Recently, I got a somewhat troubling note from my agent (I’m a fashion stylist.) She looked at my portfolio, and told me that my work is “too edgy, and not enough cool,” and that I should start cramming my book with images boasting a J. Crew vibe. J. Crew?

Don’t get me wrong, I like J. Crew.  I buy my cardigans there. But I’m a Rick Owens-Maison Martin Margiela kind of girl. Still, I checked out J.’s website, expecting to find the same old hyper-smiling crew of perfectly pleasant models, their ankles demurely crossed.

Then up pops the face of Ms. Quintessential Cool, SoCal-based model-cum-designer Erin Wasson, who recently debuted her RVCA collection at New York Fashion Week.

And she’s looking, as always, hella cool. And flipping through the images, I started to realize that J. Crew just might be the coolest retailer around (Okay, Mrs. Obama, I finally get it). Because they don’t try to play it cool — it’s all about goofy faces, 70s-style blowing hair and rainbow colors.  And that’s darn cool in my book. Now if only I could get all that into my actual book.