little red riding vogue

Little Red Riding Vogue: An introduction to the wig theory

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As someone who’s interested in fashion, I can’t overlook all of the different possibilities for fashion—all of the places where I can perfect my look. If I’m really trying to put something together, every detail matters. If I’m invested in a look, my accessories, hair, and makeup will communicate the look as well.

In high school I discovered the wonders of hair dye. My hair has been brown, black, a natural red, orange, fire-engine red, black with blond on the bottom, black with blue on the bottom, magenta, hot pink, blond, purple. And with every color I found a new piece of myself. It was like finishing a paint-by-number puzzle. As you get the puzzle together and paint the pieces, you can see more clearly what the picture is.

I developed what I called “The Wig Theory”—the idea that if I changed my hair, I could be someone else, the way and actress becomes a different character with different hair and makeup styling. It was so freeing and exhilarating. And as someone who changes their mind constantly, I found myself changing my hair on a monthly basis—if not weekly.

Unfortunately, as many of my fellow hair dye junkies can attest, there is a breaking point. If you dye and bleach your hair too much, you’ll kill it. When I had it blond, I had bleached it too quickly—leaving my hair falling out in chunks at the end. It felt like straw and it had to go.

I went back to a salon for the first time in about four years and got my hair trimmed into a short bob. I had it dyed back to my natural dark brown and got extensions. And I waited for it to grow back strong and healthy.

Fast forward a year and my hair had grown long enough that I could cut off the ends and have completely healthy virgin hair. It was so soft I could hardly believe it was my hair—the hair I’d grown used to being so rough and ugly. I never wanted to dye it again.

But soon, I found temptation nagging me and giving my bangs a trim wasn’t quite enough. I was losing my mind when I stumbled upon a fashion blog on Tumblr. The blogger wore different colored contacts and wigs every day to make each outfit unique. The incomprehensible amount of combinations knocked me off my feet. I was in love.

So I started doing research. I found places to get good, but cheap, colored contacts and circle lenses. I ordered a few high quality wigs and a bulk of cheap ones. When I posted a picture of myself suddenly having long auburn hair and blue eyes, no one even questioned it—they just all loved my new look. I felt empowered and excited.

I started changing it up more often—blond with green eyes, black and white hair with blue eyes, silver hair with brown eyes. Some people would ask about the thought process behind it all, but I never encountered anyone judging me to my face.

And my morning routine was so quick! I never had to worry about having a bad hair day! I would pull together an outfit, decide which color hair would look best with that color scheme, and coordinate my contacts with my makeup.

I was just starting out at Chatham, and no doubt I was confusing people during orientation, but people thought it was fun. They’d ask to see my wigs and try them on. And eventually, my natural hair grew longer and that was enough for me. I packed up my wigs and contacts and settled for brown hair and brown eyes. I was becoming more of a professional and it felt like a more professional look. Eventually I tried a subtle ombré and loved that as well.

But I was started to feel stuffy and boring—and getting a septum piercing just wasn’t enough. My tattoo artist told me her hair stylist was a wizard with color and I started looking up colorful hair. I settled on a red ombré and had it done over Spring Break.

Now here’s the deal. I’m sure people might look at the color of my hair and think I’m less professional than I really am. I have piercings, tattoos, and bright red hair. In some people’s minds, that means I’m not a professional. But I’ll never understand that. I would never judge someone’s skills by the color of their skin—so why would someone judge me by the color of my hair?

To be fair, no one has approached me about my hair yet, but this isn’t just about me. As the last print version of this column this year, I’m asking that we all look at the people around us and appreciate the way they look. Let us love each other’s scars and blemishes. Let us not judge people for their weight or their height. Let us not judge a book by its cover. I promise not to judge you if you can return the favor.

Little Red Riding Vogue: Why I don’t watch shows like “Fashion Police”

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As someone interested in fashion, I think a lot of people expect me to watch shows like “Fashion Police.” While I am prone to getting sucked into “America’s Next Top Model” and “Project Runway” marathons, I’ve never been interested in a show that aims to tear people down. One of my least favorite things about the fashion industry is its need to raise up some people while they destroy others. Why do things like “Who Wore it Better” even exist? Why can’t two people wear the same outfit and both be beautiful?

