Go for the Gold
I’m all for glamour and gold is the perfect way to add just a touch to your life. Whether through a fabulous sequins dress, a huge gilded mirror or cute flats, you can make a serious style statement with the metallic that looks good on everyone! Here: a few of my gold obsessions…
Inspired yet?!
Animal Magnetism
Whether you’re afraid or unwilling to commit to color or just want a pop of pizazz, animal prints are the perfect way to add tonal texture – both in your wardrobe and your home! There’s nothing like a pair of leopard print flats to punctuate the perfect Sunday brunch outfit. Same goes for a pair of zebra print pillows. But rest assured that there’s an animal print for everyone. Here are a few classic ways to take a walk on the wild side.
Color Therapy with The Divine Chair
Whether in fashion or home decor, I LOVE a vintage find. And while I’m the queen of the greige apartment, I love a pop of color, especially in the form of a well-placed chair. Enter The Divine Chair. I first learned of the company when I moved to the UWS as they can be found at the GreenFlea Market at 77th and Columbus every Sunday. I walked by on my way to search for antique jewelry and was greeted by founder and designer Kitty McBride and about half a dozen gorgeous chairs!
- Photo courtesy of justluxe.com
Kitty started making the eccentric pieces when she couldn’t find furniture that she liked for herself. She bought vintage chairs and brought them to life with paint, and fun, unexpected colors, prints and textures, creating real works of art. She started selling them on Craigslist in 2009 and has been in demand since.
- Alberto, $1500
Whether you have a favorite piece that needs a little TLC or you want Kitty to help you select one, she will customize your piece to suit your needs. Divine chairs range in price from about $400 – $1800.
- Betsy & Cleo, $1600
I’m in love with the Camille below but I can’t wait to see what she has today!
- Camille, $835
Beautify Your Beauty Products
I love getting dolled up and I love for my beauty products and tools to be just as glam!
On my dresser are my fragrances on this gorgeous glass tray with metal beaded trim.
Add a candle for an extra feminine touch.
And in the bathroom, I keep my makeup brushes in this pretty mercury-inspired glass cup that
I found at Gracious Home in the candle section.
Space permitting, here are two more chic ways to beautifully display your products and tools:
Pretty Dresser…
Va Va Va Vanity!
Bethenny Frankel Launches SkinnyGirl Skincare
Mere months after Bethenny Frankel sells her SkinnyGirl Margarita line for $120 million and a month after launching the SkinnyGirl Cleanse, she announces her entrance into yet another product category, leveraging the success of the SkinnyGirl brand. This time, the reality star has partnered with Lotta Luv to create Skinnygirl Face & Body Solutions, featuring a personal care line called Honesty by Bethenny which consists of 30 beauty products, ranging from plumping lip gloss to body creams to cooling foot spray.
Bethenny tells WWD about the name she chose for the line, “$150 eye cream is ridiculous and absurd”. “[Products that promise] ‘you’re going to look like Heidi Klum in two days’ or ‘like you had a face-lift’ have always bothered me.”
According to Women’s Wear Daily, SkinnyGirl Face & Body Solutions launches in November at select Walmart stores – just in time for the holiday season – and will retail for $15 and below.
I can only wonder and wait in anticipation of what she’ll do next. My guess? A clothing line. What do you think?
After speaking to an incredible group of young women at Brown University, I was recently asked to write a piece for The InquireHer, the new Brown University Women in Business seasonal newsletter. It’s geared towards young women entering the workforce post-college, but I decided to share it with you as I think we could all use a little inspiration now and then. I’d love your thoughts!
In college, I spent a great deal of time thinking about my career – where I would work, where I would live and what life would be like as an independent young woman climbing someone’s creative but corporate ladder. What I didn’t think about were the unspoken (and often unshared) rules of post-college professional life.
1. You Can Look Young AND Professional
Looking professional doesn’t suddenly mean raiding your mom’s closet or running for the nearest Talbot’s. Ten years ago, I graduated from college and headed straight for Ann Taylor the moment I got to Corporate America. “Women’s Contemporary” didn’t really exist as a fashion concept, and I was surrounded by women who didn’t take many creative liberties when it came to wardrobe.
Today, there are so many fantastic options for young women entering the workforce (J.Crew, Club Monaco and Nanette Lepore are great places to start). But first, you must understand the codes for how to dress at work. For most companies, Business Casual means slacks or skirt and a blouse or button-front shirt. Business Attire generally means a suit, although it does vary by industry. In beauty, for example, I can wear a dress or a blazer and skirt (not a suit) to a function that requires Business Attire. And if you have to ask, “Is this too (short, tight, low-cut – you fill in the blank)?” The answer is probably “Yes.” So don’t wear it.
2. Perception is Reality
You know the old saying about how you only get one chance to make a good first impression? Well the impression you leave is your legacy. And whether someone’s perception of you varies drastically from how you see yourself, their perception of you is what will influence hiring decisions, their willingness to recommend you for a job, and whether you’re worthy of a promotion or raise.
As you go about the business of conducting your life, people will make judgments about your character, your intelligence, your appearance and your abilities. Your personal brand is only as good as your reputation, and in many cases, your online persona. Not only do many employers conduct credit and background checks, but they also look at your Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn profiles, as well as your blog if you have one. Make sure the face you put forward is the face you want people to remember.
3. Your Boss is Not Your Friend
In a post-modern world where we have casual Friday and we call our bosses by their first names instead of Mr. or Ms., it’s easy to adopt an overall more casual tone at work. But there remain certain social boundaries and with them come the (often unspoken) rules of engagement. To that end, you should never feel comfortable dragging yourself into work and complaining that you’re hung over, asking your boss intimate questions about his or her personal life (or sharing yours for that matter), or requesting your boss’ friendship on Facebook. If you and your boss do become friends, let him or her take the lead on establishing said friendship. You don’t want to put your boss in an awkward position of having to accept your friend request, and you don’t want to come across as presumptuous.
4. Be Your Own Mentor
I hope that as you start your careers and build your networks, you’re fortunate enough to encounter women you can call mentors. They may be very senior in their careers or perhaps they’re just a few years older than you. And it’s likely that you will have more than one! But your career is yours to manage. You have to know what’s right for you and have a professional gut instinct you can trust.
In business school, I took a course called Women in Business Leadership by the accomplished, empowering and incredibly endearing Sheila Wellington. One of the biggest lessons she taught me was that in order to succeed in business, I had to know how to navigate what continues to be a male-dominated world. Yes, even in beauty. This kind of empowerment has allowed me to create or seek out opportunities that would allow me to gain meaningful work experience, negotiate my salary and manage my long-term career strategy.
The bottom line is – be smart. Certainly, you’ll stumble on the road to professional maturity. Don’t dwell on your mistakes. Learn from them and then get over it. And by no means do these insights suggest you should be someone else. If your professional self and your personal self are at odds with each other, you’re probably not in the right place. Because no matter what you’re doing, if you’re happy, you’re doing the right thing.
Fashion Fantasy: Alexander McQueen
Alexander McQueen, Spring 2007
I loved this image so much that I decided to post it on my Tumblr and my WordPress blogs!
