Walk on the Wild Side!

“Lions and Tigers and Bears, OH MY!” Little did I know that the lines Dorothy hummed in the Wizard of Oz while walking through the spooky forest will also be my reaction on entering a clothing store. Check out what the latest offerings this season are, and we will all be singing to Dorothy’s tunes in symphony.

Nope! Not talking about an animal print! While animal print is a clothing style wherein the fabric resembles the pattern of the skin and fur of an animal (faux leopard prints being the most common), what caught my attention was using the animal “as the print”, or an “animal picture” as a block covering the t-shirt say.

Bringing the fauna to your closet, this trend is here to stay in my opinion. Images of our friends from the wild are a sure shot winner to grab a lot of eyeballs. How can anyone ignore when the wildlife marches along.

What I am compelled to do is compare which one of the two works better. Subtle, equally shaped, sized and spaced miniatures of the beast flowing through the garment, or, an overwhelming look, with one of the wild ones, staring in your face! The parameter for comparison for me will always be which one scores on the “casual-edgy” meter. Ok, so I just invented this meter! But, don’t you agree with me that an animal photo on clothing has to pass the test of how casual, yet edgy it is? 

The Beast at its Best staring

Miniature camels along the fabric

I believe nothing means more cool and casual than a plain t-shirt with an animal picture on it. Team it up with skinny jeans or denim shorts (my all time favorite), and there you go. You are ready for your day outing with your friends over the weekend. And talking about edgy, like, duhh, the gaze that one of our friends from the wild is enough to make an impact anywhere!

Would love to know whether you prefer the one man show, singing “Hey, I heard you were a wild one”, or the battalion humming in chorus.

As always, put your fashionable foot forward!

Wear a Middleton!

Gotta give it to Zara. Not only does the Spanish clothing and accessory retailer never disappoint me, what’s bundled in their collection at times is that “wear a celebrity section”. Ok, so I am exaggerating…there is no particular section like that, but look at the images below, and you’ll exactly know what I am talking about.

About 3 years ago, I was on cloud nine when I saw a dress I bought from Zara resembled the one Kate Middleton had worn on her engagement. She wore one from the Brazilian-born London designer Daniella Issa Helayel. Oh that feeling when you see the Duchess of Cambridge flaunting something similar to what is proudly hanging in your closet. Sigh!

Middleton at her engagement

Zara dress bought some 3 years ago

Cut to 2013, and whoa! I rubbed my eyes in astonishment yet again as I browsed through pictures of the “mother to be” Kate in the christening ceremony of the ship now called the Royal Princess. Kate wore a Dalmatian print dress from the high street retailer Hobbs which well, I gathered costs 169 pounds.

That forced me to open my closet, and uncanny, but a dress I bought from well, you guessed it, Zara again some two years back looked a lotttt like here dress.

Kate at the christening of the ship

Zara dress with the same dalmatian print

Now I heard some years back that the Middleton sisters swear by Zara, and now I know exactly why! 

No wonder Zara was described as a "Spanish success story" by CNN.

In my opinion, the brand understands the needs and wants of folks from all age groups and all walks of life! Their clothes are oh so practical for the day, evening, office, and party, just to name a few occasions! Their sharp designs bring European style to the closets of millions around the globe. The mannequins on the show window just drag you inside. It’s almost like they’ve come to life, and are calling one to explore the collection.

With the sale season round the corner, hop on to the marathon, and go crazy filling your clothing basket!

Would love to know how Zara got a glow to your face! As always, remember to put your fashionable foot forward!

Now that’s a blooper!

“'Dress shabbily and they remember the dress; dress impeccably and they remember the woman”, said the priestess of fashion, Coco Chanel. So far in my posts, you have read about a couple of the latest trends this summer, and how to best carry them. In this post, the objective is totally different. Some say not following a fashion trend is criminal. In my opinion, following it blindly is disastrous!

Here are some of the eyesores I can honestly put people in jail for committing.

·        

      Checks and stripes and everything printed (together!!!): I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve seen this...printed pants and striped top, checkered skirt with a printed top. The permutations and combinations are endless…Whatever happened to simple, fundamental, plain or even call them boring basic colors, teamed up with wild prints, and checks? 

·         Monochrome: There are over a million of colors, and all you chose from head to toe is just one! Prejudice! Injustice! Unfair! Some of the words I chose to describe your bias if you opt for this…It’s disheartening to see the same color in your hair accessory to your heels…from your top to your jeans…from your bag to your watch…phew! Combinations and contrast definitely add that ember spark and delight to ones look…so try them out without any hesitation please!

