Birthday Week: Day 1 Obsess, Fancy Yoga Gear

Right before my trip to Nicaragua, I kicked my workouts into high gear.  I turned my regular gym workouts into bootcamp sessions and I amped up my vinyasa yoga classes by going to hot classes which were taught in temperatures reaching to 100 degrees.

I fell in love with the hot yoga.

At first, it was horrible.  I hated every super sweaty moment I was in class.  I counting the seconds until the end of those grueling 75 minutes.  My body would slip off the mat and my other body parts.  I wouldn't be able to get balance because of all the sweat dripping from parts of my body that I didn't even know could sweat.  A friend of mine, the one who introduced me to it, continued to push me.  I continued to go and torture myself.  After maybe the fifth time, I reached hot yoga nirvana (don't ask me how...I don't even remember).  I was finally more comfortable with the heat (though comfortable is an overstatement, if there ever was one) and I was hooked.  I've been doing hot yoga (and hot pilates, yay!) for about three months now and I love it.  Now, to equip myself (Final Fantasy style)!

the perfect skidless (+3 endurance!  To keep me from slipping off my mat so I can stay focused)

the perfect sports bras (+2 agility!  To allow me to move more freely without worrying about nip slips)

This one from Athleta in a funky purple pattern.

This one from lululemon has a really cute back and is just a little more unique than your average black sports bra.

The perfect bottoms (+5 dexterity!  To give me that friction to get up to the crow pose!)

These from Athleta, pretty simple but just long enough that I would be able to get into poses without sliding off my legs

These super schnazzy ones from lululemon.  The probably get a +2 in booty shaking hotness, too.  Extra points!

While I'm doing hot yoga now in far less styling yoga duds, I'd love to have some of these in my closet!  These aren't really in the usual Obsession price range, but somehow, I can't get over pay $55 for a pair of workout pants.  Who knows...I'm a softy for hot pink and I might have to give in to those hot pants from lululemon.

Birthday Week: Day 1 Ogle, MIU MIU.

I have loved Miu Miu for a long time.

Years ago, my first fancy handbag purchase was a lovely Miu Miu at Barneys...a red, over-sized, fold-over clutch with a strap.  I love it.  I still have it.  It's been worn to bits and pieces and needs revitalizing, but I will never throw it out.  

After I fell hard for that perfect red bag, Miu Miu started to beef op their jewelry and I remember when I first saw these pics of Miroslava Duma in these adorable apple earrings- earrings that I passed up when I was at the airport in Singapore:

I called to almost every Miu Miu in the US when I got back from the trip to find that all the earrings were sold out.  Sigh*...

As much as I regret not getting those earrings, Miu Miu never disappoints- there are always new things that I love.  I have found a new item to Ogle...

How lovely is this little bag??  It's as perfect as a Pomeranian.  And yes, Pomeranians are perfect.

Oh and what would go inside this delightful little purse?  This (oh yes and I would make it fit):

Like I said...birthday week is all about dreams.  Here are just two of mine.  Enjoy :)

THE TIME HAS COME: BIRTHDAY WEEK

So!  The long awaited week is here!  My birthday is this Friday and while tons of girls out there dread turning a year older, I love my birthday and it's always welcome!

What does that mean to for you, my dear readers?  It's going to be a week of days packed with everything and anything I want...mostly Ogles.  But who cares! It's my birthday week and I'll do whatever I want!

Stay tuned for the fabulous start of my BIRTHDAY WEEK!  YAY!

Ogle: Venessa Arizaga

Usually, I remember where I see things.  In this case, I can't remember, but that doesn't make what I'm about to show you any less awesome.

BLING.

Designer Vanessa Arizaga totally takes bling bling and statement jewelry to the next level.  I love how whimsical her jewelry is with all the little dangly charms and stones.  Because of all the color and the stars, it reminds me a little of Rainbow Brite

Anyway, here are my favorites:

The Crazy Heart 

The Salty Lime!

These fancy baubles would be great worn with a plunging white T or with a fitted black tank for a night out on the town.  As fancy as they are, they come with a matching fancy price tag.  Ogle away.

For more lovely bling, check out her site!  Enjoy.

Obsess: Scuba Returns! In bag form from Leghilà

Remember back in January when I was all amped about how this was going to be the year for scuba??

Well, fashion has not let me down!  Neoprene is still alive and kicking.  Need evidence?  Enter Leghilà!

While on Luisaviaroma.com, I spotted an adorable bag:

At first glance, I thought it was another wannabe Hermes, but taking a closer look, I realized there was something different about this brand.  The bag wasn't leather- it's neoprene!  This brand has a lot of really unique styles and while they aren't leather, they are just as cute!  They also have an affordable price point (around $395...I said affordable, not cheap).

