The Littlest Dot

Although I am still waiting for summer to begin, we are about to make way for August. I find myself excitedly looking towards Fall Fashion. It’s hard not to when there are such great pieces coming from so many designers. These gloves from Furla caught my eye in a magazine the other day and I fell for them immediately.

I love the proportions! The little glove, the little dot, the tiny elastic hem at the opening, all in rich bronze metallic leather. They’re classic and ladylike without being quiet and traditional . I am going to hold on to them and wear with a leather bomber when the first Autumn breezes start blowing.

Do It Yourself

Ah, behold the fruits of my labor from an hour at the kitchen table over the weekend. Aren’t they grand?

My pristine little white tennis shoes have been calling to me all summer long, dec-o-rate me, de-co-rate meeeee. I had entertained several ideas for customizing them but nothing seemed to feel quite right. Nothing, that is, until I came across this sensational pair on Style Bubble. Susie always finds the coolest things, I don’t know how she does it.

Ah, behold the fruits of my labor from an hour at the kitchen table over the weekend. Aren’t they grand?

My pristine little white tennis shoes have been calling to me all summer long, dec-o-rate me, de-co-rate meeeee. I had entertained several ideas for customizing them but nothing seemed to feel quite right. Nothing, that is, until I came across this sensational pair on Style Bubble. Susie always finds the coolest things, I don’t know how she does it.

Special thanks to Andy for taking the photos, who knew I had a professional-level photographer living right here under the same roof!

Red, Red, Red

I have noticed a string of all-red looks on the runway lately and I absolutely love them.

Red has always been one of my favorite colors. It is spunky and powerful and totally dramatic. It is the preferred color of fashion designers for evoking high glamour and brings to mind fame and spectacle (the red carpet, come on).

Now we see that red carries the same amount of pizazz when worn in separates. There is a sexy-as-hell, devil may care attitude to these looks that I just adore. I wish I was wearing all red right now.

Left to right: Gucci Spring 2009 via Style.com, Lanvin Resort 2010 via Style.com , Sofia Hedstrom via The Sartorialist, all red look via Ten Magazine Spring 09

Harestooth

Houndstooth is definitely a big trend for Fall. I have seen so much of it featured in magazines recently, my eyes are buzzing from all of the black and white graphic patterns.

I happen to love houndstooth. It has an old world classic appeal that can transport you back into another time (though always set in misty England for some reason) while still looking very modern and chic. It also plays so well into the feminine/masculine back and forth happening in fashion right now.

I fear with its current trendiness, I may tire of seeing houndstooth everywhere over the next few months. Before I do get oversaturated and throw every houndstooth item I own into a box at the back of the closet, here is an original print I did a while back. It is a houndstooth made of bunnies called Harestooth. Hope you like it.

Reduce, Reduce

Lately when leaving the house I have been known to be somewhat forgetful, leaving my keys, phone wallet or all of the above behind. I worry my boyfriend finds this a lame attempt at getting a free coffee or meal out of him when my motivations are quite different. In truth, I just don’t want to carry my handbag.

Don’t get me wrong, I love my collection of slouchy, oversized bags that hold everything I could ever want or need for my day. I just don’t want to carry all that extra baggage around anymore (and really who does, right?). Small is the new big and my favorite is the little crossbody pocketbook. Any one of these little numbers in black would be perfect for toting around all the necessities without any of the extras. Basic black looks awesome with cool summer tones and you’ll carry it right along into Fall’s edgier fashion.

Clockwise from top: Coach Poppy Patent Groovy Crossbody, Kooba Brett Small Leather Crossbody, Foley and Corinna Disco City Crossbody, Fossil Mini Mini, Marc Jacobs Memphis Robert Debbie

In The Swim

Let the summer begin! The new swimwear collaboration from designers Posso and Costume Department looks so hot I can’t even stand it. Even though the line is meant for lounging by the pool, you have to admit how fabulous any of these suits would look for going out in the city. I would pair with some super high-waisted skinny jeans and gladiator heels or a body-conscious miniskirt. It doesn’t take much to envision myself dancing into the night and being tailed by paparazzi in an outfit like that, something about the look of this line just screams celebrity.

I can’t wait until it goes on sale next month. I’m keeping my eye out for it here.

Bompas & Parr

I have wanted to write about Bompas & Parr since they stole my heart away in a New York Times article earlier this summer. In addition to being cute as hell, this English team devises such wonderful tricks with their culinary treats that you wonder where Mother got her crazy idea about not playing with your food.  She was clearly missing out on all the fun.

On a mission to ressurect Jell-o from the abyss of long-forgotten novelty fare (marshmallow fluff anyone?) this two-man team has pushed the jiggly dessert to its furthest limits. From painstakingly rendered architectural models to color-coordinated, multi-tiered displays, they have elevated it from forgotten food to an attention-grabbing work of art. One you can not only touch but also consume and–with flavors like Elderflower Jelly with Strawberries and, Courvosier and Blackcurrant Jelly–you’ll be more than excited to do so.

White Dress / Black Belt

Sometimes you see someone who just gets everything right and you want to remember their look forever. The Sartorialist has been catching these folks on film for a while now and has many followers. Here is my own illustrated nod toward some great street style:

While riding the subway home the other day I happened to glance up from my reading in time to spot this girl as she was disembarking the train. I loved her look, it was totally chic without the slightest bit of effort. My favorite part was her feminine white dress with a long black piece of ribbon (it might have been a shoelace) wrapped around her waist several times and tied in a bow. It was just the right amount of contrast between pretty and edgy and so easy to do for yourself.

Further encouraged by the just-right summer tan I have developed from walking all over the city in tank tops, I pulled together a few of my favorite white summer dresses from the web. Now it’s up to you to supply the black ribbon…

Clockwise from top: Built By Wendy, Urban Outfitters, Splendid (via Shopbop), Elizabeth and James (via Shopbop) and Zucca (via Creatures of Comfort)

New Site

Welcome to my new site! I have been working all weekend on setting up my very own .com! Although I am nowhere near finished, this new layout will give you an idea of how I hope the blog will evolve over time.

Future plans include the addition of a blogroll, gallery pages for both illustrations and patterns as well as (eventually) an entirely new and original layout and (someday) a little e-shop selling limited edition pieces. My current blog layout is an adapted version of Textback, a theme developed by Amy & Pink. Check out their other cool WordPress themes here.

As I have said in the past, html is a strange and new language for me so please accept my apologies if links do not work properly and for layout any layout glitches that pop up.

Thanks for reading!

xoxo

Bows

I realize that I quite recently described myself as not a girly girl. While I do believe this to be true, I must claim one exception to the rule. I like bows. In fact I like them quite a bit. A bow is one of those classic shapes that always looks good. While they are undoubtedly feminine, bows also convey a wide range of personalities. An old family friend has worn a little silver bow-shaped barrette in her hair for as long as I have known her (more than 20 years) and it suits her so well even now, for me it has become a part of her character.

Designers love bows too. While bows are never really a big trend to speak of, every spring/summer season there is a new take on this standby favorite. Sometimes its floppy or stringy, sometimes diaphanous or chiffon. This summer I am noticing structured bows that are built into the overall architecture of the piece. They are big and attention-grabbing and I like them very much. But, as I guess I already told you, I just have a thing for bows.

Clockwise from top left: Ban.do necklace, Urban Outfitters bag, Marc by Marc Jacobs ring, Giambattista Valli belt, Tibi mini skirt, Jeffrey Campbell sandals.