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 Perfect for every family member, the leathery coat goes with everything from jeans to cashmere and last for years. More versatile than fur, hipper than cashmere, cheaper than diamonds: Leather is the fairest of them all, coming in a huge variety of finishes, styles and colors. In a sense they are a romantic story telling its history: Stretch marks from giving birth, horn cuts from a fight with a predator or fellow burl, barbed wire marks from fencing, etc

 

For men the leather coats can never go out of fashion. Leather coats come in a variety of style, cut, and length short or long. The price of leather coat may cost around 500 to 1000$ depending on the quality of leather. Mens leather coats by designer are very expensive. But investing in leather coat is a one-time investment as leather coats last for a long time.

 

Always make sure to first buy a basic color. Black is generally a safe choice and then shades of brown and beige. The different fabric available are hide leather, goatskin leather are to name a few.

 

Leather coat requires a lot of maintainence. Take proper care by storing the leather coat properly. Make sure that you hang the leather coat on a sturdy hanger supporting the shoulders and remove all items from pockets. Also always make sure to wipe off spills and dirt immediately. 

 

Over the years, leather coats have become richer and more supple and acquires a soft patina much like a well-worn glove or saddle. 

 

Tips On maintain a leather coat

 

Here are a few leather storage tips will certainly help preserve the style integrity of your new coat.

 

– Always make sure to never clean the leather coat with a cleaner otherwise it will cause the color and texture of the coat may vary slightly from its original appearance. 

 

– Maintain the leather garment’s shape by always hanging leather clothing on wide or padded hangers

 

-Leather becomes dry when stored in plastic or other non-breathable covers. 

Avoid very humid and dry environments as well as direct sunlight. 

 

-Air-dry wet or damp leather away from any direct heat source. Use leather conditioner to restore flexibility, while suede can be brushed with a terry towel to restore its original luster. 

 

-Immediately remove all winter salt deposits from clothing by sponging with clear water. 

-Air dry naturally and use a leather conditioner. 

 

-Allow wrinkles to naturally hang out. If the leather coat must not be ironed or use the iron’s rayon setting. Create pressing clothing with heavy brown wrapping paper on the right side of the garment- a quick hand to prevents overheating and shine. 

 

-Pass up spraying perfumes or hair sprays while wearing leather clothing and stay away from wearing pins, or using adhesive badges or tape on the garment 

 

-Keep hair and body oil away from soiling the leather garment’s collar by wearing a scarf at the neckline. 

 

-In a pinch, hems can be fixed with a tiny amount of rubber cement, but best results, see a leather care professional. 

 

-Always professionally dry clean metallic leather garments to maintain their finish. 

 

-Pre-test at-home cleaning products on an inconspicuous part of the garment before making a visible mistake. 

 

-Professional leather cleaning is always preferred. 

Knowing how to tie a turban could be beneficial to you since turbans are starting to come back into style. Discover how to tie a turban from a fashion magazine editor in this free video on turbans. Expert: Summer Bellessa Bio: Summer Bellessa started out as a Ford model and is now the editor-in-chief of ELIZA Magazine.
Video Rating: 4 / 5

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Article by Anna

Fashion is one thing that keeps on changing constantly. The fashion trend which is seen in every fashion magazine today, is replaced by some other tomorrow! It is actually a cycle, a fashion which becomes old today, is not completely gone, it reappears again after some years. Fashion designers, fashion police and fashion conscious people give a modern look to that old fashion, and then that fashion again becomes a hit! Victorian fashion is one such style. This style was obviously first seen during the Victorian period, during the 19th century. Let us take a look at original Victorian fashion for women first and then how to dress in Victorian style, but with a modern twist!

Victorian Fashion

Victorian fashion refers to the trends of the British culture that existed during the time of queen Victoria, commonly known as the Victorian era. This era lasted for almost two thirds of the 19th century, which is why we see many different Victorian styles. Clothes were made by hand at the start of the era, however by the end of the Victorian age, they were made only by machines. This change is also seen in the fashion clothing of that time. Though the method of sewing the clothes changed, a few styles remained the same. Men of the Victorian age wore stiff ankle length or full length clothing whereas the women wore flowery, flowing gowns or dresses. Women’s clothing changed as per the occasion, however the length remained the same. Victorian women had to wear full length dresses, they were not allowed to show even their ankles, it was regarded almost a crime. Ironically, bare shoulders or cleavage showing gowns were allowed.

Talking about fashion jewelry, like women of any other age, Victorian women also loved jewelry! Art Nouveau and pearls were the commonly used jewelry. One interesting fact about Victorian jewelry is that mourning jewelry was the most popular jewelry! It started with Queen Victoria itself, she wore jet jewelry after Prince Albert’s death. Almost everything that was black in color would be used to make mourning jewelry, sometimes it also included the deceased person’s hair! This was a little about Victorian jewelry, below are some tips to style as Victorian lady.

Modern Victorian Fashion for Women

CostumeCostume is obviously the first thing that needs to be considered while dressing like a Victorian lady.

