you guys, i just realized that i never posted about the collection that got me into fashion! prada, fall/winter 2000! i was a junior in high school when it came out and it was the first time that i became completely enraptured with a collection. i mean, i spent my fair share of time browsing through the standard fashion magazine offerings at the grocery store in suburbia, so i was well-versed in the trends, but i wasn’t one to follow trends at that age. i had already cultivated a fine sense for vintage and had a serious habit of visiting the thrift store by my house several times a week. not to mention the countless weekends spent cruising around looking for estate and yard sales with my friends. in short, i didn’t think of myself as being into fashion.

but thanks to the internet, i soon found myself browsing through collections on firstview. back then they had free access to way more content than they do now. i had seen the prada spring/summer 2000 collection with the lip prints and thought they were pretty cool, but when this particular collection came out, i almost died. in fact, i did die, and a new person was born. it will always stick in my mind. the chiffon dresses, the tucked in scarves, the fur stoles, and grosgrain ribbon belts… i was particularly obsessed with the dress in the first column, 3 down. i even went to south coast plaza to see if i could find it, convinced that i might actually go to prom if that were the dress. um, yeah. that never happened. i don’t regret that i was never interested in actually going to prom (and didn’t), but i do regret that i never got my hands on that dress.

anyway, this being a style blog and all, i figure many of you are probably into fashion. do you have a notable collection that got you inspired?

earlier this month, i compiled this set of inspiration photos featuring ladies sporting warm winter clothes. and since then, i’ve already compiled yet another collection. oh, the wonders of tumblr and an addiction to street style sites… so while i may not live in the coldest environment ever, i think i have sufficiently schooled myself in the art of keeping warm. all of these photos have taught me the importance of owning several different coats in all number of colors and shapes. and a close second to furs and scarves and tights.

too bad i waited so late in the season to acquire said items. i just barely ordered a nice brown coat from ben sherman and i’m expecting a pair of warm and cozy 210 denier tights any day now. haha, just in time for my trip to my hometown in southern california. i bet it’ll be 75 degrees there!

column a: ingrid sophie schram via altamira nyc via songofstyle, styleclicker, the thinking tank, copenhagen street style
column b: refinery 29, léa seydoux via the thinking tank , juliette h. via lookbook, cocorosa

did you guys ever chew fruit stripe bubble gum when you were kids? or maybe you still do? remember those really ridiculous commercials, and the vegetable based dye tattoos on the gum wrappers? i used to buy a pack and chew the whole thing in one sitting because the flavor didn’t last very long. oh, childhood novelties!

anyway, what was the point of this? oh yes, stripes. i cannot believe that i do not have a striped t shirt. such a classic, always in style, appropriate for all seasons. anyone have any idea where i can get one for a good price? it’s high time i got one!

column a: jean seberg in breathless, jen h. on lookbook, raychel sonveeco on flickr, hedvig l. on lookbook
column b: audrey tautou in coco avant chanel, the sartorialist, audrey hepburn, refinery 29

UPDATE: i totally bought a vintage breton stripe shirt from kennedy holmes after writing this and then i found a boat neck striped shirt from the rodarte for target collection. i’m good.

so this ad for poster dresses has been floating around tumblr lately. (and if you follow me on there, then you have probably noticed how obsessed i’ve gotten with that site!) paper dresses became a fad in the 60’s and apparently you could buy them for like $1.25, wear them once or twice and then throw them away. some came blank so you could draw on them yourself, and of course you could always trim the ends if you wanted them shorter. pretty fun. they’d make nice party favors. or else maybe they’re just really reminiscent of those paper bibs they give you at red lobster.

anyway, the fad lasted for a while and there were some notable dresses made like the andy warhol campbell’s soup dress and these harry gordon poster dresses pictured above. and i kinda remember these being popular again when i was in high school. i could swear i saw a repro or “homage” of the campbell’s soup dress with my mom somewhere and we oohed and aahed until we realized that it would be ridiculous to pay $300 for a paper dress, no matter how cool it was. mom, if you’re reading this, where was that? or did i make it up? either way, it did stick in my mind all this time.

now i really wanna get my hands on some used vinyl poster paper. i know there are people who use it to make wallets and bags and stuff. anyone know where i could get my hands on some of that stuff? or am i just going nuts? it’s been a long, cold, and rainy couple of days.

i had intended for this entire post to be dedicated to bow ties, but when i went searching for inspiration pictures i’d collected, i couldn’t find too many of them! which is really too bad because bow ties are such an easy and inexpensive way to add interest to a collared blouse! i really see no reason why these little pretties have been reserved for people like dr. seuss!

