MFW: A breakdown of the best shoes from Fashion Week

Blumarine

OBSESSED: Dolce & Gabbana Fall 2012

Dolce & Gabbana's fall 2012 collection will no doubt be as popular as the spring 2012 collection.  The looks are all sure to make women look sophisticated and chic, and I loved the Renaissance references on purses, the statement earrings and the amazing crowns.  Also, the shoes remind me of what would happen if Marzipans met the Sugar Plum fairies.  I have a feeling come next fashion month those sugary sweet platforms will be the it item photographed on the streets.

MFW: Street Style (part one)

OBSESSED: Gucci Fall 2012

The Gucci collection from Milan Fashion Week was absolutely amazing.  The final looks were stunners and the details make it even more impressive.  The mix of sheer fabrics, velvet and the floral patterns and sequins along with the dark color palette made this collection full of knockouts.  Not to mention, the hair and makeup was sophisticated and classy, and hands down my favorite that I saw in MFW.

LFW: Marios Schwab and Matthew Williamson

Although I preferred Matthew Williamson's pre-fall collection, I loved the red lace and feather dress from his fall collection, and Marios Schwab's last looks were absolutely fabulous.  The sheer and sequin dresses were amazing and so pretty  and possibly some of my favorites from the whole season.

Marios Schwab

Sophisticated Cool at LFW: Acne, Burberry, Paul Smith and Topshop

Few cities do cool as well as London, which is why brands like Acne, Burberry, Paul Smith and Topshop thrived during LFW by showcasing collections that It girls everywhere will be after.  Acne experimented with the broad shoulder trend that swept through NYFW like wild fire, and Burberry kept it girly with ruffles and statement bow belts.  Paul Smith designed for the young hip working woman, and Topshop went less literal than usual.  Topshop branched from modern Cleopatra to street style chic with awesome boots and wearable, season-defying pieces that a girl can keep in her closet and not discard once a new trend comes around.

Acne

 

LFW: Backstage & Beauty

LFW: Felder Felder, Kinder Aggugini, Michael van der Ham and Mulberry

Felder Felder

LFW: Print-centric at Holly Fulton, Mary Katrantzou and Peter Pilotto

Three collections I am OBSESSED with from London Fashion Week are Holly Fulton, Mary Katrantzou and Peter Pilotto.  The three designers experimented with prints and shapes to create fun night wear for the bold and daring.  Mary Katrantzou's is probably in my top five favorite collections from Fashion Month.  I love her shapes and colors, and even though her clothes are busy, they never appear to me to be too much because the clean lines make them sleek.  Fulton's clothes are bold and have sophisticated modern shapes.  Her electric blue dresses are like the It girl's LBD.  Finally, Pilotto's collection once again, incorporates unique shapes and textures to create the print-centric looks he has mastered. 

Holly Fulton

LFW: Street Style (part two)

LFW: Dark Florals at Christopher Kane, Erdem and Jonathan Saunders

Three designers I am always excited to see collections from are Christopher Kane, Erdem and Jonathan Saunders.  What I normally love from Erdem are their bright cheerful florals, but this season he took his signature look to a darker place and played with lots of deep blues and yellows.  Christopher Kane also followed suit putting out a collection that was rich in texture, hard in form but still girly with florals.  Jonathan Saunders also embraced the fall color palette and kept his collection feminine by also embracing the trend that just keeps coming back for more, florals.

Christopher Kane

LFW: Street Style (part one)

London Fashion Week has come and gone, and although I get a lot of inspiration from the runways, a lot of my inspiration comes from the real women who have their own personal style.  Street style photography is always one of my favorite parts of fashion month, so I compiled some of my favorite images of people who, whether it's bold and zany or prim and proper, have a very unique style.  Enjoy!

NYFW: A breakdown of the best shoes from Fashion Week

Here's some of my favorite shoes from New York Fashion Week.  Derek Lam's gold Oxfords, Oscar de la Renta's Cinderella shoes, Preen's butterfly shoes and Rag & Bone's awesome clunky boots are just some of the high points from the runway.  What are your favorites?!

