We're On a Break!

            Katnip is taking an extended break to write for another fashion blog!  To get your fix, be sure to check out Second City Style for all your fashion and beauty insight.


            Be looking for my by-line!

Warning: Curves Ahead

            What does a curvy shape to you mean? To me it means an average sized woman with proportional chest to hips and a significantly smaller waist. Unfortunately this seems not to be the case for that definition these days. An adjective mostly saved for the Scarlett Johansson body types has now been diluted to refer to any body shape over a size 16. 
           Every magazine I have opened in the past five years tells you how to dress for the basic body shapes: pear, boyish, apple, and curvy. Every other body shape seems to be accurate but the "curvy" page is always a plus-sized woman wearing clothes from plus-sized stores. Where's the curvy girl's page?
           It's almost as if "plus-sized" is seen as an insulting word so they had to cover it up with a word stolen from a different body type. Why can't there be an extra page? A page for the size 6 to 12 girls who are loving their equal chest and hips ratio and the way their waist dips in. What are those girls to do? 
          The curvy girls are left to fend for themselves having to ignore the "curvy" page because the clothes don't come in her size and the model has nothing close to her body type. When did the curvy girl start getting lumped in with a different body type?
           Just the other day, I read an article in Marie Claire talking about the challenge of finding plus-sized evening wear. On the page were pictures of the typical plus-sized celebrities. Gabourey Sidibe, Adele...and Marilyn Monroe? Marilyn Monroe, a size 8 curvy woman has been lumped in with plus-sized women. Women who no more share a body type than they do clothing size, are all being put under the curvy umbrella of safety.
            Why is this? With the obesity rates rising, for the sake of vanity there might be a stigma when describing someone as "plus-sized" where referring a body shape as curvy is a compliment because any normal mind had the automatic hourglass shape in mind a la Marilyn. Women feel more confident when they can associate their body types with the stereotypical sex symbols as opposed to really accepting their bodies. 
           Let's get honest! Nikki Blonsky is gorgeous, proud, plus-sized girl. She doesn't pretend that she's the same as Bridgitte Bardot, she knows who she is and doesn't need to hide behind a false label. If you're curvy and you know it, raise your hands. If you're pear shaped, shake it proudly. Apple shapes, be fierce. Boyish shapes, work it. Plus-sized ladies, strike a pose and get your own page in the style sections. 

What Does Your Tee Say?

            Stores loves making special clothing lines for certain personality types. Are you a free spirit? Here is a great selection of hippie skirts and flowered headbands. Are you a little preppy? Here's a monogrammed polo and some topsiders. Stores use cliches to sell clothing and their assumptions are obnoxious. 
       Gap has dipped a toe in the pond though, and has actually succeeded. As opposed to telling us what we should wear according to our personalities they've given their classic tee-shirts personalities of their own. 
        The American Women Ts come in five different styles, all very simple and versatile. Each one with a subtle personality that doesn't try to scream a message.   
      
       The Heiress, The Haute Bohemian, The Suffragist, The Patriot, and The Flapper. 


         The Heiress is a plain white tee with embellishments to boot. A delicate gold chain on the neckline and a wicked gold zipper down the back to cinch the shirt in with a ton of sass. 


      The Haute Bohemian is the answer to the laid back fashionista that would never consider dreadlocks an option to go with her laid back style. A slouchy gray tee with feather detailing at the shoulder falls twisted across the body beautifully. 


      


      The Suffragist is an homage to to Rosie the Riveter, an embellished polo that's a masculine piece in a feminine fit.  


     


      The Patriot is a spin on those tacky truck stop shirts, but in a much cuter way. Perfect for the USA proud, but not the tacky.

        


        The Flapper is the feminine, romantic of the group. A pretty V-neck with flirty flounces at the bottom, are a flashback of what the flapper movement was all about.

Each shirt has something special about it, but it wouldn't be crazy for all five to end up in the same girl's closet. Let's face it, to pretend that a girl only has one fashion personality is a ridiculous thing.

