A Vintage Affair

So a few weeks ago I was at Target scouring the shelves of books for a good one to read when I came across one such book with a voluminous red dress on the front of it. A Vintage Affair, I read by Isabel Wolff, "hhmm that sounds interesting" I thought to myself. I naturally picked up the book due to the alluring title and the color of the lovely dress, and read the back of the book.

It's about this woman who leaves her job to open a vintage clothing store in London. To her "you're not just buying fabric and thread-- you're buying a piece of someone's past." In this story she'll come across one such garment that will change her life forever. She will see a connection between herself and its owner allowing her to heal the pain she has from her own past and will allow her to love again for her future.

Praise for the book:

"Romantic and sumptuous, this is a must for fans of vintage dresses and vintage romance." -Hester Browne

"This colorful new novel has something for everyone, There is mystery, romance, great characters, as well as London and France." -Naples Daily News

"Deftly blends past and present, romance and mystery, and a theme of forgiveness and redemption." -Mary Kincaid

Reading this book really made me appreciate vintage clothing much more than I ever have. It made me see the clothes as more than a piece of worn down fabric that was a little frayed at the edges. It made me regard vintage clothing as a story, it made me realize that it has so much more to offer than just a timeless outfit, or a piece of cloth. The book was very well written and the language with which Isabel described the scenes of her story were just... mouth watering. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in fashion, there is much more to it than just the modern brand new clothing scene on the runway, fashion has character, fashion can tell a story.

"Every dress has a history. And so does every woman."  

Vogue, July: Emma Watson!

Oh my goodness! I got my Vogue magazine in the mail a few weeks ago, and I was delighted to see Emma Watson on the cover!

She deserves it! She's a wonderful role model and it seems as though she's balancing school and her acting career well. I have not yet read any articles in the magazine as I am saving it for July, once I start reading, its hard to put it down until I've finished the whole magazine.

Anyways, I knew we would see more from Emma, and here she is on the cover of American Vogue! This girl is going places, can't wait to see more!

Rights of Passage

So as a girl who's journeying her way through learning about the fashion world, I only naturally subscribed to Vogue. Pretty much the fashion magazine of all fashion magazines I would say. 

Anyways in this months issue (June) I was leafing through its wonderfully glossy pages and read the Up Front and Nostalgia columns. I really enjoyed them. Both individuals (women) went through, I guess you could call it, a Right of Passage, as everyone does. For some reason both stories spoke to me. Maybe it was because the first one (Up Front) was about a girl, Gully Wells, moving to France, and practically living on the beach, and having a seemingly magical life, and one day she meets a boy. It may have been the wrong guy, but it was a guy whom she shared her right of passage with (if you catch my drift).

"I, on the other hand, had been transformed. Surely everybody could tell just by looking at me? I lay down on a towel and began replaying scenes inside my head, amazed and thrilled by my own nerve." 

The second, is about a woman, Julia Glass, who shunned fashion. After years of having people tell her how beautiful she was and looking endlessly at fashion magazines, she realized something, "When those models made eye contact beyond the page, it wasn't with me; it was with someone male standing behind me." After that she dressed as much against the grain as she possibly could. Julia's right of passage came about while at an exhibition of Norman Parkinson's. As she gazed at a photo of a female model, for the first time, "That smile, half obscured, turned away from the light, says not 'Choose me' but, rather, 'I choose myself'." Soon after this realization, "I began to dress as I had never dressed before: to please myself." Her right of passage came in the form of a picture, a picture that reminded her of the happiness one obtains when dressing for oneself and nobody else. 

Trend Watch: Red Shorts

Summertime is officially here! And with it, I am delivering you a new trend! Red shorts!

I love this trend and I'm going to buy myself a pair of red shorts! Red is my favorite color, and I think this is a really fun way to wear it other than on my shirt or sweaters.

Their are many different ways you can wear red shorts. Here are just a few:

Look great with a bold pattern on top!

Pair your red shorts with something blue

Pair your shorts with a top that has
red embellishments 

You can wear red and black. Always a
show stopper.

You can dress up your red shorts with a
flowing shirt.

Beat the Summer heat with red shorts! Have fun with your look! 

All photos courtesy of teenvogue.com 

Trend Watch: Tribal Print

One of the Summer's hottest trends this year is tribal print!

Tribal designed pieces are a fun way to add color, patter, and a certain level of interest to any outfit. Tribal patterns are just as versatile as stripes are. You can wear it on your shoes, shorts, shirts, dresses, bags, anything. Just remember, don't wear to much at once!

Alexander McQueen

Jimmy Choo

This summer trend is sure to heat up your summer wardrobe, so give it a try, and as always, have fun with it!

Fashion Icon: Hailee Steinfeld

This young starlet has made her way onto the Hollywood scene with her stunning role of Mattie Ross in True Grit. She has attended several award shows due to her grand success, and has many a times found herself on Best Dressed Lists. There is no doubt this young 14 year old starlet has remarkable fashion sense.

In May 2011 Miu Miu announced that she would be the new face of their Ad Campaign. Hailee is set to play the role of Juliet Capulet in Carlo Carei's newest rendition of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. I look forward to seeing many fabulous new ensembles and movies from Hailee Steinfeld.

Below are some of my favorite Hailee Steinfeld looks! Enjoy, I've got a feeling she'll be around for a while (:

Prada

Calvin Klein

Marchesa

Marc Jacobs

Miu Miu

Stella McCartney 

Stella McCartney