In my opinion a North Face jacket was nothing more than an expensive outdoor coat. And the outdoor type of look never appealed to me, but I wanted it just as much as everyone else and probably for the same reason. The North Face label. The little text on the left shoulder. What an embarrassing reason!
Now, a few years after that whole obsession, I find myself with the same kind of fetish, except with higher-end brands like Gucci and Louis Vuitton. Although I’m not as tense about labels, in the back of my mind I know that I want that certain Gucci logo bag or the pair of Chanel sunglasses not exactly because I want or need them, but so I can feel “in style.” It got me thinking, as we grow older do we act the same with different commodities? Are labels constantly going to give us that certain satisfaction that we’ve always felt after buying them?
It may seem that I’m against brands, which is simply untrue, but everyone wearing the same thing gets really boring, no? As much as I love some of the most popular labels it almost seems like buying the same thing equals getting a nod of approval from friends and the community. I know that’s how I felt used to and sometimes even now.
Two of the most inspiring new hairstyles are Katie Holmes’ layered bob and Renee Zellweger’s cropped cut. Here are the secrets to what they did and who can pull it off. |
While most stylists would not recommend this hairstyle on someone with a round face shape like Renee, the style works very well for her because of her sharp cheekbones. This is a perfect hairstyle for women with fine hair because it adds fullness and body. Those with thick, curly hair should wear it shorter (á la Kerry Russell from her “Felicity” days) or a bit longer to avoid the dreaded football helmet comparison.
Women need to remember that this style is not as low-maintenance as it appears. There are no ponytail fixes, and you must commit to wash and style your hair everyday.
Unfortunately for Tom (who, rumor has it, loves women with long hair), Katie’s long, girlish hairstyle did not flatter her body type or facial features. Katie has a downward-turned eye shape and a long, narrow body. Her long hair seemed to drag down her features even more, making her appear droopy and shapeless. Her new chin-length style lifts her face and opens her eyes, and the shaggy layers add movement and a grown-up sex appeal.
Virtually anyone can pull off this look. The secret is adjusting the length and amount of layers to compliment your face shape.
Take Note:
Those with long, narrow faces should add side-swept bangs to add fullness to the face.
Women with round faces should aim for a below-the-chin length and long layers to avoid adding additional width.
Women with squared-shaped faces will find that long, soft layers will soften hard jaw lines and add femininity to their look.
While these styles look beautiful on Renee and Katie, remember that they won’t work for everyone. Make sure to consult with your hair designer to customize a look that works best for you.
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| Take advantage of all the wonderful products available for short hairstyles. Usage of waxes, pomades, gels and creams will be great to bring out the best of your short hair. If you are looking for a soft and sultry look (think Katie Holmes’ softly layered bob), use a cream based product like Fresh’s Anti-Frizz Hair Cream! This is a fabulous short hair product because it adds sheen, texture, and control to short hairstyles. For fun and funky hair like Victoria Beckham’s latest style, try a hair wax to funkify your style. Try using a little Luco Hair Spray Wax and twist the product in. Remember to keep your short ‘do fun and stylish by using product. | |
| With short hairstyles, it is very important to maintain your haircut every 4-6 weeks. Maintaining your style is important when you have short hair because short hairstyles can lose their shape faster than other hairstyles. Short hair can also benefit from color and highlights to give it dimension and depth. You can up your funk factor by putting in reds and copper highlights. Blonde colors are also a great way to brighten your short strands. Just remember that, along with your haircut, maintaining your color is essential. |
Short hair is fresh and fun and let’s your personality really shine through. Short hair will suit you best if you get the right style for your face shape and maintain it by scheduling appointments with your stylist regularly. Enjoy your short style!
Photo credit: OiMax
Everyone is looking for that fun job that you can enjoy and there are plenty. At Sonics you get to skate around and serve people and engineers seem to work at Google because of the playground environment; let’s face it: we all want to have an exciting job and sometimes that’ll even makeup for the low wages.