* Shirts/Blouses: Free flowing skirts can obviously not be worn on an everyday basis now. So instead opt for Victorian style shirts. Choose blouses made of lace, velvet or silk; remember, the more the dress is feminine the more it is Victorian. Go for colors like pale yellow, light blue, black, royal blue, rose pink, ivory etc. You could get pearl-style buttons stitched to attain a perfect Victorian look. * Jackets: Jackets were very popular during the start of the Victorian era. To give a modern look to these old fashioned jackets, choose wool or velvet jackets. Blazers with a feminine cut will also do. In winter, you can opt for cashmere sweaters which have elegant buttons and delicate embroidery. Choose colors like green, deep purple, brown etc. * Jeans: You do not need to wear long gowns to be Victorian. You can even wear jeans to dress like a Victorian lady. For it, buy jeans which have delicate designs or pearls, lace, velvet trim etc. * Skirts: Victorian styles skirts with hoops and laces should be worn. Velvet tier skirts also have a Victorian touch to them. Wear woolen stockings and black fishnets with your grand skirts.

AccessoriesNow that you know what kind of dress you should wear, lets see how to complete the look with the right accessories.

* Necklaces: Chokers are the first choice when it comes to Victorian style jewelry, you can opt for lace or velvet chokers. A single diamond pendant necklace or a locket can also be worn. For a party, wear only pearls! * Earrings: Studs were more popular than earrings during the Victorian times. So buy rhinestone studs. However if studs do not go well with your dress, go for chandelier earrings, of the same color as that of the blouse. * Bracelets and Rings: Silver or gold plated bracelets with rhinestone elegant pearls will look good on a Victorian dress. As you must have observed, Victorian rings are big. Choose rings with big stones and good shine to complete your Victorian look.

ShoesTry thigh high boots or lace-up shoes in colors like brown or black. High heels also look good on any Victorian dress.

This was all about Victorian fashion for women. These were just some fashion tips, add your creativity to these tips to achieve that perfect modern Victorian look!

www.scmp.com Appearing as a guest model at Cityplaza’s Autumn Fashion and Beauty Pageant, Jennifer Tse Ting Ting tells Cosmopolitan magazine some fashion & beauty tips for this season. Tse is the sister of actor Nicholas Tse (謝霆鋒) as well as daughter to legendary actor Patrick Tse (謝賢). She models regularly for various fashion labels and events. In this video, Cosmpolitan magazine, a publication of SCMP Magazines, chats with Jennifer Tse about all things fashion.
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A traveler in no great rush to reach the final destination of New York City, may find taking the Greyhound bus from California a delightful excursion if properly prepared. A trip of this distance can offer any number of opportunities for reflection, quiet contemplation of personal issues, or to absorb the beauty of this great nation. Each rest stop allows a brief circumstance to observe the cultural diversity of the American people in a relaxed setting.

Tips for taking the Greyhound bus from California to New York City begins with addressing personal comfort and hygiene issues. A smart traveler will procure a small pillow and/or blanket that can be easily carried and stored. Likewise, the ability to tend personal hygiene is severely limited on a journey of this length. A personal hygiene kit can be fashioned prior to departure, including toothbrush and toothpaste, mouthwash, an electric razor, comb, deodorant, clean undergarments,and pre-packaged sanitizing wipes. All of the aforementioned items can be neatly stored in a small bag that can be taken on the bus with you, to be available for use at each rest stop or even in the bus restroom.

A personal listening device, such as an iPod or similar device can break the monotony and provide for hours of entertainment when boredom strikes. A portable DVD player with headphone and a few movies can likewise eliminate listlessness during evening or overnight hours. Good reading material such as magazines or a book is imperative in providing an assorted selection of stimulating distractions.

Tips for taking the Greyhound bus from California to New York City include several distinct personal safety precautions. Travelers checks that can be replaced if lost or stolen should be obtained, and any cash taken on board the bus should be divided and kept in different pockets. Expensive or flashy watches, rings, or other jewelry should be left at home, as they present an attractive target to criminals. Conversations with strangers on the bus should be of general topics, and personal information should be closely guarded. This does not mean you should become antisocial, just cautious of associations.

The final tip for taking the Greyhound bus from California to New York City is to be punctual. Resist the urge to make an adventure of the bus terminal, if you’ve seen one you’ve seen them all. This means be prepared to depart at the scheduled time, and get in line early if possible. This simple action may mean the difference between getting a good seat by a window, or sitting beside the person who has not bathed in a week. Attempt to obtain a seat at the front of the Greyhound bus. within several rows of the driver. Sit back and enjoy the view!

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MODELS

What is too thin? Many people think, too thin is not healthy and does not look good. For many models,  thin is not an issue. The models have to meet certain weight standards to be able to model. Modeling is a job and just like many jobs…you have to meet the companies standards, whether is with weigth, height or dressing standards. Many models are just naturally too thin, while some may feel pressured in being thin.

