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O...kay, Marc Jacobs?

Did anybody notice how his ads have a dude wearing two dresses?

Truly frightening. I mean, this is not a man who looks good in a dress (i.e., womanly)! The saddest thing about it is that his legs look just like a typical female model's, so if you put two and two together...

Ick.

No disrespect to Cole Mohr, though. I'm pretty sure if I were a male model and I got picked to be in a MJ ad, I'd do it, regardless of what I had to wear.

Prints are it!

Whenever my best friend and I go shopping, we laugh at what the other has picked up. Of course, we agree on a lot of things, but inevitably, she'll end up with a lot of solid colors while I've picked up every print I could find. I try to convince her to wear prints... and usually fail, but that hasn't stopped me from preaching the good word about patterns.

Here are a few pictures from style.com's Style Hunter feature on prints (including my favorite, PAISLEY!):

I love how even the floor is patterned (and matches)!



I never thought I'd say this, but I loooooooooooooooooove this outfit by Hermes. Even though the color palette is mostly brown, it isn't boring at all. The print on the bag, the dress, the beautiful leather goods... *sigh*.

Meme!! (from Jess)

What has been your biggest fashion indulgence?
I really don't splurge on any one thing. I love clothes in general, and I spend my money equally among everything... except shoes. I really need more of those!! I do have about 10-15 handbags though. Most of them were gifts, I swear!!

What is your signature scent?
Guerlain Mentafolia. Unfortunately, they don't make it anymore, so I rarely ever use it. It's a nice, clean minty scent... I have to find a replacement.

What was your biggest fashion mistake?
Hmm... wearing things that make me look fat. It happens occasionally, because I rarely try on clothes. I like my shopping trips to take as little time as possible, so I often buy what I think looks nice. I get it right about 90% of the time, but that other 10%... those clothes just stay in my closet until I find a flattering way to wear them.

What item(s) do you never travel without?
A good bra! Gotta hoist the girls up where they're supposed to be, yeah?

What was the last film you saw?
The Dark Knight. Honestly, I didn't like it as much as I thought I would...

What beauty products do you swear by?
Clinique High Impact Mascara, MAC eyeshadows, and L'Oreal blush. Aveeno Self-Foaming Pads are nice, but I think they are making me break out...

What is on your iPod?
A few soundtracks (Romeo + Juliet, Atonement, A Bronx Tale, 21), Dizzee Raaaaaaaascal!!, Girl Talk, Julie London, Lenine, Charles Aznavour, Steve Tyrell. I'm not even sure how those all fit together.

What was the last item of clothing you bought?
This suuuuuuper cute trapeze top from Target. I'm in love with it, for serious.

Where do you buy your lingerie?
The cheap but good stuff comes from aerie, but when I'm feeling slightly indulgent, I get Calvin Klein undies from Lord&Taylor's.

Which shop(s) couldn't you live without?
Uh, TARGET. I live for the Tarj. I can't live without Muji, but I'm forced to do so. I could make do with just those two stores. Oh wait... let's say Nine West for shoes.

Circular fashion: Alexander McQueen scarves

Apparently, those skull scarfs from a few years ago are tipped to come back in style. See, it's things like this that make me never throw clothes away. I only give away clothing and accessories that (a) don't fit anymore or (b) are UBER-trendy.

So dig out your McQueen scarves and wear them proudly!

Nine West sale

Ninewest.com's sale section has a few interesting selections for a good price. If you've never bought shoes by Nine West, I'll just say that my personal opinion is that they last for a really long time and are super comfortable. The only reason my last pair is ruined right now is because of the cobblestones on campus that ripped the leather. I'm sorry, but not much will stand up to stone, not even the best Italian leather! Check these out:

Hotpic, $29.99.

Heech, $69.99.

Sulliban, $69.99.

Zanja, $59.99.

Weave Away Large Bracelet, $39.99.

Pocket In Fold Over Tote, $49.99.

Crinkle Cotton Jacket, $90.30.

All photos from ninewest.com.

VPL Resort 2009




Simply Vera is...

Simply Beautiful.

As cheese-tastic as that was, I'm incredibly impressed with the quality of Vera Wang's line for Kohl's. It's infinitely cheaper than her usual wares, but the quality is impeccable, from the dresses down to the tights.

Honestly, go get some of her tights -- they're the best ones I own.

Here are some (well, really a
lot) of my picks.















The Simply Vera Vera Wang collection is at Kohl's.


All photos from kohls.com.

