2nd Annual Product Runway- Save the Date!

After a successful first annual show, Seattle’s Product Runway is back for part two. Created by the Interior Design Coalition of Washington (IDCW), Product Runway is designed to celebrate the distinct talent of Seattle’s Interior Design community, composed of industry professionals and students. Teams will construct couture garments crafted from interior design materials using everything from carpeting to light fixtures. This year’s show is scheduled for Friday, August 28th. Pencil this fun (and fashionable) event into your calendar ASAP. Event proceeds benefit IDCW’s education and professional development programs. Stay tuned for more info as details unfold!

For more info, visit www.productrunway.com

First Annual Blush Event a Smashing Success!

Audrey Clark and Carli Smith of Little Black Dress Events welcomed a packed house at Ascada Bistro last night for the first annual Blush Fashion & Beauty Trend Show. The evening was hosted by Brooke and Monti from The Ladies Room on Movin 92.5, who came out to help raise money for Y.E.S. and Dress for Success. The highlight of the evening was the designer debut of Vantha Ry whose namesake collection for petite women featured a ruffle tunic blouse, a cropped plaid jacket, a reptile print ruffle dress and a double-breasted navy blue coat. Models were adorned with exotic accessories from Rock Star Jewelry and carried handbags from Clutch. Shoes were provided by Report Signature, including the crowd-favorite, a thigh high pair of brown stiletto boots.

Event sponsors included 24 Seven, Clutch, Dry Soda, Girl Power Hour, Opal, Report Signature, Sydneylovesfashion.com, Rock Star Jewelry, Vin Du Lac, Wink Cupcakes, Zing Bars, Lady Lam and D-List Magazine.

Photos from the event will be available on Monday night from Brick House Photography and can be viewed by clicking here.

There's Something About Sydney

Designing dresses for women is something that comes naturally to LA-based designer Sydney Azria. Born into a family of apparel industry insiders, he has been privy to the secrets of success that only true veterans have the ability to reveal. His father Serge Azria and his Uncle, Max Azria (founder of BCBG) taught him that in order to design beautiful pieces you have to truly understand exactly what women want. “It’s what my family has been doing for the last 5 decades,” says Sydney, “and I feel a responsibility to keep the family tradition alive.”

Sydney launched his first collection of stylish silk/cashmere blend dresses in the Fall of 2007 and never looked back. Since then his designs have been spotted on countless celebrities such as Eva Longoria and seen on hit T.V. shows including MTV’s The Hills. Sydney has also embarked on a global expansion of his brand by entering into the Japanese market (by way of Barney’s) in the Fall of 2008 and making appearances in several Grecian boutiques. “The West Coast has been my biggest market thus far,” says Sydney,” but I wanted to take Sydney Los Angeles global because I love the thought of being able to touch someone that is a world away.”



As for his current collection, the Spring 2009 assortment features stylish silhouettes in LA inspired colors like hot pink, aqua blue and mist gray. “Our best selling dress is a long sleeve v-neck tunic with a palm tree print inspired by a trip to Palm Springs,” says Sydney,” but my favorite piece in the collection is our Southside tank dress.” The Summer 2009 collection features functional jersey knit dresses made from soft spandex/tencel fabric with price points ranging from $120-160 USD.



Sydney Los Angeles represents what people expect to see out of LA, bright colors, knit fabrics and creative styling all fused together into dresses inspired by emotions and a "out of the box" approach to design and marketing.

The collection is available online at www.sydneylosangeles.com

Spring 2009 Seattle Fashion Calendar

Seattle has a full line-up of fabulous fashion events that need to be penciled into your datebook ASAP. Here are a few of my top recommendations. 

March 20, 2009
Clutch, Seattle’s only handbag boutique, is teaming up with Rock Star Jewelry to present a trunk show of Martha Driver’s latest collection for Spring 2009. All Rock Star Jewelry is made by hand using semi precious and precious stones including pearls, onyx and turquoise. Bring in a used handbag or toiletry item for Dress for Success and receive a 25% discount on all handbag or jewelry purchases made at the trunk show. For event details, click here.

