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31 March 2008

Gossip Girl Style Files: Jenny's Look for Less

Dear Readers,

The girls over at one of my new "must read" blogs, Hush Shop have written a guest post for Chic and Charming about Gossip Girl Jenny Humphrey's style. They have, of course, put their fabuless spin on the article. Frankly, I'm kind of obsessed with everything they've found! Enjoy!

Kisses,
Sophia

Spotted: Taylor Momsen, aka "Jenny Humphrey," shooting scenes from upcoming episodes of Gossip Girl

Brooklynite Jenny Humphrey may not have the fashion allowance of her Upper Eastsider friends Blair Waldorf and Serena van der Woodsen, but she always finds a way to look just as stylish. Jenny truly exemplifies Hush Shop's mission, to find the latest clothing trends at the most affordable prices.
So, we decided to find Jenny Humphrey’s look for less. With a budget of approximately $200 per outfit, we've found similar items for you to achieve this gossip girl's style.

XOXO

Erin DelConte-Lindquist @ Hush Shop

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Look 1: Jenny Humphrey's Blue Trench in the Park
Total: $208.28
  1. Floral print gray and cream woven scarf with frayed fringe for $7.80 @ Forever 21
  2. Michael Kors blue double-breasted, belted trench coat for $96 @ Bluefly
  3. Mosaic print fabric bag with wood bead strap for $29.50 @ Alloy
  4. Neon yellow fishnet pantyhose for $4.99 @ Brands on Sale
  5. Closed toe, single strap Latin shoes in bronze leather by Stephanie Dance for $69.95 @ Dance 4 Less
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Look 2: Jenny Humphrey's Purple Party Dress
Total: $204.74
  1. Michelle Roy hot pink headband with a beautiful flower made of Swarovski Crystals for $45 @ ShopJuici
  2. Isaac Mizarahi taffeta couture bodice dress in Milan purple for $49.99 @ Target
  3. A silver metallic flap-over clutch for $9.80 @ Forever 21
  4. These pink and purple sling back satin pumps by Linea Paolo are almost a perfect match. Find them for $99.95 @ Nordstrom
*The jacket is not really part of the look, it was just to keep her warm on set!

For image sources see my flickr page

28 March 2008

RAMY Sleep in Beauty

Sleep in Beauty is a tinted moisturizer that you wear when you sleep so that he (or she) never has to see you less than perfect. It is designed to fight wrinkles and does not rub off on your pillow (although I have not tested it myself). I'm not sure, maybe if I was still in the dating game? Even then I'm not sure I would spend $50 for makeup you sleep in...if the person is there to see what you look like first thing in the morning that should love you zits, wrinkles and all. What are your thoughts?

Image from ramybeautytherapy.com

27 March 2008

Sophia Styles the Stars: Allison, Nichelle and Rachel

apron

The lovely ladies over at Cupcakes Take the Cake just posted their 5,000th post. I thought they should celebrate with a cupcake apron from anthropologie.

Image from anthropologie

I had a dream?


Do you ever have one of those dreams that seems so real that you aren't actually sure that it was really a dream? I woke up this morning and I swore that I read on a blog that Christian Siriano from Project Runway was designing a commercial athletic wear collection and a children's collection. The children's collection looked an awful lot like the current Target Go collection, neutral hippy-but with lots of smocking. I'm pretty sure that was a dream, unless Christian had a lobotomy.

Gadget Guru: iPhone Lifestyle Companion

I've had a good deal of problems with Apple products in the past. But I might grant them clemency for good behavior if the recent rumors about an "iPhone Lifestyle Companion" turn out to be truth. According to several "reputable" rumor sites, today Apple filed for no less than 6 patents to cover a slew of hardware and software updates for the iPhone. Check out this link for more info.

One thing I would be interested to find out is whether or not Apple plans to collect your data for themselves. With companies like Google, Microsoft and Facebook doing everything they can to learn as much as they can about you (Google tracking your searches without you knowing it, Microsoft offering thousands of dollars worth of free software if they can monitor your every move for 3 months, or Facebook tracking everything you do online, regardless of how often you use Facebook).

