Apparently the people at Coach have gone and lost their minds. The above monstrosity (how about some more hardware? I think there's an inch that's free) is being sold for $20,000. $20,000!!!! I've said it before and I'll say it again until someone starts listening to me... People in the market for $20,000 bags DO NOT BUY COACH. Arghh!! And this bag's ugly sister is selling for even more. If I didn't love my new boots so much, I would retract my ode from last week. When will the folly of the overpriced handbag be over? It's ridiculous. What next? A $10,000 Le Sportsac?
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Too Luxe: Out of Their Minds Edition
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
I Quit This B*tch!
I'm not going to write about Emmy fashion. (Don't be alarmed. It's just sheer laziness.) But other bloggers did. Here are my favorites.
I agree with Monday, September 17, 2007
An Ode to Coach
A friend once asked me what my favorite brands were. I listed my usual: Marc Jacobs, Banana Republic and Rachel Pally. "Oh," she said. "I thought Coach would have been one of your favorites, too, since you have so much stuff from there." I was dumbfounded. Really? REALLY???! But she was absolutely right. I do own a lot of Coach items and interestingly I don't consider them among my favorite brands.
Like many fashion bloggers who are not fans of Coach, I discount them as a great brand because they often bring the fug. Their logo print and that horrible patchwork thing they do appeal only to the label-whoriest label-whores. They can also make their bags too busy by piling on the hardware. As a mid-luxury brand, Coach often tries to extend itself into high-luxury territory with ridiculous results. (A $7,000 bag from COACH??? Does this company know who their customer is??? Do they know who they are? Why would I buy a Coach bag when I can get an Hermes Birkin for nearly the same price??)
So you might be wondering where exactly is the "ode" part in this post. There is an area where Coach absolutely excells, and that is the everyday, functional boot. If you were unaware, they are the master of this style. Every Fall, I end up buying a new pair of Coach leather boots. Not because I need to, because their boots hold up remarkably well, but because they will have a new style that is more fabulous than the one I had last year. The quality of the leather is exquisite. The materials, the seams and the craftsmanship of the boots are impeccable. These are the boots you will wear everyday to run errands in with jeans or with your work slacks because you need a "comfy-heel" day. These aren't the boots you're going to wear when you want to look fierce, but they are the ones you can live in comfortably and still feel stylish when you leave the house. As a testament to the comfort factor of Coach boots, on a particularly busy day of hanging out with friends last year, I walked TWO MILES in my favorite pair of Coach boots without a blister or pain.
These are the "two mile" boots I bought last Fall. They still look pretty good after quite a bit of wear. Did I mention I also wore them in the rain?
I ordered the Maxene boot in black for this Fall. I just couldn't resist them! And they're available in this season's hottest color: gray.
The Weslyn boot is a charming riding style as well.
For those of you who don't find the Coach logo print as appalling as I do, try the Meadow boot.
Try this tip: Always take new boots to the cobbler to have a rubber sole added to the existing sole of the shoe. This lengthens the life of the boot and makes it more comfortable since the rubber absorbs some of the shock your feet will feel from walking on concrete sidewalks and streets.
Spring 2008 London Fashion Week: I Don't Get It
There is a reason I've given my blog the catch phrase: "an ordinary woman obsessed with fashion." That would be because I have no formal training and I'm not a fashion editor. For that reason, designers like Gareth Pugh get a blank face and a "Huh? What?" from me. For example, this was his opening look for his Spring 2008 London show.
I don't get it. Here are a few more looks I don't get.
The model below is wearing a stole made of white mink mice with red eyes and tails. Um... okay....
Does anybody actually wear these clothes or are these just outfits for fashion-insiders to editorialize about? Of the 15 looks he showed, this was the most wearable:
And I think I'm stretching it a bit by saying "wearable." I guess his particular role in the fashion game is to provoke and keep things interesting. Read more about Gareth Pugh's show here.
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Blogging About African-Americans in Fashion
The Fashion Bomb and Cut, Sew & Blog give some really thoughtful insights on the dearth of African-Americans in the fashion industry: from the lack of influential editors to famous designers not using Black models. Check out a great post from The Fashion Bomb here about a recent forum on Blacks in Fashion. Malcolm Harris gives his take on the subject at Cut, Sew & Blog here. Definitely food for thought!
Spring 2008 New York Fashion Week: Dream Items
I absolutely LOVED the shoes from Tory Burch's Spring 2008 showing. I am definitely getting these adorable, gold gladiator sandals.
I will be sure to pose like this model whenever I wear them.