Crazy as it may sound, cafes in Tokyo actually hire young, cute girls that will dress up like elegant maids and serve their customers, which are mostly men, like masters. Many Japanese people, even families, are into “costume playing” or dressing up like anime characters and a few years ago the first maid cafe was created in a city in Tokyo. Service is a lot different than a regular restaurant or cafe and the workers treat their customers with great respect.
So who actually comes to these cafes? Young boys and rich men? Not quite, but close. Most of the customers end up being geeks that read the manga and watch the anime shows on TV. I find it rather amusing.
I think the whole idea of working in costumes is an interesting idea, but I think I would get tired of it in the end. The maid costume is cute and certainly more creative than an ordinary work dress code, but the whole job working as a maid sounds very demanding. So what’s your idea of a fun job?
 | Have you seen Ashlee Simpson’s new |
So what can you do to get Ashlee Simpson’s new hue? Well, if you have never been a redhead but have always wanted to try it, use a semi-permanent hair color the first time around. This way, if you end up not swooning over the new style, it will wash out after a few weeks. However, if you do like it, you can just replace the semi-permanent with a permanent color the next time. To get this style at home, I suggest doing this only if your haircolor is in the same level naturally. For example, if you are currently sporting your natural haircolor, which happens to be dark blonde or light brown, a DIY job would come out super stylish. However, if this will be a drastic change, leave it to the professionals.
For those of you wanting a drastic change, see your stylist ASAP for this look. Bring in a current picture of Ashlee Simpson to your stylist so that he/she won’t be confused about the color. Your stylist will probably have to do more than one process, and for extra shine, you can request a shine enhancing glaze to finish your color off.
To keep your style stunning, use color protecting shampoo, conditioner, and styling products daily. We suggest using a brand like Pureology that keeps haircolor from fading. Try Pureology’s Hydrate Shampoo and Conditioner for dry and damaged hair. It will leave your color bright and your hair healthy. |  |
Next, follow up with a leave-in conditioner that will leave your hair silky smooth as well as protect it. We like Aussie Sydney Smooth Heat Protector and Leave-In Conditioner Spray. |  |
If you want the ravenous redhead ‘do that Ashlee Simpson is currently sporting, get it today and show off your fresh new style. Just remember to keep it looking fresh and bright with color protecting styling aids!
Most women love the look of highlights in their hair, but several factors, including time and money, may be keeping them from booking that salon appointment. Great strides have been made in at-home highlighting kits. You can achieve subtle or bold highlights in a variety of colors, and you can do it in the privacy of your own home. Check out these products and tips for DIY highlighting: |
 | Garnier Multi-Lights – Garnier claims to have the fastest highlight kit on the market – the products stays on for just 20 minutes. The non-drip formula makes for easy application. |
 | Sun-in with Lemon – This is an old school highlighter that is obviously still going strong today. Spray it on, sit in the sun or apply heat from your blow dyer and you’ll get lighter hair! |
 | Revlon Custom Effects Highlights – I love that this kit comes with a toner to cancel any brassiness and give you beautiful, shiny color. From a trusted name in beauty – Revlon. |
Well, the contest is over and I must say there were sooo many wonderful entries! Really, there were too many to choose from and I wonder where everyone gets there creativity from. As much as I loved everyone’s outfit, I could only pick 5 winners for this contest and believe me, it wasn’t the easiest thing to do. Everyone had really great outfits and I wish I could let everyone win a nice pearl bracelet, but unfortunately, I can’t. :(
So the winners are… Bonnie, Trixy, Michelle, Trisch, and Julia!
Congratulations to all of you and everyone else that contributed to the contest. I have emailed the 5 winners, so please reply back to me as soon as possible! This contest was a huge success and I look forward to hosting more in the future!
| Paris Hilton wears this popular look | A great holiday style that always looks chic is voluminous hair styled off the face with a
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| Kristen Bell's ponytail screams chic! | Another stylish look is the ponytail. The party perfect ponytail is a dressed up version of an everyday pony. This is a look that can take you from work time to party time very easy. To get this look:
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Julia Stiles has the perfect messy updo! | For a holiday event that calls for more of a dressed-up ‘do, try a chic updo.
