All the Vanity Blog :: Beauty, Fashion & Shopping

Whilst most of us (consider me as one) are aching to see The September Issue, a documentary featuring the devil in Prada herself, Vogue’s EIC Anna Wintour, let’s take a breather for a  moment on the latest trends conquering the runways these days!

I featured 3 haute collections before from Marc Jacobs, Lanvin and Balenciaga, where Parisian style, ruche, brocades and boudoirs dominate. Truly, I miss hitting the spot that fierce yet chic biker look is oh-so in fashion this season! Here’s a closer look:

All from Style.com

*Balmain for Fall 2009. This monochromatic garb is overall casual with white blouse, cropped skinnies, and girly pumps. Chained biker jacket adds spunk to this smart casual wear.*

*Charles Anastase for Fall 2009. Unlike Balmain above, Charles Anastase surely pulls off quite a statement with fur neckpiece, leather vest and woven cardigan topping it off with a statement tee and a pair of  skinny jeans. Tan platform leather boots is absolutely ferosh–something to love about this ensemble!*

*Gucci for Fall 2009. Gucci appears to be ravishing and scintillating with its leather cropped jacket, shiny button-down shirt, and glistening tapered(?) pants. Look is slickly finished with peep-toe shoes for footwear.*

*Jean-Charles de Castalbajac for Fall 2009. Red is flaming hot this season, and Jean-Charles de Castalbajac screams scarlet with this multi-zipline leather dress. I’m hearting the hair and the studded shoes. Absolutely winner garb!*

*Jean Paul Gaultier for Fall 2009. Extreme biker chick in stud, leather and fringe encapsulates this ensemble from Jean Paul Gaultier.*

*Rick Owens for Fall 2009. Rick Owens calls for a more futuristic look applying geometrical cuts on this nonetheless leather dominated wear.*

*Rodarte for Fall 2009. One word: SUPER! This ensemble from Rodarte melts my heart out! Ultimately tinged in ecru, the woven scarf, embellished top, gloves, loop fringed skirt, and thigh high leatherwear are just well put together! This is something to lust die for! *

Biker Jackets: Save, Spend & Splurge!

Here’s some of super yummy dark leather finds to choose from! (more…)

Think about modern neon, then you’ll get this latest Fall collection from Marc Jacobs. Truly, he injected such a vibe that jolts out amongst the boring blacks-and-whites of this season. The collection includes puffed tops and a-line bottoms, dresses and skirts with flarings, scarves, jackets, coats and cardigans–all imbued with eye-candy colors and bedazzling brocades prints. There’s still a noticeable presence of dark tights paired with ankle strap shoes or boots. And of course, any Marc Jacobs wardrobe won’t be complete sans the ever gorgeous bags.

Here’s what I like about Marc Jacobs Fall 2009 Collection:

Grays and Blacks with a Spunk

If you opt to steer clear from vibrant neon colors, surely this collection will take you to some place where dark tinges rule  without losing  the spunkiness of your wardrobe.

*The show started with this simple casual gray cardigan and black pants attire. Quite simple for a Marc Jacobs collection, isn’t it? But, try to sport a mohawk ‘do complete with that lovely black and white brocade scarf, and you’re on the go to being MJ stylish. And also, watch out for the kilt and braces aback of this outfit–truly outrageously signatured!*

*This full charcoal brocade dress has this gorgeous flaring at the bottom, decked with a pair purple ankle boots, dark jeweled necklace and neon green printed clutch. *

Puffed with Sleeve and Skirt

The collection also delighted us with  puffed sleeve or skirt, texturized with metallic brocade  and striped prints.

*This sleeved bustier top with puffed skirt really caught my attention as it fused classic and contemporary altogether. Surely, it looks like a formal cocktail ensemble on the first look. But hey, those metallic brocade prints on a quirky skirt might make you think twice otherwise–for a party garb! *

*Another gorgeous party bustier dress. This time, notice the drama of the free-flowing  plain black ribbons to the rest of the striped prints, both forming a semi-ruffled bottom. It’s paired with ankle strap boots displaying its metallic sheen.*

*This  salmon pink blouse with puffed sleeves is paired with high-waisted fur-like pencil skirt complete with patent leather-like gloves and ankle boots. What’s more to love about this formal ensemble is this lovely bejeweled neck piece that’s just elegantly layered on the model’s top.*

Neon Power!

*There’s nothing as playful as combining two different prints for an exquisite yet made-for-each-other look. This blouse and skirt combo have distinct brocade prints on them, yet they impeccably compliment each other in harmonious bluish and yellowish glow.*

*Another playful thing to do with colors is to combine and contrast them. I always like blending these two contrasting colors together. In this outfit, the neon green structured jacket is paired with a decadently printed dress. I just love how it’s been also embellished with yet another brocade printed pink scarf, and a retro mixture of pink and green colors for the brocade bag. Keeping it fierce, the dramatic makeup look and mohawk haristyle really did a well-done job.*

More Story from Style.com

Hallo from Belgium! I had a blast staying in Ghent for a week of work-slash-travel-slash-shopping. It’s my first time out of the tropical zone, so I made it a point to bring racks of clothes, particularly coats &  jackets to adapt to Belgium‘s cold temperature.

Instead of buying heaps of clothes made especially for uber-cool weather, I just indulged myself layering my existing clothes. Of course, I also shop for some stuff in addition. Weather’s such a blessing there, since I have more reasons to pull off a stylish garb.

Last April 4th, we visited Antwerp–one of the largest cities in Belgium. I decided to be tinged mainly in blue, as I donned  a blue flowery scarf, blue-green tights and a flowery bluish tiered skirt! I got in touch with the animal life as we barged in Antwerp Zoo beside the  Antwerpen Centraal station. Then, we decided strolling on the busy bricked streets of Antwerp, where we found lots of picturesque landmarks,  monuments and shopping districts (hence, stressed the last part). We decided to go inside Bozzy, one of the many gift shops we passed by that sells Belgian bric-a-bracs and other stuff. I got myself some keychain and makeup!

Next, we visited H&M, one of the few fashion havens where you can hoard loads of clothes and accessories without actually burning a hole in your pocket! Here, I got myself a basic newsboy cap for only €4.50 (will blog about it soon!). And for some sweeter indulgence, I got myself a box filled with pralines at Devinas and a specialty chocolate brownie ice cream at Ben & Jerry’s!

What I Wore?

Ha-ha. This is not my most flattering fashion pic, but I guess this shot highlights all the stuff I wore during that day.

Blue scarf with black and silver flowery prints – Thrift shop

Green-Grey anorak – Zara

Baby blue tank – Mango

White short-sleeved collared shirt – Guess

3/4′s button-down Grey cardigan – H&M

Blue flowery tiered skirt – Kamiseta

Blue-Green tights – Lucky Doll Store at Mutiply

Black boots – Matthews at CMG

Sling bag – Lacoste