10 African Designers FLOTUS Can Rock

The fashionista in me wants these pieces: 10 African Designers FLOTUS Can Wear.

• Gorgeous fabric clutch by Pooja Jeshang  

• Geometric prints by Sindiso Khumalo (midi skirts are hard to find)
• Sheath by Mimi Plange (I look good in this powdery blue) 
• Asymetrical skirt and white top from Jewel by Lisa
• Pants suit ensemble by Maki Oh - I can rock the pattern

•  Adama Paris:  Love the leather skirt suit with big, puffy, architectural sleeves but it won't work for everyday wear

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7 Ways to beat holiday stress

Don’t succumb to holiday stress: 7 tips for a joyous season

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What Style Personality(ies) Are You?

I am a juxtaposition of many style personalities. The older I get the more I want to express myself creatively through my appearance and create art all around me with ease. This quiz says I am a "Classic", with nuances of "Cutting Edge" and "Couture" also. I also know that I'm also bohemian with touches of Dramatic. But I can't do Dramatic often as it requires height-which I don't have and it doesn't fit consistently with my lifestyle. Psst-I'll let you in on a secret! Classic clothing survives the cycles of fashion, so I get to keep my wardrobe for years and still look current with a few updates and swap of accessories. Check out this fun style quiz - it's not all conclusive but just a starting point.

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Zizi Cardow's 2010 Collection Is Not For Prudes

You should check out the Zizi/Cardow Spring/Summer 2010 fashion collection, which was unveiled this past September. It definitely plays on the Nigerian fashion escethetic.

http://pa.photoshelter.com/c/shawnpunch/gallery-slideshow/G0000JcuNXOkbnxY/?start=

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A Pearly Excursion

The day’s events took me to Mikimoto in Costa Mesa.

In between sips of champagne and nibbles of tea sandwiches, I learned about the classification and making of pearls. They are formed slowly over time after a foreign object gets lodged inside the oyster or other mollusk having two shells. As a natural defense, the foreign object becomes a nucleus that is surrounded by layers of a protective coating, called a nacre. This sums up the formation of a pearl, which takes 6 months to 3 years in the making.

Mikimoto says that it only selects 3-5% of pearls harvested for its collections. In terms of size, pearls typically range from 3.5 mm to 14 mm. Although it is extremely rare to find pearls over 10mm in diameter, I saw many large pearls at Mikimoto, with one being identified as being over 20 mm. There are also sustainability issues surrounding pearls, with some species of mollusks being placed on the endangered species list due to environmental issues and overfarming.

Pearls come in a wide spectrum of colors from cream, to pink, gold, champagne to black, with white and pink rose rising in high demand for flattering the widest range of skin tones.
The different colors originate from different species and reflect the environments that the pearls originate from. The colour of the pearl tends to mirror the mollusk’s inner shell. They are cultivated in Australia, China, and Japan, to name a few. Gray pearls which range from having a greenish luster to varying shades of grey are often known as the South Sea variety. Other common areas of cultivation span from Tahiti, Philippines, Indonesia, to China. Pearls can also be dyed into different colors as is more common with the freshwater variety.

My trip was highlighted by an exquisite, show-stopping necklace combining large South Sea pearls, diamonds, and dark gemstones. Tres magnifique!

Sources: www.fieldmuseum.org/pearls and Mikimoto

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Socks Rule!

What's in a sock?

Well when wearing socks, clothes etiquette says that one's skin must never be exposed between trouser cuff and sock.

In terms of what to wear with formal and casual clothes, Casual clothes can be worn with thick socks in ribbed wool or argyle knit. Business clothes should be worn with thin socks in smooth or ribbed cotton, and formal clothing requires silk stockings.

Generally we don't want to mix these up as dress socks clash with casual clothes.

One popular deviation is that people refrain from wearing socks with loafers or moccasins as in preppies.

It's like how women are sans hosiery in warm weather or all the time now. I'm not mad at anyone who wants to save the benjamins! Beware: If you work in a conservative setting or visit a religious place of worship, this may be frowned upon as being too exposed.

Source: Clothes by Real Simple

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CFDA Honors Obama and Nods Given to Jacobs

Wow!

Talk about lifting up the folks around you as you rise.

Michelle Obama will be honored by the Council of Fashion Designers of America for her commitment to fashion.

Along with FLOTUS, three of the designers whose threads she's worn were each nominated for awards.

That's right, Jason Wu, Thakoon Panichgul, and Narcisso Rodriguez were all nominated.

Thakoon, whose latest collection for Target sold out swiftly before I could get a coveted dress, also designed FLOTUS' floral dress for DNC. He was nominated with Wu, and Alexander Wang for emerging talent.

I was glad to see one of my faves, Marc Jacobs was nominated and Anna Sui is set to get a lifetime achievement award.




For more on this, read the CFDA announcement or click here.






Pictures are credited to WWD.

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