Ogle: Les Petits Joueurs

If you know me, you know I'm a total sucker for anything cute.  I can't help myself.  I go into a trance of squeals and eeps.  So it's probably no surprise to any of you that I LOVE Les Petits Joueurs.

I found out about them from following Eva Chen on Instagram (@evachen212).  She's got this signature pose which is her posing with her feet propped up in a car's backseat next to a fabulous purse and some sort of produce (usually from Fresh Direct).  She's featured a few of Les Petits Joueurs adorable creations and I was immediately in love.

Reading about them on their site, they're a pretty new brand that started really picking up over the last year and it's no surprise, but their inspiration is pop culture and Legos!

Of course I have to show you my favorites!

Mini Alex Bunny

Alex Tromp L'Oeil

AREN'T THEY SO CUTE!?

These are definitely not bags that I would label as classics or must-haves, but they are definitely different and fun!  I'm inspired to be a little more dynamic with my fashion choices when I see these adorable bags.  Who knows...maybe someone will gift me one.  Though the more I look at them, the more I want to shell out the bucks for one...!

OGLE: NY Fashion Week Favorites

It's upon us.

NYFW.

Dramaazzzz.  It's been crazy town here in the City, but the best part is that the streets are filled with the most beautiful people that have the most eclectic style.  I was feeling a little fashion fatigued myself lately (mostly due to girl brain and feeling fat...), but there have been some amazing shows that really have me feeling that fashion itch again.  

Ryan Roche is a designer I fell in love with after the last NYFW.  Her wonderful piling-on of knits makes me feel warm and fuzzy all over.  Here are a few of my fav looks from his S/S 2016 show:

A collection that I totally fell in love with was Prabal Gurung.  So pretty and so feminine with really cool cut outs showing just little slivers of skin and I'm all about the sheer look.  I have always loved it and I still do.  Here are a few of my favorite looks:

AND SEAMS.  I've normally leaned towards designs that are singular in fabric construction but differentiated by their ability to create structure without looking hard and boring.  I can't believe I'm saying this, but Carolina Herrara might be my FAVORITE SHOW.  Something different is happening there and I LOVE IT.  Here are my favorites.

OMG SLAY.  SO AMAZING.  Stay tuned for my NYFW summary of trends that are coming!  So much more to review and talk about!!

Ogle: Alison Lou Jewelry

Every now and then I find something that is just so spectacular that I can't look away.  Recently, while poking around on Instagram, I ran into Alison Lou Jewelry.  The piece that pulled me in wasn't even that weird.  It was a really cute "Mrs." Ring.  I think she's kind of known for them.  They're adorable:

She does these rings in white, yellow, and rose gold and you can choose your initial and the stone.  Loved it.  Upon further investigation, it turns out that Alison Lou isn't really just about this sappy, just married, new initial flinging audience.  She's WAY more than that.

Enter into her world of emoji jewelry.  Beware that you can get sucked in quickly.  Her stuff is all super whimsical and hilarious.  Like this Sh!t ring.  I LOVE IT SO MUCH.  I CAN'T LOOK AWAY.

She does a lot with emotional smileys, I'm a big fan of the Smiley stud...

 

And this really cute Celebration bracelet!

Downside?  This stuff is expensive.  They're not timeless enough that I want to sink a couple thousand dollars into them, but I do think they're really amazing and really cute.  While I start to feel kind of cliché for liking the Mrs. rings, that's actually the one item that I would probably pay the price for.  What do you think?  Would you rock that Shit right?? :)

Ogle to Own! Farfetch Sale

Have something fancy you've been eyeing?  Take a spin around Farfetch.com and see if it happens to be on sale!

If it's on sale, use code xx20june15 for an extra 20% off.  Here are some of my picks from the sale.

If you've been wanting something from the Valentino Rockstud collection, here's your chance.  After the discount it's a little over $1,500.

