fashion, travel

touring saint louis

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one of the coolest parts of my trip to saint louis is that we actually got a chance to be tourists and explore a bit of the city. usually when i travel for work, i just go from airport to hotel to events and then back again without ever really getting to see the city that i traveled to. so of course, i was pretty excited to that we had our very own tour about town hosted by the new startup app muzio. i had never been to the midwest before, and it was certainly a nice welcome. there is so much beautiful old architecture and plenty of city pride. i certainly hope i get a chance to go back!

sights




saint louis art museum – this was a totally unexpected surprise on our trip. nestled in an expansive park built for the world’s fair in 1922, this stunning art museum has free admission and a very extensive collection of german expressionist paintings! i don’t talk much about art on my blog, but let me just tell you, it was a very special treat for me, even if we were only there for a short time!




cathedral basilica of saint louis – this historic basilica was built from 1907 to 1914 and contains the world’s largest mosaic installation, which took a better part of a century to complete.


and elusive shot of me to prove that i was actually there! little known fact: i’m actually extremely camera shy and don’t tend to enjoy getting my picture taken. i usually dodge the camera unless it’s for an outfit shoot, and even then i have to pump myself up a little to get the job done. don’t ask me how i got into blogging… haha! wearing an asos smock dress, family affairs farrah shirt, j.w. hulme mini legacy bag, and a six month baby bump!




saint louis central public library – the central library was constructed in 1912 and was formerly occupied by the exposition and music hall before being recently renovated and returned to it’s full glory. it’s exactly the type of place where i could easily see myself spending hours poring over books and tiptoeing around looking for pretty new spaces to admire.


gateway arch – a trip to saint louis just isn’t complete without a visit to the iconic gateway arch. it is the largest arch in the world and was constructed between 1963 and 1965 as a monument to the westward expansion of the united states. the structure is clad in stainless steel and you can actually go inside and ride a tram to the top where there is an observation deck. i know that sounds mildly terrifying, but i was really looking forward to going inside! unfortunately, it was closed due to the recent government shutdown…



saint louis citygarden – our last stop on the tour brought us to the citygarden, an urban park and sculptural garden in the middle of downtown saint louis. it was the perfect spot to sit and admire the city after a long day.

hotel, restaurants, and shopping




the cheshire – we were lucky enough to stay at the very charming cheshire hotel during our trip, and i couldn’t be happier that we did! i knew it was going to be a great stay the moment i saw the giant mounted bear looming ominously over the campy hotel lobby filled with 18th century antiques. they have novelty suites like the james bond room, romeo and juliet, and brideshead revisited. exactly the type of place i love to stay in when traveling away from home!



the restaurant and basso – both restaurants are located on the hotel grounds with basso serving as a basement pub with a delicious selection of italian pastas and pizzas, while the restaurant serves up a seasonal menu of fresh foods from local farms.



winslow’s home – this was probably my favorite meal of the trip. partly because it was ravenously eaten after a very long day. it’s actually a little general store with a bit of a country kitchen vibe, but don’t let that deter you. they have a really wonderful selection of farm to table food that was so warm and delicious that it almost felt like i was eating thanksgiving dinner.



central table – i ate my last meal in saint louis at this a spacious and modern restaurant before eating an entire bag of sour candies at the airport. i ordered the baked eggs and potatoes that stuck to my ribs and held me over for the rest of the day.





retro 101/cherry bomb vintage – on my very last day in saint louis, i finally got a bit of free time and hopped in a cab with julie to see if we could find a few vintage shops. we’d heard about the cherokee antique row filled with vintage boutiques and antique shops, but we had also heard that not many places were open on sundays… it was a gamble, but we were able to stop in at this awesome shop before rushing off to the airport, and i’m so glad we did. i know it was only a teeny tiny glimpse at the vintage that saint louis has to offer, but if it was any indication, then i can only imagine what the rest is like! this place was packed to the brim with real authentic vintage pieces at pretty damn affordable prices. now i want to go back for the sole purpose of vintage shopping!

a special thanks to alive magazine, the saint louis convention and visitors commission, and all of these lovely places for accommodating me on my trip!

fashion, travel

#stlfw

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i know i shared plenty of photos on my instagram last week, but today i wanted to take  a moment to share my experience attending saint louis fashion week. we had a jam-packed schedule during the five days we were in town, but the industry night hosted by fern mallis was the highlight of the trip. it was so refreshing to see the enthusiasm and excitement of the local fashion scene free from all of the pretension and drama that you might find at, say, new york fashion week. fashion can be found in pretty much every corner of the world, and st. louis is no exception, with talented young designers who are just getting started. it was such an honor to be able to attend, and to support the local talent.


