La Scarf Dolce

On reviewing their Autumn/Winter Collection 08/09, Signors Dolce and Gabbana might have had a conversation like this:

"Domenico! This is boring, what I see. The man pants are not enough for these women. It is not flamboyant, captivating enough. The models are bored already. What can we do to brighten their day?"
"Stefano, mio amico, what we need is SCARVES! Bright, multicoloured SCARVES. Brilliant, si?"

Siiiii, you say. Because scarves are not only GORGEOUS, they are COLOURFUL and bring interest to the dreary winter colour palette of gloomy neutrals, and best of all, they're PRACTICAL!! You never thought fashion could be this smart, eh?

Click to enlarge the image below. Images courtesy of Sportsgirl, Witchery and Chris Moore via Getty images.

Winter, already??

It is freakin' hot, humid and sticky outside. This is the sort of weather that is only good for one thing, and that is NOT thinking about what to wear this autumn/winter (actually, the one thing this weather is good for is thinking about ICE CREAM! I [heart] Gelatissimo).

But somehow Zimmermann has managed to distract me from thoughts of delicious dairy confections and woo me with their gorgeous Winter 08 collection (the fact that it's gotten cooler now may or may not have helped). Reminiscent of 70's boho, foho, soho, whatever-ho, I love the sultry prettiness of it all. The gorgeous fabrics, the cute bows in the hair, the pinky-peachy blush and a general juxtaposition of whimsy and sexiness are all delectable, and look like they'll be suitable medicine for the inevitable bout of winter blues.
I love the delicate layering under these first two, it keeps the vibe, so to speak of the dresses. This next one I'm not so sure about - it's kind a like they looked at the model and thought to themselves, "Crap. This girl's about to freeze to death," and gave her a yummy, warm turtleneck that clashes horribly with the wispiness of the Jap-inspired dress she's wearing on top.
And this dress is my absolute fav! The lines are interesting and again, contrast yet compliment the shape and feel of the delicate yet striking dress. It also comes in a skirt version, but that really does look like something i picked up out of my grandmother's old and musty wardrobe - and that's not exactly the "vintage reworked into a modern trend" vibe I'm going for.

And thank GOODNESS they didn't overdo the make-up! Close up of the first shot:
Unlike Shop Till You Drop this month. Unfortunately, my scanner sucks to high heaven, so I can't upload pics of the mag's "Hot Right Now" feature. Which is good. If you haven't already bought this month's magazine, and looked at that section (if you haven't read it yet, PLEASE skip it) then I've probably saved you a severe bout of banging your head and wondering why Shop picks the WORST pictures of some very stylish girls, where they seriously look like drug addicts, and then proceeds to tell us that they're style icons. Not in those pictures, honey.

The feature showcases Lou Doillon, Vanessa Paradis (the very lucky partner of Johnny Depp), Charlotte Gainsbourg and Tatiana Santa Domingo, and while I KNOW these girls are all very beautiful people, I don't know why they all look Really Ugly in this feature. If your subject is skinny, relatively pale, is wearing bright red lipstick and smudged black eyeliner, has otherwise-beautiful-but-somehow-not-here cheekbones and weird orange spots under their eyes, points their head down while staring up at the camera and then proceeds to be photographed with Horrible Lighting - then yes, the Subject will look like Paris Hilton and Marilyn Manson had a Very Dysfunctional lovechild. Oh, and the bag lady too, although how three people had one child I don't know. Perhaps modern science is catching up quicker than I thought.

But anyway. As I said, they are all beautiful women with gorgeous model-like bodies and cheekbones and eyes and whatever, but unfortunately for them, Shop picked the worst photos in the world and then proceeded to tell us we want to look like that. Thank goodness Zimmermann rescued the boho trend for me.

