Sophia Loren is an immortal fashion icon. Her exquisite taste and good looks have been exemplars of what great fashion can look like for decades. La Couture Chapeau has offered up a tribute to her timeless style by recreating some of her iconic hats such as this red one that demonstrates an utterly outsized extravaganza of a hat can be perfect. That proportion can be wildly disproportionate and work.
Blogging has many perquisites, or perks, that we try to make as transparent as possible so our readers know what may or may not influence us. I had to use the word perquisites instead of the usual perks just because 10 dollar words drive Tenshi crazy. And who can resist the opportunity? Among the perks are occasional promotional copies, advance notice of some releases and even seeing and having an opportunity to give opinions on items in the process of creation. One perk not often mentioned is the occasional discovery of new stores and talents that come about as a result of a designer knocking on my IM window and saying I am sending you a couple items and hope you will look at them. And that happened this weekend when Nikki Herron of G&N Quality Design sent me a couple folders, including this freebie that she has on offer for this week only. I was immediately impressed by the quality of the textures – and the bold sweep of the top. I really love the attention taken with the wrinkles, the weave of the fabric and the weave in the capris.
To be perfectly honest, Saturday was an odd day. I woke up disgustingly early and found myself wandering back for a short nap around 7 AM or so…and slept until 4 in the afternoon. That is not a good plan for accomplishment and ticking off to-do lists, let me tell you. How wonderful then, that the One Year Anniversary Party for the Rouge Sim was a 12 hour party – so I could sleep through part of it, take care of some to-do’s and still not miss it. I was lucky enough to get there in time for the SLAG Burlesque Show.
I invited a guy I know to come, but I guess, “hey, you want to come watch a burlesque show?” creates the wrong impression. Scared him to death! Anyway, for the event, I wore this lovely black and rouge lingerie dress that was ideal for sitting and dancing – and looking good while doing it.
LeeZu is more fashion forward and fashion adventurous than I am. I love to go to fashion shows featuring her clothes because there’s sure to be some extravagant and experimental forms and designs that are just a bit more wild and wonderful than my personal comfort level and that’s fine. I love to see it and marvel and know that there will also be equally extravangant and wild pieces that are at my comfort level. Her work spans such a range that you can always find something that’s “just right” like this lovely gown called Adriana.
Did I say gown? I should have said cocktail dress, I guess? Depending on how you wear it, LeeZu includes enough prim options to let you get it just right. The Sayuri pumps, by the way, are from HaysUriza.
So Tenshi Vielle of Boutique (Note: That’s a new name.) recently dropped this outfit on me and I had to share it because I love the lovely prints in the dress and the insouciant mix of contrasting prints. Putting it all together with the hat and jewelry that came with – I could not help but think of that tremendously earthy and powerful singer Gretchen Wilson and her song Rebel Child.
When it gets hot and the sun beats down on the asphalt, it’s time to break out the sunglasses and bright colors. The bright colors add zest and energy to combat the enervating heat and the sunglasses make the bright glare bouncing off the sidewalks bearable. White, such as in the jacket, is the necessary color of the season – brightening your look and reflecting the light and heat away from you. Dressing for summer heat is always fun because it demands your brightest brights and lets you shine. For example, the FAB.PONY dress above is the brightest blue or the KA Creations dress below, both accented with white accessories.
Gidge has the perfect outfit for Sunday Afternoons at the Park with George and, someday, I am sure she will get around to blogging it. As for me, well my Sunday afternoons are usually spent at The Velvet where MDR business partner Maht spins a couple hours of great music mixes. This Sunday I wore this made-for-dancing Splatter r Dress from Axel. I had stopped by Axel earlier on Sunday to admire their ambitious store remodel. I was impressed with the beauty of the store and with the thoughtful arranging of outfits. It was hard to limit my spending, but who can complain when the fruits are as adorable as this.
The sunshine yellow in this joyful spring skirt and blouse from Mimikri made me think of the joyful and exuberant song “On the Sunny Side of the Street.” This is the yellow of sunshine and springtime. That song is particularly interesting in that many believe it was written about the experience of “passing” – the practice by some light-skinned blacks of passing as white to increase their opportunities.
Grab your coat and get your hat
Leave your worries on the doorstep
Life can be so sweet
On the sunny side of the street
More Bare Rose love – and this time because it’s a great place for coats and jackets – lovely open jackets that might be part of some complicated costume but on its own makes a lovely open jacket to wear over some seperates.This jacket is from Cross Bones Girl and the rest of the outfit is not something I am likely to wear, but I could see what a gem this jacket was right away.
When I saw these moccasins at Sixty-Nine I was immediately reminded of my childhood and the wondrous Minnetonka Moccasins that were ubiquitous at every Minnesota tourist attraction in the state. I coveted a pair so much, but my parents would never spring for something so impractical and so I never had a pair of moccasins. Until yesterday when I stopped at Sixty-Nine and saw these and bought my first moccasins ever. They are every bit as comfortable as I imagined. I also immediately googled Minnetonka and lo, they are still making moccasins and I can get a pair like these for $75 so I just might be getting myself moccasins for a Christmas present in real life too. Though my inner practical self says no.