Prad... uh?

Please, this IS true! http://fashionista.com/2010/09/rumor-denied-prada-ceo-was-unhappy-with-the-spring-collection/

I was sooo surprised when I saw the Spring 2011 collection from Prada. Even Lady Gaga wouldn't wear some of these clothes. Some just praised the collection because of the Prada name. However, NY Times Style Section was as disappointed as I was.

DVF designed for hospital gowns, to spread some cheer to hospital patients. Prada, on the other hand, wants us to walk around in scrubs/ jail suits...

Doesn't this scream I just broke out of jail, and desperately tried to look like I didn't by cutting my jump suit into a dress?

Hi, I'm your doctor...

This skirt drives me bananas. I don't even know what's going on, on top...

I'm pretty sure I would rather wear one of those Hawaiian shirts than this. The styling is also off, why would they match red and white shoes with this??

What do you guys think??

Fashionably yours,

Karen xoxo

Bonjour mes amis! C'est le fashion week a Paris!

Obsession of the day: Tommy Tom's Photoblog from style.com

The new trend of wearing socks with heels is becoming more popular. I saw this picture in Tommy Tom of

JakAndJil.com's section covering Milan fashion week.

Could you imagine wearing a clear plastic cape for when it rains? I can't imagine pulling this off, but this girl here makes it look like the most expensive clear plastic! She looks so chic with her oversized hat as well!

I love love lovee this picture. You all know I love to wear black, white, and shades of gray. I love the delicate lace skirt and you all know how obsessed I am with fur vests. The shoes are to die for on both of these ladies!

Clearly this picture is from NYFW at Lincoln Center. But I absolutely adore the pairing of the peach and the lime green. The dress is one of kind! The romantic texture of the dress definitely an attention grabber!

Check the photoblog! Tommy Tom definitely has an eye for fashion and photography. You'll enjoy it very much!

Fashionably yours,

Karen xoxo

"On to the next one"-Jay ZA

Apres New York fashion week comes London and Milan Fashion Week. Italian fashion is my absolute favorite! My favorite designers are all Italian: Prada, Gucci, Fendi, Valentino, D&G, Ferragamo, Missoni, Cavalli, Pucci and the list is infinite! Italian designers exude elegance, couture, and are well knwon for their attention to dressing up well "la bella figura". I have traveled to Europe and I have visited London and many parts of Italy. From experience, walking around those areas, you will never find people walking around in sweat pants and sweat shirts. The streets of Europe are personal runways even to the everyday person.

In 2009, Milan was regarded as the world fashion capital, surpassing NY, Paris, Rome, and London. Milan's main upscale fashion district is the 'quadrilatero della moda' (Fashion quadrilateral- where the city's most prestigious shopping streets: Via Montenapoleone, Via della Spiga, Via Sant'Andrea, Via Manzoni, and Corso Venezia). So here are my favorite looks straight from Milan.

So to get in the mood for Milan Fashion week, I strongly suggest for you all to watch the documentary Valentino The Last Emperor. I own a copy and its absolutely delightful, witty, and engaging. I found it more entertaining than the September Issue documentary.

The documentary really took you into the life of Valentino, from his home, vacation homes, workroom, to his shows. The gowns he designs are absolutely breath taking. He truly knows how to create masterpieces, with the use of details. And who doesn't love 'Valentino Red'? In the summer of 2007, I was also in Rome the day after his exhibit and I snapped this picture.

So grab a copy of Valentino The Last Emperor and watch it! My next post I will list my favorite looks from the runway! Until next time...

Fashionably yours,

Karen

Is this your cup of tea?

Apres NY Fashion Week comes London Fashion Week.- That sound familiar? I just posted that in my last post... This post should have been posted but my klutzy fingers pressed save now instead of the publish post button... So sorry for the delay, but here's my blog about London Fashion Week...

I have traveled to London, and the streets are full of fashion. Walking around London, even street fashion is tailored. Think Topshop inspiration. However, not everyone in London conforms to trends, think spice girls. Ginger Spice always rocked the British flag as a dress, and it was fashionable in the 90s, but would you wear an American flag dress? So here are my favorite looks from London Fashion Week.

1. Burberry Prorsum

Burberry pulled off this linear coat sophistically. The cuts are clean, geometric, and chic. I love the pairing of the teal belt. The lines are also slimming since they are vertical.

This dress is absolutely to die for. The detailing of the overlaying of pleats creates movement in the dress. The lines also create character of the dress. This is a tasteful dress for a night out or throw a cream blazer and make it into a day look.

This edgy double breast coat has so much character from the gold spikes. The tan, gold, and violet colors compliment each other. There is also a shorter version of this coat but I adore the longer trench.