before the start of the runway show, we attended a presentation of emerging designers including genevieve cortinovis, anna friss, and pauline gibson. my favorite collection was by suzanne lay (seen above) with a  bright and bold collection impeccably styled with the prettiest hair and makeup!



wai ming – designer emily was born and raised in st. louis and attended both boston university and parsons school of design in new york before returning to her home town to launch this sophisticated collection of chic clothing for the modern woman. i really enjoy her minimalist approach and you can tell that her clothes are cut with a woman’s body in mind.



laura kathleen – another st. louis based designer, you may recognize laura kathleen from season 9 of project runway. since then, she’s been focusing on her collection for the strong and confident woman, filled with body conscious designs and her very own jewelry collection.



jennifer chun – jennifer was born in south korea and raised in ohio where she discovered her interest in fashion. she launched her collection after attending pratt institute and showed a very cool runway show with and interesting mix of fabrics and super sporty vibes.





samantha pleet – you all know how much i love samantha pleet, so it was a delight to be able to spend a bit of time with this new york designer and to get yet another peek at her upcoming spring 2014 collection filled with ethereal dresses and resorty vibes. also gotta love her shoe collaboration with wolverine!





eva franco – traveling from los angeles, eva franco shared a collection of super feminine and flirty dresses with a super vintage aesthetic. there was plenty of color and cheeky accessories for a very playful finale to the show.



later that week, we were invited to saks fifth ave for an exclusive tess giberson show featuring a mix of her fall 2013 and spring 2014 collections of very wearable knitwear.



followed by a neiman marcus cusp show to benefit the st. louis center of creative arts.


we were also very lucky to be the first group to preview the upcoming exhibit, a queen within, at the world chess hall of fame. we weren’t allowed to photograph most of what we saw, but i was able to share at least a teeny tiny sneak peek for you.

a huge thank you to alive magazine, the cheshire hotel, and the saint louis convention and visitors commission for the lovely trip!

my style, travel

outfit: out-of-towner

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i just got back from my trip to saint louis, and after a day of recovery, i am finally getting around to posting an outfit from my trip! the weather was quite hot and humid almost every day, which is why this new dress came in handy while i was there. the loose tent shape kept things cool while the dark color is definitely more suited for fall. throw on some red lipstick and a pair of low heels and it’s kind of the perfect thing to wear when you’re six months pregnant and still trying to look pulled together for events and things. i also didn’t realize it until later, but i am also totally channeling hannah in this look. blogger inception haha!

not gonna lie, traveling at this point in the game is starting to get pretty exhausting, but i’m so glad i went! saint louis is such a charming place and we really got the v.i.p. treatment while we were there. it was actually my first introduction to the midwest and it couldn’t have been any better. and in addition to my instagram feed, i have like a million photos from the trip that i will hopefully be sharing this week!

wearing: dear creatures diana dress, make a scene heels courtesy of seychelles, j.w. hulme mini legacy bag, nars heatwave lipstick



fashion, collections, spring 2014

colenimo spring 2014 preview

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i know i’ve been getting into the fall vibes lately, but there are still so many pretty spring 2014 collections rolling in that i can’t resist sharing. the other day i shared the colenimo fall collection, but today it’s all about spring 2014. this season, aya was inspired by “silent film star sisters norma, constance and natalie talmadge, a high flying trio who climbed to the very pinnacle of silent-era hollywood but never lost their sisterly camaraderie.” and of course, this dreamy editorial is the perfect way to showcase such a lovely and delicate, vintage-inspired collection. today i’m only sharing a preview, but i promise to share the full lookbook soon!

photography: simon di principe
stylist: valentine fillol cordier
make-up artist: caroline sims (dwm)
hair artist: asashi (caren)
hair assistant: yuko aoi
hat design: manami sugita











fashion, collections, fall 2013

mona fall 2013

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just in time for halloween, mona has released her fall 2013 collection, inspired by the perfect combination of creepy and cute. titled “glowing in the dark,” designer moriah said,

“i looked for the meeting point of tim burtons’ corpse bride, beetle juice, and sweeney todd with mona’s cute collars and feminine silhouettes. i wanted to create a horror fantasy fairy tale sort of scene and to take the mona customer on a new adventure with an edgier look and feel.”

