La république du chic: April 2009

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Grey Gardens

If you haven't watched Grey Gardens, go watch it on HBO. It's an intriguing tale of Jackie O's cousin, Edith Bouvier Beale and her mother, who are both eccentric and have a sense of style like nobody else's (wearing a sweater as a snood?). I definitely prefer the glamourous 1930s style of Little Eddie, during the heydays of the Grey Gardens. Also check out the glam style from the same period in Atonement. I also posted some photos of 1930s style dresses I found on the internet. They are mostly biased cut and draping at all the most flattering places. Didn't find that many 30's style clothing in my wardrobe, but here're a few.

A scene from Grey Gardens on HBO.

One of my favorite looks on Grey Gardens.

Amazing emerald green dress in Atonement.

1930's style dress.

Victor Osborne hat

Hayden-Harnett dress

Non-descript dress I bought at the Barneys Warehouse Sale

Jean-Michel Cazabat shoes

Saturday, April 18, 2009

Daisy the milliner/ personal stylist?

I finally went to a hat-making class on Wednesday. It was the most creative fun I've had for a while. About a couple years ago I was at a young designers showcase at FIT and stopped by a booth selling hats. I signed up for their mailing list and kept getting e-mails about their appearance at the next craft fair or millinery workshop. I have recently gotten into wearing hats and so was intrigued by the idea of hat-making. For this class, I learnt to make a cocktail hat. Not sure when I will get to wear it, but it was definitely fun to make. I will definitely be going back for the free form hat-making class come this Fall.

Alice and Olivia lace dress

Otherwise, I spent today going through my friend, Ashleigh's wardrobe and creating outfits. It was fun! Wish I took some photos to share. We even left her apartment wearing one of the outfits: black crochet floppy hat, black and silver disc earrings, black tunic cinched at the waist with a ruffle v-neck neckline, black leggings, flat sandals with embellishment and a watersnake-look bag (a sales lady asked if it was a Beirn bag, which retails for $325, but Ashleigh got it for a lot, lot less) to top off the look. Ashleigh, if you're reading this, please send me a photo of your cute self in the outfit so I can post it here!

Saturday, April 11, 2009

British Invasion

Another rainy and windy day in NYC, but that didn't stop me from going out to brunch at Bubby's with my friend. The weather reminds me of London, cold, grey and wet...speaking of which, British fashion megastore, Topshop, made its NYC debut on April 2, more on it below.

Here's what I wore out today.

Raincoat - Gryphon

Rainboots - H&M

Underneath the raincoat

Cardigan - Theory

Dress - AKA

Belt - Gap (way too long since it is a hand-me-down from my hubbie)

I finally checked out Topshop, this past week. The opening was on April 2, but I can't imagine waiting in line for hours to get in so I waited. Apparently, one devoted fan started waiting at 6:00 a.m. for the doors to open at 11:00 a.m.. That's what I call devotion!

There has been so much buzz about the stateside opening of Topshop, but frankly, I was a bit disappointed. The prices are a lot higher than what I expected. As a former boarding school student in the UK, Topshop was one of my favorite clothing store as it was affordable and on trend. The stock at the Broadway store are still on trend: florals, ruffles, bright colors and sequins...lots of sequins...but the prices are a bit steep considering the quality. I have nonetheless scoured the racks and found some great pieces.

Front entrance display.

Bright colors galore on 2nd floor.

Sequined floral top.

Line at the dressing room.

A grey drapey skirt made of sweatshirt material that I wish they had in my size.

Kate Moss Topshop dress for my mom who takes dance classes. The fabric was so delicate I had a hard time finding one that is not flawed.

Kate Moss Topshop sequin dress that I let go after first trying it on. I decided to get it anyways because I really like the backside draping. I was lucky to find it still hanging in the dressing room rack when I went back for it.

Top - Topshop

Jeans - Seven for All Mankind

Same top from Topshop, but paired with H&M voluminous navy skirt, and Hollywould sandals.

Sandals - Hollywould

Love the intricate neckline.

Top - Topshop

I'm a sucker for lace...what can I say...

Love the lace and the draping on the backside.

Saturday, April 4, 2009

Shades of Grey

It's been awfully grey and dreary for the past two days here in NYC, which is not all bad. At least it inspired this grey-themed blog post. I've lately been really drawn to anything grey because it goes with everything. I especially like pairing it with yellow. They just go together so well!