FabSugar

On My Way To a Fab Closet, Part III

FabSugar — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 15:00:22 PDT

The most fabulous news: My Fab closet is done! I wanted to make sure it was in tip top order before I did my big reveal. I also had to go the The Container Store to get some boot fillers, skirt hangers (the kind with the multiple hang) and some plastic containers for under my bed storage. All my clothes have been analyzed and some have been tossed to the consignment shop curb - buh-bye! There are still a few questionable items - maybe you all can help me determine their fate? So I really didn't need to do much but put on my organizing Philip Treacy hat when filling it up.

As you can see, I am a color coordinator. I also group items by type; dresses together, tops, jeans etc. I fold my jeans, I don't hang them, btw. What are my favorite parts of the newly improved closet? That's easy: The shoe shelves! Also, all the hanging space. I have lots of dresses, tops and jackets and now everything has a home. But the best part of all is that I can see all my clothes. The only things hiding are seasonal sweaters and costumes. The belt rack and scarf rack are cool too; I've been wearing more of both as a result. I must confess that I also have two dressers. The burgundy one houses my sunglasses, underthings, socks and tights. The big purple one hides jewelry, pj's, cotton basics, tee shirts and sweaters. And, I have a coat rack for grab-and-go jackets and hoodies.

To read the rest and to see more pics of my Fab closet,

OK, it's obvious I have a lot of clothes. But this experience has opened my eyes as to what my personal style is. I believe one's style is always evolving - especially for a fashion chameleon - but there were definitely some Fab staples. Allow me to share them with you. I have about ten LBDs as well as oodles of navy and red dresses. Don't let me buy anymore! I love sharp outerwear. Given the foggy climate of San Francisco, I have tons of jackets and coats, but I wear them all. I swear. When I used to live in New York City I had more coats and I started collecting vintage coats and restoring them so I still have a few that I will love forever. I just wear them Carrie Bradshaw style: with a sexy little LBD (see!), strappy heels and a clutch.

Black is most people's neutral, mine is grey. Another thing I don't need to buy more of: grey cardigans and sweaters. I have every kind of pant imaginable: black trouser, black pinstripe, jeans (cropped, wide leg, skinny, black, grey, white), grey trouser, khaki trouser, black cropped, black bermudas. Hmmm, maybe black is my neutral after all. In general, I need to wear more slacks! Carine Roitfeld wears them all the time, so color me inspired. Also, I am more of a shoe junkie than a bag lady. I really don't think I have that many bags, PartySugar. Except, my clutch collection (mostly vintage) is quite fabulous.

Here's the fun part: My favorite brands. I guess there's no other way of uncovering them than raiding your closet. Here goes: Marc by Marc Jacobs, Banana Republic, Theory, H&M, DKNY, J.Crew, Target GO International (lots of pieces from the Proenza Schouler collection last year), BCBG, Miu Miu, Nanette Lepore, DVF, See by Chloe, Paul and Joe, J Brand jeans. As for shoes, I have lots of Marc Jacobs and Marc, KORS Michael Kors, Nine West and Belle Sigerson Morrison. Heels have tapered off for me, I am an official lover of flats. Vintage rules my coats, sandals, clutches and jewelry.

So what's next? I don't have much extra room - this is a good thing. Now that I've been reacquainted with a lot of my clothes I don't feel I need to shop much. But you know me. I have a few shoe slots available, some jacket space and I'm not really happy with my boot collection so come next Fall I may invest in a new pair. Maybe some grey ones . . .

Hallway closet

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Mistress closet

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On My Way to a Fab Closet, Part II

FabSugar — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 06:00:22 PDT

It has begun! The Fab closet metamorphosis is in full effect and my clothes are already thanking me.

First thing's first. In order for the installation to begin, California Closets had a separate construction company come and tear down what is in my already existing closets. They patched up the walls and took all debris away. It was nice to come home to a blank canvas! This cost approximately $560 - a little steep if you ask me. But they did a clean job and showed up on time so moving on . . .

To read the rest and to see more Fab closet photos,

The next part is the installation. Here's where I have to be honest. I have only heard good things about California Closets so I was utterly surprised/bummed when they didn't show up on my scheduled Saturday installation date. That's right, they just didn't show. I was given a window of 10:30 - 12:00 p.m. and once noon rolled around I started panicking. I called my consultant and she was on the case. Only, they totally messed up and I fell through the cracks. As you all know, I work at Sugar headquarters during the week so Saturday is the ideal option for such a major life changing event for me. I was livid. After countless apologies we rescheduled for the following Tuesday but my mom had to make herself available to oversee it (thanks again mommie!).