March 21, 2009
Join Les Amis for a great fashion event with a good cause. The Twenty Twenty Revue will be held on Saturday the 21st at the Georgetown Ballroom featuring live music, a fashion show, and high energy auction to raise money for the Vitamin Angels. The fashion show portion of the event will feature Les Amis, Velouria, Baby & Co., Frankie, Essenza, and Lamb's Ear. For more information click here.

March 28, 2009
Bring your friends, get a makeover, and enjoy the fashion and entertainment – a great night out at The Blush Trend and Beauty Event featuring upcoming designer Vantha Ry and freelance makeup artists from Laura Mercier, Dior, Smashbox, and Yves Saint Laurent. The event includes a cocktail reception and fashion show. For more event details click here.

April 3, 2009
The Silhouettes of Style event will take place on Friday April 3rd at The Westin in Bellevue featuring a luncheon and fashion show. Event guests will get an exclusive look at the season's hottest fashion from The Bellevue Collection Boutiques. For more information, click here.

April 18, 2009
Fashion photographer Gabriel Choi is at it again with the next installation of Seattle Fashion Week Events. The week-long fashion celebration will showcase student designers, independent designers and Seattle’s best retailers and boutiques. The main event, a Couture Fashion Show is on Saturday April 18th at Fremont Studios. For more information and a full line up of fashion week events, click here.

April 18, 2009
The Luly Yang Couture 2009 Tea Show "Pearl Essence" will be held at the Fairmont Olympic Hotel in the Georgian room. For reservations please call Bojana Marusci at (206) 287-4049. Reservations required.

April 30, 2009
This year’s Northwest Hope & Healing Fashion Show featuring Carmilia’s, Costal, Lululemon, Canopy Blue, Nuvo Moda, The Finerie, Oslo’s, Asher Anson and Bellefleur Lingerie will be held on Thursday, April 30th at the Showbox Sodo. Tickets range from $40-$1,000. For more information, click here.

April 30, 2009
Just down the street from the NW Hope & Healing show will be another great fashion event called FACE. The Fashion, Art and Compassion Event will come together on April 30th at Herban Feast in Sodo Park to celebrate style and raise money for the Sunflower Children’s Foundation. The fashion portion of the evening will be presented by Barney’s New York, live and silent auctions will have an emphasis on art and fashion, and wine tasting will be hosted by Young’s Columbia. 100 percent of the net proceeds from the event will benefit the Sunflower Children’s Foundation. Ticket prices range from $50 for general admission to $125 for VIP. To purchase tickets click here.

May 7, 2009

The 3rd Annual Thaw fashion show will be held at Thursday May 7th featuring Adam Arnold, Michael Cepress, Jill Lindsey, Karly Orr, Liza Rietz, Holly Stalder, Kate Towers, Liise Wyatt and the top 5 winners from Seattle Magazine's Seamless in Seattle 2009 Design Competition. For more information, click here. 

Parisian Fashion + Fantastic Crepes

I’m dreaming about Parisian fashion from designers like Lanvin for Spring 2009 and since I can’t be there in person to enjoy the festivities of fashion week I’m going to have to do the next best thing. Eat crepes! Crepes are considered a national dish of France and are simply delicious. Over the weekend my fiancee and I discovered Anita’s Crepes nestled between Fremont and Ballard on Leary Way. The atmosphere, presentation, delicious food and of course the amazing Mimosa’s made our lazy Saturday brunch one of the best we’ve ever had! Anita’s makes crepes using local and organic ingredients. My favorite was the bacon and cheddar crepe but if you’re in the mood for something sweet try the raspberry crepe dusted with powdered sugar. Mmmm!

I don’t normally blog about food but Anita’s was so amazing I couldn’t resist!

Anita’s is located at 4350 Leary Way NW. For more info, click here.

