SAG Hags

Okay, so they're not hags in ANY respect, but actually goddesses (I honestly just liked the rhyme). The SAG awards were last night and there was so much to take in! Yay "The Help" winning best cast!! ( I am a little sick of "The Artist" sweeping across the boards...) And congrats to Betty White, who, at 90 years old, still made me laugh during her acceptance speech.

I have included pictures of the best of last night (in no particular order)

Viola Davis=Grecian Goddess! So stunning. 

Stacy Keibler wearing the most beautiful lace Marchesa gown, and George is looking pretty snazzy too. 

Kyra Sedgewick looking 10 years younger and showing off her rockin' bod in a Pucci gown. 

Cutest couple of our generation by far. I love Emily Blunt's bold color choice! With her neutral accents she looks awesome. 

Okay, I might be a little biased because Modern Family is my favorite show and purple is my favorite color, but how good does Julie Bowen look?! You go Mrs. Dunphy. 

Okay, mixed feelings about the look, but loving this cut on Kristin Wiig. The choker lived and died in 6th grade..let's not bring it back. 

Not going to lie, I screamed when I saw Meryl. This is perfection! Everyone was freaking out because she was wearing Vivienne Westwood, a british designer, and paying homage to the UK because of her most recent film. Bravo, Meryl. 

This might be my absolute fave of the whole night. I would give my left foot to look like Naya Rivera, and this dress I would wear until the day I died (probably from a botched foot-removal surgery). 

That's all folks!! (Until the Oscars...and Grammys.....)

All photos courtesy of NY Daily News

"Wu" Tang Clan

If, by chance, you have been living under a rock, then you may be unaware of the ridiculously incredible designer lines that have been coming to Target over the past few years. This year, February 5th to be exact, the great man himself, Jason Wu, has designed a line exclusively for target.
If you are iffy on who exactly Jason Wu is, first of all, shame on you. Second of all, he designed the inauguration gown for a Mrs. Michelle Obama.
Remember this little number?

here

Yeah, no big.

ANYWHO, now his simplistic and chic designs are finally at a price point we can all be happy about. Although the collection itself is incredible, I have to say I am more excited about certain pieces than others. To name a few...

I am a huuge proponent of mustard, both the color and condiment, so this simple silk (with a peplum) shirt is perfect! And don't even get me started on the skirt. Thank you private school for making me believe pleated skirts are necessary. 

I'm not too too crazy about the skirt here, but the shirt is to die for. Lighter fabric shirts are so effortless and look so darn chic! Buttoned all the way up is definitely the way to go. 

So this is a little reminiscent of the straw bags older women would wear to beach functions and to cocktail parties at a country club (maybe even reminds me of a little Dirty Dancing?) But who cares, I like it and its neutrality and versatility. 

And the bag comes in a complementary clutch. Love. 

I'm not sure why I am drawn to this scarf considering my hatred for the feline species, but they're wearing scarves. Darn you Jason Wu for making me want it. 

 So obviously I am going to be dragging some friends out of bed in the wee morning hours of February 5th, and I suggest you do the same!! The collection is only available until March 6th!

All pictures of collection provided here.

Layering

Not that I'm complaining....BUT this New England weather is seriously messing with my wardrobe choices! For example, this past Saturday I opted for a long-sleeve dress under a legitimate parka to a formal due to the 11 hours of straight snow status. Using this mindset, when getting ready for class today, I chose red jeans, heavy wool socks, leather boots, undershirts (plural) under a long sleeve chiffon shirt, all covered by my anorak jacket and thick circle scarf. HOWEVER, mother nature must have been having a hot flash because within moments of stepping outside, both the anorak and circle scarf were immediately  unnecessary, and the thick socks became a regret.
How is a girl supposed to deal with the schizophrenic "winter" we're having up here? I have devised a fool-proof guide to layering in a changing climate. (Thanks polyvore!)
1. The key is to choose light layers. Heavy layers not only add unnecessary bulk, they also don't give room for average temperature days, they leave room for either snow or the beach.

Made at polyvore.com by me

Here, I layered with extremely light fabrics, easy to remove and shove into your bag if need be. Starting with a light cotton tank, pair with a chiffon printed blouse, and finally with a draped cotton-blend blazer. I like to somewhat match my scarf to my top so there is a light brown scarf that could be warn close to the face (as pictured) or more draped if unwound. On the bottom, I chose leggings and some heavy-duty boots. This could obviously be paired with a heavier jacket for those really cold days, but on days like today you could get away with pretty much just what is pictured.

2. Tights! One great tip is to use tights, especially printed ones! 

Made at polyvore.com by me

Tights are typically pretty thin and airy, and can make you look covered in days when showing bare legs is not appropriate, yet don't suffocate you like jeans. Worn under skirts, dresses, or heavier-fabric shorts, tights are a great opportunity to not only showcase those gams, but also some personality with the print. 