Aside from this style, Leghilà actually has bags in a lot of really cute styles.  Look at this adorably sporty red and white duffle:

If you want something a little cheaper, but just as cute, they have one style on Yoox.com

This one is actually my favorite.  While I wouldn't usually recommend a white bag to anyone, this one is fabric and should be easier to clean...right? 

If you've got some extra cash, they have a really great studded version, too:

 

What are your thoughts?  You like the non-leather versions?  In a city like New York where everything gets filthy so easily, it might be nice to have a bag that I can just throw in with the wash.

Own! Birthday Dress 2012

If you guys have been loyal readers (first of all, thank you!) then you know that it's that time of year again where I embark on the journey across the sea of online shops in hopes of finding that one dress of perfection for my birthday.

This year, I have enlisted the help of a couple of my good friends and we have come together and created a Pinterst board.  There are so many dresses out there and the more I looked, the more I feel that dresses have become lazy.  Where's the fun and flare?

What if I don't want to wear:
- sequins
- metallic
- form fitters
- cleavage barers

I know- I can't believe I'm saying this either, but hey, the times are a-chaingin' and I'm not really out wrangle biscuits anymore (read: manhunt).  That being said, I thought that it would be easy to find something unique and still fun without being slutty (for under $300).   I want something with a cool shape in a fun color.  The runways were packed this year with these types of styles so I thought that would be reflected in some of the lesser-than-Runway designers.   BOY, was I wrong.  The pickin's are slim, in my opinion.

Usually, by this time, I have a plethora of choices and I'd have to painfully choose three to five to show you here, but truthfully, I only have about three in my consideration set right now...here they are:

I love this Friend Of Mine Dress.  Friend Of Mine is an amazing brand that I've seen on tons of Australian e-commerce sites and I've just been waiting for US sites to pick them up.  I'm so excited to see it at Revolve Clothing.  I've actually already ordered this dress, but I just feel like it's not jazzy enough to be a birthday dress.  I love love LOVE the color so I had to have it anyway.  I'm anxious to see if it will fit me the way it fits this model.

I'm really feeling the ocean-y colors here.  They're so calm and relaxing.  This dress is by Gypsy 05 which is a brand that I've never tried on before.  I love the style here, too.  It's so laid back and easy.  It's sexy without being slutty.

This dress is from ZARA!  You might remember that a while ago, I had been really opposed to shopping Zara just because I felt that their stores were a mess.  While their stores are still a mess, their online shopping experience is great and you really can't go wrong with free shipping and free returns.  Once this dress comes  into stock again, I'll probably scoop it up just because I love the colors and the patterns so much.

Notice anything weird here??  NONE of the dress are black!  This is a huge step for me.  To all you out there that are wondering if there's life after black, I think there is.

Let me know which dress you like best!  If there are ones out there that I should consider, I'm clearly open to options.

OGLE: Really Pretty Roarke

Confession: I love scarves.  If it was possible to not sweat in the summer while in a scarf, I would rock a scarf year round.  Wait, what's that you say, Internets?!  It IS possible?!  Where??  How??!  Show me the way!

While browsing one of my favorite blogs, vanessajackman.blogspot.com, I saw this lovely pic:

There are a lot of lovely things about this picture...the girl, the hair, the blazer...but her scarf- JUST LOOK AT IT.  It's awesome.  It's really pretty.  I know- such a simple adjective to describe something so blingtastic, but it is- it's just really pretty!

I took a look at the scarf in the picture again. I had seen this scarf before...in an email!  I took to my inbox and scoured far and wide.  It was an email from Popsugar!  It remembered clicking on a fantastic rainbow scarf that kind of resembled this teal one:

Thank goodness for Popsugar...I didn't have to spend sleepless nights trying to figure out where this girl got this necklace...the sad part is that due to the high price tag, I'll have to only Ogle.  I do think that the craftsmanship and uniqueness of the scarf make it close to worth it (maybe?), but the day I have $400+ hanging out, there are a lot of things on my list that I'll have to pick up before this one.

Who knows...maybe this is the start to a fun DIY project for me??

Inspiration does wild things to people (read: I am not good at arts and crafts).

Obsesssss: Alison Cutlan

Pinterest is a funny thing sometimes.

Sometimes it leads you down a rabbit hole on tumblr, where click after click after click after click, you still can't find the source of what you're looking for.  Unless you have some savvy pinning friends, forget finding the true source of an image.

I remember when I first pinned this image, bracelets by Alison Cutlan:

I clicked through and was taken to The Henrik Vibskov Boutique where the bracelets were no where in sight.  I did Googled Ms. Cutlan and came up with a site that was a work in progress, but no information on where or how to find these adorable bracelets.

