Holiday soirees are always occasions to dress up, but ladies tend to forget how much standing is involved in these events.  No matter how sturdy your feet happen to be, nothing can replace a splendid flat for long term stands, even if you change into them halfway through the evening! Below are a collection of fabulously flat, pain-free holiday alternatives to consider this coming social season.

Red is always a glorious Christmas color, especially when it’s picking up all those berries, decorations and all that other crap.  Pointer’s Elsie and Topshop’s Mistress are both deliriously red, and could possibly outshine your coworker’s drunk flush at the office shindig.

Metallics are also a beautiful thing, especially due to their ability to be worn at most any party environment and ability to be instantly effective and year round lasting.  Nicholas Kirkwood’s metallic brogue is my ultimate, though Lanvin’s silver bow flat is a very close second (I can’t help I love boy styles better!)

Lastly, we have the loudest and loveliest – glitter kicks for sparkle fiends everywhere.  Marc Jacobs is the sole provider of demiCouture’s two picks; we have the svelte Mouse loafer and Liza-intense glitter panel brogue.  Both exude a clear style shine, yet the shapes of both designs differ greatly.

Alison T. of Vancouver!!

She’s the lucky gal who will be [doubtlessly] killing it wherever she happens to be in Raincity.  Let’s join in congratulating our lucky lady!

I liked the look of these babies online, but was floored when I opened the box – they brown was a delicious suede, leather buckles looks fabulous against the grain of the suede and the sole is treaded for anti-leaf slips! Super perfect.

Like what you see? Check out the HOOOD, a very reasonable $130 per pair.

Tarina Tarantino‘s collections have always been pops of pop culture complete with ultra brights; loud interpretations of classic imagery from Hello Kitty, the Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland and even Barbie.

Her newest range includes inspiration from Mexico’s Día de los Muertos; the sugar skulls to be precise.  The pieces below are some of my personal favorites; the long pendant, flower pendant and skull post earrings.

If you think you know what Converse is all about, prepare to reboot.  I skipped over to the Red Bull Lounge in Yaletown today, with little inkling of the variance I was about to visually feast upon – new skinny soles, beautiful greys, all over leather sneaks and even some tie ups at the back.

Aside from the Jack Purcell range, these new slim soles are hyper picks for this season and SS11.. if you’re into sneakers, these slim soles are going to be the must have kicks, just wait.

John Casablancas Institute in Vancouver is putting on a charity fashion show using only vintage clothing, and you’re invited.  Proceeds from the event will go to Covenant House, which means your dollars will be well used.

WHEN: November 4, 2010 at 7:00 PM
WHERE: Villa Amato [Googlemap]
TICKETS: $25 in advance [may be purchased at the John Casablancas Institute [Googlemap] or by calling 604-688-0328], $30 at the door

The world of men’s t-shirts can bea bit horrifying; especially the cheesy brand interpretations, beer logos and conference tees (ugh!), all  prime offenders in the area of men’s styling.  If you’re going to get with the graphics, make it a smart, straight forward statement with attitude with some semblance of uniqueness about it.

The throwback photo collage tee and anything with a triangle within it are both exceedingly tricky to pull of without appearing worn out or trend tailing; if you’re going to have either, ensure that they aren’t the cheapest tees you can find (since everyone else will have them), or at least shop online from a boutique not typically favored in your area. Also ensure they aren’t completely gauche;  Topman’s Nouvelle and AllSaints’ Sacrafice tees both sublime examples of the two.

You could always go with a bare statement of self, like Pleasure Principle’s Biker Sex tee (pun fully intended), or Raf Simon’s more abstract Could You message tee.  Should these not fulfill your graphic needs, a basic landscape or shape like YourEyesLie’s Galaxy or Robert Geller’s Dip Dye Circle should do the trick.  Remember, it’s not entirely up to your tee to complete your look – even if you surround your graphic tee with basics, you’re still making a statement with the rest of your outfit.

It’s been said that shearling is the hottest trend of the fall, but it’s not often discount boutiques like The Outnet will hold a current season trend on sale.  These are designer items, so you’re going to be in for a price investment either way, though if you consider the original tag rates (most of these items are at 80% off), these amounts will seem much more reasonable!

Anna Molinari is a heavy hitter in today’s shearling sale with her snood, double breasted and short sleeve jacket. Her pieces evoke a military feel, while keeping a refined shearling texture, unlike Dolce & Gabbana’s rough and tumble Yeti coat.  Last of all is Karl Donoghue’s jacket; it’s a neutral shade piece with a large statement collar – a very defining item to wear.

If you were looking for something utterly insane to buy with your thousands of spare dollars, then it’s really great you stopped by just now.  This is the Studio Days easel from Anthropologie, a $2,100 pile of paint splattered ‘sturdy wood’, ready for your ‘fine art’ and and ‘latest sketches’.

This is a fine piece of moneywasting.  Hell, even the douchebag emperor Commodus thinks it’s a super serious waste of cash.  Oh – another $150 gets tacked on for shipping and handling, but it’s all gravy after that first two grand, right?

T-shirts get a bad rap in the style community, and most of the flack is for good reason – tees are typically boring, uninspired and printed graphics get lumped into fashion ‘design’… super lame stuff.  It’s time for fashion’s easiest style to get a jump start into being rad again; make that message count, or have a hyper rad graphic statement, not just an “I’m with stupid” monstrosity with an arrow pointing downstairs.

