Saturday, December 15, 2007

The Thing about Louboutins

Out of all the super designer footwear brands out there like Manolos and Jimmy Choos, my favourite is Christian Louboutins. I really want to be able to say that I love them all, but I've been to the stores and tried them on and to be honest, I've never really seen anything at the Jimmy Choo store that I really wanted to try on. As for Manolos, physically the designs don't look too special either. I heard it was the angle of the arch that is crazy comfortable, but I don't quite need that at this point in my life yet when there are so many decently comfortable black pumps out there still i.e. Fiona by Cole Haan. So yes, Manolos and Jimmy Choos are like wine- an acquired taste developed over time. For me, the charm for Louboutins are just more obvious. Their designs are just more elegant and me. For their classic pumps, I like how the pointy toes are just so and is not severely pointy like the Manolo ones nor too blunt or god forbed- squared!

Their non-classic designs also just seem more youthful and fun.
They also do a very nice slightly pointy yet well rounded toe. And isn't the whole silohuette just so gorgeous? And of course, there is also the signature red sole, which is just sooo cute! Although it makes me wonder, what happens when one walks on it for a while and the red sole is no longer red? Isn't it so sad to ruin something so pretty? I mean I know I shouldn't care too much, but personally I get upset when there is so much as a scratch on my new shoe (hence I am also the type who wants to "save" things for special days, but I am gradually learning the error of my ways in tha respect). How does everyone else deal? Or do Louboutin girls just don't care?
Image Source: Net a Porter

Friday, December 14, 2007

I Dream of a Lifestyle Involving Many Cocktail Dresses V: Coloured Tights

One positive thing about spending the holidays back in Hong Kong is the temperature -it's cool enough to wear a cute jacket but warm enough to wear skirts and dresses without freezing ones legs. In the past, tights used to mean that it was so cold I had to wear them with my school skirt. But this year, for the first time, I'm actually considering wearing black tights as part of a casual outfit. (OK, so everyone does this, but it's new to me.) I'm imagining outfits with short cotton dresses or very long tees with black leggings -kind of Olsen-esque.

Another tights-related style I'm thinking about are coloured tights. Now I've never been an adventurous dresser, so I'm certainly not thinking of wearing colourful tights with crazy coloured shorts and tees, (80's style.) I'm thinking more of the girly, simple way like the images (above and below). I think the key to this look is really to keep the outfit simple. Basically, keep everything else but the tights black or neutral-coloured.


To be honest, wearing colourful tights seem like a lot of effort to me. I mean, do you know how many colours and degrees of sheerness of tights there are out there? What is the difference between '50 den' and '80 den' tights? What does 'den' mean anyways? Just the thought of buying a pair of coloured tights is enough to keep me away. But the argument of you're-only-young-once, and you can't exactly wear coloured tights when you pass a certain age is making me consider having some fun with this trend.


Are you wearing coloured tights this season? If so, how are you wearing them?


Image credit: www.urbanoutfitters.co.uk, www.fcukmail.com, www.topshop.com

Thursday, December 13, 2007

Tiffany Rings

I have a thing for rings. Besides my silver hoop earrings, I think that my next best jewelry investment is my 1837 Tiffany ring. I've had it for around 3 years now and I wear it everyday. It is one of those pretty accessories that matches anything and is perfect for all occasions. It is simple, clean cut and not too overtly Tiffany's (unless you look at it this closely). I love it so much, I even paid $10 to get it cleaned at Tiffany's once. Unfortunately for me even after the cleaning it didn't look like new. I guess all that banging and clanging from daily wear has finally taken its toll.


So just as a fun exercise, I thought I'd look at more rings from Tiffany. They DO make great presents after all *hint hint*. For a more elegant and delicate design, I am loving these two (left: open heart, right: closed heart). Though as girly a girl as I am, even I find the heart a little bit too girly for daily use (hmm maybe unless it meant something....). The closed heart is more versatile since it really looks more like a oddly shaped bean than a heart.
Even simpler, there is the Cushion (left) and the Torque (right). There is no question the versatility here. The Cushion is a little TOO simple for me (if I'm going to spend that kind of money, I'd like something with a bit more design and effort). I love the twisted design of the Torque, though I do wonder about how comfortable it is with all the odd angles.
I think out of all of them, these two strike the best balance between versatility and design (left: Somerset, right: Knots). It is simple yet unique. Though personally, I think the Somerset is a bit too bulky for my fingers. I much prefer the Knot, with its feminine yet simple design.

