DRESSED OR UNDRESSED? A FUN TIMES GUIDE TO SPRING07 DRESSES

Prada had them. Marc Jacobs did too. Then it trickled down to the retail world and ooh, look what we have here: H&M, le Chateau, Reitmans, Zara, Bedo, Simons all follow suit. Err-body is jumping on the dresses bandwagon! (Can I even use that as a term?). This Spring, I can GAR-RON-TEEEE that you will be bombarded and overwhelmed with dresses. Now whether you get “dressed” or “undressed” is really up to you. Here is a fun times guideline on what to look forward to, what to look out for and what to say “Seriously… no seriously?” to.

PART 1

POCKETS

We all love pockets right? Well at least I do. I have about a thousand purses (no really, and that’s not counting clutches, which by the way, is the new purse…confused yet?). In any case, you will begin, slowly but surely, to see dresses with pockets. By pockets, I mean slits on the side that you can barely even notice (think Jennifer Hudson at the Oscar's). According to the magazines (*Gasp* it is IMPERATIVE that we follow what the magazines say!!), you must walk around with your hands in the pockets of your dress. This will make you look ubercool and everyone will love you. I like this trend and am currently on a mission for a dress with pockets. H&M and Zara have a few. But if you hit up Jacob or Axara, they will probably look at you with a blank deer caught in headlights look. So don’t go there for a dress with pockets.

Get Your Pockets At:

H&M

$29.90

Mango

$65.00

Zara

$99.00

Victoria Beckham

Ok. So everything looks amazing on this woman. But what a sexy way to spin off the basic shirt and pant that EVERY woman has in her closet.

• Shirt & pants - already in your closet!


• Belt: from store "RK" (Square One - Mississauga) $168. There is another version in the same store that looks like a skirt (also for $168) for more casual wear.

WHAT IS LUCITE?

Ok so Chanel has this bag. It retails for approximately $849.00 on Ebay. For this brand, you would think it to be a reasonable price for maybe a small chained purse right? Or maybe a version of what Penelope Cruz has been seen carrying out and about town. Not so much. It’s this plastic bag that looks like the one you were given by your mom when, at age 6, you decided you too wanted a purse, lipstick and shoulder pads…we all had one of those. But Chanel deems it appropriate to make one, and sell one for $849.00. But then again…this is Chanel. If they could sell designer air, they would…or have they done that already? The bag is part of their Naked Collection and it goes with this Lucite trend that seems to be everywhere in magazines now, but has yet to hit the retail market. So the big question is: what on earth is this Lucite anyways? Lucite in big grown up words is a transparent thermoplastic acrylic resin (wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn). Basically its plastic.

In a time when big jewelry is in, and I cannot stress how a simple necklace can punch up any old outfit...then I guess somehow Lucite fits the bill. It is being used for bags, shoes and jewelry of sorts. But to be really and truly honest, I have yet to see it on me and am not too sure I am there yet. I mean, I am no genius and I suppose I have an average IQ but help me out on this one: isn’t the point of wearing big jewelry, or jewelry at all for that matter to see it? Some, no most, fashion insiders will tell me: “Silly girl, this lucite fits perfectly with the futureama trend that many Spring 07 designers showed (Givenchy and Stella McCartney). Granted, it does go with all the metallic we are seeing. But still…In any case, do with it what you want. If you see it in a store, grab it, try it on but there is a good chance you wont see yourself wearing it…no literally, you wont see yourself wearing it…it’s clear. And so is my opinion on this rather transparent trend. Ok, I think I have proven my point with enough puns. We can all see through what I am really trying to say.

