Monday, November 30, 2015

Student Life

"Cold Front Coffee Date" post

I have been super busy  lately juggling work, travel, and classes as well as keeping up with the blog! 

You may have noticed that I've added a new tab along my nav-bar called Student Work. The Teen Vogue x Parsons classes I am taking towards earning a certificate have me doing all kinds of interesting fashion related projects and many of the assignments ask for a blog post on my work. If you are interested in reading about some of my projects or are considering enrolling in a program like this yourself, check out what I've been sharing over there! I just finished up the course on Production Cycles, so some of the assignments involved math calculations and tables, but you can also see my process as I designed, sourced, and created a sample handbag. 

Left: the mockup. Right: the sample.

I love doing creative projects like this and getting to mess around with craft supplies. 
Up next are the courses on Fashion Media, and Marketing and PR which are both areas I'm really looking forward to learning about. I'm sure there will be more to blog about, so check back on my Student Work tab for updates! 

xoxo CC

Thursday, November 26, 2015

Thankful for Style

Thanksgiving outfit



Happy Thanksgiving!! I hope you are having a wonderful day full of delicious food and family fun. I wanted to share some Thanksgiving Day outfits that I put together. Above I imagined what I would want to wear to a big family gathering. I chose a slightly dressy outfit, but balanced it with a slouchy cardigan and booties to make it totally appropriate for curling up to watch TV too. I love the combination of the textured burgundy skirt with a blush top and neutral layers. 

The second outfit, below, is what I am actually wearing today. We are keeping things low key this year, just hanging out at the house and eating all day long, so I wanted to wear something super comfortable but still cute. This cozy pistachio colored sweater is a favorite, and simple jewelry adds a nice touch.

Which outfit is your favorite? 

Thanksgiving casual

Monday, November 23, 2015

Frog Prince - Review


By no means would I consider myself any sort of expert when it comes to makeup: au contraire. While I have my daily makeup routine that I love (mostly BareMinerals btw) I know I still have a lot to learn. But, when I discover something new and interesting, like this Frog Prince lipstick by Lipstick Queen, I of course have to share it with my readers! 

My mom actually introduced me to this fascinating lipstick when she gifted it to me on my birthday! I had my gift waiting patiently in its wrapping for my birthday morning so I could open it before I left to catch a plane to California. It is always nice to have a little something special to mark the day even if you can't fully celebrate that day (sitting on a plane all day in my case). Anyway, I'll be honest I was a bit confused when I opened it and found a lipstick in a deep green shade. As it turns out, this intriguing lipstick goes on clear and changes automatically to your best natural lip shade. Using the pH in your skin as a guide it shifts to a shade that compliments your skin tone. I thought that was such a fun idea, not to mention totally useful! No more having to hope a shade will work on you, because you know this one will! On me it turns to a soft sheer reddish-pink, just enough punch of color while still looking natural. It is the perfect color to wear during the day or for a casual event that just needs a touch of something special. 

I love that they went with such a fun whimsical theme calling it "Frog Prince" alluding to its changing qualities and 'perfect match' characteristics, and then shaded it in a froggy green! The box is  just so cute too with a castle scene and lounging frog on the side. Overall, I am really enjoying this color as a great everyday lip shade to brighten up any look. I definitely recommend giving it a try!


Lipstick: $25 at Lipstick Queen/Ulta/Nordstrom. Top: Anthropologie (1/2/3). Necklace: kate spade. Earrings: Gorjana.





xoxo CC

p.s. I've added a new tab called "Student Work" where I am sharing some of the project assignments for the Teen Vogue x Parsons classes I am taking. Check it out if you're interested to see what I'm doing! 

Thursday, November 19, 2015

New England Fall


Fall in New England is beautiful with all the changing leaves creating bursts of color. I've discovered some old photos I took before moving to the city, that still speak to things I think are important for fall styling! For instance, I've talked for years about how blush pink is an unexpectedly perfect fall color, and I've really been wearing a lot of it this season. 

These photos were taken in the earlier stages of fall when the sky was a bright blue and plenty of greenery still remained. The colors of the natural fall landscape are the perfect inspiration for fall fashion color palettes. Taking my favorite blush pink as a starting point and adding gold and orange tones drawn from the foliage and blues inspired by the crisp sky create a balanced and seasonal outfit. Neutral clothing choices, like a pale pink base, allow for more experimenting in the accessories, and here I wanted to focus on how the accessories I chose were drawn from the colors in the natural landscape. Even the leaf shaped earrings tie in perfectly with a fall theme. We all draw inspiration from our surroundings and I think it is fun to expose that by photographing fashion and landscape side by side. 

