I wouldn't mind being locked into this cage!

Is there anyone NOT drooling over YSL's $1590 lattice shoes? With all the hub these shoes made at New York and Paris fashion week, all we could do is wait for the knock-offs. Of course Topshop didn't let us down on that note, but we all knew they wouldn't dare let us down again.

Even if I had an extra $1590 (which I don't, thank you NYU), these babies have been sold at Saks as soon as we crawled out of our Fashion Week induced daze. Apparently, net-a-porter has inked a deal with YSL and will soon be carrying the shoes exclusively.

But for me, the copies just aren't making the cut. The replications by Charlotte Russe, Forever 21, and the like are more reminiscent of a Volvo with a caged back then the YSL originals which seem to me to capture a more dream-like garden feeling.

Anyone up for a little stalking?

So...is anyone up for stalking topshop around the city with me sometime this weekend?

With the impending April 2nd opening, Topshop is having it's Heartschallenger vans drive around New York passing out goody bags. They started out on 14th and University Place earlier this week (NYU central!) and will be staking out at all the city's hotspots.

I've seen the totebags and they're adorable, almost reminiscent of our beloved strand totes that boost our intellectual aura. I snagged a lookbook yesterday and I'm seriously in love. The awesome prints, BLEACHED JEANS!, and just wait...10% student discount!

I can't wait for the opening and I'll be doing a live feed on April 2nd for www.andspeakingofpink.com! I'll keep you posted!

Dear god why can't I be a 6 1/2

So I am COMPLETELY obsessed with these colored oxfords from etsy. They're an embodiment of my two favorite things in fashion right now, yes you guessed it, color and oxfords. But sadly, they're a size 6.5 and would never fit me in a million years. Soooo, I'm stuck admiring them from afar :(

Or, I may do a little DIY version of these beauties when I get some free time (and a cheap pair of oxfords). Until then, I'm still working on my Hanes version of the Raquel Allegra shredded shirt using the childhood flames tutorial (http://childhoodflames.blogspot.com/2008/10/do-it-yourself-shredded-tee.html) so I'll post a picture of that when it's done!

"Chew On This"

http://www.hungrygirl.com

I've been getting my "hungrygirl" e-mails for about 3 years now and not a day goes by where I don't scour my daily e-mail in hopes of finding ground breaking "tips and tricks for hungry chicks". (P.S. If you don't get her e-mail, YOU SHOULD) After the"Skinny Bitch" revolution became old as all the dairy starved Stepford Wives cornered the markets on sweet and sour tofu stir fries and Silk's light vanilla Soy Milk became an inferior substitute for milk (yes, the real thing, not Hood Calorie Countdown or other imposters), we turned our faith to Lisa aka "Hungrygirl" who had been there all along.

With the recent release of Mary-Kate and Ashley's coffee table book, "Influence" and our favorite street style photographer, Scott Schuman (The Sartorialist) landing a book deal and yes, a pop-up shop at Barney's, we were only waiting for what would come next.

For me, good things have always come in threes and this time it's no different. Lisa Lillien will be releasing her book "200 under 200" with a book tour kicking off on April 14th in none other than the Big Apple (pun intended). From the lady who gave us something edible to make out of those god awful Tofu Shirataki noodles comes a book filled with "fabulous foods and hidden horrors".

In this industry, who isn't looking for crafty snacks under 200 calories? You know I'll be there.

Acid Wash: Yay or Nay?

It’s 2009 but it couldn’t feel more like 1982. Is the acid wash jean trend getting you down? Not me. As I walk around the sales floor at American Apparel, I can’t help but dream about my next purchase. Will it be the black nylon leggings with the zippers on the side? A gray and blue zip-up leotard?...After an 8 hour shift, I have settled on the blue mineral wash jeans.

I’m totally and completely obsessed with the acid wash jean trend that was decidedly over practically before it even began. I vaguely remember Mavi trying to create a less extreme version of the jeans circa 2001 but leave it to hipster-retailer, American Apparel to achieve the perfect balance by taking a completely and utterly ruined fashion trend and make it hip. Even Balmain’s Spring 2009 collection featured a fresh take on the dated trend.

A quick google search led to me a myriad of angry fashionistas, begging for the trend to be locked up and for the key to be thrown far, far away. One commenter even warned that the comeback of acid wash jeans could mean the apocalypse:
“no no no no no
oh god, no
please god no.
no no no no no.
i promise you, if and when these things come back in style, the earth will shrivel up and die.
please god, no!”

