The New Garde with Alyssa Vingan

You may have heard that today kicks off the Year of the Fire Horse, it’s Mardi Gras in New Orleans, and that Lana Del Rey just dropped a brand new single, “White Feather Hawk Tail Deer Hunter,” which she wrote with her husband, Louisiana airboat tour guide Jeremy Dufrene. These things are unrelated to each other, but all play nicely into this week’s pod theme. I am joined by Amanda Mull, senior reporter at Bloomberg Businessweek, to discuss why Southern aesthetics have become so pervasive in fashion and culture over the last several years, from pop music to TV to TikTok. Tune in for Amanda’s expert contextualization from growing up in Georgia (Go Dawgs!), as well as her thoughts on Bass Pro Shops gear and Realtree camo making their way to the runways a decade ago; the explosion of cowboy-inspired looks in the wake of the Eras Tour and Cowboy Carter; Southern sorority girl style spreading to a worldwide audience via #RushTok, and Alix Earle starting her career doing GRWM videos from the University of Miami campus; the influx of influencers (Brianna LaPaglia, Paige Lorenze, Campbell Puckett, etc.) using regional aesthetics in their content; Lana Del Rey, Ethel Cain, and why white Southern femininity is a rich text for the fashion industry to pull inspiration from; microdosing MAGA culture via popular series like “Landman,” “Hunting Wives,” and “Southern Charm;” why fashion is so obsessed with horse girls, and much more. Yee-haw!This episode was recorded in the podcast studio at The SQ @ 205 Hudson. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thenewgarde.substack.com/subscribe

If there’s one person you can count on to predict which trends, designers, and historically notable pieces are about to bubble up on the secondhand market before anyone else, it’s Liana Satenstein. Through her research, closet clean outs for industry heavy hitters, and live sales for Neverworns, she’s honed an uncanny ability to forecast the Next Big Thing on the vintage scene — plus, she boasts an encyclopedic knowledge of the lore behind some of fashion’s most iconic items. This week, I chat with Liana about some of her recent spot-on predictions — she was the first to cover the vintage sportswear boom and the YSL Mombasa bag resurgence — as well as her thoughts on the red carpet vintage movement among young Hollywood, the oversaturated secondhand retail space and whether the bubble will burst, why so many brands are reissuing classic items and what makes a “good” reissue, why storytelling is crucial for any brand or seller dipping into vintage, why secondhand furs are having a huge moment this winter, and much more.This episode was recorded in the podcast studio at The SQ @ 205 Hudson. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thenewgarde.substack.com/subscribe

The role of the fashion publicist has evolved significantly over the past couple of decades, and Savannah Engel has been boots on the ground through it all. In this delightfully chaotic episode recorded ahead of last fashion month, I chat with the founder of Savi about growing up in the Mississippi Delta — with a mother who was one of the first female executives at Wrangler — and how learning to work the room at SMU frat parties eventually led her to explore a career in PR, landing a gig at Michael Kors while she was technically still enrolled at school. Tune in for Savannah’s hilarious storytelling, as well as her take on why the world of public relations as it once stood is over; how she learned that “people and parties” is her most valuable skill; how trauma bonding with fellow assistants via nightlife made her indispensable to her bosses because of the relationships she built; what it was like starting a community building agency long before that became a popular term; lessons she learned from working the door at clubs, as well as through hosting and doing seating charts for dinner parties; the realities (and lack of ROI) of a small brand putting on a runway show; why no amount of online socializing or clout can replace IRL human interaction; what makes an actually good party; how publicists shifted from someone behind the scenes to becoming more forward-facing; whether everyone has what it takes to become an “It Girl” in the age of social media, and so much more. This episode was recorded in the podcast studio at The SQ @ 205 Hudson. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thenewgarde.substack.com/subscribe