So yes, these are my just some of thoughts on Tiffany's silver rings. And the best thing about these choices in my opinion is that they are not the typical Tiffany designs. We have enough of those floating around as it is.


Image Source: Tiffany

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

FW07: Waistcoats

So waistcoats/vests have been around for a while, but it must be one of those things that grows on you because now that I've seen so many people on the streets and on tv wear it, I really want one!
Luckily for me, judging from the Phillip Lim 3.1 (left) and Alice + Olivia (rght) catwalk above, the waistcoat trend is still here with us this season.
So I started out looking for one and almost bought this very classic tweedish one (right) from Urban Outfitters the other day. As far as waistcoasts go, this would match with a lot of outfits and the fit was pretty decent. I think the back is also a black satinish material, which I thought was interesting. Only downside was that the tweed material was really rough and since this waistcoast was not on sale, I didn't think it was worth the $42. They need to consider repricing UO...... On the other side of the Atlantic, we have this other classic waistcoat (left) from Top Shop.
Another very classic option for waistcoats are pinstriples (they are a derivative of suits/tux after all). I like these two from Alice + Olivia (left) and Top Shop (right). Though the Alice + Olivia one while more fitted looking (since the model is wearing it) might have a bit too much detail (pockets and collar) for me. I think I prefer something cleaner, since for me, a waistcoat IS a detail and it IS already striped....
Something more interesting, we have these two from Top Shop. Not too sure how flattering the blue one would be (left) but I LOVE the military inspired one (right).
Something more party-ish, we have these colorful shiny options from UO (left) and Vena Cava (right)- a great way to add some character to your party outfit. Though I think for satin, the cutting is very important and you can already see thee poor cutting from the picture here for UO (I do like the color though)- so be careful!

Monday, December 10, 2007

I Dream of a Lifestyle Involving Many Cocktail Dresses IV: 20's Style Bags

UK's high street stores have been pushing and selling a lot of 20's style this party season. Now for those living in the States, where retailers tend to sell clean-cut clothes, you might not really know how a modern 20's dress looks like.

Remember the dress Kate Moss wore to Fashion Rocks this year? Think of a short, non-volume mini-dress; think beads and drop-waist. The two featured above are the examples I like (from Kate Moss Top Shop and Oasis).

So along with these dresses, high street shops are selling 20's style bags. While these bags don't seem very modern, in my imagination of a fancy world, I imagine one could carry these in a very glamorous, stylish way. Think Mary-Kate Olsen. (Oh btw, I'm not an expert on fashion, so excuse me if I say or feature items from the wrong decades.)

One of the main features of 20's style bags are frame bags. The first one that caught my eye is this golden, embroidered one from the Kate Moss Top Shop collection. It's more casual than the other ones and so pretty. Plus, doesn't it look like I had to go through vintage stores to dig it up (minus the effort)?

Another feature of 20's style bags are beaded bags. One that caught my eye is this black beaded one, also from Kate Moss Top Shop. It's simple but with just enough pattern detail.

Warehouse has one which is a bit more fancy -lots of gems. Not really my style though.

Oasis also has a range of beaded bags. My friend just bought the one on the left in black. One good thing about these bags is that if matched right, they can be carried in 'usual' functions like to cocktails and even clubbing, or to more dresses-up functions, like weddings and dances.

Even though it's kind of plain, I would like to see this bronze pouch in real life. If it's big enough to be somewhat practical (although I suspect it's not), at 18 pounds, I might just buy it.

If these aren't fancy enough for you, how about this box-bag from Top Shop?

French Connection has this very interesting bottle-bag. The design is pretty unique, isn't it? (Plus, the photo of the model holding it shows that you can match these 20's bags with your very contemporary dresses.)

And if you're really into the whole dressing up thing, this feather hairband from Accessorize is a fantastic accessory to add onto your outfit. It's easy to wear and adds just the right amount of dressiness. Just make sure you don't put too many things together and wear the accessories to stuiable events.

Do you like this whole 20's style party clothes revival by the UK high street?

Image credits: www.oasis-store.com, www.topshop.com, www.asos.com, www.accessorize.com

Saturday, December 8, 2007

Hayden Panettiere for Dooney & Bourke

I have been wanting to rant about how ugly I think Dooney & Bourke bags are for almost as long as we've been blogging, but never got around to doing it. I've only ever seen Dooney bags sold in the States before, so I don't know where else they sell these bags (-shows how much I'm not bothered with this brand.)