-Marilyn

Image from unwiredview.com

Yelle Style

American female rappers wear bling, designer clothing and leave little to the imagination. French female rapper Yelle takes a far more playful approach to dressing.

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She, of course, has an impossibly perfect bob...a rich brown version of the Anna Wintour hairdo...but with much more movement.

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Her style is a little 80s, with colored leggings and bright colors. Yelle references rapper style with playful, large jewelry reminiscent of bling but often in plastic. She also wears old school tennis shoes, like male American the rappers of yore.

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While I do feel Yelle looks incredibly chic in her outlandish outfits, I'm not sure that I could ever pull off purple leggings, much less purple leggings with tennis shoes, without looking like Jane Fonda.

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Yelle has a definite affinity for the iconic yellow smiley face. This seems appropriate given the peppy sound of her French pop rap.

You can currently see clips of Yelle all over MTV. She was also featured on the season premiere of The Hills and in an episode of Entourage. She will be traveling stateside to perform in April and May 2008. To check out her music visit her my space page.

Image sources on my flickr page

25 March 2008

Tree House Love Affair

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I continue to dream about one day owning my very own tree house vacation getaway. I envision a simple, but well designed space with amenities somewhat better than a camper but not quite as extensive as a home. TreeHouse Workshop provides me with plenty of dream fodder. I especially love their somewhat whimsical and craftsmen inspired designs.

Images from Treehouse Workshop

24 March 2008

Fabuless: Subversive Jewelry for Target

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Subversive Jewelry has designed a capsule collection for Target, which is now available online. I've not gotten over to the store yet to check it out in person, but I will let you know when I do! I am a huge fan of the pink necklace, but I am not sure that I am willing to shell out $60 for it.

Images from Subversive Jewelry and Target

Charming Chat: Colette

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MP3 File

22 March 2008

Decorating Marilyn's new apartment

My dear sister, Marilyn, is graduating from college and getting her first real apartment. She has put it to me to help decorate her new bedroom. The first thing we did was pick out her bed set. We decided on this set from anthropologie, which happens to be on sale.

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The task at hand is to choose new curtains for her room. Thus far I have discovered three options. The first is from Target, sheer polka dot curtains beneath blue blackout curtains.

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The second and third option are from Pottery Barn Teen, an excellent source for cute and preppy decor. The blue pleated curtains are adorable and feminine. The green ones are quite nice, but a little plain and they might be difficult to match to duvet.

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What are your thoughts? Any suggestions?

Images from Pottery Barn Teen and Target

21 March 2008


Image from www.someecards.com

19 March 2008

Get the GG preppy school uniform look

I thought all you Gossip Girl style junkies out there might enjoy this youtube video from Rugby on how to style your outfits in order to "borrow from the boys." I find the look they present to be reminiscent of Blair and Serena's school uniforms, so cute and so preppy!


18 March 2008

Kate's New Topshop Line

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Kate Moss's summer collection at Topshop was released today. Sigh...I think I might be getting over Kate Moss style. It all just looks so difficult to wear for those of us who might not be supermodel thin. The look is also very Serena from Gossip Girl...I wonder if Serena's style is based on Kate Moss?

Images from Topshop

17 March 2008

Introducing Charming Chat

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Introducing Charming Chat, the new podcast brought to you by Chic and Charming! I have been able to figure out how to do almost everything except post one of those little players in my actual blog. So, my dear readers, you will have to CLICK HERE to hear my first podcast and find out what Charming Chat is all about!

If you would like to subscribe to my podcast via RSS (ie on your blog reader) click here: View RSS XML

I will keep you posted each time I put up a new podcast! I am not on iTunes yet, but I hope to be listed within the month so that you can automatically download Charming Chat to your iPod!

PS. Kori from The Fashion-y Blog said that my new podcast reminded her of this article. She was right on point! Think of Charming Chat as your cultural attaché!

16 March 2008

Glove Love

So obsessed with Blair's gloves from an upcoming episode of Gossip Girl. I love the ankle strap feature that lets you remove the gloves while still keeping them attached to you wrist! I am also loving the jacket...but I feel like there is an outside chance that I will be able to actually afford the gloves. So my dears, anyone have an idea of where I might find them?

