It’s a dance revolution; or at least it is in the style trend world. Replacing the long standing queen of the flats is the jazz style shoe (beating out the ballet flat).

The Krispiemodel looks like it took some design influence from Repetto’s all-the-rage Jazz shoe and the always smart brogue shaping.  Regardless, it’s a streamlined shoe that embodies comfort and razzmatazz (yep, you just read that correctly).

For a shoe of 100% leather, $90 is quite a reasonable sum.  These will sell out quickly…get your dancing feet in them ASAP!

A spunky party skirt is essential for the holiday season, and just as affordability is just as essential.  One mark of a good choice is an a-line cut, as free flowing fabric is the most fun to feel and see while walking or dancing.  Besides, restrictive skirt cuts are no fun when you’re trying to socialize.

Try a design with some metallics for the holiday season, or patterns like polka dots.  Tulle is an easy choice for a block color skirt when you want volume; whether it’s situated on top or underneath.  When in doubt, try going a little out of your comfort zone!

From left to right: Spotted prom skirt($70; Topshop), Tiered chiffon skirt ($23; Charlotte Russe), Night light skirt ($148; Anthropologie), Ilana skirt ($39; Delia’s)

This is where I take issue with the female celebrity spawn model of the “It Girl”; in nearly every instance, they’re not “it” material at all. 

At least models work the haggered look from thte fast life; with Pixie and Peaches Geldof all we get is some badly selected (and truly expensive) clothing and makeup that only accentuates the effects of a 5am bedtime that morning.  And of course there’s Daisy Lowe; the bastard “model” spawn of Pearl Lowe and Gavin Rossdale who has honed her classless Lily Allen persona to utter perfection.

Regardless of the random priveleged-by-birth females you have your focus on, it seems as though they really have nothing to offer.  It’s a true shame that fame transfers to a child who can’t deliver.

Anyone referring to these girls as fashion icons needs to get their heads examined. 

Belted trenches define the waist, keep you warm and are irresistably military.  If you’re one to avoid the potato sack coat look, a belted trench is one item you must have in your wardrobe for the colder Fall and Winter months!

If you would like to stray from the classic long style (shown below), try a belted trench in waist length; cropped trenches will feature your legs instead of hiding them.  This is especially recommended for shorter individuals, as a long coat overpowers your height and negatively accentuates your height. 

This style of coat are also conveniently genderless.  Regardless of a male or female wearer; these trenches are flattering.  Burberry is (of course) the classic trench purveyor, though of course you can locate this style of coat through almost any other retailer if your budget requires.

Men’s on the left, women’s on the right: Trench 46 ($1,195; Burberry), A.P.C. belted trench ($460; Net-A-Porter)

Attention all you Sex And The City fans:

When you fashion yourself to smell as Carrie..err..Sarah Jessica Parker and purchase the 100ml Eau de Parfum fragrance at Sears, you also get a bonus of the Sex And The City DVD! 

The fragrance is very floral, and very “Carrie”.  I suggest you take a smell for yourself!

BCBG and Fashion Magazine’s Grand Reveal went off last night.  The line was less than stellar, but still managed to produce a few drool worthy dresses.  There was one particular dress with a bubble skirt and baubles sewn onto the front that was particularly lovely, that I had to resist out of guilt for my denim purchasing last weekend.  Sadly there weren’t any designs that were quite memorable, though the entire lot was still worth a look if you have some extra hundreds burning a hole in your pocket.

The sale featured last night is still occurring; $100 off any purchase of $300 or more (for any prospective online shoppers, a checkout code for the discount is “FALLCHECK08″).  Considering dresses average $200-$400, you’re getting a decent price.  Sadly I could not take any photos at the event; unlike the H&M opening party there seemed to be an employee working for every 3 people attending!

We received a cloth shopping bag filled with goodies upon leaving (a BCBG printed t-shirt, Fashion Magazine and some other promotional items), so even though I didn’t end up purchasing anything I still walked away with a few goodies.

I’m not. Perhaps it has something to do with these reasons.

If you are pining for a break from your tried and true skinnies, look no further than a men’s trouser.  A wide cut, loose trouser will add a varied shape and give you a completely different look and feel to what you have come to be used to. 