Tees could have a simple lettered statement such as Rob Pruitt’s RIP Malcolm McLaren, Marc Hundley’s And If People Stare or even a modified branding statement as Rodarte’s Radarte.  The point of a message tee is to have fun with your statement, say a little (but not too much) about yourself, and have fun with your statement.  You could go as basic as 5preview’s numerical statement, if you’re gunning for more of an abstraction.

Graphics have become tricky territory of late, though if you avoid [most] triangles and re-printed logos from the 80s or 90s, you’re likely on solid ground.  My current favorites are the Balenciaga archive print and Versus’ Bruce Weber photograph tee; they are vintage without being kitschy, and give an incredibly dreamlike feel.

Capes have always been a favorite of mine; they’re frequented by superheroes, freaks and geeks of all types.  This season, it’s the fashion types’ turn at the cape wheel, and we’ve got quite the collection of winter covers to wrap yourselves in.  From pea coat inspired designs to leather reversible, these capes will have you covered.

Skin is in, especially when your skins are leathers.  Check out Gareth Pugh’s fleece lamb and leather, Irfé’s reversible leather and mink or Alexander Wang’s leather accented cape.  For a more traditionally based outerwear style, Gryphon’s Sherlock and Dear Creatures’ plaid are based off a pea style, while Fidelity’s is off the duffle style.

Remember, loud statement pieces are just that – don’t have them battling too many opposing colors of styles unless you’re a damn near dressing professional.

If anyone had doubts as to whether or not shearling was going to be on fire this season, rest assured.. it isn’t going anywhere fast.  Shearling has exploded from a simple jacket lining to being a visual accompaniment to some of the most seemingly unlikely items; ponchos, outer layers of winter jackets and hairs on your favorite ankle boots.  The question is this, are you ready to get sheared?

Burberry has a collection full to the brim of beautiful aviator inspired pieces; their lined and heftily collared jacket along with their aviator cap, to name a few highlights.  For a less traditional uniformed look, 3.1 Phillip Lim’s shearling and suede jacket or Rag & Bone’s shearling hooded poncho.  Rag & Bone also has a aviator cap of their own; though less leather and more suede.

For the boots, shearling is one of the best accents you can select for a fall pair – they’re on trend, and shearling lining is incredibly warm.  Topshop’s buckled Amore boots are prime for the trickle down shopper, while the wedge booties by Barbara Bui are stable pair for the cobblestone city dweller.

With the release of Calvin Klein’s latest fragrance Beauty, FASHION Magazine and CK are teaming up to give away a $2,500 gift package – $1,000 shopping credit at Net-A-Porter, a CK Beauty gift package, 6 months of Calla Lilly deliveries from a local flower shop, a spa day [local] and a 3 year subscription to FASHION Magazine.

Sound excellent? To enter, submit a photo of your interpretation of beauty (person, place, event, etc) along with a 140 word description (hello Twitter cop!) and you’re in the runnng.

CK Beauty is a foundation of femininity, talking cues from lillies and other flower scents to create a light brush of elegance for those around you.

New Yorkers, this is an exciting time! Doc Martens is set to open their first NYC store in Soho in the first week of November.

Check it out if you’re in the ‘hood – 148 Spring Street [Googlemap]

I’ve heard rumblings that Vancouver may be getting a DM store of all our own, but for now that’s just conjecture.  It would be pretty incredible to have that kind of selection available, though.. cross yer fingers.

Toronto’s 107 Shaw Gallery has been all over these monthly sales, and it’s officially Vancouver’s turn to grab a piece of the vintage pie.  Starting in November, the newly revitalized Waldorf Hotel will be hosting monthly vintage sales by The Chosen Ones – multiple vintage vendors brought together to create an amazing vintage mecca in one spot.

To get involved as a vendor, email the Waldorf.  For all those vintage villains, the sale details are TBD.  Stay tuned, and stay sharp!

demiCouture has recently launched a Facebook fan page, which entails not only linkage and discussion not able to be facilitated on the blog, but also info before it hits the main website.

Brands of the next contests are being released on Facebook first (among other visual tidbits of fun), so fan us up and get ready to rock FB in a way you never have before.  FB is also an excellent forum for discussion of anything you see, or want to see on demiCouture – fan, and start talking!

demiCouture’s favorite street wear label Dimepiece is holding a warehouse sale, which equals selected items in their webstore at 20-70% off.

The sale runs from October 21-25, which is tomorrow.. git on in there!

It’s [shockingly] a winner from Vancouver (there were so many entrats from across the world).. congrats to Lomie J!!  She has chosen the grey Blake pair – buckled perfection in a grained leather.. I couldn’t have chosen better myself.

Hervé Léger has been the go to designer for all things shapely for decades, and though his designs are typically for the elite, one can occasionally grab a new piece for a discounted rate.

Insert The Outnet’s current selection of Hervé pieces; the highlights include the beaded bandage, embroidered bandage,  contrast pencil skirt and Swarovski encrusted clutch.  All of The Outnet’s Hervé pieces are a minimum of 60% off, so take a look-see at the entire collection.

demiCouture x Kill City are making sure you kill it this holiday season, with three new pieces from their Holiday 2010 collection.

The only question is where would you be killing it in Kill City?

Prizes include a drape tank, a black three quarter tee and black skinny jeans – all three prizes are going towards one lucky winner!

Drop an answer in the comments below, and you’re entered! Contest closes October 26, 2010 at 11:59PM.  Random drawing will determine the winner, and remember only one entry per person is permitted.

Want to get ahead of demiCouture’s giveaways and get news faster, better, stronger? Follow @demiCouture on Twitter, and fan demiCouture on Facebook.

GOOD LUCK!!