Anna Sui has definitely been having a bit of a moment. She's been a leader in the fight to preserve the Garment District. There was that glowing story in the Times spotlighting her loyal fanbase and her company's solid financials. She's planning a Gossip Girl-inspired line for Target (due to bow in September). And then, of course the recent announcement that she would be receiving the CFDA's Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award.We recently learned that Sui has designed two shirts for Nordstrom in honor of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. (One is a blow-up of one of the sketches she did for her spring 09 collection and includes a real satin bow on the girl's head. The other one is festooned with lace trim, a pearl necklace and real satin bows.) They are $60 each and all proceeds will go towards the scholarship program of OCA, a national organization dedicated to serving Asian Pacific Americans. They're available now at Nordstrom.com/apahm.
Anna has, understandably, been awfully busy as of late, but we did manage to ask her one question about something dear to our hearts: food. Since she is such a champion of the Garment District, could she tell us where to get a decent bite to eat around there? Anna's answer: "Keens Steakhouse is a favorite for lunch. And Schnipper's, a new place in our neighborhood, is a classic American diner with great salads and hamburgers. For coffee, my favorite place is in the lobby of the building across from mine, a husband and wife from India sell it from a little window. It's the best."
