Armani

I rarely find myself very enthusiastic about couture. Truth be told, I think it's a little bit silly. This season, though, I do think that one house so far is worth notice: Armani.



Armani is the master of innovative silhouettes. In a fashion world where soft lines currently seem to hold court, he steadily continues to send sharp, almost dapper suits down the runway. For this I admire him. Not to say that he can't do the whole girly, ethereal thing; In fact, he's nearly as proficient at this as he is at androgyny, as demonstrated by the lovely single-strap brocade confection above. The clothes were all done up in pearl gray, champagne, and charcoal. These subtle neutrals were dramatized with liberal amounts of jewels spangled heavily throughout the show, and overall, it was nothing but breathtaking.

Giorgio, will you adopt me?

Maddy

She Was Unusual

Well, I've been officially tagged to name six weird things about me. About damn time, too.

1. I have never had a boyfriend. I don't know if this is that unusual or not, since I'm only fourteen, but it looks like I'm just waiting until Christian Bale comes along. (It could work out. He's only a few years more than twice my age. Shut up.)

2. I hate milk. It's icky. Even the word, milk. Eugh.

3. There's about half a dozen chickens who live in my backyard. They're pretty much useless. All they do is peck around all day and get chased by my dog.

4. I have a serious Batman fixation. I suppose it comes from my unabashedly geeky dad, I don't know, but I freakin' love Batman. The comics, the movies, all forms of merchandise and perephenilia... what can I say? I'm a dork.

5. My favorite show ever is The Simpsons. I will hit anybody who says Family Guy is better.

6. I love naming things. I like names that start with W, and I like names that end with O.

There you have it. More about me than you ever wanted to know. So, who to tag? Um, I think mostly everybody's already done this, so let's see... Geisha at Spoons, Forks, and Fashion; Catherine, at L'emrouillamini; Wendy, at Pretty Little Pradas; Alluretone, at Allure Fashion; and Holly, at Holly Would. Reveal, I order you!



Maddy

Fly Me to the Moon

A few days ago, I featured a necklace from jewelry website Alisha Louise, and I've decided to give this site a little more exposure. Today I was browsing through their whole selection, and I was floored. I want everything. I think that the look sort of evokes Frank Gehry for Tiffany, but a little more playful and a lot more affordable. I don't think anything even surpasses two hundred dollars, which is admittedly more than I have at the moment, but still. Some of the pieces are vaguely architectural like Gehry's, while others feature cloisonné pendants with whimsical little hand-painted scenes. These are a few of my favorites:

"Stack" earrings, $90

"Cattails" pendant, $130


"Wheat" necklace, $92

"Star" earrings, $45Ugh, painfully lovely. All of the enamel pieces, like the star earrings, come in about two dozen different colors. Think how sweet and eye-catching they would be with a big ol' gray sweater and my black accordian pleat skirt. How pathetic is it that I am constructing outfits around jewelry that I do not, as of yet, own? Well, my birthday is next month, so if any of you fashionable people out there care about the well-being of my jewelry box...

Maddy

The Good Old Days of Uncomfortable Fashion

What happened to the distinctly feminine silhouette achieved through the use of bone-crushing corsets and billowing skirts? When did serious ball gowns start to go out of style to be traded in for the slimmer shape we know today? It must've happened at some point in the nineteenth century, or early twentieth... I suppose marveling at the fashion mysteries of bygone days is a bit of a moot point for a fashionista in the Age of Technology, but still, I'm curious.




Maddy

(Dresses by Bottega Veneta)

Pink Wishes and Dreams

I don't really like most pastel colors. I find that they fade into the crowd, and they look far too reminiscent of the sickly Easter-wear of my childhood. But lately, I have developed an attraction to dusty, ballerina pinks. I haven't the foggiest notion as to why, seeing as I don't dance and I've never been particularly fond of pink before. Perhaps it's that dreamy Piscean nature that I can't seem to avoid, no matter how much I insist to myself that I am a perfectly articulate and analytical girl who does not buy into astrology. Well, for whatever reason, I think these gentle, ethereal shades of pink look so very feminine and touchable. I don't think I even own anything in light pink, but it looks as if I won't be able to avoid this for much longer.





Is that enough saccharine for one day?

Maddy

(From top: Valentino, Alisha Louise, Delias)

Good God, I Am an Incompetent Blogger

Hello, fashion bloggers, here is something that may please you: Proenza Schouler is doing a collaboration with Target. Perfect! I adore Target's idea of having designer capsule collections; with the exception of Behnaz Sarapfour's recent debacle, they have all been rather well done. Especially Paul & Joe. I bought one of the sweaters, and everybody seems to think it's really high end. I've got them fooled, haven't I? At any rate, here is a wee peek at the loveliness to come.
Oh my, that purple pencil skirt up there has such gumption. And, oh, can't you just picture stepping down the street demurely in that swingy A-line coat? And yellow heels! How very unexpected! I'm thinking that my wardrobe could certainly use a shot of rainbow these days, afterall.

