"Moons and junes and ferris wheels, the dizzy dancing way that you feel, as every fairy tale comes real" -Joni Mitchell

Lately I've been searching for some new accessories to brighten my spring wardrobe and I think I've found the perfect pieces! Carly Kalish's headbands are perfect for spring days, summer nights, beach afternoons, and best of all bad hair days. 

It all began when Carly moved to New York City's Nolita neighborhood and started giving her handmade headbands to friends and family as birthday gifts. People took notice of her distinct style so she decided to take a chance and began selling her creations to New York locals. The headbands are fun, whimsical, and have the ability to bring out one's inner free spirit, so it's no surprise that the trend caught on quickly. 

When she's not frequenting markets and unique city sales in pursuit of rare trim and electrifying fabrics to craft her exceptional pieces, Carly is a therapist and advocate of sex workers and victims of human trafficking. With such heavy encounters on a daily basis the designer really lets her inner bohemian out when crafting these colorful accessories. 

I had the opportunity to hang out with Carly earlier this week and check out the pieces. We had lot of fun and took some great photos of her creations. The headbands come in 3 different styles each with multiple color options and are reasonably priced at $5-$30.  

For more information or to purchase a headband contact the designer directly at carlykalish@gmail.com.

The best part--She let me keep my favorite purple floral crown and I haven't taken it off since!

Cold as Fire Baby, Hot as Ice

Ice age man at Manhattan's Museum of Natural History (Left) and Brad Koenig and Baptiste Giabiconi in Chanel F/W 2010 (Right)

"Everything I buy is vintage and smells funny. Maybe that's why I don't have a boyfriend." -Lucy Liu

If your like me, always in the mood to score a dazzling sequined gown, gypsy pants you'll never have somewhere (appropriate) to wear, silk boudoir robes, floral spring dresses, leopard, leather, and anything beaded and bejeweled for pennies your in luck!


Who: ODD's COSTUME
The wardrobe mecca was once known as the one-stop clothing and costume rental resource for New York's editors, costume designers (film, television, and commercials), and celebrity stylists. Before closing, their famous wardrobe catalog took up an entire floor on 29th street and housed current clothing, 1920's-1990's period costumes, shoes, and accessories. Moreover the library was only available for rental to industry-insiders. 


What : CLOSEOUT SALE
Very suddenly a couple months ago Odd's and it's owners disappeared. It was unknown where they went, or what happened to the clothes...
Recently the building's owners entered the space planning to renovate Odd's former home and found the entire floor of garments untouched--thousands of pieces still organized by time period and occasion. Rather than unloading the pieces to a rag buyer they've decided to give the public one chance to explore the library and purchase pieces at crazy low prices!


Where: 231 West 29th street 3rd floor


When: Weekdays from 11-4 for the next month
If you can't make it at those times contact Ashley (the wonderful lady who made this all possible) for appointments at actuallyashleynyc@gmail.com. She'll try and make a time that works for you and will be especially agreeable if your a group of 3+ people.

PRICES: Prices range from $10-$50 per piece 
Most things are in the $10-$30 range. We bought over 10 things and nothing was over $20.

ALSO IMPORTANT:

It's not black and white loves Ashley so when you go, be nice, bring ca$h, bring your own shopping bags and please don't make a mess! 

***A warning to even the most seasoned nyc vintage shopper. This is not a sale to miss--but please proceed with caution. When you enter you may be verrrry overwhelmed by the sheer amount of garments. Don't stop. Take a deep breath. Find Ashley among the plaid shirts and hooker heels and start pulling. I promise you'll be glad you did!***

Tell Ashley that you read about the sale on 'Its not black and white' for a $5 discount

Happy Thrifting

Rows of shoes in drawers and endless racks of clothing

My Amazing Finds

Leopard blouse with quilted leather shoulders and cuffs $10 

Sequined and pink pleat dress (Which I'll probably shorten) $20

Sheer 'Jasimine' Style Pant $10

Black Silk Robe with Vintage Lace trim and train $10

Red Sequined jacket with neck and cuff detail $20

Floral spring dress with open back $10

S in her new Henry Holland-esque neon and polka dot dress

'Jasmine' Style pant and orange 1980's dress I left behind. It could be yours!

*image via Jak & Jil

"The problem with beauty is that it's like being born rich and getting poorer" -JC

76 year old Joan Collins in Alexis Bittar's Current Campaign

I don't know about you but I'm big fan of Alexis Bittar's funky and innovative jewelry designs. The Brooklyn born jewelry designer is all about being over the top using materials like hand carved lucite, vintage metalwork, semi-precious stones and my favorite, loads of ghetto gold. 