It only took a few hours and once my mom called to say it was all done I wanted to drop everything and run home and start organizing. I had already been fantasizing about cleaning things out and wondering if all my shoes would actually fit! I got home, said hi to Annabelle and got busy. This is pretty much how I spent every evening last week after work. Life stops when you have a brand new closet.

I was a little surprised the wood frame didn't cover more - I thought it consumed the whole closet space. But I guess once you get your clothes in you don't see the sides and back. I picked out the wood finish and the silver poles to match my floor and matte silver finishes throughout my place. So here is the hardware, installed and ready for my Fab clothes!

Hallway Closet:

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Mistress Closet:

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On My Way To a Fab Closet, Part I

FabSugar — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 10:00:22 PDT

For a stylephile, closets are a very personal thing. And so, I am about to bare my soul to you, my friends. In case you didn't hear, I moved about a month ago. I upgraded from a studio to a one bedroom - yay! Annabelle and I are very happy in our spacious new digs. I have to admit one of the things that sold me on this place was the two closets. My one before wasn't too bad, but I have dreamed of a personalized closet for years and knew the time had come.

I quickly called California Closets because the existing white wire racks and configurations were not working for my Fab things. My clothes were not fitting well (I don't have that much stuff, I swear) and it was just a bad use of space. I thought it would be fun to share my experience with you. The only other thing I was this happy about investing in was my little furry roomie so here's the scoop.

To keep on reading about my experience and to see more scary before pictures,

There are two closets. One in the hallway, intended for coats, linens, travel gear and the like. This one is OK, do-able. Simple. Then there's the "mistress" (as California Closets calls it) closet, which spans the whole wall across from my bed and has mirrored sliding doors - yes! This is obviously the key closet in which my livelihood will live. Sadly, clothes were smushed and shoes were boxed while I had to get the project done. If I've been moody the past couple weeks, now you know why. But really, it's a big undertaking and expense I'm willing to make for my truest love: fashion.

The hard part is over. Stay tuned as I find my way to a Fab closet!

Mistress closet:

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Hallway closet:

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Niki Taylor on Personal Style, Modeling, and the Most Important Thing You Can Do

Noria Morales — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 11:20:23 PDT

Niki Taylor landed her first cover - on Seventeen, when she was just 14. For much of the '90s, Niki Taylor was always in a magazine, from Vogue to Sports Illustrated. However, she endured personal tragedy when her sister Krissy died suddenly in 1995 at the age of 17, and in 2001 Niki was in a severe car accident that left the supermodel in a coma for six weeks. If you didn't know, yesterday was World Blood Donor Day, but Niki Taylor would be the first to tell you that everyday should be blood donor day. Today, the mother of three, who is pregnant with her fourth child, talks about her supermodel years, her personal style, and why you should sport a zebra print bandage.

FabSugar: What were some of your favorite experiences in modeling?
Niki Taylor: I have gotten to travel all over the world and meet so many wonderful and interesting people. I think what has been most powerful for me though, is that modeling and being in the public eye has allowed me to give back through initiatives like the Nexcare give program with the American Red Cross.
FS: Why blood?
NT: After receiving 100 units of donor blood after a life-threatening car accident in 2001, the importance of donating blood became so real and so significant for me. This year, Nexcare is handing out free give bandages, and they are extra chic with fashion-inspired designs that show how helping save a life is always in style. As a supporter of blood donation and a lover of fashion, I think the bandages are a perfect way to encourage people to get out there and donate.

To see some of Niki's memorial editorials, real-life style and more from our interview, read more.

Operation Organize: Charitable Closet Clearing

Lauren Conrad — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 11:30:31 PDT

We are thrilled to share this story from LaurenConrad! The TV personality, writer, designer, and style maven started LaurenConrad.com, a social networking site that features daily posts by Lauren on all of our favorite topics - fashion, beauty, food, party planning - and Lauren will be sharing her latest fashion finds with Fab every month. This week, we talk closet cleaning for a cause.

If you have read my book Style then you know what I think when it comes to cleaning out your closet: if you can’t see it, you won’t wear it. The solution? Overhaul your closet, and get organized. (Check out Chapter 4 of Style for helpful tips on editing and arranging your closet.) So what do you do with all of the pieces you want to ditch? Pay it forward. And no, I don’t mean watch the movie.

Think of it this way: as your unused homecoming dress sits in the deep dark depths of your closet, there is someone out there who is looking for, or needing, that very dress. They don’t say, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure” for nothing. Instead of tossing or selling closet rejects, donate them - but do it wisely. Certain organizations specialize in distributing specific clothing items. To inspire you to make smarter donation decisions, I have put together a list of helpful suggestions on disposing your closet castoffs:

Shoes. If you are tossing a pair of shoes, give them to someone who really needs them. I recently learned about Soles4Souls, which is an organization that collects shoes and gets them to those in need. In many countries, children cannot attend school or church unless they have a pair of shoes, and Soles4Shoes makes this possible.

