News from the runway in Paris. The catwalk returned to the city for this season.
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Tag: new normal
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At PFW,, Less
France 24 News reports on the New Normal affecting Paris Fashion Week. Less people attending Fashion Shows because of social distancing rules.
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IFA 20
Tech is Back
“Tech is Back” the message to IFA 2020 tech attendees for a year in upheaval. As with everything in our present reality, Covid-19 hangs over events big and small. When the Messe Berlin team announced in May the plan to go ahead with the fair, I had of surprised reaction. This years Mobile World held in Barcelona got cancelled. Many industry brands pulled out due to health concerns.
Skepticism ran high, the continent is registering uptakes with infections, unplanned quarantines coming from certain countries. Planning normal travel can be difficult, but these days it goes beyond challenging. Attending my first big event in the “New Normal” gave me anxiety. I had many expectations. As days rolled closer to the opening of IFA on September 3rd. I waited for an email reading “Cancelled”. None came.
On the first day of the 3 day IFA 20, the difference from past years was apparent, fewer people. I walked in, no crowd, no hassle. I walked in the media and press hall furnished socially distanced low back chairs. Without exhibitor stands, these halls are massive. Event press conferences were a mix of digital and live presentations. Shift and NEXT Innovations held in The Cube was more intimate. The present trend in technology, not a hard guess. Connections and gadgets for making home stays more comfortable.
Highlights
Discovered higlights at IFA 20 Special edition.
The tech sector cannot fault the IFA team for trying this year. #Thisyearisdifferent. Trying to get back to “normal” is easer said than done.
Bob, a mini dishwasher requiring 3 liters of water for washing 4 place settings in 20 minutes while using UVA disinfecting technology. Designed by D.A.A.N. Tech from France.
Cardi B’s summer hit song “WAP” places female needs to an in the front and center. Women want to get their groove on. Satisfyer adult toys come in many shapes and sizes. Plus, they connect to Spotify.
Fitbit released new gear. I saw the watch but I have never used the brands device. Hopefully, in the future I will have a review.
The future of social interaction without being there, GoBe Robots has a solution, a smiling face while practicing social distancing. Mobile digital screens putting the user at the center of meetings.
Because we couldn’t have hands on experience with devices introduced digitally. I decided to skip writing about those gadgets.
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Tech August
As the world stays home these days, being connected is important. What do I think of these Jabra headphones? Hint: they have become my work horse devices. This Jabra headset delivers.
Stay Tuned for the review on this device and more.
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Fabulous Denial Syndrome
Being Fabulous! Aspirational living! This is the lifestyle Vogue and other Conde Nast publications put in our faces. That $1500 bag matched with a $900 linen top. Advice; Pay the rent before heading to Bloomingdales.
Once again the magazines find themselves in the headlines, but for the wrong reason,,AGAIN! Six years ago Conde Nast debased from Mid Manhattan to the World Trade Center. Fast Forward to the 2020 Pandemic, ad revenue flat lined. Suddenly, those palatial 1.2 million square feet became a brick tied to an ankle in a sea storm.
Fashion magazines have been in a denial stage for a decade. Bloggers and social media elbowed in once exclusive territory. Brand advertising splintered. But to the heads of Conde Nast, this was a bump on a Champagne Boulevard. They had become victims of a movement they help create, “Living In A Fake Reality”.
Nothing says success than new digs. Trading up, moving to 1 World Trade in lower downtown New York represented the future, optimism. Anna Wintour and staff sat on top of the world. August 4th 2020, reports started circulating Advance Publications, parent company of Conde Nast, is scouting for a new office. I had to do a double take. Suddenly, Vanity Fair, New Yorker, Teen Vogue’s 21 floors lost its appeal or a need to “trade down”. Six months ago I saw Vogue editors coming in and out of the Bristol and Hotel de Crillon hotels in Paris.
One Minute This, Then,
In April requesting government a bailout, today negotiating cheaper rent. No more fashion week teas in “Le Boudoir”. Have the company credit cards been cut? No worries, if a Vogue Staffer is reading this, send me a message. I know a few affordable places in Paris and Milan.
Looking over the magazines social media channels, I could see problems. Access to the best writers and photographers in the world, yet, a lack of original content replaced by recycled stories. How many pictures can be from the archives? Or Vogue Challenges every week? HMMM!
All smokes and mirrors, denial is a fabulous way to live until a “reality brick” hits the face.
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No Need for Luxe
Every season, two times a year, I hit the luxury stores. Sale Season! Those words are music to my eyes, hard on the wallet. Always updating the wardrobe on a budget.