Bittar does extravagance well, and who better to display this extravagance than Dynasty's queen of over-the-top, Joan Collins. The designer chose her as the model for his Spring ad-campaign--an Alexis(Carrington)-does-Alexis(Bittar) face off of sorts. 

Why Alexis picked her:

"It is rumored that Collins swaggered onto the set of Dynasty eating spoonfuls of beluga caviar and wearing improbably large shoulder pads, driving a pink Thunderbird. She roared around Hollywood in chinchilla stoles and emerald bracelets and was rarely seen without a lover. She blended power, position and authority without losing her femininity...Joan let it be known that style and glamour were tools of  a clever strong woman."

"Joan is a icon of the 80’s excesses. And it was Collins’ style that drew several links to the recent couture shows such as Balmain. Joan consequently served as key inspiration when designing this [Bittar's] latest collection...She represents the flamboyant glamour of the 1980’s and exudes an unparalleled confidence that makes women of all ages feel empowered."

I love the collaboration and think Joan's glamour makes her the perfect ambassador to represent Bittar who is inspired by 1970's extravagance, 1980's punk, and 1930's art deco.  The result, like Joan, is opulent. 

And now a copy of this iconic poster can be yours. Starting Monday the team at Alexis Bittar are starting a contest for a chance to win one of two Joan Collins posters from their Spring 2010 ad campaign. These are the actual posters that were put up during NYC Fashion Week. Winners will be announced on Alexis’ Blog on 4/5. Click here to enter.

I've already entered, but if the poster can't be mine I'd love for one of you to have it.

Good Luck xx

"Where dreams become heart attacks"

Kate Moss

I know this isn't totally fashion related (In fact I realize it isn't related at all) but I'm going to spin it as a motivational diet tool for all the models...


I came across this website last week during my never-ending exploration of the internet. I swear one day I'm gonna get to a black page and it's just gonna say 'You have reached the end of the internet. Go outside.' Anyways, here it is.  To gross to really explore, but too funny to not share. 

A WARNING NOT FOR THE FAINT AT HEART

Dirty Free For All

In honor of Ke$ha's birthday last week, our matching middle names (Rose), and her upcoming appearance on American Idol this week, I thought it a good time to post some images from an editorial spread I assistant styled under Kim Friday, WWD's senior fashion editor.

The shoot took place last August right around the time that 'Tik Tok' was released, and the singer was full of energy anticipating what was to come from her first single. Little did any of us know that it would become the chart topping, billboard record breaking, can't get it outta your head song it is now. 

The look we were going for was very 'anti-gaga'/garbage can chic. We brought 100's of pieces of designer clothing (There are some set photos after the jump) but Ke$ha still opted to wear a sequined cape she found in a dumpster on La Brea for some of the looks. In addition to her own crumpled gold bra and trash can cape we dressed her in grittier designs from Bess, Boudoir D'huitres, Haleh Nematzadeh, Sass & Bide, and William Rast. We used lots and lots of jewelry (making sure per Ke$ha's request that nothing matched) including pieces from Alexis Bittar, Ben Amun, Draugsvold, and Noir. The shoes were from Brian Atwood, Giuseppe Zanotti, and T.U.K. 

Overall it still remains one of the most enjoyable shoots I've ever worked on due to Ke$ha's charm. As a new artist she was unaffected by fame. She was adventurous, quirky and willing to experiment with her look. I hope after all the #1 hits she hasn't lost that. 

You can read the whole article by Nick Axelrod here.

*images via Talaya Centento for WWD, other images by me

Radiant Crown

Without question, studs were one of the knockout trends shown by designers last season. We saw them fly from the A/W 2009 and S/S 2010 runways onto every possible place incuding bags (Alexander Wang, Balenciaga), Jewelry (Burberry, Noir), Jackets (Bess, Christopher Kane), Denim (Current Elliott, Alice and Olivia) and Shoes (Balenciaga, Gucci).

Now, there is yet another place we can ornament ourselves...On our heads! This Givenchy by Ricardo Tisci spiked headband is the perfect edgy New York girl item, but with a $500 price tag, is a little steep for a hair accessory. 

My friend S however, had an absolute 'I want it I need it' moment and almost took the plunge...Thankfully, she came to her senses--no glorified barrette is worth half your rent. This was the perfect opportunity for a little DIY! 

