new york fashionistas

quick non scheduled post:

My all time favorite vintage store, Another Man's Treasure is having a Fall 50 % off sale. They have the most epic selection of vintage clothes and to slash prices for THAT MUCH is kind of amazing. It'll be up all week but a lot of the stuff is going fast (meaning, a lot of dresses are gone already) so go now!

I'll be dropping by later in the week but I seriously doubt there will be anything !!!!!! left in 5 days.... so go now if you are in NYC / NJ area. (And I know you are, Fashion Week is drawing closer...)

Take the PATH to Grove St. from NYC and walk one block north. It's the place where all the really well dressed people are probably jumping around with bags of t-shirts and dresses.......

P.S Tell Meika (store owner) Arabelle from Fashion Pirates sent you. :)

P.P.S YAY JAPAN FASHION WEEK'S LIST CAME UP SO STOKEDDDD. Lots of old faces, lots of unknown. I do wish JP's FW got more recognization... them, CCM presentation, and Copenhagen's FW are my favorite fashion weeks. Sadface.

definition of:

this is what made me love fashion. A girl with practically no clothes on!

I am constantly drawn to people and labels that are probably hard to understand by some people-- or rather, just understood poorly. Fashion is art to me, as lame as that sounds; I didn't start to like it because I saw a really well dressed person at any point in my life, or because my parents were designers, or because I liked shopping. I saw a culture that lived through clothes and the history behind it.... and I got curious.

I am more interested in the people behind it and their mindset than their clothes. I like what the clothing represents. I like to make up a personality that the person has that explains the clothes. Haute Couture and the upper echelons of fashion in the "material" sense gets to the bottom of that mindset, and makes it into something tangible, exaggerated.

Yes, easy to wear, off the rack clothes can be worn fabulously. But tell me you can pull off Rodarte, or TAO, or Nozomi Ishiguro.....

it's the intensity that I love the most. The personality that is shown through the clothes. Dissecting a story without saying a word. I want to understand the concept of an outfit, the reason someone chooses to wear it over another.

If that's ~shallow~ to like...

man, being deep must suck.

idol of eternity: mary, full of grace

Mm, so you see the sidebar to the right, full of <3 ? Mary was the first person I put up on it. She is my idol at everything, is pretty much everything I'm not, but is everything I aspire to be... once I settle down and get sedated and stop running about with my head practically cut off.

I am going to convert you to Maryhood. You MUST watch this post, read this post when you're feeling frumpy (or just whenever), read this post to learn things, and absorb this post on secondhand shopping.

She is beautiful and grounded and talented and she makes me believe in good people.

what the shit

Jacket: Smithsonian Institution, Shirt: Goodwill / Gap, Jeans: Kill City, Shoes: Etsy

MY NAME IS ARABELLE AND I AM ABOUT TO KILL SOMETHING DEAD.

I put these shoes on. Yay new shoes! Yay having an income to buy shoes!

*walk around*

*SICK SQUISH NOISE*

HEEL IS CRACKED. I AM NOT FAT. WHAT THE HELL. The heel is cracked down the middle, if I wear it it'll get worse! Le sad.

THANK YOU MONEY DOWN THE DRAIN. I got these like 30 minutes ago.

....can i superglue it? WILL I HAVE TO GO GHETTO AND DUCK TAPE IT? because i am going to get my $30 worth if I have to sacrifice my firstborn or what. D: i am not kidding. (of course I am.)

Sadface. I'm going to go to a cobbler, I suppose. After the mountain of paperwork I've yet to finish. This will go in the "must fix" pile of shoes I have steadily accumulated: 7. Damn.

wtf: charlotte russe

Behold, my lazy ass polyvore.

Did they get a new design team or something? I am seriously digging these pieces lately...the zipper heels are the only rip offs of the Louboutin's I've seen. And I need those twill jodhpurs. So very much, in fact, I went back and visited them for a second time in my mall. Do want.

The quality is poor and as such, I'm not willing to fork up $30+ for crappy fabric but then I am a greedy ho and I will finagle me a piece eventually, cheaper, with my super awesome persuasion / blackmail powahs.