Image from just jared

14 March 2008

Breasts in the Blogosphere

This week my fellow bloggers seem to have boobs on the brain!

Women's Health News reported on the Nipple Project. The Nipple Project is a community art project celebrating the beauty of the nipple, an under emphasized but important part of the breast. Crafters from around the world are encouraged to submit “a handmade artistic interpretation of your nipple or of someone’s nipple you love.”

On an entirely less wholesome front, Miss Cedar presented easy to follow instructions to make your own pasties! I've seen pasties for sale all over etsy and now I know why: they are super easy to make! I think this calls for a pasty making party!

Images from Miss Cedar and The Nipple Project

13 March 2008

Underwater Hotel

I'm kind of obsessed with unusual dwellings. I've been fantasizing about tree houses for the last week, to the point I went out and purchased the retro version Disney's Swiss Family Robinson. I LOVE that tree house. My husband has promised to build me one someday.

Anyway, I ran across this underwater hotel set to open in Istanbul in 2010. How fab is that?

Image from vagabondish.com

12 March 2008

Movies with Style: Gigi

One must not read novels they only depress you, one must not wear powder it spoils the complexion, one must not wear a corset it spoils the figure

How a movie about a family of courtesans (kept women) was made in 1958 is kind of a mystery to me, much less one that starts out with a musical number entitled "Thank Heaven for Little Girls." I am thrilled that such a movie, Gigi, was released because it is fabulous, one of the only musicals I can really tolerate. My favorite musical number is "The Night They Invented Champaign." Gigi is based on a novel by the same name written by one of my favorite authors, Colette. I highly recommend both the book and the movie.

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Great kings do not give very large stones...because they do not feel they must

There is a depressing lack of screen shots available from the movie. I was on a quest to find a picture of Honoré Lachaille's apartment which is an art nouveau confection. Honestly, I would purchase the movie for no other reason than to study his apartment. Tragically, no picture was to be found and attempts at screen shots failed miserably.

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What would you like? silk stalkings? No, silk stocking make my legs itch. I would like a lime green corset with rococo roses embroidered on the garters.

In the movie the male lead, Gaston throws a series of extravagant parties to show Paris and the world that he has gotten over his first love interest, the cheating Liane (Eva Gabor). These parties are depicted as cartoons in the daily paper and I would adore to have the series of illustrations as framed art work for my home. Alas, once again Google failed to find them anywhere on the internet.

This movie is one of my personal chick flick classics. I turn to it again and again for artistic inspiration and a pick-me-up on a rainy day. I must confess I do mute a few of the songs and just admire the beautiful set and costume design. For as many times as I hear Gigi references in movies and tv shows, I was quite surprised at the lack of information and images from the movie on the internet. If you've never seen Gigi, I would recommend making an event out of it: splurge on a bottle of the finest bubbly, buy some salted caramels, invite over your girlfriends and have a screening!

11 March 2008

For those mourning Project Runway


Marilyn sent me a link to this clip from Saturday Night Live lampooning Project Runway. I laughed so hard I started crying at my desk at work.

Via feastoffools.net


Dear GAP,

WHY WHY WHY do you torture me??If you go to all the trouble to have a fabulous designer design fabulous products for you, why do you only release these designs in like 5 stores in the entire world? It's not like I don't live in the city. I was the 10th person to stop by my GAP in quest of Pierre Hardy shoes! But, alas, they were released in NYC and LA and thats about it.

I'm still terribly bitter about not being able to purchase Roland Mouret's GAP collection. Please don't let me down again...I'm not sure I'll be able to bring myself to shop at your store anymore if you do.

Kisses,
Sophia

10 March 2008

Movies with Style: Down With Love

Probably the number one reason that I watch the movie down with love is for the clothing. Down with Love is not the only movie that attracted my attention primarily because of fashion (ahem...Marie Antoinette, The Devil Wears Prada), but it is certainly one of the most fun!