It’s not your imagination: The Kennedys dominated the collective consciousness this year, and the pull was particularly strong within the fashion industry. This week, I sit down with writer, strategist, and Kennedy scholar Maura Brannigan to discuss the myriad ways that the American political family has permeated the zeitgeist recently, and how they represent politics as pop culture in a very palatable way — especially during this disturbing time in our country. Tune in for Maura’s take on Carolyn Bessette Kennedy as a moodboard muse and a rare example of true personal style, as well as why minimalism and old money restraint feel so aspirational right now; JFK Jr. as the poster boy for yuppie style that’s driving the prep revival seen at brands like J.Crew and Dior Men’s; CBK and JFK Jr.’s couple style, as well as our thoughts on the Ryan Murphy series costume design discourse; Sarah Staudinger’s purchase of three iconic CBK pieces at Sotheby’s auction for $177K (while Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis’s violet wool coat, worn on the night of John F. Kennedy’s election to the presidency, just sold for $50,800 this week); Julia Fox’s bloody Jackie Kennedy Halloween costume at this moment of political violence being back in the cultural conversation; Jack Schlossberg’s political trajectory, from brain rot content to Vogue correspondent to congressional candidate; RFK Jr.’s MAHA rhetoric affecting the beauty and wellness industry; Olivia Nuzzi’s aesthetic transformation in the lead up to American Canto and leaning into the “I had an affair with a Kennedy” look, and so much more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thenewgarde.substack.com/subscribe

The second part of TNG’s look back at 2016 (don’t miss part one here!) digs into the massive, enduring influence that year had on the fashion industry. This week, I sit down with Jian DeLeon, the men’s fashion director at Nordstrom who was steeped in menswear media at the time, to discuss the year’s lasting impact on clothing and culture. Tune in to hear how Jian made the transition from editorial to retail — or, how he went from indirectly selling things to directly selling things — as well as how 2016 marked the apex of meme and algorithm fashion; why it was the last year that people felt something of a monoculture, as well as the final moment of Kanye West’s domination of the zeitgeist where fashion and culture intertwined; how fashion and streetwear weren’t as muddled yet, the last days of knowing who the gatekeepers were; the year responsible for the pop-up and why everything is an “activation” now; New York Fashion Week: Men’s (RIP), the Raf Simons Calvin Klein debut, and a formative time for menswear; the merch-ification of fashion thanks to Kanye, Justin Bieber, Frank Ocean, Drake, etc.; whether designers were “trolling” or actually subverting how we think about fashion and design; the resale market boom and bust, and much more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thenewgarde.substack.com/subscribe

If you, like me, spend a good amount of time on TikTok, you’ve likely felt awash in a sea of nostalgia for 2016, which in just a matter of weeks will be a full decade in the rearview. Not only was it a banner year for realizing things, it was also a moment in time that shifted the cultural paradigm in a way that’s now coming into full focus. In the first of a two-part episode, I sit down with Jessica DeFino of Flesh World to discuss how the beauty trends, products, and developments that defined 2016 have changed the industry forever. Tune in to hear about Jessica’s time witnessing the creation of beauty standards firsthand while working for the Kardashian apps in 2016, as well as why the natural next step in the trend cycle is a reaction to “clean girl” beauty; reflections on a time before micro and ‘core trends; the cut crease to blepharoplasty pipeline is real; the self-care boom in the aftermath of the first Trump election and how it’s evolved; why 2016 makeup and “Republican makeup” are so similar; what the King Kylie era brought to wider beauty culture, and the impact that Kylie Cosmetics had on the celebrity beauty brand boom; how trauma dumping during GRWM videos on TikTok has become such a popular content genre; why Ozempic is the new Botox, and more. This episode was recorded in the podcast studio at The SQ @ 205 Hudson. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thenewgarde.substack.com/subscribe

