Eye candy of the week

What the heck, y'all seemed eager to eat all the candy last week, so I figured it'd be a good idea to pass some more out.

Enjoy.

If I were more into handbags, I'd jump for joy at finding this Kelly-style vintage bag. At only $70, even the price smacks of decades gone by...

I was recently asked who my favorite current designer was for a blogger profile, and my answer -part of it, anyway- was that, for clothing I can afford (when it's on-sale), I'm definitely all about Beth Blake and Melissa Akey for Thread Social right now. This is a look from their Spring/Summer RTW collection, and I'm already stalking TS's online vendors in anticipation of its debut.

This is the prettiest Vicky B. has looked in years. I could be wrong, but I think it may be her new wrist tatt that's responsible for her dare I say, almost friendly-looking glow...

We may have broken up after the disturbingly vacant appearances you gave during promo week for that awful movie I know you're regretting right about now, but Katie, doll, we'll always have your outfits. This one, I'm proud to say, looks awfully similar to what I put together every chilly Saturday afternoon. It has "walking 10 blocks to Penn Quarter" written all over it.

Like a soothing, drop-drop-fizz-fizz after the SAG Awards heartburn - Joy Bryant adds a touch of class to the head-shakingly bad fare on the Welcome Home Roscoe Jones red carpet.

The side view is just as good, no?

KimKar in quite possibly the ugliest swimsuit the Calypso outlet ever did sell. But for serious, who's even looking at the suit? Even Kim can't help but glance at her goodies and think, "Gotta admit, I'm a lucky, lucky lady..."

I wasn't in love with the cut of the colorblocked Calvin Klein gown Jamie-Lynn Sigler wore to the SAG Awards last Sunday, however...

...I do believe I have a new pair of shoulders to adore.

Speaking of disappointing SAG dresses, thank goodness Kate rebounded from her Harley-inspired Balmain number with this kicky cobalt Lanvin mini. *Love*.

And while we're on the topic of Lanvin, let me please lust over this pre-Fall peek at Alber's upcoming collection (photo courtesy of Ms. Spinach)

Not crazy about the embellished Herrera dress, not crazy about all the Godiva (I'm a Sunkist Fruit Gems girl) but Ali Larter, as always, is so well put-together I had no choice but to dub her a definite piece of "eye candy".

If I had a sugar daddy...

Cap-sleeved dress with frill-neck by Lanvin
£710 at brownsfashion.com

They know me, they *really* really know me!

I apologize for this week's harried schedule, but I only just flew in late last night (truly, from a place where I could not have reached out and touched the Interwebs even if I had begged, bribed and shown tit) and here I am again, for the second time in four days, telling a taxi driver to "book it, please" to Reagan National for another early morning flight to the nation's most dangerous - and oversized-fleece-henley favoring - city.

Though I planned to spend last night exclusively with Monte working through the abandonment issues trips like this inevitably conjure up in his precious, sensitive soul, I couldn't help but sit down for a few moments and share with you just how fortunate I feel to have friends who know me well -- who really, really know me well.

I only hope my presents made their recipients feel a fraction of how special these five below made me feel.

I saw, I mentioned, and holy sh*t, I received! If only all things in life were this simple. Now before you prattle on about how unsightly my unmentionables' drawer is (packing will do that, don't you know), why not focus on the milestone that is this stacked heel. On my foot. In a non-ironic fashion statement. A first but definitely not a last thanks to E2's introduction. If you too would like a taste of the Modern Vintage, head over to heels.com and check out my pretty (not so) little pumps for yourself...

Hot Redhead Lawyer brought my fantasy of the Cathy Horyn lullaby to life. I can actually hear the purr of her "Al-berrr El-baaaaaz" as I carefully take in all my new favorite picture book has to offer.

D's encouragement of what Brooke dubs my "bad taste" in movies has me seriously considering a Thu-Sun move back to the Midwest. That and our shared love for all things Miller not in a glass, thank you. But for serious, if you're an '80s action film aficionado like I am and missed the first on-screen Swayze/Grey magic like I somehow did, MapQuest yourself a field trip into the deep-red of Virginia to get your copy of the new collector's edition of Red Dawn at any one of the Wal-Mart or Super Wal-Mart locations in zat zing zey call suburban sprawl.

What's left to say that isn't covered by, "He's in bed by 8pm" and "He'll appreciate you more than any man your age"? Leave it to C to rummage up this gem.

And most unexpected and touching of them all was the gift of R's faith in my future success. "New York dreams for the new year," the card read, and there, just below his signature, folded neatly in half -- a DC/NYC round-trip ticket on the Acela.

For those of you who are headed home today for the holidays, have a safe flight, move to the right of the moving-walk if you wish to stand, and please, for goodness sake, resist the urge to share your EvangeCube with the person seated next to you. Not only could you possibly be proselytizing to a woman whose only belief in higher powers extends to that which was imparted to her in All Dogs Go To Heaven but you're also setting a really awkward tone for when you later ask to read her copy of Bazaar.

Great to be back,

Johanna

I heart DC Style, pt. III

To those who read my blog regularly, it won’t come as a surprise that I luh-luh-love this over-the-top look* from Lanvin’s Spring/Summer ’08 ready-to-wear collection.

