Last week = fail. Midterms = evil, and I totally had intentions of blogging like every night...and then I feel asleep. Oh, how I have missed sleep. But I have this week off, so back to normal y'all. Here's some cute stuff to get everyone through their Monday.
Nanette Lepore Candy Girl Dress, $298 at shopbop.com, Marc by Marc Jacobs Bianca Pave Bow Ring, $68 at shopbop.com, Wildfox Midnight Snack Tee, $77 at shopbop.com: This dress is SO CUTE. Agh. The fit is very sex-bomb, screen siren, body con, etc, but the print is so girly, springy, adorably retro. This dress is great because you can dress it down with some flat sandals and a little leather jacket, and you can dress it up with a cardigan and some platform heels. I'm not one for cutesy jewelry, but this bow ring strikes the perfect balance between quirky and chic, and I love anything with some sparkle. I want to wear this shirt to sleep and then get up and eat a midnight snack in it. Too funny.
Botkier Maddie Shoulder Bag, $295 at shopbop.com, Wildfox 17th Century Girl Tee, $77 at shopbop.com, Funktional Wild Blossom Dress, $118 at shopbop.com: While I'm always a big fan of oversized totes because I carry wayyy too much stuff around with me, the idea of a little across the body bag is strangely appealing. Maybe it's the hands-free aspect, maybe it's the cute little studs and the drapey, hobo shape, or the mildly reasonable price tag, but I want this bag. Oh, Wildfox. Again, you are so overpriced, but yet so adorable. I love the Marie Antoinette-esque girl drawn on the front, but the cutest part is on the back. It says 'I love' in French and then lists things like parties, candy, BFFs, soldiers, romance, castles, etc, etc. AKA story of my life. It's hard to see here, but the shoulder detail on that dress is adorable, little loops of fabric sliding off and on the shoulder. I like the sassiness of the sleeves against the quiet floral print and simple cut of the dress.
All images via shopbop.com.
You know if I'm blogging about a shower gel it must be a pretty darn awesome shower gel because...well...shower gel is kind of boring. I have nothing against shower gel: it gets me nice and clean and generally smells pretty. But is it entertaining? Is it exciting? Not really.
However. I may have actually found an exciting shower gel. I know. It's a little crazy. It's this Olay Ribbons Body Wash in Silk Whimsy, and it's like $6-$7 at CVS. I am in love with it. I always stop myself from buying the Olay Ribbons body washes because I feel like they're ridiculously expensive for shower gel but every time I get them I just love them. I was having a mopey, I need to buy myself presents moment at CVS this weekend, so I picked up this shower gel. Olay claims it smells like roses and almond oil. I hate almond oil. HATE. But this smells like roses and florals and a hint of musk and just general gorgeousness. If it was a perfume I'd wear it every day. It's that good. On top of that these shower gels are always great because they lather so well, they moisturize (my skin gets so itchy and dry if I don't use a creamy shower gel) and you don't need much to get yourself clean. Apparently Olay also makes lotion with this scent. My current lotion is from Vaseline and smells like chocolate cookies, which is a problem in that it makes me want to eat cookies when I use it. I may have to pick up a bottle of this.
In short: this shower gel smells like a Sephora quality perfume, and is actually a great shower gel. Get on that.
Images via amazon.com.
So it snowed today. In the middle of March. It snowed. It's positively uncivilized. It was 75 at home today. Come on, Boston. Get with the program. So in my theoretical world where I can control the weather and it was lovely and 70 degrees and sunny today I would have worn this:
Charlotte Ronson Tiered Floral Mini Dress, $315 at shopbop.com: I love this because it's sweet, it's a light chiffon that flows nicely, and the shape is flattering with its cinched-in waist while still being fun and feminine and flirty. The slightly assymetrical hem gives it a fun, rebellious twist, and the neutral floral print keeps it all from being too sweet. I'd wear it with a boyish brown leather belt and and short, sassy boots.
Image via shopbop.com.
I need the hair from the Fall 2011 Chloe show. It's to die for. First off, that strawberry blonde color is covetable, but it's the combination of straight and wavy that's going on here with the bedhead thrown in. It's an interesting, new take on beachy waves. It looks like they just curled a few sections in the middle of the hair with a center part and lots of volume.
Image via allure.com.
I know everyone was waiting for the McQueen show this weekend with baited breath, as it's the first McQueen show designed entirely by Sarah Burton, the new designer behind McQueen. I think she proved that she is as much part of the brand's DNA as anyone could ever be after McQueen himself. The series of white dresses at the end did nothing to assuage the rumors that she's designing Kate Middleton's wedding gown (which could possibly be the best thing ever).