If you've been wanting a new sneaker that's not a Vans slip on (because those are all the rage right now), pick up this adorable pair from Sophia Webster.  I saw these in person recently and really regret not getting them.  I LOVE THE UNICORNS!  Less than $100.  BAM.

Wanting to change up your work wardrobe or rock pants to an upcoming wedding?  These trousers by Fleur Du Mal are awesome at $294.  For work, they can be paired with a simple blouse, but be bold for a wedding and choose a fun crop top and some big earrings!

Speaking of fun earrings, there's a great selection of luxe costume jewelry in this sale too.  I loved all the Moschino bear stuff this past season (must be after that time I regretted not getting the Charlotte Olympia Gummi Bear clutch...) and now the earrings are on sale for $185.60.

I've been loving multi-prints lately, and here's a dress I want RIGHT NOW by Philosophy for a little over $450.

Some of these things are definitely a departure from my usual color palette, so here are my favorite black and white pieces.

Happy shopping!!  Oh and Happy Father's Day :)

SO much Ogling: Oscars 2015

The Oscars are the marathon of couture fashion and so, I have to tell you which ladies I thought really killed it on the Carpet.  See my top picks!

Rosamund Pike in Givenchy

The texture behind the red and that slit are to DIE FOR.  I also love her dainty little red shoe.  She's a vision.  I also like that she didn't choose to wear too much jewelry since I think the dress does a lot of the talking on its own.

Naomi Watts in Armani

Naomi look BOMB.  I love that she picked a more modern looking dress rather than just another strapless gown.   While kind of hard to see in this picture, she was wearing these GIANT earrings that really made this outfit. 

Reese Witherspoon in Tom Ford

The gorgeous simplicity of Tom Ford on Reese Witherspoon is so glamorous.  It creates a beautiful silhouette on her body.  She chose really fun earrings that were like little clusters of stars. This whole look makes Reese look young and refreshing.  

Margot Robbie in Saint Laurent

I can't believe that Margot has ended up on Worst Dressed lists!  It's crazy!  Her dress might be a little less flashy than your average Oscars get-up, but I think she looks modern and sophisticated.  I LOVED her makeup.

There you have it.  MY PICKS!  Hope you enjoyed!

Ogle to Own: Story of Regret with Christian Dior

It pains me to write this story, but I have to in order to get it out of my system.

Some days I just want to walk around Bloomingdales.  The other day I did just that.  The weather outside sucked and I just wanted a shopping sanctuary to spend a few hours in.  Also, Bloomingdales has Forty Carrots.  If you've never been there, you HAVE to go there. Best froyo...but back to the story.

I wander into the luxe shoe department and to my surprise, there was a huge sale going on.  Prada, Fendi, Giuseppe Zanotti...the gang was all there.  Oh and some Dior...or at least that's how I had always felt about Dior.  I always felt like Dior was way too "ladylike" for me.  Yes, I'm a lady, but I don't really like to dress like one most of the time.  Give me black, grey, nude, ripped, asymmetrical, and weird...you can keep your pink and frills.

Against my instincts, I picked up a pair of classic pumps by Dior when I was being pressured by an overbearing salesperson.  The shoe wasn't anything that I wanted- it was a kitten heeled with a pointed toe in a purplish suede.  I slipped the shoe on and had a totally had a ladylike moment.

They were MAGICAL.  The shoe was comfortable.  While it was a kitten heel, it didn't look like it because of the pointed toe.  They were PERFECTION.  With a pair of jeans.  With a cute dress.  They were magnificent.  I understood them right away.  The price tag?  $340.

Not bad, right?!  I mean, we're talking about a pair of pumps that made me feel like CINDERELLA.  I don't even want to call them pumps.  They were a delicate epitome of footwear.

I walked away from the shoe.  I still don't know why.  Part of me wants to go back to see if it's still there...I've seen a lot of look-a-likes, but I can't tell you what it was about the fit of this shoe that was so perfect.

