Wednesday, September 7, 2011 at 12:41PM 
Video by The Viral Factory
How do you launch Europe's largest urban shopping centre? Cram 100 years of style into 100 seconds. The video (already a viral hit) celebrates a century of fashion in East London, from September 13, 1911, to September 13, 2011, when the shopping centre opens. How brillz is that?! If you've seen it, here it is again and if you haven't, enjoy!
Wednesday, September 7, 2011 at 10:33AM Originally posted in The CLOSET
Back before Blackberries, iPhones and Katy Perry, geeks were, well, geeks. They played chess during the week, hit up Star Trek conventions on weekends and picked their noses the rest of the time ;) Not that there's anything wrong with that (except for maybe the nose-picking part). Now, geeks have become full-fledged rockstars; they've created our can't-live-without iPods (and iPads), used their smarts to invent lifesaving medicine and have taken over the entertainment scene with Marvel Comic blockbusters and shows like The Big Bang Theory and Glee. Seems like nerds are having their moment in Vulcan's sun (I googled that..thanks to geeks).
Fashion, never wanting to be left out, has fully joined the geek chic bandwagon, with designers paying tribute to our brainy friends with brilliant, feminine takes on the trend. Here are 6 ways to channel your inner Rebecca Black:
1. BRIGHT PANTS
Go for bold, bright, skinny pants in lunge-friendly fabrications. You'll be happy for the stretch when you beat your buddies at 10-pin bowling. Plus, the bright colours will save you from getting lost in a trash can. Fashion AND function - brilliant!
2. MENSWEAR PRINTS
Checks, plaids and tweeds can easily look masculine so it's imperative that you pay attention to fit. Pick a fitted, feminine blazer, a curve-hugging tweed dress or pair a flowy plaid shirt with skinny jeans. Boy meets girl. Squeal!
3. PREPPY SHOES
Fall 2011 is all about preppy footwear, whether loafers (flat or high-heeled) or spectator brogues. Bullies giving you a hard time? Kick 'em to the curb (figuratively speaking of course) with a sweet pair of shoes.
4. HANDBAGS
Every wannabe geek needs a great, go-anywhere bag to carry their gadgets. A great leather satchel will hold all of your books, a boucle bag will be the perfect glee club accessory and a croco envelope clutch is ideal for a night of showing off your hot dance moves.
5. OUTERWEAR
When the temperature drops, it's time to break out a trusty jacket. A corduroy blazer, plaid coat or ultra-trendy varsity jacket will put you at the head of the class.
6. ACCESSORIES
To achieve nerd nirvana, the right accessories are a must. Don't forget your rimmed glasses, your owl ring (a tribute to Harry Potter, of course), and a pair of argyle-patterned tights to finish off your look.
Hope you're all having a great 1st week of September, whether you're going back to school or not. And remember, we're all just little geeks inside. Snort, snort.
Back to School, Fall 2011, Geek Chic, Preppy Sarah Francis. Tuesday, September 6, 2011 at 12:47PM 
It's the first week of September and though it's been years since I graduated, I've fastidiously kept up with the tradition of getting a new pair of back-to-school shoes. When I saw the sparkly new loafers from J.Crew, I got tingly all over but the price slapped me in the face. $248? For sparkly gold loafers? I'm far from practical but that, as Rachel Zoe says, is BA-NA-NAS. Leave it to ALDO to come up with a less expensive version and though they're not quite as perfect, they give the same effect for 1/4 of the price. Now that's the kind of fraction I can totally understand. The Killion Glitter Loafer is at ALDO stores nationwide or online here.
P.S - OOOOHH, just spied these sparkly silver beauties. LOVE them even more!
Buschur Glitter Loafer, ALDO, $70
Fall 2011, Glitter Loafer, J.Crew Sarah Francis. Monday, August 29, 2011 at 10:19PM 
Sorry...one last thing. Loving this! Okay, I suck...going on vacation now :)
Lanvin Fall 2011, Pitbull Sarah Francis. Friday, August 26, 2011 at 12:37PM
Hoot Bootie, ALDO, $110
Jason Wu and Thakoon Fall 2011 - photos via style.com
Blue Venus by Yves Klein
1969 Mid-Weight Legging Jeans, Gap, $79.95
Yves Klein Monochrome
Portrait of Yves Klein
Tulip Dress, Zara, $119
Images "© Yves Klein, ADAGP, Paris", via yveskleinarchives.org
Everyone's going mad for Yves Klein these days. In his very short career, The French artist (1928-1962) made invaluable contributions to the art world; he was the leading member of 'Nouveau Réalisme' and, most notably, for his International Klein Blue. IKB is a saturated cobalt blue that Klein specially formulated for his own artwork, reminiscent of the lapis lazuli used to paint the Madonna's robes in medieval paintings.
Though Klein had worked with blue throughout his career, it wasn't until 1958 that he used it exclusively. For one of his gallery openings in Paris, 1001 blue balloons were released and blue postcards were sent out using IKB stamps that Klein bribed the postal service to accept as legit. His penchant for performance art even had him using women as paintbrushes; Klein painted models' naked bodies with IKB paint and had them walk, roll and sprawl upon blank canvases. I've seen the videos - a little odd, but it was the sixties, so I guess that explains it?
Yves Klein was an all-or-nothing kind of guy and after all that blue, he decided to abandon colour altogether (see The Void) but designers this season have brought back YKB in a big way, with jackets, pants and skirts saturated in the deep, vivid hue. I think it's the perfect way to inject some colour into your fall wardrobe. Magnifique!
The days are getting shorter, summer's coming to an end, and I desperately need a little vacay. So, unless they announce a Marc Jacobs for Zellers line or Rachel Zoe decides to give me her wardrobe, I'll be taking the week off to drink rosé, read my September issues and play, play, play. Fashion can wait (for a week, anyway...)
Oh, but before I go, thanks to EVERYONE for entering my J.Crew contest. The response was insane, esp. by the Twitter-verse. I had no clue that people had such a voracious appetite for contests. These women are full-out intense, in an Yves Klein-y kinda way. Bravo! Just drew the name and the winner is....SANDY AVVARI! Will put your treats in the mail this weekend.
Happy last weekend of August to you all!
xo
Fall 2011, Yves Klein, Yves Klein Blue Sarah Francis.