Few things get me quite excited as trim shopping.

xx

…he made dreadlocks look expensive. 

5 Lessons On Festive Dressing from Chanel Pre-Fall 2012:

1. Festive, luxe color combos: Gold x white, Gold x Turquoise, Gold x Magenta, Gold x Gold.

2. Metallic jewelry is best applied in highly concentrated, intense clusters (ie: a massive destroyed cuff bracelet that link to rings, or a dramatic headpiece worn over a casual hair-do).

3. Embellished ivory motorcycle gloves with the finger tips cut off (sounds like a fun DIY project, don’t it?!) can turn an evening look into something fit for a futuristic badass bollywood starlet.

4. Dark, dramatic eyes & pink lips look amazing with pearls and champagne-metallic textiles.

5. Ankle jewelry x harem pants under a long coat or skirt creates a royal, bohemian summer look that you can adapt with any color (and interpret in super light fabrics like breezy linens).

More full looks from the collection below:

Side note: While I don’t think verbatim, by-the-book silhouettes and direct references are a good reason to ruffle your feathers when critiquing something as potentially imaginative as high fashion, Karl did say one thing about this collection that I found pretty odd re: sourcing his inspiration.

He said he’d (purposely) never been to India, and that he thought it was better not to go somewhere when you’re designing a collection inspired by a geographic destination. I would have to strongly disagree. If I had as much money as Karl, I would be using it to get as up close and personal to the source of the inspiration as I could, especially India! Those textiles! That film industry! Are you kidding me?

None the less, this is probably my favorite Chanel collection, ever. So hats off to the iconic Mr. Lagerfeld. And I do hope he gets himself to India someday.

xx

And who will guard the gorgeous loot from predators and jealous friends?

Yes, my army of dazzling nutcracker princes and kings and soldiers. Only a fool craving a glittery demise would dare lay a hand on my new wooden beaded necklaces.

HO ho ho ho hoooooooooo—!!

xx

1. Jewel Tones. These are your winter fashion weapons. Know them and use them.

2. Metallics. While metallics can be added to your look any time of year, they become especially effective and even subconsciously applauded by your peers when you work them in during the cold months. It reminds one of glistening ice, snow, Xmas lights, etc.

3. Florals. Stick to folk-arty and Nordic looking prints when you do florals in the winter. When all else fails, a floral brocade scarf can amp up your attire (try the street vendors near Columbus Circle if you live in NYC, that’s where I got this one).

4. Indian wedding jewelry. I wear it all year round and I consider it an absolute essential for a holiday party. I bought the one shown here for $2 at a flea market (and no, it’s not plastic). Check ebay for some relatively cheap jewels that probably won’t last more than a couple of years, but will definitely beat the Forever21 jump-off’s your friends are wearing.

5. Furry winter accessories. I love my earmuffs so much I can’t even write about it. But you can see them below.

Bonus points for purple contact lenses and jeweled earrings.

Overdone? A bit. Festive? Yes, that’s the point! Have fun with what you wear, especially during the holidays. These photos were taken of my outfit to Xmas dinner. I laughed a little at myself for being decked out like a jewel-toned Xmas present, but if there’s ever a time to compare yourself to something like that, it’s during the holidays and into the winter season. ;}

I’m excessive, I’m super into jewels and colors, and here’s something I’ve learned after studying & working in fashion, obsessing over what was cool and oppressing my natural tendency to dress a little bit more gaudy than everyone else (which was lame as hell):

Have fun with everything you do, everything you wear, everyone you know. Enjoy yourself. Be festive, let go, dress up, wear costume jewelry, go a little over the top, saturate yourself with color, stick a feather in your hat, wear something because it calls to you and not because you think it’ll give you style street cred.

Life is so much more amazing if your heart is light and you’re having a good time, whether you are wearing six inch platform heels and a designer jumpsuit or a hand-sewn frock and some beat up old lady shoes with hand-glued gems on them.

When the clothes on your back match what’s in your soul, “fashion” becomes so much more interesting, and so much more exciting to explore and experiment with.

After all, it’s about creativity and self-expression, and finding out what colors, shapes, textures, and concepts make you feel like a god damn superstar, isn’t it? Are you really going to shrivel up and die if no one stops you for a street style photo when you’re walking around the city? Do you really need to worry about whether your outfit is “style blog worthy”?

Maybe if you work in fashion, that’s part of your work uniform, and that’s totally fine.

