, whatever you want, but you can personalize it and preload it with thoughtful messages and photos using the Aura app. So maybe you have a cousin in Florida and maybe you're in California. Maybe you have someone overseas, but you just want something really purposeful. This is a really special gift. They'll use it every day.

You could also just get one for yourself and use it in your guest bedroom like I do. I have one of just my kids in my guest bedroom. It's so cute. It's pretty. It's simple. It's white. It has a black frame around it. It's a really, really great gift.

For a limited time, visit oraframes.com. You get $45 off Aura's best-selling Carver matte frames by using promo code SKINNY at checkout. I use my own code. That's A-U-R-A, frames.com, promo code SKINNY. This exclusive Black Friday Cyber Monday deal is the best of the year, so don't miss out. Terms and conditions apply. I am so into tennis right now. I'm not kidding you. When we went down to Cabo, we probably played

seven days in a row. We're actually going to San Diego and we're going to play for another seven days in a row. We wake up, we start our day with tennis. It's so fun. Sometimes the kids come down with us. They try to like pick up a racket. It's just a really fun family sport. And I also think that it's strengthened my marriage because we work together a lot and we obviously read together a lot. We're together a lot, but this is like giving us something really to do that's competitive and fun and sexy. And at this point, I just feel like I'm a better tennis player than Michael. So it's just really fun. But what I'm wearing always, I've been wearing this like the whole time I've been playing tennis, is the Demi Active Dress by Roback. Okay. The one that I like the best right now, you guessed it, is Fleet Navy.

But they also have a really good midnight black one in seasonal colors. If you're going to get a seasonal color, I personally am a big fan of the willow green. So there's a couple different colors on there. You've got to get the navy. It's like $78. It's so good. It holds you in. It's flattering. It's tight. And it's the best for sports or tennis. I even wear it when I'm lifting weights. If you haven't already, it's now time to try out some Roback. Use code skinny on roback.com for a generous 20% off your first order through the end of this week. That's spelled R-H-O-B-A-C-K.com. That's 20% off fleeces, hoodies, joggers, and more with code skinny. Stay comfortable all day with Roback.

Are you looking to sex up the holiday season? I like to keep things spicy in my marriage. I know that the bedroom is a very important place to focus on. At least it is for me. I know it's important to my husband. And I like to keep things colorful. One of the things I love to do is I love to bring in Woo More Play. You guys know this. It's a coconut love oil. It's made from organic coconuts and natural ingredients. This is really weird, but it's like prevented UTIs for me because the coconut oil is an antibacterial. It's really awesome. It's amazing for grip. It tastes good. It feels good. I just love it. While you're picking up some goodies from Woo More Play, I highly recommend the vibrator. You could use alone, use it with a partner, partners, whatever you want, whatever fits your fancy. It is a good stocking stuffer.

There is not a girl on the planet that wouldn't like this vibrator. It also comes in a very discreet case. It's like a toothbrush case. So you can travel with it, doesn't get in your stuff, and the packaging is discreet. So if you have like a nosy neighbor, you don't need to worry about that because everything is super minimal and it's not like raunchy. It's very chic. You can get Woo on Nordstroms.com. So you can go shop everything on Nordstroms. Check out Woo Coconut Love Oil. It's available online at Nordstroms.com for the Black Friday Cyber Monday holiday. Happy shopping, Nordstroms.com. I've always worked for myself, but what I think would be rad is to go into a heritage brand like that and be able to look into the history and kind of

honor it, but also keep it new. That would actually be intriguing. It's like our historical fiction, but it's exactly that. There's something about going into the past and drawing something that's real and true from the past and bringing it into the future like there's something quite gratifying about that um and just like whereas i love something new and i love something modern i am always sort of drawn to to the past especially like you know um like an elegant or past with some sort of heritage how did that opportunity come about well i'd been doing at moto we have an in-house brand um an in-house tabletop line called moda domus and when you know i sort of became obsessed with tabletop at some point and when we when i when when when that happened there, there was really only the same patterns that existed when I was

getting married still existed today. So we wanted to bring a lot of newness to the category and excitement, more casual, entertaining. So I'd been doing that for about six years with our own line. And so I do feel production and manufacturing and design and marketing. So kind of a unique skill set. So I like to believe not only do I love it and I'm good at it, but there just isn't that many people that have been doing it, that have been just really like had their hands in tabletop for the last. So they see you doing that and then they approach and say, okay, we're going to.