HOT FOR SCARVES

I live in the cold. It is winter here from October to May. I hate the cold. I was born on an island and the very concept of not being able to wear open toe shoes in November makes me slightly uneasy. But there is this one itty bitty aspect of winter dressing that makes it somewhat bearable: scarves. Love them and can’t get enough of them. Early on, I realized that a) outside in February without a scarf pretty much meant you were spending the rest of the week at home, watching the Price is Right and Days of Our Lives, eating chicken soup and b) scarves looked good. And I don’t mean the same way you try to justify that the big chunky yet warm boots are cool in a rocker chic kind of way. Scarves look fly even when you’ve taken your coat off. They look effortless. Leaving a scarf on with your regular outfit punches it up. In any case, I have them in all shapes, sizes and color. I am thrilled to see this year, an emergence in the trend. Granted the forever stylish Hermes scarf will… um…forever be stylish(http://www.hermes.com/). But we are now seeing a new crop of rayon scarves, 100% cotton, and some even made out of linen. Most come in very neutral colors while others try to imitate what Hermes does without the staggering price tag (euh, is that the price for the store or the scarf?!). H&M has some stylish and always affordable ones for $12.90 and up. Jacob carries a slightly higher price tag for their rayon/viscose take on it at $24.00. The Gap has scarves in beige and white stripes. Le Chateau has a few styles on markdown ($9.99). If you wish to splurge slighlty, Banana Republic has theirs marked at $58.00USD and Club Monaco is offering theirs in ever so of the moment metallic for $69.00USD. The thing about the scarf is that it can make a simple white shirt and black pants look quite put together without giving the impression of looking too put together. Get it? Good. Now get one. Well only if you like having your neck covered. If not, then go buy some earrings or a nice lip gloss or something… Basically, a scarf is a super cheap way of livening up an outfit, plus it takes you from cold to hot like fuego in no time.

THE TRENCH COAT

Sherlock Holmes was one cool guy. He would walk around the dim streets of London with his sidekick, Watson, and his magnifying glass and find clues. The clues led him to solve some crazy mysteries. But you know what made him cooler than his wit and intelligence?His trench coat. Oh yes, the young chap looked mighty sharp in the beige rendition of what I call Spring 2007’s “You Need It More Than It Needs You” jacket. Do you realize how crucial a trench coat is to your coolness this season? :P Do you really? It is the jean jacket of 1998. Yes, the one we wore with the matching jeans to look like Madonna in Ray of Light. That one. Ok, now that you have grasped the necessity of the trench, here is where you can get it.

GET YOUR TRENCH AT:

WEAR IT WITH JEANS (OBVIOUSLY...):

I’M JUST MAD ABOUT SAFFRON

They call me mellow yellow…tad da da da. It is impossible to get that song out of your head once you start singing it. In the late 90’s, Gap had the “Everybody in Cords” ad campaign which included this song. Little did they know they would be starting a trend. Saffron, who would have thunk it, is everywhere on the shelves, walls and hangers of most retail stors in Canada (Bedo, Costa Blanca, Le Chateau, Reitman’s, H&M, Old Navy, Simons, Zara’s, you name it). It is refreshing to see amidst the markdown racks of grey, navy and black from Fall ‘06. So basically yellow is the new navy? Or is it the new heather grey?

In any case, there is a slight downside: it’s a tad tricky to match the right shade of yellow with your skin tone. If your yellow is too beige, you may look like you partied the night before, drank one White Russian too many (eeek) and had way too little water before going to sleep. On the floor. Of your bathroom. If too bright, you may look like you just stepped out of a 1997 Sears catalogue. However, with the abundance of shapes and styles, finding the right shade for you should not be a problem. Just think of it as a challenge (everyone loves challenges). Wear it with white jeans or your carry through grey cardigan from fall. Just don’t overdo it. Too much sun can definitely hurt the eyes.

HEY SAILOR

So apparently when Cameron Diaz has something, we all want it. And I am not just referring to Justin. Granted they did break up, but that’s a whole other blog. What I am referring to are stripes. I have always found Cameron to be some sort of a pioneer when it came to trend setting (almost like Kate Moss in skinny jeans circa 2003). Cameron was wearing stripes back in the day when we were still rocking Boho chic (whatever happened to all those prairie skirts anyways?)

The emergence of the nautical trend began in stores last year and has come back like a wave (no pun intended). Roberto Cavalli and Zac Posen had stripes in their spring 2006 runway shows. Giorgio Armani was ahead of the times, when his models sashayed down the runway for his Spring 2004 RTW show in nautical stripes.

The good news is that this is a very doable and wearable trend. And the cherry on top: most bargain stores are offering stripes in various shapes and sizes. You have the white, navy and red prerequisites in tops and bottoms. Some are even venturing with the yellow stripes (Bedo). The nautical inspiration is also giving us the colorful double breasted pea coat (Joe Fresh Style $39.00), the sailor pant (Costa Blanca $39.50) and the Rope belt. Not sure about the last one but to each his own.