The body-image researcher Sarah Murnen, professor of psychology at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio says “The promotion of the thin, sexy ideal in our culture has created a situation where the majority of girls and women don’t like their bodies,”  “And body dissatisfaction can lead girls to participate in very unhealthy behaviors to try to control weight.

Girls today, even very young ones, are being bombarded with the message that they need to be super-skinny to be sexy, says psychologist Sharon Lamb, co-author of Packaging Girlhood: Rescuing Our Daughters From Marketers’ Schemes.

We don’t know if they are healthy or not, but people in general, don’t think the frail, fragile look is very feminine, and many people don’t think it’s attractive. “Are they too thin?”

HERE IS A LIST OF MODELS who are CONSIDERED TOO THIN

KATE MOSS ; British model5’7″ and an estimated 100 lbs is considered to be to thin. Seems almost too slight to bear the burden of controversy settling uncomfortably on her too thin body. Kate Moss said in a WWD interview “nothing tastes as good as skinny feels.” In fact, she says it’s her motto.
Lily Cole ; British modelLily Cole, though she is thin and often thrown into the too-skinny spotlight, Cole fights back confidently saying she is healthy, reported Telegraph. This size zero, 21-year-old who has modeled for labels such as Prada, Moschino and Lacroix refuses to be subjected to criticism.
Lindsay Lohan; actress and model…Lohan blames her weight loss on “working a lot,” stress … and lack of sleep when she travels.
Mischa Barton; as a model and actress Mischa Barton has been described to be too thin. But she said in an interview, “So lately there’s been a lot of crazy press about my weight and just so you guys know I’m happier and healthier than ever so there is no need to worry about me. Things are really well in Mischa world and I’ve just been watching what I eat.
Alessandra Ambrosio;Victoria’s Secret model Alessandra Ambrosio is causing a stir, seeming too skinny to be a model for the lingerie line. The Brazilian-born Ambrosio, 29, looked like she barely had any body fat on her during a March shoot in St. Barths. (Splash News).Barbie Twins; though the Barbie Twins bared their bodies in Playboy, people think the Barbie models are too thin. Models are not to blame for society’s obsession with personal image; many people are saying they, like many women, are victims of an over-emphasis on a waif-like physique.
Natasha Poly;a run way model, the press stirs her too thin body. Many people say this is her job and as long as she keeps herself healthy, too thin is not bad.
Snejana Onopka ; on November 2009 Chris Peake said on Fabric Magazine Models,“While other mags are figuring out their online presence, Numéro Korea shows some amazing photo shoots will do just as well to raise the buzz factor.” Also said that aside from landing the December issue cover, Snejana Onopka proves once again why she’s on top (too skinny comments or not).This Ukrainian model has the unapproachable cool girl down pat.
Hana Soukupova; many people think she doesn’t look anorexic. She looks healthy and at almost six foot tall, her body looks lean.
Natalia Vodianova; The Australian The Heart of the Nation wrote on one of their articles on February 8, 2009 “Russian model Natalia Vodianova became obsessed with diet and weight loss. After recovering, her agency received complaints about her weight gain.”

We all know they are paid millions because they are skinny. The question is, is that right?

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Lydia Hearst has recently graced the cover of Genlux Magazine 2010- a Luxury Magazine devoted exclusively to Fashion and Beauty with the must-have items for the Fashion-Obsessed Shopper. Lydia Hearst, the billionaire supermodel looks like a beautiful doll having fun in the editorial photographed at the Smashbox Studios in Los Angeles. The photo gallery by the creative team BrakhaX2 makes the doll-faced & lanky Lydia becoming the charming cover girl for Genlux 2010 now. Let’s see the most breathtaking photo shoots of Lydia Heart- the cool doll on the cover of the Genlux Magazine Spring 2010 Issue.

 

Lydia Marie Hearst-Shaw, born in 1984, is an American actress and fashion model

 

Hearst has worked as a model for magazines such as Vogue and a fashion designers of Puma

 

The 25-year-old beauty is famous for her remarkable role in “Gossip Girl”, “Much I Do About Nothing”, “The Last International Playboy”, and “Ladies Room”

 

She is an heiress to great-grandfather William Randolph Hearst- the chairman of the mass media empire making billion in annual revenue

 

Lydia could be placed in the same general category as Nicky and Paris Hilton

 

The billionaire supermodel has graced the covers of numerous fashion magazines such as Italian Vogue, Avenue, German Vogue, New York, Marie Claire Japan, BON, and so on

 

Despite the height of just 1.68m, Lydia Hearst owns a sex-appealing body shape and an angelic face

 

 

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Moscow hosts Supermodel Contest 2010

We all know whatever we do and wherever we are we are being noticed and in this rapidly changing fashionable world one has to keep himself up-to-date with new style statements, whether it goes for opting any clothes for a party or choosing shoes for any specific occasion, but generally males lag behind as they are not very style oriented but things have changed in here and .