I assume so. Yeah. Also on your Instagram, I feel like I was looking today, you show your own tabletops a lot in your Instagram. So it's a perfect synergy. Yeah, I really like it. You know, I grew up

and there was always a lot of, you know, this idea of entertaining for me was always really terrifying about manners and etiquette and which fork goes where and does your elbow, where do you put your elbow? And like all of, all of this, like questions of etiquette and manners that felt to me really loaded. And, you know, I still can't tell you like, does the red wine or

the like, which one goes where the red wine or the white wine, you know, I still don't really remember. But all of that felt really loaded to me and really scary and very intimidating. But once I was sort of able to unpack it and take away all of that sort of nonsense and treat it as a creative expression, like this is simply about a beautiful tablecloth and putting on top of it a plate that I love and some glasses that are also pretty, you know, in the same way you would get dressed like a beautiful dress. You have a purse and then, you know, two earrings. So, you know, I just sort of approached tabletop in that way, trying to take away a lot of the stigma to it. And then I sort of got really into

it as a creative expression, throw some flowers in. And so Moda parties, you know, when we started like 10 years ago, always had some element of, you know, like of the table and tabletop. And it's sort of what Moda became known for. And then I became known for these beautiful tables. And then now it's, you know, become sort of a really popular craze. And, you know, people are really leaning into it as a creative expression. Whereas, you know, previously it was really love a tabletop it's almost like you're styling for the table and you're making it look nice if there's a lot of make it nice yeah there's a lot there's a lot of uh there's a lot of the same i feel like yeah the clothes and the way you approach it i have a friend of mine who's a huge fan of you yeah and uh he texts me oh he oh i love that

yeah he texts me some specific questions that are very interesting. Social, I always say this word wrong and I get in trouble. Faux pas? Yeah. Is that how you say it? Social faux pas, yeah. What's a social faux pas, he said? I mean, the basic is showing up on time, I think.

Like you always wait 20 minutes. For parties, for social stuff. Yeah. What about for business stuff? Business stuff, no, you're on time. Okay. And early. I had a clear bar.

And like dinner reservations, if you're the one who made the dinner reservations, you need to be there first. Before. Okay. Yeah. Okay. If you made the reservation. She was just, I know what she was going to do there.

She was going to say, see, I have to go on time. Yeah. No. But if you're inviting someone to your house at like seven o'clock you show up at 720 okay all right is the in-person shopping experience dead i don't think so but it needs to be improved um i have before covid moda had um some showrooms in-person showrooms we had london hong kong new york los angeles had some showrooms, in-person showrooms. We had London, Hong Kong, New York, Los Angeles. And so we really had in-person, very intimate one-on-one shopping and styling appointments, events, experiential, pop during COVID, we sort of shut all that down. And I've been sitting on, you know, for the last five years, ideas of how the shopping experience in person can be improved, how it can be made to be exciting. So I think that's sort of the next step for Moda is really, you know, first probably in New York, maybe after that in Los Angeles or Miami. But I really think it's not dead and it needs to be reinvigorated and brought to life. And we need to meet the customer where she is. But I think, I also think our designers want to interact with

customers in a very chic and safe environment that, you know, a designer now can't walk the shop floor and, you know, do an appointment. It's just, it's beyond. So I think there's a lot of opportunities to just go back to what I love to do, which is to connect the, you know, designers with the customer. What makes a perfect coffee table? I want to know this too. Okay. I'm going to get a lot of shit for this. So, you know, I once said, somebody asked me what's like the worst like gift you can give someone. And I said, nothing says I don't care like a candle. Yeah, I agree.

Yeah. So I literally, every person. Why are you going to get shit for that? Every person that had ever given me a candle had to call and tell me like, you know, that was rude. Anyone who had ever given a candle to someone else had to call and defend themselves. So it was like a whole thing. It was really annoying. And I've said this once to one person and she still teases me about it.

So I'm going to go on a limb here. I'm going to say I do not believe in decorating coffee tables with coffee table books oh yeah so what do you do anything but anything but anything but can we do a candle on the coffee table no okay no so um okay so you know I also think that everyone should be collecting something right so I collect beautiful Japanese calligraphy boxes. I also collect ugly Italian ceramics from the 70s. So I think it's a nice place to maybe show a collection, things that you think. Items or things that you think are beautiful.

Some flowers, things around it. We could bring down all my old Star Wars toys, Lorna. We could put them on the coffee table i mean star wars could be cool um i think it's i think um but listen if there is a you know if there is a book of something that is like really important an artist that like means something to you a place that you visited that has like a lot of memories you know yes by all means but I think just having like a perfectly you know a perfect stack of books a little boring huh still boring yeah a little basic yeah and it's the worst I'm gonna probably get shit for this too is when it's

everyone has the same books we all know the books you know the different color it's like where you've been on vacation yeah or they're different colors and everyone has the same. Well, and that's what happens is in everybody's house ends up looking the same because everyone has the same coffee tables in the same layout and the same, you know. So I have a friend that I said that to. She came to my house and she noticed that I don't have any coffee table books out. And she she asked me about it. And so I point I actually said I was like oh I deliberately don't do that and I have this and that and she became bright red and since then

has told me that she's like I got rid of all my coffee table books and that it sort of helped her actually she said develop her own house and her own style because then once she didn't have that she had to find things to put there and then it just sort of spread from there and she said it was the most liberating advice that she'd been given it's also the worst when you haven't even opened the book and you just have it because you saw it on someone's instagram story yeah that's like like you gotta at least open the book and flip yeah mark a page or two you can't just have like a pristine book. Nobody's opened those books ever, ever. Nobody has ever looked inside those books. They're just there.

