The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
the b-side
Thursday, September 24, 2015 — 3B

By CAROLINE FILIPS

Daily Arts Writer

From a distance, the world of 

high fashion seems an insular 
realm separate from reality. It 
appears an esoteric bubble, often 
associated 
with 
pretentious 

overtones — a universe inhabited 
by 
inflated 
personalities 
and 

embellished 
veneers 
floating 

within a sea of fabrics.

But a visit to Main Street’s Ayla 

& Co. eschews any preconceived 
notions 
of 
fashion’s 
surreal 

associations. In the theme of 
Ann Arbor’s inviting allure, the 
boutique 
sustains 
a 
genuine, 

unique vibe that the Ayla herself 
established in 1980.

The dynamic Ayla emigrated 

from Turkey with a pioneering 
vision to introduce fashion to Ann 
Arbor. She created her eponymous 
retailer as a space for tree town’s 
fashionably inclined women to 
shop, sip fresh-brewed coffee 
or tea and intermingle among 
exquisite textiles.

“She was a wonderful woman 

with incredible style and an 
incredible 
vision,” 
current 

co-owner Narmeen Gaeta said. 
“She was kind of fearless and always 
ready to try something new.”

Ayla 
transmitted 
that 

captivating 
bravado 
into 
her 

inventory’s signature aesthetic — 
clean and classic, yet distinctive 
— one Gaeta defines as good design 
and high style, but not fashion 
victim-y.

Unfortunately, Ayla succumbed 

to breast cancer just four years 
into her small-business venture. 
Luckily, she left the store in good 
hands with her husband, a former 
shoemaker, and Gaeta, a prior sales 
associate during her time at the 
University. Gaeta’s sister, Nadia 
Sesi joined her on the retail team 
until the duo decided to oversee 

operations 
as 
co-owners 
and 

buyers. The sisters opened as “Ayla 
& Company” in 1989, rebranding 
from the former storefront of 
“Ayla.” Gaeta and Sesi continue to 
preserve Ayla’s magnetic essence, 
but have refashioned as necessary 
through the years. 

“We kept the spirit of it, but 

over the years we’ve elevated the 
quality as the customer base grows 
older,” Gaeta said. “We’ve taken 
the seedling of the idea and made 
it grow and blossom. We’ve put our 
own stamp on it.”

With longevity to boot, the sister 

act has proved successful in Ann 
Arbor’s ever-changing retail scene. 
The secret seems to be an emphasis 
on 
building 
genuine 
rapport 

with their clientele and resisting 
commercialization. Though the 
owners stray from the promotional 
virtues of social media, the shop 
promotes a real, live space for 
likeminded 
connectedness. 
A 

visit to Ayla & Co. feels more like 
a personal shopping appointment 
than a rote retail experience of 
scripted customer service. Regular 
shoppers gossip while poring over 
their specific style selections per 
recommendation of either Gaeta 
or Sesi, with one of the two always 
working the floor.

“We’re service intensive here,” 

Gaeta said. “The customer base 
likes to see us here, and they trust 
our opinions. We’re definitely 
active owners.”

Their collection encompasses 

lifestyle pieces of eveningwear and 
work wear, a majority of which 
are European-designed. The most 
popular sellers range from the 
contemporary designs of Cacharel, 
to the colorful, whimsical Italian 
line 
Maliparmi; 
Michigan-

designed 
b.may 
handbags 

have been a customer-coveted 
item, along with an accessory 
assortment of ornate statement 

jewelry, scarves, shoes and various 
handbags. Though they don’t carry 
big-name designer labels such as 
Lanvin or Chloé; quality remains a 
top priority for Gaeta and Sesi.

“Every season we try to bring in 

new designers,” Gaeta said. “The 
hallmark of our store is that we 
showcase lesser known designers 
that are really, really good. The 
look and the style sensibility is 
similar.”

