Unaffordable Basics

Athleisure, wearing sneakers to the office and comfort have played a huge part in fashion the last year. With the comeback of the Stan Smiths and the introduction of collections from designers that include hoodies, sweat pants, and t-shirts we are entering the stages of fashion where luxury is no longer a synonym with crazy uncomfortable designs - like back in the nineties or the early 2000s when the clothes from the runways used to look like this:

Christian Dior Couture F/W 2005

Vetements and Gosha Rubchinskiy are only some of the up and coming designer brands that have been bringing out extremely expensive matching tops and bottoms..or shall I dare to call them..tracksuits? Never in our lives did we think the old trend originally brought to us by Juicy Couture of a tracksuit would make a comeback in a grungier, more daring and unexpected way. The Vetements hoodie retails for around $900 and the Gosha jacket retails for 3 to 4 hundred dollars - depending on where you can find it.
Brands like these push a new form of urban/grunge culture that brands like Margiela did in the 90s. Yes, challenging the use of materials and proportions is nothing new, but this re-emergence nearly a decade later is being accepted and promoted more than ever before.

Gosha Rubchinskiy

Vetements S/S 2016

Streetwear is becoming popular thanks to the fact that designers and high end retailers are realizing the influence of street style and letting it influence their designs by changing silhouettes and basically the DNA of brands. Let's not forget Couture season in 2014 - when both Chanel AND Dior used sneakers as couture shoes in their runways, making everyone and their mothers gasp in horror when they saw this for the first time. I guess now I think the Chanel ones are pretty cute, but back then it felt like the end of the world. Talk about more unaffordable basics.

Chanel Couture S/S 2014, which at the time retailed for around $1,100 - but this model is no longer available.

Dior Couture S/S 2014, also retailed for aroun $1,100

Today, the fashion forecast revolves more around the youth than the actual clientele who can afford these clothes - say the old and the rich. So buying into the idea of youth is also captivating for the older generation because they feel like they are more in tune with what is accepted and popular in society. 

I'm so excited to see where this whole trend takes us and what other unaffordable basics will come to life after this. Who knows, maybe there's some crazy socks in the making? 

That's all for now!

Leen-da :)

The Inevitable Flower Crown

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I know, I know..festival season is upon us and yada yada yada. In case you've been living under a rock, you know this too and if you're not in sunny sunny California and/or can't afford a ticket to the most famous music festival out there, you're probably pissed about it too.
We have all been there - scrolling through our social media, looking at what our long distance friends/celebrities are doing and feeling the little green envy monster in our stomach when we feel like they're living a happier life than we are.
WELL, it's time for us all to stop that monster and just straight talk about what they were all wearing, and look at the style evolution Coachella Music Festival has undergone in the past five years. Like Elle Magazine said it best, let's take a look at those "toned abs and tiny shorts".

2011 - the year of the printed flow-y dress.

2012 - the year people got confused and didn't know WTF to wear.

2013 - the year of the flower crown and the espadrilles.

2014 - the year of the "effortlessly cool".

2015 - the year of fringe, denim, and neutrals.

2016 - the year Coachella finally found it's style (sorta) by just mixing it all and deciding "everything" was okay.

*all pictures were taken from HarperBazaar.com*

Thanks for checking in, and see you soon!

xX Leen-da!

Outlet Malls?

Last week, my siblings came to visit - and of course, no trip was complete without the necessary visits to the Met, MoMa, Central Park, and even the Statue of Liberty. One more thing we had to add to the itinerary - since my sister is obsessed with shopping in the U.S. of A- was going to Woodbury Commons.

Woodbury is located around an hour away from the city, on Long Island. At first, I was sort of doubtful..I'm not a big fan of long shopping trips, especially accompanied by a bunch of my family members and where not only does everyone have their personal interests and things they wanna buy, but they're also trying to get stuff for everyone back home and their mothers - literally. So I was quite surprised to find that this outlet mall is not only bigger in size than what I was used to seeing, but it also includes bigger name brands too! Brands like Céline, Saint Laurent, Prada, Fendi, Chloé and even Balenciaga and Marni have their own stores inside Woodbury Commons - something we are not used to seeing from these specific brands.

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I strolled around the mall, and walked inside stores like Allsaints and Rag & Bone to try on stuff, and actually was surprised at the accessibility of the prices in these stores!
All in all, I would recommend going to Woodbury Common Outlets if you can't afford the clothes, but still have some extra cash that you earned somewhere, cause you never know what you might be able to find for a quarter of the price you'd pay in the store!