Best Site for Vintage Fashion

If you love Vintage fashion you have to check out ATELIER-MAYER.COM. It’s a website dedicated to 20th century vintage fashion inspired by Klaudia Mayer, an Austrian haute couture tailor whose atelier was originally founded in 1927. Think of it as a luxury online boutique for vintage fashion lovers, collectors, students, designers and artists. This is a great site if you’re looking for vintage apparel, jewelry, handbags or even shoes. Plus, most of the item descriptions include the decade the item is from making it easy to know just how “vintage” your item actually is. You can even buy vintage bridal! Each item also comes with a style sheet that details every aspect of the garment including fabric information, care, condition, Editors notes about the decade the design was from and information about what to wear the garment with. The website also includes an informational section about buying vintage, a section about key items per decade and also a place to sell your vintage items on consignment.

Fall 2009 Chanel Runway Review

The Fall 2009 Ready to Wear Collection from Chanel (shown in Paris yesterday) was full of classic style lines and feminine details. Creative director Karl Lagerfeld described the collection as "Belle Brummell" inspired by Beau Brummell, a British dandy who dictated men's fashion by tying his cravats in ever more elaborate configurations.

High collars adorned with ruffles were dominant as a key detail for Chanel, as were sleeve details and cuffs. The silhouette was slender and trousers were worn low on the hip with a cuffed hem. Key items included the jumpsuit with detailing on the sleeves (lace, bows, ruffles), floor-length satin black skirts, the key-hole neck opening and skirts that had a lengthy slit up the front. Accessories included a clear Chanel carryall (with a signature Chanel handbag tucked inside and places for lipstick and blush), the hoop-heel shoe (talk about negative space), and a black backpack-briefcase. The majority of the collection featured classic black and white colorways. Pop colors (or lack thereof) consisted of green and soft pink.

Models wore their hair natural with a bit of wave. Eyes were adorned with black eyeliner and silver faux eyelashes on the bottom lashes only.

On a side note: I’m not so sure I quite understand the all-over print bodysuits. It would truly take the right person (size zero to be specific) to wear that look without appearing to be openly auditioning for the circus.

Overall, I loved it. You can't go wrong with Chanel, even if you can only afford the perfume!

To view the full collection, visit Style.com

Photo Credit: Monica Feudi & Gianni Pucci for Style.com

Spring 2009 Trend: The Bold Cardigan

I love the cardigan trend for Spring '09. It's an easy way to update your wardrobe and the rainbow of colors is a nice escape from the muted fall color palette. Add a colorful touch to a tank top and a pair of denim with a bold cardigan or throw one in your handbag to cover your arms on a chilly Spring night. 

My top pick is the Jackie cardigan from J. Crew. It's a cotton/nylon/spandex blend with a superfine 14-gauge knit. You can even get it monogrammed for an extra $10 if you like. 

Cardigan (without monogram) is $59.50. 

For more info, click here. 

Spring 2009 Trend: The Romper

Some magazines are calling them short playsuits, others are calling them rompers. Whatever you call them, you have to get one for spring. This is the most fabulous trend we've had in awhile and if you get a great one you can wear it all the way through summer. I like the silk halter style (above) from Top Shop. It has a a great bow detail and a drawstring waist. The best part is, it's machine washable, although I'm sure it's a better bet to wash it by hand and let it dry flat. Pair this with a flat sandal and minimal jewelry and you're ready for a night out.  

Dolce & Gabbana Pajama Trend Alert

Pajamas in the daytime remind me of the childhood movie Peter Pan but somehow Dolce & Gabbana fused that concept with Far East inspiration for their spring/summer collection of sexy pajamas. Magazines including Harper’s Bazaar claimed it was a way to reinterpret the tuxedo for 2009. You be the judge. I happen to know quite a few people who would find any excuse to wear their pajamas all day. I’m sure they will love this trend.

Photo Credit: Marcio Madeira for Style.com

Spring Trend: The Jumpsuit

Times are tough, so if you only buy one item to update your wardrobe from spring, make it a jumpsuit. These easy, all-in-one pieces are universally flattering and surprisingly sexy. Designers including Bottega Veneta, Chloe, Chanel and Stella McCartney are all showing the look for Spring 2009. My favorite rendition of the trend is Max Azria’s version for BCBG which features pocket details and a belted waist (pictured above).

BCBG Photo Credit: Marcio Madeira for Style.com