Well it seems I’m not the only one struggling with “Fashion Police.” Recently they’ve gotten a lot of flack for an atrocious comment made at the Oscars. The comment was made about Zendaya—an actress, singer, and dancer.

Zendaya emerged on the red carpet in a beautiful, sleek, ivory gown by Vivienne Westwood. In my opinion, she looked incredible—like what I imagine Greek goddesses to look like. She was dressed and carried herself with so much class. As someone previously unfamiliar with her work, I would have honestly assumed she was just a model or rock royalty. Even Vogue agreed. They said it best, stating, “Oh, what a difference a serious red-carpet moment can make! If you didn’t know who Zendaya was before tuning in to the 87th Annual Academy Awards tonight, well, you will now: The lissome and lovely Disney actress and pop singer caused a stir on the red carpet in a figure-hugging ivory-toned Vivienne Westwood slip of a goddess gown, replete with flowing dreadlocks: one part Lisa Bonet, one part Venus de Milo, and all very grown up (which is to say, all very un-Disney).” In brief, she was stunning.

However, the “Fashion Police” didn’t seem to agree. The show’s host, Giuliana Rancic decided that Zendaya’s look was worthy of racial profiling—due to her beautiful, dreadlocked hair. Rancic said clearly, “I feel that she smells like patchouli oil…or weed. Yeah, maybe weed.”

Many of the people on the show laughed. Notably though, Kelly Osbourne showed some discomfort and instead of laughing, put her hand to her head in shock. This comes as no surprise now that Osbourne has made it clear that she is leaving the show due to that comment. What began with a barrage of angry tweets aimed at the show (to clear her name and her stance on the situation with her fans), has now lead to an official statement.  Within her tweets, Osbourne explained that she and Zendaya were friends and that she does, “not condone racism.”

Since the airing of the show and the backlash, Rancic has tried backpedalling as much as possible. She began by saying she meant the comment as a critique of the “bohemian chic” style. Then she told “Access Hollywood” that she wasn’t even the one who wrote the joke.

Zendaya has since accepted this apology, stating that she hoped it would be, “a learning experience for [Rancic] and for the network.”

However, Zendaya’s first, immediate statement to the comments was without a doubt the strongest statement made during this debacle. In an image she posted on her various social media outlets, Zendaya stood up for herself and her dreadlocks. She listed many incredibly successful and intelligent people with dreadlocks and insisted that none of them smelled like patchouli oil or weed.

While I agree with Zendaya and hope that everyone involved learns from this, I don’t think there was enough coverage on the fact that Kylie Jenner recently got dreadlocks and her hair was described as edgy and cool. Not only does that support cultural appropriation, but it creates a double standard that if the originators of the style have it, it’s gross or dirty, but if cultural appropriators have it, it’s desirable or stylish. This is where I lose some interest in the fashion industry. It’s about time they wake up and fix this broken system.

Little Red Riding Vogue: Fashion plagiarism

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They taught you about it all through your academic career—if you’re going to take something from someone else, you have to cite it. Otherwise, it’s plagiarism. You can absolutely be inspired by someone’s work, but if you don’t give them credit for the inspiration, you’re in the wrong.

One upsetting thing in the fashion industry is fashion plagiarism. So often, I hear of small designers or makeup artists having their looks stolen by big designers. In some cases, when the original designers try to speak up and make a claim for their art, the big designers have them silenced. They ignore any messages, delete any comments—they do what they can to erase the small designer and hold onto the stolen design as their own.

Most recently, I saw a case of this with a favorite Instagrammer of mine. LA-based makeup artist Mykie (better known as Glam & Gore) creates incredible, fantastical looks with makeup. In my opinion, some of them are worthy of Syfy’s “Face Off.” Specifically, she did a look in December that blew me away. She did her makeup in a way to give her skin a reptilian look. But that wasn’t all. She also made a fake skin to go with the look—as if she was shedding her normal face for a snake one.

