Quote of the Week

Timeless Tip: Trends

Have any of you looked at photos of your parents from their younger years lately?  If the answer is no, I suggest you take a look, it can be not only nostalgic but enlightening as well.  The 80's and 90's are not generally looked on as the Twentieth Century's most fashionable decades.  However, they were very "trendy".  Trends in fashion change monthly, if not weekly.  I am deeply sorry to break it to you ladies (actually, I'm thrilled), but trends rarely look as good as we think they do at the time.  Thirty years in the future, do we still think big hair is sexy?  One year in the future, does anyone still like crackled nails?  I really hope not, because they are not attractive.

I suggest trying to stay as far away from trends as possible.  Stay with classic cuts and looks that flatter you as much as possible.  You don't want to your kids to be looking back at old photos of you and see your proverbial shoulder padded pants suit.  Where trends may be in one day and out the next, class and sophistication never go out of style.  Being trendy may come and go, being timeless is...timeless.

Quote of the Week

Summer Style

Put away your scarves and pea coats ladies, summer is upon us.  Gone (for now) are the days of off-the-shoulder sweaters and knee-high boots; now is the time for sun dresses and peep-toe wedges.  Although summer is my personal favorite time of year to dress for, I've noticed that young ladies who once dressed with such grace in the colder months, start to slip into something a little more "comfortable" once it's warmer out.  For those who don't understand, by "comfortable" I mean slutty.  Summer is when everyone should look the nicest.  We're (hopefully) tan and all in prime summer shape.  Never let presenting yourself in a classy way come second to showing off your body.  If you dress correctly, you'll be able to show that class isn't the only asset you have going for you.  Here are a couple simple ideas to look hot in the summer without looking like you're in heat.

What's better than a nice summer dress?  They can make you feel fun and flirty while making you look beyond fabulous.  Thankfully we have the majestic Blair Waldorf, who never fails to lead by example, to show us how great a woman can look in a classy summer dress.  If you notice in the picture to the right, this dress does not show cleavage and cuts beautifully on the mid lower thigh.  Cleavage is not necessarily a bad thing, nevertheless this clearly proves that you don't need to expose a lot of skin to look sexy.  No one could say that Ms. Waldorf (if you think it should be a Mrs. then you clearly need to catch up on your GG) doesn't look absolutely stunning in this dress that perfectly displays her body while staying classy.  Bravo Blair.

Now, cleavage doesn't always mean skanky and showing a little skin isn't always unacceptable.  Here are two rules I think a lady should follow when deciding if she's wearing too much skin.

Rule 1. Would you feel comfortable seeing what you are wearing on your mother circa her thirties.  If that's a yes then you are probably okay.  If that's a no- rethink.

Rule 2. Do you feel like you have more skin showing than is covered up?  If so, change your outfit.  Chances are you look like a street walker.

Take a look at the fabulous Lily Collins for example from a wonderful Tatler spread.  The Audrey Hepburn look-alike is positively adorable in her waist high shorts and tied up flannel.  Funny Face aside, the outfit is a long way from Skanksville USA, yet shows that skin is still in!  Here is a lovely pair of high waisted shorts if you are interested, and flannels can be bought at stores like Urban Outfitters, Forever 21, or Nordstrom.  These can make a chic casual look that will work nice at any barbecue or just taking a stroll on the beach.

Summer is a time for the beach, bonfires, pool parties, and laughs.  It's a lovely time to enjoy time with your friends on a warm beach house patio.  Coats may be left at home but class definitely is not.

Wedding Dress

Roses are red, violets are blue, and a wedding dress should always be white.  What one article of clothing has the power to make any woman, be she a playmate or a pauper, feel like a princess?  However, just because all women are created equal does not mean all dresses are.  Here are a few thoughts from a true wedding dress fanatic on how to pick the most important gown of your life.

1. A wedding dress should be something that you want to wear every day of your life...but don't.  Of course no one is actually going to wear their dress every day, but some food for thought: although your wedding may be a once-in-a-lifetime day, marriage last till death do you part.  Your dress should be a once in a lifetime outfit that's memory lives on forever.  If you don't feel the most beautiful you've ever felt in your dress, chances are it isn't the right one for you.

