Meet Sam Jones .. A NYC original

portrait by Mahyar M Kalamantari

As a run up to NYFW, I thought it only fitting to meet one of the great personalities of New York Fashion. We, New York garmentos, as we are both derisively and affectionately called, are of a special breed. We have long been victims of stereotyping or in more current parlance, we have been profiled to fit a certain mold.

Today is about “the broken mold” and unequivocally saying that this woman is one of a kind in every way. Sam Jones is audacious, intelligent, delightful, irreverent, entrepreneurial, savvy and most of all she is a breed of those in our business who will succeed because of her own grit; this last quality is a throwback to generations that preceded her. Let it be known here that not everyone will think of her as I do but that’s life!

Some will think or already do think that she is not the “deity” that I describe but, for me, I will take 100 of her against one vapid, entitled, fashion obsessed, uneducated know  it all 21^st century garmento! She is a tough broad with a whole lotta heart and determination and with that she IS a new generation for this slagging business where we cower to the opinions of the few.

Time to meet and greet ….. AN ORIGINAL!!

1)     What is the most treasured possession in your wardrobe?

A vintage tulle peacock blue Christian Dior turban.

2)     What’s your most sterling trait and what trait do you most admire in your friendships?

My most sterling trait is my raw sense of humor. I love to make people laugh.  I inspire those around me to find comedy in even the most dismal of situations by living life as if it were this magically, never ending movie that we’re all starring in.  Some may say I’m a muse (ing.) When it comes to my friendships, I treasure understanding and acceptance. Being able to laugh with each other and at each other is essential. My friendships mean more to me than anything in this world.

3)     What is your bliss?

My bliss is having friends over to cook dinner, smoke pot, play guitars, laugh and enjoy each other. That and being on the back of a Harley.

4)     What is your guilty secret?

I’m into weird porn.

5)     Where is your ideal home?

A loft in the East Village.

6)     If you could not be a designer/ retailer/ etc. what would you be?

I love everything I’m doing right now. (Barnaby Jones NYC and A Higher Society Marketing/PR) but my dream is to one day have my own variety/talk show. Think Carol Burnett meets Courtney Love.

7)     What’s on your bedside table right now?

Book: The Power of Intention by Dr. Wayne Dyer, Vibrator: WiVibe, Candle: Hotel Costes, Drugs: Melatonin, Weapon: Taser Gun and a Magazine: Nylon

8)     What do you wear to bed?

Cheap tube socks

9)     What book if any are your reading now or last read?

 I last read The Power of Intention by Dr. Wayne Dyer. Game Changer.

10)   What’s your advice to the newcomer?

Don’t be afraid to follow your curiosity.

11)   Who or what is your inspiration/Style icon?

Iris Apfel. She inspires me to dress the part of the character I wake up feeling like each day.

12)   What’s the best advice you ever received?

Leap and the net will appear.

13)   In three words or less describe the current state of fashion.

Distorted.

14)  If you were a retailer would you wear your own designs or shop in your own store? 

If I were a retailer, I would only curate my space with designers that I’d wear; designers who are aesthetic inspired me. I think Bodega does a great job curating their store.

15)  If you won $200,000,000 power ball what is the first thing you would buy or do?

I would build NO Kill Pit Bull rescue facilities in NYC and LA.

16)  If you could invite up to 4 people for dinner who would it be dead or alive?

Dean Martin, Lucille Ball, Courtney Love and Albert Einstein (If one couldn’t make it, Hunter Thompson would be the runner up.)

17)  What’s your favorite movie or movie star?

The Kid Stays in the Picture. I am a HUGE Fan of Robert Evans.

18)  What’s the one thing you would change about yourself?

My Nipples and my fear of doctors.

19)  Whose opinion do you value most and why?

My own. Everyone else’s doesn’t matter.

20)  What store of which designer do you most like to shop in and wear?

I mostly wear vintage clothing; my absolute favorite vintage shop is Vintage Martini in Dallas. Yves Saint Laurent is the epitome of fashion to me but since I can’t afford to shop there often, my go to is Isabel Marant and… dare I say it…. ZARA!

21)   What’s your take on magazines, books vs the internet?

While the web provides us with everything we need at our fingertips, nothing will ever replace the feeling of holding a magazine or a book.  Each medium serves a purpose, I need them both. Rest assured, PRINT WILL NEVER GO OUT OF STYLE.

22)   Do you have a dream collaborator?

I have two but one’s dead. Andy Warhol and Woody Allen. My nickname is Annie Warhol.

23)  What is your crowning achievement thus far in your career?

I first got into fashion when I was 30 and everyone around me told me I’d never make it. Within a year of working at Libra Leather, I was sitting front row at fashion shows along the likes of: Dennis Basso, Oscar De la Renta, Alexander Wang, Derek Lam and J Mendel. Within two years I was working with Lady Gaga, Kanye West, Lauren Hill, and Lenny Kravitz. Not bad for a “Bridge N Tunnel” Brooklyn girl.

24)  What’s your musical library like?

Eclectic. Deep. Envied.

25)  What and where is your favorite meal?

Pizza. (How unfashionable of me) My favorite spot is Roberta’s in Bushwick. Otherwise my go to is Brisket at Back 40 in the East Village.