Her first posting of the look has over 19,900 likes on Instagram. On February 20, Mykie posted a collage on Instagram showing her look being replicated at New York Fashion Week. The problem is, she wasn’t credited at all. Mehron Makeup recreated the look for brother and sister designers Michael and Stephanie Costello without attributing Mykie as their inspiration.

Everyone was stunned by and smitten with a look they thought came from Mehron. Meanwhile, Mykie wasn’t getting any praise for the look she worked so hard to create. Granted, there were slight changes to the Costello makeup, but it was very clearly a copy of her work.

In Mykie’s post, she mentioned that she was grateful to be considered such a good artist that people would want to replicate her looks, but she felt it was unfair that the looks went unaccredited. Since then, both Mehron Makeup and the Costellos have posted apologies on their Instagrams, admitting that the look came from Mykie, and that they are sorry that they did not recognize her as the source originally.

Unfortunately, this is one of the best cases I’ve seen. One of the worst is the recurring theft of designer Jeremy Scott. I used to be a huge fan of his work until he presented his Barbie looks for Moschino in the fall. When I started looking up more information about them, I found that he was accused of stealing the look from independent designer Nikki Lipstick. When you look at the pictures comparing the two collections, it’s uncanny.

When she tried confronting Scott via his Facebook page, Lipstick’s comments were deleted. He even blocked her on all social media. And this isn’t the first time he’s been caught stealing art or phrases from other designers or artists. Most unfortunately, he hasn’t seen any huge repercussions for his latest actions. In the past, he did face a court trial for stealing art and had to pull the pieces that featured it—as the artist was well known and had very distinct illustrations. However, Nikki Lipstick is a smaller designer and more easily silenced. Apparently, if you’re the bigger guy in the fight, plagiarism is fine.

Little Red Riding Vogue: Why Taylor Swift is impossibly fashionable

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Although this weather can be pretty discouraging, it’s no time to be dropping the ball on your outfits. That may sound a bit harsh and unrealistic, but look at Taylor Swift for example.

Taylor Swift is, without a doubt, a fashion icon. She never misses a beat with her outfits. They’re always flawless and well-executed. In fact, she’s even been criticized for looking so good.

Over the past year or so, people started commenting on how ridiculous it was that Swift would leave a workout at the gym looking better than ever. Her hair and makeup would be so on point that you would think she had just left a salon instead of a gym.

Also, she would often leave in a dress or skirt, and heels. People honestly couldn’t fathom how a human being could do this—even a celebrity. Many people brought up the fact that most of the paparazzi shots you see of celebrities leaving the gym look “normal”—they aren’t wearing makeup and they’re decked out in sweaty yoga pants and baggy t-shirts. So how could Taylor Swift be doing what Britney Spears could not?

But this isn’t the only thing people can’t wrap their heads around. Recently, Swift posted a picture on Instagram of her and her gal pals HAIM (the three-sister band from LA) hanging out in Hawaii. Sounds pretty normal, right? Well what threw people off was the fact that they were standing in a row on a rock path in a pond.  The HAIM girls are all wearing sensible flats, and Swift is wearing stilettos so insane she could probably use them to kill a man. Once again, Swift has proven to be almost more mythical than Regina George.

My last, and absolute favorite, part about Taylor Swift’s fashion endeavors is that it’s been said that the bags you see her carrying around in all of these iconic paparazzi post-workout shots are absolutely empty. That’s right. You heard me: empty. She doesn’t keep anything in them. She uses them for the sole purpose of accessorizing.

At this point you’re probably wondering where she actually keeps her stuff—unless she doesn’t have stuff at all and really is some sort of weird fashion alien that doesn’t need emergency lip-gloss or even a packet of tissues. Well make sure you sit down for this one, it’s a doozy.