Keeping up with the fashion 

industry’s rapidity, Gaeta and 
Sesi curate prospective seasonal 
collections 
approximately 
six 

months in advance. Just last week 
Gaeta met with countless retailers 
in New York to assemble the store’s 
spring selection.

“We go and buy the clothing 

and visit showrooms,” Gaeta said. 
“We do attend some trade shows 
because that’s where a lot of new 
designers get their name out.”

It’s clear to see Ayla’s mentality 

resonates with the sisters, as 
they always make a point to seek 
out up-and-coming designers in 
efforts to continually present a 
fresh sartorial assortment.

“You kind of have to risk a 

little bit and try something new,” 
Gaeta said. “That’s how you have 
to be in fashion. It’s very easy to 
stay on a certain track and never 
deviate. Sometimes you have to 
try something new because you 
never know when it will be well-
received.”

It’s a fearless philosophy that’s 

panned out well for the duo. With 
distinguishable sophistication in 
design, Ayla & Co.’s collections 
are multi-generational — Gaeta 
even admitted to selling the 
ombré shift dress seen in this 
issue to both teenage and senior 
patrons. Though far from dated, 
the standout of Ann Arbor’s retail 
landscape endures as a destination 
of accessible high fashion.

AYLA
IN PROFILE

ANN ARBOR FASHION

VIRGINIA LOZANO/Daily

Ayla owners Narmeen Gaeta and Nadia Sesi took over the Main Street store four years ago.

Ranking the fall 
fashion editorials

A breakdown of 
seven hundred 
pages of style

By MARA MACLEAN

Daily Arts Writer

As fall approaches, the fashion 

world is abuzz with excitement for 
the coming fashion month and Sep-
tember issues. Each magazine pro-
duces its thickest issue of the year, 
stuffed with advertisements from 
every luxury brand and retailer. 
The product is overwhelming — 700 
pages of gorgeous images and top 
editors all trying to say that jackets 
are important for fall — so we got 
Daily Style Writer Mara Maclean to 
rank them.

5. VANITY FAIR: Though 

Taylor Swift’s cover story was not 
the most jaw-dropping or influ-
ential, her shoot with Mario Tes-
tino captured a different layer of 
strength and beauty that can get 
lost amid the constant #squad ins-
tagrams and red carpet moments. 
The writing was more of a stand-
out in Vanity Fair than in the other 
September issues (as it should be 
for this magazine), which leads 
to its lower ranking. Our rank-
ings are focusing on the quality 
of editorial shoots, and many of 
this issue’s insights weren’t worth 
mentioning. Still a powerful voice 
in fashion, VF was essential to 
include in the top five. There was a 
nice story about Gigi Hadid’s social 
media power, but again, nothing 
truly ground-breaking. 

4. ELLE: Similar to Vogue, Elle 

released The Elle Look, a defini-
tive listing of fashion’s brightest 
stars with their muses. It was fas-
cinating to see who inspires some 
of the greatest talents in the fash-
ion universe. Alexa Chung jumped 
around with Erdem Moralioglu 
and Diane von Furstenberg posed 
with actress Allison Williams 
— it was an interesting take on 
Vogue’s who’s who. Cover star 
Keira Knightley looks out from 
the pages in eye-popping colors in 
her “Everything is Illuminated” 
spread. Paola Kudacki and Holly 
Millea show us just how beautiful, 
talented, well-read, opinionated 
and fashion-forward the actress 
is. Next, Elle walks us through 
fall’s crazy textures — fur, brocade, 
chiffon, lamé (yes!) — in “Road 

to Marrakech.” Like many other 
issues, Elle touched on the bright 
colors and wild prints to come in 
“Mad Max,” highlighting fashions 
turn towards maximalism. Their 
pastel editorial, “Beyond the Pale,” 
just couldn’t compare to the simi-
lar spread seen in Porter. Finally, 
to end on the dopest of notes, Elle 
spotlights the modern woman at 
age 30 for their 30th anniversary. 
Basically a catalogue of every 
power woman, Elle lists every out-
standing comedian, musician, nov-
elist, athlete, actor and politician 
who portray the strength of 30.