Been gone for a minute now we’re back! To celebrate the year coming to a close — and to officially kick off Season 2 of TNG — Alyssa sat down with Emily Kirkpatrick, Nicolaia Rips, and Taylore Scarabelli to discuss the highs and lows of 2025 in fashion, plus what to expect in 2026. The esteemed panel goes deep on the year in brands, content, trends, red carpets, runways, and more, touching on everything from the unspoken rules of party reporting to the potential for a runway show in space (see: that Timothée Vogue cover, Matthieu Blazy’s Chanel debut set, and the Jeff Bezos/Lauren Sánchez Bezos sponsored Met Gala).Special thanks to our presenting partner sex happens, and to Hudson Square Properties for the venue. Brand new episodes will resume next week! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thenewgarde.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit thenewgarde.substack.comFirst a blog, then a pod, then fashion world domination. This week, Alyssa sits down with Liv Perez, a fashion journalist, TODAY Show correspondent, and host of the Let’s Get Dressed podcast, to discuss how she’s building a one-woman fashion media empire for the next generation. Tune in to hear how Liv’s time as a college student in New York during the earliest days of Instagram and digital media kicked off her career, including a stint at Teen Vogue; her time as one of the earliest Glossier shop girls; why she started her original recommendations blog, Friend of a Friend, and how she organically built an audience; why she pivoted to audio before the podcasting industry exploded; how she started creating content for brands and how she decides who to partner with; how to know when it’s time for a rebrand; why having a very specific point of view is crucial in a crowded space like podcasting; whether everyone making things online needs to be on video; how being an early adopter has been a key to her success, and much more.This episode was recorded in the podcast studio at The SQ @ 205 Hudson.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit thenewgarde.substack.comThe Spring 2026 season of Men’s Fashion Week in Paris is well underway, and to celebrate, we’re catching up with one of the most respected (and loudest) voices in menswear: Lawrence Schlossman, co-host of Throwing Fits, as well as the former editor-in-chief of Four Pins (RIP), brand director of Grailed, author of F**k Yeah Menswear, and overall industry authority for more than a decade. In a supersized episode, Lawrence breaks down his illustrious career that all started with a fashion blog, and anonymous Tumblr account, a healthy sense of humor, and a dream. Plus, he shares a wealth of insights on the current state of the menswear space: what’s most interesting to him right now, his thoughts on what’s happening (and what’s not) in men’s lifestyle media, the tedium of recycled references, the hyperspeed of the trend cycle and which trends have surprising staying power, the overconsumption conundrum, his take on the personal style discourse, the fine line between being in on the joke and being the joke in the starter pack age, how menswear enthusiasts can set themselves apart when it comes to style, and so much more.This episode was recorded in the podcast studio at The SQ @ 205 Hudson.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit thenewgarde.substack.comWhen you think about some of the most disruptive brands on the New York fashion scene over the last decade (Telfar, Luar, Area) and the most legendary parties (Heaven by Marc Jacobs’s surprise Deftones concert, for example), they all have something in common: Gia Kuan Consulting was working behind the scenes and front of house to make the magic happen. This week, Alyssa sits down with publicist extraordinaire Gia Kuan to learn all about how she became one of the most sought-after ladies in the world of fashion and beauty comms, which is a “people” business at its core. Tune in for a fascinating conversation about Gia’s international upbringing, when she took early style inspiration from The Jetsons and Sailor Moon; how being a teenage mallrat was her first exposure to the fashion industry; how working in hospitality and nightlife in college were training grounds for working the door at fashion events and having grace under pressure; her first PR job at Comme des Garçons; why working with emerging brands at Dover Street Market as their de facto PR was so inspiring; why she sees her agency as a matchmaking business; why subcultures are alive and well if you know where to look and are curious enough; how her obsession with youth culture and pop culture inform her work; the joys of working with your friends, and with people or brands that are different from what’s already out there; why guest list curation is an art; how to stay nimble in a communications industry that changes all the time, and much more.This episode was recorded in the podcast studio at The SQ @ 205 Hudson.