The zipper detail on that white skirt is just shutting it down. And that jacket looks like it's about to take flight! In the best possible way. I need some of those leather leggings and those fabulous platform shoes. The combination of textures between the tweedy top and the furry, tactile skirt is so unexpected but so right somehow.
I want this vest to wear in the cold here and I want it now. The giant fur hood is very glam Eskimo, the leather biker shorts are very Hells Angels, and the shoes and gloves so dominatrix, but all together it manages to work somehow. How elegant is this white dress? The sleeves just float so perfectly, and the slit detailing in the skirt gives it a fun, younger twist.
The skirt on this first dress is so fascinating, like folded origami paper. The neck ruff is very Elizabethan, but the dress still looks so modern and unexpected. I adore this second gown. The bodice is like shattered china pieced back together and the skirt is just waves and waves of tiny, intricate folds that flow away from the body so majestically.
Dear Kate Middleton: wear this first dress to your wedding next month. Kthanks. The cut of the bodice is so fragile and elegant, and the overall shape is so simple, but the detail and texture and appliques give it such an alien, ethereal quality. It really is from another world. And I just love the combination of bondage and chiffon in this second dress. Who else could make chiffon look tough and intimidating? That dusty lavender hue is just gorgeous.
Images via style.com.
So I have a sorority formal coming up in a few weeks, and I was going through my closet over and over trying to decide what to wear and coming up with nada. And then I checked my bank account and realized it was a little higher than expected, so I went straight to Rent The Runway. Yep. I finally caved. I'm so excited.
Herve Leger "Naughty and Nice" Dress, rent for $100, retail $1,050, Catherine Malandrino "Modern Queen Elizabeth" Dress, rent for $75, retail $525: I rented (or will rent haha) this purple Herve Leger dress. I've been dying to try one for years, literally, and I love this one. The purple is a great color for me, and the sweetheart neckline is great for a bigger chest, plus it's the perfect length and I love the open back. The way Rent The Runway works is that you get two sizes of the dress you order to try on (and if you order 1 dress you can get another of equal or lesser value for TWENTY FIVE DOLLARS). I'm wearing this with big sparkley earrings and strappy black platforms and it is going to be epic. Now, I won't personally order this second dress for my body type, but I absolutely love the cut of it. Isn't it gorgeous? The open shoulders! Sigh. Someone order it so I can look at pretty pictures of it. Oh! Rent The Runway also sends you a Fit Kit with double sided tape and lint rollers, etc, which is so cute and practical.
The Preppy Polka Dot Personalized Tumbler, $14.50 at etsy.com: The other thing I got myself today was one of these tumblers. I know they're sickeningly cute, but they're so practical for someone who's always reusing Starbucks cups for drinks in my room. You can get different fonts and colors with your name on the front (I did a grey/light pink/black combo). I love things like this that are cute and practical.
Images via renttherunway.com, etsy.com.
So my normal Fashion Week coverage has lulled. And by lulled I mean died before it even started. See the thing is that I've looked through all the shows and have a giant Style.com lookbook of all the looks I like...but it keeps crashing. Like the lookbook doesn't work. Every time I go back and try to pull images from it it goes crazy. So. I don't know what to do about that. Coverage may come eventually? In the meantime, I felt like the Dior show was noteworthy enough to go through the pain of figuring out how to post.
I'm sure some of you have heard, but Galliano was fired from Dior for making some particularly hateful and anti-Semitic remarks on camera. However, I can't hate the clothes for his mistakes, so let's just focus on how pretty they are. Because they are very pretty.
The overall vibe here is boho luxe meets '20s meets '40s meets Zorro/medieval peasants. Yep. That's a lot of influences. I think the main thing to focus on are the shapes and the fabrics.
Doesn't Karlie Kloss look like an awesomely high-fashion Zorro-bandit in this first look? I adore those thigh-high boots. It looks like the fur circle scarves from a few seasons ago are going to be back full force (I blame the Prada fur stoles from last season). I love the layering here, with the miniskirt and the thigh-high boots. It's not showing a lot of skin, but it's still hot.
And more furry circle scarves! Sweeping a-line coats are also going to be a thing next season. There's something so USSR about them. That blue coat belongs in my life.
Also cropped fur jackets. Basically fur in all incarnations is going to be big. That gold coat might be my favorite piece. The cut says military, but the fabric says baroque luxury, and the fur on top gives it all a wild twist.
How Hitchcock heroine is that fur scarf/jacket combo? The bow at the waist is too cute, and the fur picks up the color palette of the jacket perfectly, while the skirt's light texture gives it all a bit of a whimsical twist. I feel like this red dress is what a Jane Austen heroine would wear to a cocktail party today. Which makes me love it so much.