That being said, I really want Rick Owen's leather zipper pant legging things. 2 Cool.

p.s my life is pretty intense right now so I'll be putting up scheduled posts if anything in the next week so bear with me! xoxo.

i feel like i'm in in a ghetto wonderland

Holy shit my head hurts, rahh. Anyway I hung out with Steph (EPIC. SKIRT. WANT. NOW.), Emma (who by the way is ridiculously pretty, I am unworthy~) and Jew (happy birthday, bitch) today. I am too tired to think so I will summarize:

• Shopping shopping awkward silence shopping
• Peanut butter pancakes and shopping
  
• Don't Show Your Chocha dresses galore
  
• The Virgins-type rolled pants, pretty people trying too hard
• Talking about Swedish Fashion Bloggers
  
• Shopping shopping
• Trying to convince Jew that haute couture IS NOT POINTLESS AND STUPID
• Tea and lemon drizzle cake
  
• More shopping
• Trying on Comme de FUCKING GARCONS skirts, dying inside that it's $180
  
• Spotting Alexander Wang LAST FUCKING SEASON ZIP UP BOOTS and MARGIELA HEELS, dying inside and too scared to check the price

Ugh Tokio 7. STOP BEING AWESOME.

Blah. Anyway I was a dutiful person and took pictures. Unfortunately my camera is wack so they came out.... ODD.

From one of the stores we went to (we went to my regular haunts in the city). No pictures of Tokio 7 though, we were too busy being label whores. It's allowed if we don't buy any!

It's like my camera was on acid. Anyway, I'll wear my buy (mmm maxi length lace and linen skirt) in a future post. Until then, me and Stephanie are assholes, and we agree on one thing:

I do not want to see your ass cheeks before high tea.

where have u been all mah lief

CAPTION REASONS TO WEAR THIS DRESS.
THE LOLFACTOR IS TOO MUCH TO HANDLE.

P.S My link list is being lame, I'm making another one. Comment with your blog for a link swap.

P.P.S It seems no one gets the emails I send via my sidekick so if I never replied to your emails... Resend it, please!

lalalala

Hah, you feel jipped right? You thought I was going to be in Teen Vogue / Gonna meet Carine right? Sorry. To console you here is a virtual hug.

*virtual hug*

Will be adding more in as the days go by. Fall florals, more blazers, shoes, and sweaters coming at you for September. Let me know what you want and I'll look for it. 20% off the first purchase made... because I like to celebrate.

my top priority is to have priorities

I have decided to dress in spite of myself in the coming weeks. Yes I can look good in blazers and keds but so can every other blogger in the entire internetz. I wanted to smack on as many obnoxious color patterns as I could handle in the summer weather today...and get some use out of my favorite designer item. YAY Japanese Designer Vintage! Yay!

Top: Goodwill
Skirt: Vintage Junko Koshino
Vest: Taiwanese Markets
Tights: National Wholesale Liquidators
Shoes: Cutesygirl

Also, I got a package in the mail a few minutes ago from the very epic, very cool kids at Kill City, as a part of a campaign I'm participating in. More on that in a later post.

P.S Surprise tommorow. Sorry for ze blande posts as of recent, I hath been preoccupied. As my shitty ye olde english writing indicated rather poorly.

lesson in life

When you need something done, you should:

A) Get a sweatshop of your Asian friends to hem while you eat yogurt.
B) Get a sweatshop of your parents to hem -- seeing as they're former DESIGNERS and they COULD DO IT IN THEIR SLEEP.
C) Get the old lady down the block that likes to make sweaters out of her curtains to hem while you eat stale crackers
D) Do it yourself.

Quiz time.

Also.

the clack clack kids and the adventures of the orange tutu

Petticoats + Prints Everywhere + Eighties References + Total refusal to be normal + Napolean & John Galliano = !!!!

The other day, Tavi and I were talking about how to find designers & the emo sack that is Miley Cyrus. Somehow it resulted in me finding even more designers. We're magicians of pop culture and fashion, what can I say?

