COLLAB GRAB: SALLY HANSEN X NYFW FALL '12

Sally Hansen x Tracy Reese [via Birchbox]

My absolute favorite drugstore nail polish, Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure, is no stranger to a good designer collab. With cameos on the New York fall 2012 runways, the brand is generating well-deserved hype for its fall capsule collection releases. Sally worked with Alexander Wang, Prabal Gurung, and Tracy Reese on customized sets of hues to suit the shows, and at $10ish a pop the mainstream fashion devotee can afford to buy the entire line for a fraction of the season's other must-have accessories. So what if Cathy Horyn is over the concept? (I still love you Cath!)

STYLE FILE: JENNIFER NORTH IN VALLEY OF THE DOLLS

Jacqueline Susann’s decades-old hit, Valley of the Dolls (1966), holds an iconic place in the legacy of 20th-century American literature. Anyone familiar with the book and its abridged film adaptation (1967) probably agrees that the novel’s quality is soap opera drama at best. However, its characters and storyline are a enticing relic of the mid-century heyday of Hollywood glamour and New York society.  

Jennifer North, played by Sharon Tate, is the sex kitten in this saga of 3 best friends’ rise to fame and subsequent self-destruction involving “dolls,” a vintage slang term for prescription pills. The blonde bombshell character is more complicated than meets the eye, and is swiftly caught up in the superficial world of the entertainment elite where relationship and health pressures eventually lead to the gorgeous showgirl’s suicide. Coincidentally, the life of Tate was devastatingly cut short when she was murdered in 1969 by Charles Manson followers in the home of her husband, Roman Polanski.

 

Jennifer’s style in the film is characterized by feminine, breezy outfits that increasingly played in to her SoCal persona. I see long maxi dresses like the halter top Gypsy Maxi Dress or the confection pink Mrs Lacey Dress. I can envision Jen sunning by the pool in the South of France Antoinette Maxi Dress and a wide brimmed sunhat with attention grabbing baubles. And of course, a true vixen always stocks romantic loungewear: a good example is the Vintage Robe by Betsey Johnson.

[Read more of my work work on the Karmaloop blog.]

KITCHEN WIZARD? SORT OF

Breakfast Pizza

Anyone who has known me for any amount of time knows that I love food. I like eating it, talking about it, looking at it online, watching people make it on TV, and as of recently... cooking things more advanced than grilled cheese or a fried egg sandwich.*

I can't deny the role Pinterest has played in this new development. And to back up my resolution for the new year (I hate resolutions, why did I make them?) I have proof that I've flexed my kitchen muscle. Now if someone can encourage me to flex my actual muscles at that temple of fitness we know as the gym... well I'll make you a breakfast sammy in return.

Get ready to salivate at my creations! (I won't judge.) Remember, the recipes are hop, skip, and a jump away.

*So you know, I am the authority on these. Not a joke.

Apple Slices in Pancake Batter -- Genius?

ZARA WOMAN MARCH LOOKBOOK

Breaking my bout of laziness blog hiatus because the latest Zara lookbook is on point! (And because I did make regular posting a resolution, blech...) The March set of wears hits every note on the spring trend spectrum, especially pastels and prints. Totally running to my local spot in hopes of picking up a few pieces. The lookbook features outfits that are girly but not frilly, edgy without being harsh, and tailored to a T.

I'm already making room in my closet for the studded collar blouse and its quirky tropical patterned cousin. The studded clutch in the fringey skirt getup and the studded leather moto jacket are also of interest -- what can I say, I like me some pyramid studs.

Which items are you dying to have?

2012 RESOLUTIONS

Announcing resolutions is certainly cliche, but considering that this post honors one of mine, I'm giving it a go. Even though I feel no different than a week ago, I do believe that the new year is an excellent opportunity to revel in 2011's highlights and plan some upcoming goals for the months ahead. I resolve to...

1. Blog more (both for work and for play).
2. Flex my culinary muscles in an attempt to make the multitude of recipes I've been pinning (such as the key lime cupcake above) and explore the dozen or so cookbooks I've been hoarding.*
3. Weekly yoga (renewed from last year), even if that means laying in pigeon and attempting crow in my living room when I can't make it to class.
4. Stop putting down books I'm enjoying in lieu of easier reads! (i.e. fashion glossies, NatGeo) I wish I were lying when I say the only book I've read cover-to-cover from last spring is Can You Get Hooked on Lip Balm? by The Beauty Brains crew. While informative, it should not have substituted A Confederacy of Dunces.

*A good excuse to finally purchase Les Diners de Gala, the super rare Salvador Dali surrealist cookbook I've been coveting since our first encounter at Kitchen Witch in New Orleans last July. Piggybank is starting NOW!