The first time I was introduced to Dooney bags was from Mischa Barton's ads in Teen Vogue of the 'IT' bag series. It were these ads that made me think that a lot of the Dooney & Bourke designs look similar to Vuitton bags, especially the monogram designs, and they're certainly not cheap. And doesn't Mischa look like she's a showgirl at some mobile phone convention?

Next came the Lindsay Lohan ones. (Actually, were the Mischa ones first or the Lindsay ones? Whatever.) The bags Lindsay held looked like a small girl's art work put onto an adult-shaped bag. Not good.

Then came Emma Roberts' ads. Even though I'm indifferent to Emma Roberts, I have to say that if I were fifteen, I would consider the red, bean-shaped bag on the right. But I'm not so sure about the bees on the bag on the left.

And finally, this season Dooney has Hayden Pannettiere helping design and advertise its Hayden bag. It seems like Dooney has finally managed to select great images for the ad -Hayden fits well with the bag and the whole image suits a much larger age range. As for the bag, I actually like the bag! The bag looks modern and trendy, thanks to the design itself and patent leather. It looks big enough to fit books and such, thus practical, and the shoulder straps' length look just right. The only ugly thing that sticks out is the 'HP' tag, but that should be removeable.

And look, Hayden has such good work ethics -she's actually using the bag in real life! Such a smart and responsible girl! The best thing is, unlike a lot of other celebrity endorsements, the bag actually looks great with her outfit. I would consider buying this bag, even though it costs $500.

Anyways, as I always say, style is all about what you like and feel comfortable in, so don't let me put you off this brand! What do you think of the Hayden bag and Dooney & Bourke in general?

Image credit: http://www.dooney.com/, www.justjared.buzznet.com

Wednesday, December 5, 2007

End of Quarter Shopping Spree!

In celebration of the end of our finals, my roomate and I treated ourselves to a shopping spree downtown and here is what we got:
I finally bought the Marc by Marc Jacobs mary janes. They were 30% off PLUS an additional 25%. Bargain!
I thought it would be perfect to match this season's cute dresses, like this one above from Aqua. Unfortunately I tried them on together and it seems that the strap does appear to cut my legs up...... maybe it takes getting used to? My mom thought it looks better worn than in a picture......Oh and isn't this dress super cute? I love the metallic and the simple style, perfect for the holiday season. Only thing is, the cutting is a bit awkward and makes me look pregnant and the hem bit at the bottom is a bit fragile.....
I also finally bought an oh-so-popular beret from Urban Outfitters. It was a tough choice between a good head fit (the cable knit one) or a nice color (this black one with silver sparkles). As you can see, I decided on the nice color one. The cable knit one was brown.... Though now that I look at the pictures of myself throughout the day wearing this hat, I'm having second thoughts. Maybe the beret look too takes getting used to........
Then, there was this vibrant blue silk dress shirt from Barneys with the tie (I finally learnt how to tie a tie!!!). I imagine it would look hot with a high waisted pencil skirt and a pair of pointy black heels- unfortunately I have no occasion to wear such a hot office outfit to. So I was thinking of just casually with jeans. I love it. Only downside though is that it doesn't look very good in pictures because you can't really appreciate the details as well and it just looks like a bunch of stuff..... but its super cute in real life!
Attracted by the super cute window display we went into Express to check it out. On the rack this dress looked kind of slutty, but when worn it actually looks really nice (it also helps that I have no chest...). While in the store I did a mini survey with the corporate office ladies from Express and they gave me a $10 coupon. Then when I was checking out, this lovely lady next to me gave me one of her $25 off coupon (thanks again!). So in the end, the dress was half off! Score! I love it :) though my mom finds it a bit low cut... oh well, it'll be perfect for the holidays!
The other red dress I was considering was this one my friend has from BCBG. Isn't it SO darling? It fits perfectly (and modestly) on top, with the little tie on one side which is so cute. And the dress part is silky and shiny with a a bit of bubbling at the bottom. Two very similar yet very different dresses I know... but I love them both!
Oh and I thought I'll throw in this other dress my friend recently bought also from BCBG (yes, she loves BCBG). I believe HG talked about this some time ago. I just love how sophisticated and elegant it is.

Sigh, so I guess I have a lot of thinking to do tonight and a lot of returning to do tomorrow.... any thoughts on who stays and who goes?