Do you have any stories of regret?  Things you wish you had bought but you didn't?  Share them with me!

Ogle, Obsess, Own: Stay Warm with New Coats

Up until now, I had been thinking that we would have a mild winter here in New York...a few storms later, I'm taking that back.

When I was walking out of my apartment yesterday to brave the cold, I looked in the mirror and I looked like a mess- I had lost all my individuality behind this black puffy coat and pom pom beanie.  My winter jacket was boring and tired.  My knit hat was looking ragged from enduring all the rain and snow.  My scarf is awesome.  It's probably the only awesome thing about my winter uniform.

Roaming the streets all I could see was a sea of Canada Goose jackets and LL Bean boots.  Nothing wrong with those things- they keep you nice and warm when the weather is awful, but there's more out there in the world of winter outerwear.

So what now?  It's time to do some shopping!  Here are things I would choose to spruce up my winter wear that are functional and still cute!

So, prices for coats range from affordably Ownable to overly expensive Ogle-able.  Here are the ones that I love:

This is a really cute and unique patterned coat from Dirk Bikkembergs at under $300

From my Obsess category, here's a pretty red coat by Jil Sander for under $600!

I also love this Camel/Black mixed coat by Atto.

And if you want to go REALLY luxe, here are my two choices.  Break that bank!

I love this ultra LUXE version of the winter parka by Mr. & Mrs.- the black fur on black parka is so classic and pretty.

If you want something a little more fitted, Givenchy has this beautiful option

Look, I know the last two coast are black, but I love black after all and if I was going to shell out bucks for an Ogle-worthy coat, it would be black, but there are a lot of really beautiful colorful coats out there for those of you who want to bring a little color to the winter.

Get shopping!  It's snowing again in NYC already...

Ogle to Own: The Shoes!

I forgot to tell you where I got married!  I was lucky enough to get married in the tropical paradise of Thailand.  My husband's family is Thai and a lot of his family was in Singapore and Thailand, so it was a great excuse to do a destination wedding.  We got married in Hua Hin, Thailand.  You probably haven't heard of it before because it's not a huge international tourist location, but I have a feeling that it won't be long until others discover it.

When it came to looking for wedding shoes, I knew I needed a sandal- no way was I going to end my wedding night with stinky feet!  I was prepared to spare no expense- this was not going to be an Ogle story.  I would buy whatever shoe I wanted.  

I'm not really a shoe junkie (if you read this blog, you know handbags are my drug of choice), so I wasn't really sure where to start, but sparkly was the first thing that popped into my mind.  I looked at countless pairs of Rene Caovilla strappy sandals, I tried on all the rhinestone covered sandals at Saks...nothing seemed to really work.  As a matter of fact, most of them were incredibly uncomfortable.

Sigh*

Now, comfort isn't usually something that matters that much to me, but in this case I knew I would have to wear them for hours.  I started to turn my eye to metallic sandals.  Metallics have been kind of "in" for a while and I've generally avoided them in sandals (though I'm not sure why), so starting to look at metallic sandals was a whole new world for me.  At the same time I started my search, Barneys was having a sale over July 4th.

BINGO!  Found them!  AND they were on sale.

Now, I had my reservations.  You see, this cute little shoe has a platform and I was really worried that it would make the shoe not look delicate or graceful.  A friend at work stopped by and took a look.  

"Dude, get them."

That's really all it took- I was checking out and 2 days later, they arrived.  I put them on, feeling a little like Cinderella with the glass slipper, and did a twirl or two in them.  They were perfect.  They were so comfortable.  It was time to Facetime my mom!  She loved them, too, and the rest is history.  

I danced all day and night in these perfect heels and you know what else?  I plan to wear them again.

About Getting Married...

My wedding wasn't at all what I had originally imagined.  When I started on Pinterest, so many of my pins were gold glitter this, rainbow colored that, but when it came to making decisions about what I really wanted, I realized that all my choices were based on pure emotions and questions that I kept asking myself:

How did this make me feel?

