Monthly Archives: October 2009

Blue Over PR

Praise the fashion gods, Michael Kors is back, and better than ever! His critiques made an otherwise yawn-worthy episode of Project Runway worth watching – namely, labeling Louise’s frock “a bridesmaid’s dress with a shower loofah ruched up the front of it,” and calling out Christopher for his monstrosity of a “teal charmeuse disco pumpkin.” Classic Kors.

Unfortunately, Michael’s critiques were the only highlights in an otherwise dismal episode. Read on for the low-lights.

  • The challenge is blue. Yes, blue. How does a color even qualify as a challenge?! Granted, the designers must also work in teams, and create two outfits that fit the INC brand at Macy’s. But still, this is a highly uninspiring challenge.
  • Louise’s aforementioned bridesmaid’s dress, as well as a blue ruffled sheath, were the losers of the day, and deservedly so. Besides the almost preposterous and costumey ruffles on both dresses, the styling was way off. Louise’s shoe pick for the bridesmaid gown, a mustard ankle strap sandal, was particularly offensive.
  • For everyone else, boredom was the name of the game. I actually visited Macy’s just this weekend and found myself drawn to the INC line, but the PR contestants’ interpretations were pretty dull.
  • Nina Garcia continues her disappearing act. Come back, Nina. We miss you!51rTfQEXg3L__SL500__SS140_

pr6-ep7-irina-fIrina wins, thanks in large part to this beachy, v-neck dress. But I must admit, finding the perfect shoe for this outfit was a tricky task. It’s a summery dress, and needs something fairly delicate and certainly open-toed, instead of a heavy shoe that might weigh down the dress. And, of course, there’s the blue requirement. These phenomenal open-toe slingbacks over at Endless.com might be a good fit – I like the idea of continuing the stripes theme, and the navy coloring is right on. But maybe they’re a bit too heavy for this particular dress.

Miss Mojito wants to know: What shoes would you pair with this tricky number?

Posted by Miss Mojito.

Dressing boldly (an update)

About a month ago, Ms. S&C declared that the goal of her fall wardrobe was to dress boldly. In her original blog post, she highlighted a few trends that were catching her eye. Did she follow-through on her own advice? Yes, sort-of.

Below are some of her recent purchases. Obviously, there’s not a lot of bold color and flashy prints in this selection – with the exception of the bright cobalt clutch. She likes this sweet, satin bow clutch because it can brighten up a lot of outfits. She’ll take it out when she’s in distressed denim (or her new black denim), and when wearing the all-occasion black dress.

Biker chic accessories are a popular fall trend. Ms. S&C picked up this studded belt, which she’ll wear high-waisted over her numerous black and gray cardigans, to make them much more exciting.

black-denimclutch_belt

As for shoes – Ms. S&C recently tossed a pair of black, peep-toe pumps from Nine West. She’d had them for at least five years, probably longer, and they showed their years. Replacing them was a necessity. She spotted these Nine West platforms when researching suede shoes for a reader, and she loves them. Her first day wearing them — a lady stopped her in Starbucks to comment.

Ms. S&C has been toying with buying a pair of booties for awhile now. She didn’t want anything too flashy, as she plans to wear them with shorter-length skirts/dresses and colorful tights. And, she didn’t want to spend a lot of money. She thinks she satisfied both requirements with these Report Dylan ankle boots.blk-platform

blk-bootie

While Ms. S&C likes trends, she prefers classic items with a long shelf-life. Not purposely, this mentality has transferred over to cocktail preferences of late. The drink in her hand on Friday’s, after work? It was a Tom Collins over the summer.  For the early fall, it’s been the classic martini — or more specifically, the original-pre-Prohibition martini, which is currently called the Fifty-Fifty Martini. Confused? It’s the martini with equal parts gin and equal parts vermouth. Why the extra vermouth? Read Jason Wilson’s, WaPo columnist, article “Stirrings of a Better Martini,” or this article from NYT’ Shaken and Stirred column. Vermouth is good in cocktails,people. Use it.

Since there are so many variations of the martini, I find it’s easiest just to tell the bartender what I want in it, and how I want it prepared. For example, tonight, I’ll simply say, “Martini with equal parts gin and vermouth, up, with a twist. And, a dash of orange bitters, if you got ’em.” Please. 

posted by Ms. S&C

Off to the movies

I’ve never been more disappointed with the outcome of a Project Runway episode than I was with last week’s film genre challenge. Maybe it’s because Nicolas drives me crazy. Maybe it’s because Christopher has been passed over two challenges in a row (he should have won the newspaper-fabric-design-challenge also). Maybe I wasn’t ready for Ra’mon to go home. Maybe if Michael Kors and Nina Garcia had been there, the outcome would have been different.

Despite these complaints, I did like the film genre theme. The challenge went something like this: after selecting one of five genres (Action/Adventure, Film Noir, Period, Science Fiction, and Western), designers had to create a costume for an invented “character” in their movie. Nicolas won with his Sci fi ice queen, even though Christopher killed with his Victorian vampire bride. Ra’mon was sent home because his reptilian woman was a “hot green mess,” (and it was). But, Louise, whose mixed-genre “snoozefest,” with no interesting concept, squeaked by.

christopher-periodlouboutin

louboutin-red

As far as pairing shoes with the winning design — I’m passing over Nicolas’ design for Christopher’s. Christopher’s dress — the gathering at the neckline, the cinched waist, the layers, the open back — it was Victorian, yet modern. I think Heidi said, “Christopher gave us something special.” And he did. It was gorgeous. And, he made for $150! When looking for shoes with the same kind-of wow factor, I like to turn to Christian Louboutin. Both options here are jaw-dropping for two reasons: the design and the price (both are over a grand). The Clic Clac‘s are au courant with the platform bootie, but the lace instep is certainly Victorian inspired. The blood red color and the strappy maryjane style platform of the Dillian speaks to the vampire character, while the ruffled  instep takes it back to another period.

posted by Ms. S&C