I was at a loss.  I gave up.  I momentarily hated Pinterest for leading me on and making me covet a bracelet so much, but not giving me a way to find it.  In retrospect, I was really angry at the interwebs for not making the bracelets easier to find  (I shook my fist at Google), but I moved on.

THEN my web life and my real life joined and magic happened.  This weekend, while strolling around SoHo this weekend,  I came upon the Henrik Vibskov store- I didn't even know that this store existed in NY!  What a nice surprise!  I walked in.  I can't say that I was really hopeful about finding the Alison Cutlan designs, but I looked.  I glanced into the accessories display case and saw nothing.  Slightly disappointed, I started to walk towards the back of the store.  Suddenly, next to the register, THERE THEY WERE.

"They just came in!" said the very friendly sales girl.  She was just as excited to tell me about them as I was to see them.  They were amazing in person! While they appear to be fabric, they are actually a mesh wire on the outside that appear to be spray painted to give them a gradient colored effect.  Inside the mesh are small glass beads that make the bracelet seems almost glittery when they catch the light just right.  In short, I LOVE THEM.

Luckily, the internet is fast and constantly growing world and now it's actually possible to find these bracelets (AND necklaces!)

Here are some places where you can pick them up:
Asos (of course.  They have everything)
Henrik Vibskov Boutique
FarFetch

While I love these bracelets, I have graduated to wanting to pay more than $50 for accessories...I've made some (FEW) exceptions, but I'm going to marinate on these.  If I see them again, I might just have to get one.  They would be awesome for layering in with other bracelets.  I particularly love this one:

Oh, and Pinterest and I made up. We're still in love and doing well.  Thank you for your concern.

Obsess: Awesome Etsy Find: QooQoo Fashion

Sometimes thinking about Etsy makes me feel roverwhelmed.  BUT!  not too long ago (I don't remember how long ago at all) they updated their site and now it's way more user-friendly and it's a lot easier to find the things that I might like.  Similarly to Pinterest when you start an account, Etsy will ask that you go through a "taste test" so that they can suggest to you items that you might be interested.  I completed the "taste test" and one of the first items that appeared in my results was this:

Anonymous Bear Leggings.  Amazing.  That's all I could think.  I wanted more.  

I did some more snooping around on the interwebs and found that this brand, QooQoo Fashion, is by a graphic designer in Latvia- her name is Alyona Bauska and her stuff is SO cool.  I could totally see her stuff in boutiques in NY (though I never have).  I love the colors and the designs!  Here are some of my favorites that you can get now on Etsy:

Baroq Mini Sirt

Cosmo Bear Dress

Golden Cloud Leggings

Aquarium Dress- this one is amazing.  I want this to wear on my birthday.  I can't think of a more appropriate dress for me.

What do you think??  Are you obsessed?  I am.  Let me find this brand on Facebook and fan it.  Ooooo, just did it.

Own: Flowtastic Ts from OAK

I'm in love with T shirts.  Any time I see a T shirt that has a little bit of character to it, I immediately fall in love with it and feel like I have to have it- no matter the price.  When it comes to T shirts, there is no Obsess or Ogle.  There is only OWN.

If you live in NYC and you're down with simple Ts, then you're probably familiar with the store OAK.  The store carries a few other brands (Acne, T by Alexander Wang, Cheap Monday and more), but they have their own brand as well.  And you know what else they have?

EPIC Ts.  What does that mean?  Well, glad you asked.  Let me enlighten you.

A T shirt, at the core, is something that should fit you just so- sounds generic and indescriptive, but let me explain- it should lay across your frame loosely and appear totally comfortable.  By default, it should be comfortable so the material that the shirt is made of is incredibly important.  What makes a T shirt epic?  The flowiness factor!  While a T shirt can be loosely fitted and comfortable, that doesn't necessarily mean that it's going to be flowy.   Case and point- cotton.  Sometimes cotton is kind of stiff.  While it's comfortable and loose fitting, it might not be flowy.  This is not a problem with the OAK Ts.  Let me show you.

THIS is what I'm talking about.  I LOVE how it drapes in the back.  To the unsuspecting, this top is just your average T, but when you turn around...aahhh, I love this shirt.  While the shirt is 100% cotton, I can say that it felt like cotton that was really nice and worn in.  It was so delicate and soft!

Something light and stripe-y 

If you want that flowy feeling all over, I would highly recommend THIS DRESS.  As I was feeling all lovey dovey with the T shirts at OAK, I happened to also try on this dress and walk out with it.  It's so soft and so sexy.  I would highly recommend it for the summer (because it's super lightweight) with a fancy bra underneath (like maybe something from Only Hearts).

I'm hooked. I might have to get another one of those dresses because I can't even tell you what it feels like to be wrapped in it.