Patterned Leggings

February 16th, 2010 - 
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So what if a girl doesn’t shave her legs in the winter? It’s not like she’ll be showing off any leg in a miniskirt any time soon. That’s why we love leggings. Not to mention how uber comfy they are. Swap a sweatshirt and house shoes for a long, elegant sweater and heels and you’ve discovered the fashionable flexibility a good pair of leggings offers to a wardrobe.

But, as with any good trend, someone takes it too far. We’re talking printed leggings. Bright teal and lime green leopard print nylons, gingham-infused fishnets (yes, it has been done). Giant pink polkadots all over your calves and thighs. Excuse me, um, HOW is this flattering?

Here’s the skinny on patterned leggings, what’s hot, what’s not, and those we wouldn’t mind losing in the dryer…

Vertical stripes + black and blue + animal print leggings = 12,456 Hail Marys. Like the TV, print leggings add 10 pounds. So, unless you have 0% body fat, stay away from thick, bold prints on your thighs.

Pants are pants. Leggings are leggings. This is not paint-pants-on-by-number.

Now, this we can do. Tall black boots and a muted patternless sweater leave a little room for some flair. This small black and white floral print doesn’t bombard the eyes, but gives a girl some funky freedom.

When wearing loud shoes and a patterned dress, stick with a single colored- legging.  A small horizontal pattern adds length to the leg.

Shop on!

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Cheap Prom Accessories

January 27th, 2010 - 
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Bought a big ticket dress this year? (Don’t worry–it’s worth it.) Time to go skimp on accessories without looking cheap. Here’s your very own tutorial on how to find cheap accessories and even make your own. Look like a million without spending one…

Let’s start with jewelry. This season, single pieces are the hot look. Don’t wear earrings, necklace AND a bracelet. Automatic money-saver! Depending on your dress and hair, choose one and glam it up. Head to your local bead or craft store and invest in fishing wire and beads of choice. Clasps are cheap and the only tool you’ll need is a pair of needle nose pliers. (Dig around in your dad’s toolbox.) Approximate total–$15

Skip real diamonds and pearls–you might lose them, anyway. Avoid the tears. Shop around at those cheap boutiques you frequented in middle school. For $3.99, you’d be surprised at how real a fake can look. Claire’s Boutique is our fave.

Homemade corsages and boutonnieres can be easily crafted from fresh cut flowers in the frontyard. A little wire, ribbon and hot glue and viola! A fresh and cheap way to avoid a flower shop. Don’t forget safety pins for your date’s lapel. Add a broken piece of rhinestone or glue a hair clip on the flower for an extra touch.

Down to the clutch. Ask family members if you can dig through old boxes and Grandma’s closet. You never know what vintage surprises you’ll find. Pearls and beaded bags were super hot in the forties and fifites. Classy and one-of-a-kind with a great story to tell, a free vintage find could be a great conversation starter.

For all accessories: borrow, borrow, borrow. That bracelet your friend wore last year to semi-formal year could look great with your prom dress this season. Free and new, we promise no one will catch onto your little secret. :) We borrow all the time.

Alright, so now that you can go cheap on the sides, splurge on the main course–your dress, of course!

Shop on!

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SAG Fashion Awards

January 26th, 2010 - 
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Another awards show means one thing: fashion scrutiny. Let’s get down to the nitty gritty, the bare and backless and every torso in between.

Christina Applegate could have been mistaken for the goddess Hera as she dawned a glorious Cinderella-esque flowing sheath. The sleek bun and elegant earrings topped off her royal poise. We give her a nine!

Lea Michele from the TV show Glee must have ruffled the feathers of her designer before stepping out of the limo. While the color hints at turquoise, the hue’s a little too forest green–which reminds us of Christmas sweaters. Not a great fit for her bust either. We give Lea a three.

Michelle Monaghan strolled up in an interesting silver and black ensemble that resembled a disco ball and a contoured satellite map. The white sequins washed out her fair, but beautiful, skin. If the dress was sleeveless and cut across her chest diagonally under the right arm, it might have worked…but dig the shoes! We give Michelle a five and a half.

Sadly, none of the girls from Nine looked as lovely as usual. From left, we see a cut-up goose costume, a white sheet wrapped around Kate’s body, a Woodstock leftover, and very boring black. Sorry, girls. We just expect much more from you. We give the cast a four (just because Marion’s wink is super cute).

Carey Mulligan, yes, yes, yes to this red dress! We love the discreetly placed cinches and the way the fabric literally wraps around her body. The brooched belt is quirkily classy. Her funky cropped hair and cute smirk pair perfectly with simple heart-shaped earrings. We give Carey a ten!

Can’t wait for the next awards show to get our critique on again.

Until then,

Shop on!

