where troubles melt like lemon drops

Be prepared: the following outfit includes massive amounts of candy colors, metallics, and a general sense of girliness overload.

Urban Outfitters shirt and skirt; Banana Republic blouse; Report sandals; Betsey Johnson bracelet

Would You Dare to Wear: Dip-Dyed Hair?

I swear all of a sudden like a dozen girls have half-dyed hair -or, as I like to call it, dip-dyed hair, and I'm not sure how I feel about it. I think I like it on certain people, but it's definitely not working for the majority of girls at my school. Like, one girl has one little strand of hair dyed purple, and it just looks silly. Another girl has the bottom half of her hair dyed bright blue, but there's a really obvious line between her blue hair and her natural coloring.

Basically, the girls sporting this trend at my school aren't rocking it. But I do like the trend in these instances:

Maybe for a party I would put in a pink clip-in extention, but personally I would never dye my hair, especially in some weird neon color.

Would you?

Karma Chameleon

Dress by me! Anthropologie sweater; Coach sandals; vintage bracelet and necklace

Song of the Day!

I got my green for St. Patrick's Day! Someone told my my dress looked like a Lily Pulitzer dress and I guess that's a pretty good compliment. This is definitely one of my favorite dresses I've made in terms of construction. Also, in French (for some strange, obscure reason which has not yet been explained to me) I was voted as the girl with the most Rapunzel-like hair. I guess that's an accomplishment.

on the radio

Anthropologie dress; Gap shirt; Report sandals

This is perhaps my favorite dress ever. It has flowers, the corseted top makes my waist look like half as big, and the petticoat underneath gives it some extra poof. And of course you can wear it everywhere.

life is but a dream

One thing that I love about Prada is how it integrates art and fashion. Very few designers actually take their fashion to the artistic level that Prada does, and every season I look forward to Prada's Fantasy lookbooks. I really wish more people would do stuff like this. The end result is so cool.

Here are some of my favorite images:

(images from prada.com)

But it's an Alaia!

Ohmigod I watched Clueless yesterday and every time I watch that movie I fall a little bit more in love with it. Cher is the coolest girl ever, if not a bit ditzy, but she's still super smart in other ways! She's like a teenage Elle Woods. 

Plus, anyone who rocks plaid like that and respects her designer clothes is an idol in my book.

(images not mine)

tumblrweed

There are so many nifty pictures I want to share and so little time, so I joined tumblr! If you feel inclined to check it out, please do so!

The Most Wearable Collection of the Season

Surprisingly, one of my favorite collections emerged all the way at the beginning of Fashion Month, back in New York. Even more so, it was a brand new designer! Usually I favor the more whimsical collections, but something about the Kelly Wearstler presentation made me smile. There was a look for every occasion, perfect for some quirky twenty-something go-getter trying to tackle the big city. Streamlined enough to look professional and sophisticated, but with enough color and excitement to still appear fun and cool. This is what I want to be like when I'm, like, twenty-two.

(images from style.com)

I see a mansard roof through the trees

Dress by me! Steve Madden boots

I've been waiting for a sunny day to debut this new dress and today was that day! Oh, I love those odd days in March and April when it truly feels like summer...if only I wasn't stuck studying for AP tests and SATs(!!!) Anyways, introducing the Hawaiian Watercolor Shift Dress! As I told my friend, it's kind of like a mullet, because it's a shift in the front and fitted in the back!

I'm so bummed that fashion month is over. But I'll be posting a lot about the trends I noticed, my favorite collections, and definitely more outfits!

P.S. I've recently joined Weardrobe so check it out!

seeing spots

   
Apparently Cruella De Vil was quite the inspiration for designers this fall. Designers have given the middle finger to PETA and gone for lots of luxurious, glamorous fur, particularly white fur with black spots, just like a certain villainess preferred.

Alexander McQueen; Burberry; Giambattista Valli

But while most designers chose to stick with a more abstract interpretation, Jean-Charles de Castelbajac actually featured the dalmatians on his clothing! Way to take the emerging trend to a new level!

(images from style.com)

Hawaiian Rollercoaster Ride

Billabong top; Paige jeans; Roxy scarf; Report sandals

That scarf always reminds me of Hawaii and summertime. The colors are fantastic!

New shoes for spring! Yay! (btw, they are the comfiest shoes ever. I wore them all day today and not once did my feet hurt. This is huge coming from someone who has had surgery on her foot- I can't wear a lot of fancy shoes )

Springtime Magic

The March magazines have been rockin'! Here are some of my favorite images from various magazines lately.

Would You Dare to Wear: Corsets to School?

