Dedicated Follower of Fashion

Follow me down to Plaziwood...

What is Plaziwood? So glad you asked! Before I explain, make sure you have a few essentials, and we will be on our way. It is pretty chilly around here, so put on your pea coat, throw on a colorful scarf, wear your favorite boots, and grab a warm beverage. Now we are ready to go!
 
A couple blocks long and bursting with excitement, ‘Plaziwood’ is Oklahoma City's Plaza Arts District. Home to emerging artists, vintage and handmade boutiques, coffee shops, and OKC's Lyric Theater, this recently revived and growing neighborhood may be the city’s best kept secret…for now! 

There is always something happening or in-the-works down in the Plaza District. Every second Friday of the month is LIVE on the Plaza. Since shop owners keep their doors open until 11pm and local artists and designers fill the streets with merchandise for this event, it draws a large crowd with the coolest kids in Oklahoma City. LIVE nights often fall on grand opening or anniversary celebrations for Plaza stores and have included fashion shows and numerous art shows.   

Earlier this month, everyone was anticipating the annual Plaza Festival. After grabbing some boba tea at our favorite café, my friends and I headed down to check out the scene. Sticking to our regular LIVE routine, we started walking down 16th street and made stops into all our favorite stores:

Bad Grannie’s Bazaar – Awesome thrift store finds, so you don’t have to dig.
Shop Good at Convergence – New to the Plaza, this cute store donates portions of all purchases to help fund local and international development projects. 
Collected Thread – This is my absolute favorite store in Plaziwood! With lovely dresses, warm scarves, cute décor, and fabulous accessories, everything is handmade and beautiful.
DNA Galleries – Many OKC artists have enjoyed displaying and selling their art at DNA. The store also has cute accessories and Oklahoma-themed gear that actually looks trendy.
Velvet Monkey Salon & Vintage Boutique – This is only the coolest salon ever! With a fabulous group of hair stylists, getting a haircut is like hanging out with friends. And the basement boutique is always worth a look!
Street shopping – I love walking through this marketplace of genius designers and artists from the OKC metro. With each event, the market seems to get even better.

Fabulous shopping was only one of the exciting things happening at Plaza Fest this year. Dancers filled the outdoor stage, kids enjoyed inflatable games and face painting, and local bands played into the night!

See you at the festival next year, right?

Thank you to the Plaza District for letting me write this feature. I am very excited to see the area grow even more in the future!

xoxo, Sarah Corley

P.S. Since you are here, check out some lovely handmade and vintage items from my homeland and surrounding states!

1. Beanie cloche hat - $25 - Beautiful Bridget; 2. Tote/Shopping bag - $6 - Rainbow Swirlz; 3. Boba Tea - $3-4 - Cafe Oasis; 4. Vintage puff jacket - $22 - Popettes; 5. Indian Summer boots - $40 - Quid Vintage; 6. Vintage sunglasses - $12 - Lost Coltrane Vintage; 7. Jersey scarf - $22 - Callaghan Art Gallery; 8. Strawberry clip-on earrings - $5.50 - emmasfancies; 9. Clutch - $40-60 - Felix & Jayne

LA Fashion Week - Passion...Revealed!

On October 16 I had the opportunity to go to “Passion…Revealed!”, an event featuring the diverse artistic talents of the Filipino Community.  Art, Photography, Music, Dance  and Fashion mingled at the beautiful Vibiana Cathedral.

There was a large and diverse crowd in attendance at the event and a spirit of excitement as we all gathered around the catwalk to view the collections. The show featured designers Philip Rodriguez, Alexis Monsanto and Furne One.  Each designer’s line was unique and exotic.  Philip Rodriguez’s line was highly influenced by the culture of the Philippines and featured many beautiful shawls and traditional detailing.  Alexis Monsanto’s line featured extravagant resort wear for the ultimate lounging vacation.  I loved the high-waisted pant and blouse combos, oversized accessories and maxi length dresses.  Finally was the extravagant Furne One whose jewel encrusted, frothy creations looked like they were out of every single one of my “I want to be a princess” fantasies.

Most impressive to me was the fundraising aspect behind the event. Artists collaborated together in order to raise support for such organizations as Trevor Project, FASGI (Filipino American Service Group Inc.) and HOPE4Children.  Special attention and fundraising was given to the recent flood victims of Manilla.  One of my favorite things about Los Angeles is the incredible diversity of the city.  It was wonderful to be at an event which brought together the art community for the cause of bringing residents of Los Angeles more cultural and global awareness.  

By Brittan Salisbury.

Vanguard: Stockings, Suspenders & Garters - Oh My!