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Quick Cash for Prom Season

January 25th, 2010 - 
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Scraping pennies together just to buy mascara? What WILL you do when it’s time to buy a prom dress? No need to flip burgers after school. Think out of the box this semester and rake in extra cash for the dress of your dreams. A few money-making ideas to toss around…

Babysit. Hate kids? Think about it this way, once they go to bed, you’re getting paid to sit around and watch Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Don’t have a regular babysitting job? Ask your parents for friends who have kids. Hit up your church, or post flyers. Tell your friends who have little siblings to pass the word onto their parents. Every mom and dad need a night out. If you have a little sibling, consider sacrificing a Friday night to watch the little rascal while your parents go to a movie. The dough in your hands will be worth it.

Get crafty. Do you paint, sew, sketch? Utilize your artsy side for a mini entrepreneurial venture. Think of something you really enjoy making and a market you could sell to. For example: your teachers or mom’s friends would adore cute throw pillows or jewelry. Your friends may need cute gifts that you could whip up. A few ideas: dashboard danglies, jewelry racks, custom picture frames, decorated hand mirrors, coin purses.

Get to cooking. If you cook, advertise on Facebook and tell your friends! Come up with a menu of delicacies you love to make–cookies, biscuits, specialty sandwiches, whatever! Distribute flyers and emails. Hey, one commission of cookies could be an extra 40 bucks in your purse.

Sell your stuff. When was the last time you cleaned out your closet? Yeah, we thought so. Get your gals together and have a garage sale. If it’s cold outside, have a living room sale. Again, advertise on Facebook, Twitter, all your social networking sites. Make a few extra bucks AND make extra closet space for that hot new prom dress simultaneously.

The sky’s the limit, and your pile of cash could be sky high. Get to it, girl…

so you can shop on!

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Keep Your Pearlies White for Prom

January 24th, 2010 - 
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No need to spend hundreds on teeth-whitening products and procedures to keep your smile lightning white. Sometimes, the chemicals can cause sensitivity and we’re not giving up ice cream. No way. So, take these tips on simple ways to keep your teeth gleaming all semester long.

Your prom night pics will reap the benefits…

Sip through a straw. Saves your front  teeth from complete contact with a dark liquid, keeping your smile pearly. Hey, who needs to see your molars, anyway?

Drink water after a dark drink to give your chompers a mini wash.

Brush as soon as you can after drinking a soda or coffee. If you’re super serious about white teeth, we don’t judge those who carry a travel size brush and paste in their purse. No harm.

Do we have to play Mother and tell you to floss? Floss. It’s fun! So many tasty flavors like bubblegum and mint.

Don’t ever ever ever fall asleep without brushing. We understand after a long night partying, you may conk out fully clothed. Prepare by keeping your toothbrush and toothpaste out on the counter as a friendly reminder to brush before bed.

Alrighty, girls. Keep up the hygiene and shop on!

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Gowns and Glasses-Nerd No More

January 21st, 2010 - 
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Think your spectacles will be a laughing spectacle at prom or your next formal occasion? Think again, doll. Glasses can be a sexy accessory when paired with the right dress. So, don’t go blind just yet, take these tips to the store and learn how to work glam into your glasses.

Your glasses already flatter your face. (We hope you only bought a pair that would accentuate your features.) So really, your customized set of eyes can only jazz up your dress décor.

Glasses can be the focal point of an evening ensemble, especially if your extra eyes are flashy or trendy enough. Have a pair of cat-eyes with rhinestones? Think simple and chic when it comes to your dress and your eyes will definitely pop. A little extra makeup and your face will steal the show.

Try matching your dress color with your glasses for a gorgeous package deal–beautiful bifocals included. But do this only if the color of your glasses complements your skin, which it should be if you wear them every day. This technique works best with rich colors, like deep golds, browns, reds and blues.

For a radically distinct look, try conjuring the ultimate contrast. If you wear white glasses, wear a black dress, or the opposite. Sharp and sassy does it.

Remember to think of your glasses as a legit accessory, not part of your face. So, don’t overdo jewelry if you plan to ditch the contacts. In fact, our stylists at Tiza recommend limiting jewelry to bracelets and basic stud earrings to avoid the gaudy factor. We’re not playing dress-up here, girls. We’re getting gorgeous!

So no more nerd alert. This just in: glasses are the hottest accessory of the season. Polish and wear with pride!


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Our Fave New iPhone App

January 21st, 2010 - 
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Apple, meet the world of prom dress shopping. Now, we really REALLY can’t put down our iPhones. Check out our fave new app…

Top designer Sherri Hill recently introduced  her very own iPhone App! A free download on iTunes, the app has an amazing Dress Selector function, which allows you to scroll through all of Sherri Hill’s prom dress and pageant styles. It’s addicting.

You can then save the images to a photo album or your Facebook page. The app is an efficient and useful (also: fun!) way to preview all of the best dresses from this year’s collection — not to mention see how they’d look on you!

