Fashion Icons

Have you ever been stuck on putting together a cool outfit and settled for the sweat pants? Well, I have, and when this happens I look to these three fashion icons of mine. 








The first icon is from my favorite TV show from the 60's. She played pretty much the first female spy and she did all her own stunts. And I've always loved her style, which made her famous. Emma Peel (played by Diana Rigg):

I found the picture of this jacket
in the J. Peterman catalogue and the caption reads: 

I was Mrs. Peel for Halloween one year
and I got a caricature of me in my costume.
It looks nothing like me and more like her
but it's still really good and was a nice keep-sake.

Her style is all about weird patterns, dramatic colors, interesting cuts, and funky tailored clothes. I'm not saying that you should wear a jumpsuit out grocery shopping, but adding some hints of this style can really jazz up your outfits. Try adding a groovy belt to one of your basic dresses, or try some cool flare pants to get that funky look. And go for high collared shirts, they really show off your neck and are good for short hair if you have that, or ponytails. She's also all about baby doll jackets and really out-there colors so try that out for size, too (literally!). So go for this Mrs. Peel inspired look when your not sure what to wear. But don't go over the top and try out her stunts because that won't end well. Trust me. 

The next fashion icon of mine was also a style idol in the 60's and has a similar style as Mrs. Peel. She was a model and started a completely new fashion trend with her hair and clothing.

Twiggy:

                                                         

In this photo is Twiggy and Patrick Macnee,
 who played John Steed, Mrs. Peel's partner in crime in The Avengers. Twiggy and him did a photo shoot to promote the show.

  

   

Twiggy's style is very futuristic, bright, dramatic, mod, and is very funky chic, like Mrs. Peel. Also, Twiggy's style can be simple at times and she does a lot of solid colors. To get a Twiggy inspired ensemble you could try out some big earrings, bright A-line dresses, bold baby doll jackets (same as Mrs. Peel), or go for the big-eyed makeup. (Try using a white eye pencil in your water line and then doing eyeliner over the top lashes and putting mascara on your top AND bottom lashes. This is a less dramatic version of her makeup, but if you want to go for the dark shadow in her eyelid creases, or fake lashes. be my guest.) For the hair, if you don't have short hair, try doing a smooth side part and straighten your hair to get a fresh, posh look. So, that's how to get a Twiggy look.

The last style icon of mine is nothing like these other two. She was a famous young actress in the 80's and part of the brat-pack. She was in Pretty in Pink, 16 Candles, The Breakfast Club, and many more movies. Molly Ringwald:

Molly Ringwald's style is very pink, floral, full of flowy layers and bling, lacy, and she incorporates a tough rebel quality to it, too. Even though most of these photos are from her movies, there is a definite consistency to her wardrobe in these films, and I think that her style is very similar to them. To get this look, you can basically go for the direct look because it is very realistic and practical, or at least more than one of Mrs. Peel's jumpsuit's for example. Try multiple floral prints at once, or layered lace, and go for the pink! I myself don't wear much pink but for this look I would definitely incorporate it, as well as rings, lots of bracelets, earrings, and pearl necklaces. So, that's how to get a Molly Ringwald outfit.

I hope this helps for those tough mornings when you can't decide what to wear. Or, look to your own fashion icons for help if you have a specific one in mind. Good luck dressing! 

          

  

The Good Stuff This Season

This season's all about vintage clothes, retro ankle boots, big rings and bags, skinny jeans (still? really?), floral prints, bright nail polishes, etc. So, I'm going to show you some items you might be interested in adding to your wardrobe this fall.










Vintage bags are very popular this season, including this bag that was my mom's and is now, sadly, falling apart. It has a sort of Pretty in Pink quality to it, which I love. The other two bags shown below were my Grandma's which she gave to me. The gold change purse is really cute because it always reminds me of that sort of 1940's glamourous era. And the other clutch is really stylish because of the intricate gold design. These style bags are very popular now because vintage is in.                            

This dress below is from Israel and is really gorgeous because it sort of has a 1960's mod/Indian/Middle Eastern quality to it which is so odd and rare nowadays. It's bright purple with a gold (probably made by hand) embroidered collar. I wear it with a belt but it would still look cool without one to go with the mod 60's A-line dress type thing. 

These two dress and this sweater are examples of what I like to call The Drapey Style. These usually consist of a drapey sweater that goes down to your knees with a drapey dress under it maybe with a belt over the whole thing to tie it all together (literally! What's with me and the puns?!). I happen to like this style sometimes when it's not over done with, for example, 4 draped pieces of clothing just hanging off of you with nothing to "tie it all together." You end up looking like the closet monster. So, I suggest that when going for the Drapey Style, you be careful not to into the monster, because when it's done well, it can look really nice. 

Another trend that I absolutely love is the cuff bracelets. They make everyone's outfits so much cooler.

I also love big jewelry like these big earrings and costume jewelry rings. They're very in style right now, and fall under the same category as the vintage bags.

              Another big trend is the bright crazy nail polish colors. Goodbye sheer colors or pale pinks. Bright chartreuse, navy, turquoise, purple, yellow, and other crazy colors are very in right now. Also, matte polishes are very popular too, but I really don't happen to like those. I already gave up my sheer colors! What more can I give up? Not the shiney-ness of the nails!!! Not the shiney-ness!!! No, but seriously, I do really like the bright colors, in fact I happen to have a good assortment of them at home. 




  I really love these military styled jackets, coats, and shirts this season. The shirt to the left is one of mine and there are some examples below of military jackets. They have a kind of Srg. Pepper quirky aspect to them.                                                                                                    

Now, this new thing that I just love so much are these cute shoes, and leather boots that are sort of vintage looking, especially when pared with tights and, don't think I'm crazy here, patterned or floral socks. I think this is the cutest thing ever, and it sounds weird but they actually work together! Like how in the first scene of Pretty in Pink (wow, I've seen this movie way to many times) Molly Ringwald is getting ready for school and she puts on those ankle high leather boots, with flowery pink socks and white tights. It's just great. This is the type of thing that I mean:

Just picture the tights and socks!

I hope these season-style-tips help you at all, and if you haven't seen Pretty in Pink see it!