Soles of Summer

According to the calendar, the first official day of summer is June 21. According to the weather here in Florida, the first day of summer was sometime back in March. Either way, I love to usher in the coming season with some new shoes, not that I really ever need an excuse to buy new shoes. Here are four on-trend styles, some more aspirational than others, that will be coming soon to a closet near me:

White pumps:


Celebrities in white pumps via People StyleWatch

Hooray for the return of the single sole pump! I don't know about you, but I'm tiring quickly of the big, chunky platforms that seem to be everywhere. There's nothing more simple, yet sophisticated than a pointy-toed stiletto pump. White is fresh for summer and I'm not waiting until after Labor Day to rock them.



Christian Louboutin, $725





KamaliKulture, $99



Guess, $69.99

  Clear touches:

Via Firstclassfashionista.com

PVC/Lucite touches on shoes and other accessories were all over the runways for spring. As someone who often does my own pedicure, I think I'll go to the salon and get my callused heels and bunions professionally filed away before I slip into these.


Nicholas Kirkwood, $358




Jeffrey Campbell, $189.95




Naughty Monkey, $26.99

 Gladiators:

Via Fashionista.com

It was only two or three summers ago that I was wearing my ankle-high gladiator sandals with everything. I'm really enjoying this season's bolder, knee-high take on the gladiator. Some love the trend and others abhor it, but I'm firmly in the "must-have" camp.

Stuart Weitzman, $398

Ecote, $49

Ebay, $33.70

Stylish Sneakers:

Joan Smalls in Isabel Marant sneakers

Joan Smalls can make anything look good, but the wedge sneaker trend needs to be set aboard a raft, lit on fire and sent out to sea. Unless of course you've already spent $600-700 on your Marants, in which case, rock on. I, unfortunately, have literally worn my several-years old pink and black Converse down to the ground, so I need a cute pair of sneakers stat!

Lanvin, $407

Adidas x Jeremy Scott, $119.95



Converse, $69.95



Happy shoe shopping!

Creative Slumps (And how the Met Gala revived me)

So over the past week I’ve been in a bit of a creative slump. I haven’t been on any blogs and the thought of fashion in general just made me feel rather lackadaisical. I couldn't say what brought about that feeling, but alas there I was--fashion blogger with no interest in fashion.



How apropos.

Then on Tuesday night all the stars aligned, literally and figuratively, in the cosmos to reignite my fervor for fashion, and on the red carpet for the annual “Oscars of Fashion,” otherwise known as the Met Gala. This year’s theme was Punk: Chaos to Couture and that made for a very, shall we say, interesting red carpet. Some adhered closely to the theme, while others came dressed for prom or their wedding. Theme aside, I’m always here for capital F--Fashion! These celebrities are dressing up, but now I’m about to dress ‘em down. The following is my brief commentary and allow me to emphasize it's MY personal opinion:

Shoutout!

A few weeks I submitted some pictures from my post on stripes to one of my favorite blogs, The Fashion Bomb Daily, for their ongoing series showcasing how people are styling themselves in this season's popular trends. I can ecstatically report that my pictures were chosen so go check it out here: http://fashionbombdaily.com/2013/04/30/how-do-you-wear-it-spring-2013s-stripes-trend/!!

Thanks a million Claire!

Jumpin' Jumpin'

 I know y'all remember that song! Writings on the Wall was my album back in the (angst-filled teen) day.

 And speaking of throwbacks, there's no better piece suited to spring/summer than a jumpsuit. Which if you think about it, is the grown-up version of a onesie. I came into this world and was immediately swaddled in a onesie and 20-odd years later I'm back in one. The circle of life.

Sad Saks



Via Tampabay.com

And now for a bit of unfortunate local news, the Saks Fifth Avenue at Westshore Mall will be closing on May 4. It gets worse: it will be replaced by a Dick's Sporting Goods store. It gets even worse: there will be NO 'everything must go' sale because it's closing so soon. -__-

Get your overpriced, designer duds while you still can! (Or go down the street to International Mall)

St. Pete Street Style Stalking Saturday

I could have kept going with the letter ‘S’; I love alliteration, what can I say? This past Saturday, my cousin and I decided to mosey on over to downtown St. Pete and we ultimately settled at Acropolis for some strawberry-melon hookah.  What started out as two cousins simply enjoying a beautiful afternoon together ended up in some serious style stalking. Who knew the denizens of St. Pete were so sartorially inspiring?

