EARINGS

"I feel I look weird with earings now" my friend Irina told me, "I feel the same way"" I replied. Truth is, I've been avoiding them for quite some time and I don't know exactly why. Until the moment I cut my hair short, I've worn earings 24/7, but after that they dissappeared from my daily accessories must-haves list. 

This fall I gave them a second chance, but only on special occassions. I started wearing again a pair of small pearl earing I got for my b-day a couple of years ago, which can look quite chic if they're matched with the right outfit.

Now, this design got my attention, mostly because the model has pretty short hair and wears them with a masculine jacket and a white buttoned up shirt. Makes me wonder if they would look good on me too? 

SHIMMERY SHIRT

Mettalics are having a huge come-back in fashion and they promise to become the coolest item that you can have in your wardrobe for the party season. I have been looking for something made out of silver shimmery fabric and this shirt from Other Stories is the perfect balance between edgyness and glamour. Not too elegant, (you can easily wear it for a girls night out) and not too simple either. 

I can totally see myself wearing it with a pair of cropped black trousers, strappy high heels and a shoulder bag. 

WHERE DO YOU GO SHOPPING?

When it comes to shopping, the possibilities are endless - retail shops, boutiques, high brands, internet - you name it! But when it comes to finding something unique that represents your style, well then it gets a bit more tricky. 

Two weeks ago I received a message from one of my readers, who was asking me where do I go shopping? I was happy to be asked for advice, therefore I am writing today this article. 

Lately I've been very much into clothing that have an edgy look and a well defined shape. Fashion is turning more simple, more focused on design than accessorizing. If one year ago accessories were told to either make or break an outfit, today they just break it. So forget about those statement necklaces and flashy jewelry, because they are so passee. Instead, focus on shapes, fabrics and design. 

In order to give you an idea on where to find these kind of garments, I made a top 5 list of my favourite shops at the moment: 

COS - You can't get more swedish than COS. And swedes are all about design. Their clothes are a mix between edgy design and classic simplicity, all topped off with great fabrics. I think you will be able to find at least one beautiful garment, no matter what your style is. 

& Other Stories - It has very unique designs, that I haven't seeing anywhere else. It's the best place to find edgy shoes and bags, but from my point of view they have the most amazing dresses. 

Topshop - Topshop have awesome jeans (Emmanuelle Alt loves them) and cool sweaters. But I am pretty sure you knew it before.  

Gina Tricot - At Gina Tricot you can find trendy clothing at very reasonable prices. Kind of what Zara used to be like 7 years ago.  

The Kooples -  If you want to add a sexy rock'n'roll vibe to your wardrobe, The Kooples is the place to go. It's true their prices are a bit higher than the regular shops, but during sales you can totally get a knockout piece. 

Hoping this was helpful and I am curious to know where do you like to go shopping? 

ESPADRILLES

When was the last time you wore espadrilles? Most probably in the 90s. 

Neon pink and zebra print espadrilles from Stella McCartney, Washed out espadrilles from ASOS, multicolored from Zara, denim and stripes from ASOS, the ones on the left corner from Louboutin, and of course, the famous Chanel espadrilles. 

Yes, you guessed...espadrilles are cool again!

& OTHER STORIES

Other stories about what? Fashion, of course. Last week while browsing Instagram this image of a website pops-up on my newsfeed - the titles was catchy " & other stories" and the clean and simple layout seemed promising. I had to check it! One hour and a half later I was texting my friend to tell her " You have to check this store when you'll travel next week!!!!"

Then I remembered how it was like seven years ago when travelling also included going to that one store you always checked online, but you couldn't buy anything from. Well now it happened again! So what is it about? With Scandi-chic designs, mostly edgy shoes, statement accessories and sculpted silhouettes, you can only think of one brand. Yes, you got it right! & other stories is the latest line and concept store from H&M. 

And since they only opened in a few countries and they don't ship to Romania (hopefully that will change soon), I made a long list of things for my friend to buy for me. On the top of that list it was this white simple, but chic and versatile polo shirt perfect for a warm summer day. 