3. Cardigans

Not the 90's band........

                   These!!

Made at polyvore.com by me

Cardigans are something that are instrumental in nice layering. They can be in a variety of fabrics, and easily layered with others. The ones above vary from heavy (wool, bottom left) to very light (cotton, upper right). Cardigans also look so cute when belted, so if you have a ton of layers on under the cardigan, throw on a skinny belt over the outer layer so you don't lose your waist!

Let's hope these tips come in handy over the next few weeks, and we keep lucking out on the snow status! (If I jinxed us...my bad)

Signatures

Right as the holidays closed this year, I was able to stay in Manhattan for a few days with one of my best friends. On a particularly windy day, we decided we were all "after-christmas sale"-d out and wanted to be more culturally aware. We went to, in my opinion, one of the more underrated museums and true beauties of NYC, the Morgan library and museum.

via here

Due to the time (11am on a Friday morning), we were a minority in the museum. The demographics were basically ages 7-11 (field trip), and 50+. Ignoring the little ones, many of the museum-goers were older, elegant, and worldly women. While people-watching (one of my favorite past-times in museums), I began to notice something. Each of these women were wearing some sort of lipstick. Whilst my friend and I checked our coats, women were either scrambling to put on one more coat of their Chanel rouge, or had just gotten their coats back and seemed somewhat comforted when they felt the lipstick in the front pocket of their Ferragamo jacket. This intrigued me, as I have, for most of my life, been fascinated when my mom always put on lipstick before leaving the house for almost every errand. I constantly find Chanel lipsticks hidden in almost every room of the house. I asked my friend if she had noticed this and she said, "I find lipstick everywhere, in the kitchen, the pantry, even in the basement next to the treadmill!"

I began to wonder, is this "signature color" something that just missed our generation? You don't see girls or young professionals scrambling to put on lipstick in between classes, or after their morning coffee. 

Granted, the red lip trend is definitely in, but I think that the majority of younger women use lipstick solely when posing for pictures, or before a night out. Day-to-day lipstick is maybe even considered overkill. 

I believe, quite possibly, that younger women fear they simply don't have time for this added step in their daily routine. However, in the this fast-paced age, in the fastest city in the world, I saw these older women taking their time with their lipstick and ensuring its application perfection before immersing themselves back into the hustle and bustle. 

Maybe women today have adapted a complex where they fear making anything their "signature", their one-and-only anything because it will make them miss out on something, on changing or bettering themselves. We grew up in a world with options, choosing just one is something we don't know how to do. We can't even choose one thing to do for more than six seconds. Want to write a paper? Well, let me do that while I check Facebook, twitter, listen to music, and write a blog post dedicated to lipstick. 

Why I believed I needed to dedicate an entire post to this, we will never know, but to end on a good note, here is something hilarious. 

Varsity Jacket, Nostalgic or Just Ick?

Recently, I was reading one of my favorite blogger, one that refers to herself as "The Man Repeller", who I truly admire for her lack of concern for what the male population thinks of her stylistic choices. Her  most recent post was all about the revival of the varsity, or letterman jacket, and instead of my usual giddiness when reading any of her posts, I found myself wondering if I agreed with this particular fad. Maybe it's just me, but when I tend to think of varsity jackets, the first image that comes to mind is one from a music video circa 2001 (Gwen Stefani and Fergie Ferg to name a few).

here

here

Now, I love a new coat trend, because, living in the northeast means you will probably be donning something heavier than a sweater for pretty much 5 months out of the year, and I enjoy some variety. My doubts of the reminiscence of 2001 pop videos was erased when I saw Rag and Bone's and Givenchy's adaptation of the letterman jacket, posted below.

Rag and Bone

Givenchy

So cool! Naturally, being a broke college student, I obviously went to websites such as Forever21 and Delia's to find a more economically conscious number. Here's what I found:

Delia's

Forever 21

Totally wearable! I have been converted. Thankfully, my dad was a track star in high school! Yay vintage!

Outer(where?)

Being a current college student, I don't expect much from my fellow classmates on the fashion front, especially later in the semester near finals. Want to wear sweatpants and Uggs? Your prerogative! Lately, though, I have come across many girls suffering on how to stay warm while walking to class and stay stylish. Simply putting a North Face fleece on will not only not warm you to the fullest ability, but will probably make you look like a clone of everyone on your campus, and who wants that? In order to combat the attack of the clones (nerd reference..) I have compiled some stylish ways to keep from freezing on the impending long snowy winter ahead of us.

As I said in my "Fall Fashion" post a few months ago, (can be found here!), capes are very much making a comeback, and I am elated. Burberry produced a more insulated cape number for the winter that will satisfy any cape needs for the snowy season. 