So yeah, what was the question? What was his question? How do you style a perfect coffee table? So he must know because he's asking that you don't use a coffee table book. Oh, he's got very good taste. Does he have really good taste? Yeah.

Some of the best. I often do like above shots of coffee tables on my instagram like a vignette yeah i i do like a lot of interesting boxes with textures and where are you getting all your collection are you on auction sites where are you finding all these pieces is it just everywhere you go traveling everywhere i would say i'm kind of like addicted to beauty I'm addicted to beautiful things and I am constantly in search of beautiful things when I was younger I I visited Venice I walked into you know the cathedral and Saint Mark's and had on my like Walkman listening to Guns and Roses and I walk in and nothing could have prepared me for, you know,

the most sort of awesome experience. And I had never been, I was just completely taken by the beauty of it. And I think to this day, I'm like always chasing that feeling, like chasing that, like chasing the dragon, trying to find my next fix of something beautiful so uh wherever i am um i am like in museum i'm in galleries i if i'm going to a destination wedding i will always search like sunday morning flea markets um no matter where i am i will always find like a local market i'll go to a consignment store store. I'll be like, where do all the rich ladies send their clothes when they're done with them? I'll find that place. And so I'm just always sort of like looking, I'm seeking always. I'm not necessarily like acquisitive. Like if I see

something beautiful, I don't have to own it. I can just look at it and appreciate it and move on. But there are certain like collections that I have that I'm like always sort of adding to. And it gives you, it gives you a little, some guardrails when you're, when you're like out of flea market or antiques fair or something like that. What is your closet situation?

He wants to know, is there an organization process? Is it a mess? He needs to be my best friend. Like he's asking all the right questions. Oh, he's a good one. He's a good one. He's a's asking all the right questions. Oh, he's a good one. He's a good one. He's a good one.

We had dinner last night. He's a good one. Oh, good. He was not a bore at dinner. Let me tell you. Oh, good. Not a bore. He was sitting on my right.

I'm like a two in. I am. Sometimes I'm a one in, one out or a one in, two out policy. Okay. So like if I buy a black dress,

I have to be willing to part with at least one black dress. Huh. If I buy a like workout black dress i have to be willing to part with at least one black dress if i buy a like workout set i have to be willing to part with a workout can you adapt that because i can't i just donated like yeah literally it's almost everything i've never seen anything when did you do that by the way like literally she's gonna go to the store where'd you go okay because someone told me that october 2nd there was a a solar eclipse and that it's all about like getting rid of maybe i sensed it maybe i'm just so every i just did the same thing my husband just did the same thing everyone i've been talking to is like i've been purging my closet i was gone one day

and i got and i was just sitting around and i was like, I need to just declutter my entire life. It was a solar eclipse. It was a solar eclipse. It hit you. It hit you hard. Wow. But it's a thing. The same thing happened to me. But that just keeps me, listen, I'm at a point in my life where I should already have all

the things that I need in my closet. So anything that I'm adding is just like, you know, a creative at this point. Is it systematic and like very clean and pristine or is it like everything's thrown everywhere low expectations you know no I'm not a perfectionist I have like my own system I always wish I could be more organized like when fashion week rolls around like I wish I was that person that spent all summer getting my looks ready um I do it the night before you know by by by day five of fashioning, I'm like, I'm out of outfits. Like I can't even. So no, I wish I were like a more organized person

and like, I wish I was more of a perfectionist in life. And if I were, I would apply it first to my closet. I have a system, it's pretty organized, but it's not. It doesn't look like it was done by a professional or anything. I bet it's cool, though. It's probably styled in your own way. Yeah, I try to have it so I don't have to cycle seasons. Okay. So it has to be year-round. So I don't take my sweaters out. That feels so much less overwhelming to me that is one convenient thing about yeah living in california is you basically don't have to you

just could have one type of clothing the whole year here you have to have a lot of different stuff yes where can everyone find you follow you support what you're doing go to your site shop if there's maybe one product that we all need from your site. What is it? Like, is there a great tank or like a great blazer that you think everyone needs that looks good? So first of all, I think what's great about shopping on Moda is that we're bringing the fashion shows to you. So everything that goes down the runway. So we just finished or actually just wrapping right now Fashion Week.

