Walmart Fashion Haul Fall 2015

St. John Luxury and Thrift Fashion Haul Part 1/2

Dallas Vintage Clothing and Jewelry Show - Review

PROS:
Condition:  Most of the pieces I looked at were in really great shape without any tears or stains or pulls.  Really beautiful and unusual pieces with great detailing.
Prices:  Beyond reasonable and fair.  I used to live Los Angeles for quite some time--I'm guessing that if this was a show in Los Angeles instead of Dallas, prices would be at least twice as much.  Today I ran across a two-piece silk Chanel maxi evening dress in perfect condition for only $595.00.  Let's just say I definitely did not get the sense that vendors were trying to gouge customers with outrageous prices.  And if I ever move out of Dallas I'm going to have to run around and hog up all the fantastic buys in this city because the pricing elsewhere will just be too high.
Selection:  There was a mix of both authentic designer and street vintage options complete with purses, hats, shoes, scarves, eyewear and any other accessory you could think of.  You'll find many more dresses than tops and pants though.  Jewelry fanatic paradiso.  A lot of the vendors display their pieces by decade which I love.
Vendors:  Friendly vendors.  Not pushy.  Helpful and knowledgeable.  Vintage Martini is one of my favorites.  Ken Weber, one of the owners, has a film costuming background and fabulous taste.

CONS:
Admission:  I have never liked the idea of paying to get into a show where you are planning on buying, but who does?  Although admission was only $10, I'd certainly rather spend the ten bucks at one of the booths.  Free parking though.
Selection:  It's not a huge show where you'll find booth after booth after booth.  All told there are about 25 booths.  I actually couldn't decide if this was a pro or a con, because I liked how it felt more intimate and how it was not overwhelming.  For me, there was soooo much to look at and I didn't know where to start.  Hard core vintage shoppers though might find it to be too small of a show.


I just had to try on this fuzzy coat cha-cha-cha
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How Men and Women Sabotage Themselves In the Fitting Room

So over the years that I've been styling men and women, here are three things I witness on a regular basis that consequently cause men and women to end up with clothes they probably shouldn't be buying:

1.  Size matters.
I can't tell you how many times a woman (and men too every once in awhile, but mostly women) won't buy an item if it's not a size small.  Even if the piece runs incredibly tiny and could fit a second grader, for some reason, these women refuse to budge over a size small.  So, a perfect sweater is passed over because even though a medium or large would fit fabulously and look really good, mediums and larges are "for big people" (yep, I hear that a lot...whaaat?).  What happens, then, is she will pick out something that is so-so (but it's a size small so therefore it must be fantastic!).  No wonder retailers resort to vanity sizing.

2.  Someone else's opinion is sought for everything.
It's perfectly okay and natural to check in with your spouse/friend/mother to see if they like a particular item, but I sometimes have men and women who say that "they have to show it to x/y/z before they try it on."  Before they even try it on?  At least try on what you like, and if you love it, buy it.  If no one else likes it besides you, too bad.  Life's too short to please everybody else.

3.  I am an occasional therapist.
You think it's just women who ask if they look fat?  Men are just as insecure about their bodies sometimes, and are often concerned about how their legs/arms/butt look.  They won't say "do I look fat?" but they will say it in other ways:  "Does this look good?  Is it too tight?"  Part of my job has morphed into the occasional therapist, who reassures everybody that they do not look too fat/thin/girly/manly/young/old/freaky.  The worst offenders are almost always those with perfect bodies.  Interesting, no?  They will look absolutely amazing, but will still find a fraction of the tiniest flaw on their body to focus upon. 

We all have our hang-ups no doubt.  Those seeking perfection will never find it, and are therefore some of the pickiest shoppers.  Dump the perfectionist tendencies and your life will improve both in the fitting room and out.

xoxo

Vintage Martinis and Applesauce

Today I stopped by a fabulous little vintage store called Vintage Martini.  Everything is arranged by decade, so I gravitated toward the 70s section and immediately found a perfect black maxi dress with bold flowers and a pink St. John Knit dress right out of Carol Brady's closet.  "Isn't that swell?"  Vintage Martini's stock is comprehensive, their prices are entirely reasonable, and you'll find everything in great condition too.  I've already got my eye on a Vivienne Westwood dress and a Galliano jacket that I hope to pick up on another visit.  They even have Victorian and Edwardian pieces.  My pictures of the store don't quite do the store justice. 

They are located in North Dallas and their web site is vintagemartini.com.

And of course, we must pay a tribute to The Pork Chops and Applesauce Episode:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jB4tJgzcVJE

 

Christian Louboutin Presents...80s Neon?

As I was driving around Dallas yesterday, I decided to wander through the cute and cozy Highland Park Village.  I spotted the Christian Louboutin boutique, and hoping to find really cute shoes in the window, was instead taken aback by the plethora of neon-colored heels--orange, turquoise, yellow--clogging up the glass. 

As much as I love pretty much everything about the 80s I simply cannot get on board with the neon Louboutin heels with spikes.  Louboutin creates beautiful shoes but this neon..."fashion" reminded me of cranky sea urchins or even worse those "As Seen on TV" spiky rubber laundry dryer-ball-thingies that are advertised during late night sitcom reruns.  What am I missing here?  I love theatrical fashion, but these shoes were an assault on my senses.  Are these supposed to be sexy on a woman?  The only time or place I could see them being worn is perhaps during a pseudo-punk music video where some unidentified I-hate-the-bore-of-bourgeois model plots hyper-feministic revenge on her former lover by "kicking him where it counts" (yes, admitting I would delightfully use that phrase in the third grade to warn a scrawny but determined little boy named Scott to stop chasing me on the playground).  On a side note, after leaving the store and driving some more through Dallas, I had to wonder...why is there always one single cow who has wandered off away from the herd in the field, standing at the edge of the fence and people watching to boot?  Perhaps I just answered my own question about the aesthetics of the Louboutin neon spike--only for those who dare to step away from the herd?

The Bachelorette Emily Maynard Picked Jef Holm for His Fashion Sense

Jef Holm's suit and tie = good

Call me crazy but Emily Maynard picked Jef Holm because of the way he dresses.  I'll admit it's not the only reason of course (true love?  well I can't go that far) but when explaining why she loves him she said herself that his "style" is what stood out to her when choosing him.  The thing is, as much as The Bachelorette has more cheese than a French fromagerie, Emily is right--Jef does know how to dress.  Hooray for skinny ties and suits!  More please.  I know most straight men reading this (and if any straight men are reading this I consider that a major accomplishment in the fashion blog world) are rolling their eyes right at this moment.  But men have to remember that just as they like women to be put together we would really like to see the same thing in our guys no matter how much of a man's man they consider themselves to be.  Frankly the fact that Jef referenced a Chloe handbag on the show was a bit frightening in the he-knows-a-little-too-much-about-fashion category, but don't worry guys--we certainly would not expect you to know handbag brands unless they are on our birthday wish list. 

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