How did it make my mom feel??

How would it make my fiancé feel???  What will my friends think?!  Does it really represent us and our love?!?

Much of what I write about on Ogle Obsess Own are things that I see in passing- things I love on impulse.  It doesn't take a lot of pondering over (well unless it's a handbag that's an Ogle that I really want to make an Own...) because it's not going to be something that will be in photos for the rest of my life.  It's just stuff that I like, or in some cases, really like.  I don't care if other people judge me on those things.  I have no tie to them.  Sure, I like them, but I'll probably like something else tomorrow.  Ogle, Obsess, Own is about what I like right now.

For a wedding though, it's the opposite.  Every choice that you make is carefully documented by photographers (and you pay them good money to document it).  Every choice made for a wedding will say something to you for years to your friends, family, new neighbors, your kids...it's daunting, really.  The pressure!

So, before I go into the dress, the shoes, the details, and whatever else you might want to know about my wedding, I wanted to let you know how much care and thought I put into making those choices.  Stay tuned for all the nitty gritty!

Ogle: Beyonce's Body Chain

Have you guys SEEN the Beyonce propaganda on HBO?

I LOVE IT.  I know there are some Beyonce haters out there, but I don't understand those people.  I mean, if there's someone in her industry that deserves the bucks, it's Beyonce.  She works hard.  Did you see her Superbowl show?!  She TURNED IT OUT.

Anyway, there were a few times during her documentary (if that's what you want to call it) where she was in a bikini on super posh vaca or showing off her preggers belly where you can see a very faint and delicate body chain on her.  I fell in love with it.  After some furious Google Searching, I had also remember that she rocked one on her very famous and recent GQ cover pic:

I love the way the chain drapes over the body.  It adds just a little something exrta and interesting.  Laying out and not swimming?  This is the perfect accessory.  

Why isn't this kind of thing more popular?  I've probably seen 10+ vacation/resort must have guides and haven't seen a single body chain on them!

If you have an extra $3000 lying around, feel free to pick up this beautiful piece, which is by Manon.  Oh!  And pick me up one, too, while you're at it.  Of course, there are cheaper options (here and here and here).

Ogle to Own: Cyber Dream Buys

While I didn't get anything for myself during this Cyber Shopping Frenzy, there are tons of things out there that I wish I had bought!

Ahhh, the glories of having a blog...now I can tell you guys all about it!  Alrighty then!  Let's get started....time's a-wastin'!

These Givenchy Boots.  They're at a great discount and they're an extra 15% off at Yoox.com with the code YOOXTHANKS which brings them to about $370.  This puts them in my Obsess range...but for some of you that might be Own range!  Get them while the sizes are still available.

Nars Bronzer and Blush duo.  I've never been a huge makeup person, but I think that having a great bronzer and blush to shape the face really makes a difference and Nars makeup has the staying power to last all day. They have 20% off with the code NARSFF2012 bringing this duo down to under $33.

Peter Jensen's Fox Sweater.  Otte is putting their whole site on sale - 20% off!  This fox sweater is adorable and whimsical.  Just what you need for a cold winter.  

Bling bling bling!  This feather charmed necklace by Sydney Evan is on Belle and Clive today and they are offering an extra 10% off all purchases.

There are so many other lovely things out there.  Is there something that you're Ogling or Obsessing over??

Ogle, Unless You're Going to Europe...The Kooples

So about 5 months ago, my dearest friend, the Party Cat, escaped the clutches of NYC and moved across the pond to London.  I was lucky enough to get over there recently to visit her, but it was also my first trip to London ever- oh, and we made an epic stopover into Paris...a city that I've Obsessed about for years.

What was it like?