Her bodyguards carry all of her necessities in a separate bag. And you better believe they hold onto that thing with the death grip of a Marvel superhero. No one in the world is getting their hands on that bag except for Taylor Swift herself.

Moral of the story: Taylor Swift is a celestial being whose fashion sensibilities straight up floor me. We should all aspire to be so jaw dropping.

Little Red Riding Vogue: Rick Owens shocks Paris Fashion Week with nudity

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If you aren’t already familiar with the designer Rick Owens, you will be now. Owens, a California native, has had a label since 1994 and showed his first runway collection in September of 2002 at New York Fashion Week. Most recently, he showed his work during Paris Fashion Week.

On Thursday, January 22, Owens sent pantless male models down the runway. I know what you’re thinking. Pantless? Really? Yes, really. In fact, some of the pieces had holes cut out in the crotch area. It wasn’t some slip up; Rick Owens just really wanted Paris Fashion Week to see some male genitalia.

Whether he wanted to shock the crowd or if it was really just the design he liked remains to be seen. Either way, the Internet is going crazy over it and I can’t blame them.

Owens has always been known for his grunge-glamour approach to fashion and the pieces he showcased at Paris Fashion Week maintain that style. For those who aren’t familiar with his work, think Alexander Wang.

Overall, the look was intriguing, but of course, this collection has now been made unforgettable by the addition of the publicity.

Some of the pieces featured chest cut outs as well—although we live in a society where male chests are acceptable in public. This does, however, raise the question of acceptable nudity?

The fashion world is one of the few places where nudity can be respected as art. Plenty of designers showcase pieces where women’s chests are visible. Maybe Owens is trying to take another step forward with nudity in fashion. The real proof will be if female models in fashion start flaunting dresses with crotch holes, too.

Little Red Riding Vogue: Marsala chosen as Pantone’s Color of the Year

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Whether you realize it or not, at the beginning of every year, an important decision is made in the fashion world. It affects clothes, makeup, home goods—you name it. This monumental moment is when Pantone chooses the Color of the Year.

Last year was Radiant Orchid. The year before was Emerald. This year, is the year of Marsala, which Pantone describes as, “a naturally robust and earthy red wine.”

So what exactly is Marsala? It’s not a color you use in your everyday vocabulary, but no doubt you’ve seen it before. Marsala is a passionate red with calming natural tones. Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director of the Pantone Color Institute, said, “Marsala is a subtly seductive shade, one that draws us in to its embracing warmth.” Still, how many products can you think of that are exactly Marsala? To make this a bit easier to follow—understand that this decision leaves a broad spectrum.

When Pantone announces the Color of the Year, stores scramble to find what they carry in that shade. Usually, it’s not much. They can easily make products to fit that description, but that would take too long, and by the time they have the product out, someone else has already drawn their customer’s attention. The secret is to stretch the color.

When Emerald was announced, suddenly, any shade of green would do. When Radiant Orchid was chosen, people started stocking products in shades of purple. By choosing Marsala, Pantone has given us a year of red.

The color is chosen carefully based on trends seen throughout different markets. Eiseman said of Marsala, “This hearty, yet stylish tone is universally appealing and translates easily to fashion, beauty, industrial design, home furnishings, and interiors.”

However, The Color of the Year, isn’t the only prediction Pantone makes. They also make specific predictions for incoming fashion. Their Fashion Color Report for Spring 2015 was based on the New York Fashion Week from September 4-11, 2014.

Their predictions for colors are soft, cool hues with natural neutrals. For women’s fashion, they expect an eclectic, ethereal mix. For men’s fashion, they call for uncontrived, natural, deep tones.

Knowing this, Marsala is a smart choice for Color of the Year. It’s deep and warm, but soft and natural enough to come across as an almost neutral shade of red. As Eiseman said, it translates well to different products without appearing gaudy or overwhelming.

All hail Marsala until they choose something else for 2016.

 

Little Red Riding Vogue: The new alternative to shopping at outlet malls

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This week, H&M launched a collection from couture designer Alexander Wang. Most of the items sold out almost immediately. Wang and H&M announced the collaboration at Coachella back in April, and just a few days ago, it was finally made available for purchase online.