So we had New York, London, Milan and Paris and everything that goes down the runway. We photograph it. We put it up on the site. You put a 50 percent deposit down on on the pieces that you want. It's produced and then it arrives to you like four to six months later. This is a very advanced way of shopping, but I actually kind of like it because it's like a it's like a really fancy layaway. So if there's like a dress that you really like, you know, you're paying 50% now and 50% later. So it kind of splits up. And you have to wait for the present. You have to wait for it. And then when it arrives, it feels like you've earned it, like you've been waiting for it.

And their box is so good too. Yeah. And listen, that's how fashion people shop. We go into the showrooms and we order our clothes and we wait six months for them to arrive. So for fashion people, it's a very normal way of shopping. And I think it's very slow and deliberate way of shopping. And I think in today's, you know, environment where everything feels almost like disposable, people are buying things to wear at one time. This is sort of the exact opposite because this item is being produced, you know, for you, for an end customer. It's not just being, you know, made thousands of

them. They're going to throw in on, you know, every website and every department store. This is, you know, a bit more deliberate. And then of course we have the, you know, our regular in-season boutique, which is, you know, at your door in 24 hours. That's like 75% of our business right now. And I would say the must visit place on the site would be Lauren's Closet. So I do a curation and during trunk show season, it's all the pieces that are for pre-order. And then during the rest of the year, it's all in season. I usually do a mix of basics and classics, things that are very on trend. And then lately I've been really leaning towards like color and texture and bling and glamour and kind of like being a little over the top again after being quiet and like stealth and there's been a lot of beige i had danny and alex on the podcast the other day and they were asking me and it's

the thing is tiktok and instagram there's been beige everywhere yeah lauren thinks she discovered the color navy i did she just like she thinks she's new to Navy. I did. Navy's great. You might have discovered. I love Navy. Right now, I like mix. I like breaking all of those rules, like wearing Navy and black, wearing gold and silver, wearing like black shoes with a brown belt.

Love. Um, yeah. You know, all those things that were like considered outrageous a couple years ago. You gotta keep up. This is more fashionable than me. No,

no, no. This, he's, me. No, no, no. He first met me like he had so many refinements. How did you meet? We met when we were 12. Oh, yeah, that's right. And then we got married later.

You can't use this term anymore, but I kind of had to like Kanye her closet. Yeah, he did. Oh, really? You could use the term. I don't know. I have a book for you. Still, we have a couple more weeks

to be determined. He had to Kanye me. Got it. There was a lot of one-offs going on. He has a very refined you. Still, we have a couple more weeks to be determined. He had to Kanye me. There was a lot of one-offs going on. He has a very refined taste. Okay, good. But I've also helped with you in other ways. So let's not get ahead of ourselves. Yeah, my husband has very good taste too.

And so I think that also. I don't think I have. It's important. I don't know if I have. I can't come up with the idea myself. But if I see something, I'm particular about it. Yeah. And you know if it's good and you know if it's not.

I'm just like, yeah, and I'm opinionated about what I think. I think that's, I just have a deal with my husband that if he has a comment, that he has to say it before I leave the house. Okay. So that I. And then you're out. Yes. Because we had once, we were at the Met Gala and I'm like walking up the stairs. It was Anglomania. And so Andre Leon Talley had put me in this like Alexander McQueen puke green ostrich feather ruffled collar like, you know, like those things that you put at the end of a of a turkey, you know, on the like the little chef's hat. It like that but green with feathers um but it was anglomania

it was andre and like lee mcqueen of course it was so i felt amazing and we get to the bottom of the steps and they like call to take our photo and my husband is like no way i'm taking a picture of you in that ugly fucking dress and ran up the stairs. He hated it. Hated it. Hated it. And then I spent the whole night being like, am I the asshole? Like, am I the asshole? And it really was ugly, but it was appropriate for the night. But anyway, after that, I told him that if he has a comment, you know, he should say before I leave the house. So at least I am consciously like overriding or, you know, indul indulging you have to tell us before you go you go your favorite Met Gala look that you've ever done I would say the year it would have been

like punk rock Dolce & Gabbana at first there it was their first haute couture collection called Altamoda and so they made a dress and then I just like layered it and layered it with jewelry. Glamorous. Yeah. Where can everyone find you? I am, they can find me on the sixth floor at Tiffany, at the LSD on Instagram. I'm not on TikTok yet. And then at modaaparandi.com in Lauren's closet.

Thank you so much for coming. See, podcast wasn't too bad. It wasn't that bad. I know, it's fun, right? Yeah, it wasn't that bad. It's different. Why I like it is you get context of the person. We were saying the other day,

there's never been anyone that comes on the show that you can't figure out how they got to their opinion. Meaning there's never anyone with like a bad intention you can kind of see the whole story because it's long form yeah it's different it's great thank you for doing this