Graduation Fashion I

Its the graduation time of the year again! I used to think that the only fashionable thing one needs for graduation is a fabulous pair of shoes-after all, isn't that the only thing one can see with the long black graduation gown?

Boy was I wrong. During dinner with some graduating friends the topicof what to wear on graduation came up. The first question was, pants or dress? Since I've never been to a graduation, I don't have any first hand experience on what is the norm. But while wearing pants underneath may look good (or so I heard), college graduation IS one of the most important events of one's life,and one should celebrate it with a fabulous dress. Besides, at some point one will probably take the gown off and take pictures in your dress!

That settled, we moved onto what kind of dress one should wear. The ceremony is in the day time, so you probably don't want to wear something that is shiny and too evening. On the other hand, you don't want to be wearing a dress so casual that you might as well be strolling in the mall. Nor do you want to be too revealing, this IS graduation. The trick is to find a balance between casual and formal. And since the gown is black already, you don't want to wear anything black either. Here are a few of our ideas:

My first instinct was too go for a pretty white eyelet dress. Something like this dress from ABS. Mostly this is because I wore a white eyelet ABS dress to my high school graduation and hence I shall forever link white eyelet dresses with graduation. But also becausse the style is pretty, classic, formal yet casual and summery- perfect for graduation. However, this might be a little too girly, innocent looking and classic for some. So moving along....

. . there is this simple printed nuetral colored summer dress from Burberry. It fits the occasion and is more sophisticated and elegant. Definitely a winner.

In fact, my friend bought something very similar from BCBG (above). Here, instead of print, there is floral pattern and black trimming, making the dress more interesting. You don't want something too plain and classic afer all, this is a memorable day!

And speaking of not boring, the dress Rory wore to Logan's graduation comes to mind. The GORGEOUS Marc by Marc Jacob's dresses this season (especially the vibrant silk ones-like the one above) are perfect. They are vibrant, bold, exciting and totally unforgettable- just what graduation should be! Plus its very photogenic against the green grass background!

Resort 07 Wrap up

More than a decade ago, RTW shows were just for the buyers and VIP clients. Now, RTW shows are huge events that we can all log onto style.com and see videos and photos the next day. Just last week, Dior and Chanel held resort collection shows in NY in an unusually grand scale -that is with the buyers, press, celebs and after-parties. Are other labels going to follow this step? We'll see next year.

Christian Dior
This collection confirms that skirts and dresses are still the main focus next year. I love the way John Galliano used one or two choices of fabric per dress but managed to create so many different styles and cuts. Most of the collection seemed to be made of bright, shiny material, which according to style.com was laminated cotton and metallic linen. In the rare cases of pants, skinny pants are still Dior's choice. The bright, solid blocks of colour throughout the collection reminded me a bit of the disco times.
The left outfit is perfect for the fashion-foward business women. The dress on the right reminds me of Preen.
I don't know how anyone in real life would wear the dress on the left, but I can't get the image of Sasha in it out of my head! Metallic trench coat on the right.
Sexy and sooo cool.
LOVE these two dresses. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I hope high street stores will make similar dresses, esp the asymmetrical gold one!

Chanel
Usually I don't have much to say about Chanel's collections, but I really liked the casual, spring feel of this collection. But the knee-length gladiators are just... not great. Karl Lagerfeld really needs to work on the shoes he puts on the Chanel runway. Here are some pretty pieces:
Classic Chanel black and white prominent throughout the collection. The cute string bow thing in the hair reminds me of the Chanel haute couture shows.
Love the black leather coat on the left. If only I could afford it!
Pretty dresses! Notice the details on the dress on the left, and the accessories on the right.
The left is for the young and cute. The right is for the sophisticated.

The Da Vinci Code

As one of the few non-chick lit books I love, naturally I was very excited about the movie. So as soon as it came out, I immediately went to watch it. Contrary to movie critics, as a ordinary movie go-er, I thought the movie was good and definitely doesn't deserve the average C+ rating it has on yahoo movies.