·         Body hugging clothes: Spine chilling is what I call it…some of us are so scared of our actual size, that we end up wearing a size or two smaller, under the false impression that it'll make us look thinner….Sorry for the Earth shattering news, but wearing a dress size 6 when you're actually a size 10, won't make you a size 6! It’ll only add a lot of volume and make you look way heavier than you actually are. Even if you insist on wearing that body hugging top you bought, please ensure that you team it up with lose pants J

·         Over accessorizing: While accessorizing, always keep your end look in mind. Working backwards from the end product is often the unrivaled way to chose amongst the array of accessorizing options we have. Will I tie my hair, or let them lose? Will a chunky neck piece enhance my look more, or dangling earings? Clearly both can't be an option. In my mind, an accessory is best if it complements your clothes, but never draws attention from them!

Would love to know about the fashion disasters you've been witness to. As always, keep your fashionable foot forward ;)

Wrap it up in style!

Imagine a multi colored scarf with wild prints running along the length and breadth. Ok…now that one step is complete, imagine the scarf tied around the handle of plain suede hobo bag…looks beautiful doesn’t it? Getting back to our imagination trip, here comes the tough one…the same scarf print on a shirt, a skirt, a jacket, a coat, shorts, dress..phew. Let’s just say all clothing items one can imagine! :)

 

A peek-a-boo into the latest collection of most fashion brands this summer, and you’ll know what I am talking about…Wild prints or scarf prints as they’re also called, have taken most stores by storm. Why call them scarf prints? Well, scarves are credited to be the mother of wild prints.Talking about them without mentioning scarves will be equivalent to sacrilege.

(image courtesy : Personal wardrobe)

Hermes is often applauded to be the pioneer of scarf prints. Introduced sometime around the 1930’s, this glamorous accessory called a “printed silk scarf” in plain, simple words took two years to hit the stands. Yes, the cycle of designing the concept to the finished product was this long!! It’s not without a reason that those scarves carry a signature of the designing artist. 

It fascinates me how abstract prints, reminiscent of modern art are so effortlessly blended into one unit. The end product can range from summery and playful using bright pastels, to vintage, gothic or boho with just the right mix of hues and fabric.

What stands out amongst all for me is a tribute to retro, loosely labeled as vintage at times. Nothing is more admirable than history meeting contemporary, and viola, the end product is tonnes of glamor, class and style. These ambitious designs scream and immediately soften as they make their way along the outfit.

This begs the question, where will scarf prints be appropriate? Well, here’s a quick guide, printed shorts with a plain white shirt (awesome for a summer Sunday brunch), a printed Maxi if you’re hitting a beach party, floral dress for just a visit to the mall, or printed pants with a plain top for a casual day outing. And here comes my favorite, printed jacket with fitted pants and pumps for that dinner you were planning!

One quick suggestion, if you are accessorizing, chose neutral shades please :)! 

As always, would love to hear about the latest printed addition to your wardrobe. And remember to put your fashionable foot forward!

Striped Out!!

As Blair Waldorf (of Gossip Girl fame) once said, “Fashion is the most powerful art there is. Its movement, design and architecture all in one. It shows the world who we are and who we'd like to be”, I start with my take on this brilliant form of architecture with some of my views on one of the latest trend this season.

What Spring 2013 is screaming out loud is….yes you figured out correctly….STRIPES. Anyone from the 13^th century will turn in their grave if they find out that the trend associated with prisoners, clowns, hangmen or even a zebra for that matter, is in rage this season. It was only in the 18^th century that the ever so influential pioneer of fashion, Coco Chanel set the ground for stripes, by sporting a striped top with palazzo pants.

Skipping chapters in history, cut to the 21^st century, and stripes will haunt you everywhere…from boardroom (the ever so famous pin striped suit) to night suits, from a casual brunch to the runway of renowned designers across the globe.

Even search engine giant Google saw a peak in search volumes for the query “Striped dresses” post Feb’13.The rising global interest in the trend definitely warrants fashion attention…

When it comes to donning them, most of us would be aware of the “Golden rule”, but here’s a quick refresher on it…vertical stripes enhance height and avoid horizontal stripes if you’re broad. Also famous are the “only two colors” and the “colors have to be complementary” rule, but personally speaking, I don’t think any of the two rules pertaining to colors are set in stone and should be taken seriously. I mean, spring is about playing with the colors, right?

From latitudinal to longitudinal, from chevron to diagonal, there is a whole host of varieties available. However, amongst the plethora of options, my all time favorite is the chevron stripe, a zig zag twist to the otherwise linear version. Not just edgy and classy, it suits all body types. What it adds to ones personality is a unique dose of eye catching, fresh, fun yet modern look.

So go out there, and play with stripes and colors as much as you want. Also, whatever you do, please please…a humble request; don’t mix stripes with printed or checkered fabrics unless you have suicide in mind!!!

I would love to hear from you on what stripey trend do you think is best. Please leave your comments/questions here..

And remember to put your fashionable foot forward!