Okay, so perhaps it's not as pretty as the real thing:



But, it's as close as we mortals will ever get, so, I'll take it, thanks. At any rate, I think the collection is hitting stores at some point this coming February. So have your wallet ready and willing, and come prepared to claw out some eyeballs; I do believe there will be a bit of physical competition for that blue and white empire waist.

(I know a couple bloggers more eagle-eyed than myself have already reported on this subject; I was just so delighted, I decided to repeat the news.)

Maddy

La Musique

I am well aware that this is a fashion blog, but for the moment, I can find little to speak of fashion-wise. And so, for lack of anything else of interest, I suppose I will write about music. Not that I am particularly well informed on the subject; I just have nothing better to do since my plans have been cancelled and I've watched everything on TiVo.


I'm not one who usually goes in for the newer indie bands, because I find most kids who listen to them to be obnoxiously pleased with themselves for having such esoteric taste in music. However, you can hardly blame me for succumbing to this particular group, they are just so... sweet. The Boy Least Likely To is a pop-ish duo from rural England. This is their debut album, and the whole thing is one long string of pretty melodies, the lyrics full of clever rhymes and little neuroses. They use instruments like glockenspiels and banjos, and the whole sound is very child-like and innocent, but with a definite melancholy, fearful twinge. It puts you in a blue-and-yellow place and it is very nice.


I have a huge fan-crush on Niel Cicierega, the sole member of Lemon Demon and Internet personality extraordinaire. Dinosaurchestra is far and away his best album yet. Sometimes it's terribly funny, but at other points it seems pensive and a little sad. The whole thing is clearly thought out, from the perfectly crafted lyrics to the transition of the songs. The boy himself has a certain optomistic, Dumbledore-ish brand of wisdom that I find simulteneously intimidating and endearing, and it just makes the album that much better.

So these are a couple of albums that I find rather enjoyable. You might too, particularly if you are marginally dorky. And if you've got the blues, they both seem to strike that nice dreamy chord, somewhere in there between melancholia and hope. Hm, this post is getting terribly sentimental, not to mention a little wordy... I should just quite while I'm ahead, then.

Maddy

If Everybody Had an Ocean...

These days, I'm taking a decidedly beachy turn in my wardrobe. Perhaps this unusually warm East coast weather has permeated my style, I don't know, but I find myself coveting all things dusty-hued and sand-washed. Take, for instance, this sweatshirt I recently purchased:


You can't tell from the picture, but it's very baggy. It has distressed edges, and the material is a rough terry cloth. A glorified towel, my friends. I will not, however, try to defend my purchase- I refuse to be ashamed! It is rather comfy, and looks better in person. So there.



Oh, to be the sort of girl who could pull off this kind of shirt. I love clothing like this, manufactured to look like you've had it forever or you borrowed it from your boyfriend, but tailored to fit you in an optimally flattering way. Can't you just see this over a blue bikini, that lovely taupe making your tanned skin glow? Summer, where are you! $88, Free People.I adore stamped gold earrings. So glinty, but more solidly so than the dangly gemstone kinds. These especially are nice. They're the kind of earrings that you will wear every day for about two months, and you'll only stop when you lose them while playing in the surf. From Anthro for $48. (They have a plethora of gorgeous jewelry there, if you've got a hundred bucks or so lying around, I'd check it out.)

This concludes my oceanic obsession du jour... I solemnly swear to put this look aside with a firm hand until the appropriate months arrive. June really can't get here fast enough.

Maddy

3.1 Phillip Lim

Yes, yes, I know the fashion shows were ages ago. But, I never did get around to praising one of my favorites: Phillip Lim. I was reminded of how impressed I was by him when reading a recent post at The Perfect Closet. Anyways, I believe he is fairly new to the scene, and thus deserves a considerable amount of admiration. So, here's looking at you, Lim:



I rather liked the white rosette motif. Whimsical, feminine, maybe even a little twee, but rumpled enough to make it appropriately grown-up. The clothes were primarily white, the monotony of which was broken up occasionally with minimal amounts of navy and a couple floral pieces. Overall, it was well executed, charming, and not a little girly. Lovely.


Maddy

He made paintings out of urine, people. Urine!

I am so, so sick of typical mod icons, such as Edie Sedgewick. It's gotten to the point that whenever I see a person wearing black and white stripes, whether inspired by the infamous Factory Girl or not, I want to shoot them in the kneecaps. Oh, and god knows you don't want to get me started on Andy Warhol. Not only have the fashionistas reembraced this talenteless hack, but the hipsters have picked up the trend as well, albeit a little late. I'm not even going to go into his lack of artistic merit, because on this subject I could elaborate for days (He was totally the poor man's Duchamp), but I do wish to address the general public thusly: I'm okay with it if you like Andy Warhol. But must you insist upon wearing Andy Warhol?









Aaaagh!


To all you Warholians: please don't be offended. I am just very opinionated, as the name of my blog implies. It doesn't lessen my opinion of you if you are a fan of he and his Factory, so don't get all huffy.

Maddy