YEAR OF THE SNAKE

Nowadays, staying locked inside the house does not mean you are safe from shopping. But since a girl can never have too many pairs of shoes and since they were at a very good price, I decided to buy them. I guess   it also has to do with the fact that snake print is everywhere - they call it "the year of the snake" not only in the Chinese Zodiac, but in fashion too . You'll find snake prints on tops, skirts, pants, bags and especially shoes. These ones from London Rebel had a very cool turquoise color and I already pictured them paired with jeans and an oversized coat for spring. 

Now I just have to wait for spring...and the shoes to come. 

You'll find them here. 

BALENCIAGA RINGS

The fashion crowd is going crazy over the Balenciaga rings (including me), but how can anyone resist such beauties? They're from the Spring 2013 collection and if you can't get your hands on a pair, relax, there is another way to get the Balenciaga look. You can simply buy multiple rings and wear them all at once. I got mine from H&M, but the gold ones were already sold out, so I bought the silver version. You'll see them soon on the blog. 

FASHION CRUSH

I am absolutely in love with these overalls from Maria Cher's FW 2013 collection!  

Ad campaign shot by Viktor Vaulthier 

SIMON PREEN

While browsing the ASOS Marketplace I found this super sexy collection from Simon Preen, a London-based designer. It caught my eye because it has a unique design, with minimal shapes and a strong gothic influence. I also love that it's edgy and sexy, without being too girlie. 

Below, there's a behind the scenes lookbook video and you can buy his collection online from ASOS Marketplace and Stud&Stud ( I got my mind set on this long black dress). 

Photo source: http://www.simonpreen.com/

NEW IN

Speaking of shoes, two weeks ago I got these ones on sale from Gina Tricot. I have a feeling I will wear them all the time, because they have an edgy design, they are comfortable, and easy to match with any outfit. Can't wait for Spring! 

    

SHOE OF THE YEAR

Not sure if they were new in or last collection (not on sale for sure), but they sold out in like 5 seconds! If earlier on I was debating if they are cool or not, now I hope they will be back on stock pretty soon! 

The shoes are from ASOS. 

PS- This year, ugly is the new beautiful, when it comes to shoes! 

Update - They are back in stock!! 

GIFT IDEAS FOR CHRISTMAS NO 2

I recently discovered this Swedish home decoration shop. Unfortunately, you can't buy anything online, but for the lucky one's who live or get to go to Stockholm, they do have an actual shop somewhere in the city . I liked the retro - industrial look of their products, which happen to be actual vintage goods from old factories or other unconventional places. I remember I used to have the exact same old soda siphons around the house...too bad they're gone! They would have been great kitchen decorations. As they say, one man's trash is another man's treasure! 

GIFT IDEAS FOR CHRISTMAS NO 1

Danny Roberts' Illustrations (here)  

Garance Dore's Illustrations (shop here)

Tanya Ling Illustrations find them here . 

I know you are thinking about it: what's the best gift for Christmas? Some fashion illustrations could make a very cool gift, don't you think? Garance Dore recently launched an online shop where you can purchase some of her illustrations, Danny Roberts from Igor + Andre has been selling his work for quite some time now, and Tanya Ling turns fashion into art. You have 23 days left to decide! I'll be back with more ideas. 

TEA TIME

Choosing the right accessories for your outfit is such an important part of fashion styling, so I wanted to share with you my favorite jewelry for this season. Here are some of the pieces I wear on a daily basis. I'm currently obsessed with rings and I wear at least 2 or 3 with every outfit. The shiny necklace makes every outfit stand out and the crocodile bracelet is a life-saver!

Necklace from H&M, blue stone ring - vintage, the rest of the rings are from H&M and Parfois. 

Styling Silvia Cristescu/ Photography Andra Giuglea 

OUT OF REACH

Three brands you probably heard of before - COS, Uterque and Weekday - Three brands I absolutely love, but are simply out of my reach. None of them has shops here in Bucharest and they don't have an online shop either (or at least you can't order them in Romania). 

1. COS - Basic pieces that never go out of fashion. I especially love the jumpers from them and the jackets. 

2.Uterque - They have beautiful shoes, with a classic shape that will match every outfit in your wardrobe. Hope I will get my hands on one of these soon! 

3.Weekday -  Or the edgy touch of an outfit. 

Are there any brands you wish you'd have in your hometown? 