Oooh and now that I've totally finished my rant, I can rave about Madame Chan's in Balmain! It is one of those really awesome shops that LOOK expensive, FEEL expensive (the clothes, that is) and totally convince you that everything in here is worth hundreds of dollars EACH (which is expensive on a student budget, yes) - but ISN'T!! Beautiful, stylish clothes, with top quality service - the girl was very nice, friendly, chatty but not too pushy - all for under $100. Gorgeous metallic bags too. Definitely worth checking out - Madame Chan's, 317 Darling Street, Balmain, NSW 2041.

Love vs. Lust

I thank my stars every day that I have a beautiful boyfriend whom I am in LOVE with, and that I won't have to endure years of relationships with boys who are indeed lust-worthy, but aren't really worthy of my love. That I won't have to enter a relationship with someone based purely on the fact that his muscles are hot (and yes, a friend nearly did that. Me: He's a sleaze Her: But look at his muscles! >sigh<). That I won't grow bored of these men, and suddenly wake up wondering what the hell I'm doing with them.

Which is something I do with my purchases. See it. Lust it. Buy it. Happens more often than Britney Spears enters the news, and happens quicker than Lindsay Lohan's path from sober to trashy drunk.

Then one day I look at it and it's like, What the hell was I thinking? It's crap. It's fugly. And I've barely touched it in the month or so I've owned it. To the Salvos with ye!

But surely, if I've been thinking, dreaming, obsessing about one item for over a month, it's love? (Don't be silly. Of COURSE a month is a long time when you're talking things not people) And that therefore, I am allowed to buy it?

I mean, come ON. Every time I walk past the store, I nip in just to make sure it's there. On Boxing Day, I ran in, heart torn between wishing it was on sale, but hoping it wasn't because otherwise surely it would be gone because it is the most beautiful item ever. I'm POSITIVE that if I don't buy it, soon it will be gone... in the hands of other people who won't cherish it, love it, use it, be as proud of it as me. And it probably won't go on sale, because only ugly things go on sale between now and June. It's one of the Dumb Laws of Retail, of which there are many.

I totally think I deserve to buy this item. Now if only my money manager (aka boyfriend, in effort to curb spending) will let me buy it. What a cruel, heartless male indeed.

Time to make myself feel better

Yes, that's what resolutions are for. You realise your life is going down the drain, make a resolution, feel pro-active and like you're actually working towards a better you (which is what I'm trying to aim at) before failing your resolutions miserably, and realising life sucks.

But.
This year, I am going to KEEP them!!

No, I don't say that every year. Why? Because I know I'm just going to forget. But I'm actually WRITING (somewhat) them down this year. Yay! :)

Plus, if I tell my boyfriend what they are this year, he'll only be too happy to help out.

1. Make-up ban.
Inspired by the beautiful Voguettes, I will ONLY buy what I need. And not twenty shades of all-too-similar looking blush or lipgloss. Only if I've finished what I've got.

2. Nail polish ban.
The bag that I keep my various nail polishes in is full. I am poor. Therefore, I will only buy new, prettiful colours when I have a) thrown out/finished what I've got in my bag and b) when I actually have money. Always a good start.*

3. Shopping - okay, so this year I tried "only buy things every other week" but it didn't work, mainly because I impulse buy a lot and could never remember if this week was a "shopping" week or not; and if I did, I would also splurge because I knew I wouldn't be able to buy anything until the week after next. Of course, then I'd forget the week after and only ended up spending twice as much money as I would've in the first place. So 2008 will be the year of the ruthless. Where I will realise that it's okay to re-use your outfits. And that mixing and matching is cool. And that I don't need new clothes every week.

4. I won't work so much. No working in shopping centre = less money spent (theoretically. It also means less money gained, but let's just try it first, eh?) Plus, I will be happier, more relaxed, and more likely to act drunk on a cup of red cordial. Boing!

* Also, two of the colours are EXACTLY THE SAME. One's Natio and one's el cheapo brand, but I bought two of the same shades and didn't even notice!! >hangs head in shame<