This year, like everything, things are a bit strange. Only a few customers allowed in the stores with fewer sales people.
I noticed the trend, lux mixed with streetwear. Few brands have transitioned well. I would say some pieces were ugly. Saying this in front of a 50% off sale sign is a statement. In the past, going to a select store was a treat. I could not wait to a designer look.
Something happened this year. I traveled to the centers of Hamburg and Berlin for the special occasions. To my surprise, I found nothing I wanted. Walking from one top brand store to another, nothing hit me. ( Later, I will tell you about the service in a few places.)
Kadewe and Alsterhaus department stores, temples of consumption where all is offered under one roof. Being there inspired me to write this article. What happened to the big brands? On shelves one after another, the numbing sensation overwhelmed me. Some items came across as cheap at 1000 euros. Overpriced H&M production models. High fashion was about being distinguished, exclusivity. I am not an elitist, but somewhat of a fashion style snob. When there is a good markdown.
Perhaps in the New Normal my motivation for buying has changed. Why do I need this or that? Life and work wardrobes center on Zoom T-Shirts.
There is still hope. I decided to buy a bag, and a scarf from independent luxury labels. The pieces are more original, more details.
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2020 PART 2
Black and Paper prepares for the second half of 2020. How do we do it?
Taking CUES!
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A Digital Gym Partner
Like everyone, I am making the most of working out, running in the park everyday, sprinting on stairs. But my gym recently opened with new protocols, less equipment, new routine. Change is good, but I wanted to turbo charge my workout. Garmin watches have a reputation of durability with a fitness following.
My first impressions: A bit complicated to set up but it is my first time with the device. Thankfully, there are many YouTube videos. I managed to get the basic data up and running.
Garmin Tech 
The Workout Zone
Still working on how to navigate the interface. I took the watch for a run in the park, then a round at the gym. Slowly, I could around to having a digital fitness partner.
Stay Tuned for the unboxing and my opinion on the Garmin 945 watch.
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Back in the Gym
Friday, June19th. After 90 days of not going to the gym, I finished my first week working out indoors in the New Normal. March 12thwas my last training session before the lockdown. Thankfully in Berlin there was not a complete closure. I managed to run everyday in the streets and the local parks.
Weigh In
I did the dreaded a weigh in after 3 months. Facing a firing squad would have been less frightening. The scale read 84.6 kilos. The previous one came in at 83.5 kilos. A small gain. Considering I visited South Germany for a week living on Bavarian Cuisine and drinking, a minor relief
I belong to a gym chain with multiple locations in the city, walking to the nearest branch or biking to the bigger one 15 minutes away. On the website the new protocols included: no shower, no changing of clothes, 3 meter distancing, and disinfecting equipment. Also, going to the gym, I have to walk through the mall, making a mask the new requirement instead of a gym bag.
Check First
Before going, I have to check online for gym crowd member status:
Green=Go
Yellow=Maybe
Red=No More People allowed inside.
Walking in, there are arrows to guide me to the check in. The same trainers stand at the desk. We greet each other but they are behind plexiglass. Hands in the sanitizer spritz. Skip the locker room, head to the cardio area. The distancing rules translates to every 2 machines taped off.
My past routine was A muscle, then B muscle: A Muscle 12 reps times 4 sets, for B, 12 reps, 3 sets- Sometimes I would double rep or jump from one machine to another. Today, that is not possible. New protocols mean taped off workout areas for each piece of equipment, all spaced apart and moved. I was lost in a place I visited 5 days a week for the past 3 years.
No classes, no work out mats, no steps. The free weight zone only allows 8 people at a time. The trainer is now a room monitor. The atmosphere has that “New Normal Feeling”: little conversation, no laughing, suspicion in the air.
Returning
Initially, on my gym return, it was grab a space or machine that became available. I had trouble putting together a program, biceps, triceps, lats. Chest mixed with shoulders, not today! Out with old ways! I am at 60% were I left off in March. My legs and stamina benefited from the outdoor running routines.
Devising a new way forward required visits to the larger gym with more space, more equipment. Forging a new routine, one based on practical situation, focusing on one muscle group at a time: 4 to 5 sets, 15 reps. I have to forget about a chance to move to another machine in between also, the hygiene rules, wipe down the equipment after each use.
After 5 days, I am getting the hang of it, making progress, feeling the difference with a more focused program.
The goal is drop 3 kilos in a few weeks.
Stay Tuned for more details.
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New Normal Workout
I returned to the gym after 90 days. New Rules in the New Normal. How do you follow them and stay on a program?
Stay Tuned