Burberry, via here

As always, pea coats are always stylish and classy, and a well-made pea coat should be in every woman's wardrobe. This version, by BB Dakota, puts a slight twist on the typical pea coat by removing the collar, and making it in a bright, mustard color, perfect for brightening up a dreary winter day!

BB Dakota, via here

Although not very practical on a college campus, if you are looking for extreme warmth with some extreme glamour and diva-feelings, fur is the obvious way to go.  Fur was seen all over the runways, but luckily the faux variety can be found in many of your favorite shopping establishments, just make sure you get a faux that at least seems to be from an animal...(no need to go for the green furs that look like you killed a muppet!).

via here

In my opinion, the easiest way to class up a boring outfit is to add a scarf. Whether you fancy the printed variety, the extreme comfort of an infinity scarf, or the classic look of a silk scarf, you will look that much more polished with the simple addition of a neck-warming tool. Instead of showing some runway-inspired scarf looks, I am instead showing you some of the more price-appropriate variety (hint hint, Santa!)

Infinity Circle Scarf, via here

Printed Scarf, via here

Let's top it off (haha) with hats. This season, one of the best accessories you can own is one of the trendy hats. Many designers like Hermes, Missoni, Victoria Beckham, just to name a few, have been all about the hat this season. From wide-brimmed 70s wonders, to retro baseball caps, and of course, the best of them all in terms of warmth, the knit cap. It is a known fact that the majority of your body heat escapes from your head, so why not get something cute to keep that all in?

Hermes, via here

Missoni, via here

Enjoy the time of layering and experimenting with different, heavier fabrics. Attempt to stray away from the college girl stigma of North Face and Uggs as best you can, and stay warm!!

Tis' the Season to be Trendy!

With the Christmas season quickly approaching, social calendars are losing space (much like my closet). This means many fabulous ensembles are needed for the upcoming 4 weeks of constant party rotations. And let's just be honest here, who wants to be an outfit repeater to a bunch of parties?! Not me!
To make sure there are not too many "repeat offenders" (haha), here are a few tips, pictures for inspiration, and ideas for outfits for every occasion, from Aunt Gertrude's holiday potluck to the pre-Christmas wine-palooza with your besties.

Occasion: Family dinner or Party

Now, many times these may not be the most interesting thing, and therefore may feel as though they go on for HOURS. Because of this, many people choose comfort over style and sacrifice a prime time to execute and practice styling certain outfits (if it's a total miss, your family will tell you, rather than some strangers at another function who may tell you that it looks fab). While this is a good forum to try out some looks, these looks should be somewhat conservative, and with this season's trends, that shouldn't be a problem.

Courtesy of Paper Crown

One of my favorite trends this season is the high waisted, short, a-line skirt. This lace adaptation done by Lauren Conrad's line, "Paper Crown" is the perfect way to seem polished yet comfortable. 

Courtesy of Jcrew

If your family soiree is less formal, thankfully, the oversize/chunky sweaters with patterns known as "fair isle" are very much on the cutting edge, and pretty much one of the most comfortable things we can have in our closets. Pair one like this from J. Crew with some black corduroys and you will be good to go!

Occasion: Night Out with Your Girls

These are the most fun to dress up for. Express your sense of style, if it matches that of the rest of your group, you will look like cohesive models straight off the runway, if not, you will appear as an eclectic group of confident women. Win-win! (Although when my friends make me laugh so hard I snort, I think the model illusion is somewhat shattered...)

Courtesy of Paper Crown

Maxi skirts have not left us yet! For shorter girls like me, these are a bit daunting for fear of having them swallow me alive. This maxi, done once again by Paper Crown, is very high waisted, with bow detailing at the waist, making it somewhat available to girls of shorter stature.

Courtesy of Jcrew

Can you tell what my favorite brands are? Once again, J. Crew is detailing the effortless elegance of color blocking, and the level of "funky" you can get out of just a few pop colors here and there. Although this model somewhat resembles Velma from Scooby Doo due to these color choices, to make it somewhat holiday-appropriate, maybe change the base color from orange to red or even black and accessorize the heck out of it!  Skinny ankle-length pants are almost universally flattering, so you can never go wrong. 

Occasion: Holiday Party With Friends

This is a tricky one, go conservative or fun? Well, this season, the dress silhouettes are so versatile you don't have to choose!

Courtesy of H&M

These sweet dresses apply many trends of this season, the slight a-line of the skirt, while keeping it slightly shimmery and fun!

Courtesy of H&M

This perfectly cute pink shift dress is accented by a simple black belt, but could not look more polished! The color makes it young, but the sleeves keep an air of conservatism. Either of these dresses could be worn to pretty much any holiday affair this season, and because they are at H&M's fabulous price point, why not get both!?

I hope I have covered every possible function you will attend this season! Enjoy your soirees and look fab doing it!