3. VOGUE UK: Vogue UK set 

the tone for their September issue 
with another powerful choice in 
cover star — Emma Watson. In 
“Voice of a Generation,” Violet 
Henderson and Josh Olins try to 
capture everything that is Emma 
Watson. The images are soft and 
feminine, while the clothes show 
the strength and powerful voice 
that is synonymous with the UN 
ambassador; the images were just 
as intriguing as the story. Vogue 
UK’s strongest editorial, “Fade 
to Black,” showed the color of fall 
in sculptural silhouettes, crazy 
wools and graphic hardware. The 
stark shots emphasized the inter-
esting shapes and lines that can 
be created with the classic color. 
Immediately following, in “No 
Debutante,” primary colors and 
splashy prints popped off the page 
in an ‘80s shoot. In “The Witching 
Hour,” Vogue UK showed their 
greatest strengths in the portrayal 
of delicate lace and wisps of chif-
fon in dark, eerie shots — a look not 
mentioned by fashion’s other play-
ers. Overall, this issue was solid, 
as always, but not at the editorial 
level of Porter and U.S. Vogue.

2. PORTER: The only reason 

Porter holds the number two spot 
is Vogue’s ability to reach a wider 
audience. Overall, the editorials 
and fashion insights reached an 
entirely new level in Porter’s Fall 
2015 issue. The excellence begins 
with the cover star, Daria Wer-

bowy. Fashion’s favorite rebel, 
known for her incredibly closed 
off personal life and modern femi-
ninity, poses in the most striking 
editorials to date. Mikael Jans-
son captures the supermodel in 
two very different stories — “True 
Grit” and “Soft Focus.” Porter, 
known for its innovation and com-
mitment to the finest production, 
shows Werbowy among the dirt 
and grease, in powerful shapes 
and colors; then, transitions into a 
world of pastels and delicate linge-
rie. The contrast is overwhelming 
and insightful, and Porter claims 
its rightful place as one of the lead-
ing voices in the fashion industry. 
Read on for more glamorous shots 
and sensational editorials, all 
thrown together with incredibly 
well-written cultural and human-
interest pieces.

1. VOGUE U.S.: For anyone 

who has seen “The September 
Issue,” it is clear the Vogue team 
sets an incredibly high standard 
for this particular month’s edi-
tion. September 2015 was the 
greatest example of this constant 
pursuit of excellence. To begin, 
the fashion bible spelled out 
who’s who in the fashion industry 
with “Forces of Fashion.” Over 
a 37-page spread, fashion’s top 
influencers were spelled out from 
Phoebe Philo of Céline, to Uniq-
lo and Novak Djokovic. Vogue 
decreed Victorian influence was 
a fall essential — embroidered flo-
rals and old lace — in a gorgeous 
editorial Hustle & Bustle. The 
standout among the 700+ pages 
was the season’s coat feature, 
“Into the Woods.” One of the most 
stunning editorials ever to be 
published, folkish models roamed 
through a fairy-tale forest. The 
patchwork and bright red coats 
popped against the brilliant blue 
and green mossy background. The 
only small disappointment of the 
entire issue was Beyoncé’s cover 
story. B’s shots were as gorgeous 
as ever, but Margo Jefferson’s 
letter dictating the definition of 
Beyoncé was slightly lackluster. 
Redemption was found, however, 
in the form of exclusive insights 
into lake life with Cindy Crawford 
and her equally beautiful chil-
dren. And to finish on the stron-
gest of notes, the cast of “Empire” 
was shot sporting the most spec-
tacular clothing — reds, silvers, 
sequins and sparkles.

New season 
of ‘Empire’ 
strikes back

By HAILEY MIDDLEBROOK

Daily Arts Writer

In case you haven’t heard, the 

Lyons are back on the prowl. 
And they’re hungrier than ever.