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Beyond the clothing, the decor is amazing! I mean just look at those pink Knoll womb chairs! I am drooling for the fantastic view with giant balcony. I simply adore the stewardess's little white gloves, I should have been born in the 1950s.

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At one point, I had even convinced myself that life was all one big zany sex comedy and you had switched keys with the lead to use his swinging pad to snare me.

If I had an apartment like Renee's I would be dancing around my living room in a black lace corset with pink chiffon robe and matching marabou slippers.

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Perhaps my favorite scene in the entire movie is the scene depicted on the right, when "Barbra Novak" and her editor remove their jackets. Barbra is wearing a yellow jacket, lined in yellow with a black and white check exterior. Vikki Hiller, is her perfect foil wearing a yellow jacket lined in black and white checks with matching dress. Divine. One day I hope all my evening dresses have jackets with matching fabric.

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I think Vickie was only talking about marriage so I'd wanna have sex with her. And then I did, and now she never talks to me, except to come back for more. I feel so used.

I also adore the leather gloves which match Barbra's lavender jacket...perfection! And champaign saucers, do glam! It seems they only use champaign saucers in the most glamorous movies. I really must get a set. Marc Jacobs designed a set for Waterford a few years ago, but I never saw them in the shops. I also adore the subtle plaid in the Peter's suit...more men should dress like that.
Peter: What would you say is the average length, for most men?
Catcher: How would I know? You think I spend all my time in the locker room at the club making a comparative study?
Peter: Let me see yours again, then. We could measure. I'll get a ruler.
Cather: Better make it a yardstick!
Peter: Let's be accurate. Make sure you've got it fully extended. Have it up the whole way.
Catcher: It stays up all the way, all day long, man! That's the miracle I was telling you about: better living through chemistry. You got... 16 inches.
Peter: 16 inches! How long does a man's hose have to be?
Catcher: That's 32 inches of confidence in every step. Don't forget - I've got two of 'em!
Images from imdb and screenrush.co.uk

09 March 2008

Jovovich-Hawk for Target Reviewed

I have to say that I was quite impressed with the Jovovich-Hawk GO collection for Target. Overall their line was immensely wearable. They did an excellent job integrating their design sensibility into a line with real mass appeal. The products all have a vintage feel, with a few pieces being reminiscent of something you might pick up in the young designer booths of London's Portobello Road Market.

My biggest complaint would have to be the sheerness of the cotton shirts and dresses
, which is a common theme amongst all the GO collections. This problem is easily rectified with a camisole...but PLEASE do wear a camisole or slip otherwise you will be displaying your underwear for all the world to see. To give you an idea of the sheerness of each product, I photographed a few pieces with natural back lighting.

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I will start off with the shorts because they are truly the rock stars of the collection. Every woman should run out and purchase the Capri pants with flower buttons and ruffled blue linen shorts immediately! (already sold out online). They are beyond cute. I am also in love with the gray shorts, made out of sweatshirt fabric and trimmed in delicate lace they would be great for looking cute while lazing around the house. Co-eds take note: you will increase your chicness 1000 fold if you trade in your thin cotton shorts with "juicy" or "FSU" scrolled across the butt for these completely adorable shorts. All of the shorts have black and white stars and stripes waist bands, a charming little extra which will make you smile every time you pull them on.

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Next up, dresses...I had been looking forward to the dresses in this collection the most and was ultimately a little let down, probably because I had such high hopes! Since I was running a little late with my product review there were definitely some pieces missing from the collection at my target, so I was not able to get a good look at a few dresses I think I would have really liked, like the square neck black polka dot dress, strappy black lace dress and chiffon A-line dress. The first dress that I was drawn to, the green and gold stripped dress above was terribly cute, but perhaps a little generic. When I tried it on I found the sleeves were too tight and that this dress would definitly require a slip, unless worn as a beach cover up. Next, the polka dot wrap dress is a solid value. It is well lined, and thus not transparent despite the light color. The ruffled hem is flirty touch. This would be a great summer dress. Finally, I was very excited for the lace corset dress, until I saw the lackluster cotton string used to thread the corset decoration...it screams cheap. Luckily, things such as ribbon or string are easily replaced so I would still suggest trying on this dress. Personally, I would replace the corset string.

