Young Jesus

My very good friends in Young Jesus can do more than just put on a great show: their inimitable style as a group and as individuals is something to be envious of.  Most guys can’t sing, play guitar, or write lyrics (let alone dress themselves), but these guys have it all.  Without looking too put together or uniform, they achieve the happiest of mediums with their effortlessly fresh ensembles.   Layering sweatshirts with oxfords and ties, tees with blazers and denim, their style combines high and low, comfort with class.   An added bonus to their music, which achieves that same type of perfection.  Check them out right now if you haven’t already: http://www.myspace.com/youngjesusband.  

Matchy Match

I have always been obsessed with the fair isle before it became trendy: it instantly makes me feel like I'm in colorado Après-ski.  It is arguably the best pattern of winter.  Although mixing patterns, styles, and fabrics are all the rage, I also find something so chic about matching perfectly.  I saw this scarf and hat pair at the most adorable boutique in Le Marais, Paris (that was coincidentally owned by an equally adorable Armenian lady!), and even though it was a warm day in August, I knew I had to have both.  The scarf is super long and I love wrapping it two or three times and letting the black fringe fall on its own.  The adorable cap just brings the whole look together, like any other couple, I believe they work better together than apart.  

Et Cetera, Fads For Whatever

This cozy cashmere tank works as a dress, tunic, and also as a basic tank tucked into a skirt (like the veda leather one in previous post) or jeans and looks great belted with a simple blazer on top.  I love that the bralette peeks through to show off a little bit of the detailed lace.  

Hook and Eye black lace bralette: Free People

Comfortable in Cashmere charcoal tunic : Free People

Dark Fantasy

This Veda Leather Skirt is perfection.  It is the most beautiful, soft, flow-y black leather high-waisted little thing, complete with a hidden zipper and snap in the back.  I love it with a cropped chunky winter sweater and tights or with my wedges and a tank or blouse.  I believe that anything leather is a collector's piece, and this isn't that type of tacky leather skirt that someone on Rock of Love might sport...

Top: Free People Cashmere Tunic Bra, in black lace: Free People  

Bowler

I love my bowler hat. I actually got it ages ago at F21 and barely wore it until this year.  My mom pulled out her Bogner bowler hat and it looks pretty identical to mine, though I think I will need to be taking hers regardless...


pocket t: Alexander Wang (in white and black)

Snood Satisfaction

Aggh! When checking the link to purchase my beloved snood, which is from All Saints, I saw that it is now on sale.  Bummer for me.  I saw this at their Soho store (after falling in love with the store in LA) and ordered it online because I could not stop thinking about it.  Made with baby alpaca, wool, and nylon, it is so very warm and transforms to my every need.  I can wear it as an infinity scarf if the weather doesn't prove to be too cold, but if the unknown occurs I can pull up the hood to warm my ears or protect my hair.  I have worn it a ton already, and I love the fact that it doesn't give the ever-dreaded hat hair! 

All Twisted

Another piece of jewelry I die over: Free People twisted in chains necklace.  Let's move past the fact that the price is not at all what the necklace seems (ridiculously affordable): it is the most versatile piece.  I love the short and simple length but the detail in the multi-colored chains.  There were some crystal pieces hanging that I was not too fond of, so I simply cut them off with a wire cutter.  Presto.

Your Speakers Are Blowing

It's a windy day. My Rag & Bone Kemble Cardigan has proven itself worthy of the chilly temperatures and because of its chunky-ness, I have been wearing it with my belt from Kooples in Paris to balance out the silhouette.  I love that it is long enough to wear with sheer tights or leggings but short enough to wear with jeans.  The collar is an added bonus that doubles as a thick scarf when buttoned all the way up.  

