Michigan Avenue - Niche Media - Michigan Avenue magazine is a luxury lifestyle magazine centered around Chicago’s finest people, events, fashion, health & beauty, fine dining & more!
Issue link: http://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/786768
GR: Fab-U-Wish I created not long after I had my surgery. You and I were driving in the car one night, and we came up with the name Fab-U-Wish. BR: We did. GR: You like to think you came up with the name, right? BR: Are you kidding me? GR: I think I came up with it. BR: Wow, this is unbelievable. GR: Okay, you're right. Maybe you did. BR: I have to have a trademark attorney on retainer in the house. [Laughs] GR: Fab-U-Wish was a way to give back to other women going through breast cancer, but really tied to my own experience. I remember going back to work for the first time after my double mastectomy. I got my hair and makeup done, and I put on a pretty dress, and I looked in the mirror, and it was the first time in a very long time I recognized the person looking back at me. BR: The old you. GR: The old me. The girl before the breast cancer, and that's what I wanted to go back to. Seeing that really helped me say, "You know what? I don't have to be a different person. I can be myself. I can still have the life I had before. I'm going to get through this, and I'm going to stay the same woman that I am." That was very helpful, and I thought, I wish I could do this for other women and just let them feel fabulous for the day. That's how Fab-U-Wish came about. We're almost five years in, and since then we've partnered with the Pink Agenda out of New York City, which is under the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Together with the Pink Agenda, we fulfill wishes and also raise money for breast cancer research. It's been incredible. BR: Speaking of Fab-U-Wish, this is Michigan Avenue's Spring Fashion issue. What excites you about fashion? GR: Everything. I love fashion. I grew up in a fashion-centric household. My father is still, at 79, a master tailor from Naples, Italy. Still, every day, he makes these beautiful custom Italian suits for some of the best-dressed men in Washington, DC. I'm very proud of my father. BR: It's in your DNA. GR: Just growing up in that household, my mom loves fashion, my sister used to work for Versace when she first started her career. BR: You have quite an eye for it, so much so that you've created the G by Giuliana line of clothing for HSN. What can we expect in the spring collec- tion? Are you wearing it now? I know you are. GR: I'm always wearing G by Giuliana. I hear other designers say, "I don't necessarily design for myself. I design for all women." But first and foremost, I think you should design what you love, and then take it from there. Because you need to love it and you need to want to wear it. One of the things I love most about the line is that every size is available, whether you're petite or a plus-sized woman. Fashion should be available to women of all sizes, and all ages. And affordable. Fashion has become very expensive, and it shouldn't have to be. BR: You've created an incredible personal brand. Describe the Giuliana brand in six adjectives or less. GR: Six? That's hard... Authentic. I think authenticity is the first word that comes to mind. Attainable. Relatable. BR: And affordable luxury. It's like the restaurant. You come in and you can spend $15 and have a meal, or you can spend much more. It's the same with the clothing line, and the wine, and some of the other things that we do. GR: Two more. I would say stylish. Honest. And everything I do, I'm trans- parent, if I can add a seventh. BR: Let's shift gears. What about Chicago makes you feel at home? GR: You. BR: Well, thank you. GR: First and foremost, you, Bill. I love that I'm your wife in Chicago. I think that's cool. When I met you, you showed me Chicago for the first time. You took me to a Cubs game, then driving around the city on the motorcycle, to going to all the hot restaurants and bars. We just had the greatest time, and I fell in love with the city. BR: We danced the night away at the Wild Hare. We were making out on the dance floor, drinking rum runners. GR: You're right. I think that's the one thing that makes me, obviously, feel at home. We just have the greatest time here. I feel very fulfilled and happy here. I owe that to you, my love. BR: Wow, thank you. GR: I would never have known Chicago if you hadn't introduced me to it. BR: What's it like being a mother? GR: It's a life-changer, but it's the best thing that's ever happened to me—you and Duke are the best things that have ever happened to me. He's just the best. Every day, it's something new and adorable. It's a type of joy you just don't get anywhere else. I love to laugh, as you know, and I laugh my whole life. Italian family, lots of laughter. But the kind of laugh that I experience when my son makes me laugh is unlike anything I've ever experienced. When I look at him I see you, and you're an amazing dad, the best dad I could have dreamed of. I just feel like my life's complete. Things change, but right now life is beautiful. BR: Now, I like to wrap up every Michigan Avenue magazine [interview] that I do— GR: I thought this was your first one. BR: Well, it is, but maybe I'll be doing more, if they think I did a good enough job. What advice would you give young women out there who are reading this article? GR: One thing is identifying who you really are. Are you more serious? Are you funny? Are you adventurous? BR: Do you have to just be one? GR: No, but identify who you are and work with that. I think so many of us, when we're going after a job, or anything really in life, we look at the people in that position and say, "Oh, maybe I should be more like her." I disagree. You should be more like you, and bring something unique to the table. BR: I like that. GR: Work ethic is incredibly important. When I first started out in my professional career, I was the first to get to work every day and the last to leave. "No" was not in my vocabulary. You could ask me to make you coffee, answer your phone, run errands. No matter what my job title was, I did it, and I did it with a smile. I think that's very important, and a lot of people don't want to do that. BR: Last one. GR: Reputation. Your reputation precedes you. It's very simple. Before you walk in the room, people know about you, so you want to make sure you have a great repu- tation. But one other thing I think is important, too: You always hear people say, "Do what you love." I take it one step further. I say, "Yeah, but also do what you're good at and comes naturally." It just makes life easier. Find out how can you incorporate that into your professional life and maybe make a living off of those qualities that you already have. That's my last piece of advice. BR: I think that's wonderful. Giuliana, on behalf of Michigan Avenue magazine, thank you. GR: My goodness. I feel like I'm on the Today Show and you're Matt Lauer. BR: I appreciate your candor, and I think our readers are really going to enjoy this. GR: Thank you, Matt. I mean Bill. You had me fooled for a minute there!