You can import a picture of your own face onto the dresses by downloading an image from Facebook, your iPhone, or you iTouch. It’s the perfect tool for all of you fashionistas in search of the perfect dress for spring.

To download the app, go to iTunes.com/apps.sherri hill dresses, or search for Sherri Hill or prom dresses in your iTunes store.

Now, you can virtually shop anywhere. Ha. Get it?

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Guys in Suits: Hot Celebs You May Not Know

January 19th, 2010 - 
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Sick of Brad, Matt and Beckham? We aren’t either, but it’s always nice to swoon over a fresh crop of savvy, suave and downright sizzling  guys.  We’ve spotted several relatively unknowns on the scene this season. Who’s your favorite new crush?

Cute with a touch of nerd Jamie Bell appeared in films Flags of Our Fathers and King Kong, then later Defiance and Jumper. We kinda wanna pinch his little cheeks and take him home to the rents.

Jenson Ackles starred in Dawson’s Creek, Smallville and Supernatural. Ackles started modeling at age two. Boy, did someone have a good eye for future hunkiness.

Wentworth Miller, starred in TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Prison Break. We heard he’s allergic to cats and dogs. He also graduated from Princeton with an English degree–beauty and brains beat allergies any day.

Early Gilmore Girls and Heroes star Milo Ventimiglia. A little Italian goes a long way. Supposedly, he’s lacto-vegetarian AND doesn’t drink or smoke. We love a good boy with dark hair and mysterious eyes–such a paradox. Oh, the intrigue…

James Marsden, from 2006’s Superman Returns. Also appeared on Ally McBeal, and in every girl’s fave-The Notebook. You know what they say about that classic strong jaw structure–well, we don’t either, but geeze louise. He starred in the X-Men movie franchise as Cyclops and, at 5′10″ had to wear stilts. But we don’t hold that against him. At least we wouldn’t have to crane our necks to kiss…

Alright, that’s enough eye candy for now. Get to shopping!

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Too Skimpy?

January 18th, 2010 - 
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Marche Taylor, then 17-year-old high schooler, didn’t plan on spending the end of prom night in handcuffs.

Nope, not for showing up drunk to the dance, but for what she was wearing–or rather, what she wasn’t wearing. Taylor chose to show up at the local Marriot hotel, where the dance was being held, clothed in well, pretty much a strap of  gold criss-crossed fabric over her chest and a seriously short skirt.

The school allowed only one inch of an attendants’ midsection to be shown, and slits in dresses could be no more than three inches above the knee, according to the Madison High School prom 2008 guidelines obtained by ABCNEWS.com.

After school officials asked her to go home and change, Taylor apparently threw a fit. Police cuffed the girl and held her in a cop car until she calmed down.

How’s that for a memorable prom to tell your grandchildren about?

We admire and advocate prom dress creativity, but how much is too little? When does a little skin become a lot of exposure? After analyzing our big book of prom dress fashion, we came a to few conclusions…

  • Don’t bare your belly if your dress is short
  • If you can’t bend over without showing the world your thong, it’s not a dress
  • See-through fabric must be scarce and non-revealing of private areas.
  • If you have to pull and tug to keep yourself covered, don’t wear it.
  • Slits should be no higher than mid-thigh.
  • Two-piece dresses should be long; the top should not resemble a bra.

A few examples of what NOT to wear:

Almost okay, but too much tummy.

Is this on backwards?

We see toosh. Do you see toosh, cuz we see toosh.

Shop on!

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Spring into Curls and Cocktails

January 15th, 2010 - 
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This spring, it’s time to let your hair cool down. The trend is in: fried hair is out, so toss straightening irons in the trash and rock your natural curls or wavy hair.

After a wintery season of runways full of tight, geometric angles, taut make up designs, and sleek, robotic ponytails, it’s time to let your hair down and let loose. A few of our favorite looks for a fancy night out, prom or an elegant date…

A little goopy product and a brief scunching blow-dry session produces long, loose curls with a windblown look. Perfect with this wildly sexy animal print sweetheart cocktail. Great for the dance floor.

For short hair, try a pin-up girl look with classic, hot-roller style waves framing the face. Pin back with bobby pins. Also, try extra volume in the back while rolling your air-dried bangs back. Pin with a rhinestone clip of choice for a dash of dazzle. Either look compliments these rose print cocktails.

No matter how much crap redheads get, they really can’t go wrong. Long, luscious and loose curls look fabulous with a tight mini dress. Let your bangs do as they please, with a spritz of hair spray to keep them out of your face. Leave your ponytail holders at home. Tonight, your hair will be your best accessory.

This spring, while your hair recovers from severe burns, it  will thank you with the most bouncable waves and curls. Promise.

Shop on!

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