So one of my favorite movies this year was Easy A probably because is was basically one big homage to John Hughes, who is without a doubt the greatest director ever, and also because it shows teenager-dome for what it really is. The movie made Emma Stone one of my idols, too, because she is so darn funny and witty! Another reason why I love the movie: Penn Badgeley!!!

But if you haven't seen the movie, Emma Stone plays Olive, a Molly Ringwald-esque character who feels totally invisible to her peers until she promises her guy friend to help him prove that he's not gay (or at least stop the other guys at school from teasing him about it) and the only possible way to do that, of course, is to fake a tryst at some crazy house party.

Then of course the whole school knows about Olive and her scandalous Saturday night, and she instantly becomes the school tramp. Surprise! And like any high school movie, the book she's reading in English class, The Scarlet Letter, seems eerily similar to her real life traumas. She then decides 'If the school thinks I'm a slut, I shall be that slut' and buys a bunch of corsets and sews red 'A's to all of her clothes, just like Hester Prynne! Weird.

So anyways, I gave you that seemingly pointless summary to get to this point: Olive wears some pretty skanky stuff in her efforts to emulate her rep. Now, at my school, such clothing is banned, so even if I wanted to dress like Olive I couldn't, at least not on school property. But my question is, would you dare to wear the getups Olive dons just to show off your new reputation?

Isn't It Ironic

By now even my friends have heard all about the Galliano scandal, and of course, being right before Paris Fashion Week, the timing couldn't have been worse. I know I was nervous as to see how the show would shape out, if there would even be a show, if Galliano would be there, etc. And now that all is said and done, it almost makes me sad that I found this collection to be one of my favorite Dior shows in years.

As per usual, the collection showcased plenty of drama, but definitely a more feminine side of it. And oh, all those stunning details really make the difference. Thoughts on Galliano aside, you cannot deny that he is a fantastic designer, and it really is sad to hear that his personal stuff has gotten in the way. I think Jessica Stam (via twitter) said it best:

"I believe every human being on this earth was created equal. I also don't turn my back on my friends when they're in a dark place"

What he said is awful and hurtful and just sad, but he is also talented. Still, that doesn't excuse any of it.

But I digress. The real story is the clothes, and we shouldn't let all this scandal change our views of the show.

full skirts, both bold colors and pastel hues, a perfect balance of strong and feminine.
The shoes were fabulous, both the boots and sandals.
My favorite, of course, is the cream and blue cupcake-like dress. I plan on getting a vintage 50s dress for prom, but oh! this would make a fine backup choice!

And for the finale, I thought it marvelously fitting for Dior to have all the seamstresses and craftsmen walk out. In the end, they are the ones who made these fantastic clothes, and they deserve to be recognized.

What did you guys think about the Dior show? What do you think the future of Galliano and Dior will be?

Harujuku Girls

Ah, Paris Fashion Week, the grand finale of the shows. The big league of the fashion realm, PFW is not for lightweights. Paris houses both top designers and very cool, elaborate and experimental designers. Some names may be known to even my brother, and others only a very select elite have ever heard of. But oh, how I adore Paris Fashion Week. Most of my favorite collections definitely come out of the City of Light.

Manish Arora had his show today and I always look forward to his collections. Always so crazy and whimsical. And the fact that Nicki Minaj wears a lot of his stuff makes it even cooler. But as you know, I'm always a fan of the zany, so his fall collection certainly did not disappoint.

Some have already pointed out the Asian influences apparent in his fall collection, and the references are clear. At first it was very regal, very empirical, and then the Japanese harajuku street style girl/anime character seemed to take over(or maybe that was just because of those insanely colorful hair poofs).

 Empresses from the Ming and Qing Dynasties in China

Sailor Moon girls; Japanese street style

 What did you think about the Manish Arora show?

Something Good Can Work

J. Crew shirt

Gap sweater

Paige jeans

BC flipflops

Fiveloaves Twofish headband

we turn it up

Sweater, top, skirt, and shoes all from Anthropologie (no of course I don't shop there often)

vintage brooch

Grandma's pearls

What I wore on Monday. For as much Anthropologie as I have in my wardrobe (and in that picture) I really haven't gone there in a while. I haven't been shopping, really, in a while. I know, ridiculous. But I've been thinking about all the people doing the 30 for 30 challenge and while I don't think I could manage that, I have started to think about our roles as consumers and all that. Of course, for the fashion industry to thrive, there must be consumers, but there should be a balance. I'm trying to work with what I have, think about my clothes in new ways, and make more of my own clothing rather than buying it all. And when I do buy more things, I want to make sure they are worthwhile, not just trendy.