Style.com

I was reading the Shopping List on style.com and they had these Must-Buys for Fall but you couldn't really see all of the items together, so I made them on Polyvore.

These are my favorites:


The left side is supposed to be a Saint Tropez-inspired look; the right is casual Friday at the office. I might actually try this look on Friday!


The left is a first date look and the right is a look for the beach, perhaps at night.

Boots for Fall

July is almost over, which means there's only about 7 weeks left in summer. Start thinking about boots now, and by the time the leaves start to fall, you'll be ready!

Motorcycle boots will still be in style, as they always are. This pair by Miu Miu is pretty tough, but the best thing about it is that the harness is removable if you're in more of an equestrian mood.


These pair from Diesel have a nice detail, the asymmetrical zipper. Watch out for ankle boots though, they're hard to wear if you have a big calf or ankle.


Go a little lower with a shoe boot. I predict those will be big for fall, especially since they're a lot easier to work into your wardrobe than boots with higher shaft lengths. Here are a few from ninewest.com.









Just remember to wear tights with those open-toe shoes...frostbite is no joke!


Photo credits: Miu Miu boots, style.com; Diesel boots, asos.com; rest from ninewest.com.

Wardrobe Staples: A Neutral Bag

A reader of mine, Tina :), commented on the Basic Training post and mentioned that I forgot to include a very important piece of wardrobe: a neutral bag.

As you might have gathered, I like basics...but only when they're
different. Here are a few that cut the mustard.


Simply Vera Vera Wang Tuxedo Bag, $53.40. At Kohl's.



Tusk Oversized Ombre Patent Leather Clutch in Purple, $99.90. At Nordstrom.


B. Makowsky Soft Shoulder Tote in Olive, $209.90. At Nordstrom.

Photo credits: Vera Wang bag from kohls.com; Tusk and B. Makowsky bag from nordstrom.com.

8 Things Meme

Back when I had a LiveJournal, I used to do surveys and memes alllllllll the time. I still am obsessed with them, so I decided to do this one that I got this one from Coffee Over Conversation's archives.

Things I Am Passionate About:

1. The Human Body (I want to be a doctor, so...yeah.)
2. Online "window-shopping" (I can do this for HOURS!)
3. Target/Old Navy/H&M/Zara
4. Writing (blogs, poetry, prose, articles -- anything!)
5. Reading. Seriously, I can't live without reading for fun.
6. Clothes!
7. Good food.
8. Living well, in all senses of the word. That is my ultimate goal: to be healthy, successful, contented, and stable.

Things I Want To Do Before I Die:

1. Live in Western Europe for a few years.
2. Learn Spanish, Italian and Portuguese.
3. Marry (and have kids).
4. Be the head physician for a sports team.
5. Create at least one season's worth of clothing for my line.
6. Open a boutique.
7. Live with my best friend.
8. Learn to swim. (I used to be able to, but I almost drowned in swim class once. Since then, I panic way too much to swim. It doesn't help that I don't know how to tread water. I mean... I know what to do, but it doesn't really seem to work!)

Things I Say Often:

1. "Shut up"
2. "Seriously?"
3. "I got NO ends" (AKA, "I'm broke")
4. "wtf"
5. "He is so hot"
6. "That is so cool!"
7. "I need to buy that"
8. "I need to go for a walk"

Books I Have Read Lately: (I never have time to read...ever. If I do, it's usually assigned. Sad, I know.)

1. Purgatorio -- Dante
2. Every Boy Has One -- Meg Cabot
3. Boy Next Door -- Meg Cabot
4. Severance Package
5. Personal Days -- Ed Park
6. The Masque of the Black Tulip -- Lauren Wittig
7. The Secret History of the Pink Carnation -- Lauren Wittig
8. Magazines: Lucky, Glamour, Marie Claire

Songs I Could Listen To Over and Over:

1. "Everybody's Free (To Feel Good)" Quindon Tarver
2. "Take You Down" Chris Brown
3. "F--king Boyfriend" The Bird & The Bee
4. "I Only Have Eyes For You" The Flamingos & The Complexions
5. "Ca Vient De La Rue" IAM (looooooooooooooove them!!)
6. "Say It Once" Ultra
7. "I Need You" Jazmin Sullivan
8. "Crosses" Jose Gonzalez

Things That Attract Me To My Best Friends:

1. Countless inside jokes
2. We're always honest with each other
3. We can make fun of each other and no one gets upset
4. We all know exactly what we like
5. We always have a good time together
6. They always have awesome advice
7. They are nosy bastards when it comes to my love life, but deep down inside, I love the attention. (lol)
8. We neverrrrrrrrr fight!

