Jewelry is all about the chunky and funky for Fall, so this vintage treasure could pass for new! The gold-tone teardrop backing is glammed up with three huge haphazardly arranged purple rhinestones. I love this pendant, because putting it on will take the simplest outfit and make it unique, easy as 1-2-3 rhinestones!
The current bidding price is at $7.95 and the auction ends on Sunday, September 30.
It would be nice if every household had a garment steamer but the reality is that the majority don't. So then what is a girl to do when she has a fabulous cocktail party to attend and her Philosophy di Alberta Ferretti Satin Strapless Dress, $995, is all wrinkled? Yes, an old fashioned iron might do the trick, but sometimes a fabric is too delicate for that. Plus, your lackluster ironing skills may burn a hole in your lovely dress. Oh no!
To see my easy solution to unwrinkle clothes, read more
At first it was just a weird coincidence that days before his Spring 2008 London Fashion Week show, Christopher Kane had 24 leather dresses stolen from his East London Studio. But then, after a little more thought, the attack on the Roger Vivier store on London's Sloane Street came to mind - hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of accessories were taken in a June smash-and-grab raid there.
The fashion burglaries continue: early yesterday morning, a gang on mopeds took sledgehammers to the windows of Luella Bartley's new London store and sped off with more than $20,000 worth of handbags. Then, minutes later, they targeted Brora, a luxury cashmere store, escaping with thousands worth of sweaters and rugs. The culprits are still on the loose...and who knows where they will strike next!
A few feather-clad pieces in this Spring collection were very Roberto Cavalli, but surprisingly, the majority were not. I'm glad to see Cavalli expanding his repertoire to include sweet gals, not just wild things. For the latter, the feather trench coats, vests and pants will satiate their sassy appetite. As for the more demure, they will love all the floral details that Cavalli plastered on his floor-length gowns, pant suits and boho button-down dresses. The color palette of this collection was muted: lilacs, whites, purples, greens, peaches. The only bright hues were from the large floral patterns on the evening gowns.
Old Hollywood glamazons had a place in this collection, too. A few flapper-esque and metallic dresses were seen and very were reminiscent of The Great Gatsby.
If this collection doesn't appeal to your wild side, be sure to check out Roberto Cavalli for H&M in stores in November!
To see more, more, more, read more
The season premiere of "Project Runway" may still be seven weeks away (49 days to be exact), but we've got plenty of projects to keep us satisfied. There's "Tim Gunn's Guide to Style," which we're obsessed with, and Heidi Klum's Very Sexy Makeup Collection, and now there's Nina Garcia's book The Little Black Book of Style, on sale for $13 (originally $18). This book, according to Nina, is not "A book of rules. It is a book on style." Just what you would expect from the "Project Runway" judge and ELLE fashion director.
The book itself is the LBD of fashion guides - sophisticated, elegant and timeless. It offers tips on how to: be your own muse (confidence trumps beauty), invest in wardrobe staples (ballet flats, cashmere and diamonds) and "what to wear when" (just say no to sweatsuits on planes). Overall, Nina offers very sage advice for both the savvy shopper and ensembly challenged.
Big change is afoot in the fashion industry: after the 90s, which were dominated by male designers, women designers seem to be taking the upper hand.
Even though female designers have a long way to go in male-run fashion capitals like New York and Paris, there does seem to be a trend emerging, particularly in Milan. In Italy alone, a large number of family-run companies were founded or are helmed by women: Alberta Ferretti, Prada, Versace, Fendi, Trussardi, Missoni, Etro, and Emilio Pucci. As Paris-based industry consultant Concetta Lanciaux explained, "Italy's tradition of family ownership for fashion companies gives women a great chance to emerge, whereas France, by contrast, is dominated by luxury groups. It's more corporate."
Although women have always played a pivotal role in fashion, especially in early 1900s Paris, when Coco Chanel, Madeleine Vionnet, and Jeanne Lanvin reigned supreme, after World War II, a new generation of male designers emerged: Dior, Cristobal Balenciaga, and Pierre Balmain. Since then, female designers have come in spurts: Mary Quant and Betsey Johnson in the 60s and 70s, and Rei Kawakubo in the 80s.
Finally, as more and more women are taking charge, their prominence is returning to what it was in early 1900s Paris. Alessandra Facchinetti has just succeeded Valentino, Frida Giannini took over from Tom Ford at Gucci, and let's not forget the outstanding influence of Miuccia Prada. But it all makes sense, as Donatella Versace explains, "women are instinctively in tune with the female customer."
Los Angelenos will be glad to know that Intermix has opened up shop in their city. To celebrate, "The Hills" stars Lauren Conrad and Audrina Patridge attended the debut party last night. I must applaud both of them for looking so classy and ladylike in black. LC went the classic route in her AKA New York dress and rhinestone brooch, while Audrina went sassy in her short Ingwa Melero frock. Sometimes all-black can be boring, but this is not one of those times!
This is some heavy-duty costume jewelry. Literally: between the heavy chain and progressively larger sapphire and purple crystals, this Gerard Yosca Crystal Link Necklace, $265, could way a girl down, if not paired with a simple, streamlined ensemble. I do like the jewel tone colors of the crystals, though, and if rocked right, this necklace could be quite stunning. What do you think?
To post your selections go to the Love It or Hate It? group. And if you want to learn how to do a blog post click here.
Last week I showed you a debatable bow tie blouse, and I'm still on the fence about this style in general. Maybe you can all convince me to love bow tie blouses. They are definitely in masculine-feminine turf, and I love a perfect bow now and again, but something about them makes me feel...claustrophobic. I dunno. The way to wear these is with some trousers and kick ass peep toes, and hark! You are an English poet!
Months ago I raved about ShopStyle.com being my new favorite place to search for fashion favorites. It’s essentially a search engine for clothes. So, like, if I craved an emerald party dress, I would enter that description, and voila! The crème-de-la-crème of emerald party dresses from all the best online shops at my fingertips. It’s long been my secret weapon in searching for coveted and hard-to-find items (cat's out of the bag!), as you can search by item, color, designer name, price, store and size. It’s easy, swift and just fabulous. I am happy to announce that ShopStyle is no longer my BFF…but my long lost sister! ShopStyle has joined the Sugar family and we can all look forward to even more fashion searching fun. And the fun ranges from shopping the latest (and sale items!) from Old Navy all the way to uptown selections from Net-a-Porter. We're so excited about this news across the network so make sure to also check out Pop's and Fit's lists as well as favorite products from Bella.
Here is a Fab Fall look that I whipped together in t-minus 60 seconds, thanks to ShopStyle. Join in on the fun and we can all share items and outfits galore!