Basso & Brooke. I know, before you even read this paragraph a great deal of you fashion runway guru's will say, "Oh, psh, the girl didn't know them before? And she calls herself a fashion blogger?" Oh pfft. There's a first time for everything.

Said to be geeky, glamorous, playful and a new brand of cyberpunk, one can't really disagree when you spot all the references to various head honchos: Galileo, Da Vinci, Louis XIV, Barberousse, Napoleon, Madame da Pompadour. Hi there sick headpieces. Hi there, fierce patterns.


Their most recent collection (they didn't present this year.... sigh) parallels the 90's minimalist throwback & somberness of the recent shows and trends on the streets....which is effing awesome. I love me some rebellion. In the endless sea of chic~, understated~, and casual~ everything that will come in fall and winter, it would be lovely to see someone in say, graphic leggings with an orange tutu and a zebra print cardigan, or a flying penis print dress (okay, maybe not, they made one anyway). It's like the fashionably aware 9 year old I failed to be, you know?


Besides, this quote from Style.com sealed the deal for me.

Is it scary to see women apparently styled after the look of Eastern European hookers? Certainly...

I wanna be a scary Eastern European hooker. In designer print overload. Hellz yeah. Who's with me?

P.S I have an entire label dedicated to hookers, I am such a drty jrsy grl

On an entirely different note, I have a surprise for you all this weekend. Muaha.ha.

how to kill a stuffed zebra and hide the body

Alternative titles to this post:

• "is it obvious i'm bitter for being an only child yet?"
  
• "Reasons I should not babysit your children"
  
• "How you really get fur"
  
• "The Devil Wear Prada & Hane's T-Shirts"
• "My really, really, really bad metaphor for ~internet safety issues~"

fashion flipside

My aunty dearest emailed me a flyer for Fashion Flipside, a festival on the Lower East Side. Sounded cool, so I went with Abigail (F MINUS ASSISTANT, WHO FALLS ASLEEP DURING A RUNWAY SHOW?!). We arrived late but did see some pretty nice outfits, got free soda, got into our daily bitch fights with each other, and pet random dogs.

It was no Alexander McQueen HC but then again, it was just a show displaying clothes from boutqies on Orchard, Bleeker & Stanton so it wasn't to be expected. That said, it was still fun to watch for me and I took pictures for you all.

A great deal of the dresses are a bit TOO chocha friendly, if you know what I mean? It's probably because the models are all legs (for which I say I HATE YOU) but yes, I did see a flash of butt and I don't know if I'd pay boutique prices for something that barely covers my ass. I was digging this dress though, it's lacy and frou-frou.



This reminded me of Antoine Peters for some unknown reason (love you Antoine, your new collection rocks), and that chick that got eliminated from Project Runway for her anticlimactic dress. I like it, kinda? Ruffles = key to my heart, it's too juvenile for me to fall in love with though. Even ignoring the Lil' Mama pose.



I love love love this girl, she such a bombshell. My dad thinks she looks too Disney Princess in this photo, whatever. She has an ass, she has an epic cut, and I could mimic this look in a second with a quick trot to f21.



Cochas beware. This mini dress is very cute, and Mr Hat guy is very appreciative. Too much. Really.



Walk walk walk swish swish swish swish.



Ooooh Lanvin-y bellows! I loved watching her walk. I dislike the pattern on the material they used (jersey) because it made it look cheap. Then again any nod to Lanvin is on slippery territory for me... the original is just too fierce to touch.



Ignore the outfit. LOOK AT HER HAIR. I WANT IT. NOW.



Hmmm... is all I can say. I am such a helpful and articulate reviewer, right?



Oh hai there, Express months past gradient cocktail dress. How nice of you to show.



One of my favorite models, she reminds me of Chictopia. I want the skirt. Color combo = Richard Chai, pleats = "too many ideas in mah head" girl on Project Runway.

Oh, but my favorite look and model. Too fierce, just too fierce.



Call me. I'll be in this, waiting. *winks, walks back to corner*