And this sunny yellow Marc by Marc Jacobs dress will be perfect for Spring. I love the bow detail, the silhouette and the flowery print.
Although, unlike the model, I would have to smile in such a happy dress! I guess I should start saving for my Spring 2008 purchases now....
Three Times Makes it a Trend: The Death of Necklaces?
As I've been looking through red carpet and various celebrity photos from my favorite gossip blogs, I've been noticing more and more that starlets are choosing to not wear necklaces with their formal wear. It's become more about statement earrings and bracelets and leaving necks bare. Here are three examples from the 2007 VMAs.
Rihanna
Beyonce
Alicia Keys
And the trend continues with three celebrities at the Heroes Pre-Emmy Party:
Ali Larter
Kristen Bell and Hayden Panettiere
Will bare necks be all the rage at tonight's Emmy awards? I think so!
Spring 2008 NY Fashion Week: De La Renta Designs for the Life I Wish I Lived
I live a jeans-appropriate existence. The fact is, for the majority of my day-to-day activities, jeans would be okay to wear or be the expected style choice. My job is fairly casual with its dress code. And New York city has become increasingly more casual with jeans worn at events that used to require formalwear such as going to the opera. "Dressing up" is often considered dark wash jeans.
But the fact is, I'm a woman who loves dresses. I am actually much more comfortable in a dress than jeans. And if I could wear an A-line dress with a slim fitting bodice that poufs out from the waist everyday, I would be a very happy camper. So in my dream life, I'm a "lady who lunches." This dream woman lunches at fabulous restaurants during the day with her lovely girlfriends and attends charity balls in the evening... And, of course, her wardrobe for this life is exclusively Oscar de la Renta.
He started his show with beautiful suits like this one. (Very appropriate for a smart lunch with the girls, right?)
Next, came some gorgeous ethnic print dresses that would be perfect to pack for that upcoming vacation in South Africa.
Oscar showed some lovely solid-colored dresses. In my imaginary life, I would wear these to the various dinner parties I had to attend and be the most chic woman in the room.
And finally, what's a girl to wear to that formal gala or red-carpet event? Oscar has that covered, too.
In my opinion, I think his show embodied everything Fashion Week is meant to be: gorgeous, aspirational, stylish and feminine.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Spring 2008 NY Fashion Week: What's Missing?
What's missing from the Spring 2008 ready-to-wear shows? Models of color.
Thanks, Cinnamon!
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Spring 2008 NY Fashion Week: Making Sense of Marc
I worship at the altar of Marc Jacobs. I make no bones about it. I agree that he is a genius and doesn't just design lines but moves fashion in a new direction almost every season. I want to BE that funky, hip, luxurious downtown girl (with a few of my own grown-up touches) that his clothes represent. I buy into it wholeheartedly. But his Spring 2008 namesake collection confounds me.
The Bad
The "silly-string guipure gown"
Marc's been quoted as saying he "loves a blouse that's dumb." Well, this dress with it's awkward top and strange strings hanging from is dumb.
The tan shoe was billed as the "too-small pump"and the hot pink and green shoe is what I will call "the accident waiting to happen." The too-small pump seems a little more wearable than the shoe with the heel protruding from the foot bed but both are not knocking my socks off.
Even Worse
I don't understand what's going on here. I'm not going to try.
All of these layers for SPRING??? Even the model looks frightened.
The Interesting
Trompe l'oeil Underwear
Underwear as Outerwear
Marc's usage of underwear as part of the outerwear of the ensemble was an interesting theme, although I feel like I may have seen this explored before.
The Good
I love the looks above for a simple reason: They're pretty. There are no gimmicks, no tricks and they don't need to be explained. And isn't that what most of us really want? The chance to wear a pretty outfit and feel good in it.
Models are Funny When They Fall
Spring 2008 NY Fashion Week: Make Me Understand Vera Wang
While it's hard to tell in the picture, these are drop-crotch satin shorts.
DROP-CROTCH SATIN SHORTS, I SAY!!!
I was watching Full Frontal Fashion yesterday night and the commentator said that Vera Wang views these as a modern take on the cargo short. WHAT? These look more like a modern take on the MC Hammer pant. Unfortunately, the pictures do not do full justice to how uncomplimentary and unforgiving these shorts are. The back view looks like the model is wearing a droopy diaper. I don't know who can pull these off since they're not really working on these 6 foot tall, 110 pound models. I am not amused.
And remember what I've been saying about the death of volume? 
Oy vey, Vera.... And this dress just looks like the model has a goiter growing out of the side of her thigh.
Who looks good wrapped in all this excessive, shiny fabric? Boo, Vera Wang...
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