CopyKat: No Dress Neccessary

Who says black tie requires all the ladies in skirts? Ginnifer Goodwin showed femme-bots around the world that being a bombshell doesn't require a dress. Ginnifer wore Yves St. Laurent bustier and pants to the premiere of "Armida" at the Metropolitan Opera. She pushed the look over the edge with a daring pixie cut, sexy smoking eyes, chunky gold jewelry and purple accessories.

                                                                                                                                       You can do it too at your next event where you realize you're too cool to wear a dress like every other little girl there. Choose a sexy black bustier(like this Loeffler Randall one) and high waisted cropped pants with some sheen (how American Retro does here) don't forget the chunky jewelry and the subtle colored accessories. 

It's time to stand out.

Photo:Yahoo!

Faking It

    The sun has officially made its debut and our pale skin is making us look like Edward Cullen in the bright sun. Since we all have at least half of our brains, we're not about to go and fry our skin to get that bronzed glow. The only thing left to do is to fake it.

    Most sunless tanners make you look like you're an extra in the Wonka factory, but there is one in particular that has never let me down. Jergens Natural Glow Lotion is the key to bronzed beauty status without the cost of skin cancer. There is one formula for your face and one for your body. Applied every morning, you'll see gradual results that leave you looking like you just flew back from a week in Miami. 

  
   To add an extra glow, find a face bronzer that makes you look radiant without looking like a citrus fruit. Cargo Bronzer has the perfect faux-glow. It comes in four shades to go perfect with your skin tone and when applied with a big fluffy brush(tap off the excess!) and swiped all over-concentrating on sun hot spots(nose, chin, forehead..), it makes your milky white complexion a thing of the past.

   With miracle products like these, you'll never have to subject your delicate skin to the sun's harsh rays ever again. If you must though, chose a sunscreen that works for you. For me, I can't out-do Aveno. Their unscented formula feels as light as their moisturizers and doesn't make you feel greasy even in the heat.  


    Have fun in the sun, or just look like you did? Either way, play it safe. Skin cancer doesn't go with anything in your closet.

Easter Chic

  

     I'm usually against any sort of holiday themed wear, but if you have to get in the spirit do it in the most sophisticated way.  Black glass beaded Bunny Ears are the way to get in the mood for the spring holiday without being a tacky mess. Throw on a pair of these for your own Easter egg roll and endure the themed wear for the day in the most stylish way.

Pin Me Down

      One part of my accessory wardrobe that takes a hit in this financial crisis is my hair accessories. I ignore the longing to buy the newest headbands, jewel and feather encrusted barrettes neglecting the trends to stick to my loyal black hair ties and plain bobby pins.         
     As the weather heats up, and hair chooses to cooperate less more reinforcements are needed to keep everything under control.When money is tight and your hair accessory budget is a joke, what's a girl to do when it comes to keeping tresses stylish and functional?      
     We take a trip back to our fashion past to see what was happening in Fall 2009 on the runways. Carolina Herrara, Dior, and Mandy Coon all got pinned down at their runway shows with their models' hair. 
     
         Once, a hair item we were ashamed of and used like a secret lover behind closed doors, hoping no one would ever know that we used them, bobby pins are now socially acceptable to show in public and in mulitples(unlike secret lovers). 
     
     Herrara and Coon went overboard with their looks, which were effective on the catwalk, but I don't think we're ready yet to leave the house with 150 bobby pins on one side of our heads. Dior showed a more wearable hairstyle with the pins adding interest to an otherwise typical bun. Although we can "ooh" and "aah" over these extravagant styles, we need a more wearable way to rock this trend so we'll move to the red carpet for our cues.

    Diane Kruger and Lauren Conrad were more of our style with their exposed bobby pins. Diane's simple up-do was held back with a few blonde pins with no intention of hiding it. LC went a little retro with her curled coif, using two pins in a row to hold it back.