I love the subtle variations in hue of these two looks. At first glance they seem to be all greyish beige, but once you look closer you see all the small changes in color and texture. Also I love that these two looks show how different outerwear gives a totally different vibe to similar dresses. The blazer makes the minidress more daytime appropriate, and the fur jacket makes it very nighttime luxe.
And the fur circle scarves even go with cocktail dresses! These dresses are so interesting in that they seem like just layers of silk and chiffon, but then you start to see all the detail and construction that goes into them, like the artful draping on the second dress and the tiny, asymmetrical layers on the first dress.
All images via style.com.
I did something for the first time today. I bought a backup of a pair of jeans. I know. I've never bought 2 of the same pair of jeans before because I've always had some sort of small problem that keeps me from repurchasing. But with this pair...nothing. No problems. And they're a pair of skinny jeans! It's like the world is ending.
7 For Mankind Gwenevere in Antoinette Darling, $189 at revolveclothing.com, J. Crew Lace-Stripe Tissue Tee, $58 at jcrew.com: I picked up another pair of these 7s on eBay. If you're like me and you love designer jeans but not the price tag, I can't recommend eBay enough. I got this pair for over $100 off. The key is finding out what size in a brand and what cut fits you, and then you can buy a pair from that brand with trying them on. Success! What I love about these jeans is that they're stretchy enough to be comfy but thick enough to be supportive, the dark wash is flattering, the high rise doesn't cut into my hip...padding, and the skinny leg works really well with boots. These are my new wardrobe staple. I legit wear them every day. Today I'd like to pair them with a cute-with-a-twist tee, like this lace paneled one from J. Crew. The slight sheerness gives it a hint of interest, and the off-white hue is very flattering. I like to do a slightly more voluminous top with a skinnier jean like this pair to balance everything out.
Frye Carmen Short Harness Boots, $298 at fryeboots.com, LOT78 Siouxie Leather Biker Jacket, $860 at net-a-porter.com: I've been wearing those jeans with these boots non-stop. I heart them. They've already been re-soled. The cute, cropped width of the boot works nicely with the skinniness of the jeans, and I love the sassy, western attitude juxtaposed with the sweet girliness of the tee. To play off that contrast even more, I'd do a cropped leather jacket on top. When I do a roomier top I like to do a cropped jacket to add some structure and remind the world that I have a waist. Plus skinny jeans and a leather jacket is just the cutest, Audrey Hepburn gone bad combination.
Ray-Ban Outsider Oversized Wayfarers, $139 at revolveclothing.com, J. Crew Oval Heirloom Locket Necklace, $50 at jcrew.com: Yup, just to push the Audrey Hepburn comparison over the edge I'd add a pair of oversized Wayfarers. The tortoiseshell is sweetly retro, the shape is very '50s chic, and the oversized nature gives them a fun, celeb-hiding-from-the-paparazzi twist. Last but not least I'd do a vintagey-locket necklace to add a little visual weight to the lacey shirt and a fun bit of bling.
If only I owned all of these things. Sigh.
Images via revolveclothing.com, jcrew.com, fryeboots.com, net-a-porter.com.
Oof, it's been a long week. Time to look at some pretty things, no?
Rebecca Taylor Tiered Matte-Silk Maxi Dress, $345 at net-a-porter.com, YSL Belle D'Opium, $89 for 3 oz. at sephora.com: This first one is wishful thinking, seeing as it was about 20 degrees yesterday. Cry. Maxi skirts are going to/have been big for a while, and while that skirt does absolutely nothing for my body type. Maxi dresses, however, manage to be a bit more flattering with the cinched in waists and fitted tops. I love the vibrant purple hue of this one, and the matte finish of the silk gives it such an interestingly luxurious and exotic vibe. I want this perfume, if only for the bottle and the fact that the UK outlawed the commercials with a girl randomly dancing around because they simulated opium use. Really UK? Having finally watched Skins, I can say that their standards are wack, because that show is CRAZY. Anyways, this perfume has notes of peach, white pepper, casablanca lily, jasmine, incense, resins, and sandalwood. I really wanted to like the original Opium, but it was a big too strong and old-fashioned for me. This, on the other hand, sounds absolutely lovely, just the right mixture of sexy and fresh.
Acne Breeze Top, $300 at shopbop.com, Club Monaco Olivia Skirt, $149 at shopbop.com: First off, this is definitely a dress and not a top. But second off, I love dresses like this. It's all cute and cozy from the front and then BAM, turn around and it's crazy sexy and offbeat. I've never shopped at Club Monaco, but how adorable is that skirt? It's a beige chiffon with sewn-on rhinestones, the perfect combination of modern, feminine, elegant, and whimsical. I'd do this with a sheerish white tee and a ton of jewelry.
Have a happy weekend y'all!
Images via net-a-porter.com, sephora.com, shopbop.com.
I know nothing about this brand except that it's tiny and was recently established by a beauty blogger. However I do know that I NEED THIS COLOR.