Nowadays many magazines and websites contain advices and style checks for men. Generally, people wear unfit clothes at offices which give somewhat weird look like people wear sneakers which are flat shoes at offices that are not suited for corporate world. Loafers can be a good option as they are equally comfortable and provide relaxation. Along with this, one must not wear white socks as they get easy attention of others which looks awkward.

Suits for men is the finest outfit which gives a nice and personable look to them and they must include leather belts and stylish ties in their clothing as they are the best style statements for men. An ideal suit, belt and tie connection is enough to get a perfect formal look and impress others. One must be very aware about the clothes they wear, as they must properly fit with their body and loosely hanging-out clothes can give a strange look and glare from co-workers like Mens trousers should be perfectly fit in and should not be too tight or too loose but be just a comfortable fitting one. Black is considered to be the best color for the purpose but brown or other dark shade will serve equally good to bring in variation along with formal looks.

Whatever you wear, try to mix and match it with sober accessories so you can get the accurate and finest formal attire. Remember a perfect blend of fine clothes is the best fashion tip one needs to follow.

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Creative Director
Lets start at the top and work down. Art directors, or Creative Directors are responsible for a creative team that may design work for magazines, television, advertising graphics, websites, or on packaging. A creative team can consist of layout artists, graphic designers, photographers, copywriters, and menial staff to do the work. An Art directors job is to make sure that each of these workers do not slack off down the pub and complete their work to a deadline and to the client’s needs. Art directors also make major decisicions along the lines of should the background be slate grey or cobalt blue, issuing dictates and changing their mind several days after a deadline has passed – leaving co-workers resolutely glum about their position in the grand scheme of things. Art directors will inevitably have come from some kind of marketing or sales background and need no prior graphic design knowledge or skill.

Senior Designer
A Senior Designer is mainly concerned with the visual aspects of a company and will probably have been promoted on the basis that she is fun and a ‘great team player’ (despite this being far from the case). A Senior Designer will usually insist on having a larger widescreen monitor than the rest of the team which will be decorated variously with fluffy pink bits marketing people send through on a daily basis. A Senior Designer will be involved in the elements of a company’s look such as business cards, stationery, packaging design, media advertising graphics, promotional design, and sticking up pictures of topless ‘hunks’.

Graphic Designer
The job of a Graphic Designer is to provide a new and exciting way to express the key information of a company or product through a dynamic image or use of typography. Graphic Designers take the scant information given to them by the client and using the internet to scab some free clip art, fashion their own ripped off logo designs in order to fleece the client for all they are worth.

Layout Artists and Artworkers
The engine room of the design world. These scumbags have been buried away with their dusty macs for decades, remorselessly churning out pages and layouts. Inevitably some clueless muppet will send over a 100 page brochure layed out in microsoft word and it will be the Artworkers thankless task to make it publishable. They will need to recognise a font at 50 yards, be able to colour correct the dreariest of images and take a good bollocking every now and again to keep them on their toes. The Artworker must have the ability to design magazines, design brochures, design flyers, design books and design posters. He harbours murder fantasies.

Illustrators
Illustrators generally speaking will have long greying hair and be influenced by prog rock. Working from home among the dungeon and dragonns figurines and manga comics they will attempt to put their own unique spin on whatever brief they are given. What you will be presented with is a semi clad girl with oversized boobs. You will have waited several weeks for this. You will never learn from previous mistakes.

Web Designers
Web designers create the pages, layout, and graphics for web pages, they will be technically minded to the point of absurdity. They will insist on using c++ coding language to impress other geeks and will beaver away doing whatever it is geeks do for hours on end. Web designers also design and develop the navigation tools of a site which will for design websites involve tiny text that makes your eyes bleed. Web designers are far too clever for their own good and should never be encouraged.

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Article by Richardbhong

Executive Summary

The tipping point, as defined by the author Malcolm Gladwell, is “the moment of critical mass, the threshold, the boiling point…” “The magic moment when idea, trend or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips and spreads like wildfire.” Gladwell insists that we can discover the scientific principles that govern social phenomena, epidemics and fads.

            Gladwell’s first principle is known as the law of the few. Gladwell states that “the success of any kind of social epidemic is heavily dependent on the involvement of people with a particular and rare set of social gifts.” This principle suggests that an idea or behavior can spread because of the unusual qualities of a select group of individuals. These people are classified as connectors, mavens, or salesmen. The connectors are people who know an incredible amount of people and who have a knack for making acquaintances. These people typically have a social network of over a hundred people. Gladwell uses Paul Revere as an example of a connector. Mavens are people who acquire detailed knowledge on a day to day basis. They not only store knowledge, but they share their knowledge with others and collect more knowledge and information from those they share with. The salesmen are people who persuade us to buy what we buy.  They have tremendous enthusiasm about a product and have outstanding negotiation skills

            The second principle that Gladwell illustrates in his book is called the stickiness factor. Gladwell defines the stickiness factor as “the specific content of a message that renders its impact as memorable.” He examines why some products become a craze and why others don’t through his analysis of the stickiness factor.