but since it is a rather bold statement, i have pictured some loosely tied ribbons and bows as an other example of a more casual way to pull off the look, which would only require a quick trip to the fabric store.

anyway, the saddest part of this post is that my mom has given me several different vintage bow ties over the years, which i have stashed away so well that i can no longer find them and fear that they might be gone forever. i will never forget a particular pink and maroon striped tie with little rhinestones on it… but now i have something to rummage for on my thrift store and antique shop outfits!

what do you think? would you sport a bow tie?

column a: the sartorialist, some girls wander, our paper moon
column b: torunn, alexa chung, copenhagen street style

i can no longer resist the urge to make x-mas lists! i was trying to avoid it because looking that list in the face would be like coming to terms with the fact that i might have a problem. seriously, the list is incredibly long and never-ending and well, sometimes i don’t like to think about how materialistic i can be. but i’m over it. so here is something very high on my wishlist this year: a satchel.

let me start by telling you that my number one splurge would be in a mulberry bayswater, which is technically more like a shoulder tote, but seeing as how i’m not quite ready to drop $950 on a purse just yet, i have taken comfort in the multitude of satchels i’ve been seeing around lately. they have such a simple sophistication and are obviously a classic. i’ve been keeping my eye out in the thrift store, but no luck just yet. so instead, i’ve got my sights set on the much more affordable and fashionable cambridge satchels. i’ll take a batchel (satchel with a top handle) and a music bag, please!

column a: alexa chung, copenhagen street style, style clicker
column b: hel looks, clever nettle, lah lah is here

cambridge satchels.

i thought it was pretty fun to tell you all about my past as a cake decorator, so today i thought i’d tell you another little known fact about myself: i’m an avid cyclist. i don’t race or compete in any fashion, but instead, i enjoy going on long bike tours to explore beautiful places. though i do have to admit that i haven’t been riding my bike nearly as much as i’d like to lately… but that’s ok because i have plenty of neat trips planned. and there’s nothing like pretty girls riding cool bikes for a bit of inspiration!

some of my most notable and favorite rides include the california coast! one summer, me and my boyfriend rode from here in the bay area to southern california along the highway one, which winds along the coastline. at night, we camped in state parks. we thought it was so fun that we decided to turn around and try another part of the coast the next summer and we rode from arcata, ca (up near the northern border) back down to the bay area! that stretch along highway one was even more epic and glorious than the first ride, especially when we did a detour through the lost coast. amazing.

we’ve also done shorter rides and combined biking with hiking as well. it’s a pretty economical and fun way to travel.

column a: audrey hepburn, ricor, sea legs snapshots, julie michelle photography.
columb b: allister ann, melbourne street fashion, nike rebekah, shorpy, sergey komarov

the above images were all taken from copenhagen cycle chic. a really cool blog with daily updates of fashionable people on bikes. weeee!

and it’s getting colder… (10 points to whoever can name that song!) so for the past couple of months, i’ve been collecting inspiration pictures of winter outfits on the calivintage tumblr. last night i came across a new street style blog that i hadn’t seen before (styleclicker) and found the holy grail of winter outfits, so i decided to finally do a little post. i don’t know that it will ever get as terribly cold here as it does in places like stockholm or copenhagen or even new york, but i think i’ll still take a few tips from these outfits. anyway. when dressing for winter, it’s all about color and proportion. taking simple items like coats, scarves, tights, maybe a bit of fur, and turning it into something chic!

all above images found via styleclicker.

column a: garance doré, turned out, the sartorialist

column b: hel looks, ida on lookbook, easy fashion in paris

so i know it’s no secret: i love a good peter pan collar. i have always been drawn to pretty details like ruffles, lace, ribbon bows and sweet little collars. to me, they add just a touch of femininity and fun without sacrificing sophistication. and since peter pan collars saw a lot of popularity in the 40’s, 50’s, and 60’s, they always add a vintage touch to any outfit.

some might think that this style can’t be worn without looking too juvenile, but i beg to differ! just look at the way these lovely ladies manage to sport their collars in these inspirational outfits.

column a: sacaton june in a pretty dress she made by hand, the cat’s pajamas in one of the most beautiful vintage dresses i have ever seen, and alexa chung wearing a very fashion-forward ruffled collar with a pretty little tie.

column b: a stunning outfit from the lyell fall 2009 lookbook, some girls wander pairing a bright red sash with the collar on her vintage dress, and who is that last one? i know it’s from 2006.