Trending: Hand Chain Jewelry

July 31, 2014

Image Source: Luv AJ
Why purchase a ring and a bracelet when one item can do the trick?

I've been noticing more and more hand chains when I browse online shopping websites, and I must say I do like them. Like the recent resurgence of the anklet, the hand chain harkens back to a bohemian jewelry style that is making a comeback as of late.

Hand chains are edgy and dainty all at the same time. They are delicate in that they are composed of thin metal chains, but the overall look of a hand chain is completely unique.

One could wear a simple LBD and elevate her cool factor by adding a cool hand chain as her key accessory. I wouldn't try to upstage such a unique piece of jewelry with loud prints—that is, if you want your cool new trendy jewelry to be the center of attention.

Personally I feel that hand chains look their best when they are worn alone, rather than mixed with additional pieces of jewelry. If you insist on having a hand/arm party a la The Man Repeller, then I would suggest mixing and matching rings and bracelets on the other arm. Additionally, the hand chain is definitely a piece for a night out, though it would be just as cool to wear it unexpectedly during the day with a casual look. Hold onto a cool clutch or a sleek iPhone case and you'll be sure to draw plenty of attention to your new bling.

SHOP HAND CHAINS:

Red Carpet Crush: Nicola Peltz

July 30, 2014

Louis Vuitton | Stella McCartney + Dolce & Gabbana | Prada | Balenciaga | Stella McCartney | Balmain
I am typically drawn to rising actresses who have both fantastic fashion tastes and talent to spare, but every once in a while a new celebrity will stun with her red carpet looks alone that watching her films isn’t necessarily required to love her personality and style.

Such is the case with Nicola Peltz, the star of the latest Transformers film. Needless to say I have little to no interest in watching Transformers (I saw the first one and was lost about 30 minutes in between all the explosions and the talking robots and less-than-stellar plot, so I think I will pass on the latest installment) and though I did see her in the horrendous film adaptation of Avatar: The Last Airbender, I can't say I blame her for the utter failure of that movie—but I also can't say I was particularly stunned by her performance.

That being said, however, I have been blown away with Peltz’s tremendous red carpet looks. She may be relatively new to the scene but she has already donned some serious designers, including a Giambattista Valli Couture dress at the Shanghai premiere of Transformers: Age Of Extinction, along with a handful of looks from Prada, Stella McCartney, and Dior.

Peltz has been leaning towards white for a lot of her premiere world tour, and tends to let beautiful, solid-colored gowns do the talking, though every once in a while she'll surprise in a just-as-fashionable all-over print, like her Louis Vuitton look. Her gorgeous golden hair is usually straight and her makeup is never overwhelming, but she always looks beautiful and every bit the young Hollywood starlet.

Hopefully Peltz’ successes will continue and I can see her in a film that interests me more, but until then I will simply admire her stunning red carpet style.

What do you think of Nicola Peltz’s red carpet style?

The Practical Shoe You Should Be Wearing

July 25, 2014

Source: Elle
A good pair of flats can change everything. I love my high heels and boots as much as the next fashion-obsessed girl, but size ten feet that have undergone surgery can only stand so much pain, which is why an arsenal of flat shoes is essential to looking stylish and feeling comfortable. 

The espadrille flat is a perfect summer shoe, and a flat one at that! Now I know, summer is slowly winding down and everyone is looking for boots and coats at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale, but when you live in a region such as Los Angeles where it is only now feeling like summer, climate-wise, and where it will feel like summer through September, you have time left to invest in a few key summer-centric items. 

Besides, I firmly believe that summer will come again (in less than a year!) and so even if your espadrille flats get little use this season I know that you will appreciate your smart purchase come next May.

The flat espadrille slip-on is the quintessential shoe choice for the woman looking to escape to the French Riviera or the woman who wishes to appear as if she is escaping to the French Riviera. It’s like a more stylish version of the currently popular slip-on sneaker. 

Perhaps the most popular espadrille is the Chanel iteration, but for those of us who can’t drop hundreds on a pair of flimsy everyday shoes, fear not! There is an espadrille for every girl, including you!

FROM TOP: Splendid | STEVEN By Steve Madden | Rag & Bone | Tabitha Simmons | Elyse Walker

How To Dress Like A Modern Lady

July 24, 2014

Image Source: Lee Oliveira
I've always been fond of the style of the 50s and 60s. The full skirts, the strands of pearls, the glamorous beauty looks—it's all quite feminine and fun. I've come around to the minimalist tendencies of today's fashion but every once in a while it's nice to see that some people still appreciate a good full midi skirt. 

