Happy New Year!

It's already 2010 in Asia, but it's only 10:18PM in New York and 7:18PM in California. I just made it back to the States. I'm exhausted from the long flight, but wanted to take a few minutes to say thank you for a fabulous 2009! Best wishes for the new year. Talk soon!

Now Wearing...

Hat - Fin Oslo
Rings Necklace - Recycled, bought from a stoop sale
Trapeze Dress - Alexander Wang
Stirrup Leggings - French Connection
Socks - Calvin Klein
Faux Fur Trim Boots - French Connection

Gilt Fuse: 50 for under $50

Need some skinny jeans, tanks, leather jackets etc? Gilt Fuse is now having a final sale on all your favorite brands! Brands include Corpus, BCBG, LaROK, Kova & T, Betsey Johnson, La Rok, Genetic Denim, Goldhawk, ABS, Earnest Sewn, Twinkle by Wenlan and more. Accessories are on sale too including Faryl Robin, Matt & Nat, Tova and 80%20. 50 brands from under $50!

Not everything is under $50 but there are lots of great tanks or tees for $8-12 or skinny jeans for $14-18. There are some Laundry party dresses for $38-44!

Hurry to shop now! I am :) Merch is moving fast!

Sales This Week NYC: Dec 28-Jan 4th

Who: Issey Miyake Sample Sale
What: Up to 40% off the 2009 Collection
Where: 802 Madison Ave (b/n E 67th& E 68th St)
When: Now through December 31st, 2009. Mon-Sat 10am-6pm, Sun noon-5pm

Who: Built By Wendy Sale
What: Up to 30% off Merch
Where: 7 Centre Market Place (212)925-6538
When: Now through December 30th, 2009. Mon-Sat noon-7pm, Sun noon-6pm

Who: Bird End-of-Season Sale
What: Discounts of up to 50% off. Take advantage of deep markdowns on their fall/winter clothing and accessories for men and women—including Alexander Wang, Rachel Comey, Acne, Rag & Bone, Isabel Marant, and more.
When: New markdowns begin Saturday, December 26, 2009 through January 15, 2010.
Where: Various locations. 220 Smith Street, (corner of Butler Street), Cobble Hill; 718-797-3774; 316 Fifth Avenue, (b/n 2nd and 3rd streets), Park Slope; 718-768-4940; and 203 Grand Street, (between Bedford and Driggs avenues); Williamsburg; 718-388-1655; and online

Who: Zero + Maria Cornejo End-of-Season Sale
What: Up to 50% off. A Concave cardigan (now $349), a Koi dress in silk charmeuse (now $363), and an Alana Wool Funnel coat (now $667).
When: Now through Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Where: 33 Bleecker Street, (b/n Lafayette and Bowery)

Who: Rogan
What: Select men's & women's clothing up to 30% off
Where: Now through December 31, 2009. Mon-Sat noon-8pm, Sun noon-7pm
When: 330 Bowery St., at Bond St. (646-827-7567)

Who: Veda
What: Perfect leather jackets from Fall 2009 and plenty of reworked vintage at 30-50% off of the original price.
When: Starting this Friday, December 18th, until the end of the year.
Where: 132 Ludlow St, Nyc. 646.524.5137

Who: Jill Stuart
What: 30%-60% off womenswear and select jewelry, plus a sale on vintage. Bonus: Two racks full of fall '09 for $150
When: Ongoing. Daily 11am—8pm.(212-343-2300)
Where: 100 Greene St (b/n Prince and Spring St)

Next Week:
Who: Cynthia Rowley
What: Up to 80% off clothing and accessories.
Where: 376 Bleecker Street (b/n Perry and Charles); 212-242-3803
When: January 8-10, 2010. Fri-Sun 10am-9pm
+ Maria Cornejo, Rogan, Veda, Cynthia Rowley,

DIY: Embellished Tights

Ever since I saw embellished tights explode on the runways of Fall 2009, I've been wanting a pair to call my own, but life being busy, I was only able to get to it relatively recently! I'm sure that you've noticed in some of my recent Style Diary posts that I've been sporting a pair. It's relatively easy but it's a bit tedious and labour intensive!

Your sparkly legs are sure to be noticed! It's time to start sewing if you'd like a pair to wear for NYE ;)

Find a pair of lace tights that have distinctive patterns that you can embellish around.

Collect some crystals/beads that you think work together and would contrast nicely against your tights. If you're gonna go to the effort, don't be too subtle. Clear crystals show well against black. If you're stitching lighter colored tights, try a contrast like bronze or gold. Larger sequins will mean less sewing :) Refer to my previous post for some runway inspiration.

Cut an oval out of cardboard/bristol board, perhaps the width of a thigh or slightly smaller. Make sure to cut smoothly so jagged edges of the paper don't get caught on your tights.

Place the cardboard inside the tight leaving enough room at the bottom for your foot and your ankle. You don't want any beads to be around where you wear your shoes or on your feet for comfort's sake unless you're trying to go for a Zac Posen type of look. You can compare to the length of an ankle sock for reference.

Secure thread and start sewing on some beads. I like to tie off the thread but not cut it and continue sewing for added security. Here is a youtube of tying off for your reference if you're not sure what I'm talking about.

Create clusters/swirls around some of the curved patterns in the lace. I concentrated my beading on the outer sides and fronts of the tights. Repeat as much as you would like to get the desired effect.

Ta Da! Time to take your sparkly legs to a party!

Holiday Tinsel

We shot this a few weeks ago before we got caught up in a Holiday whirlwind with our good friend, the lovely, Yinka Ajakaiye.

