Ready Go Recycle!

Inspired by a conversation I had the other day, I got to thinking about sustainability and what we can do to make a difference, even if at first small. While the obvious things come to mind like recycling, not using your car as often (which by this point most people should be doing these things on the regular) there are so many more things we can do to make sustainability cool and relevant to us. While most of us can't rebuild our apartments so that they run on solar energy and water power, we can think about the way we buy clothes. I know coming from an individual who loves buying and buying clothes, even the most obsessed have to think about the future of our planet. Buying vintage clothes is just one way that you can begin to personally cut down on the use of resources. Clothes that already exist i.e. used clothes are not using up any more resources or materials, they are here and waiting to get their chance in the spotlight all over again. Now, I know for many people the idea of having to sort through a vintage store can be, well, intimidating. But that's why the greater powers invented eBay. My favorite favorite store on eBay for vintage is mama stone vintage. There are soo many amazing things on this website, the only downside is that you have to bid, but hey you can't have everything!

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Hopelessly Devoted To...

Print, Prints Prints!! I love nothing more than intense extreme prints. I think that the summer is a time to throw convention and sanity out the window, and welcome in freedom and creative expression. And what do I always say about fashion...you are what you wear! Let go of stress and pretension and embrace the wilder side of clothing, the wilder side of yourself. Who says you can't wear something totally outrageous to a party, a bar, your office (heh heh proceed with caution lambs). Sometimes you just need to let loose and let freedom reign, and what better time to do it than the summer time. While on my quest to discover fab fab prints, I came across a designer that I barely knew (gasp!). Her name is Samantha Treacy, and she has some adorable treasures.

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Totally rad! While these prints are not as bold as you could go, they are a good step in the right direction. These dresses are a perfect way to ease into the insanity of print wearing without really taking the full plunge. Louise Goldin another precious print maven, uses color blocks and asymmetrical lines of color to animate her Spring 08 ready wear line.

Find more Louise Goldin at Style.com

And for those of us who are daring and willing to try a little more than the rest...

Courtesy of the phenomenal Jeremy Scott

A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words...

Well so they say...There are some photographic spreads that you just can't help but feel envious over. Envious that a) you are not in it b) that you didn't take it or c) because...well because! I usually can be found in the folds of my comforter pining over the perfectly styled, directed, edited photo spreads of fashion magazines. However, today it occurred to me that the way we present fashion is changing, much like the rest of the world. With the conquest of the online warriors over most of the planet complete, the fashion world has moved into waters that are unfamiliar to many, unnatural to most. The idea of buying clothing over the Internet without trying it on, analyzing, critiquing, asking a thousand people for their opinions is somewhat daunting. The days of fitting room lines are drawing to an end. But what does this mean for the fashion marketer? The Visual merchandiser? The magazine stylist? Are we seeing the slow decline of tangible marketing? Is the world on its way to becoming an online virtual reality? Maybe. I don't have all the answers, but one thing is for certain, that we need to start looking at the way online stores, fashion mags, what have you, merchandise their wares to us. Just because we are not turning the glossy delicate pages of a magazine in our bed, does not mean that the images we are scrolling through should not be magnificently photographed, laid out, touched up etc. If we are expected to participate in the world of online consumerism then we should continue to be catered to visually, if not more so. Here are some online fashion spreads that I feel are worth noting. La Garconne

If you are unable to visit the legendary Bergdorf Goodman in NYC, then their amazing shop by floor website is close (kinda) to the next best thing.

To me these websites work because they are a) great to look at and b) they are easy to navigate. They are simple to figure out. You don't have to be Bill Gates minus those glasses and poor choice in sweaters (JK Bill...kisses), to navigate and find what you are looking for. Beauty and Simplicity are what make an online store website great. Now go put your government stimuli to good use and spend!