The movie was exciting and intriguing, full of suspense and mystery (even though I already knew what happens)- just like the book. It didn't feel like we'd been sitting there for over 2 hours at all! My most memorable scene was when they were at Sir Teabing's place and just when they were absorbing Sir Teabing's revelations, Silas suddenly pops out from nowhere. My friend and I literally jumped out of our seats! There were funny bits too. The questions Sir Teabing asked them before allowing them entrance was hilarious. Although I understand how the movie might be slightly confusing for people who hasn't read the book. My friend who hasn't read the book yet had that problem and I had to very quietly provide short explanations. But in the end she thought it was a pretty good movie too.

Fashion wise, even though Sophie wore the same thing for the whole movie, I thought her dress shirt under a black cardigan thing was very cute. And kudos to her, for solving the mystery of the holy grail while running away from the French police, in pointy black heels.

Overall I really liked the movie, although its not exactly something so amazing that one would want to watch again in the cinema. I think it deserved at least a B rating.

The OC Season 3 Finale

Like yesterday's ANTM post, don't continue to read if you haven't watched or don't want to know about The OC's Season 3 Finale.

Three years ago, I first noticed the ads of The OC in a San Francisco mall. Usually, I wouldn’t have noticed such ads, but the blonde girl (Mischa Barton) in the ad was so stunning I couldn’t help notice the similar ad next to it (of Benjamin McKenzie.) The next thing I know, the teens of the US (and the world) were obsessed with Marissa and the lavish world of OC.

Not like Marissa dying was such a huge secret –Mischa Barton already confirmed the rumours on Wednesday’s Assess Hollywood with the statement, “It’s true, it’s true. My character dies.” She also adds:

“I think the show is moving in a new direction. This was a great opportunity for everyone. I was just really excited about giving everybody a good finale. You know, they needed a big season finale at the end of this year and we've had three great years and my character has been through so, so much and there's really nothing more left for her to do. So I hope this fulfills everything that the fans want and everything that the people wanted for our characters."

What Misha said has a point. Marissa has been through a lot of crazy and somewhat dumb relationships and plotlines:

First there was Luke, the preppy jock turned gay dude.

Then there was the mega psycho, Oliver.

Then there was Marissa’s lesbian phase with Alex.

And if you thought Marissa has learnt her lesson not to mix with obsessive guys (Oliver,) she manages to get semi-involved with crazy, emotional surfer Johnny.

Lastly, there was the totally messed up loser, Volchok, who ends up killing Marissa.

And of course, the only relationship that made sense, Marissa and Ryan. I thought they were such a great couple and still think it was unconvincing when they decided to break up sometime in the middle of Season 3.

I think the saddest thing is that there will no longer be the Core Four. Poor Summer -what is she going to do without her best friend?

Still, I can’t believe they just killed Marissa off. I know Mischa wanted out, but couldn’t they just have let Marissa sail around the world with her dad next season?

Next season, Kaitlin will supposedly rule Harbor. I don’t get why the producers want to hang onto high school instead of letting the young cast move onto college, but Kaitlin should be interesting.

To me, the fashion in The OC was always more fabulous than the plot. So my only question is, who is going ot replace Mischa as the model of cool, trendy fashion on TV? I miss Coop already!

America's Next Top Model: Spoiler!

Yes, the finale of America's Next Top Model Cycle 6 just aired yesterday and I am about to embark on what I thought of the results. So don't scroll down any further if you don't want to know!

Ok, so don't say I didn't warn you! The results of this cycle were not quite as controversial as the last cycle's: the top two were well deserved. They both took great pictures and are generally pretty professional and model like.

However, I must admit as to being just a little bit surprised that Danielle-the girl with the gap- won. To begin with, I am not a big fan of her gap, even though its slightly closed now. Signature or not, it is just not very attractive. Most importantly though, I can't stand her accent. It is not very eloquent and hard to understand! Otherwise Danielle makes a pretty good ANTM. She twisted her ankle and got dehydrated, yet she still turned up and delivered great photos. I especially love this one of her on the elephant. It just seems to come so naturally to her! Her covergirl photo was also amazing (even though her commercial wasn't too great) and her final catwalk was awesome- it was confident and powerful. I hope she really does hire people to help her with her speech, then she'd be perfect.