(photos: Gala Gonzalez, Lily Allen, Anon, Cocorosa Queen Michelle of Kingdom of Style)

So a trend Brittan and I noticed about town last week that Brittan touched on in her 'Inspired' post is the wearing of stockings or socks with suspenders or garter belts as outerwear.

It was something I didn't jump on immediately because I really think it has the potential to look extremely slutty. That said our muse for this trend (an impeccably styled fashionista we spotted at Fashion Week on Broadway) really piqued my curiosity and sent me into a web based research frenzy.

The above examples are how to work this trend. I think they all achieved the look stylishly without being overly styled and without looking like they're wearing a Halloween costume.

How did they do it? I think the key is neutrals and or darker colours. My personal preference would be black or grey. I personally wouldn't do sheer, but if you will, keep it to a classic stocking with a thick top (as pictured) Most importantly don't forget your pants (or keep your skirt/tunic long enough so you don't look like you forgot your pants) Yep I'm talking about you Taylor Momsen. 

(Taylor Momsen showing us how not to do this trend - via Just Jared)

My only thoughts against this trend would be half the thrill of wearing stockings and suspenders is the chance that you may get a glimpse. This is of course entirely from a male perspective (well sort of) so it's interesting to see it put completely out there, which is why I would avoid it as a formal look. I guess you could see it from a feminist persepctive, completely claiming your sexuality by putting it on display but I think the key is to not be overtly sexual with the look.

So, social analysis aside, if I've sold you on the trend then check out the sources below to furthur your inspiration:

1) Thigh High Socks - $6 - Sock Dreams 2) Silk Stockings - $70 - Agent Provocateur 3) Grey & Black Socks - $5.50 - New Shop 4) Stockings - $8.50 - Victoria's Secret 5) Grey Over the Knee Socks - $5.50 - New Shop 6) Brown Thigh High Socks - $20 - Sock Dreams 7) Thigh High Socks - $15 - American Apparel 8) Brown Thigh High Socks - $13 - Sock Dreams 9) Thigh High Socks - $40 - Agent Provocateur.

1) Vintage Garter Belts - $18.95 - Perpetual 3 2) Handmade Garter Belt - $75 - Toad Lillie  3) Vintage Garter Belt - $11.95 - Miso Vintage 4) Vintage Garter Belt - $18.95 - Perpetual 3 - 5) Lace Garter Belts - $18 - Victoria's Secret 6) Black Garter Belt - $30 - Victoria's Secret 7) Lace Garter Belt - $18 - Trashy Lingerie 8) Garter Belt with Bows - $35 - Trashy Lingerie 9) Black Garter Belt - $100 - Agent Provocateur 

By Kelsi Smith

Style Soundtrack - Grizzly Bear!

For this style Soundtrack feature, I decided to spotlight one of my current crazes, Grizzly Bear. 

The band is based in Brooklyn and debuted their first album, Horn of Plenty, in 2004.  Grizzly Bear has since produced two more albums, with the most recent addition being the complex, multi-layered, Veckatimest.  Upon release, Veckatimest was already #8 on the Billboard charts.

As soon as I heard the song “Ready,Able”, I instantly felt lost in its intruiging vocals and otherworldly instrumentals.  And while we are talking about “lost”, this is truly a song for exploring, going in circles, finding hidden gems, and making discoveries.

I interpret this music as both dreamy and modern, and I tried to replicate that sense here with an outfit you would definitely wear to explore to Grizzly Bear.

-Brittan

1.Honey Comb Necklace - $55 -The Harbinger Co  2.Trench - $210 -  Need Supply Co.  3.Multi Belt - $47 - LAUK Accessories 4. Voile Dress - $42 - Salvage Life  5.Riding Boots - $99.99 - Smart Bargains  6. Leg Warmers - $27- Sock Dreams

07 - Ready, Able

Rhiannon L

This weeks Lookbooker of the Week is Rhiannon L, a 28 year old girl from Atlanta. And she's adorable. I want to pick her up and put her in my pocket. (this is kind of how I feel about Zooey Dechanel - if she didn't open her mouth, the similarity struck me...anyhoo I digress)

Rhiannon works an extremely soft and feminine attitude, styles herself almost childishly but still looks like a chic grown up woman. I think the oversize bags and chunky shoes lend the looks an edge without making them 'edgy' and prevent them from being too costumey or too vintage, they remain modern and elegant. I also love the soft ethereal quality of her photos, very pretty.

Rhiannon is also the purveyor of a very cute vintage store on Ebay 'Liebemarlene Vintage'...amusingly enough I'd discovered her store long before her Lookbook and only just put two and two together. So be sure to check out her store. Her cute blog and her other looks can be found here.

Thanks Rhiannon (I promise I won't actually put you in my pocket)

By Kelsi Smith