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There were quite a few cute shirts in the mix for this collection. The shirt on the left, although sheer was extremely flattering. I especially liked the black and white paisley print, which I would have kept for myself had it been in my size. My husband was a big fan of the Mucha-esque gray t-shirt on the upper right. Unfortunately, the woman's face pulled in a funny manner over my chest. The shirt on the bottom right reminded me of a female version of a Mexican wedding shirt. I am totally obsessed with the bird buttons. This shirt was not quite my style, but would be great for a woman with a vintage aesthetic. There will several other shirts in the collection, including my personal favorite shown below. The series of stripped shirts with embroidered bird was incredibly sheer, and I cannot recommend it.

In addition to the basics that I've covered here, there were pants, bathing suits and bathing suit covers in this collection. I am ALWAYS a fan of the bathing suits from Target GO collections. I did not bother to photograph them this post because I feel the online pictures are representative. You can check out the bathing suits: including a couple of bikinis, a blue and green stripped number, and a patterned suit with side cutouts online.

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I leave you wish my favorite piece...a nice thick black tunic shirt with cute gold stars and a v-neck. I try to limit myself to one piece per GO collection, and this is the one piece I chose to keep. I plan to wear it with my skinny jeans and a black headband!

08 March 2008

Sophia's Shopping Safari: Gilly Hicks

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This weekend I happened to be visiting the mall (Natick Collection, MA) that contains the first of Abercrombie and Fitch's lingerie stores: "Gilly Hicks Sydney." I could not pass up the opprotunity to share a few pictures of the new store for all those shoppers in the rest of the country.

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In terms of decor Gilly Hicks reminds me a great deal of Hollister in that it is set up to look like some sort of house filled with merchandise. There is a front porch with chairs to sit in and faux columns, and the inside is dark, wood covered and filled with loud music and beautiful sales people.

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The candy colored bras and panties line the walls and are neatly arrayed on tables and in cases. There are a variety of styles and materials including cotton and lace. Bras are available with and without under wire. Undershirts, myriad styles of panties, bikinis, PJs and bath products round out the offerings. The variety of options was truly amazing! The design sensibility of Gilly Hicks is a sporty and youthful American c0-ed sexiness...kind of like Calvin Klein's underwear line but a little younger.

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I was quite impressed with the variety and quality of products available. Generally speaking I actually preferred the vibe of Gilly Hicks to Victoria Secret or Aerie. It is nice to shop for intimates in a laid back, sexy atmosphere. I was not badgered by shop assistants, but there was someone around when I needed help.

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I think Gilly Hicks will be quite successful when it rolls out across the country. The simple, sexy designs will have mass appeal attracting from Abercrombie's core audience and even crossing over and gaining popularity with women from other age groups. Unfortunately the store shares the sex sells advertising strategy of Abercrombie and Fitch, with an 18 and over only homepage and quasi-pornographic advertising video that would make American Apparel's PR people blush. It is possible that this advertising strategy will alienate older segments of the market, who might actually like the lingerie that Gilly Hicks has to offer.

In addition to Natick, stores have recently opened in New York, Connecticut, Illinois and Minnesota, with plans to roll out more stores in the coming months, hopefully one will come to a mall near you!

Sophia's Superstars: Trendinista

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Even though I went MIA, I still kept in touch with the blogging community by scrolling through about 400 posts on fashion and decor in my google reader everyday. The most striking post that I've run across in recent memory is a post comparing McQueen's new collection to a series of breathtaking chandeliers at Trendinista. It is SO fabulously creative, you really must go check it out!

Images from Trendinista

07 March 2008

How to Travel with Style on a Budget

Here is an oldy, but a goody from my now defunct (and usurped by some evil ad machine) former blog...I am republishing because at the time I first published this I had a readership of 5.

1. The friends and family plan: Combine vacation with a visit to a long lost friend or favorite family member. Excellent reasons to opt for staying with known, instead of the cheap and sketchy unknown: a sparkling clean bathroom and a bed with a much less questionable history than the one you would be crashing on in a Motel Six. You can use the money you save to buy your hostess a fabulous gift, such as a lovely diptyque candle. Treat yourself to a night or two alone in a posh boutique hotel, which you can only afford for that long anyway, to completely unwind just before returning home.