            The third principle that Gladwell examines in his book is the power of context. By simply altering the context of something you could alter the results. Gladwell states, “…the lesson of the power of context is that we are more than just sensitive to the changes in context. We’re exquisitely sensitive to them. And the kinds of contextual changes that are capable of tipping an epidemic are very different than we might ordinarily suspect.”

            TheTipping Point gives us information on why some ideas become successful and others do not. Gladwell explores the phenomenon of the social epidemic and analyzes how and why they work they way they do.

The Ten Things Managers Need to Know fromThe Tipping Point

1.            Ideas, products, messages and behaviors spread like viruses do.

2.            The best way to understand trends is to think of them as epidemics.

3.            Little changes can make a big difference.

4.            Epidemics can rise and fall in one dramatic moment- the tipping point.

5.            Social epidemics are driven by the efforts of a handful of exceptional people.

6.            Connectors are people with a special gift of bringing the world together.

7.            The word Maven comes from the Yiddish and means one who accumulates       knowledge.

8.            Salesmen have the skills to persuade us when we are unconvinced.

9.            The stickiness factor says that there are specific ways of making a contagious message memorable.

10.            Character is a bundle of habits and tendencies and interests, loosely bound together and dependent, at certain times, on circumstance and context.

Full Summary of The Tipping Point

Introduction

Gladwell explains in his book “the tipping point is that magic moment when an idea, trend or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire. Just a single sick person can start an epidemic of the flu, so too can a small but precisely targeted push cause a fashion trend, the popularity of a new product, or a drop in the crime rate.” He asks us “why is it that some ideas or behaviors or products start epidemics and others don’t? And what can we do to deliberately start and control positive epidemics of our own?” Gladwell’s has three principles: the law of the few, the stickiness factor, and the power of context, which examine the world of social epidemics.

The Law of the Few

                        Gladwell’s concept of the Law of the Few encompasses that the reason an idea or behavior spread is because the unique qualities of certain individuals. These individuals are classified as Connectors, Mavens, or Salesmen.

            Connectors are the kind of people that know everyone. Connectors have a special gift for bringing the world together. One of the connectors that Gladwell examines in his book is a man by the name of Roger Horchow. Robert Horchow is a successful businessman from Dallas who founded the Horchow Collection, a high-end mail order merchandise company. Gladwell explains that Horchow “has an instinctive and natural gift for making social connections. He’s not aggressive about it. He’s not one of those overly social; backslapping types for whom the process of acquiring acquaintances is obvious and self-serving. He’s more of an observer, with the dry, knowing manner of someone who likes to remain a little bit on the outside. He simply likes people, in a genuine and powerful way, and he finds the patterns of acquaintanceship and interaction in which people arrange themselves to be endlessly fascinating.” Horchow became successful because of the amount of people he knew. “Horchow collects people the same way others collect stamps.” Details are critical to Horchow. Connectors are important for more than the number of people they know, they are important because of the kinds of people they know as well.

            Gladwell also examines the famous ride of Paul Revere. Paul Revere’s midnight ride started a word of mouth epidemic, but William Dawes’s ride did not. “Paul Revere was the Roger Horchow of his day. He was a connector…. He was a fisherman and a hunter, a card player and a theater-lover, a frequenter of pubs and a successful businessman…He had an uncanny genius for being at the center of events.” When the British army began to plan its attack on ammunition and arms stores, Revere overheard, and set out to Lexington that night, all the while spreading the news that the British are coming. People knew Revere and respected him. Dawes made a similar ride, trying to inform as many people as possible, but it didn’t even compare to what Revere had accomplished. According to Gladwell, “word-of-mouth epidemics are the work of Connectors. William Dawes was just an ordinary man.

            The next group Gladwell writes about is the Mavens. “The word Maven comes from the Yiddish and means one who accumulates knowledge. In recent years, economists have spent a great deal of time studying Mavens, for the obvious reason that if marketplaces depend on information, the people with the most information must be most important.” Market Mavens are people who are aware of what prices should be and why and if they aren’t a certain way, alert management of a discrepancy. Gladwell writes about a Maven that he knows by the name of Mark Alpert. He describes him by stating, “ He talks quickly and precisely and with absolute authority. He’s the kind of person who doesn’t say that it was hot yesterday. He would say that we had a high of 87 degrees yesterday. He doesn’t walk up stairs. He runs up them, like a small boy. He gives the sense that he is interested in and curious about everything, that, even at his age, if you gave him a children’s chemistry set he would happily sit down right then and there and create some strange new concoction.” Alpert knew about certain hotels, car deals, and television sets. He knew basically everything you needed to know about anything in the Market place. “Obviously they know things that the rest of us don’t. They read more magazines than the rest of us; more newspapers, and they may be the only people who read junk mail…Mavens have the knowledge and the social skills to start word-of-mouth epidemics. What set Mavens apart, though, is not so much what they know but how they pass it along. The fact that Mavens want to help, for no other reason than because they like to help, turns out to be an awfully effective way of getting someone’s attention…. Mavens are really information brokers, sharing and trading what they know. For a social epidemic to start, though, some people are actually going to have to be persuaded to do something.” That’s where the next group of people come in, the salesmen.