(Note: You should know that fashion students love a designer DIY like Derek Z loves an orange mocha frapp)

What you'll need:
Headband (Try any accessories store)
Black leather (Try trim/fabric stores)
Studs, 6 big spikes, 5 flat squares (Try trim stores like M&J)
Glue
Pliers
How to:

1. Measure the leather so it is the right size to wrap around the entire headband
2. Measure and mark where you want the studs to be. Start at the temple with a big spike and alternate with flat square studs.
3. Press the studs through the leather. Depending on the thickness of the leather you may need to use pliers.
4. Once the studs and spikes are firmly pulled through the leather, wrap the leather around the headband and glue into place.
5. Allow the glue to dry overnight.
6. Wear it out proudly. Ignore bridge and tunnel creeps who tell you you look like the statue of liberty--they don't know shit. 

The Result

*images via me, Tommy Ton, and Givenchy

I'm Kinda Busy

An epic music video. You must watch all 9 minutes. I promise every second is detailed, thought out, and worth it. 

Best 'Telephone' Moments:
0:30  Gaga does prison stripes--nicely
1:10   Gaga addresses the rumors
1:30   Gaga enters the prison yard looking like Harry Houdini. Her shades are literally smoking.  
2:15   Diet coke cans in Gaga's Hair. Reminds me of this Ashley Olsen editorial from Marie Claire:

2:37  Who is this girl?
2:45  Same girl. Gaga's sister perhaps?
2:50  That Jacket!!??!?!? And those knee-pads!!?? 
3:35  This whole segment feels very Madonna meets Roxy Hart
3:50  Signature Gaga fist pump (soon to replace the moonwalk)
4:05  Construction chic
4:50  Beyonce scolds Gaga
5:20  "Trust is like a mirror, you can fix it if its broke, but you can still see the crack in that  motherfuckers reflection"
6:28  Beyonce's jacket...DIY anyone?
7:45   Wonderwoman 2.0
8:50  Jai Rodriguez cameo...I'm pretty sure I have his autograph on an old Rent playbill from 1998
9:20  Backwards credits

On top of that, I counted Gaga's costume changes:

1. Striped dress (Thierry Mugler?)
2. Fishnets and pasties
3. Bodysuit, chains and white boots
4. Studded jacket
5. Studded lingerie
6. Construction tape
7. Dita Von Teese-esque [it's not] black and white suit
8. White plastic dress and blue telephone hat
9. White plastic dress, matching hat and McQueen boots
10. Americana
11. Leopard body-suit
12. 1970's blue Kentucky Derby dress and hat

I did the math (I had some free time today)...That's and average of 1 outfit per 47 seconds. Splendid. 

*Video via Vevo, images via Ruven Afandor, Marie Claire


UPDATE: Gaga's stylist Nicola Formichetti announced styling credits for the video. Here they are:
 (1) JEAN CHARLES DE CASTELBAJAC
 (3) VIKTOR & ROLF
 (4) SEARCH AND DESTROY
 (7) THIERRY MUGLER
 (8) RACHEL BARRETT & FRED BUTLER
 (9) RACHEL BARRETT & DANILO
 (12) EMILIE  PIRLOT
B's amazing jacket @ 6:28 is by JEAN CHARLES DE CASTELBAJAC
Everything else is credited to HAUS OF GAGA

If you could wish for one change in the world what would it be?
“That everybody could afford my shoes.”

-Christian Louboutin in AnOther's Proust Questionnaire

Ice Ice Baby

35 Ice sculptors 

6 Days

15 Trucks

265 Tonnes of snow and ice flown in from Scandinavia 

That is what it took Karl Lagerfeld to completely transform The Grand Palais into the arctic wonderland that acted as the backdrop for Chanel's A/W 2010 show.  The ability to dream and act with such grandeur says a lot about Karl Lagerfeld's imagination, creativity, perception, and budget. He reinvented the classic tweed jacket (with fur trim), updated the 2.55 bag (with fur patches), and re-imagined evening bags (as fur snowballs).  Most surprising however was that the yeti boots, fur trousers, fur bags and mohair coats were all faux. "It's so good now, technical advances are so prefect you can hardly tell fake fur from the real thing...Fake is not chic--but fake fur is" explained Karl backstage after the show. Personally, I've always preferred real fur, and worn my grandmother's hand-me-down's (including a beautiful white Dior mink thankyouverymuch) proudly--but if the faux is good enough for Karl, it's good enough for me.   

Overly excessive? Maybe. 

A statement on global warming? Unlikely.

Completely crazy Karl and unprecedented? Definitely.

*images via style.com and Reuters