2. Stay a little closer to home: So, you don’t want to spend your hard earned vacation with anyone else, except perhaps your sweetie. You could opt to stay a little closer to home (drivable or train accessible). Often we never experience the wonders in our own backyard. One my good friends lives in Idaho, yet she rarely visits Yellowstone National Park. A few days in one of the fabulous ranches near the Park, or at one of the quaint and affordable lodges in the park would be a great little weekend retreat for her. As a resident of New England, there are many adorable costal towns and bed and breakfasts with in an hour or two of Boston. I have always wanted to go to Maine

3. Short and sweet: You could shorten your stay away from home, without actually shortening your vacation. I would rather spend three days in the lap of luxury than a week in a room that smells of stale smoke and rocks all night long from the club next door. That is, unless you plan to party the night away in the club next door, in which case, in many parts of the world, you will also reek of smoke and will be too tired to even notice the room (perhaps you found cheap tickets to Ibiza). In any case, if only taking a short break, you can finally take off the time you need to “recover” from vacation before going back to work. But first, take off one day before departure. Pack, shave, get a mani and pedi at your favorite guaranteed fabulous local spot and arrive at your destination already looking like a goddess and feeling relaxed. After your short, extremely indulgent break (because, the entire point of the short break is to really live it up during those three days) take a day or two before returning to work. Unpack your shopping spoils, make yourself decadent four course dinners, go shopping at you local spots in the middle of the week and marvel at their emptiness and improved service. Pretend to be a lady who lunches. Take the time to relax all over again.

4. Kitsch, baby, kitsch: Road trip! Embrace the grossness. Stay at cheap motels. Eat in road side dinners, love those waffle house hashbrowns…I’ll take mine scattered, smothered, covered and diced. Make a rocking road mix. Pick a scenic route. Visit “South of the Border,” the tacky roadside tourist trap that has cheesy billboards for 100 miles in every direction imploring you to stop. Then, book a full day in a spa to degrunge when you get home. Hello, full body scrub. Especially fun to do with the girls.

5.Traveling light is for ugly people: When, in your entire life, other than you own wedding, will you be most photographed? On vacation!! So, it is important to bring along your full beauty kit. Finally, you have the time to accomplish the perfect blowout! False lashes? Wear then with abandon! Nothing does more for a girl in photos than thick dark lashes. If they fall off, who cares…the only person that will ever see you again already loves you unconditionally.

6. To elaborate on point five: you should never vacation with someone who does not love you unconditionally, you will probably regret it. I don’t mean the person has to be your husband or family relation, but if you are going to travel with anyone else you should make sure in advance that you are travel soul mates, because nothing brings out the quirky and the crazy like schlepping through a foreign city. For example, there are very few people who can indulge my needs: to stop and look at EVERY stationary shop and/or shop with something sparkly in the window, to spend twice as long in the museum gift shop as in the actual museum, to find and eat the local deep fried delicacy (fish in London, pizza in Scotland, rice in Rome, Snickers in the south), and to take 50 pictures of a single perfect cherry blossom. I’ve driven many a travel companion crazy, I’m too much of a lady to tell you about all the travel companions that have driven me crazy.

7. Bring along your room décor: Pink scarves draped over harsh hotel lights do wonders for a girl’s complexion (or the appearance of it anyway)—check out goodwill. Candles! Hotel rooms STINK, the hotel rooms you will be able to afford (unless you are on plans 1-3) will definitely stink. Go to a fabulous bar on your first night and pick up a matchbook gratis-fire doesn’t fly the friendly skies. Invest in a little travel picture frame and a chic travel alarm clock, buy quality because these things will be with you the rest of your life. I love this travel frame from Smythson. Perhaps, bring along your own 600 thread count pillowcase and silk PJ’s, so at least your body is enveloped in luxury as you sleep. Target sells both. You can stuff your dirty laundry in the pillowcase for the trip home, just make sure the maid doesn’t make off with it accidentally when she changes your sheets.