            Gladwell explains, “Mavens are data banks. They provide the message. Connectors are social glue: they spread it. But there is also a select group of people-Salesmen- with the skills to persuade us when we are unconvinced of what we are hearing, and they are as critical to to the tipping of word-of-mouth epidemics as the other two groups.” Gladwell writes about a financial planned by the name of Tom Gau. Gau’s firm is the biggest in southern California, and one of the top financial planning firms in the country. “ Gau’s pitch is that his firm offers clients a level of service and expertise they’ll have difficulty getting anywhere else.” “..What was interesting about Gau is the extent to which seemed to be persuasive in a way quite different from the content of his words. He seems to have some kind of indefinable trait, something powerful and contagious and irresistible that goes beyond what comes out of his mouth, that makes people who meet him want to agree with him. It’s energy. It’s enthusiasm. It’s charm. It’s likeability. It’s all those things and yet something more.”

The Stickiness Factor

            Gladwell describes the Stickiness Factor as “the specific content of a message that renders its impact as memorable.” He tries to make us think about why do we buy certain things over another. What is the reason for watching one show over another? Gladwell writes about the stickiness factor of the famous children’s television show known as Sesame Street. Joan Cooney was a television producer in the late 60’s who wanted to come up with a show targeted at toddlers. “Her agent of infection was television, and the “virus” she wanted to spread was literacy,” Gladwell explains. Sesame Street has been proved to increase the reading and learning skills of its audience. Gladwell states, “The creators of Sesame Street accomplished something extraordinary, and the story of how they did that is a marvelous illustration of the second of the rules of the Tipping Point, the Stickiness Factor.” Producers learned that they could make small adjustments in how ideas were presented to the youth. These small adjustments overcame television’s problems as a teaching tool and made what the show had to say stick. “Sesame Street succeeded because it learned how to make television sticky,” according to Gladwell.

The Power of Context

            The Power of Context relates to how human behavior is sensitive to its environment. Gladwell states, “ Epidemics are sensitive to conditions and circumstances of the times and places in which they occur.” Gladwell goes into great detail about this when he talks about the crime rate in New York City in the 80’s. Gladwell’s reasoning for the decrease in crime in New York is known as the Broken Windows theory. He points out that if there are many broken windows in a neighborhood, soon more windows will be broken and more crimes will begin to take place. It seems like criminals see broken windows and conclude that people don’t care about this certain part of town, therefore, if I commit a crime, I should be able to get away with it. If it appears as if people don’t care about the conditions of a certain area, chances are, they don’t. New York had an epidemic of crime. Gladwells states that, “crime is contagious just as fashion is contagious.” A man by the name of Kelling was hired by the New York transit authority as a consultant. Kelling was a firm believer in the Broken Windows theory and insisted that they worked on this aspect of crime. A new subway director by the name of David Gunn was brought in as well. Gunn was told not to worry about graffiti and other petty problems. Gunn insisted that they should start paying attention to the petty problems such as graffiti.  All of the subway cars were wiped clean of graffiti and cleaned well. If someone would happen to graffiti one of the cars, the car was painted over before the next day. Because of this practice, crimes on subways decreased tremendously. A man by the name of William Bratton was hired as head of the transit police. He was a firm believer in the Broken Windows theory as well. Bratton didn’t decide to try to crack down on the robberies or other crimes that happen on a subway, instead, his first act of business was to crack down on fare-beating. Previously, transit police never gave fare-bating the time of day because it was only a dollar or so at stake. Bratton started having transit police dressed in regular clothes wait for fare-beaters. One by one fare-beaters were arrested and handcuffed and held to the side while the police continued their work. The idea was let criminals know that the police weren’t messing around anymore. It was to make criminals think if they are cracking down on fare-beating so hard, what will happen to me if they catch me robbing someone? It worked. Misdemeanor crimes were no longer going on unnoticed. Bratton was then appointed as chief of police under Mayor Giuliani and applied the same concepts to the city as a whole. Bratton started cracking down on jaywalkers, on public drunkenness and arrested for people peeing in the street. Crime fell quickly in the city. Murders, rapes, muggings, etc. were happening less and less due to making simple small changes. Gladwell says, “ Bratton and Giuliani pointed to the same cause. Minor, seemingly insignificant quality-of-life crimes, they said, were Tipping Points for violent crime.” Gladwell also uses the concept of the power of context to describe the decrease in the AIDS epidemic in Baltimore. Baltimore had a lot of drug addicts. The city would send out a van with people to hand out thousands of clean syringes to certain corners in the city at certain times of the week. Gladwell states, “The idea was that for every dirty, used needle that addicts hand over, they can get a free clean needle in return.” What the city failed to think of is that addicts are not very responsible. They are not good at being at a certain place at a certain time. Sometimes the van would come on a Monday and they were in the need for a clean syringe the next day, knowing that the van wouldn’t return until the following Monday. After a while a group of men were coming to the van with backpacks filled with 300 or more dirty syringes. They were getting clean syringes in return and selling them to other addicts for . At first, the coordinators of the needle program weren’t happy, but after the AIDS rate went down, they had second thoughts. The rate went down because these men selling the syringes were there when the van wasn’t. An addict didn’t have to use a dirty needle because he couldn’t wait until the van came on Monday. Instead, he could find one of the guys selling the needles at anytime. They were like a 24-hour store and didn’t cost anything additional to the city of Baltimore. These backpack sellers knew where to find the addicts and knew when to be there. The AIDS rate dropped significantly due to the small change from a van giving free needles to addicts to a group of addicts selling clean needles to other addicts.