If you’re to wear something that would traditionally be typecast as ‘business casual’, shake it up with something from the opposite spectrum; try mixing a men’s style trouser with a button up oxford and a motorcycle jacket to shake things up.  If you stick to a classic blazer, you may run the risk of looking too formal.

Depending on the width of the trouser, try doing a cuff with a boot to change things up (just make sure you’re wearing spunky socks and have legs that aren’t as moon-pale as mine!)

So the BCBG Grand Reveal is tonight.  I wonder what goodies they have in store…hopefully it’s worth the visit.  Hopefully they won’t kick me out for taking photos.

Stay tuned.

They’re been open and selling their heavily discounted French threads since January (at a glorious 60% off!).  Plainly said, the A.P.C. Surplus store is making me yearn for a visit to NY.  If you’re near 33 Kent Ave in Brooklyn [directions], I suggest you stop by.

Image via billburg.com

This is one style destitute group of clothing.  M.I.A., indie hip hopper extraordinaire and champion of hipsters everywhere has come out with a solid horror of a clothing line; it’s hideous, outrageously priced and half the time only supplies you with piece sketches (examples below) instead of product shots on the official site!

These clothing articules are not worth the Mexican blankets they were ripped off from; yet somehow M.I.A.’s camp has decided that they can charge the price of 10.5 AK’s (African value, according to her song “20 Dollar”) for one jungle colored jogging jacket. What about the leggings, you ask? Those run at $85, the “Mexican bodysuit” is $100; the unfortunate pricing trend continues from there.

This is a woman who has professed to wanting to “keep it underground”; but how can that be when you’re charging $75 for a bloody t-shirt to pimp out your face?  I love M.I.A.’s songs and she’s a quirky personality who stands out in a sea of boredom, but this is just too much to visually swallow while keeping any dignity intact. 

Well, I sure didn’t see this one coming; but I suppose Kate Moss’ name still has retail pull (who knew?)

The Kate Moss Christmas range was released today, and though the designs were even less thrilling than her Fall selections and priced far higher (the cheapest “limited edition” item being $170), items are still selling like mad. I did a check through what I personally though were the most wearable items, and suprisingly things were already sold out in every size available.

Apart from having a lot of beading and sequins sewn into the pieces; the shapes were generally very simple and plain (I would even venture to say dull).  I really don’t understand the lure of the racerback top/dress…it isn’t the most visually appealing shape to see on someone’s back at all. Below are a few of the better items from the selection (not counting those that are already sold out, of course).

From left to right: Beaded 1920′s dress ($310), Sequin prom dress ($210), Black prom dress ($135), Breton tee ($70)

I’ll be the first to say I am not die-hard fan of the Louis Vuitton brand.  Apart from their runway clothing, I find most of their typically public-chosen pieces (especially the handbags) to be fairly ugly.

For the love of these fingerless patent leather driving gloves, I take it all back. Seriously.  These are the driving gloves I dream about; charms replace straps and patent leather uppers with suede lining.  Prepare to demonstrate some buying commitment, though; the price point for these babies is about $500.

Even so, I think I’m in love.

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• A fitted winter coat.  Enough of all the boxy fits; if you’re dressing to impress you’re going to opt for a coat that it well fitting, and of course well constructed. If you’ve needed a reason to find the perfect blazer or pea coat, this is the right time to collect one.
• Patent shoes. If you’re bringing your A-game, you want to distinguish yourself.  Patent leather will do just that (but of course there’s no obligation to do blue!)
• A daring tie. This does not mean a default of stripes (and definitely don’t make the horrid holiday tie error), but a tie like the “Split” shown below is classic and still demands respect of the wearer.
• Cozy knits for layering.You don’t always have to go with the obligatory waistcoat when layering for a wintery get together.  Instead, try a cardie for a varied look that isn’t so uptight.
• A hat removed from the ordinary. Try a color other than black or gray and add a tuft of feathers for color.  The colored felt of the Rag & Bone hat below gives the hat a bit of spunk already; try with different dark colors!

From left to right: Navy slim fit pea coat($170; Topman), Patent “Luciano” oxfords($275; Fluevog), Split tie ($119; Tiger of Sweden), Navy random knit cardigan($70; Topman), Triangle top hat by Rag & Bone ($150; eLuxury)

As the holidays are nearing, so is the holiday party season.  Be it seasonal work gatherings, New Years or cold weather formals; there are certain things you just need to have.  Stay warm, and stay dignified (let’s hope you aren’t one of those unfortunate Christmas party loons last year).  Let’s explore, shall we?