Normcore is great and all, but nothing beats the feminine style of The Modern Lady.

One | Two | Three
What are the essential pieces for the modern lady? A pair of chic sunglasses adds an air of mystery to any ensemble, while a structured handbag keeps all her personal things tidy. She prefers her hemlines long and her neck adorned with classic pearls. She is sophisticated and captivating due to her classic style.

Get the look of the modern mid-century marvel for yourself!

How To Look Like A Badass In One Easy Step

July 23, 2014

Image Source: Stockholm Street Style
The leather jacket is like a girl scout vest for cool kids. You wear a leather jacket and people automatically understand that you are awesome. And who doesn't want to be regarded as awesome by total strangers?

For a while leather jackets had a wrong-side-of-the-tracks connotation, and when I saw one I would think of some greaser rolling up to school on a motorcycle, the kind of cool dude who hates math and wants to fix cars for a living. No thank you.

But nowadays leather jackets are more off-duty French model than 50s bad boy, and I couldn't be happier! The other day I even saw a blog post about how to wear your leather jacket to brunch. And you know how we LA girls love our brunch! So I thought, why not give it a try and embrace a leather jacket?

One thing to remember: a leather jacket is an investment piece. Leather is expensive, so if you aren't making millions off your iPhone app like Kim Kardashian, I would suggest finding a classic leather jacket in either brown or black. If you want a fun, colorful option, vegan leather is obviously cheaper. Plus, it's gotten pretty advanced in terms of texture, making it look just as luxurious as real leather.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: One | Two | Three | Four

The Eccentric Ones: Giambattista Valli Fall 2014 Couture

July 16, 2014

The best fashion collections always seem to stem from the simple idea of representing the life of a girl through clothing. I love being able to picture a woman living her life in a fantastic and eccentric wardrobe, as was the case with the Giambattista Valli fall 2014 couture collection.

Models walked the runway with thick white scarves wrapped in whimsical bows around their heads and round sunglasses shielding their eyes. They had a mid-century air to them, as if they were fashionable housewives who had escaped to the Spanish Mediterranean coast for some much-needed rest and relaxation.

Giambattista Valli on his fall 2014 couture collection (via style.com/image source)
Valli dressed his eccentric women in stripes, florals, and every other print in between. These girls don't care if their outfits are bold and loud; to be honest, they prefer it that way. They aren't attention-seekers, they just happen to find the spotlight focused on them. They love to garden and may or may not train parrots to speak passages of Hemingway. They are unique without apology (as it should be) and we love it.

I love that Valli allows his designs to be unabashedly feminine and strong. A full-skirted floral dress is as statement-making as it is girly, and the same woman who has an affinity for old-fashion florals can also rock the room in a killer lavender fur coat with exaggerated shoulders. The Valli girl really doesn't care about normcore or if she's trendy or even if she attracts men with her outfits (I hope Leandra Medine enjoyed this collection as much as I did!) She dresses for herself, celebrates herself with her fashion choices, and if you don't like it you can GTFO.


The quartet of colorful feathered gowns that finished the show were absolute showstoppers. In an increasingly minimalist fashion climate, it's nice to see that a colorful princess skirt can still capture the hearts of so many. These dresses were possibly the looks of couture week. I mean really, who can resist the allure of vibrant ruffle skirts, let alone four of them side-by-side? Even if you don't fall for a full skirt so easily, you can still marvel in the sheer manpower required to create such magnificent ballgowns. 

I don't know who I trust to rock these gowns on the red carpet, but boy I hope someone has the guts to do so. These gowns deserve to be seen and admired by all.

Lindsey's Picks: Nordstrom Anniversary Sale

July 11, 2014

I live for the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale, not gonna lie. It's a sale where new items are introduced at a lower price before being raised to their regular retail price, aka the best kind of sale. Sure, you have to be a bit of a planner to be purchasing boots and coats in the hot July heat, but $100 off an Equipment sweater is totally worth having to wait a while to actually wear it.

Here are my favorite pieces from the sale:

Steve Madden Boots // Wildfox Couture Sunglasses // Equipment Sweater // Rebecca Minkoff Tote
The Anniversary Sale doesn't officially start until the 17th of July, but if you're a Nordstrom cardholder early access is available now! So go ahead, treat yourself to something stylish as we gear up for a fall full of fashion successes.