            Gladwell explains over and over again throughout his book that the smallest things can make the biggest difference and he illustrates this theory beautifully through the examples he gives. The view he has on how social epidemics work and the way he explains them is exciting and addictive.

The Video Lounge

Twitter’s Tipping Point

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6415637n

This video is an interview with Katie Couric and Twitter’s co founder Biz Stone. He explains that Twitter’s first tipping point occurred in Austin, Texas. There was a technology conference in 2007 where twitter founders were being able to see their product being used in the wild for the first time. After the conference, a man tweeted that he was leaving a bar because it was too loud and crowded and that he would be going to another bar. By the time the man walked 10 minutes to the other bar, a large amount of people had gotten his tweet and gone to the bar as well.

Personal Insights

Why I think:

With business conditions today, what the author wrote is true because companies spend millions and millions of dollars on advertising for their product and often end up with undesirable results. If advertising alone made companies successful, then every company would be in good standing. Companies should look beyond advertising and try to examine what they can do to make their product stick. As Gladwell pointed out in his book with the sesame street dilemma, by changing one simple aspect, your product can become sticky. Companies should also focus on finding the connectors, mavens, and salesmen. These are the people that make a product successful. Also, by altering the context of the situation, you can also alter the results. There is no proven way to make a product become a trend or epidemic, but by looking at Gladwell’s theories, we can know to look further than the typical means of advertising and promotion. If we know certain ideas, behaviors and products start certain epidemics, there is a possibility that we can start and control an epidemic of our own.

Then,

If I were the author of the book, I would have done these three things differently:

1.            Gladwell illustrates through his writing how enthusiastic he is about the people he has met and interviewed, however, when Gladwell begins writing about technology and processes, he loses the enthusiasm and loses the reader’s attention. If I were Gladwell I would have stuck to talking about the people who are connectors, mavens, and salesmen.

2.            Around page 115 Gladwell begins to lose my attention. He spends too long trying to explain certain things, such as the stickiness of a kid’s television show. The amount of time that he put into this section caused me to have an information overload. I would have cut this section down to fewer pages.

3.            I think that Gladwell takes his theory a little too far when he begins to talk about suicides in Micronesia as being contagious. I find it hard to believe that people taking their own lives can be contagious and if I were he I would have left this part out as well.

Reading this book made me think differently about the topic in these ways:

1.            Reading this book made me think about how trends work. By just altering one small thing, you can make something go from being nothing to being the next hot thing on the market.

2.            Not everyone can be good at selling a product. There are certain people with an enthusiasm about selling and have a knack for persuading the undecided.

3.            All kinds of fads exist around us, but only certain ones take because of their stickiness factor.

I’ll apply what I’ve learned in this book in my career by:

1.            Thinking differently about the way products become fads.

2.      Analyzing why some behaviors or products start epidemics and why others do not.

3.      Examining what I can do to deliberately start and control positive epidemics of my own.

Here is a sampling of what others have said about the book and its author:

…An imaginative… treatise that’s likely…to generate some buzz… its hard not to be persuaded by Gladwell’s thesis. Not only does he assemble a fascinating mix of facts in support of his theory… but he also manages to weave everything into a cohesive explanation of human behavior. What’s more, we appreciate the optimism of a theory that supports, as another pundit once called it, the power of one…there’s little doubt that the material will keep you awake…

                                                                        -Business Week

            The Tipping Point, by Malcolm Gladwell, is a lively, timely and engaging study of fads… Gladwell, who made his career in journalism as a science writer, has a knack for explaining psychological experiments clearly; The Tipping Point is worth reading just for what it tells us about how we try to make sense of the world.