    How do you do you this trend? Easy. Take any style that you normally use bobby pins for and instead of using one or two, use 5 or 6 all in a neat row. Throw 9 to 10 haphazardly over your messy up-do. Pin back the front of your hair and use way more bobby pins than you'd ever think you'd need. If you're feeling brave, invest a dollar into bobby pins the opposite of your hair color for some contrast attention.  Make sure your hair is well put together when wearing multiple pins or else you'll appear a hot-mess who rolled out of bed with left over prom pins stuck in her mane. 

Now it's time to get pin happy.

Pictures: Glamour & Style

Fashion > Art

"(Fashion is) Greater than art because you live your life in it"

      One of my favorite fashion quotes from the fashion centered movie "The Devil Wears Prada." A phrase that true fashionistas know is so true. This phrase that I adore so much were the first words that crossed my lips when I saw the new Valentino heel. 
     This pump is the queen of the pumps. A traditional shape with architecturally placed lace, this heel is true artwork. A very baroque-inspired pair, I do believe these would have been Marie Antoinette's "go-to" shoe if she had the opportunity. Unfortunately she doesn't, but we do. 
     Break open your piggy banks for this spectacular shoe and once it makes it's way into your closet(and your heart) never take them off and never betray them. With these shoes, you'll fare better than Marie because with Valentino we can have our cake and eat it too.

Jellies All Grown Up

    Remember summers as a kid? Popsicles, pools, grass stains, and your favorite summer sandals that you wore everyday no matter where you were headed. Those shoes for me were a hot pink pair of jelly sandals from Gap that left a waffle print wherever I walked. They were my biking shoes, my pool shoes, my church shoes- they were perfect for every occasion. 
    The memories of summers past have caught up with up and designers have been so generous to do a new twist on the jelly that we loved as little girls and transformed it into a grown up shoe that's just as versatile as it was back then. These shoes as pretty as can be are fabulous for the tomboy in us because even when we feel like walking in the mud, these shoes are back to perfect with a quick rinse.

 A smokey jelly gladiator goes with your cutoffs on a bike ride to your bohemian maxi dress in a snap and with the ankle strap these shoes can travel on your feet without them slipping off. 
Diane Von Furstenberg Jellies




   Only Kate Spade could do a jelly so whimsically. A lady-like sandal with a delicate bow right by your toes, these are meant to go with your cutest cropped pants on those mid afternoon summer dates.

     Not a sandal, but a summer shoe none the less. The cult favorite Tory Burch Reva flat made jelly and as cheerful as can be in a sunny yellow. These are perfect for the rainy days when it's too warm to wear rain boots but the last thing you want is wet toes.


       Clear jelly sandals could come off as tacky and cheesy, but these bejeweled beauties are more the modern glass slipper of stylish sandals. Sans color, they go with everything and the rhinestoned toes make this one a little dressier than it's casual counterparts. 
Stuart Weitzman

Burberry Does Leather

      For years I have been searching for the perfect leather jacket, because nothing says cool like a woman wearing body hugging leather in chilly weather. Unfortunately, I'm not quite a girl who belongs in a black leather jacket, but none the less my desire for one has not waned. Just when I almost given up on the search for leather that doesn't make me look like I'm trying too hard, Burberry slapped me with one so perfect it almost brought me to tears.
      Buttery leather that slides through your hands, cut and created into a badass, feminine jacked. The wide lapels, princess sleeves and skewed zipper makes this the leather jacket most of us can only dream of. The color is a light robin's egg blue(the picture doesn't do the color justice) that is more interesting than the normal black and browns, but still neutral enough to wear with every color you own. 
      Although pricey, a leather jacket like this is one you'll be wearing for the rest of your life and will still maintain it's shape and color no matter what you put it through. A true investment piece that you will wear with everything from jeans to skirts to cocktail attire. Isn't it time to get your hands on some leather?