When Emelle and her beau Jeff passed by our table I jumped out of my seat and immediately stopped them. Once they got over their initial surprise (and fear, most likely), they were more than happy to let me snap some pics of their totally coordinating, bohemian vintage style.

Pile on the turqouise! Great minds think alike.

We continued puffing away on the hookah pipe, when I had to jump up yet again to accost approach the ladies at the neighboring table. These girls were equally fabulous, yet fashionable in a totally different way and I couldn’t resist capturing their impeccably put together, designer-peppered looks.

Kate Spade, scalloped hem, pretty blue pendant? Yes, please!

Courrtney (above) and Lindsay (below) were great sports and I definitely want to be their new shopping buddy.

Right on trend in Tory Burch flats, fringed bag and tie-dyed top

Of course I can't leave out my cousin's fabulous ensemble (nor my own!) Miss Jessica was serving print-on-print fabulousness with her floral denim top and floral skinnies. Work!

I went athletic inspired again with a raffia baseball cap, denim bermudas and my new favorite silver pumps.

I'm thinking about making this a regular feature of the blog, but not before getting a real camera. Sorry for the iPhone pics, but when fashion calls you have to make do!



STUNT QUEENS!

By now these images, from Vogue Netherlands’ so-called homage to Marc Jacobs' past work for Louis Vuitton, have been passed around, dissected and torn apart by every blog worth its salt. I almost didn’t even want to comment, but ultimately felt I’d be remiss not to. In my opinion, the staff of Vogue Netherlands are some certified stunt queens and I might as well give them the attention they’re so obviously craving. I mean, who even knew Vogue had a Netherlands edition? Don’t worry, I’ll wait…

This is the only scenario that makes sense to me because given the recent spate of blackface in fashion and the consequent incensed reactions by, well, everyone with some damn sense, it is completely inconceivable that their editorial staff is ignorant to the complete impropriety and racism inherent in a spread like this. Right? Right?!

I was pondering this for a while and one of my initial thoughts was that the model, Querelle Jansen, isn’t necessarily accountable because she was probably just there to shoot and collect a check. But then I realized, as she was sitting in the makeup chair getting her face painted CHARCOAL BLACK and getting a “textured” wig slapped on her head (nice touch Vogue), she could have seen how wrong this was, had some integrity, and refused to do the shoot. On the other hand, I’m absolutely certain there would have been another model waiting in the wings to take her place.

Ultimately, Vogue Netherlands got the attention they wanted and they may issue some half-hearted non-apology (i.e. We’re sorry if you're offended), but when is the fashion industry going to wake up and get the message? This is legitimately wrong, and worse still it doesn’t even look good (she looks crazy!) Jacobs was apparently inspired by Josephine Baker and Grace Jones, so I can't help but think how lovely Joan Smalls or Jourdan Dunn, for example, would have looked in this editorial (with the help of some better styling too...*side-eye*). If you're listening Vogue Netherlands, which I'm sure you are, I suggest you close up shop for a while and ship the whole staff over to Italy to do an internship over at Vogue Italia because they always get it right.

Anna Wintour, come get your people.

The Sweet Escape (Or let's talk about stripes)



The resemblance is uncanny.

It's not well documented, but it's about to be: I'm obsessed with stripes. I know I'm supposed to be articulate given that I'm writing a blog, but I can't quite describe why I'm such a fanatic. Some time ago I did an appraisal of my closet and realized that every other item was a stripe of some sort. Ok, so point is that I find myself in luck everytime 'spring' rolls around because let's face it: it's always one of the big trends. Case in point:

(L to R): Dolce & Gabbana, Prada, Moschino

Shoutout!



Fashionista.com

Word UP to one of my fave blogs, Fashionista, for featuring my comment on their "March Madness" story (Under Team Prada, by KV Morency). It's just a comment, but still...so exciting! It just goes to show because Prada won. #TEAMPRADA

Socks & Heels

On the opening day for the Rays I took a little trip a few blocks from my place to get something to eat. I love my gray socks. I wear them with everything and most times that makes me look like an old lady, but I think they're quite chic and unexpected with a pair of heels and denim cutoffs (that I fashioned myself from a pair of jeans). 

A Gregor Samsa Moment



Jun Takahashi for Uniqlo

Does Uniqlo's A/W '13 ad campaign evoke Kafka's Metamorphosis to anyone else? I'd always known Uniqlo as a Japanese fast-fashion chain along the lines of H&M, but I'd never really paid them much attention. Enraptured as I am with these stunning images and given that they (finally) launched their online store back in Fall 2012, I think I'm going to start paying a lot more attention (and dollars).