-The New York Times Book Review- Alan Wolfe

           When it was first published in 2000, Malcolm Gladwell’s book about social epidemics “tipped.” It made the bestseller lists both here and abroad. It became a popular phenomenon. This is what The Tipping Point is all about. Gladwell’s concept, the topic of sociologists since the 1970s, is that trends and ideas take off reach the tipping point for some reason, usually because of the influence of a small group or even one individual. He offers as his first example the resurgence in popularity among the cool people of Hush Puppies, they brushed-suede shoes that were down to sales of a mere 30,000 pairs a year. Suddenly in 1995 they became a hot property and they sold 430,000 pairs a year. The same phenomenon occurs with crimes, children’s television (Sesame Street and Blues Clues), smoking among the young, direct mail, and Paul Revere’s famous ride. Gladwell says that the best way to think of these trends is to see them as epidemics; they spread like viruses do. And in that spread some people are more influenced than others. He posits three rules: the Law of the Few, the Stickiness Factor, and the Power of Context. His explanations are persuasive. His ideas on smoking among youngsters and how to slow it should be required reading by government officials at all levels. In his new afterward, Gladwell touches the AIDS epidemic, improving public schools in tough neighborhoods, the massacre at Columbine High School, and finding Mavens, those influential people who make things happen. Highly recommended for its clear exposition of important issues.

                                                                        – Janet Julian- KLIATT

Most scholarly reviews seem to have a positive outlook on Gladwell’s book The Tipping Point. Every review points out the way Gladwell examines the social epidemic. Janet Julian with KLIATT takes it a step further by saying that Gladwell was able to successfully create a product to reach a tipping point- his own book.

Bibliography

Brady, Diane. “What Turns an Idea into a Trend.” Rev. of The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference. Business Week, 20 Mar. 2000. Web. 29 Oct. 2010. .  

Julian, Janet. “Glawell, Malcolm. The Tipping Point: How Little Things Make a Big Difference-Book Review.” Rev. of The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference. KLIATT, May 2002. Web. 29 Oct. 2010. .

Wolfe, Alan. “The Next Big Thing: Malcolm Gladwell Examines What Makes Fads, Well, Faddish.” Rev. of The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference. The New York Times Book Review, 5 Mar. 200. Web. 29 Oct. 2010.          .

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Contact Info: To contact the author of this summary and review of The Tipping Point, pleaseemail kristyn.massey@selu.edu.

Biography

David C. Wyld (dwyld.kwu@gmail.com) is the Robert Maurin Professor of Management at Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond, Louisiana. He is a management consultant, researcher/writer, and executive educator. His blog, Wyld About Business, can be viewed at http://wyld-business.blogspot.com/. He also serves as the Director of the Reverse Auction Research Center (http://reverseauctionresearch.blogspot.com/), a hub of research and news in the expanding world of competitive bidding. Dr. Wyld also maintains compilations of works he has helped his students to turn into editorially-reviewed publications at the following sites:

Management Concepts (http://toptenmanagement.blogspot.com/)

Book Reviews (http://wyld-about-books.blogspot.com/) and

Travel and International Foods (http://wyld-about-food.blogspot.com/).                

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Find More Fashion Magazine Tips Articles

Article by Paul Buchanan

Glossy magazines are the guilty – or not so guilty – pleasure of hundreds of thousands of women. And, offering a few hours of easy and interesting entertainment, it’s hardly surprising that we keep buying and enjoying them. The shelves of newsagents and supermarkets are bursting with everything from high-fashion mags to gossip rags or cookery titles in an aim to quench the thirst for the beauty-tips, healthy eating plans, celebrity news and fun stories that make up the typical woman’s magazine.

While there are hundreds of different titles, with some of them very genre specific, there are certain trends that can be easily identified within the genre of ‘women’s mags’. For example, many magazines are devoted to helping woman make the best of themselves – from offering diet and health advice to fashion guides for people of all shapes and sizes. However, it’s important to make sure you remember that while these magazines provide great entertainment and some interesting tips and tricks, there are times when you’re better trusting your own judgement.

In recent years, there has been a definite and growing feeling that the types of beauty shown in magazines has a direct affect on the way women feel about themselves, and sometimes it can be more self-image damaging than confidence boosting. The continued use of skinny models and air brushed celebrities means that the women you look at in magazines are quite often not even real women – let alone representative of the average woman on the street.

This means that it’s very important for readers to be aware of the fact that the pictures they are seeing of beautifully made up and slim models aren’t likely to be easy for them to achieve in their own lives. This becomes an even more crucial idea to reinforce when the readers are young. Many pre-teens and girls are keen to move on to reading magazines aimed at older audiences when they are really too young for the content. However, because things such as fashion magazines don’t tend to feature explicit images, they can easily be sold to youngsters without a second thought.

So, not only should you remember to vet magazines for information that could damage your own self esteem, you should be especially conscious of making sure no negative feelings are passed on to your younger contemporaries.

Luckily, the trend for using unrealistic ideal of beauty in fashion shoots and magazines has suffered from a huge backlash in recent years, and could be on the decrease – meaning it’ll be easier for you to enjoy all the positive beauty tips, fashion advice and entertaining stories these magazines can provide.

Jennifer Bryan (Costume Designer from CW’s Vampire Diaries) give Chica Girl Magazine hot fashion tips! see more at www.cg-mag.com or www.chicagirlmagazine.com