I cannot remember the very first time I met designer Nicole Romano, but after running into her at a few events (where she always looked fantastic), we ended up working together on her spring/summer 2008 collection presentation. Now, I can honestly say that Nicole is one of the nicest designers in the industry and not only does she design clothing, but also a killer line of jewelry!

Nicole grew up in Rhode Island and studied apparel design at RISD (Rhode Island School of Design) before landing a coveted internship with Nicole Miller upon graduation. Wanting a label of her own, Nicole set out out to work on her first collection which immediately caught the attention of Sex and the City stylist, Patricia Field. Both Nicole’s jewelry and ready-to-wear can be seen in countless episodes of SATC including the one where Samantha first bags Smith (then known as Jerry Jared).

I had the privilege of visiting the huge, fabulous, dreamy wardrobe department of Sex and the City: The Movie  with Nicole early last fall (which at the time was filled with options for Carrie’s wedding gown, hundreds of pairs of shoes, and clothing and jewelry for as far as the eye could see). We showed Field and her team Nicole’s latest collection and also brought them pizza and beer from Patsy’s - Nicole’s favorite restaurant -because that’s just the kind of cool girl Nicole is. Several of her pieces made it into the movie including earrings seen on both Miranda and Samantha, as well as the awesome striped skirt seen in the opening sequence featuring what is meant to be four younger versions of the original SATC ladies.

So what makes her collection so perfect for fashion-forward city girls? Nicole’s aesthetic vision is one that celebrates the individuality, femininity, and strength of women - and she isn’t afraid to have fun with fashion, which is part of what has made her a favorite of celebrities including Rihanna, Jessica Alba, Lindsey Lohan, Alicia Keys, Heidi Klum, and more. I recently caught up with this lovely and extremely talented designer to get her answers to my 21 questions.

1. Name: Nicole Romano
2. In 5 words or less, describe your personality: A true Leo
3. In 5 words or less, describe your style: A true Leo
4. What do you do? Fashion and Jewelry Designer in New York
5. What would you like to do? Exactly what I am doing
6. What do you covet? My truck that allows me to escape whoever I want!
7. What are you most into: shoes, handbags, clothes, jewelry? Clothing and jewelry because I’m literally up to my knees in work on a daily and nightly basis!
8. Latest obsession? Rene Furterer Naturia Shampoo
9. Favorite stores? Té Casan
10. Favorite artists/designer? David Foote
11. Favorite runway collections? Preen
12. Last book you read? Perfume
13. What is your favorite piece from your new collection? My favorite piece is the powder blue denim dress with rose pink denim inserts
14. What are you listening to? I listen to big band and swing when I work because it keeps me moving at a fast pace!
15. Drink of choice? Ty Ku Lover’s Lemonade
16. Favorite restaurant/coffee shop/bar? The original Patsy’s Pizzeria in East Harlem
17. Favorite sites? Fashionweekdaily.com
18. Favorite blogs? ThoseExtra4Inches of course! runners up: TheSartorialist, Facehunter
19. Best party you’ve ever been to? A magazine party on Liberty Island - I never thought I would be dancing and drinking champagne by the ankles of Lady Liberty!
20. What’s your favorite thing in your closet? My Fendi Vanity clutch
21. One thing people should know about you? The thing I cherish most is my family

Next week I’ll be attending Nicole Romano’s Spring/Summer Collection celebration at espace and will definitely give you guys a sneak peek of what she has in store for the future. Also, VIVRE.com will be selling a large selection of her jewelry within a few days, and I swear that I want almost every piece…

Inside every girl is a little shoe fetish just waiting to be released - this spring, my darling friend Anly made the plunge into the world of serious designer shoes with her first purchase from Christian Louboutin. I sat down with one of my favorite city girls and got the low down on her Louboutins…

Location: SoHo Park, NYC
What: Talking shoes over lunch

Casey: Oh, you wore the shoes today! Lovely!
Anly: Thank you! I love them! And I wore them for you!

C: So where did you first see them?
A: I don’t really know - maybe eLuxury?

C: How many times did you try them before buying them?
A: Just once.

C: And where did you make the big purchase? Who went with you?
A: At Saks, with my friend Pascal. I went to Christian Louboutin in the West Village first, but they told me I could only pre-order them (that the Las Vegas shipment hadn’t arrived yet). Then I went to Bergdorf’s, but they didn’t have them either. At one point I was so worried that they would sell out, and that’s when I knew I had to have them. At Saks they only had this size 8 and a 10 - and as I was trying them on a woman walked by and told me that I looked great in them - I instantly said ‘I’ll take them!’

C: And how much were they?
A: (with a slight grimace) $845 or so after taxes.

C: And when did you buy them?
A: About a month or so ago, on a weekend. Saturday. In the evening, and it rained that day…I was so proud to be holding my Saks bag - I never buy anything nice for myself - and then it started raining and I had to buy an umbrella to protect my bag and box, but they still got a bit wet.

C: What were you doing before going to Saks?
A: Shopping.

C: Did you buy anything else that day?
A: No! The shoes were the only thing I bought that day.

C: So what first got you looking at Louboutins?
A: My black pumps broke and I wanted a really high pair and I was looking at the black pumps with the platforms. And then I started looking at the other shoes and I feel in love wit the City Sandals. I thought, ‘If I’m going to buy a really expensive pair, I should buy a pair I really love.’ These were $150 more than the black ones, but when you’re spending that much money, what’s another $150?