Joanie, on the other hand, had more of the complete package. She takes gorgeous photos (especially this one on the elephant), she can speak, her teeth are straight and I feel that she has really come a long way in this competition. She really didn't have much of a presence at the beginning, appearing shy and unconfident in the judging room even though she did take consistently good photos. But towards the end, she really was starting to look like a model (although she ultimately did not have quite as big a presence as Danielle). In the end, I think she lost because of her runway walk. She looked like she was just casually strolling through the mall. Plus she was always looking DOWN- both on and off the runway. She definitely needs to work on her presence a bit more.

And then there was Jade. I don't even know where to begin. She is obnoxious and says the most absurd things to sound intellectual except they're all wrong. I really don't think elephants are in the dinosaur family. She says she's humble and all but then she just goes and acts differently. Plus her covergirl photoshoot was awful. She looked really creepy.

Overall this was an uneventful season. Sara's copying was not cool. I didn't know what she was doing there and I wish she'd stop yapping about being discovered in a mall. Gina was a shame to the asian race. Brooke should never have gotten as far as she did. Nnenna needs to dump her bf. And the rest didn't make that much of an impression on me to remember.

Oh and the dentist on the show is to be commended. I don't know how he managed to straighten Joanie's teeth and close Danielle's gap in just a few days, but the results were amazing! People should just apply to ANTM for the fabulous haircut and dentistry. ;)

Types of Skirts

After reading the comments from some readers in Barneys Girl's Bubble Skirt post, I realised that some people were confused about skirt types. Since dresses and skirts are oh-so-fashionable this season, we, the fashion-literate should know the skirt types:

The Tulip -Recognise the upside-down tulip shape. This is a hard to wear shape. Only wear if you're somewhat tall or skinny.

The Bubble -Puffy with a hem about the same width as the waistband. Cute but only if you're as thin as a mannequin.

The Mini -No explnation needed since we all must have one in our closet somewhere. Can be cute and fun, but if worn 'wrong' (such as matched with a trashy top,) then you'll look slutty.

The Pencil -High waist, hugs hips and goes below the knees. Only wear this if you're tall! Oh, and for the chic look, match the Pencil with this season's huge 'it' belts.

The A-line -The name says it all. My favourite type of skirt and a staple in my closet because it's just so flattering and girly.

A final tip: All skirt types (maybe except for pencil skirts) should be worn above the knees this season. Put on a pair of pumps or flats and you're all to go!

SS06 Fashion Trend: Empire Waist Tops

Even though I know and write about all these SS06 trends, let's face it, I'm a student and really don't have the time nor money to actually wear these trends everyday. Thanks to Fendi, one of the trends this season is wearing belts over your top/ jacket: But honestly, it's so hard to wear belts without it crinkling your top, and who really has time to put on a belt when you need to be in class in five minutes? So the way to do this trend is to wear casual emprire waist tops. They're easy to wear and most importantly, flattering to most body types.

I bought this Marc by Marc Jacob top a month ago and having been loving it since then. It's so pretty and terrific for livening up an outfit. I usually wear a yellowy beige blazer over it and match with black pants.

Another very similar top by Marc by Marc Jacob (except it's sleeveless.) Marc really knows how to use details and what girls love.

By Ella Moss. This top is even more simple than the Marc tops. The only thing is you would probably need a long body for this top to work.

By LOVE by Ya-Ya. Available in other colors too and available at shopbop.com. This is slightly low-cut for a casual day but it's just so nicely cut and you could def wear it again next summer.

Another similar top from shopbop.com by Velvet.

This jungle print top is by Banana Republic. I don't like the prints but that's just personal taste.

Cotton top by Urban Outfitters. This is more doll-like than empire waist, but it gives a similar figure-flattering effect (and it's probably the cheapest option!)