Now, I wouldn’t want to outright avenge the haters, but I can’t help but embrace the comeback. As long as teased hair and denim jackets remain in the archives, I’m off to buy my acid wash jeans with my next pay check.

Olivia Palermo: Back From The Brink of Socialite Hell.

If you’re anything like me you’re probably at least intrigued by the snarky, over-privileged Olivia Palermo of ‘The City’. As a downtown enthusiast and a lover of all things South of Houston Street, I was mildly insulted with Olivia’s outright jab at East Village hipsters and flaunting all things Upper East Side (Ironically, Olivia’s apartment on the City is actually located in Tribeca. Downtown much?) Although she did grow up on the Upper East side with her mother, an interior designer and her father, a real-estate developer.

Not surprisingly, ‘The City’ is probably the first time most people have even heard of the self-proclaimed socialite who entered the New York party scene only a few years ago as a student at the New School. Often compared with Blair Waldorf, we can see a parallel to the catty gossip girl site with the http://www.socialiterank.com/ scandal, a mysterious website that aimed to rank New York’s top socialites. With one bad press release, Socialite Rank was able to oust Palermo from the socialite scene, claiming that she had written a desperate ‘letter’ begging other socialites for acceptance. Daddy to the rescue! Palermo had her father hire a lawyer to get her and her boarding school educated behind back on the scene. While she never truly gained the acceptance of the “inner circle”, people started to feel bad for her that she seemed to be the target of every publicist who mattered.

When Olivia made her debut with her fake job on ‘The City’, Whitney’s former boss Kelly Cutrone alluded to her jaded upbringing. While Lauren Conrad’s overt willingness to gossip on ‘The Hills’ seemed overly scripted, Palermo’s immediate refute of Whitney’s desire to talk about her friend problems really rubbed me the wrong way. I would rather hear Lauren Conrad’s unconvincing empathy than Palermo’s catty remarks.

All this aside, I cannot deny that Palermo is fascinating. We love Olivia Palermo for the same reason we all love the oh-so-devious Blair Waldorf. Her ability to get away with her biting comments stems from her wardrobe.

How could you hate a girl who looks that good all the time?

The wait is over!

So we've come a long way since 2007 when Topshop first announced that they would be opening a 40,000 square foot store in New York. Now, as a New Yorker, and Topshop enthusiast, I didn't take this news lightly. I told everyone I knew, only to be met with confused faces that seemed to say "What the hell is Topshop?!" Was I the only American willing to pay $50 in shipping to have my Marni inspired pumps delivered to my doorstep?

2 years later and I am still waiting patiently. When the opening date was set for October 2008 I was already planning to take off class to brave the crowds if need be. But it didn't seem necessary as the date was pushed back to a nebulous "Spring 2009". I began to grow wary of an opening at all, already planning to channel all my topshop ardor into asos, until recently as I was strolling down Broadway and was met to my delight with a concrete date. April 2, 2009. In it went into my blackberry with a reminder to scour the internet for any info I could find about the impending opening.

What I found has made me all the more impatient for the opening. The NYC flagship store boasts essentially your own personal stylist, I’m thinking Rachel Zoe meets the UK, people. With an appointment you can receive the help of an expert who will encourage you try new looks with no pressure to make a purchase. But wait…it’s free! Now we can all get the celeb treatment without the celeb wallet. Maybe they felt bad for keeping us waiting so long, but during opening week, Topshop will be giving out complimentary hair styles by Woodley & Bunny, makeovers by MAKE UP FOR EVER, and manicures by Valley. As I drift away into my own little heaven (Hey, it looks like London up here!), I’ll probably forget all about by $9 an hour job and focus on the iconic Kate Moss and her line that sold out within minutes in London. You know I’ll be there and I hope you will too!

Let’s just say, I can’t bloody wait!

Intro!

Hi everyone! My name is Alix and I've been meaning to start a blog for awhile now as I read fashion blogs obsessively. I'm a 'Media, Culture and Communications' major at NYU, I work at American Apparel (yay 30% earnings increase!), intern at www.wunderbloc.com (check it out!), freelance for the 'Manhasset Press' and basically do anything I could get involved in related to fashion.

I'm obsessed with celebrity gossip, tabloids, and trash in general. I read WWD religously and try to memorize the stock information in attempts of holding intellectual conversations. I ride horses, run, paint and sing. I love music (Sublime, Slightly Stoopid, Radiohead, Animal Collective, Phish, Bob Marley, Matisyahu, Vampire Weekend, to name a few). I hope you like my blog and I'm looking forward to getting started!!

Alix