Keeping reading . . .

Lucky Haul: What Our Editors Bought This Weekend

Lucky — Wed, 04 May 2011 11:04:50 PDT

We're thrilled to present our favorite Lucky story here on Fab!

We're going to be doing a haul post every week about what Lucky editors bought over the weekend. Watch out - shopping is our leisure sport, so that means tons of stuff each week for you to ogle. For us, it just means another way to justify filling our already full closets.

Stephanie Trong, Deputy Digital Editor
I've been going on about how much I love J.Crew's cashmere sweatshirts, and this weekend I discovered you can get the same ones on CrewCuts for a little less! Got the navy - will look so good thrown over floral dresses or with jeans and Supergas. Threw in a vintage-looking brown belt, too, which I plan to wear with tees, jeans and major heels for a little casual/fancy juxtaposition.

Caroline Waxler, Digital Content Director
I bought the kate spade new york All Occasion Set at Papyrus in Greenwich, CT, which actually has some amazing shopping. It's super cute and perfect for those times when you can't be bothered to run to the stationery shop and need to jot down a quick note. The box comes complete with: Congratulations, Happy Birthday, Get Well Soon, Hello and Thank You with matching lined envelopes. Reminds me of when I was younger and my mom seemed to have cards for any and every occasion.

For the rest of the Lucky Haul, visit Lucky.

For more fashion and style from Lucky, here are more Lucky stories. Related links: Piece We're Coveting: Army Green Anorak, Piper Weiss' Most Fashionable Moms.

Lauren Conrad's Beach Day Basics

Lauren Conrad — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 06:00:49 PDT

We are thrilled to announce our new partnership with LaurenConrad! The TV personality, writer, designer, and style maven started LaurenConrad.com, a social networking site that features daily posts by Lauren on all of our favorite topics - fashion, beauty, food, party planning - and Lauren will be sharing her latest fashion finds with Fab every month. First up? We get the skinny on Lauren's beach day basics.

The sun is shining and the seagulls are singing (or more accurately, combing the beach for your sandy leftovers)-it’s summertime! You may have your swimsuit du jour squared away along with the perfect pair of sunnies, but the question remains: Are you really ready to hit the beach?

In addition to my door side “go” bag (see In the Bag: Prepped & Ready for all the details), there are a few key fashion items I keep around for hanging beachside…

Classic Cut Offs
Every gal needs a good old pair of cut off jean shorts. For me, denim cutoffs will always be a summer staple. They are as timeless as they are California cool. Lately, I’ve been wearing Levi’s because I like the looser fit and higher set waist. The Levi’s 501 cut works well with most body types. Other cute cut offs I found online include Madewell’s cuffed Midi Shorts or Urban Outfitter’s Urban Renewal Shorts.

Neutral Sandals
I cannot stress how important it is to have a great pair of neutral sandals. Your wardrobe choices are exponentially multiplied when you’ve got a pair of shoes that go with almost everything in your closet. A few of my favorites are the sandals I designed for my LC Lauren Conrad line for Kohl’s, Tory Burch’s Emmy Flats, Topshop’s Hoopa Sandals, and Aldo’s Dauster Flats. And for those of you who plan on treading into the sand, I suggest keeping a pair of Havaianas Slim Flip Flops handy (I like the sand grey and light golden color combo).

Keeping reading . . .

Artwork Trend: Fashionable Footwear

Elka Karl — Wed, 18 May 2011 11:37:18 PDT

Last week, when I was poring over some of the lovely design photos from California-based designer Tamara Kaye-Honey, I paused in adoration when I spotted this powder room. My favorite element? It would have to be the charming high-heeled framed paintings that flank the venetian mirror over the sink. This is a powder room with a definite feminine sensibility, communicated in part by those fab paintings.

I've been spotting fashionable rooms adorned with paintings, prints, and other framed artwork featuring fab shoes for a good while now, and it makes sense: fashionable women love to decorate with sartorial objects, but often the real deal doesn't quite work. It's one thing to add a gorgeous dress on a velvet hanger to a wall of your bedroom, but most of us aren't going to display our favorite heels on a shelf in our living room. That means that artwork is the next best way to communicate our appreciation of fashionable objects while leaving said objects in the closet.

And lest you think I'm overstating this trend, yesterday I saw it again at the lovely Elle Decor Modern Life Concept House. I like how this incarnation of the trend features a his and her pair of shoe paintings - perfect for the cohabiting, fashion-obsessed couple.

Have you added any shoe-adorned artwork to your home?