Are You Mal Sirrah???

After a hard week of toiling and planning, on Friday evening I decided it was time to go out for a night on the town!!! Now of course this sounds like a really lofty production of rounding up the troops/posse, etc. - but in reality most of the times I leave home alone to meet my very small circle of three or four friends. Therefore a night on the town for me, at this stage of the game, comprises of hanging out at either of these three late night spots: Socialista, The Box, and/or Bungalow 8. On this particular evening we chose Bungalow.

Bungalow 8



Amy Sacco (owner of Bungalow) and I at a recent event

As soon I as I arrived at Bungalow there was a bit of a line, which for Bungalow is not an usual occurence as the door personnel are very yes or no about their door policy. "Yes" you come straight in or "No" which means you can’t come in (not tonight – not tomorrow – not ever). Now don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I agree with this door policy, it’s just that once you realize the current landscape of the New York City Night life and the positioning of Bungalow, you learn to appreciate this door policy rather quickly. You see Bungalow is the brainchild of Amy Sacco and has been in the same spot for many years prior to the influx of perhaps 10 to 15 other clubs in the surrounding Chelsea Warehouse vicinity. Therefore, it is dependent on Bungalow's door persons to create a separate and specific atmosphere from the likes of Bed, Home, Guest House and Scores – all of which are really cool clubs but have very different high wattage/high volume atmospheres.

The Door of Bungalow when it stood alone on West 27th Street

Now, since I don’t consider myself “that dude”("that dude" which has a certain sense of entitlement and bolts immediately to the head of the line and through the front door), I decided to hang back for a while and check out the West 27th Street scene… In doing so, I noticed one of my friends which had undoubtedly come outside of Bungalow for a cigarette break. I was surprised to see her as she is a very well known model and I assumed she would be in Europe for Paris Fashion Week. But it turns out she had just gotten a lucrative advertising campaign and opted not to put herself through the rigor of yet another stressful fashion week. So we stood there for a few minutes chatting and doing the obligatory “rock kick and shift”. Do you all know what the “rock kick and shift” is??? Well it’s like this weird /nervous thing that supposed “cool people" do when they are outside on cigarette break or waiting for a friend in front of a crowded night club. You kinda use your feet to slightly kick small rocks whilst shifting your weight from side to side and pensively looking down... All of this is done in order to avoid eye contact with anyone around you and/or approaching. I now realize that it is a bit of a self-defense mechanism for the very shy and/or insecure. So as I stood there with my "supposed cool" yet slightly insecure and shy ass, kicking rocks and shifting, I made the cardinal error in this carefully crafted game of strategy- I looked up. Before I could quickly look down again and relocate the sizeable pebble that I had decided was the “perfect rock” for my distraction, I noticed the Cheshire cat’s grin on the faces of two young and extremely trendy kids that were making their way across the street. I don’t know why, but I immediately got this nervous feeling because I knew they were headed straight for me. In all honesty, there is something definitely recognizable about the energy and glow that comes from the glare of the spotlight especially when it is being beamed upon you through the eyes of youthful innocence. But before they could fully dart across the street, I had relocated my “perfect rock” and “rock kick and shift” was back in full effect.

Then I heard the question... The question which still pinches me in the pit of my stomach and leaves me feeling a bit exposed. The question that always makes me feel as if I have perhaps overshot by putting myself "out there". The question that I always want to immediately give my dicsclaimer to before I fully answer... The simple question that is - “Are you Mal Sirrah?”

You see the reason that I built my website - uploaded my videos on YouTube - started my own blog - and/or joined Myspace, Facebook, Friendster, and/or aSmallWorld - - - was to assure that people got a real understanding of who Malcolm Harris is as a person and what Mal Sirrah stands for as a brand… This sounds simple right??? Of course, not…

Therefore when I started this blog, I knew that I would use a bit of this format to vent as well as to express some of the common frustrations that we all feel within the fashion industry. So in order to give visitors a well rounded look at Malcolm Harris, I also felt it necessary to include within my posts bits and pieces of my journey towards enlightenment. However, I would be remiss if I didn’t add that there is also a fair amount of strategic sales and marketing infused within the confines of this blog as well. Do you think it is by happenstance that the first thing you see in the left hand corner of this post is my heartshaped logo and smiling, if not smirking, face??? Or the usage of my signature colors of Red, Gold and Green woven within the text … (SIDEBAR: someone once said to me that maybe I shouldn’t use the colors red, gold and green as they are signature colors of Gwen Stefani’s LAMB – I simply smiled and kept on planning!!!) But I have said all of this to say that Cut, Sew and Blog is meant to be a place where I really get to tell my side of my own story. Not to build myself up as some sort of celebrity and or demi-god. It is simply meant to be a part of the foundation that supports the man, Malcolm Harris, and establishes the brand - Mal Sirrah.

This is all I have to say in response to the the Gwen Stefani/L.A.M.B concern.

A picture is worth a thousand words.

So back to the question: “Are you Mal Sirrah?”

Mal Sirrah is the luxury brand that resides within the sanctity and spirit of Malcolm Harris. On the flip side, Mal Sirrah is also the sacrificial lamb that Malcolm Harris willingly serves up every single day for public consumption. But yes, I am Mal Sirrah.

If you are having a special event and do not specifically request the presence of Malcolm Harris, Mal Sirrah will show up instead… He will conduct interviews, make public appearances, attend store openings and grace red carpets. Mal Sirrah will show up wherever his publicist tells him that he has been cordially invited… And I love him for it... Malcolm Harris on the other hand will attend fundraisers, build chartiable organizations, and donate his time and money to causes that he believes can heal the ills ofthe world. Mal Sirrah is fabulous, carefree, witty and extremely charming. But don’t let these attributes fool you… Mal Sirrah also cares about healing the ills of the world as much as his incubator Malcolm Harris. Mal Sirrah is not a phony - He is the real McCoy. Mal's favorite sound is the pop that accompanies an uncorked bottle of champagne but he also despises Malcolm's least favorite sound - the sound of the word can't. Mal Sirrah’s favorite sense is the sense of touch – the feel of silk, cashmere and fur (the only PETA that currently concerns either of them is the “People for the Ethical Treatment of Africans”). Mal Sirrah is the bread winner within this highly complex domain which is Malcolm Harris. Once again, Mal Sirrah is the luxury brand designed by Malcolm Harris.... Therefore, yes - I am Mal Sirrah.

So, as I stood in front of Bungalow with what turned out to be two young aspiring designers and future colleagues, I somehow realized that I no longer felt the need to engage in the pastime of "rock kick and shift". I stood there proudly and firmly then confirmed for them (and perhaps a little for myself) that yes, I am Mal Sirrah... And proud of it!