General Fashion (Page 4)

I hate to say it, but John Galliano’s haute couture collections for Christian Dior have been a bit repetitive over the past few seasons. The clothes have always been suitably beautiful and ornate, of course, but I left the last collection unsure if I had seen anything particularly interesting or memorable. Well. That certainly wasn’t a problem I had with Christian Dior Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2010.

Perhaps it’s a result of the collection’s clear inspiration, but these completely gorgeous, pitch-perfect flower-themed dresses won’t be leaving my head any time soon. The collection is exuberant, vibrant and bold while still maintaining an obvious femininity and softness, which is a combination of characteristics that makes for utterly modern romantic dressing. Haute couture may be out of reach for nearly everyone, but here’s hoping that this aesthetic filters down the fashion ranks for the rest of us very quickly. The best looks, after the jump.

In December of 2009 I was introduced to PaperFashion. It was love at first sight.
Katie Rodgers, the illustrator behind the site, fuses her love of fashion with her skilled artistic touch to create one-of-a-kind watercolor pieces. Her work is unlike anything I had seen before, and I was immediately drawn to it. After I saw her pieces, I also learned she does customize art. We wanted to add a fresh new touch to PurseBlog, whether it be on our Twitter page, Facebook Page, website, or all of the above, and Katie was perfect for the job.

Katie came up with two original PurseBlog illustrations combining our logo along with a fashion sketch. Check out what Katie of PaperFashion came up with and tell us your favorite!

I know I am not alone in complaining about my lack of closet space and desire for a much larger closet to organize my handbags and wardrobe. Every one of you reading this website may have felt this way at one point before (or still feel that way).

Tracy Hutson is one of the original style consultants on the show Extreme Makeover Home Edition. And she was always one of my favorites, pulling together finishing touches to give the transformed homes the “homey” feeling while remaining completely stylish. Tracy has teamed up with QVC to release a line of home accent pieces, the Love Where You Live Collection, to integrate her style into items for your home. Luckily, I was able to chat with Tracy Hutson on how to keep a tidy closet. Read her tips and thoughts below!

A common complaint among women is lack of closet space, not everyone has a Carrie Bradshaw closet. What simple steps can be taken to make the most out of your closet space?

Tracy: Who wouldn’t want to have CB’s closet! There are several things that can help achieve maximum closet space. Take a look at where your problem areas are. Are your clothes so packed in it’s hard to see what you have? Doubling your hanging rods is easy and inexpensive. Is your coveted shoe collection taking over the floor? Adding extra shelving always comes in handy to display the goods. The Photo on the box trick is a must! It really does save a lot of time and heartache. Also, storing your last season’s clothes elsewhere really frees up a ton of space. A friend in New York swears by the space bags, found at spacebag.com – genius! Just slide those sweaters and pea-coats under your bed until next winter! Also, hangers are a great space saver if they are all the same they fit nicely together. My faves are the bamboo hangers at bgreenhangers.com.

For about three minutes in my life, I was under the impression that Carine Roitfeld, Editor-in-Chief of French Vogue, loved PurseBlog. That ended up being short-lived, for after Carine Roitfeld followed us on Twitter, she quickly unfollowed. Clearly it was a follow mishap. The mouse-clicked-on-the-wrong-button kind of follow.

You see, having a designer, editor, or important person follow you on Twitter means they take a liking to what you and your tweets have to offer (that is unless they follow anyone that follows them, which I never understand). For one short second I thought, “WOW, Carine Roitfeld loves us!” There was a lot of excitement. Carine is only following a select handful of people, and somehow, by accidental mouse clicking, we became one of them. I’ll take an accidental follow from one of the most influential women in the fashion industry any day.

You know, I am not really sure what to say here… and that rarely happens. So, let me see what I can conjure up given the fact that my mind is suffering from various states of confusion.

As I was catching up on some news (as well as daily celeb gossip), I came across a tidbit of information that I *HAD* to share with you all. Lindsay Lohan is planning on breaking into the handbag world. And no, I am not talking about her discussing the various expensive handbags she owns. Instead, I am talking about Lindsay designing handbags of her own.

If you are anything like me, you need to reflect on this a little bit.

After the faux-fur-on-ice (literally) escapades of Chanel’s Fall/Winter 2010 collection, it was hard to predict the direction in which Karl Lagerfeld would go for his next collection, Chanel Cruise 2011. Well, after the collection’s presentation in Saint-Tropez, we know that Kaiser Karl has his mind planted firmly in the Riviera of the 60s and 70s. Models arrived to the show by speedboat and Georgia May Jagger, daughter of Mick, graced the runways to give the show some retro cred (it also doesn’t hurt that Georgia May looks like Brigitte Bardot. Startlingly so.)

The clothes recreated the era fantastically, even though a few pieces would probably have best been left in the time period from whence they came. Most of them, however, were a welcome contrast to the version of the 60s that graced fall runways – tailored, traditional, neutral. The flowing, flowered caftans, jumpsuits and crocheted overlays had a distinct flower-child appeal, and they look utterly appropriate for the cruise crowd: airy, light and perfect for the deck of a yacht. If you like what you see, order early, though – the Kate Hudsons of the world will likely buy the entire collection out from under you.

First of all: oops. I goofed. Between having surgery and trying to keep up with the various global Fashion Weeks for a month, I forgot to write about one of the biggest handbag brands in the world, Prada. My bad. So let’s pretend like we’re still in the thick of Milan Fashion Week and discuss went went on at the Prada show, ok? Please, no one tell Miuccia that we’re late.

I’m always relatively down on Prada bags, mostly because I think that the brand makes enough money and has enough creative ability to do way better. They make great basics, but beyond that, things tend to go a little off the rails. I’d link you to some of those examples, but you probably already know what I’m talking about all too well. Well, it looks like I’m going to be a lot happier with the brand in six months’ time, and hopefully that means that you all will be too.

Instead of the transparent vinyl and questionably bedazzled closures that we saw from the brand’s last major collection, this line of bags was much more subdued and mature. There were three types on display: first, a small shoulder bag in patent leather with contrasting trim at the strap and closure, with lines that were reminiscent of the 60s aesthetic that we saw throughout most of the major collections. Then there were a few non-leather satchels in muted multicolor prints. Finally, the best bags of the show were hewn of sumptuous woven leather, proving once and for all that it’s possible to do high-end weaving without aping Bottega Veneta. Sign me up for one of those immediately, if not sooner.

Alright, feel free to go back to remembering that Milan Fashion Week ended like two weeks ago.