• Satin.  Satin is a raging trend this holiday season.  It’s warm, so take advantage of it! Try layering a satin blazer with an evening dress or
• Legwear.  This is not the season for the bare leg; cover up in style with tights in various opacity levels from sheer to solid.
• Volume.  Layering is sexy; showing your assets is not (especially for work sponsored parties!).  Try wearing dresses that already have volume, such as a dress with tulle or lace over the bottom layer.
• Booties. Not only will they keep your feet warm, but the ankle boot is always a practical and visually appealing choice.
• Sequins.  Try a cocktail dress covered in sequins (though mind your hem lines, ladies!) You can easily obtain a visual spark with very little effort if sequins are involved; and you will be on the cutting style edge.  Come on, Unkle Karl’s doing it.

From left to right: Vera Wang belted blazer($285; Bluefly), Opaqe pantyhouse in “forest” ($16; American Apparel), Ribbon tulle dress($134; Topshop), Alberta Ferretti patent ankle boot ($590; My Wardrobe), Proenza Shouler karate pants ($1,250; Net-A-Porter)

Earlier today, I was asked about the existence of Men’s Vogue by a friend of mine; who was actually surprised that this magazine existed as he had never seen it on newsstands before.

From what I can tell from my style conscious male friends, their first choice is GQ.  This does not in any way surprise me; apart from the branding of GQ being superficially younger and ‘cooler’ (a bad word, yes, though perfectly befitting) they have some confusing branding.  While style.com is the online home of Vogue; men.style.com is the online home of GQ and Details (wth?).  Meanwhile, Men’s Vogue has a completely different branded URL (mensvogue.com) and appears to stand alone from the well known (and popular) name of women’s Vogue.

It’s no wonder people don’t know what Men’s Vogue is; they seem to be operating this publication like a secret magazine.  Time to step up your game, Condé Nast.

H&M has released fully dressed mannequins in a video slideshow type preview for their collaboration with Comme des Garçons.  A few screencaptures below outline the highlights of the preview. 

The countdown is getting close…17 more days remain till the release date.

I have consistently been able to find Earnest Sewns at Winners for quite a price chop. “Regular” prices at W are usually $100 (off by about 50%), though I luckily discovered a pair of Zazos on clearance for $74.

If you’re a diligent shopper at places like this, you’ll be able to avoid inflated boutique prices and still wear the same product; and who could argue with that?

Yesterday I discovered and came upon the most delightful new denim brand at Dutil; Chimala.

The pair I ended up with was a straight cut dark wash, with very minor distressing marks on the front.  Chimala jeans are made in Japan from selvage denim, which may account for their rather high price point of $265 per pair.

The best part of this brand to be the quality and thickness of the denim material used; they kept their shape well once put on and resisted stretching.  I can’t locate any stock shots of this particular style, so photos are coming.

Unfortunately Chimala doesn’t seem to have an official website, so I can’t offer any additional info just yet. Keep your eyes peeled, denim enthusiasts.

As I attempt to dress for more formals, I have begun to realize I have a severe lack of what I call “nice girl clothes”; meaning dresses that are acceptable for night events. 

As I’m not one of those girly girls who adores pink and ruffles (though I can go for tulle when the occasion calls for it), this has proved a difficult task that I have subconsciously avoided for some time.  That’s saying something; considering I hunt retail stock like my next meal depends on it.

In the spirit of this issue, I have created a list of dresses that are acceptable for store openings, social events and of course rolicking birthday celebrations.  These are my favourite four; you can easily spunk these up with block color accessories or something sparkling (sequined blazers, anyone?) or leave them as-is while still making a visual impact. 

How you decide to put everything together I leave to you, but the top four I will provide:

I feel I must add that the first two are available in alternate colors, if lovely black really isn’t your thing.

From left to right: Hitched hem dress ($160; Topshop), Tudor silk dress (198; French Connection), Cherub check dress ($178; French Connection), Torn print prom dress ($695; Marc by Marc Jacobs)