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With all these stylish holiday hair choices, you should be able to switch your look from one party to the next with ease. Have a great holiday, and more importantly, great holiday hair!
I personally have never been to prom, *thankfully* (all the drama is just too much), but I have seen my some photos from my friends junior prom. They all look beautiful with their hair done by professionals and their makeup so perfect. But when it comes to the dresses, sometimes I wonder, “What was she thinking?!” They’re dressed in bright neon green and pink gowns, silky dresses that shine like a sun’s ray in the light, and the diamonds embedded into the dress line which makes it seem more tacky than ever.
Okay, so most of us don’t live the life of Blair Waldorf or A-class celebrities, so dressing up for an event, riding in the limousine, and eating at the most luxurious restaurant is extremely exciting. Most girls don’t have many opportunities to dress up formally and feel like the princess that they have always been dreaming of being. That being said, I know it can become overwhelming when choosing a dress so important, and sometimes I think girls go overboard. So here are my suggestions to picking the right gown for you which will make you look like a part of a red-carpet event, instead of circus:
- Stay with traditional elegant colors: black, white, navy, light pastel colors. I would personally stay away from bright colors like green – they end up looking more tacky than elegant.
- Prints are fun to play with, however, a simple design also looks gorgeous, just make sure it has a little bit of texture like ruffles.
- Have a favorite red-carpet star? Take notice of what type of gowns and dresses she wears to achieve that look!
- Don’t overdo your hair. Tons of braids will make the overall look really overdone. I suggest a nice wave of curls or a bun styled up for a special occasion.
- Shoes are important too! We all know that they’re not going to be incredibly comfortable, but I recommend getting a pair that will let you glide across the floor instead of tripping all over your dress. Sometimes that means a higher heel would work better, but it’s really up to you.
The most important thing is that you enjoy the night. Have fun preparing for the big night, but don’t let it get to you! And don’t kill yourself if another girl is wearing the SAME exact dress. Instead put a little humor into the whole situation and compliment her on how beautiful her dress is. :)
Remember that saying, “Which one came first, the chicken or the egg?” I’ve always been baffled by this question. Really which one came first? In order to have an egg you need to have a chicken, but without the egg you wouldn’t have had a chicken. Right? This riddle has always paused my train of thought when I find myself attempting to form an answer.
So my question is, was it the designers and fashion buyers that decided that this type of clothing is what older women are going to buy and wear or did the older women decide that they wanted to wear these type of styles forcing stores to sell that particular look? If you think about it, one side needs the other in order for anything to work, so who decides on which trends stays and leaves?
Unlike many situations, where the buyer decides what’s going to stay popular, it seems like with older women there fashion is decided for them. Many believe that they can no longer wear short dresses or that v-neck blouses are just unacceptable at their age. Whether I agree with this or not, it seems to me like the sellers are controlling the customers to think that they should dress a certain way. This is true in many other situations with younger generations, but as we all know, some things are in one day but the following day they are extinct.
So if there are those fashion trends that were sought out to be the must-have of the season, but unfortunately fail, causing changes in designs and looks, then why do I feel like each season for older women seems to be the same old same old in Japan? This is like one of those riddles that I can’t seem to grasp a solution to. Maybe it’s because older women want to buy these incredibly boring styles or it could be because older women choose to go with what the stores are selling which end up to be what designers think they want to wear. I really can’t tell who decides, because as I said before without the other it’s hard for one to exist. But whoever came first, I think they were totally wrong.
I do love fashion, but when I’m at home I tend to get too comfortable with my surroundings that I don’t care about my look as much as I do when I’m outside. Or is that the case with everyone? There’s always those women that claim to never dress down, no matter what, and I admire them.
