Sequins And Chiffon

I hope everyone is enjoying the weekend as much as I am. It feels like summer in southern California (I promise I'm not trying to make anyone jealous), and I just finished an exhilarating 12-mile bike ride. Since I'm currently enamored with American Apparel, I'm about to hunt down a figure skater dress and some leggings or poly blend tees, but before I do that I wanted to post photos of last

Trend On The Rise - Peplum Dresses

The free dictionary defines a peplum as "a short overskirt or ruffle attached at the waistline of a jacket, blouse, or dress." Admittedly, I'm wary of any such design detail on a garment that adds volume in the waist area. During my time spent shopping in Europe this past October, I observed an abundance of skirts and dresses with this sort of peplum styling. For the most part, the trend hasn't

Hotel Motel

When Forever 21 sent me a small package yesterday, I became the proud new owner of a fringed vest. Inspired by the "Outlaw Country" editorial in the February issue of Elle, I couldn't wait to wear it with layered necklaces and bleached denim for a fun take on the Western trend. Even better, I finally got to shoot in front of an abandoned motel, complete with boarded-up windows, chipped paint, and

10 Miles

On my frequent bike rides I pass through the most beautiful, serene landscapes. I'm surrounded by quiet farmland, rolling hills, chirping birds, and the occasional cow or horse calmly grazing on hay or grass. As I'm cycling, the cool breeze blows in my face, invigorating me and awakening me to the beauty of my surroundings. Although it's occurred to me that the bucolic scenery would make a

Glamour's Tough Chic

This morning I was excited and surprised to see that I'd been chosen as a Best Dressed Reader on glamour.com. Many thanks to Tracey for giving me this honor!

Perfect Outfit For A...

For you office slaves, weekends may be reserved for more relaxed, less professional looks like the one above. As a former 8 to 5 slave myself, I often found office dress codes to be stifling and restricting. But after a while I played by the rules and tried to have fun with the dress code by wearing preppy sweater vests, blazers, wide-leg trousers, and many a button-down shirt. When the weekends

ChiChi And The Sidewalk

Ventura area shopaholics, take note. Nichole from ChiChi Angels in downtown Ventura emailed me to let me know about the Winter Sidewalk sale that's taking place this Saturday, Janurary 24th from 11am to 4pm. With Valentine's Day and warmer spring temperatures right around the corner, it's more than enough reason to check out the promotions from Ventura's cute boutiques and grab some fresh new

Trend On The Rise - Wild Wild West

In the fifth grade, I reluctantly played a small part in a Western play that my class was producing. Even at the tender age of ten, I clearly recall caring more about my costume than remembering my lines. So it's no surprise that I chose fashion over acting as an adult. With Native American and Western-inspired details playing an important role in spring '09 trends, now I can dress like a cowgirl

Chanel Iman Covers Page Six

In this week’s Page Six Magazine – Named after legendary designer Coco Chanel, this hot young model is now blazing her own trail in the fashion world. Meet Chanel Iman, protégée of Tyra Banks and favorite of Galliano and McQueen, who is determined to shake things up with her vibrant personality, cheeky tattoos and modern attitude toward race. Here's some excerpts from her interview and below is some behind-the-scenes footage of her cover photo shoot...

On rumors she has been involved with Kanye West, rapper Tyga, and singer-producer Ryan Leslie: “I’m young and I’m dating. But I’m not gonna say any names. There are special people in my life but nothing serious. Just having a man in general is a job! I have one job; I can’t have a second. I’m the type of girl that if I have a man, I want to be a good girl-friend and be there for them and take care of them.”

On her close relationship with Tyra Banks: “She keeps it real. She tells it like it is. She’s really been a great mentor for me.”

On the rigors of working New York Fashion Week: “Honestly, I try to forget Fashion Week once it’s over. I just want to go home and rest and just forget I even did it. It could drive you crazy! It’s just show after show after show, and you’re missing your family and they feel really far away. You don’t go to sleep. You work for a month. You spend all this time trying on clothes… what drives me the most crazy is people touching me all the time. That does get weird.”

On how she ended up naming her Maltese “Louis Dior”: “I really loved working with [Dior designer] John Galliano—he’s so amazing. He actually let me name my dog Dior. I asked him! Right after I bought my puppy, I flew to Paris and John was the first designer that I saw. So I was like, ‘Hey, I don’t have a name for my puppy, so is it OK, John, if I name him Dior?’ He said, ‘It would be my honor.’ So I took a picture of me and my dog and sent it to him. He loved it.”

On her frustrations at the difficulties that models of color face in the industry: “It’s not just black girls. It’s ethnic girls in general: Brazilian girls, Hispanic. You really don’t see a lot of Asians either. A lot of designers think that if every girl on the runway looks exactly alike, then people will come to the shows and buy the clothes because they won’t be focusing on the models….It’s not even just runway either... us ethnic girls should be getting a lot of the covers too! I would love to be on half of the campaigns these [white] girls are booking, all looking exactly alike. It’s not right. It’s not fair.”

