Spice In Your Life, On The Tux Side

I've noticed over the years when I watch most award shows like the Golden Globes, the SAG awards, and the Academy's I never really comment on the men. They pretty much wear, what I would like to call the "awards uniform" i.e. black tux, white shirt, black tie or bow tie and black shoes...blah blah blah. So the question to myself is why don't men take more of a risk when it comes to the tuxedo or suit. Are they afraid of what people will say, could it be the lack of designs out there for men, or do they even care? And in my reserach I've found there are some pretty hot tuxedos that come in a variety of textures and colors. 

I would really like to see a guy in a Navy or Midnight or  Charcoal Grey or even dark Plum colored tuxedo jacket...SOMETHING. I mentioned those colors because they're pretty dark and are reminiscent of black, but with a little twist.  Maybe they could wear a colored dinner jacket and pair it with a black tuxedo pant for some VA-VA-VA VOOM...ya know?  Or like in photo 4. the guy could go with a classic black tux and spruce it up with a pink tuxedo shirt.

Here are some designers that make colored tuxedos and dinner jackets. Sorry just had to throw this little nugget in here, I can't mention a tuxedo and dinner jacket and NOT bring up Tom Ford's name. This man has done some amazing designs with formal wear, it's definitely not for the "plain Joe".  He includes different colors, textures, prints and patterns. So if men would like to spice up the original tuxedo they could always opt for a black tuxedo pant, and a navy tuxedo jacket. And let's not forget Tom is great eye candy, he's practically sex on a stick...hehehehe.

                                                                                    1.Ralph Laren

                                                                                2. John Varvatos

                                    3. Jean Yves in a red dinner jacket and a chocolate brown tuxedo.

                                                                        4. Calvin Klein

                                          

                                          5. Tom Ford in different unique variations of after five jackets.

               

                      Save the best for last Mr. President Barack Obama in Hart Schaffner Marx: Classic

Anthro!

Anthro is short for Anthropologie. How many of us adore this store? *raises my hand* guilty! Every time I visit this store, I want to purchase everything I lay my eyes on. It's not one of those shi-shi-, poo, poo stores where its so posh you feel like you can't touch anything. Or most of the stuff you do touch, the price tag is reminiscent of a Social Security Number. I feel as I grow older, I've become obsessed with this store. It smells fresh and clean, its visually stimulating and just down right comfortable. I've also noticed as Anthropologie grows it has acquried some nifty eclectic designers as well. Which I can appreciate because once again...I LOVE mix and matching prints and textures. Anthropologie carries home & bedding, accessories & jewelry, shoes & bags, and beauty. I think if I had to choose my favorite Anthropologie store, it would be the one in Los Angeles, CA at the Grove:-). Every single time I visit, the customer service is great, it smells good(that's a given) and they give good window displays. So whoever the Store Manager is...Kudos to them for a job well done *the Carlton( from Fresh Prince) wink, and the gun*. Another thought I just had, I wonder if they provide studio services...mmmmm. If not they should definitely invest in it, I'm sure they would make a nice profit. Just my ideas:-) http://www.anthropologie.com/anthro/index.jsp

Candid T.

I've been thinking about this topic for a long time. And now that I've finally started a blog, I can share it with you lovely people. I've always wanted to share my ideas and opinions about dressing for you body shape. I feel its so important for women to have a positive body image of ourselves. So I decided to pick a great friend of mine with her permission, and show and explain what clothes look best on her body type.

Everyone meet Candid Taylor, Candid and I have been friends for many years and she is an inspiration to me all the time. Girlfriend is on TOP of her game! She has a bachelors degree in Public Relations and a M.A. in English with a concentration in Children Literature. and is an aspiring children book author. I've always thought Candid was beautiful, I mean she's one of those friends where your like "Really?? every picture she take is GORGEOUS" she had such a great smile(I really like big pretty teeth) and great skin. But make no mistake Candid is a spitfire, she no-likee anybody with a stink attitude that tries to break into her circle of friends, haha. Just another quality I admire about Candy Cane(a nick-name we call her).

Candid's body is in the shape of a triangle, the second figure in the BODY CHART pictured below. She is 5'11 and she wears a size 12. She has expressed that she wants to revamp her look for work. So I decided to create a story board for her over at http://www.polyvore.com/ to give her direction in what she should look for when shopping for her work attire. Candid has also expressed that she mainly wears blacks, gray's, and whites and wanted to incorporate more color into her wardrobe.