The way my wardrobe works is pretty simple: there’s the “good” clothes and then the regular pile. When I think about it, I treat my “good” clothes like they’re so precious, so fragile and I never think about wearing them inside in fear that I might ruin them. Don’t get me wrong here, I dress fairly well at home too, I’m not in sweatpants or anything like that, but if I walk out of the house in what I’m wearing, I don’t look exactly fashionable. I wonder, does this mean I’m a fashion faker? Should we dress well both inside and out of the house?
With so many people raging over the fact that celebrities have gone too far with designing, there are still some that are out to show off their skills. Victoria Beckham has recently debuted her newest collection of upscale dresses and we all want to know what the collection looks like, right? Well, it’s not that easy with Victoria Beckham; you must have an appointment to see her full collection of dresses. That’s very posh of her!
“This is a very personal collection for me. I’ve always been drawn to intricate, seam-detailed designs as their structure enhances the flattering shape of a woman’s silhouette. My signature dress collection is timeless, a modern interpretation of my inspirations.”
So what else do we want to know about her collection besides the designs? The price, of course. Reports have stated that the dresses are priced from $600-$1400, and others have reported that it even goes up to $3,500. What?! And I thought Lindsay Lohan’s leggings were expensive. I really don’t think a celebrity, even as glamorous as she is, can pull off a price range like that. It just not reasonable to me. Catherine Malandrino doesn’t even charge that much and I think it’s silly of Victoria Beckham to try to go up against true designers.
As I’ve written before in my posts, I think celebrities should stay out of designing because when they do step into the fashion world, talented designers lose the spotlight they deserve. Victoria Beckham is a beautiful and talented person with many skills; I just think she should stick to singing and be the one that models clothes instead of designing them.
Being an Asian girl, growing up with mostly Caucasian kids had its good times and bad. I still remember being called ‘flat face’ or ‘Chinese eyes’ and it really hurt when I was little. Now I can just laugh about it all, but inside I can still feel that pain that I had before. But does that drive me to go to far lengths to feel fit in? Of course not; I have matured and I actually love my differences and the way I look. But I can understand why many Asians and other women of ethnic groups choose to alter their looks and go under surgery so they can feel better about themselves.
Many Asian women undergo double eyelid surgery to change the look of their eyes.
For instance, double eyelid surgery is a common surgery that many Asian women go through. Most Asians are born with a very small crease in their eyelid or nothing at all. Nowadays, many Asian women are led to think that the Caucasian look, including the eyes, are much more attractive which cause many to undergo changes. It’s quite common in Japan for women to use special glue to lift their eyelids up to make them look more Western. Even magazines recommend girls to consider surgery to look better.
I understand where a lot of these girls are coming from when they say they want to look better, but I feel that there’s really no need to change their physical appearance. These girls seem to be very weak towards criticism and the media, making them feel like they are not as pretty as another girl. The media does tend to pressure women into thinking that beauty is one or the other, but I think we should all understand that there’s really no specific standard to being beautiful. I think it’s time for women to become stronger and say to themselves, “I am beautiful, even if I don’t look like the woman next to me.”
Just to keep things straight, I want to say that I have no problem with surgery, I have nothing against people that do it, and I’m not saying that you shouldn’t do it either. However, I think that all women of different races should be proud of their differences and embrace their beauty. Let’s face it, every one’s different – even celebrities look different, meaning everyone has a different part of them that makes them attractive. Besides, surgery often means lots of pain and money, and some cases don’t even work out like you expected. I think women with different facial looks are absolutely gorgeous and they have a special beauty that no other can have. Why not treasure it?
When the economy isn’t at its best and jobs aren’t easy to find, how does one go shopping and still be fashionable? The first thing that came to my mind was: thrifting! Although I don’t go thrifting that much (I really just don’t go shopping), I find thrift stores awfully cheap with some items that you could never find at a regular store. Plus you can find some designer items that are worth so much more than the price at thrift stores.