Well, the weather was pretty mucky, but that was to be expected.  What I loved about it (and maybe what I think is the most alluring thing about living in Europe) was the pace of life there.  Everyone seemed to have an understanding that while things needed to get done, they weren't going to get done at the expense of their own happiness.  I think that's something that New Yorkers should really take notice of.  Oh and the food.  Man, Paris really has that down pat.  It wasn't about anything complicated.  It was the butter.  The bread.  The ANCHOVIES.  Anyway, I digress.  Let's talk about The Kooples.

The Kooples is a store that I saw a few times when we were roaming the streets.  I loved the window displays, but for some reason, I never went into the stores.  I really regret it now!  In the US, you're trained to think that anything you see, you can eventually get online (mostly at Amazon), but when dealing with Europe, that's just not true.  Now I've learned my lesson.  Coming back and looking at The Kooples site, they don't deliver to the US.  Hence, I Ogle.  *Le sigh.*

Let me show you a few reasons why they need to deliver to the US (besides the fact that I would just give them my money):

I love how casual and classy this look is.  It's not anything new- black jeans, a cream blouse and a camel coat.  Done before, I know, but something about the styling of the shirt slightly tucked in and the coat off the shoulders seems so effortless and chic.  See the look and the pieces in their lookbook.

The woman's suit.  This is really hard to find in US, especially one this TOTALLY AWESOME (or as some might say, "totes amazeballs!")  I feel like forest green really made a comeback this fall (um, did anyone see all the coloblocking in the Celine Fall bags?  Yum.) alongside burgundy, and The Kooples has totally embraced that.  The cut of this suit is so right- dressy without being stiff.  See the details here in the lookbook. 

Last, but certainly not least, is their leather jacket selection.  I think there are some amazing options by designers here, don't get me wrong.  But, these are the ones that I would happily plop down the bucks for. Ah quand même....if they would only ship to America!  The burgundy one is so awesome I don't even have words for it.  Also, don't be fooled by the one with shearling and just think that it's normal.  It's actually a long jacket.  See the look in their lookbook.

Anyway, I could probably go on a little more about this, but I'll spare you the torture since you can't get this brand unless you go to Europe...but hey, I love having any reason to go back.  This one and getting myself to the Rue Cambon Chanel store are top of my list right now.  Paris, wait for me!

Totally Obsessed: Tsumori Chisato, are you Ogle or Obsess?

I've seen Tsumori Chisato around for a while and I don't know why I haven't been moved enough to write about it.  Her stuff is so cool and awesome and unique.  I hate to say that I've been distracted, but that must be the only reason why I would have put off writing about her and my love for her designs for so long.

Anyway, without much further ado, let's talk about Tsumori Chisato and why I love her stuff.  Being a child of the Hello Kitty era (which is still alive and stronger than ever today), I love whimsical patterns, bright colors and happy faces. I don't know where along the way I lost the urge to wear styles that featured those things.  I still love them.  They still make me really happy when I see them.

Case and point: I've been hunting for a new wallet.  My trusty Miu Miu has finally broken down, but the wide world of wallets, while colorful, isn't really inspring.  It hadn't been until I saw this adorable thing.

It's definitely not your average bear!  It's a pattern of swans with a cat.  I love it.  I would love to have this swimming around in my purse, but at a $300+ price point, it has to be just an Obsession for now.  

Beyond that painfully cute wallet, Tsumori Chisato has a lot of other items that have this same kind of sophisticated, child-drawn storybook feel.  Her clothes focus less on contouring the lines of the body and more around fun patterns and colors that almost tell a story.  Most of her dresses are large sacks of fabric which I would normally be against, but the combination of colors is just so refreshing I can't take my eyes of them.  Here are some of my favorites:

Iceberg Dot Black Dress

Four Trees Print Skirt

Sky and Dinosaur Scarf

Ribbon Dress

The colors are so vivid and different and all would look awesome under a leather jacket for fall.  I'm dying for that Dinsosaur scarf!  As much as I've put this in the Obsess bucket, I feel like it could easily be an Ogle for most people- it is a little wackier than your average dress.