According to the New York Post's Page Six, new details have emerged about the divorce of Jenna Lyons: the creative director of J. Crew, much admired for her impeccable taste, is splitting from husband, Vincent Mazeau, and is supposedly in a relationship with another woman.
If the rumors are true, this means, among other things, that contrary to tired stereotypes, not every lesbian looks like, say, Pat Buchanan. Yes, folks, a lesbian can be stylish. And not just kind of stylish, but really stylish. In fact, two lesbians can be stylish, assuming that Lyons wouldn't pair up with some who has questionable taste.
L'affair Lyons is catnip for gossip rags, and if she actually is gay, she will join the many celebrity women once married to men whose coming outs inspired more media coverage than usually devoted to small revolutions. (The Frisky takes us down memory lane to remember some others in a slideshow here.)
One early example is The Daily Mail's headline: "Millionaire J Crew boss who painted five-year-old son's toenails pink splits from husband -- and moves on with lesbian lover"
Because the pink toenails clearly have a lot to do with it. I'm just surprised no one has suggested that the writing was on the wall in Lyons' recent interview with The New York Times discussing how gay and lesbian couples have recently had an influence on J. Crew's wedding collection:
The piece quotes Lyons, "Based on feedback, she said, there was a need for simpler dresses, as a way for a woman to differentiate herself if her partner decides to go the princess bride route. Ms. Lyons is also thinking of offering a white pantsuit."
Lyons clarified in the piece that said pantsuit would be "not necessarily for a lesbian."
You'd hope that any socially-aware heterosexual person in Lyons' position would have had the same idea, no?
Perhaps the biggest question Lyon's personal saga raises is this: Is the public shocked by the fact that she was married to a man for ten years and that she now likes women? Or that she's a successful, well-respected and beautiful leader in the fashion industry who's gay, but not a man?