It's called Iconic, and it's $10 at cultnails.com. It's a deep red/berry creme with red flakes and gold shimmer, and there are more pics here. I like that the color is deep enough to be vampy but not so dark that it reads as non-descript-red-black color (those are the worst!) and the golden flakes/shimmer are so unexpected but gorgeous. They give the polish a beautiful molten lava feel. This brand also has a very cool deep blue/green with blue shimmer that looks like the night sky. So fab.
Image via cultnails.com.
I am not really a Kate Spade person. Mainly because I'm just not really a preppy person. I don't wear lots of collared shirts or pastels or polka dots or any of that, so I don't generally look at Kate Spade. But for some reason I ended up on the website this morning, and there were actually some kind of adorable accessories. Here are my top three:
iPhone 4 Hard Cover, $40 at katespade.com: I have a pink case for my iPhone, and it's a normal medium pink with lighter pink accents. It's fine. It's a bit on the boring side. I have to have a case because otherwise I will actually shatter my phone to pieces, so I want it to be a cute case. I really like this one, with the combination of the pink trim on the front and the crazy, psychedelic flowers on the back. I like the balance between cute, creepy, and functional.
Devote Mod Leopard Lacey, $225 at katespade.com: This wallet is totally overpriced. I recognize that. But this is so...so cute. The monochromatic leopard print strikes a nice balance between functional and sassily adorable, and it has SO many pockets inside. I love wallets that have lots of compartments where you can store fun stuff, and this one has literally tons.
Emma Book Clutch, $325 at katespade.com: And this one is my favorite. It's a hard clutch shaped like Jane Austen's Emma. I find book clutches mildly obnoxious most of the time, but this is one of my favorite books, so I can't hate on it. The pale pink color is lovely (and what I'm painting my room next year!), and the back has one of my favorite quotes from the book. It's so sweet in a sassy-nerd sort of way. As I am sassy and also somewhat nerdy, this belongs in my life. Also I just realized I have no clutches...hm...
Images via katespade.com.
I had a super stressful week last week, and then over the weekend I got a package from glowyjoeybunny AKA my new favorite person of all time. She sent me some lovely perfume samples that I'll be reviewing later, and then Fyrinnae's Te Amo eyeshadow, which I've totally been craving for ever. For those of you that don't know Fyrinnae, it's a small indie make up company run by two adorable guys and famous for its fantastically shimmery loose eye shadows. They're about $5 a pop, and when you see the size of the pots you'll feel like you got ripped off. However, I've had one shadow (Rapunzel Had Extensions, absolutely gorgeous) that I wear as a base every day, and have for the last 6 months, and I haven't even used up a quarter of the pot. So they're an amazing value.
ANYWAYS, Te Amo is basically the best thing ever. Fyrinnae describes it as glowing iridescent copper highlight. I wouldn't call it a highlight. To me it's more of a dusty taupe with this amazing copper shimmer running through it.
This color is SO hard to photograph nicely. Fyrinnae has better shots on the website. It's just the perfect color because it's light enough to be a base lid shade if you're doing a darker look, or it's deep enough to use as a crease shade for a more natural look. Inside it comes across as a nice, neutral taupe, but when you step into the sunlight it becomes this fiery copper that brings out the green in my hazel eyes wonderfully. Basically I love it. So: THANK YOU JOEY. Because I want to marry this color and how versatile but fun it is. Also everyone should follow Joey on Twitter (@glowyjoeybunny) because she's hilarious.
In other news, I gots me an iPhone over the weekend because my Blackberry decided to off itself (except like actually). Like my background? Marie Antoinette FTW. Anyways, I thought it'd be useful for other Blackberry peeps if I did a little review/comparison of the two phones. I am by no means a techie, but if you're an average person looking to switch from a Blackberry to an iPhone this might be helpful.
The biggest criticism I heard about iPhones was battery life. My Blackberry Tour would last me maybe 12 hours, sometimes 10, before it died. The iPhone lasts just as long or longer, so that hasn't been a problem for me. There's definitely a learning curve switching between the two phones, but I think the iPhone is a little more user friendly. The only issues I've had with it are that you can't mark texts as unread (so if I forget that I'm texting you, blame the phone! Not me), and even though I can get Facebook notifications/Twitter notifications/emails when I'm out and about, I can't always read them when I'm not in a WiFi network. It's not a huge deal for me, but if I was in a corporate setting I'd want something that was more reliable in different environments.
But on the plus side...it's an iPhone. It's really cool. The camera is AMAZING, the video chat function is amazing, the apps are amazing, I can text on it much more easily than I expected, and I can even watch my Netflix instant on it for free. So overall I love it, even though I'm constantly paranoid about dropping it.