It's part of our new photoshoot series, Heavy Metal. Basically, we noticed one of the biggest growing trends in recent history has been metallic heavy, but not over the top gilded, kept modern by simple/classic shapes and made edgy with graphic, geometric detailing. We scoured our closets to see what we could come up with for a Holiday look.

Given the cold weather it was our first attempt at an indoor "studio" shoot! Hope you enjoy!

Erin

Necklaces - Dominique Cohen for Target
Sequin Dress - Luxe, Urban Outfitters
2 Tone Tights - Sparkle & Fade, Urban Outfitters
Lucite Wedge Sandals - Stuart Weitzman
Rhinestone Bracelet - DIY, Trim tied with Ribbon
Flower Pave Ring - Marc Jacobs Special Item

Lani
Animal Sequin Dress - French Connection
Metallic Thread Quilted Blazer - Betsey Johnson
Geometric Tights - Calvin Klein
3 Tone Necklace - Vintage
Zip Front Sandals - Pour la Victoire
Rings - no name, Forever 21

Wishing you and your families a warm, safe and very Merry Christmas! xoxo

Preview: Neurotica Lookbook S/S 2010

British brand we love, Neurotica, just released the images of their Spring/Summer 2010 lookbook. The collection titled, "Week Of Wonders", explores a kaleidoscope of print and colour in classic soft tailoring in silk jersey. The main feature of the collection are the intricate hand drawn illustrations that have been inspired by wild creatures, insects and nature. Cicada wings, winding ivy, dripping honeycomb and bee placements amongst others, all hand printed in London.

Neurotica is available in the USA at:
Reward: New York, OAK: New York, Pixie Market: New York, Acrimony: New York, NEED SUPPLY CO: Virginia, La Rousse: Seattle

What do you think of the line?

Now Eating NYC: Dos Toros Taqueria

I've actually meant to do this write up for a while but haven't been able to get around to it. I'd been curious about Dos Toros the newly opened Taqueria opened by two brothers from San Francisco and I finally had a chance to stop in a couple weeks ago.

The set up is actually a lot like Chipotle, with a line that moves through the efficient assembly line counter leading to a cash register. Although there was a bit of a line, especially considering it was a Monday night, it moved fairly quickly. The atmosphere inside with it's exposed brick walls, wood & pleather stools/benches felt very warm and welcoming. Actually, it's re-claimed wood used for the tables, chairs, bench, and wainscoting so I guess they had eco-friendly design in mind.

The eco-friendly spin continues to biodegradable utensils, cups, napkins, and bags. Composting and recycling of kitchen waste and the use of non-toxic cleaning products!

I had to go for the crispy taco as I was dining-in and I was curious what this would be like. They heated the corn tortillas on the grill so that they were crispy on the edges but still sort of soft and chewy. I like!

In terms of meat, didn't try the pork but did taste the chicken and the beef. Both meats were tender and flavorful but in the end the chicken was the winner as the beef was close but kind of chewy on the end. Chicken was perfect!

As for the guac, usually I'm used to flavorless mashed avocado that I'm not a fan of unless I make/tweak it myself (I've been known to tinker in restaurants!) , but this had enough limeyness and salt for me to approve! It's not as thick as I would like but the flavor is all there plus I think the 46 or 92 cents they charge for Guac is much more reasonable and what Guac should cost than Chipotle's $2.08.

I definitely plan on coming back for more soon! Truthfully living in NYC and Toronto previously I never had very many great Mexican cuisine options available, but I did have my mid-western friend for confirmation on the goods! She agreed that it was her favorite since moving to NYC.

Dos Toros Taqueria
137 4th Ave
(between 13th St & 14th St)

Buy It Now: Chanel Particulière

If you are a nail polish fanatic, as myself, you're probably always looking at Chanel as one of the trend leaders in nail color. After the madness of last season's Jade, for Spring 2010, the color palatte has taken a neutral turn. Given that nude tones have been trending for a while, it's no surprise.

The color that has everyone talking is Particulière, a mushroom grey with purple undertones.

505 Particulière

Chanel also introduced 2 additional colors, Tendresse and Inattendu. Tendresse is a delicate pale pink rose shade.

507 Tendresse

Inattendu is a soft peachy nude tone.

503 Inattendu

It was set to be released in January but actually made an early appearance on Chanel.com and is available to purchase now at $23 a pop.

If you're looking for a more affordable option, OPI's Over the Taupe channels a very similar feeling to Particulière for less than half the price. For a Tendresse fix, OPI's Got a Date To-Knight could fill the void and for Inattendu, OPI's Tickle My France-y should do the trick.

Update: Chanel Particulière is sold out on the website but is currently in stock at Neiman Marcus.com

2nd Update (Jan 26, 2010): Chanel Particulière is sold out on Neiman Marcus but Inattendu and Tendresse are still available on Saks Fifth Avenue.com

Holiday Windows: Holt Renfrew

Swan Song?

I love a good window display. They inspire and make me aspire. Unfortunately they are pretty rare, even living in NYC. Aside from Bergdorf's displays or Anthropologie at Rockerfeller Center and the occasional Saks display, I'm not too often impressed. Here in my hometown, I think Holt Renfrew hands down takes the prize. I love walking by the flagship store on Bloor Street and watching someone's fashion fantasies come to life.

A red bag Christmas tree? Sounds good to me

Deer men.

Penguin headed women.

My fave window included snowmen directing a choir of their fave designers as snowmen. I've identified a few...but not sure I got them all. Who can you spot? I see a Vivienne Westwood, Elsa Schiaperelli, Coco Chanel, Karl Lagerfeld, John Galliano, Sonia Rykiel, Alber Elbaz and even an Anna Wintour.