But what about all those other people that resent going to thrift stores? They always tell me, “Someone else has worn that,” or “It’s not new.” Yes, someone else has probably worn the clothes sold at thrift stores, but what’s so wrong with that? Or some find thrifting part of the lower class and hate the idea of bargain shopping.
I really wouldn’t feel the pressure of going into a thrift store and I don’t look over my shoulder to see if someone’s watching. Nor do I feel guilty about buying something that I know I could have bought at full price. All I can say is that as long as the clothes are fashionable I don’t mind going thrifting for it. Some of the most stylish people thrift, so why not? And this is for all those people that think they need to spend lots of money to look good: You really can’t buy style!
The fashion industry is taking a new turn now and some models are never too old to become the face of a brand. We all like to see beautiful young models in their teens and early twenties advertise for big houses, but to actual customers, it’s not relatable, especially if you’re older than the average fashion model.
Let’s face it, you have to be part of the rich class if you can buy brand name clothes at a young age, and obviously a lot of us can’t. However, when you’re more stable, have a good job or even about to retire, there’s more leeway to spending big amounts of money on clothes or other luxuries. And many of these successful thirty, forty, fifty year old women don’t want to buy clothes or beauty products from a young girl that has a skinny figure or absolutely no flaws in her skin to begin with. It’s just not relatable and many buyers might start to think, “These products aren’t made for me, they’re for young people.”
Many advertisers have noticed this amongst older customers and are now using older models in their thirties even forties to try help the customer relate to the the model and the brand. Flipping through fashion magazines, I see legendary models like Claudia Schiffer – 37, Naomi Campbell – 38, Linda Evangelista – 43, and Monica Bellucci – 43 gracing some of the top brands in the industry.
These women not only know how to model, but although they are growing older, they are still very beautiful. Everyone wants to be beautiful and classy when they grow old, I know I do! And I think this a really good influence to the industry and the customers. Campaigns with older models seem to be more calm, sophisticated, yet still sexy than the regular campaigns, which I think is a great way to market high fashion.
Models like these also teach a great lesson: there’s nothing wrong with growing older. I am even scared of losing my youth sometimes, but when I see these models there’s a sigh of relief. And I think to myself, “Growing old doesn’t seem too bad after all.”
1. Cleanse and moisturize your face! If you still have acne (like me) refer to acne skin care products like Proactiv or my personal favorite: Neutrogena Oil Free Acne Wash.
2. Lotion, lotion, lotion. If you want to have soft, radiant skin lotion is the item for you. Just apply lotion or cream to your body (works better after bathing) every day.
3. A must-have in your purse: chapstick (or lipgloss). It’s so easy to get chapped lips, especially in the winter time.
4. Conair is like my favorite word! Combing hair on a daily basis (yes, some girls don’t brush their hair) can easily boost your look!
5. Biting nails isn’t only a bad habit – it also makes your nails look awful… Trim your nails every now and then to give it that natural look.
6. Brush your teeth. I know, this sounds so silly, but your teeth won’t color as fast and plus it gives you that fresh feeling after brushing them!
7. SMILE! Take that frown off your face while listening patiently in class – it’ll make you look so much more attractive.
Those are the few things I strive to do everyday. I know – true beauty comes from the inside, but there’s no harm in trying to make your facial appearance nice, is there?
The other day I was glancing through magazines and I see a picture of Daria Werbowy and I think to myself, “What in the world is on her foot?” I take a better look and I notice that it’s a tattoo. As a model, you’d think their skin should be flawless and clear with nothing on it, so it actually was a pretty big shock to me.
So I’m thinking, “Well Daria’s one of those big famous models, she can get away with it and still not have it harm her career.” Just to make sure that she’s one of the few models with a tattoo, I check it up online and man was I wrong! I was surprised at how many models had tattoos; Freja Beha, Isabeli Fontana, Gisele Bundchen, Carolyn Murphy – there’s just so many of them with them.