Outfit Of The Day: Chambray Shirt

July 10, 2014

Urban Outfitters black pleated skirt (Similar HERE)
Madewell sandals
Kelsi Dagger Bag
Tory Burch Sunglasses
Urban Outfitters necklace (Similar HERE)

Oh, chambray button-up, how I love you so. You can be worn unbuttoned as a lightweight jacket, or tied over a bikini and work as a beach cover-up, or you can be tucked into an LBS (little black skirt, of course!) and be worn to work!

Seriously, the possibilities are endless.

Wanted to share my work outfit but was too lazy to make my roommate take pictures of me, so here are the items in collage format. It works just as well, right?

Simple but oh-so-chic, just the way I like it!


Modern Rococo: Christian Dior Fall 2014 Couture

July 9, 2014

image source
Haute couture is a quintessentially French art form, so it makes perfect sense to be inspired by French history and culture when designing up a fantastical couture collection. And really, what is more quintessentially French than the ill-fated Marie Antoinette?

Raf Simons was mainly inspired by two things for his fall 2014 Christian Dior haute couture show: the first being Antoinette; the second, flowers (snow white orchids in particular). In fact, Simons has adopted flowers as muse with the same fervor as Christian Dior himself. This season there were plenty of floral motifs, but they were more muted and less literal than they have been in seasons past. Instead, the historical Rococo era took center stage, as Raf imagined what it would be like if Marie Antoinette was traipsing around Versailles and telling people to eat cake in 2014.

Paniere skirts at Christian Dior Fall 2014 Couture
The show opened with a group of panier-skirted dresses in snow whites, emphasizing the season's inspiration early on. These dresses were the most literally Rococo-inspired pieces of the show, but accents and motifs of the 18th century remained.

There were so many beautiful looks from this collection (as it tends to be with couture shows) but surprisingly my favorite looks were a trio of elaborately beaded and embroidered coats over plain black sweaters and pants. The coats were magnificent, the kind of detailing that can only exist in the world of haute couture, and I love seeing Raf simons—long heralded as a king of minimalism thanks to his previous position at Jil Sander—embracing the fanciful side of couture.

I've been delighted with Raf at Dior thus far, but this collection has quite literally taken the cake as the best yet. You can see that he is growing more confident with designing for an historic fashion house that has a long and rich legacy to uphold.

Of course, the fact that the collection was based on Marie Antoinette doesn't hurt!

Embellished coats and jumpsuits take the cake
What did you think of the Christian Dior Fall 2014 Couture show? 

Multiple Layers

July 7, 2014

Oh Mai Darling | Free People Pinterest
There is a true art to masterful layering, and it is an artform that never ceases to amaze me. A well-layered group of necklaces or a creative pairing of sheer top and lace bralette can transform a dull outfit into a glorious ensemble. Though layering can be challenging at times, the end result is always stunning, which is why I am constantly experimenting with new combinations and mixes.

The Man Repeller
Ross Thomas
Peace Love Shea
Shop Perfect Layering Combinations:


Style Crush: Poppy Delevingne

July 2, 2014

1 | 2 | 3 | 4
Poppy Delevingne is a true style star, with a chameleon-like style that somehow always stays true to her personal style. Sometimes ladylike, sometimes more rock-n-roll, and always delightfully British and prim, the elder Delevingne sister brings an inventive approach to street style fashion wherever she goes, and her looks are just the right balance between innovative and attainable. They are creative, but not so out there that the everyday woman (aka you and I) has no chance of re-creating such looks.

Poppy is one of my current style icons, and I appreciate her ability to flow between different trends and styles. She shows that we don't have to be bogged down by style labels, that you can be preppy one day and bohemian the next, and that it's okay to experiment with fashion and not feel held back by the confines of a personal style label. 

Sometimes even the most stylish of individuals will fall into a style rut of sorts, relying on the designers and outfits that they are comfortable with instead of experimenting with new and exciting things. I love a well-designed fashion "uniform"as much as the next person, but it's nice to break free every once in a while and just have fun with fashion. Poppy Delevingne is one lady who definitely understands the magic of playing with fashion.

Stella McCartney Bag | Miu Miu Sunglasses | Pixie Market Matching Set | Jeffrey Campbell Heels | Marc by Marc Jacobs Denim Skirt | Equipment Blouse