In its own 

right, 
FOX’s 

“Empire” 
hasn’t so much 
changed the TV 
world as it has 
epitomized it — 
soapy glamour, 
sex, 
violence, 

family 
drama, 

banging 
style 

and an on-point 
soundtrack — it’s all there, bold 
and unabashed. At its core, the 
storyline follows Shakespeare’s 
“King Lear:” an aging king, 
Lucious Lyon (Terrence Howard, 
“Iron Man”), must decide which of 
his three sons will inherit his hip-
hop recording kingdom, Empire 
Entertainment. But unlike Lear, 
Lucious is lucid and ruthless — and 
he’ll stop at nothing to preserve his 
Lyon pride. That is, as long as the 
rest of the Lyons agree with him.

Lucious and his family not 

only own Empire, they run the 
damn show. Oldest brother 
Andre (Trai Byers, “Selma”) is 
a Wharton-educated business-
man who is intent on raising 
Empire stock and promoting 
himself to CEO; but his savvy 
is tampered by mental health 

issues and dark secrets, like his 
father’s murder of their cousin, 
Bunkie. Light-hearted Jamal 
(Jussie Smollett, “North”), the 
middle Lyon, was the R&B sen-
sation that put Empire on the 
map; after a season of coming 
in terms with his homophobic 
father, he’s now the CEO of the 
company. Jamal’s good nature 
is often tested by his youngest 
brother, Hakeem (newcomer 
Bryshere Y. Gray), an up-and-
coming rapper and ladies’ man 
with an appetite for cougars — 
including Lucious’s ex-fiance, 
Anika “Boo Boo Kitty” Calhoun 
(newcomer Grace Gealey). 

But as in the animal kingdom, 

the real work isn’t done by the 
alpha male, but rather his leading 
lady. And she knows it. Infamous 
Cookie Lyon (Taraji P. Henson, 
“Person of Interest”), hardened by 
a 17-year prison sentence for drug 
dealing, is back to claim her throne 
in the Empire, with or without her 

FOX

“I am your father.”

A

Empire

Season 2 
Premiere 
Wednesdays 
at 9 p.m.

FOX

‘Empire’ didn’t 

change TV 
so much as 
epitomize it.

ex-husband. 

For season two, Cookie and 

Lucious’s 
roles 
are 
flipped: 

Lucious is in jail for murder, while 
Cookie is orchestrating a “Free 
Lucious” concert that’s really 
geared toward winning back 
Empire investors. She’s bank-
ing on Mimi Whiteman (Marisa 
Tomei, “Crazy, Stupid, Love”), a 
rich business mogul who’s smit-
ten with Anika, to sign a $250,000 
check to rocket Empire again — 
but this time, with Cookie right-
fully on top. To her credit, Cookie 
insists that she’s “doing it for fami-
ly,” but her equally power-hungry 
sons see ulterior motives.

Without Lucious in the lead, 

the younger Lyons must grow up 
on their own. Andre and control-
ling wife Rhonda (Kaitlin Dou-
bleday, “Catch Me if You Can”) 
have big news ahead; Jamal is 
accepting his responsibilities as 
a boyfriend and gay rights advo-
cate. Even wild child Hakeem 
is finding his way, ready to drop 
his first album. Conversely, the 
head Lyons — Cookie and Lucious 

— are floundering, as Cookie’s 
power missions fail and Lucious 
is stripped of entitlement behind 
cell walls.

But let’s be real. This is 

“Empire” we’re talking about, 
where a character’s pitfall always 
has a springboard at its base, ready 
for a full-throttle rebound. The 
show’s careful balance of its ele-
ments — of failures and successes, 
horrible violence and heartfelt 
reunion, 
disillusionment 
and 

humor — are what make it pal-
atable. Where season two could 
have faltered with the solved 
case of inheritance, it pushes for-
ward with the multidimensional 
growth of the Lyons.

But as Cookie says: we’re not 

out of the jungle yet. 

The Lyons are 
on the prowl.

The Vogue team 
sets an incredibly 
high standard.

TV REVIEW