My boots are on a whole other level.  I saw these Eli Fiorentini + Baker at Barney's last year and ended up locating my size at their NY store.  I haven't let them out of my sight ever since.  They make every outfit that much better. Dresses, skirts, shorts, jeans, leggings, socks, whatever you can imagine, they work with.  I love how they get better with age.  I have already repaired them once and they are just like new, but even when they are so worn in they look amazing.  They are simple but still have the leather strap, buckle, slit, and side zipper.  These are the only boots for me.  Yes, they are pricey, but if you take into account how many times and ways they can be worn, they are free.

We Are Chained.

The most beautiful chain necklace I received for xmas last year from Intermix.  My favorite part about this piece lies in its options: wear it long (it goes to my waist), layered once or twice, knotted (above), or even as a bracelet.  If you peep my island wear photos, you can spot it wrapped around my wrist.

Deadly Dress

I just saw Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 1 and let me just say it was fantastic, better than anything I could have imagined.  Everything, once again, was represented exactly as I had painted in my mind while reading the text summers ago.  That aside, what I would like to talk about is Hermione's dress during the wedding scene.  Beyond, to die for, absolutely perfect for her.  I couldn't seem to take my eyes off of it.  Immediately drawn in by the rich, strong color, I was then glued to its cut, detail, fabric and graceful flow.  Balanced out so elegantly with a simple necklace and matching slingback heels (I'm not crazy about these but I'll let them pass because its Hermione), she certainly was the object of the audience's affection in this scene, who is used to her wearing some sort of (raggedy) sweater and jeans combination.  I needed to know where I could get this piece.  Unfortunately, as I assumed, Jany Temime, Potter costume designer, had this dress custom-made.  Boo. Make more?!

photo: Oh.Em.Gee: "Hermione Granger Grows Up." Photo. 15 September 2009.  <http://ohemgeeblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/hermione-granger-grows-up.html>.

What Would Alexa Chung Wear...

An English model and former TV host, my style icon would have to be Alexa Chung.  Her London street style is unsurpassed, wearing couture Chanel one day, a blazer with vintage Levi's cutoffs and tights the next, pulling together all looks with her very sought-after messy bombshell haircut.  Her ability to mix schoolboy style with Parisian sophistication always leaves me awestruck.  You have to be more than important in the fashion world in order to have a Mulberry bag named after you.  The Alexa handbag emulates her style exactly: deemed the “it” bag that always remains in fashion, it is both elegant and simple.  No fuss, it comes in either a sharp black leather or an incredible oak brown.  Don’t forget to add designer to her list of accomplishments: her collection for Madewell dominated.  Besides pugs, Alexa dominates my google image searches. 

image 1: Chick With Guns Blog. Photo. 2009 June 20. <http://chickwithguns.com/blog/?p=4302>. 
image 2: Style Elite. Photo. 2010 June 08. <http://www.styleite.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/alexa-mulberry-bag.jpg>.
image 3: 18 Follow Me. 2010 April 26. Photo: <http://img1.gtimg.com/lady/pics/32484/32484070.jpg>.
image 4: Love Mary Janes. 2010 July 01. Photo. <http://www.lovemaryjanes.com/2010/07/01/alexa-chung-likes-wearing-strappy-mary-janes/>.
image 5: Vogue UK: "Style Crush." Photo. 04 March 2010. <http://www.vogue.co.uk/news/daily/100304-alexa-chungs-style-is-copied-on-eb.aspx>.

Caps for Sale!

"Caps! Caps for sale! Fifty cents a cap!"  I wish.  Most likely inspired at age six by the book Caps For Sale, A Tale of A Peddler, Some Monkeys, And Their Monkey Business, I have always been what you would call a hat person.  The protagonist of the tale is a wonderfully moustached hat salesman who promenades through villages with seventeen total caps on his head. If only we could wear all our favorite hats at once.  Straw fedoras in the spring, too-big-to-even –see-from sunhats on the beach, bowler hats in the fall, and berets in the winter, I can’t get enough and am always looking for a new and neutral style.  I won’t lie and say I haven’t always wanted to go to the Kentucky Derby for the sole fact that I could get away with wearing the biggest, floppiest hat ever made.  This winter, in tandem with the leopard trend, I got the Eugenia Kim beret, which really blends with any shade you have on, whether it be black, grey, or brown.  My favorite part? It stays on your head and actually covers your ears, so it’s not just great for style but also for warmth.  Wish I had snagged it from the peddler at 50 cents, though.

