An Icon, a Hero, a Legend

On the morning of March 23, 2011, we lost an icon, a hero, and a legend. These are not three different people, but, in fact, just one encompasses those three words, Elizabeth Taylor. She has been a style icon since the 1940s, a hero in her work for AIDS funding, and a legend of our time. She was the woman whom diamonds were made for; the woman whose role as Cleopatra could never be rivaled; the woman who was admired by the world for her beauty and style. She will forever be missed and never be forgotten.

"I adore wearing gems, but not because they are mine. You can't possess radiance, you can only admire it." - Elizabeth Taylor

And the Nominees Are...

Tomorrow, Diane von Furstenberg, president of the Council of Fashion Designers of America, will be announcing the nominees for this year's CFDA awards at her studio in New York. Style.com will be streaming the announcement live on its website.

Awards are given for design excellence in womenswear, menswear, and accessories, as well as accomplishments in journalism, creative vision, and lifetime achievement. It is the Academy Awards of the fashion world. There are 12 awards given out, and last year's Lifetime Achievement Award went to one of my favorite designers, Michael Kors. He started his career at the age of 19, and has since created a global brand of womenswear, menswear, and accessories, both in couture and ready-to-wear. The Womenswear Designer of the Year went to Marc Jacobs, and the International Award went to Christopher Bailey for Burberry.

It is going to be an exciting night! I can't wait to see who is nominated!

Diane von Furstenberg, president of CFDA

Marc Jacobs and Michael Kors with their 2010 CFDA Awards

The Guardians of Our Feet

Some people give me funny looks when I tell them how many pairs of shoes I own. When I went to study abroad in London for a semester, I brought one pair of every type of shoe I owned, a total of eleven pairs. My flatmate looked at me like I was crazy. She only brought two pairs of shoes. And she thought I was crazy? A girl needs ballet flats, tall boots, short boots, tall boots with heels, short boots with heels, Oxfords, pumps, moccasins, kitten heels, tennis shoes, and the list goes on. I had to weed out shoes in order to get it down to those eleven pairs. And I came back from London with fourteen pairs.

Shoes are the guardians of our feet. They keep us warm, they keep us cool, they keep us protected, so why shouldn't they keep us stylish as well? I don't like to wear the same jacket every day, or the same shirt every day, so it's only natural that I wouldn't want to wear the same shoes every day. I need a variety of shoes to go with my variety of outfits. A smart woman said to me once, "I'm not just wearing clothes, I'm wearing an outfit, a head-to-toe outfit." So for those of you who own many, many pairs of shoes, don't be ashamed, be proud, and rock your head-to-toe outfits!

Shoes, Oh Shoes by ESP3726 on Polyvore.com

The Eighties

Neon green tights, a washed out jean jacket, permed hair, and a scrunchy. What am I talking about? That's right, the 1980s. The 1960s is my favorite era of fashion, but I have to give a shout out to the crazy styles of the eighties. Who is the one person you should think of when thinking about the decade? Why Madonna, of course. Her dark makeup, curly blond hair, black leather gloves and jacket, and patterned leggings were what girls wanted to look like. And let us not forget the styles worn by Molly Ringwald in movies like Pretty in Pink and The Breakfast Club. The pink neck-high prom dress was something to be remembered. One can already see how the interesting styles of the time have crept their way back into current fashion in the form of patterned tights and leggings, jean jackets, Ray Ban sunglasses, and, yes, even shoulder pads.

Best Dressed at the Oscars

The Academy Awards Red Carpet last night was filled with beautifully dressed stars, from archival Valentino to fresh Armani. Let's start with the beautiful co-host, Anne Hathaway, who wore a red floor-length archival Valentino dress from 1981. She paired it with bright red lipstick, a loose chignon, and a diamond necklace from Tiffany & Co. Then there was Cate Blanchett, a beautiful and talented woman with taste as well. She wore a pale pink Givenchy gown that looked like it could have come straight off the runway. It was original and different from anything else on the red carpet, and still very classy.

Academy Award Winner for Best Actress and Mommy-to-be, Natalie Portman, looked radiant in her deep purple Rodarte gown paired with Tiffany jewels. And her supporting actress in Black Swan, Mila Kunis, wore an elegant light purple gown with delicate lace detail and a plunging neckline by Elie Saab.

And last, but certainly not least, Reese Witherspoon wearing a simple, yet classy black and white dress by Armani Prive. Long and elegant, it reminds me of the simplicity of fashion in the 1960s, which, as you know, is my favorite era of fashion.

My Favorite Era of Fashion

Everyone has a favorite fashion era.  Some may like the flapper styles of the 1920s, others the neon colors of the 1980s, but, personally, I like the color blocks of the 1960s.  Think Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's, standing in front of the store window wearing a simple black dress, a pearl necklace, black elbow-length gloves, large black sunglasses, a high bun in her hair, and a coffee and pastry in her hands.  Think Twiggy, with her short blond hair and big eyelashes, wearing a white babydoll dress and knee-high socks.  Or think Jackie Kennedy, First Lady to the United States of America, style icon to the women of America, and the epitome of what we now think of as American Sportswear.  And let us not forget about the fringe-bearing, tye-dye clad, and peace oriented hippies.  They were the inspiration for the hippie fashion that recently rose up yet again, complete with headbands and peace signs galore.
 
My second favorite era would have to be the 1980s, but I'll save that for another time...

Love?

With Valentine's Day a week behind us, you would think that love would be far behind us as well. But I still find it lurking in the corners, jumping out in Vogue and my weekly horoscope telling me to either commit or run for the hills of independence. But why do I have to choose between one or the other?

It's like a clothing item, let's say a jacket. Most of us have many different kinds of jackets, a trench coat, a blazer, a pea coat, a hoodie. I like all of them, so why would I choose to commit to just one? I'm not going to wear a trench coat in the summer or a blazer with my sweatpants. And if I "run for the hills of independence," does that mean I swear off jackets completely? It's February, it's cold, and there's no way I'm walking around without a jacket. There has got to be some kind of in between where you can wear whatever jacket you like whenever you want to wear it. But then the question is: can I treat love this way?

Maybe you don't have to either commit or run for the hills; love isn't that easy. Make too rash of a decision and you could end up with the wrong jacket or no jacket at all.