Category — Fashion Design

Utterly disappointed by yet another sad state of affairs at the Mercedes-Benz Fashion week, I’ve been uninspired to post. The usual display of bad taste left me speechless. The Pussy Cat Dolls? Come on. No wonder it’s the joke of the industry. Again. I am embarrassed for the design-challenged LA. It feels like a reflection on me since I live here. The best part is that there IS good design out here, the worst part is that it’s not buddies with Barrymore or cousins with Coppola. And all the good ones (ahem, Jeremy Scott, Rick Owens…) leave just as magically as they appeared and head off to Europe where fashion is not a rehearsal but a lifestyle. What’s it gonna take to shake up some real (and unfortunately dormant) talent in this town? Cos I know it’s there. Wake up LA, wake up! Show em yo grills. And help me shed my cerulean blues.

LA Fashion week kicks off tonight with a GenArt group show featuring JMary, Jesse Kamm and Le Sang Des Betes. I am most exited about the new JMary collection. Her jackets and dresses have great cuts and quality fabrics that make everyone look sophisticated and untouchable. The dress above is Marlena – black silk chiffon over nude silk georgette with pockets – one of my favorite pieces from her Spring 2008 collection.

threeASFOUR never fail to delight me with their originality. These two dresses are from their Spring/Summer 2008 collection and they are just exquisite.

In the spirit of LA Fashion Week (that starts this Friday) and eco-friendly design, I present to you Gary Harvey. He is a London-based eco-couture designer who unveiled his first collection at the 07 London Fashion Week. The concept behind the 9 dresses presented at the show is to promote fashion design with a conscience and reinvent the perception of recycled clothing. Gary finds second-hand garments in thrift stores and infuses them with a new life and a statement. I impatiently await his next collection.

Newspaper Dress, made from 30 copies of the ‘Financial Times’.

Denim Dress, made from 42 pairs of Levi’s 501 jeans.

Laundry Bag Dress, made from 21 laundry bags

Classic Hollywood Glamour – Marion Cotillard gracefully shined in a Jean-Paul Gautier mermaid gown. Not too much or too little, but just radiant; beautiful neckline, discreet rectangular clutch, long necklace, wavy locks and a winning smile.

It may be February, yet the year is still new so it’s not too late to rid of the old. And by old I mean your UGG boots collection. Let’s face the facts together: the name stemmed from UGG-ly, they were designed to be an indoor slipper, they are not waterproof for the outdoors and too hot for the indoors, they have zero arch support, they don’t hold your foot in place, they don’t breathe, and quite frankly they are an eye sore. Shall I carry on <yawn> ? Liberate yourselves from the herd, branch out and discover something different. In my humble opinion, you don’t have to drop between $140 and $ 350 to keep your feet toasty. Opt for stylish old school charentaises that originated during the reign of Louis XIV in 17th century France. Back in that era they were worn primarily by the servants and were labeled les silencieuses, meaning “the quiet ones”, for they allowed silent travel to and from the master’s quarters. At first they were made of scraps from military uniform wool with felt soles and served as boot slip-ins. They became more popular when Dr. Jeva transformed them into outdoor shoes in 1907 by adding a hard sole and manufacturing them in a multitude of colors and patterns. The factory is around to this day and you can buy charentaises on their website at a fraction of the price of UGGs. Get to them before Paris makes them a new fad and paints them glitter-pink.

If you are still not convinced, then you can always crawl back into your UGG Australia Classic Tall Boot

I’m not gonna lie to you… I am a bitch’s bitch when it comes to style and in my genuinely bitchy fashion, I despise, loathe, frown upon, look down on, and can’t help but rip on all of those try-hard wannabe fashionistas out there. I can’t hate the girl next door for not getting the cerulean blue scene from The Devil Wears Prada. Oh, wait… yes, I can, but it’s only half the fun to be cruel to a clueless fashion hazard than a wannabe hipster whose outfit shattered a mirror before leaving the house. There’s bad style everywhere, and I don’t mean the “so bad that it’s good” kind, or the kind that makes you realize that the world would be boring if we all liked the same things. I’m talking about people with money that can’t buy taste (even though they CAN afford a personal stylist), or people without money trying to fake it till they make it with their cheap knock-offs and tacky trends. I’m here to help those in need to decipher the good from the ugly, so stay tuned for some hot fashion tips.