Anna Sui never ceases to amaze me. I love her fall collection; I don’t know how she keeps coming up with such consistent patterns; always bright, colorful, and unique and mixed with such grungy & dark accessories.
YOU MIGHT LIKE: Spring 2008 Fashion
February 2009
Lou Doillon might be, if I have to use a term I hate, my fashion icon. Without a doubt, Lou Doillon is obviously one of the reasons the term “Paris Chic” was coined.
She swans around Paris and the rest of the world with her messy, rock-chic hair, her suitcase packed to the brim with oversized coats, biker boots, patterned leggings, etc, always producing a look that is absolutely, without a doubt, cool. She never tends to stick to one look – motorcycle boots one day, cowgirl boots the next, toeless heels the next. You get the picture.
When the time calls for it, she can pull off any look (see: “pirate chic” in the middle, complete with pirate hat & boots). Even her hair always has just the right amount of color at the roots, leading me to believe she knows exactly what she is doing, even though she always looks as nonchalant and “just rolled out of bed” as one girl can possibly be.
In the first two pictures, I see my favorite Parisian in a leather jacket. Easy enough. Who doesn’t have some form of black leather jacket? But paired with patterned leggings and cowboy boots. I literally had those exact leggings when I was eight. Why do I suddenly feel myself wanting them back whenever I see this picture?
Said “pirate chic” outfit in the next picture, deftly pairing a floaty, almost bohemian style dress with her pirate accessories. And finally, in the last two pictures, she somehow manages to make an oversized, grey wool coat (which, on paper, just sounds so boring) look very chic with her grungy plaid shirt and bohemian plaited hair or a frayed lace white dress and top hat.
Is there anything this girl can’t wear? I fear not and therefore my own style will forever be left 100 paces behind, blindly wandering in the style jungle.
Lily Donaldson, model extraordinaire and the girl with the best closet of basics ever. Unlike other models, when it comes to fashion, she doesn’t seem to dabble in overboard prints or too-much-designer.
Lily tends to wear a very dressed-down, basic version of everything, always looking comfortable and just-cool-enough. On the odd occasion that she does get slightly more dressed up than shorts/tees/boots, she errs on the grungier side of things. For example, leather, plaid, grey tees, dark glasses.
When I flick through photos of Lily, I rarely see an outfit that I wouldn’t wear. I would easily do her biker boots/red lipstick mixed with torn shorts & grey tee ensemble – this seems like the perfect pre-summer outfit for a Saturday afternoon. I’d mix it up in summer with the gladiator sandals.
Her dressier style seems to be more androgynous than feminine. She wears skinny jeans or leggings on her long legs and ends them with ankle boots (just to get those extra few inches). Slouchy tee, as always. Loose hair. Maybe a little something extra in the form of a glittery clutch or a pair of dark glasses, but nothing too overboard or flashy.
I want to mess with biker boots and shorts, invest in several glittery/shiny clutches, have hair that is not so thick that it falls down when I put it up, find the perfect red lipstick, get a great pair of dark glasses and learn that oh-so-sought after look of never trying too hard.
YOU MIGHT LIKE: Model Style
FASHION INSPIRATION: berets / blazers / capes / chunky black boots / cobra snake girls / cut off denim shorts / erin wasson x rvca/ feathers / fedoras / fur “almost famous” coats / giant leather bags / headbands / leather pants / little doe / long blonde hair / pink lipstick / plaid / ray bans / rock tees / sequin embellishments / sheer tops / stripes / the richards sisters
New York Fashion Week has been quietly taking place for the past few days. After heading over to Style.com to see the runway pictures, Preen were one of the first collections that caught my eye.
Just a mere glimpse of Mongolian lamb sends shivers down my spine, so when I first spied it peeking out of the collar of one of their coats, I knew I had to take a second look. Some of the patterns on their fabric reminded me a little of Gwen Stefani/Lamb. For example, the black and white hounds tooth pattern, I am sure, cropped up in a few of her earlier collections – which I didn’t love.
I was however, very satisfied, when I began to see this seasons oh-so-popular cut-out dresses, leather-look drop crotch pants, knee-high boots, etc. I would have loved to be darting around the village yesterday in their oversized coats, as opposed to holing up in a dive bar in my red capelet, wondering if I coul venture back out into the cold.
1. So, I admit it, I’m a bit over the hounds tooth pattern. But a simple, subdued black and white does always work for me as does the aforementioned Mongolian lamb. The coat-worn-as-a-dress is the perfect look for winter, allowing you to make your coat your “stand out piece” and your dress just something that you toss on underneath. I love the knee high boots – a pair of vintage, knee high black boots is my winter staple. Unfortunately, they’re not so practical when trying to get through security at LAX in a desperate rush for your connection.
2. This dress is fairly simple but I really love the combination of full-length sleeves with mini-dress length. I think this dress would look awesome with a pair of black tights and some ballet flats and an extra small blazer. The full-length sleeve thing has just started to grow on me in the past few weeks. Growing up in Australia, wearing a dress is usually combined with extra hot weather and therefore, very short sleeves. I’ve just invested in a black knit mini dress with long sleeves so I think that’s going to be a look I try out a lot this fall. I just have to find the perfect, black opaque tights to go with it.
3. Preen have really nailed this look. Again, everything is really toned down in blacks, grays and whites which showcase the dress itself. The cutout look seems to be so popular at the moment, especially with this “mesh” layer at the top of the dress. Love the dress, love the simplicity, and I am pretty sure I am going to have to hunt down and kidnap the next cutout dress I see on the street.
4. The outfit in this picture is probably not something I would ever wear. I don’t have the guts to do these billowing, semi-drop-crotch pants nor do I have the leg length required. I love how they have paired them with the billowing, drapy coat/cape. They have put together this outfit perfectly – perfect length on the cape, perfect ethnic pattern on the top with just the right amount of sheerness, perfect take on the leather pants look (a great update on last season’s, super tight leather pants). This outfit looks amazing, I admit – it was the first one in the collection that caught my eye.