I’m not saying put on a clown costume, down a bottle of champagne, and hit the street. I’m saying shred your jeans if you want to, wear as much jewelry or pop-color lipstick as you want to, do your hair in an out-of-date style if you love that style. Have fun, have fun, have fun. Wear whatever the hell you want.

I promise that this is the only way to feel cosmically right with yourself when you get dressed every day.

That’s enough of my soap box for tonight!

xx

But I wanted to post some of the denim reviews I’ve done recently, and my trip to the Siwy Denim showroom. Click the photos to go through to the review.

d.brand acid wash skinny jeans

Doctrine Jeans high-waisted dark wash skinny jeans

Fidelity Denim‘s Ace skinny jeans

Grey Tube Kelly Nudie Jeans

Moussy NY Chemical Blue Wash skinny jeans

Henry & Belle Ideal Super Skinny Ankle Jeans

The Siwy Denim showroom delivered on the unspoken Siwy promise of amazing denim shorts. I was drooling over these peach and mint green bleached cut-off’s. In the way of legit sex appeal, Siwy has it down.

Lastly, the Denim Therapy x d.brand holiday party we threw last December at Space 350. We displayed the blogger’s favorite picks from the spring ’12 line and did a whole lot of cocktail-enhanced mingling. I ran into Whalen Bryce, with whom I worked earlier this year on a killer photoshoot (I never did post the final cuts of that shoot, did I!), and some other fashion-friends I adore. A lovely way to start out the holiday season.

(All photos by Raffael Flores-Contreras.)

In honor of the PROJECT trade show kicking off Monday, here are back-links to some of our content from PROJECT over the summer. We had so much fun with The Denim Guy & all the creative minds there. I may also run by the Capsule show (which is always a little more bohemian) and cover cool brand there too. Stay tuned!

⇒ Ones To Watch: Five Men’s Denim Brands We Loved At PROJECT NY

⇒ PROJECT New York Style Roundup, Part 1

⇒ PROJECT New York Style Roundup, Part 2

⇒ Nudie Jeans Reps Eco-Conscious Denim At Project

⇒ PROJECT Show SnapshotsDay 1: Tattoos, Cool Socks & Fruit

⇒ Our Top 10 Favorite PROJECT Show Moments

⇒ PROJECT NY: See The Madness Through Our Eyes In This Wrap-up Video

xx

1. Marc by Marc Jacobs skinny jeans ($228) – buy it at Shopbop.

2. Wildfox Couture Stag Baggy Beach Jumper in Dirty White ($123) – buy it at Shop The Trend.

3. By Malene Birger Nasitta chunky-knit wool scarf ($225) – buy it at Net-A-Porter.

4. Betsey Johnson Lleela Combat Boot ($170) – buy it at Betsey Johnson.

5. House of Harlow 1960 14KT Gold Large Feather Row Cuff ($110) – buy it at Shop The Trend.

1. Joe’s Jeans The Skinny Colored jean ($160) – buy it at Far Fetch.

2. ACNE Jade crop cable knit ($363) – buy  it at My Wardrobe.

3. Kelsi Dagger Abrielle – Yellow Suede ($130) – buy it at Heels.com.

4. Dries Van Noten Bracelet Set ($345) – buy it at My Theresa.

5. D&G Sheer Lace Top ($145) – buy it at The Outnet.

1. J Brand Denim 912 low-rise skinny jeans ($66) – buy it at The Outnet.

2. Silver Foil Printed Jumper ($64) – buy it at Miss Selfridge.

3. Giuseppe Zanotti Amber Wedge Boots ($525) – buy it at Ssense.

4. Yochi Design Statement Earring In Hematite/Gold ($60) – buy it at Otte.

5. OPI Urban Ballerina collection in “Leotard Optional” ($9.50) – buy it at Sephora.

Original post.

While we’re on the topic of denim, here’s what I’ve been up to at DT:

With Love, From Sweden: Three Fresh Denim Street Style Looks

Denim Therapy At PROJECT NY

Inside Denim Manufacturer Edwin Japan’s Well-Oiled Methods

Street Style: Denim Shorts x Tights

Wishlisted: The Dakota Dark-Wash Denim Jacket

Mother Denim Spring 2012 Showroom Preview

Throwback: The Ugly 90s Denim Round-Up

Would You Wear Glittery Purple Jeans (Post-NYE)?

Top 9 Pairs Of Jeans To Party In!