The line consisted of a sporty style in a very basic color palette—very Wang indeed. It was a huge collection which included tops, bottoms, dresses, outerwear, footwear, hosiery, and plenty of accessories ranging from swimming goggles to boxing gloves. The collection was for men and women, but many of the pieces can translate well to either sex—Wang has always had a talent for edgy unisex looks.

The tops ranged from crop tops to sweaters, each boasting a big price tag for H&M clothing. The cheapest tops are roughly $35 and the most expensive borders on $130. The collection also includes a cardigan for about $350. Bottoms fall anywhere on a range of $60 to $350 and dresses range from about $60 to $150. If that makes your head spin, don’t even look at outerwear. Jackets in the collection stretch from prices of $70 to $350. A sports bra will cost you $40 and a bathing suit will cost you $60. Shoes are anywhere from $80 to $300. If you’re really looking for something more affordable, you can get a whistle or a water bottle for $13.

Now, looking at these prices, a majority of people would probably shake their heads in disappointment. H&M has always been a champion of stylish clothes for cheap prices. Though, this isn’t the first time they’ve partnered with a designer and raised their prices. And they’re also not the only store pulling this stunt.

Recently, Target had a big collaboration with Altuzarra. For many Target shoppers, some of the prices seemed ridiculous. The price tags of the line stretched from a reasonable $20 to a whopping $90. Target also received a lot of flack for not carrying the line in any plus sizes. This wasn’t the Target everyone was used to, and as a general note, people normally don’t like change.

However, once again, many pieces from Target’s Altuzarra collection sold out almost instantly as soon as they were released on Target’s online store. And the online reviews for the few remaining pieces of the collection are fairly positive.

So what is it that draws people in? If so many people are finding problems with the high prices at these usually affordable stores, who’s buying out the collections before they’ve even had time to breathe? Here comes the guilty confession portion of the column.

It’s people like me. It’s the people with fashion fetishes who will do anything to get their hands on a little couture. Normal prices for Alexander Wang fashion are astronomical. The only people that can afford Wang right off the runway are celebrities. The same can be said for Altuzarra. So when you see something from Wang or Altuzarra for under a thousand dollars, you pounce. If you’re as bad as me, you actually mark the release date in your calendar so you can be ready as soon as the collection goes live.

Personally, I ended up not buying anything from either collection. I had a list in my mind for both—as far as what pieces I thought were worth the price. In the end though, for most of the pieces I really wanted, some other runway junkies had beat me to it and the pieces were already sold out.

The next big collaboration I’ve got my eye on is between the grunge-chic webstore Nasty Gal and the makeup company MAC Cosmetics. No doubt it will be the kind of makeup Wednesday Addams or Chloe Sevigny would keep in their carry-on. But make sure you hit it up right away. MAC’s last big collection—based off of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” — sold out immediately and never restocked, which meant broke college girls like me didn’t get a chance to snag some of that red lipstick modeled after the famous “Rocky Horror Picture Show” lips. The collection will be available online and in stores on December 4.

Little Red Riding Vogue: Singing in the rain

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Without a doubt, Halloween is my favorite holiday. I’ve always been a sucker for adventurous fashion, and Halloween is the one day when you can really let your freak flag fly.

The only problem I have with Halloween is the constant struggle to settle on only one costume. As someone who loves any excuse to dress up or pull together an interesting outfit, Halloween can be torture. It’s the one day a year when I can wear absolutely whatever I want–or be whoever I want to be–and not be judged, and I’m expected to choose only one outfit?

In high school I used to dress up the entire week of Halloween, or sometimes even the whole month of October. I love to express myself, and I figured that was the one time I could get away with it.

Now that I’m older, I’m a little less adventurous with how many costumes I pull together, but it does give me more time to dedicate to each costume.

