I can’t promise this particular series will always have exciting photos, but the whole point is to show this iconic bag’s versatility.
So from the dressier Look 1 I’m taking it down a big notch to a very casual day at one of the Clippers’ last games. It was actually all about going to see the Mavs here in LA, and the fan-appreciation-night bobble head doll you see above is of Blake Griffin; the Clippers sure could have used him last night in its massacre by Dallas.
Anyway, I’m wearing the bag with a GAP motorcycle jacket, which I think needs to be softened by a pink cashmere muffler. Under the jacket are a black tshirt and jeans.
BTW, remember that old coin I mentioned a couple of entries ago? Here it is with my me+ro bracelet:
Tags: Blake Griffin, Clippers, Gap, Mavs, me+ro
I’m pulling a Tiger Woods and making an unnecessarily public apology today. On the way to shopping rehab I’ve done a complete face plant. Have fallen and cannot get up. My shopping ban has been a total failure; I blame some of it on my weakness and a lot more on the releases of Sonia Rykiel at H&M and Jean Paul Gaultier (JPG) at Target on March 7. So after this week (hey, at least I’m not lying about cheating with JPG), I will head back to rehab. No timeline as to when I will return to the sporting world of shopping.
Since all of my shopping skeletons are rattling their way out of my closet anyway, I might as well confess about the jaunt to Robertson Boulevard this past weekend. You know, the short but deadly block where you can find the second Chanel boutique (I actually love this cozy location a little more than its big sister in Beverly Hills) a few doors down from the paparazzi’d The Ivy restaurant and the enchanting Les Habitudes boutique.
I had stopped by Robertson to check out the new 1969 boutique that the GAP has recently made a permanent fixture after using it as a pop-up store for the Stella McCartney for GapKids release. If you like denim as much as I do, this is a fun place to see all kinds of jeans openly displayed in a way that I wish I could replicate in my own closet. OMG I’m such a liar! I didn’t come here to check anything out…I came here to buy a jacket that had quickly sold out. I know, there’s a GAP in every town to supply the whole country but believe it or not, they do come up with something once in a while that becomes a hard-to-find best seller. The Robertson location had the only XS that I could find in this region. So here’s the $59.50 black knit motorcycle jacket (PS: my lil sis even had a 20% off coupon for me to use! what a score!):
But even standing inside the GAP at 109 S. Robertson, I could feel the gravitational pull from 125 N. Robertson. It’s probably whatever voodoo spell Karl Lagerfeld has put on me that made me march straight from the GAP to the Chanel boutique. I knew it was wrong, didn’t want to do it, but my feet went on autopilot, and there I was inside the breezy foyer of the store in under 60 seconds. Putting this Chanel addict inside the white walled boutique is like locking an alcoholic inside a liquor store. So many beautiful bags and shoes and clothes on display! Who cares that I’ve seen a Chanel jacket reinvented a million times–with each season’s new buttons and trims, it’s as if I’m looking at it for the first time. And I fall in love all over again. So maddening that Lagerfeld refuses to release an ugly collection when I’m on a ban!
Anyway, on the first floor near the window, what do I spy but a black knit motorcycle jacket–the very same one that I had seen from trunk show pictures earlier this year. The very same one that had been added to my Spring buy list:
Let’s just say the tax alone on the Chanel version is about 4 times the total price of my GAP one after tax. And except for the quilting on the hems and logo on the zipper pulls, I honestly can’t say I could justify the sticker shock. Chanel’s leather version of the moto jacket, however, is a different story. Now that’s one cool jacket but it’s also twice as much as its knit version. I clutch my GAP find a little tighter and think I’ll save my pennies for a classic Chanel tweed jacket instead. On some trendier pieces, it’s enough to fill the craving with something non-designer as long as the quality and fit are decent. And of course if the price is right!
Luckily the rain was coming and that prodded me to leave the store before I could talk myself into buying something…some thingS. I’ve already failed the ban and couldn’t make it worse by sticking around here. But this one brief peek inside the boutique did trigger a question, and I’ll blog about that in the next entry.
Anyhow, in the words of Tiger Woods, “I want to ask for your help. I ask you to find room in your hearts to one day believe in me again.” Because let’s face it, I don’t believe in me when I say I can stop shopping. Do you?
Tags: Chanel, Gap, H&M, Jean Paul Gaultier, Karl Lagerfeld, Robertson Boulevard, Sonia Rykiel, Target, Tiger Woods
Let’s start the new year by returning to Morocco from Belgium. As we’re just now slowly weaning ourselves from the holiday excesses, I’ll take you through this entry with not one but three outfit changes in one day (celebs eat your hearts out!). It’s just one of those days when you wake up enthralled by the colors around you and want to play dress up for the fun of being a girl. I do this once in a while in my closet at home when I feel blue–let me tell you, I don’t need to see a therapist if I can get the same release from trying on a few…let’s say thirty…pairs of shoes and a slinky dress. Fashion happens to have the same kind of chemical effect on my brain as any prescription drug. And no side effects. Unless you call shopping addiction a side effect.
So anyway, I begin the day with a colorful sweater from one of Gucci’s runway looks a few seasons ago…
It’s surprisingly chilly in the early morning so I pile on an Etro wool scarf, BR cashmere cardigan (which is a staple in my luggage anywhere), and Gap sherpa hoodie over it. It’s the only other black warmer outerwear I’ve packed, but I’ve always liked mixing luxury goods with less expensive items together anyway. My thinking is that the geometric pattern of this top pays tribute to a city full of geometric zellig, which we can clearly find here at the magnificent Bou Inania Madrasa:
This madrasa was once both an educational institution and a mosque. It is presently one of the few religious places where a non-muslim can enter:
The sun comes out later in the morning so I go back to my riad to change into a silk JCrew top but keep the cardigan before heading back into the souks for more loitering:
Down some random path in the Medina I run across the Qaraouiyine Mosque, which is definitely off limits to me. Here is where the University of Al-Karaouine or Al-Qarawiyyin resides. It is considered the oldest and one of the leading educational/spiritual institutions in the Muslim world. I wish I could have gained entry…
By the time I return to the riad, the sun has set and the courtyard is lit by lamps. There are shadows playing on the wall. I’d written before that my first impression of Fes is that it’s not the most romantic city in the world, but at night, there is no other word to describe any riad but romantic. Which explains my inspiration for getting into the third outfit for the day. It’s Look 7.
It’s a bit formal for a night of casual dining, but can you blame me?
The exotic spices and sounds and sights of Morocco are a cause for celebration, and any kind of celebration should always involve cute clothes! Tomorrow, less about fashion and more about daily life in Fes.
Tags: Bou Inania Madrasa, Etro, Fes, Gap, Gucci, JCrew, Morocco, mosque, Qaraouiyine Mosque, University of Al-Karaouine, zellig
