Dsw
Roaring 20s Style: Fashion Trend
“THESE PRODUCTS ARE NO LONGER BEING SOLD”
What: The decade inspiring fashionistas this fall? The Roaring 20s. This makes us happy.
What We Say: A few days ago we talked about fringe being the latest embellishment trend, but this is the bigger picture: fringe is just part of the wave of 20s-inspired styles to come, and we are so very excited. Flapper-style dresses are already cropping up everywhere (fringe, spaghetti strap, drop-waist), along with cloche hats and art deco details. The thing about the 20s that we love is that the styles are classic, feminine without being too fussy, and pretty darn flattering. Much more so than those giant 80s shoulder pads and leg warmers that have made the rounds. We’re just sayin’ . . .
The danger? Ending up looking like you’re wearing a flapper costume instead of a chic cocktail dress. The key to avoiding that scenario is always pick just one 20s-inspired piece, and pair it with modern details—so, for example, the flapper dress with some sexy strappy heels, rather than the 20s-style t-straps below, (and maybe skip the all-over fringe altogther and opt for a drop waist dress with some fringe detail) or wear the cloche hat with jeans, a t-shirt, pumps, and one of this season’s tailored jackets.
1920s-Inspired Picks We Like, For Less:
Chiffon Trim Flapper Dress, $24, Twelve by Twelve
Cocktail Bowler Hat, $18.80, Forever21
Xhilaration Hinge Clutch (with peacock feather design), $12.99, at Target.
Attention DSW Rewards Members
The Deal: For a limited time, DSW Rewards Program members will get free shipping on any purchase you make on their website. If you’re a Premier Rewards member, your shipment will arrive the next day for free. They have deals for non-members too—till June 25, get free shipping on orders $50 or more. It’s a discount coming at a convenient time in the summer, before beach weather really kicks up. You still have time to find your dream shoes for the summer, so get to it. We are.
Above: Embellished gladiator sandals, $54.95.
Sex and the City Movie Trend: White and Gold
We may not have been on board with the whole white and gold thing were it anyone else, but if both Carrie AND Samantha are doing it, then I guess we just have to give in. Actually, crisp white is the epitome of summer chic, and accents of gold follow naturally with the season’s “we love every metallic and will wear them all as neutrals��? mentality. Okay, the more we think about it, the more we like it.
How to do it the Sex and the City Way—sophisticated and body-conscious, of course. We love this sleeveless AGB Eyelet Sheath Dress, $68 at Macy’s. Wear it with these Jessica Bennett Fauna Leather Platforms, $59.95, DSW, and be fabulous.
Fashion Advice: Budget Flats
QI have to wear flat shoes for health reasons and I’m also on a budget. I feel like I spend days or weeks looking for fashionable, non-frumpy flat shoes which I can afford. What are some good sources for flat shoes on a budget?
A I’m a big fan of flat shoes and wear them on a daily basis because I do so much walking (New York is such a pedestrian city). Here’s some of my favorite places to score flats for a reasonable price:
Baker Shoes— This mall base store is a great place for trendy flats under $40. Never, ever pay more than $40 for a pair of flats from Bakers because several of their shoes are manufactered by the same folks who make shoes for Payless. Sometimes, you can even find similar styles at the both stores.
Aerosoles—In store, Aerosoles can tend to skew a bit grandma like—but online the store has a wider selection of stylish flats.
Old Navy—Old Navy has a solid selection of ballerina flats in leather and other types of materials for well under $20.00. The shoes won’t last you about 10, maybe 15 wears, and then you’ll have to throw them away. However, from a cost per wear standpoint, the shoes are only $1.50 to $2 per wear. A solid value
Urban Outfitters—Almost always has a few very trendy flats, usually well under $40/ most under $30. Be aware that many of the shoes sold at Urban Outfitters aren’t leather.
Steve Madden—Huge selection of stylish flat shoes in a ton of different colors from patten leather with pilgrim buckles to your basic ballerina flats in cheetah prints. Prices tend range from $29.99 to $89.99. If you see a style you like that tends to fall on the higher end of the price range, wait a week or two—they almost always go on sale.
Barefoot Tess—Great online based store with a HUGE selection of flats from folks like Jeffrey Campbell and Delmans. Most flats are around the $50 to $60 range.
Bluefly.com—Sometimes you can find a deal or two on designer flats from Kate Spade, Delman, Christian Louboutin, etc. Not exactly cheap, but definitely cheaper than retail.
Nine West - Another mall based store with a solid website. I actually think the website is better than the store. Every year, it seems like things get pricier and pricier. However, it’s definitely worth taking a peek at the store.
and Zappos.com, of course.