SHOPPING LIST

After being obsessed with leather and army prints now I switched to more festive trends: baroque and velvet.    (the Christmas season will soon come so maybe that explains it). I wanted to share with you my latest crush: the gold embroidered coat from Oasap, the velvet shoes from Kurt Geiger, the baroque style dress from River Island and the velvet jacket and pants from Zara. 

THE FUR COAT

For three years now fur has been on every catwalk and I can easily say I'm a big fan of it! I have two fur coats in my wardrobe and this year I want something edgier - a colored fluffy fur coat! Any ideas where can I find something like this? 

Pictures: jak and jil, stockholm streetstyle 

THE REAL FASHION SHOWER

4th of October 2012 @H&M - The moment we all waited for - Anna dello Russo's collection was finally going on sale. "What are we gonna buy? In which store can we find it? Should we go in the morning?" - I was asking my friend, Irina.

I'm not a morning person, so the thought of waking up especialy to go buy some bracelets made me feel a bit ridiculous. I love fashion, but I'm not a fashion victim (at least, I don't consider myself to be one) and I am definitely not the type that would catfight over an item in a store with a total stranger. For a couple of times, I thought there's no point in going there first thing in the morning, cause I'm gonna find them later on, or the next day. But somehow I got caught up in this "fashion shower", set the alarm clock and decided to go. 

The shop was opening at 10 a.m., so 11.30 seemed pretty decent. I had my mind set on two bracelets - the crocodile and the small gold one - nothing extravagant and I was already imagining how I'm gonna wear them. 

When I entered the mall I saw some girls carrying the AdR shopping bag and said to myself " Good thing you came so early, it's not so crowded yet." But once I entered the H&M shop, I realised it was not crowded because everyone else already shopped and left. I was so surprised to see the shelves almost empty. There were just a few bracelets, necklaces and sunglasses left after only 1h and a half since they opened. Some girl who worked there told me in 15 minutes a lot of items sold out. "Whoaaah!!! No more gold bracelets?" I asked her. ""No" she answered, "Just these". Of course, the next second I started searching through all the boxes, but there were nowhere to be found. 

At least, I was lucky to find the crocodile bracelet. (You can say I had my share of the "fashion shower"). I never thought girls would get so crazy about this collection. Either way, H&M did a hell of a good job in promoting this! Next time, we'll all sleep in front of the shop! 

IL PASSO AW12 AD CAMPAIGN PREVIEW

The Romanian shoe brand Il Passo released a preview of their fall-winter ad campaign, starring IT models of the moment Silviu Tolu and Stefania Ivanescu. Silviu walked for designers like Tom Ford, Christian Dior, Hermes, Donna Karan and Comme des Garcon, while Stefania just got signed with DNA New York and VIVA models agency in Paris. 

The ad campaign is an overdose of berry colors: burgundy, grape, claret and oxblood, which are also the season's star colors. I think the creative team did a great job and it's the best campaign they produced so far. I'm excited to see the rest of the photos and also the collection! 

Creative & Photography: Tibi Clenci

Art Director: Alin Galatescu 

Styling: Amir Dobos 

You can see the making of here:

WEEK-END SHOE SHOPPING

Shoes from mytheresa.com, outnet.com, asos.com, topshop.com and ninewest.com. Collage by Silvia Cristescu

Did you ever ask yourselves, why we dream of having a closet filled with shoes? I thought about it and in the end I had to admit it :  women are an easy target. We obsess about stuff in general, we are (sometimes) emotional, our mood changes fast and so does our taste. Also having so many options each season makes things more complicated. We want leopard shoes, and strappy sandals and snake skin boots...and so on. In the end, there will always be a new season which brings new designs that we definitely must have! (If not, it will be the end of the world!) 

But enough about this and let's get down to business. Since it's still sales season I thought of showing you some cool shoes I found at 50 or 70 % off the original price. The thing is, if you pay attention on future trends, you will be able to pick a design which will still be in fashion. Also, sandals are not necessarily just for summer time. For example, some black leather sandals you can still wear them during autumn or winter if you add some black tights. It might sound crazy, but I sometimes do that. Or think of Carrie Bradshaw. She was wearing fur coats with sandals, remember ?

If you want to know where you can find a specific pair of shoes from the collage, leave me a message.