I know some people are afraid to experiment with color or may not know what colors should and can go together. So keep this in mind when shopping:  Let's say you like the color purple, and you want to pair purple with another color, use a color wheel to see what color is opposite or adjacent to purple. If you look at the COLOR WHEEL below, greens and yellows are across and adjacent to purple... and Voila! See kinda simple:-). That color palate builds a beautiful contrast and you can always use a color wheel as a good go to guide.  You can also apply these rules to makeup, interior decor...just about everything.

Body Type Scale

Color Wheel

Below are the final results I came up with for Candid and the direction she should go in when shopping. I chose these pieces because they are versatile and can be incorporated into her casual and weekend look as well. Enjoy.

In the First picture: 

There is a short sleeve, v-neck Colbolt blue knee length dress, I paired it with brown leather peep toe heels and navy suede flats with a bow detail. Just in case the heels become to much, Candid can slip her flats right on. The dress is accented with a amber and gold stone necklace, one single gold bangle, champagne colored diamond studs and a coral leather handbag to give this dress an extra pop of color.
I opted for the shape of this dress because it looks good on many shapes, but especially  the triangle shape. It accentuates the hips, gives you a smaller waist, and gives balance to your body.

In the Second picture:

Is more of Candid's comfort zone(but we always need to step outside that zone)...A pair of high waist yellow pants which help create longer lines and camouflage the mid section, if needed. I have two options for the top both 3/4 length sleeve, and both are light blue which are adjacent to the COLOR WHEEL. So these two colors compliment each other. The first light blue shirt is accented with a blue opal stone necklace. The second shirt is a silk vintage pussy bow blouse, accented with a brown skinny braided leather belt. I've included a pair of cream suede platform pumps to complete the look. And just in case the heels become to much through out the day, she has a pair of cute and chic patent ballerina flats.

First Picture

Second Picture

  

Beauty Shots

It's totally okay for a wardrobe stylist to have beauty shots too, Makeup artist and photographers aren't the only people that can benefit from them. They turn out amazing and I always love them. So here are some beauty shots that I contributed too. I saw on a great photographer's web-site by the name of Allen Cooley some BEAUTIFUL beauty shots and it inspired me to do this post. His work is amazing and he's a "Cool Kat" pun intended, hahahaha(I can be corny sometimes...but I like it). Anyways if you get a chance visit his site http://www.allencooley.com/ you won't be disappointed:-)    

Back In The Day...Not Long Ago

So you gotta start somewhere, right? And this was a d*mn good starting point, haha. Here are some pictures I did a few years ago, shot by Shamayim for Shamayim Photography.  He's a dope photographer, if you get some time check his site out. http://www.shamayim.net/  I kinda like looking back on these photos, I still get inspired:-)

A Client In My Head...

As Ms. Wendy Williams would say "a friend in my head" I say a client in my head. Meaning these are clients I would really like to work with. Revamp, Redo and Readjust there entire image. It's so important to have a wardrobe stylist on hand that knows your body shape, personality and knows how to put a complete look together that is custom tailored for you. And when your in the spot light, same rules apply. So the client that has been in my head is Ms. Camara Yaya DaCosta, a contestant on cycle 3 of America's Next Model. Yaya  has moved on to have a budding and successful acting career. I said all that to say I've put together a small story board of a complete look for her. Its from head to toe of what I think she would look FAB in. She's a beautiful woman, with a great spirit, amazing body and killer legs!  So toast to my new client...in my head;-). My collage was done over at http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/shop.browse

One Designer I Must Work With!

Anyone that knows me knows that I absolutely, positively, indefinitely like BIG BOLD prints and COLOR. Junko Shimada personifies that in every since of the word. She is one designer that I can honestly say I LOVE everything she designs.  Who wouldn't want to walk in these shoes, who wouldn't want to wear ALL of her designs(Okay maybe just me, but that's how much her work inspires me). I might not understand everything she does, but its ART and I adore it. So if I confess that I'm going to work with her soon, then the universe is going to fold to my confession:-) That's what I believe and that's my prayer. Check out her site below, one that I "light weight stalk" often...tehehehe. ENJOY!

http://www.junkoshimada.com/