Toodles!

Leen-da

What being a stylist is REALLY about

When I was around sixteen I used to think I wanted to be a stylist. Out of all the things in the world, I thought nothing was cooler than being able to put together a killer outfit as a way of manifesting something - have it be a feeling, a movement, emotions, or even just as a way of expressing how you felt in the morning.

Then, last year, I learned about the path to become a stylist - the anything-but-glamurous process of how the clothes get from the stylists' imagination, to the actual floor of where they're going to work. And let me tell you, I did not like it one bit. Especially when you think about the fact that whatever you're doing, is not really helping change the world or to do anything other than a simple shoot, video, or movie.

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Currently, I work as a closet assistant at Interview Magazine. And I've been lucky enough to work with a good amount of stylists. From Miguel Enamorado to Karl Templer - It is such a breathtaking experience to see them work and use their instinctive skills as a way to put together beautiful works of art, made out entirely of clothes and using the garments in a way one never would've thought possible.



Thanks to this experience, I've learned almost enough to understand what it entitles to be a good, well known stylist - which is why I'm able to say that I admire deeply the work of B. Åkerlund. Born in Stockholm, B moved to Los Angeles at the age of fourteen to pursue her passion in styling, after her mother kicked her out of her house because she refused to stay in school.

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Her eccentric taste in clothes got the attention of a photographer who lived near her, and who also asked for her help in a calendar he was shooting with drag queens - all from her own closet! Fast forward a few years, and now she styles the likes of Beyonce, Madonna, and Britney Spears.

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What is so amazing about her, is that she's not just a regular stylist, but she's also a whole fashion activist - who's come up with different ways to help the whole fashion community by creating an app called Who You Are which is basically a way for people in the fashion and entertainment industry to connect and network with each other, because at the end of the day, we all need a little help with everyone to survive in this crazy world.

Another movement that she started, is The Residency - "a full service public relations agency that specializes in celebrity and editorial outreach"- which is another way for designers and celebrities to network with each other and make the best use of their services.

Last but not least, she created Le Snob. A line of luxury accessories she launched last year with Robert Lussier - a creative director who's worked in Louis Vuitton and Dior advertisements.

I admire B. Åkerlund because she understands that being a stylist about more than dressing up someone, but it still isn't going to change the world - that we need to do more than that in order to leave your print. As she said in an interview with the New York Times:

 "It’s not that serious, at the end of the day, it’s just a music video, or it’s just a photo shoot, or it’s just a movie. It’s not going to change the world.”

That's all for now, come back next week for more!

Xx

Leen-da


Sources: http://www.lennyletter.com/style/interviews/a319/b-akerlund-stylist/

Save these for a rainy day

Rainy weather? More like worst weather ever!! Unless I'm going to be watching it from my bed, nothing puts me down more than the rain - especially if I'm going to be working that day, running errands and getting my umbrellas stolen/broken throughout the day. It has definitely happened to the best of us. That's why, I came up with a list of rainy weather must have accessories - so you can stock up on them, and tell that rainy weather goodbye before it even has a chance to touch you

Bye-bye rain!

1. A good, fun pair of rain boots

Jeffrey Campbell $54.95

Rainy weather is not a reason to suddenly become boring!! That's why I love these Jeffrey Campbell glittery boots so much. Apart from protecting you from the wetness, they will also provide a fun detail into any outfit that you choose. Also, who doesn't love glitter?!

2. A trustworthy, and pretty umbrella

Kate Spade $38.00

Be honest. How many umbrellas do you think you've gone through, in your life? 10? 20? It's so easy to just buy the cheapest umbrella on the street, only to have it be taken by the wind by the next hour. Say goodbye to that, and hello to this gorgeous wind-resistant Kate Spade umbrella! Sure, it's not $5.00 but I can assure you this one is worth the splurge!

3. Cute, long rain coat

ASOS $76.24

Okay, okay - I know you all were getting excited to be able to run free without a coat and not care about those things but it's always important to have something lightweight to cover you from the rain! Especially in this beautiful print that could go perfect with those boots and umbrella. Also, the length and hood are just perfect to take extra cover from the rain.

4. Thick, warm socks.

L.L. Bean $19.95 for two pairs

And last, but not least, a pair of thick, cozy socks to keep your feet extra warm and far from the rain. You don't want your feet getting all wet and then having to walk around with soggy boots for the rest of the day, in case you accidentally step on one of those deep ponds! 

Now I'm gonna get ready for today and wear my choice of rainy weather clothes. See you later!

Leen-da.