Super Kawaii (Or Trends from Tokyo)

Much like those who read the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today, etc., with their morning coffee, every day I peruse my favorite fashion blogs and websites whilst sipping on the dregs of the office coffee pot (see Reading Material to your right). The other day I was excited to see new street style pics from Tokyo at WWD. When I truly want to be inspired, I love looking at photos of the avant-garde fashion of the Japanese style set. I never fail to see many an ensemble that is overthetop.com, but you can find something wearable and unique in even the most outlandish of getups. Here are some styling tricks I will soon be incorporating (or have already incorporated) into my repertoire. Note: many of these looks include more than one trend. 

Headgear


Photo by Giovanni Gianonni, Onnie Koski via WWD



Giovanni Gianonni, Onnie Koski & Yukie Miyazaki
 WWD

These simple little headwraps are handy on a bad hair day and add a clever touch to an otherwise ordinary oufit (though the outfits on the ladies above are anything but).

Prints on Parade (Happy belated Easter!)

On Easter Sunday I awoke at an ungodly (um...or godly?) hour to attend church with my family. Every recollection I have of Easter fashions from my childhood revolves around bright, printed dresses, specifically florals. I saw no reason to venture from that path so I opted for a floral printed top and coordinating bottoms. I was rushed out the door and knew I'd be on my feet all day so I slipped into some simple pointy-toed flats (they have cool, studded detailing on the back but you can't see that). Responses to my outfit varied from pointed side-eyes to a "You're brave" to straight up "What the hell?" (a few of those actually). I took that to mean I did my job right. I never want to blend in to the crowd if I can help it. Love it, hate it, but please don't be indifferent.



Top, pants and bag: H&M; Sunglasses: Wet Seal; Watch: Marc by Marc Jacobs
Bracelet: The Trunk Shop; Shoes: Target; Lips: Maybelline Fifth Ave Fuschia; Nails: Forever 21 Imperial Blue



Sweat. Suit.



*Tear* That's beautiful.

As much as I love fashion, I also value comfort immensely. Moreover, I really like the aesthetics of mixing unexpected pieces in one outfit. I’d been searching for a pair of “fashionable” sweatpants if you will, for some time now when I finally came upon this gray pair crammed on a sale rack at Target. They’re size XL, but I had to try them on regardless because I loved the pop of neon orange in the drawstring and the tapered legs. Plus they looked so comfortable (and they are).

Birthday Blues (Or Happy Birthday Kennedy!)



Halter: Milano via TJ Maxx; Shorts: Forever 21; Nude flat sandals: Mossimo via Target;
Watch: Marc by Marc Jacobs; All bangles: Forever 21

 Not only was  Saturday a gorgeous day weather-wise, it was also the day the family all got together for my beautiful niece Kennedy’s first birthday party. Ok, she’s technically my first cousin once removed, but ain’t nobody got time to write all that. I had originally planned to wear jeans, but it was far warmer than I’d expected so I opted for these adorable blue printed shorts which I got for a literal penny the other weekend. I love mixing prints so I decided to pair them with this halter top and added some bangles of varying sizes.

Please ignore the serial killer smile. Thank you.



The intersection of art and fashion

When I finally got the opportunity to visit the famed new Dalí museum, a few things jumped out to me. First, who knew Dalí was so prolific? There were only two wings, but I could have easily spent all day browsing around. Second, I piggybacked on a tour session and the tour guide mentioned that Dalí had never taken any drugs (side-eye). Third, and most significantly as a lover of fashion, I passed the painting, Three young Surrealist women holding in their arms the skins of an orchestra, and I did a double take because their floral-ensconced heads were so reminiscent of something. After several minutes zoning out in front of the painting (to the chagrin of other patrons) I finally recalled Lady G in her insanely fabulous floral, Philip Treacy headdress. 

Britney x Justin (Or all denim everything)

Any sentient human being will see the title and know immediately to whom and to what I refer. How could one forget the red carpet of the 2001 American Music Awards when Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake arrived in all their denim glory? Ok, ok, you probably tried to block it out of your memory, but I’ve never forgotten it. In homage to that epic (and one could say disastrous) fashion moment, I opted for an all denim look for my day of museum hopping downtown on Sunday. It was also a middle finger to all those obnoxious “fashion rules” to which I was once slavishly beholden. You know, “no denim on denim,” “no black with blue or brown,” so on and so forth. This look can skew a bit Western, so I tried to pare that down with red lips, a bright cross-body bag and a statement necklace.