Derek Lam

Red Carpet Style: Best Dressed and Runner-ups at the Oscars 2012

So, I don't know about you all, but last night's red carpet at the Oscars left me feeling unsatisfied.  Sure there were some high notes like Jessica Chastain in Alexander McQueen and Natalie Portman in vintage polka dot Dior, but for the most part, I felt the looks fell flat when there were so many amazing dresses to pick from.  For instance, Penelope Cruz, one of the most beautiful women in Hollywood, looked matronly, and Michelle Williams' peplum clashed with the bottom of her dress.  Overall, I wanted more pizazz and style and less frumpy.

Here's my top five picks and then some who I think were almost there.  Let me know if you agree/disagree!

Best Dressed:

1.  Jessica Chastain in Alexander McQueen

OBSESSED: Cool Girl Chic at Band of Outsiders, Rodarte and Steven Alan Fall 2012

There are so many things going right with these collections that I don't know where to start.  Band of Outsiders was prairie meets New York city street chic.  I would want everything whether it be the dresses that remind me of the Midwest or the bandage-topped black dresses that scream urban sophistication.

Rodarte presented a more refined, more commercialized cool girl look that is probably meant to beef up their sales.  However, the collection was still beautiful and dresses like the hand print layered one reminded me why I loved them to begin with.  Sure, the Mulleavy sisters have now been featured in Vogue decking out Taylor Swift in their collection, and they acted as consultants for the Oscars about what goes in to making a red carpet moment, but I think the fame is hopefully only going to make them stronger designers.   I want to think that they will stay true to their roots and keep designing the amazing looks that have a unique aesthetic no matter how well know they get.

Finally, Steven Alan's collection seemed straight from the closet of some indie urban school girl.  I thought the styling was great, and I would want everything from that collection.  It's wearable, flattering and perfect for the fall season.

Band of Outsiders

Red Carpet Style: 24 dresses I'd like to see at the Oscars

Today is the big day everybody!  I'm super excited to see what the celebrities are going to wear on the red carpet, and I know fashion month is still going on, but I threw in some looks from Fall 2012, Pre-Fall 2012 and the spring couture shows.  Some of my picks are serious wishful thinking, but here's hoping some of them show up.  Women like Sandra Bullock, Emma Stone, Chloe Moretz, Rooney Mara and Michelle Williams will be there, so I have a feeling we will be seeing a star-studded and fashion-forward red carpet.

Let me know if you agree/disagree on my picks!

NYFW: Minimalism from Reed Krakoff and Victoria Beckham

Reed Krakoff and Victoria Beckham went sophisticated chic at NYFW.  The two designers kept it clean and simple and instead of mixing prints and patterns stuck to a clean palette or bold colors.  I love Beckham's collared dresses and Krakoff's white coats and jackets.

Reed Krakoff

NYFW: Thakoon, Derek Lam and Preen

Three collections I really liked from NYFW were Thakoon, Derek Lam and Preen.  Thakoon's lip and heart print was fun and girly, and I liked the mix of the bold print with the clean and simple silhouette.  I also was a huge fan of the boots and the bold red lip the models rocked.

Derek Lam's collection was probably one of my top five of New York, it reminded me of New York City cool girl combined with a little British invasion and Olsen twins at the end (I know, it's a weird description).  The collared dresses were prim and proper, but the hints of edge like the orange collar or the leather skirt made it not just for the average business lady.  Also, I loved the flowy dresses at the end that screamed Olsen twins, and the way he combined knits with a long hemline, plus can we talk about those gold-toed Oxfords?

Finally, Preen wowed at fashion week with its fun butterfly floral print and clean lines.  The collection read a little too spring/summer for me at first, but toward the end it really swerved into on-point looks for fall with the flared out tops at the waist and collars (WHICH ARE EVERYWHERE).  I liked the navy, black and white color palette.   I think they managed to make a collection that has wearable pieces for an entire year, not to mention the shoes were amazing!

Thakoon

NYFW: Dark Night at Kimberly Ovitz and Tess Giberson

The look was dark and moody at Kimberly Ovitz and Tess Giberson this season.  Both collections reminded me of what a chic and slightly more feminine Lisbeth Salander or Rooney Mara would wear.  I love the jackets at Ovitz, and at Giberson the dresses were flowy and sleek.  These looks scream cool city girl, and I love how the designers played with hard and soft edges.

Kimberly Ovitz

NYFW: Backstage & Beauty (part two)