2. Not every style is for every woman.  We all have different looks that make us beautiful.  Your friend may look stunning in a strapless sweetheart, you on the other hand may look nice in a single shoulder dress (my personal favorite by the way).  Wear the style you're most comfortable in, just because it's a wedding dress doesn't mean you have to be over the top.  If you know you look good in lace, go for lace.  If you have sexy shoulders, show them off!  By the time you pick your dress you should know what you feel beautiful in, if that isn't the case then you probably shouldn't be getting married.

3. White white white!  A timeless wedding dress is white!  Intertwine your originality through the style.  Maybe a sexy low or lace back, as Brides.com says is en vogue at the moment.  Perhaps an exquisitely long train to set yourself apart from the other brides of the moment.  Something that is quintessentially classically you.


4. Last but certainly not least, remember who is going to see your dress.  It may not be in the Smithsonian for thousands to see, but this is the dress that your daughters imagine wearing on their wedding day while growing up.  This will hopefully be the dress that your granddaughters will say you looked beautiful in while looking through old pictures.  It's not only your timeless look, it's theirs as well.

Don't feel pressured when picking out your wedding to dress to find the perfect one.  Of course you want the perfect dress, but it will come to you.  A wedding dress should be just like finding your husband, when it's the right one you'll just know.

Quote of the Week

Icon Alert: Carrie Bradshaw

In the late ninties, Darren Star introudced the world to one of fashion's elite.  She taught us lessons in life, love, friendship and couture in the most fabulous of ways.  Whether covered in Cavalli or egyptian cotton, she captivated millions, using her Manolo Blahniks to "Carrie" us away.  New York's most iconic sex columnist, Carrie Bradshaw, has become a household name whether in the Upper East Side, Paris, or just off the Jersey Turnpike.  Ranking number 11 on Bravo's 100 Greatest TV Characters in 2005, Carrie Bradshaw was also named The Guardian's Icon of the Decade in 2009.  "Because we had all heard Carrie's stories in our own girlfriends, and recognized something in her of our best selves", says The Guardian.  The paper expressed their icon status praise by saying Carrie liberated young women, showing them it was okay to explore their sexuality.  Unlike traditional roles in shows with a male and his beautiful love interest, Carrie showed women that the lady can be the hero, and doesn't need a constant love to be fabulous.  I couldn't agree more.

So, what makes Carrie an icon?  Using a fashionable phraseology Carrie related to us in all aspects of life.  Through unbelievable wordplay and designer clad dialogue, she helped 20-somethings ease into their thirties, single women transition into relationships...and back out of them, and closeted teens turn out as fabulous men.  In her words:

Her Parisian fashion was always trés bien

On Fashion: "The fact is, sometimes it's really hard to walk in a single woman's shoes.  That's why we need really special ones now and then to make the walk a little more fun", Carrie knew a about shoes, actually she had about a $40,000 education on them.

On keeping a man hooked: "I revealed too much too soon.  I was emotionally slutty".  In other words, don't be an emotional whore, it's as annoying to men as a real whore is to women.

On Breakups: "Maybe you're only allotted a certain amount of tears per man, and I've used all mine up".  That is, don't waste your time pining after a man who broke your heart.  The best we can do is put on our big girl shoes, and strut holding your head high to who's coming next.


On Family: "The most important thing in life is your family.  There are days you love them, and others you don't.  But, in the end, they're the people you always come home to.  Sometimes, it's the family you're born into and sometimes it's the one you make for yourself".  I could try to elaborate, but why fix something that's perfect?

On Friends: "No matter who broke your heart, or how long it takes to heal, you'll never get through it without your friends".  Remember, relationships could leave a hole in your heart, but friends are the glue that make it whole again.

En Vogue: "When I first moved to New York, I bought Vogue instead of dinner.  I just felt it fed me better".  I can't improve on that.


Most importantly, Carrie taught me never to settle.  Why waist time on an Aiden, or a Berger, especially on a Petrovsky.  These men are all just your "Mr. (Almost) Right", your post-it, and your creepy old man.  Princes come in go in fairy tales, but a Big is always there (whether you like it or not) in real life, they just have to get in their shining town car and find you.