8. The little luxuries: I love-love-love pamper packs from Boots in London. Individual servings of hair mask, face mask, moisturizing foot lotion, etc. Everything you need for a little spa evening after a hard day of touring the city on your feet. Stateside, stock up on free samples from CO Bigelow or Sephora and go to town!

9. Don’t wear ugly clothes in transit: How did velour tracksuits ever become fashionable? Just the term “velour tracksuit” conjures the worst possibly images in my head. Stereotypes like the dowdy middle aged woman from New Jersey with bottle blond hair and dark roots or vapid trailer-trash popstars jump through my mind, decked out in full on pink with elastic waistbands. Respect yourself, wear something chic. I have no idea why people think they have a license to dress like slobs on an airplane. Comfortable and classy are not mutually exclusive. Miss Collegiate USA wearing that cami sans-bra and those sweat pants with UC on one cheek and LA on the other: I am talking to you. Yes, you have lots more time to spend at the gym than me, and you are too exhausted from exams and frat parties to make an effort, but literally catching a glimpse of your T&A when you bend over to retrieve your ticket breaks the laws of common decency. Who knows? If you dress up, maybe the stewardess with decide you look way too first class to be sitting back with the cattle and give you an upgrade. A girl can dream, can’t she?

10. Last, but not least: Don’t waste your money on glamorous luggage unless it is your carry on, and then defend your right to carry it on the plane with your life, because they will try to gate check your precious package. Luggage gets lost, it gets damaged, and it goes missing for days at time. If you spend your hard earned dollars on luggage, you will be that much more heartbroken and annoyed when something happens. Buy glam luggage only if you are rich enough to painlessly replace it or if you find it at TJ Maxx. I have seen Tumi at the local Marshalls, sadly still beyond my budget L.

Images from onlineweddings.com, delawarelibertarian.blogspot.com, fashionmonsters.com

06 March 2008

Fierce Femmes

This last month has been pretty rough for me on a personal and profession level. As you may have noticed, all the stress has impacted my ability to publish on Chic and Charming, which is quite depressing in itself since this blog is a major creative outlet for me. Hopefully things will start looking up now...and in honor of my return I pose a questions to my readers:

Who do you think is the most fierce female movie character?
She doesn't have to be nice...in fact she can be kind of a backstabbing bitch...she just has to be a badass, take charge kind of girl. The kind of girl that doesn't take shit from anyone! I plan to arrange a little weekend girl power movie marathon so that on Monday I can come back to work as self confident and fierce as these leading ladies. Here a few ladies to get you started (more to come):

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John Robie: Say something nice to her, Danielle.
Danielle Foussard: She looks a lot older up close.
Frances Stevens: To a mere child, anything over twenty might seem old.
Danielle Foussard: A child? Shall we stand in shallower water and discuss that?

The cool blond...Grace Kelly as Frances Stevens in To Catch a Thief. This girl knows what she wants, and she knows how to get it. She plants a kiss on John Robie (Cary Grant), drives like a bat out of hell and practically moves in with Robie uninvited at the end of the movie. Danielle Foussard (Brigitte Auber) is a similarly forward and memorable woman from this movie...perhaps even more of a badass for stealing all the jewels in Cannes and framing Robie for the thefts.

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Lord Arthur Goring: My dear Mrs. Cheveley, I should make you a very bad husband.
Laura: I don't mind bad husbands. I've had two. They amused me immensely.

Oscar Wilde's "villainesses:" The elegantly duplicitous opportunists Mrs Cheveley (Julianne Moore) from An Ideal Husband and Mrs. Erlynne (Helen Hunt) from Lady Windermere's fan aka A Good Woman.

You really think there's "happy ever after" for people like us?

For the last entry in this log of fabulous leading ladies I present, Catherine Banning (Rene Russo) from the Thomas Crown Affair. This is one of my favorite movies of all time, full of glitz and glamor...stylish heroine Catherine is a tough as nails detective who will sacrifice everything (including love) to win. I just have to add that I hope I still look as good as Rene Russo topless when I'm her age.