Shoes: shopbop, Book (a must have): Caps For Sale 

From Blue-Collars to Catwalk

Fashion can be easily defined as a style of dress that is popular in a certain culture at a specific time.  Styles come and go, and sometimes this happens quicker than we would like.  Certain styles will recycle themselves after decades of being out of style.  The one fabric in particular that has remained loyal to the public throughout the years is undoubtedly denim. Whether used for workers due to its durability, a staple for cowboys, an outlet for rebels, a statement for hippies, or as a runway essential, denim is everlasting. There is a wide range of denim for every style, trend, body type, and budget.  Whereas denim used to be unpopular among women and necessary for field workers, it is now one of the most commonly worn fabrics, for both the workplace and night out. From straight leg to bell-bottom to skin tight and back to wide legged, jackets and now button ups, the style of denim is constantly changing and at times, recycling itself.  Denim has upheld a certain revolution, whether it be cultural, social, political, or sexual.  It is ultimate democratic fabric – anyone can wear it and understand it.

Due to this recycling nature of denim in the fashion world today, it is highly recommended to keep any style of jean you own rather than to throw them on the curb, thinking they will never be “in” again.  Abercrombie ripped jeans used to be all the rage in junior high – I gave away my pair as soon as they went out of style.  Much to my dismay, those baggy, destroyed $80 pair of jeans would have been excellent to find in my closet today, seeing as a pair of similarly destroyed “boyfriend” style Current Elliot jean goes for over $250 a pop. Jeans will always fight back and reinvent the classic styles it once knew.  Good thing denim is as tough and durable as it is; it would not have been able to last throughout so many years and so many cultures.  Jeans have come a long way in history since its initiation as a sturdy workman’s fabric more than 200 years ago.  Denim has been dyed, bleached, acid-splattered, embroidered, stone-washed, and ripped until now, where it sits on the racks of stores today as an icon of over-priced, everlasting, and constantly changing high street fashion.

Denim in all its variety: shopbop

A Real Shiner

Sparkle: my absolute favorite trend for the upcoming holiday seasons.  It appears to be timeless (at this time of year), with new takes on the trend coming out daily.  Mine above is a Free People embellished tunic, but some of my favorites from this year include both skirts, dresses, and (of course) jewelry.  My personal discretion is to never wear more than one sparkly piece at once, unless you want to look like the Eiffel Tower at night.

My favorite pieces this year include (but are not limited to until the season closes)... 

This Vince skirt. Perfect paired with a blouse, or even with a Nation sweatshirt for a more casual option.

These DVF and Vince tops are wonderful with jeans and a great pair of heels or boots, which go day to night.

These Dannijo and Kenneth Jay Lane rings (as well as this Elizabeth Cole bracelet) are great statement pieces if you aren't so comfortable with sparkly clothes but want to glam up your outfit.

I love the idea of a sequin sweatshirt. Comfortable yet still glamorous. Masters of the fashion world Elizabeth and James killed it with this piece.  Too expensive? Try this one at J. Crew or Splendid

A sequined sweater guaranteed to keep you cozy and chic, made by my favorite French designers, IRO

A final all-over sparkly option, Haute Hippie makes quite the dress and it comes in a new, warm shade of brown.

Island Wear

I took a trip to Jamaica this past year, and I believe there is a distinct style to fair weathered vacations.  Living in light airy dresses, sunhats, oxford blouses and cut-offs was a kind of effortless style I could really get used to. Take me back.

Wedges: Cynthia Vincent, Romper: Free People, Bracelet (formerly a necklace): Intermix, Sunglasses: Carrera, Swimsuit: DVF, Sunhat, Oxford, and Skirt: F21