As I often say, the more dramatic the neckline, the more straight-legged the trouser, the more challenging the heel-height, and the more neutral the color palette the better.

This is not to infer that wearing this shoulder-baring, asymmetric ruffled blouse, high-waisted black cigarette pant and six-inch stacked-heel patent peep-toe ensemble in a professional setting would earn my approval, however, because even though I favor statement pieces like these, I favor even more the adherence to a prim, ladylike aesthetic when it comes to dressing for the office.

While the outfit may work for a holiday party at the Hay Adams or opening night of Don Giovanni at the Kennedy Center, there is no way even the most model-like woman in the most fashion-forward industry in this city could wear these three components to work on a Tuesday morning and get away with it, stare-free.

So how can we Boardroom-ify this lovely Lanvin look?

Up top, select a neckline with a less voluminous ruffle, a sleeve that flatters your upper-arms and a cut that doesn’t expose great swaths of skin like this belted blouse from Rebecca Taylor ($203 at shopbop.com)

On bottom, opt for a pair that either have the high-waist like these from Anthropologie or the skinny pant leg like these 'Domini' skinny trousers from Theory ($305 at saks.com). Unless you have a lithe, 5’9” or taller frame, drawing attention to both the waist and the legs through fitted silhouettes is a risky choice.

For footwear, as difficult as it is for me to move away from the peep-toe, a closed round-toe pump in matte leather like this 'Marais' pump from Max Studio ($120 at lorisdesignershoes.com) is your best bet, both because the cooler temperatures we’re experiencing as of late demand it and because you’ve already cashed in your showpiece chips with the ruffle detailing in the blouse and the trendy cut of the trousers; go simple with the shoes and let the rest of your outfit earn the attention it deserves.

My last bit of advice, if you do opt for the skinny trouser, is to pair it with a blouse that is meant to be worn over the waistline, not tucked in and cinched with a belt. This will allow more women, even those who wake up and feel a “fat day” coming on, to rock this look with confidence.

For the DC Style version of this post, head on over to my little corner of their style blog...

*photograph taken from Style.com

My kind of lullaby

Since I imposed my no-posting-on-the-weekends rule, I have held as steadfastly to it as I possibly could, breaking my word not more than once, maybe twice in the past few months.

But some days, especially those when I'm feeling a bit under the weather, housebound, and wistful for the feel it, write it, post it Saturdays of yore, I can't help but go against what was supposed to have been an iron-clad declaration of reclaiming a bit of non-blog life for the pup and myself and share with you something that has me absolutely mesmerized.

Whether you take an Andie, a Miranda or in fact, no approach to high-end fashion, you'll find it impossible to deny how deeply lulling the thoughtful analytic texture of Cathy Horyn's Paris Fashion Week review comes across in audio form.

Her effortless pronunciation of "Nicolas Ghesquière," the almost maternal tone with which she anoints Lanvin's Alber Elbaz "the [Yves] Saint Laurent of today," her clear-as-day passion for the inspirations and iterations that have led up to and will follow, respectively, that which she sees sashaying down the runways -- all of these reasons, not to mention the collage of pretty photos that accompany her two, two-minute documentary-like streams, have had the pup and me listening to Ms. Horyn's Parisian musings every day, often more than once a day, since last Saturday.

And while we're on the couture kick, if you haven't already done so, be sure to check out The Sartorialist's snaps from outside the venues, especially this one (despite her flats) and the second one down from here -- my favorites.

As you were,
Johanna

I heart DC Style, pt. II

After you've finished fantasizing about the creamy beige asymmetric ruffle-necked Lanvin mini I have vowed to someway, somehow* make mine before next October, please be sure to check out my second DC Style installment, a thoughtful critique of DC's ubiquitous butterfly collar.

*in all seriousness, aside from harvesting my dog's organs and paring down my cable package, I will go low - very low - for this one. Lest you forget...

You know you need a day off when...

...you ask your puppy-love, "How do you think Mommy is doing at balancing her blog-time and her non-blog time?" and his response, after a melodramatic paw-over-paw-over-throat motion is to slip his head noose-style into the strap of your handbag and feign dead.

Okay, okay, little one, I get it.


So while I'm at work today reaping the benefits of having gotten a good night's sleep, please to bide your time by checking out L'Wren Scott, Bottega Veneta and Lanvin's to die for RTW Spring/Summer '08 collections, my favorites from each of the New York, Milan and Paris Fashion Weeks, respectively.

Be back tomorrow!

10 reasons to love Natalie Portman

10. This crinkled-satin lucite-halter mini by Lanvin (charity event, 2007)

9. She loves dogs, America and evening sandals all in the same breath

8. She brings out a healthy dose of humility in every woman

7. She turned down ScarJo's breakout role

6. She has a degree (I said I was an education-ist)

5. She left Jude Law's cheating ass in Closer

4. This movie. Her character. That airport ending.

3. No one rocks make-up free and bald more beautifully

2. This gunmetal plunge gown by Lanvin (Academy Awards, 2005)

1. She spits dirtier rhyme than Bubba Sparxx