Last year I was Hans Christian Andersen’s Little Mermaid as she turned to foam. It was inspired by runway makeup I had seen where they used small rhinestones dripping down the face like tears. I decided to mix that with a flowing white dress, a sea-foam green wig, and lots of glitter and face paint. I put fishnets over my arms and used a sponge and body paint to dab color onto my skin in a scaly pattern. I topped it off with a layer of white glitter.

Overall, I was pretty pleased with the costume. Most people had no idea who I was until I told them, but the reception was pretty good after I explained the concept more. As a joke I went around saying it was, “the ultimate ‘forever alone’ costume.”

Still, it rained a lot last Halloween and it completely killed my costume and my spirits. That’s why this year I decided to try being more practical.

This year I wanted to go for something a little darker, and went dressed as Alex from Stanley Kubrick’s “A Clockwork Orange” movie.

Photo Credit: Indigo Baloch

Photo Credit: Indigo Baloch

I started by going out and buying a simple white dress shirt and white skinny jeans from Target. I wanted something nice, but not too expensive since I probably wouldn’t wear them again. Then I got white suspenders from Hot Topic, eyeball ping-pong balls from Spirit, and fake blood and false eyelashes from Target. I already had black Dr. Martens and a bowler cap.

The only part I had to make was the cufflinks. Alex has these great bloody eyeball cufflinks that I pulled together by cutting the ping-pong balls in half, gluing them to the cuffs of the shirt, and then painting around them with fake blood.

Unfortunately, the fake blood took forever to dry and, when they were still wet the next morning, I took a hairdryer to them. It partially melted one of the eyes, but I figured it just made it extra creepy—which is never a bad thing for a costume like that.

Compared to the mermaid costume, the makeup was a piece of cake. I just got false eyelashes that looked like the ones Alex wore, turned one upside down, and glued it right under my lower lash. It felt uncomfortable at first, but by the end of the night, I had all but forgotten it.

It rained a bit and was pretty cold on Halloween night so I was grateful to have a relatively warm costume. Also, the rain wasn’t all bad as it gave me a chance to run around singing “Singing in the Rain.”

All told, I had a pretty successful Halloween, and I couldn’t have been more pleased with my costume. It wasn’t so elaborate that I stressed myself out, but it looked good and authentic, and I got tons of compliments from “A Clockwork Orange” fans!

Little Red Riding Vogue: Think Globally, Shop Locally

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While working for WHIRL this summer, one of my favorite parts of the internship was familiarizing myself with local shops. These were stores that I must have walked past a million times in my life, but had never really seen. And not only did the internship get me into the shops; it also got me acquainted with the store owners and employees—considering you wouldn’t really trust a stranger to come in, take whatever they like, and leave.

Now, of course, I do have my own particular tastes, and so not every store’s style matched up with my own. It doesn’t mean they weren’t great—it just means that I’m very particular. Also, some of the stores would be geared towards an older generation so their styles did not work for a younger person.

One of my favorite stores was Kristi Boutique in Aspinwall. Although I cannot remember seeing it before in passing, I’m sure I must have. And now, whenever I head down to the Waterworks Mall, I can’t help but notice it.

Kristi Boutique boasts a great selection of clothes and styles that can honestly work for any age group. Specifically, they have a denim “bar” with dozens upon dozens of jeans, shorts, and more. They also explicitly carry Project 11 belts and belt buckles that you can interchange for a unique look every time. They have an abundant supply of soft t-shirts for yoga and a great assortment of accessories—such as designer sunglasses that could make you swoon.

Being in the same building as a yoga studio, Kristi Boutique has a relaxing atmosphere to the point where you could lose hours in there, just checking out every intimate detail of the little store. Everyone that works there is a pocket full of sunshine and although the prices are pretty steep, I would absolutely recommend stopping in if you’re in the area.

Another store I was head over heels for was e.b. Pepper on Walnut Street in Shadyside. Although it’s a bit less relaxed than Kristi Boutique, e.b. Pepper has the most incredible clothes. Sure the atmosphere is a bit stuffy, and if you’re young and wild like I am, you constantly feel like they’re watching you like a shoplifter, but the fashion absolutely outweighs any negatives.