Navigating The Cheap Chic Landscape

As a veteran shopper of fast fashion chains such as Forever 21 and H&M, I've learned over the years how to pick pieces that look more chic than cheap. My aversion to polyester certainly doesn't hurt, either. (I have sensitive skin and tend to favor natural, breathable fabrics such as cotton.) I thought I'd share some of my suggestions on how to make your inexpensive purchases look more like the

What To Expect Next Season - Spring 2009 Fashion Trends

Barracuda Film & TV, a Swedish production company, was kind enough to email me this informative video which explores upcoming fashion trends for spring/summer 2009. It includes behind-the-scenes footage of an H&M photoshoot as well as interviews with Ann-Sofie Johansson (the head of design at H&M), Scott Schuman (the Sart), Camilla Morton (journalist for Harper's Bazaar and Vogue.com), Robert

Cycle Chic

Ever since my visit to Copenhagen in October, I've seen bikes in a different light. While Americans tend to use bikes for exercise or for pleasure, the residents of Copenhagen use them as a necessity and as their main source of transportation. It's just too expensive for many of them to own cars. Imagine having to cycle as your main method to get around town. From age 7 until I got my license at

Victorian Inspiration

I'm currently fascinated by Victorian residential architecture. The intricate woodwork, charming porches, and custom details never cease to delight me. Not to mention that Victorian dwellings make ideal, picturesque backdrops for impromptu photoshoots. Fortunately, there's an abundance of them near me which provide inspiration amongst a sea of lackluster mid-century houses. Sometimes when it

Hello, Beautiful Stranger!

I was thrilled to see this feature of an outfit I wore recently on beautifulstranger.tv this afternoon. With the exception of my new camera being a Canon EOS Rebel XS (not a Nikon), they described me perfectly. I'm honored and excited to be included in their Style Snaps feature. For you street style addicts out there, the Beautiful Stranger website includes endless street style photos and videos

Trend On The Rise - Hippie Chic

Today's warm, dry weather in southern California couldn't have come at a better time. I've been in the mood to wear warm weather-appropriate florals this week, and I also received the dELiA*s and Alloy spring catalogs today. If the catalogs are any indication of upcoming spring/summer '09 fashion trends to look forward to, then expect to see the following:paisley print blousessheer fabricsfringed

101 Ideas In The English Countryside

Admittedly, I stopped reading Marie Claire over ten years ago, when I got tired of their human interest stories and longed for more fashion editorials. My favorite part of the magazine, however, was their 101 Ideas feature, which usually focused on a color theme and was organized like a page out of a mail order catalog - lots of images and none of that high fashion hair and makeup.Nowadays, I

The Private Label 5 Countdown

Target's latest in-house line for its GO International program has got me counting down the days until its release on February 1st. This is the fifth collection for Target's Private Label, and in my opinion, has the best styling of any of their previous Private Label lookbooks. Upon first viewing it on Nitro:licious, I was pleased to see the collection styled with on-trend items such as studded

Keep it Under Wraps!

Meagan Good leaving Good Morning New York earlier this week.

Left to right: Black Fishbone Jumper by Manoush, $155.25, www.my-wardrobe.com; Charlene Sweater Coat, $59.50, www.delias.com; Shawl Collar Cardigans, $35, www.oldnavy.com; Lofty Knit Wrap, $129.99, www.frenchconnection.com

Left to right: Cable shrug cardigan by Vince, $295, www.net-a-porter.com; Knitted Chunky Jumper, $40, www.topshop.com; Mindi Hooded Sweater Cardigan, $27.80, www.forever21.com; Knitted Poncho, $90, www.topshop.com

Winter can be oh so depressing but a cute chunky knit can put a skip in your step. If you don't believe me check out Meagan Good above, her sweater dress has put some zing in her stride. Take a cue from her and find a stylish knit to cover up in this season. French Connection's web site has some really cute selections.

InVESTed

Looking through my closet today, I realized just how many vests I have - too many. A few months ago I drew inspiration from the luxe bohemian fall '08 collections of Gucci and Anna Sui, and I went on a vest buying spree. Cropped vests, faux fur-trimmed vests, Mongolian faux fur vests, looped vests, embroidered vests - I have just about every style imaginable. I'll be the first to admit that I

Getting the Hang of AV Mode

I'm finally taking advantage of my new camera's more advanced functions, such as AV mode, where it's possible to change the f value in order to blur out the background for a photographic effect which always intrigues me. Today my statement accessories called for a toned-down, minimalist look - something that actually required some effort for me. You see, when it comes to getting dressed, I adore

Do's and Don'ts of Cleaning Your Closet

Since the beginning of the new year, I've been meaning to clean out my closets to purge all of the things that I don't use in order to create more space for the things I love. Staying organized happens to be something I take great pride in, and my closet cleaning ritual, which helps me keep my closet contents fresh and orderly, typically takes place at least twice per year. For those of you who

The Buzz Surrounding Blue Bee

Santa Barbara area shoppers, take note! It's that time of the year again, when one of my favorite local chain of boutiques, Blue Bee, hosts their huge end of season sale. Didn't get what you wanted for the holidays? Are you on a budget? Well, I've got great news. Everything in all their stores will be on sale. Giuseppe Zanotti footwear? Check. Marc Jacobs bags? Check. Rich & Skinny jeans?

Shopping The Spring '09 Trends

With 2009 in full swing and the fall '09 shows right around the corner, it's time to start thinking about spring '09 trends. Some key trends to be on the lookout for include: butterfly prints, jumpers/rompers/playsuits (or whatever you want to call them), sheer fabrics, geometric prints, tie-dye, relaxed tailoring, vibrant florals, and fringe. To get in the mood for spring shopping, I've picked

Layered Legwear At Forever 21

Forever 21's window displays aren't what I'd describe as jaw dropping, but on occasion they do catch my eye and make me pause to appreciate them. For example, last night, after leaving one of their stores, I observed a unifying theme in their windows - layered and patterned legwear. Glittery knit leggings, socks layered over tights, tights layered under leggings, and various prints from floral

The Invisible Belt

If you've ever worn jeans with a fitted top, then you've inevitably had this problem. You put your belt on and pull your top over the waistband of your jeans and ugh, there's an unsightly bulge from your thick belt and its buckle. So what's the solution? Well, that's where Invisibelt comes to the rescue. It's a completely flat, adjustable belt without all the bulk and bulge. So simple and sleek,