What I Wore...oh, jeez.

I never do these kinds of posts, but since I already make the outfits on polyvore.com, why not share them with you?

In the future, I'll just take pictures of myself, but as of right now, I'm too shy. :-P




I wore the shorts during the day yesterday when I was just chillin' at home. I went to the movies with a friend that night, so I dressed up a little.

Envy, or Why I Don't Like Topshop (jk)

I usually don't ever look at the Topshop collections... at first it was because they didn't ship to the U.S. Now they do, but I still think that some of their clothing is too expensive for what it is. I did have a skirt from there (orange chiffon full skirt), but now I can't find it -- point is, I've only had one thing from there that I rarely wore, so I'm not too sure how the quality of the items is.

I decided today that I'd at least check out the merchandise, see how much it's changed.

Silk Color Block Dress $40


Oversized Blazer $60 (This is actually
exactly what I've been looking for. Damn you, Topshop!!)


High Waisted Paper Bag Short $30 (My new obsession is shorts with wide legs. When you stand still, they look like skirts. Oh, the deception!)


PLEASE don't buy this (unless if it's for a costume):


Basic training

Don't you love corny titles? Here are some basics that you should keep in mind when/if you're trying to build a foundation wardrobe. I used to think that basics should be bought just as cheaply as other, more trendy clothes, but I eventually realized that wardrobe staples are the very thing that you should splurge on. If you buy good quality clothing, you can keep them for a long time and wear them for a long time, reducing the cost-to-wear ratio (you've heard this before, right?). Enough chit-chat, on to the clothing.

Tops:
- A blouse in a color that truly suits you. Take your time and find the right one! For me, it's a hot pink short sleeved blouse that I bought at H&M. Before that, it was a royal blue sleeveless shell from the Gap. It can even be a white oxford -- just as long as when you put it on, you look fabulous.

- Thin long sleeve shirts for layering. C&C California have good examples, though they are a little expensive. However, when it comes to things like layering shirts, you may want to spend the extra cash. These types of shirts are made of thin material, and it'd be best to have a shirt that won't get ripped after a few washes; you probably shouldn't buy these types of tops from a store like Forever 21, unless if you plan on buying a lot of the same kind/color... in which case you'd probably be better off just spending the money for a better quality shirt!

Shoes:
- A pair of black flats: They go with pretty much everything, and hey -- if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

- Waterproof shoes. I'm not a fan of rainboots, but patent leather works just fine.

- Brown boots. Yeah, I know it's weird that I'm specifying a color, but think about it: brown boots go with pretty much everything. After all, brown is just another neutral, just like black and white.

- A simple pair of pumps. They just have to be appropriate for work or a formal occasion.

Pants:
- Dark wash jeans. Dark denim is practically a neutral.

- Formal pants. Everybody has a pair of black pants that they can just throw on, but let's buck the trend and pick a different color, please! (And keep the black pants as a last resort)

Did I forget anything?

Season to Season: What's in for Summer that You Can Keep For Fall

As fun as shopping is, we are living in a world that could use a little less consumerism. So why not save some cash, gas, and time by going through your summer wardrobe and seeing what you can keep for fall?

1.
Sunglasses

Shades are usually summer staples, but if you live in a windy area like Philadelphia, Chicago, or Washington, D.C., sunglasses can save you from watery eyes. Trade your super-bright Ray-Bans (fake or real) for darker frames. Classic shapes like cat-eye sunglasses are always in style, but try a shield shape for a bit of edge.



2.
Shorts

Of course, hot pants won't cut it when the temperature starts to drop, but longer shorts like walking shorts or city shorts will get you through at least the first month of fall. If you can't bear to part with your short shorts, wear tights (not pantyhose!) underneath, or if you're feeling more daring, knee- or thigh-high socks. Urban Outfitters has awesome long socks that are actually worth the price that they are.





3.
"Ethnic" looks

For summer, the safari/ethnic look is usually pretty literal and costume-y, but it's a look that is easily translatable to fall. Break up your vest and skirt combos, and keep your wooden and animal-inspired accessories.




4.
Lightweight cardigans

The usual cardigan is thick and heavy, but a light cardigan is an even better layering tool. Try a sheer one, or one with an interesting shape.




5.
Scarves

This one is a no-brainer -- everybody needs a scarf for warmth purposes. Instead of the usual thick scarf that goes with outerwear, try a thin, wispy one: tied in just the right way and paired with a few necklaces, it'll become the focus of your outfit while keeping you warm.