2. Holly Fulton

This look is similar to the first, but the detailing is so different and fun. It reminds me of the time I was in Haiti, (Labadee- Cruise destination) and I remember seeing the cartoon representation of the animals and they're bright and colorful designs.

This dress could be worn with black stilettos or nude flats. I love the monochromatic shades of gray against yellow with the thick black outline and compliments of black embellishments. This dress is all about balance and shapes.

3. Vivienne Westwood Red Label

Known for bringing modern punk and new wave fashions in to the mainstream. She is also widely known as a political activist, which she transforms into her clothing. I like this look because it updates a simple work pant and adds texture to a blazer but still keeps a sleek look.

I like the color blocking of this dress the colors compliment each other very well. The stripes aren't harsh on the eyes because they have fluidity, creating more of a slimmer look.

There's nothing more fashionable than a statement piece.I love the collar of this dress and it's texture. The fact that it's white creates that very clean and pure vibe- perfect for spring. I like the harmony of the busy top yet simple bottom half of the dress.

So those are my top looks from London Fashion Week. Where the English are known for dressing to fit their character, not conforming or being too commercialized. But during London Fashion Week there was a very special memorial, to the great Alexander McQueen. His memorial service at St Paul's Cathedral had all the theatrical drama, and beauty parallel to his catwalk shows. Kate Moss in a McQueen leather dress; Naomi Cambell in McQueen black fur and feathers, along with Sarah Jessica Parker also donned in McQueen attended the service hosted by Anna Wintour.

So to honor McQueen I have posted this link from youtube which shows how innovative he was. On cocoperez.com, there's this new invention of 'spray on clothing'. It was only years ago, when McQueen though of spraying clothing as art...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ak4yJ3TwGlU&feature=related

Fashionably yours,

Karen

NY Fashion Week Updates and Stars who wear their clothes

Since it's NY Fashion Week, it's super busy and hectic so I decided to write yet another blog of my top looks/designers showcased so far at NY Fashion Week. I decided to pick a designer based on race/background. 1 French, 1 Italian/American, 1 English and 1 American. Do you know which designer belongs to which category? Along with this little guessing game, I added pictures of celebrities who have been spotted wearing these designer labels. So enjoy my 2 favorite looks from each designer showcased this week.

Every girl wants to have a "Princess Moment" where they wear a breath taking gown and everyone in the room stops, stares, and adores. Stylist Rachel Zoe describes her job to find celebrities dresses that creates "Princess Moments" on the Red Carpet. So which designer creates dresses that do this? In my opinion it's Marchesa. Celebrities including Jessica Szohr, Kelly Osbourne, and Gabourey Sidibe attended the show at the Chelsea Art Museum. Can it be the attention to fine detail? Or the precise embellishments? But the talk of this season is the delicately hand painting on the tulle. The other details found on Marchesa dressers were heavily bejeweled necklines, hand painted florals on rolling sculptural drapes.

So who has worn Marchesa and was the talk of the town this year? Sandra Bullock's Academy Awards dress. (Sandra Left, Model during showcase Right)

Of course this is a Marchesa dress just look at the detailing of the dress- and of course Eva Longoria would be wearing this beautiful dress on the red carpet.

Kate Beckingsale in a Marchesa gown. Just look at the embellishments and the paring of the different texture.

Herve Leger by Max Azria show embodied a modern day Marie Antoinette with the use of lingerie lace, corsets, and lots of cream and pink. Of course he transformed his very well known bandage dress to more details.

Stars who love these curve hugging dresses . (Posh Spice and Megan Fox)

Tory Burch followed her dreams of designing clothes after seeing a commercial after 9/11. It was a commercial that said to do what you want to do- and that's exactly what she did she started designing clothes. First known for her tunics, and then her Reva ballet flats named after her mother, this designer is now known world wide- opening flagship stores in Rome and London.

Celebrities who wear tory burch:

Amanda Bynes and Paris Hilton wearing Tory Burch Tunics

Mandy Moore wearing Tory Burch ballet flats.

Chado Ralph Rucci admitted that the recession has hit his business thus for spring he made adjustments by creating more pieces in less precious fabrications. However this didn't stop him from making expensive looking pieces.

Regulars Vogue Andre Leon Talley & Whoopi Goldberg attending a Rucci show

Clearly the names give away their nationalities but here is some background information about the designers.

Italian American- Chado Ralph Rucci designed by Ralph Rucci is the first American Italian designer to receive an invitation to the Paris haute couture shows since Mainbocher. Chado name comes from the Japanese tea ceremony noted for its attention to detail, exactitude, sense of austere style. Ralph Rucci was born and raised in Philadelphia and holds a degree in philosophy from Temple University at 21 yrs old he went to study at FIT and trained under Halston and a Balenciaga patternmakers.