Rag & Bone Do Skinny Jeans In Metallic Pastels

More later, have a date with an old school trolley bus, a soviet hat, and a hot Ukrainian DJ!  Happy Saturday…

xx

Time is like a dream / And now, for a time, you are mine /Let’s hold fast to the dream / That tastes and sparkles like wine

It’s getting colder, NYC… here are some links to warm you up:

→ The Glamourai’s trip to Malibu turned out some beautiful photos.

→ Straight up Americana ghost town. In Japan.

→ Camping is already awesome, but camping in a tent like this is even more awesome.

→ You’re stellar.

→ Favorite three photos right now: one, two, three.

→ Grimy New York looks cuter through Betty’s lens.

–

I hope, I hope, I hope, I hope it snows soon.

xx

“My New Year’s Eve Toast: to all the devils, lusts, passions, greeds, envies, loves, hates, strange desires, enemies ghostly and real, the army of memories, with which I do battle — may they never give me peace.” —Patricia Highsmith

Last night I dreamt of trying to survive an air raid in Ireland. I was riding in the back of a truck that hit a man and killed him, but we couldn’t stop or we’d be blown to pieces. We drove by aerialists scaling buildings ten stories in the air, and diving off. I still can’t shake the hollow, morbid feeling I woke up with.

I’ve been busy, but I wanted to share some scraps of NYE and recent festive nights/days. New year’s eve itself was a glorious series of drunken festive outbursts, confetti-flinging, kimono-wearing, circle-dancing and psychotic welcoming of  2012. I didn’t take many photos, which is really, really rare. But that’s how much fun I was having.

My brother’s girlfriend, in my purple wig. I love her more than I can blog about.

Post-NYE this and that.

Waiting for the Court Square 7. Ran into an old friend in this station that day. Completely random, and so awesome. He and I and one other old friend used to lay in the campus green at our former university reading each other’s short stories and screen plays and being theatrically scholastic. He also used to sing Morrissey songs to us, because he sounds exactly like Morrissey except one octave lower.

A small poorly-filmed sample of the above event—I was swept underground for a night of jazz and cabaret in various locations around the city by a friend whose knowledge of talent (new and old) in a wide range of musical genres blows my mind every time I see him. This night was one of the reasons 2012 started off with such promise. I met Sol Yaged himself and he gifted me a CD.

Mirrors on the wall at Sarah Caye’s apartment, where I dropped off clothes for a photo shoot today. I didn’t stay to help style due to flu-like symptoms that decided to drop by this morning when I woke up.

A new vintage top. It’s rare you see a sequined top like this that isn’t incredibly ugly. This one is begging to be worn with cut-off shorts and a big furry hat.

Our Xmas tree. Before we decorated it. I promise to post our Xmas photos soon. I ended up taking so many that the task of sorting them and posting them has been too heavy an undertaking to get around to.

Finally, H&M mannequins wearing pastry-like colors. Yum.

More later… time for ginger & honey tea and an evening nap.

xx

Do you know what night does?
Night separates lovers from strangers.
Tonight with the full moon in my house
The moon is passionate. I am mad.

- Jalal-ud-Din Rumi
(Translated by Andrew Harvey from A Year of Rumi)

Happy New Year!

xx

▬▬ஜ۩۞۩ஜ▬▬

A glass of wine tipped over on my laptop keyboard.

▬▬ஜ۩۞۩ஜ▬▬

(Somewhere in a far off land, a blogger just passed out and fell off their chair.)

While I was lightning fast drying it/removing what I could of the vino spray, the impact is starting to show hours later. The “Print Screen” button is acting as the “Page Up” button. The arrow keys create random symbols while sending the cursor in the specified direction. The space bar needs to be pressed violently to achieve a space, and in general, the entire array of keys are becoming exponentially sticky and awful.

So, does anyone know how to clean a laptop keyboard without destroying it completely?  (Haha)

Anyway, my problems are not yours to suffer, so as a gift for reading them, I present you some photos of the Nutcracker Ballet playing on our not-exactly-modern TV (photos of the TV are one of my favorite misunderstood mediums). It looks like a pixelated, screwed up Nintendo game. Would have been the best game ever!

George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker, at the New York City Ballet (broadcast Wednesday, December 14 at 8 p.m. on THIRTEEN).

This makes me slightly nostalgic for the days when this blog was called “Tchaikovsky Darling”.

xx