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Life on Tour: The Essence Photo Shoot
Last week, I did a photo shoot for Essence Magazine for their “Her Style” feature which showcases women they consider to have great personal style. To have Essence, the magazine ran by sistas that know style, select me as a stylish person to feature in none other than their September Fall fashion issue is one of the best things that has ever happen to me. Better than the time I found a pair of Kate Spades Sandals at DSW for $13.98. Possibly even better than the time I saw Michael Jackson in a shopping mall (where else would I be?) in South Africa.
I wish I could post the fabulous pictures, but I won’t be able to until the magazine comes out. So here’s the run down:
Location: Sun West Studios, New York, NY. Beautiful large studio, facing the Hudson River (towards New Jersey for those outside of NYC) with tons of natural sunlight.
Editors/Stylists: Pamela Edwards and Gwen Covington, my two new best friends. Pam taught me the way to appear taller when taking a picture is to imagine a string pulling your navel towards your back. It works.
Hair: Tina Pearson—who knows how to work a weave. Tina has revolutionized my hair life my giving me the ultimate tip to taming curling hair during the humid summer. Mix your favorite conditioner with tap water in a spray bottle (an old hair spray bottle works well) and spritz through your hair while finger combing (not brushing) the hair.
Make-up: The fabulous Louie (who has worked on Beyonce), who gave me a nice natural groomed look, which is the perfect make-up look for this summer (think shimmery eye, soft pink gloss, groomed eyebrows).
Outfit One—A brown collared tunic and wide leg jeans from Avenue, layered necklaces from H&M.
Outfit Two—Teal blue dress from Kiyonna, brown and gold H&M necklace. This was my favorite outfit and I even purchased the dress with a discount. See, when celebs do photo shoots, they often like the items they wear and request to purchase them. The discount depends on a person’s celebrity status—Nicole Kidman gets it for free, I get it for 20%.
I rocked each outfit with a pair of 3.5 inch Prada shoes which I borrowed from Essence’s fashion director, Agnes Commack. Agnes has styled everyone from Angela Basset to John Cusack and has promised to take yours truly shopping to purchase my very own pair of designer 3+ inch heels (from Last Call Neiman Marcus, of course). Now if she would only teach me how to wear them because after the shoot my feet was killing me.
Bargain Shopping: DSW Shoe Warehouse
To say that I love DSW is an understatement. I actually wrote a love letter to the store in my book. I know pretty much all the stores locations in the PA-NJ-NY tri-state area. I shopped there way before the commercials (which are brilliant). What I like most about DSW isn’t just that it has low prices on designer shoes like Marc Jacobs, Via Spiga, Stuart Weitzman, etc at amazingly low prices—but the store has amazingly low prices on designer shoes in hard to find sizes. I wear a size 11 and for years the only designer discount spot in town was the shoe rack during Nordstrom’s Half Yearly Sale (or Nordstrom Rack if you’re lucky enough to live near one). Then DSW came along and leveled the discount designer shoe playing field not just for big foot fashionistas like myself, but also for our very petite, size 6 and below sistas.
The trick to finding the best deals at the store is go on a Thursday or Friday in the morning (or during your lunch break). On the weekends the store can be messy and the staff non-existent.
Feel free to email me any pictures from your shopping adventures, with the date, store, and location of the items (stuff *at* thebudgetfashionista.com) and I will try my best to post them on the blog.
Here’s one of my finds last week at a local DSW:
P.S. More on Designer Knock-Offs (aka The Fake Debate)
Even Harper’s Bazaar, a magazine that I love, has a page in September’s issue called “Smart Shopping—Best Buys for Every Budget”. Here are the items listed on the page:
DKNY jacket—$425
Kulson Vest—$430
Coach pump—$196 (the cheapest item)
Miu Miu bag—$545
Tory by TRB top—$775
Patricia Underwood Hat—$220
Exactly whose budget are they talking about? Paris Hilton’s? Oprah’s?
Bazaar, a magazine known for glamour and high brow taste, should be embarrassed to even try to wax poetic on anything dealing with the term “budget.” Magazines like Bazaar and Vogue are not—and should never be—budget focused. They are aspirational, fulfilling our Chanel and Lanvin covered dreams. The occasional Isaac Mizarhi for Target is acceptable, but other than that show us the stuff we can put on our mental fashion wish list.
This obsession with the term “budget” just shows how out of touch those in the world of fashion media are with the rest of the world. If they were in touch or on a budget themselves they would know that $200 bucks for a pair of shoes is not cheap. Cheaper than Manolo’s, yes, but not cheaper than, say, a pair of Hype shoes from DSW. Bazaar should do what it does best—give us clothes to lust for and styles to imitate. Leave the budget stuff to the rest of us.
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