Tory Burch- American attended UPenn and was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta sorority. After graduation, she too went to NYC and worked at Harper's Bazaar. She was also a copywriter for Polo Ralph Luaren and worked for Vera Wang. She gang her fashion label in Feb 2004 and was endorsed by Oprah.

Marchesa by Georgina Chapman and Keren Craig- English Marchesa is named after socialite Marchesa Luisa Casanti. Georgina and Keren met at the Chelsea College of Art and Design in London, Georgina a 2001 graduate of the Wimbeldon School of Art began her career as a costume designers and Keren graduated from Brighton Art College in 200 and focused on print and embroidery design. Thus the pairing of these two designers has created the couture asthetic designs of Marchesa.

Herve Leger by Herve L. Leroux - French Leroux adopted his current name after he lost the rights to the Herve Leger name. So how does he make the bandage dress that conforms to a woman's curves? He uses materials traditionally used with foundation garments. In September 1998, Gerve Leger was acquired by the BCBG Max Azria Group this was the 1st acquistion of a french couturier by an American designer. In April 2007 Max Azria relaunched the Herve Leger brand under his own design direction.

Fashionably yours,

Karen Abiog xoxo

Best Dressed...

People Magazine named their best dressed celebrities- and i've got to say, I agree with all of them along with their cute titles to match their style! This list goes:

1. Zoe Saldana "Red Carpet Queen"

(in Gurung's Spring 2010 collection) Absolutely love the bows, ruffles and draping details.

Joan Rivers hated this dress, but it was my absolute favorite in the Golden Globes. I love the rhinestones- looks elegant and expensive not cheaply made.The colors are absolutely gorgous as well.

2. Gwen Stefani "The Hip Mom"

Harajuku meets US is this mom's style. I absolutely love LAMB pumps and they go with everything. Before Lady Gaga, there was Gwen Stefani having music influence fashion. And whenever we think of Gwen Stefani of course we envision red lipstick.

3 Rihanna "The Daring Diva"

I may not like her, but I have to admit this singer can get away with wearing just about anything. Put it on anyone else we'd think the person was dressing to vulgar. And no one likes leather like Rihanna.

4. Diane Kruger "The Runway Renegade"

Diane in a daring backless Versace.

This German actress and former model exudes beauty and being a former model, she makes everyday a fashion show. This may be a result of her friendship with Karl Lagerfield.

5. Lea Michele "The Newbie"

I may not be a Gleek but Lea Michele is definitely paying attention to fashion. She wore a Issac Mizrahi Spring 2010 coreset dress straight off the runway to the Golden Globes.

Lea's look is effortless yet appropriate for her age. Conservative yet sexy and chic at the same time with the balance of showing skin but not too much with the pairing of sheer fabric. Do you hear that Miley Cyrus??

6. Olivia Palermo "The Uptown Girl"

Olivia may be depicted as a bitch on the tv show "The City" but this real life NYC socialite exudes uptown culture. I always loved her very tailored look on the show. She's like the real life Blair Waldorf.

Olivia being friendly with Marc Jacobs and Zac Posen, this fashionista only wears high end fashion. (Which was very well expressed on that episode where she had to find clothes for Ke$sha for an Elle Magazine photoshoot).

7. Jessica Alba "The Mix Master"

To me Jessica Alba is the queen of scarves and the downtown look. She knows how to mix and match different prints and colors without it clashing. She is boho chic meets jcrew with a little mix of american apparel.

Jessica Alba wears clothes that the average American wears daily. She doesn't wear stilettos to go grocery shopping. Yet her everyday clothes are designer which makes her so fashionable.

8. Jennifer Aniston "The American Classic"

I've blogged before of how much I admire Jennifer's cool and sophisticated style. Not many people can pull of plain colors but Jennifer Aniston transforms plain white shirts to timeless pieces.

Laid back casual to Red Carpet, Jennifer Anniston is always magnificent. I have yet to see her on a "Worst Dressed List".

9. "Rachel Bilson "The Denim Darling"

No one pulls of denim like "Summer" from the O.C.-Rachel Bilson is always fashionable whether she's off doing errands or going shopping in her jeans. But the thing is she does it looking comfortable and confident.

Bilson is the definition of California style the way Olivia Palermo exudes NYC uptown. Her clothes reflect her carefree personality with a young flirty fashionable style.

10. Kate Middleton "The Princess in Waiting"

In the movies, Princess Diaries and Amanda Bynes's "What A Girl Wants" when both characters are transformed into princesses, they undergo a transformation into Royalty fashion. Kate Middleton wears conservative wear very chic and young- truly the Princess Diana of our time.

No one pulls of the royal headwear and cardigans like Kate. She truly is the definition of a princess. I know I cant wait to see their lavish wedding!

And that's People magazine's top 10 list- Do you agree??

Fashionably yours,

Karen xoxo

run this town....

Two things I love...

