Fashiona

Oh, it is the last day of September and we are over a week into the Fall 2008 Season.

Fashiona has been teasing you  with tidbits of Fall trends by dropping hints in her commentary - see Fashiona’s Date with Lucky.  She decided that she would list them out in one concise post.

…she is waiting for her applause.

Of course Fashiona  watches trends for men and women and reads about them ALL but only subscribes to ones that she like for herself or can conceive others.  If you have  reading for  a while then you know that she hates skinny jeans on men and  on “less than” skinny girls.  Leggings she hates for herself but condone   other people wearing them if their tops are flattering and long enough.   Her sis embraces this trend wholeheartedly and does it correctly.

Fall Top Trends:

• Lace and more Lace - Think Victorian era style rather than Madonna’s Desperately Seeking Susan days.  So think lace scarves rather than lace gloves.  A lace little black dress is an excellent way to pull this trend off. You do have little black dress, right?

• False eyelashes - Fashiona loves real drama  in general (one reason she doesn’t fully embrace reality TV, why watch angst filled  real life  when you can watch perfectly coiffed and dressed stars on… let’s say Lipstick Jungle or Mad Men). Lashes are great accents for evening and can add some real “WOW” to your look.

• High Waist Pants and Skirts- No more “Whale Tail” sightings and Fashiona is rejoicing.  Granted high Waist clothes are easier to pull off if you are taller but petite girls you just break out your platforms and you can too.  Oh… stop whining that  your feet and back hurt and think about how fab you look (with your built in girdle).

 Photo Credit: Victoria Secret.com

• Sweater Dresses-Sweater Dresses can REALLY  be cute if you buy them in the right size.  They should be form fitting but not sausage casing tight. Wear your Spanx or get thee to a gym (Fashiona does both).  Ladies there should be 2 count them bumps in our clothes, flotation devices (top) and seat cushions(bottom) that’s it-No muffin tops or spare tires.

• Wood Heel Boots- Fashiona is love in with the 1970’s anyway so this just fits right in.  And Good News, these can actually be comfortable if the heel is wide enough.

Okay so the girls in Sex in the City and Lipstick Jungle would never be caught dead in knock-offs… but they also have Hollywood inflated salaries attached to their Hollywoodized careers. 

What does the rest of us in  the fashion crazed world do?  Well, we COULD pick quantity over quality -  Junior brands(Express, JLo, House of Dereon) often use this strategy and have very fast turnover in their stores; teenagers update their closet as fast as their allowance allows.

Fashiona does not recommend this as most of us outgrow this need for constant reinvention Cher, Madonna and Mariah are noted expectations. At some point in our late 20’s, we craft a “look” and just tweak it for the rest of our lives or a least every decade.

How to knock- offs play into the fashion game? Women usually prefer large bags or smaller ones. Fashiona tends to like larger ones. 

The IT bag is whatever your style icon is carrying or whatever pricey bag you want for the season. 

Let’s use   Fashiona’s new found favorite blog, the Bagsnob as an example. 

The Bagsnob is big on Bottega Venetta for Fall. 

Photo Credit from: Bagsnob.com

Cute, right but OMG expensive, if the trend really picks up  then every tier of store from Target to  Macy’s to street vendors will have a  “version” of this bag for sale at the fraction of the price. These bags offer the “feel” of the designer bag but are at 30% different than the original.

Bags always knock offed- Fendi and Prada.

Caution: Knock-offs  and Counterfeits are two different things.  Counterfeit bags are illegal.  They “try” to copy the logo and the workmanship and often prey on tourists or naive shoppers.

Fashiona does not buy or condone these. 

If you are dead set on the “real thing” go to Bag, Borrow or Steal.com

Some reasons why Fashiona loves September:

• Her birthday of course
• New York City  is beautiful in September (when it isn’t raining). The heat of Summer is  gone and Fall is just  starting and the architecture looks its best.
• Fashion Week(s):starting with New York, then London, Milan and finally ending in the créme de la créme of fashion ~ PARIS. Clothes take precedent of course but designers use stylists to complete the runway outfits with shoes, purse, make-up etc. etc.  

Fashiona did indeed just came back from Italy this week…but she was in Rome… the fashion capital is in Milan.

Now it is fashion common knowledge that Italian shoemakers are the  premier designers in the world. Partly because of their amazing craftsmanship  and partly because of the high quality of leather…even Banana Republic uses Italian goods.  

While women in Rome are decidedly more conservative, they DO take their handbags seriously.

 Is that  not just super stunning?  It is Valentino and Italian… to die  save for.

Did she buy one for herself…no but she did  get a little something for Topaz. Her birthday  is coming up.

But amazingly Fashiona saw no knock-offs in sight and  believe me she can spot  them.

Fashiona in Santorini

Fashiona in Mykonos

Fashiona loves Sicily

Now while Fashiona was visiting the “Continent”, the Emmys were on…

Photo credit: Just Jared.com

Eva … Who dressed you in a wedding cake/Vegas lampshade?

Please fire your stylist and get your money back…don’t ever actually look like a Desperate Housewife again… poor  Fashiona is holding her head and now needs a nap and no it is not the jet lag.

Why does bad fashion happen to cute people, Why!!!!