While I am often known to complain about the cold and short days in the fall, it truly can be beautiful while the leaves change. Fall in New England is something I will surely miss when my parents fully move to California and I won't be visiting my "home state" so much anymore...


Skirt: H&M (love these 1/2/3/4). Jewelry: Vintage. Shoes: Matiko (similar 1/2). Nails: Sephora by OPI "Let's Plie" (discontinued, similar here, here).











xoxo, CC

Monday, November 16, 2015

California


Hello! I got back from my trip to California a week ago and have been taking some time to catch up, sorry I've been absent! It was fun to see the West Coast for the first time and see where my parents are going to be living now. I got to do some exploring around the Palo Alto area and spent a whole day sight seeing in San Francisco as well. 

The weather there was actually rather chilly, no warmer than NYC, so I was dressing in layers the whole trip. My pink moto jacket was a lifesaver with every outfit, and a furry vest and printed scarf were necessary layers as well. When I was packing for the trip, keeping in mind that the fall weather can be variable, I opted for a mostly neutral palette, with plenty of layers and pieces that coordinate and can mix and match without being boring! Stripes, faux fur, printed scarf, and soft colors that easily match with neutrals bring life to a small wardrobe.



We had so much delicious food the entire time, starting with my beautiful birthday cake! In the mix of yummy meals were Burmese, Cuban, Mexican, Israeli, and Vietnamese cuisines. The Palo Alto area is dotted with delicious restaurants -- my parents won't go hungry there for sure! Of all the new foods I tried, the coconut rice at Rangoon Ruby and the chicken and plantains at the Cuban place were my favorites.


On the second full day my mom and I drove up weaving-winding roads over the mountains to reach the ocean. The views were incredible along the way, including the cliffs overlooking the ocean. We parked our car near Half Moon Bay and walked a trail down to the water to stick our toes in the waves. Layering a teeshirt, flannel, and jacket allowed me to bundle up against the coastal wind, but also shed layers to catch some sun by the pool.









The next day we hopped on a train to San Francisco. We spent the majority of the day riding around the city on cable cars and exploring. The views from the top of the hill were spectacular, and we got to see a range of the city while riding the cable cars up and down the hills (much preferable to walking!). We hit a lot of the touristy spots like Fisherman's Wharf, which provides a great view of the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz, as well as China Town and the Union Square area and nearby mall. The buildings lining the residential streets are so pretty with their bay windows and mostly pastel colors.









On the last day we spent the morning exploring the Stanford University campus, which is beautiful! It is dotted with courtyards and palm trees that create idyllic scenes, perfect for photographing. Everyone was zooming around on bicycles -- I really don't think I have ever seen so many bikes in one place in my life!






We ended the day with a little treat from a fancy little Patisserie, Alexander's, and I have to say this 'chocolate pillow,' as it was called, was really delicious.


I've got more fashionable  content on the way, I promise, it's just been super busy lately! So, stay tuned!

xoxo, CC

Thursday, November 5, 2015

Blush and Black


Playing off the same color scheme from earlier this week.... I present to you another look in blush and black. This outfit was created for the classes I'm taking based on a themed inspiration board I put together titled "Parisian Dreamy." The inspiration board was full of soft colors, clean silhouettes and flirty ruffles that I wanted to replicate in this look.

Part of the initial inspiration for my theme was a set of structured feminine pieces by Genny featuring abstract black and white prints. I wanted to bring this element into my outfit, which you can see here in the skirt. I then built up with a pale pink ruffled top which still manages to maintain a clean shape. The wool jacket was perfect to complete the look for two reasons: first, it exemplifies the looser structured pieces I used in my board, and second it is a vintage piece by Kenzo Paris. How perfect! Elegant earrings add the perfect finishing touch.

Ideally these photos would have been taken outside in a public garden or against an intricately filigreed metal gate. As it was, I didn't have the chance to do that, but I had fun putting together a look to fit my Parisian Dreamy theme!


Jacket: Vintage Kenzo. Top: H&M. Skirt: Free People dress worn as a skirt (similar vibe skirts: 1/2 and dresses 1/2/3).
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff. Lipstick: Tarte "Golden Pink."


Genny Resort 2015
See the rest of my inspiration board here.
xoxo CC