I briefly abandoned my friends on Sunday to wander the annual Abbot Kinney Street Fest, not quite sure what I’d find while walking up the center of the street swinging my head like a pendulum, left to right, left to right until I found myself drawn to a common theme. Luxury Labels.
I blanked on this bag (above, right) and she answered, “It’s only Marc Jacobs” almost apologetically. As if her $600 bag didn’t rate next to a classic CHANEL. (We tend to forget that people outside our bubble don’t spend small fortunes on leather goods).
Wow, *loved* her little look with the belted shorts {click the pic}. That’s a shirt tied to her handbag, btw.
To answer your question, it’s an emphatic no. Your Balenciaga will never be out of style, your jewelry was amazing and understated and the LV shades, a perfect style staple.
Barneys New York Co-Op: Funny Alexander Wang Display {enlarge}
Turn it ON and ON and ON - So much great texture at Barneys New York in Beverly Hills today. Alexander Wang’s display made me laugh out loud and his ocean blue leather bags were on fire. His Barney’s exclusive Rocco mini duffle bag was on hold for a customer, his Diego bucket bag was fondled twice while I was trying some jewelry, and then I gasped over this Darcy Hoboand this Brenda washed shoulder bag. I’m also gaga for L’Agence lately, especially this very femme blouse. In the store, they had intentionally dressed a mannequin wearing the shirt backward – and it worked! (That would be akin to buying two shirts in one, right? Um, right)?
Nikki B's simple friendship bracelets are on the right. {enlarge}
I am also nutty for these affordableNikki B friendship bracelets, composed of either tiny glass beads or crimp beads sliding on silk threads. I picked up the olive color a couple weeks ago that I’ve been wearing non-stop and think they would make perfect gifts. Did you know Barneys has a blog? It’s true and here, Carrie Chapman, Senior Buyer for CO-OP Accessories, says Nikki B lives in a “tree house” in Chile. (Don’t worry, it’s a nice “tree house” that’s been featured in Dwell magazine). Fortunately, there will always be way too much great Barneys loot to cover for one story, so please look for future Best of Barneys posts, stylespotting my favorite designers, discoveries and accessories. Ok, you can CLICK HERE if you want to leave with me.
I spotted this leggy creature outside Izaka-ya by Katsu-Yaon Third Street in Los Angeles, where stylish denizens are forced to cram through a crowded door (you’d think it was a concert). She was probably close to 6-feet tall in the studded Balenciaga heels she bought a couple years ago in Istanbul and also sported a short black skirt and a slim white boyfriend blazer with the sleeves pushed up. I briefly stole her away from a handsome gent while she was taking puffs from a cigarette in a way that glamorized smoking.
StyleSpotting in Venice, CA – I’m on Abbot Kinney and Sara’s heading to her shop after just grabbing a cup of coffee. She’s wearing Raquel Allegra, one of my favorite designers. The dress is handmade from recycled LA County Jail T-shirts and hand-shredded in a process that takes hours per piece. See Raquel’s how-to video below! The thigh highs are also Raquel Allegra + Ann Demeulemeester boots and (obvi) Balenciaga bag. Haute!
The legwear is a little Mad Max, don’t you think? Wouldn’t this be a fun postcard?
VIDEO: Meet Designer Raquel Allegra
Raquel Allegra is one of the most interesting designers in LA and you’ll understand why when you see her process. Not just her vision, but the execution. She started wearing her designs while she was working at Barney’s and customers started ordering directly from her. She painstakingly repurposes LA County Jail T-shirts into sexy shredded T’s, dresses and scarves. Each handmade piece is stellar, takes her hours (and is priced accordingly, okaaaay). Isn’t she great on camera too? I reached out to her once to potentially host a style web series (she said “yeahletmethinkaboutitnoooooo”) around the same time her collection took off. She’s an entrepreneur to watch.