I find any girl with a permanent tattoo very brave to commit herself to having something on her skin forever. Just like I wouldn’t put bumper stickers on my car, I would never want to decorate my skin in ink. Even if I wanted to express my love towards someone, like Nick Cannon did by putting a huge Mariah tattoo on his back, I still wouldn’t have enough nerve to do it. Maybe that’s because I was raised to think that it’s bad, but I don’t think it is really. I just like my skin the way it is. I
However, today I was reading an article in a magazine and it was about removing tattoos. There’s actually experts that can remove them, but from the article, it seems like a difficult task. And extremely costly… it’s not something you can do in one session. I’m glad that I haven’t gotten a tattoo, but I think it really shows a lot about someone, and in many ways it’s neat. Just not for me I guess.
Whether you consider this is in or out, think twice about your outfit because there are guys with strong strong opinions!
As a classmate and I try to concentrate in calculus for our last finals, we can’t help but get distracted by these girls in our class that dress – well let’s just say not so pleasant to the eyes. One of our recent text convos looked like this:
Friend: What the hell is that dumb girl wearing? ???
Me: You look at her way too much. Just ignore her.
Friend: She’s in my line to the board… It pains me it’s like one of those things that is so gross you can’t turn away. You just go DAMN what happened?
Me: haha I know how you feel.
Friend: That girl is so trashy! Black bra that you can see. c’mon seriously.
After you’ve read this conversation it sounds like two normal college girls squabbling over some other girl in class. Well, no. It ends up that this friend of mine is actually a guy and no he’s not gay or into fashion and art. Just your typically college boy that wants to get passed tests and finals.
“High heels, ripped jeans, brown belt, see through shirt with the black bra, and the zebra print bag – none of those matched each other!” exclaimed my friend as we were walking out of class. Sighing he adds, “That girl has no fashion sense whatsoever.”
This whole remark made me laugh, but later it got me thinking, do guys really notice that much? This friend of mind never appealed to me as the type that criticizes a girl’s fashion, so I was utterly surprised later when I looked back at the conversation. So I guess straight guys do care more or less about how we dress. Never did I think that, in a town where I live in, I would meet a guy with such a strong opinion about clothes. It gives me all the more reason to think twice about what I wear before I leave the house. haha :)
School is just about to start for everyone or has already started and I think a good way to start off would be with another giveaway. One thing I have found very important after all these years of living and trying to live my life its fullest is the importance of time. Time flies by all the time, whether we know it or not, and every now and then I know it’s hard to keep track, but it would be a whole lot easier with a brand new watch, would it not?
So Fashion Addict has teamed up with OrientalWatchSite.com and is giving away to one lucky winner a brand new Orient watch retailing at $80!
Orient Automatic Men's Watch
I know, I know, (to all the ladies) you’re probably thinking, “Why in the world would I want to wear a men’s watch?”As much as I can agree with your thought process there, I can’t help but play around and try on my own father’s watches. Men’s watches such as the CFPAA002D have that certain boldness and when I see women wearing them, it just makes them look so much more edgy and trendy. Like my favorite Kim Kardashian:
Kim Kardashian's rocking a men's watch, why don't you?
Still not convinced enough to wear it yourself? No problem, it’s always nice to surprise your boyfriend with a unexpected gift, or even show your family how much you enjoy their company by giving them a sweet new watch. And for all you men reading my blog, (don’t deny – I know you read it), this is definitey a thing to participate in. So enter the contest! I know you’ll have fun!
All you have to do is:
1. Explain in the comments section why you would wear a men’s watch OR Why time is important to you.
2. Make sure you enter your email address so I can contact the lucky winner.
3. Be on time! (haha) The contest will be running from 8/19/09 – midnight of 8/25/09. Late entries won’t be included so make sure you get here before it’s over!
4. Tell all your friends about it and blog posts are a plus!
5. And finally have fun with this and subscribe to my feed to recieve all the updates on this contest!
So what are you waiting for? Here’s your chance to win an awesome new watch for yourself or even as a gift for a friend, so go ahead and enter!
Extensions have long been popular in Hollywood, with extension lines from 
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