Much like its atmosphere, the fashion of e.b. Pepper is high class, but also charming. Once again, the prices are pretty intimidating, but definitely worth it. If you ever need an incredible dress for an important event, and you’ve got money to burn, go to e.b. Pepper. You’ll find something that no one else can top, and everyone can admire. If you want to look “Vogue”, shop at e.b. Pepper.

Finally, not far from e.b. Pepper is Roberta Weissburg Leathers. All I can say of Roberta is if you wish you were a celebrity, then just stop by her shop.

Being a boutique, Roberta likes to get to know her customers, and then be their personal shopper in a way. She buys her stock with you in mind, and takes note of the styles that you prefer—not to mention her store is always packed with gorgeous belts and fun, art-themed socks. She has an overwhelming collection of cowboy/cowgirl boots and a talent for personalizing leather that could knock your socks off. And as an added bonus, she’s extremely nice.

If you’re ever looking for something to do, and you’re near any of these shops, definitely stop inside. And don’t forget to keep an eye out for copies of WHIRL!

Little Red Riding Vogue: Review of New York Fashion Week

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Now that things from 2014’s New York Fashion Week have settled down a bit, it’s time to analyze and review! Although I love the classics like Chanel and Dior, I have to say, I always get especially excited to see shows from more alternative fashion houses.

One of my favorites will always be Kate Spade. Part of that may stem from the fact that her pieces are often somewhat affordable—especially if you hit up an outlet. This year she continued with her usual style of color blocking, stripes, and florals. In my opinion, she nailed it. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it! She showed off some great dresses and bags that I can’t wait to see in the stores.

Another fantastic collection came from Zimmermann who charmed with ruffled gowns and gleaming blouses. Zimmermann chose to play with many textures and colors, and it definitely gets your attention. With dreamy periwinkle and creamsicle tones, this collection has me absolutely swooning. Any one of their pieces could make me feel like a princess in a Disney movie.

Now if you’re looking to be a specific princess—namely Jasmine—you should check out the collection from The Blonds. As usual, The Blonds dominated with a specific theme in mind. This time, they showed off gorgeous sequined and beaded outfits, often with beautiful billowy bottoms that couldn’t help but remind me of Jasmine in Disney’s Aladdin. All told, it was iconic as always.

Anna Sui, a regular at this point, knew what she was doing and rocked fashion week with a collection boasting dozens of unique patterns and cuts. Each outfit was uniquely edgy and charming with tones ranging from scarlet to indigo. She even threw in a few metallics to rival Zimmermann.

One thing I always love to see at fashion week is collaboration. In Jeremy Scott’s case, it was none other than Miley Cyrus. To be specific, Cyrus created a series of collaged sculptures to exhibit at Scott’s show. And she couldn’t have picked a better partner. Scott is well-known for his colorful, “out-there” style which he reiterated this year.

One of the best shows this year had to be Betsey Johnson who went above and beyond as usual. This time, her show’s theme was marriage equality. The show’s openers were models styled as same-sex couples. Many of the models throughout the show were also drag-queens—each one sashaying down the runway in one of Johnson’s crush-worthy, over-the-top ball gowns. She relied, as always, on girly tones and cuts, rocking the femininity of each queen.

If you missed my piece on the new designers at Marc by Marc Jacobs, check it out because that’s all I have to say about the new MBMJ previewed at fashion week. It’s flawless, shocking, and so Luella. With bright colors, color blocking, polka-dots, and bold text, Katie Hillier and Luella Bartley have stolen my heart once again.

Finally, there’s Altuzarra who is now featuring pieces at Target. Who doesn’t love high fashion at affordable prices? None of what was shown at fashion week is on the racks at Target (simply because this is their 2015 Ready to Wear, and also because these are not pieces they designed for Target), but nonetheless, it was darling and daring, shifting from baby pinks and blues to black and gold.

Overall it was a fantastic fashion week that has me drooling and dreaming about all the amazing pieces the designers of the world are creating.