and she certainly achieved her goal with a sinister yet sweet collection of cute pinafores and collared dresses in dark prints with cool details. and while the lookbook and inspiration may be a bit darker than her usual selection, each individual piece is still just as diverse and can easily be styled a number of different ways throughout fall and beyond.

photos courtesy of mona. 










my style

outfit: fall feelings

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the weather isn’t exactly chilly in los angeles, but some days have been cool enough to wear pseudo-fall outfits like this one without breaking a sweat. i’m still so used to the frigid san francisco air that it’s hard not to want to wear long sleeves and pretty new fall clothes every day (not that i’m complaining)! i’m particularly in love with this cute little jumper i picked up at the loved one‘s brick-and-mortar shop in pasadena over the weekend, especially because the empire waist and full skirt are able to accommodate my 26 week bump. that’s right, i’m almost six months along. the third trimester. the home stretch, if you will. it’s been harder than i anticipated to get outfit photos lately, but i did shoot a cute series of maternity outfits for refinery29 that should be coming out any day now, so i promise to share once it’s up!

now onto the real hard-hitting stuff: shoes! i fell in love with this pretty pair of mary janes the moment they popped up on the golden ponies instagram feed. a few conversations later and they were on their way from mexico with the promise that i would share you all on a very exclusive discount to celebrate this new collection of shoes, a collaboration between two creative forces, chica de canela and golden ponies shoes! if you like golden ponies, then i promise you will love this limited edition collection. so without further adieu…

get 10% off any pair of shoes by chica de canela + golden ponies using code “calivintage” now through october 31!

wearing: blouse courtesy of nadinoo, reconstructed vintage jumper by the loved one, mary janes courtesy of chica de canela + golden ponies, belmont crossbody handbag courtesy of j.w. hulme





inspiration

outfit inspiration

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i don’t know exactly what it is, but lately i’ve been finding my eye drawn to these simple and slightly sporty looks. perhaps it’s because my expanding belly is begging me for more comfortable clothes and all of these outfits just look so easy to wear. or perhaps i’m picking up on back-to-school vibes in the fresh autumn air… you can always see the rest of what’s been catching my eye on my tumblr and pinterest!

image above via team peter stigter.


hel looks.


refinery29.


hel looks.


refinery29.


hel looks.


team peter stigter.


the cut.

fashion, collections, fall 2013

leah goren fall 2013

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it’s been a long while since i posted about leah goren, so today i thought i’d share a few photos of some of her latest designs. i first discovered leah’s cat dress a couple of years back and it has since been in high rotation in my closet. i am now obsessed with her girl faces dress and am trying to decide if i should order one knowing that i’ll only temporarily be this size. at least she has all of these pretty pictures for me to drool over while i try to make a decision!

photos by amber byrne mahoney, modeled by gaby cetrulo and gillian herring, designs by leah goren.













fashion, press

saint louis fashion week!

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i’m excited to announce that in one week, i will boarding a plane to attend saint louis fashion week! i have never been to saint louis, so just having the opportunity to visit a new place is beyond exciting, but seeing the roster of events has got me even more excited! if you’re in the area, you should definitely check out the schedule and try to attend an event or two. i’ll be in town from october 2 – 6, so i hope to see you there!

a few highlights:
– designers samantha pleet, jennifer chun, eva franco, wai ming, and laura kathleen will be showing their collections
– twelve national bloggers will be in attendance, including keiko lynn, orchid grey, selective potential, and heartland underdog

thank you so much to the saint louis convention and visitors commission for sponsoring my trip and to the cheshire for accommodations!

fashion, collections, fall 2013

colenimo fall 2013

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the colenimo fall 2013 collection was inspired by kay petre, a record-breaking motor racing pioneer from 1930’s britain. the inspiration might be a bit specific, but the collection is diverse, including some amazing outerwear like waxed “british millerain” cotton jackets and coats, cotton corduroy over-coats with vintage lining, shetland wool jackets with shearling collars and an ultra soft lamb nappa leather racing jacket. i’ve always loved designer aya’s knack for interesting shapes, particularly in her coats, so this selection has got me swooning. she also included tons of amazing dresses and separates in cotton, silk, angora, and mohair. just the types of materials i’d love to be wearing when the weather gets chilly outside!

images courtesy of colenimo.