In any case, we all know you don't have to spend thousands to look like a million bucks. Here are a few suggestions as to where you can obtain the look for less, and still have some money for an extra, much needed pair of cobalt blue wedge heels (or something…)

Sailor Pant
Costa Blanca: $39.50

Striped Shirt
Mango: $14.99 on Sale








White Jeans
La Maison Simons: $59.95

Eggplant Credits

Outfit 1:

(left to right)

tank top- $7.90 shop.hm.com

Purple feather print halter top $20.00 debenhams.com

Empire Cut Tank Top $22.80 forever21.com

Silver belt $7.80 Urban Behavior

Wide Leg Jeans $48.00 Jacob

Grey Ankle Boots $40.00 Payless Shoe Source

Suede Gold trim Clutch $45.00 Fashiondig.com

Grey Pumps $80.00 Aldoshoes.com

Outfit 2:

Pendant $9.80 forever21.com

Embellished Top $22.00 Suzy Shier

Leggings $14.90 H&M

Sunglasses $15.80 forever21.com

Scarf $15.95 Le Chateau

Pumps $59.99 Transit Shoes

Outfit 3:

Pumps $115.00 Nine West

Blouse $38.00 Jacob

Skirt $45.00 Modcloth.com

Bangles $195.00 Vivre.com

Opaque Tights $7.90 H&M

BALLERINA GIRL

The models at Michael Kors’s Spring 2007 runway show emerged as if from a ballet class. The hair was pulled back in a bun, held back with a simple black headband. The clothes were flowy, reminiscent of Degas and his ballerinas, minus the frilly tutus. The colors were neutral (white, black and beige) and the shapes with simple and elegant.
So now let’s take a step back from the runway show and into reality. We are not front row, watching beautiful models parade down the runway as we rub on some Crème de la Mer moisturizer on our perfectly manicured hands and place it carefully back into our Hermes Birkin bag. Chances are, we don’t make as much as we would like, spend too much on what we don’t need and the closest we will get to front row at a fashion show is on Etalk. But we like the pretty pretty fabrics oh so very much. We love the look, but $1,600 for a Michael Kors dress, are you kidding me?!? What I like about this trend is that it is simple and easy. It is all about comfortable pieces in basic colors. It also ties in with last Fall's layering trend (long sleeve under a short sleeve tunic anyone?)

In any case, we all know you don't have to spend thousands to look like a million bucks. Here are a few suggestions to where you can obtain the look for less, and still have some money for an extra, much needed oversized white clutch.

Ballet flats:
H&M: 14.90
Joe Fresh Style: $16.00
Aldo : $69.99

Headband:
Shoppers Drug Mart
Leggings (100% Cotton):
Costa Blanca: $15.50
Top (either in Rayon, Viscose or Lyocell) :
Mango: $29.99
Dynamite: $29.50

Jacob: $40.00

By the way, even if we cant afford a thing shown on the runway (unless the headbands are not cashmere), check out the Spring Runway Show anyways. The boys are cute and it makes me want to be 5 again, in Ms. Gardere’s ballet class: plié, chassé!

HEATHER GRAHAM

Heather Graham

Top: Floral print with satin & deep V neck. Costa Blanca (100% poly) $25. Comes in various colors - green, black, burgandy.

Jeans: Abercrombie Low rise"Erin skinny" jeams 98% cotton 2% spandex $89.
Boots: Aldo "Herzelie" $64.97 . Leather with rubber sole (low heel 0 to 1.5in).
Purse: Slouchy Tote with woven should strap "Edmonton" Aldo $19.95 (comes in dark brown/ red / purple)

Total outfit: $

Nicole Richie

Dress: Solid V-neck dress light weight cotton- Spoof (Queen Street West) $25. Comes in various colors (ie. gray, lilac, forest green etc).

Shoes: Mix it up a little and get Zebra print shoes- Aldo $89

Spring 2007 Trends

Where can I begin with this? There is so much out there this season, I don’t even know where to start. It is one thing to read the Vogues and Glamours of the world or to view the futuristic collection of Balenciaga and Spanish ladies of Alexander McQeen, but it is another to try and find it at our nearest H&M, adapt it and make it our own. There are many trends that get displayed on the runways that should not be worn on the streets.

However, when it is good, it is gooo'oood!


Here are a few of my favorites for Spring 2007

1) Trench coat (could you be more Audrey?)
2) Shirtdresses (notice the plural)
3) Silver ballet flats
4) Striped ¾ sleeve cotton shirt
5) High waisted jeans/ trousers
6) City shorts
7) Heather Grey, Crayola Green, Cobalt Blue, Mellow Yellow and Oh So Very White
8) Puffy Sleeve crisp white shirt

9) Wedges
10) Graphic print knit top
11) Lightweight knit scarves
12) Big rings
13) Layering
14) Lucite

Happy shopping!