1. Fashion

2. Dance

More precisely, Italian Fashion-Dolce and Gabbana and a dance to Run This Town staring Naomi Campbell for Fashion Night Out. She performed this for charity and it was choreographed by Laurie Ann Gibson. Each model of the 14 models wore different Naomi shirts. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7ekNpw1K-0

Fashionably yours,

Karen xoxo

greetings from UConn

Hello fashionistas,

I have yet to upload my FNO pictures and tell my unforgettable stories, but I am up at UConn for Abbey's birthday. So I decided to blog about recent Fashion news and promise to upload/share my stores in my next post. Second, I would like to give a shout out to a wonderfully dressed friend of mine- Abby Smith. When I saw her yesterday at Pi Phi's philanthropy event Arrow Spike to raise money for literacy, she gushed how she loves this blog. So snaps to my dear friend Abby who exudes the chic, edgy, preppy styles of J.Crew.

So who has RSVPd to watch Marc Jacob Fall/Winter 2010 Show? Since Marc Jacobs is a firm believer of Fashion for all, he is streaming his runway shows (Marc by Marc Jacobs along with Marc Jacobs) live from NY infirmary. He also showcased his fall show at FNO at Saks (but i'll def blog about that next time once I download the pictures). So the shows will be showing tonight at8pm and tomorrow at 4pm. just check outmarcjacobs.com

Really random, but did anyone notice Lady Gaga say thanks to Alexander McQueen at the VMAs for her dress and shoes? UMM... the great McQueen passed away last winter. However, Lady Gaga did wear a dress from his last collection, so she had a great honor. She also wore his famous armadillo shoes. To top off her outfit she donned a Phillip Tracey Hat- for all you Project Runway fans, he's the hat designer from the episode where they had to design dresses catered to his hats.

Happy NY Fashion Week!! Designers to be shown today: Carolina Herrera, Marc Jacobs, Donna Karan.

Runway Spotlight of the day: Diane Von Furstenberg Spring 2011 Collection

Check it out: http://www.nytimes.com/packages/html/style/fashionweek/runway.html#spring_2011_von_furstenberg_diane

DVF truly knows how to playfully and creatively play with different prints. And of course she has many of her known wrap dresses. The colors she chose are so bold and perfect for spring! Happy viewing!

Don't forget to watch Marc Jacobs tonight everyone! AND...

Ah oui, c'est la...

GOSSIP GIRL SEASON 4 PREMIER TONIGHT!!

Fashionably yours,

Karen

You know you love me...

Sorry fashionistas, I haven't blogged in a while. I had a phone interview with a magazine. (Won't state the name because I sent them this blog and they could be reading this). So how did it go? HORRENDOUS. First I was contacted at 11am for a phone interview at 2pm. It was fine that I was asked last minute so I happily obliged. 2pm rolled around, 3... 4pm... 6pm. Then I thought maybe I should email to see what's going wrong. So I professionally and respectfully emailed the company asking if they received my confirmation email about our phone interview at 2pm and if they would like to reschedule to just contact me. Literally 2 minutes later I get an email saying that they were at an event that ran longer than expected. Ha! AKA you forgot about my interview. I told them it was okay and that I didn't want to be a burden and that we could reschedule. Long story short- I had my phone interview at 6:47. First question? ACADEMIC CREDIT. great another opportunity out the window. The interviewer was obviously not interested in me after I politely explained my alumni status that was also stated in my cover letter along with resume. It just went downhill from there. Clearly my resume and cover letter exudes FASHION. So I have no idea why you contacted me to be your BEAUTY intern. So _____________ magazine, I wish you luck in finding an BEAUTY intern- a position I did not apply for.

Other than that... Have you all noticed that Anna Wintour's new muse is Blake Lively? Not only has she scored TWO covers for Vogue. She has been spotted next to Anna at FNO's Fashion week show AND the opening dinner for Karl Lagerfield's new Chanel boutique opening in Soho. Apparently Blake told Anna she loved Chanel and Anna promised to take her to his shows along with LV. Ahh the perks of being Anna Wintour's favorite.

Is that a smile we see Anna?

LOVEL LOVE LOVERR the Louboutin's Blake!!

How fab and trendy is the Window for Chanel behind Blake? It's soo SOHO.

AND.... TODAY IS FASHION NIGHT OUT!!!! I AM SOOO EXCITED TO GO!!

Where are you going today? Lanvin to see Brad (Rach Zoe's assistant?) Or Bloomies to meet Michael Kors or Mr. Jay from ANTM? Or Kenneth Cole to enjoy cocktails with the designer? Or Marc Jacobs down in Soho to see the most phenomenal American designer? He's been tweeting that he's nervous no one will show up! I'll keep you updated! I'll upload all the pictures

Fashionably yours,

Karen xoxo