Friday, February 10, 2012
Valentine's Day! (For those of you who celebrate it...)
So, we're all like "Valentine's Day bah humbug," but that doesn't mean you have to be. Our pick for a great gift (hint, hint) is H.Bloom's Simon Doonan bouquet, complete with vase by Simon's hubby Jonathan Adler and Simon's fab new book. We had the chance to meet them both last week here in D.C. and they are just the cutest. (Plus, Jonathan and I went to the same high school... We bonded over Delaware stories.)
Here are Jonathan and Simon, being sweet and fabulous... It is hard to be bah-humbuggy around them...
posted by ms. spinach at 5:31 PM 0 comments
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
Vintage! Getcher vintage!
posted by ms. spinach at 12:21 PM 0 comments
Monday, February 06, 2012
Sh*t People Moving to NYC Say
"I'm paying twice as much for half the space!"
"I'm so frustrated, I'm considering Midtown East."
"This is really considered a bedroom?"
"Maybe I don't actually NEED a kitchen."
"This is the best city in the whole wide world, and I can't wait to live here."
All of these things have come out of my mouth this weekend, because — in case you missed it on the Twitter — I'm moving! To New York! In less than two weeks! (Hopefully, if all new apartment matters/moving issues are resolved quickly...) I am excited for the jolt of inspiration it will give the blog, and I'm excited to go back to one of my very favorite places in the world.
For you D.C. folks, there will be a massive blow-out Butler + Claypool vintage sale this coming weekend (Feb. 11-12) as I work to cull my wardrobe to fit into a tiny Manhattan apartment. You DON'T want to miss this.
For the rest of you, stay tuned! Exciting adventures and new fashion inspirations are on the immediate horizon. We are so excited!
posted by ms. spinach at 3:58 PM 2 comments
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Michelle Williams + Red Carpets = Perfection
Which is why Michelle Williams always seems like a breath of fresh air. Not only is she intimidatingly well-spoken, her fashion choices are unique, stylish and elegant. And the pixie cut! We applaud her chutzpah in modern-day Hollywood, when everyone else is rocking the perfectly tousled bedhead thing. We'll be sad when awards season is over, if only because we won't get to see Michelle in a flurry of perfect dresses. (But until then: The Oscars are a-coming! We can't wait.)
posted by ms. spinach at 5:56 AM 3 comments
Friday, January 27, 2012
I so have to Tweet this now. {Also: Bangs!}
Just in case you missed it. Plus: The sequel!
posted by ms. spinach at 8:46 AM 3 comments
Monday, January 23, 2012
Rachel Rachel Roy + Me = A Poorer Me
The Rachel Rachel Roy bag line for Spring 2012 is my new obsession, with about seven pieces I'd happily own. (Coral pinks! Hurrah.) A few of my favorites are above. (I've bought the blue one — it hasn't arrived yet — but am thinking I reallyreally NEED the coral pink shoulder bag.) Thoughts?
Clockwise from top left:
small shoulder bag, $79;
medium shoulder bag in blue, $89;
small cross-body bag, $59;
striped frame clutch, $59.
posted by ms. spinach at 7:56 PM 2 comments
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
The Post Where We Give Away TULLE. {eeeee!}
I'm new to women's site Shabby Apple, but they've got a retro-inspired women's dress section that is To. Die. For.
When they offered me the chance to receive and style up one of their pieces, I immediately picked the tulle knee-length skirt in white (and then bought in myself in black as well). If you've read this blog for awhile, then you know how crazy I am for tulle. (Like, insanely crazy. I never met something in tulle that I didn't like.)
It's the perfect party skirt — poufy and pretty and fun. I paired mine with a drapey sweater and sky-high chartreuse heels, but there are plenty of combinations I can think of (sparkly sleeveless top! black turtleneck!) that would look perfectly Jackie O.-chic. And at $62, not bad indeed (plus, the site is offering 20% off right now with the code NEWYEAR).
Oh, but that's not all! One lucky reader will win their very own tulle skirt. Simply "like" Shabby Apple on Facebook, where you'll get first notice of giveaways and discounts. (And while you're at it, like Fashion is Spinach on Facebook too, whydontcha?) Then, leave your name and city/state in the comments, along with what pieces you'd wear this skirt with (or, if you prefer, where you'd wear it to). U.S. only, please. We'll pick the winner next Wednesday, 1/25/12.
PS) Thanks to our friend and style mentor Johanna Cox for the pictures. And for insisting on the red lip. And, while we're at it, for making me buy these awesome shoes at Zara last summer, too.
posted by ms. spinach at 9:06 PM 11 comments
"The Artist" {Silent swoon}
Thank goodness for "The Artist", among the favorites to win this year's Oscar, to force us out of our reverie and get us excited again. A black-and-white silent film isn't for everyone in the modern day, but it was wonderful. Especially the costumes. As my mom said, "Well, she can wear a hat just about better than anyone, can't she?"
Enjoy the pics — but, better yet, enjoy the movie. We'll be back soon, we promise. Probably in a flapper dress.
posted by ms. spinach at 12:23 AM 6 comments
Monday, December 19, 2011
Eddie Bauer Giveaway! {Only 24 hours to enter! Get on that!}
The adorable team at Eddie Bauer — they of the covetable quilted sweatshirts, the most complimented boots EVER and lots of ski-chic winter wear — are offering up an early Christmas gift: a $100 gift card to one lucky reader.
Here's the scoop: There are just 24 hours to enter. We'll be picking a winner just before midnight EST tomorrow (Tuesday) night, so we can get the gift card out to you on Wednesday. (Just in time for last minute Christmas gifts… for yourself! Or, you know, for someone else, if that's more your thing.)
And our winner: Sarah from Capitol Hill! Sarah, there's no e-mail address in your entry, so please send me a note with "WINNER!" in the subject line asap! Thanks, everyone!
PS) We have another awesome giveaway right on the horizon... stay tuned!
posted by ms. spinach at 11:29 PM 42 comments
Monday, November 28, 2011
Signs of the (Retro) Times: Houston, TX
I am a huge font nerd — seriously, things like "just! look! at that typography!" come out of my mouth at regular intervals. Of course, my favorite fonts are retro-style; imagine my surprise and delight to discover a trove of them during a recent stay in downtown Houston.
I can't say I recommend Houston otherwise (though I hear there's a very nice art scene), but if you have to be there, keep your eyes open.
posted by ms. spinach at 9:52 PM 3 comments
Saturday, November 12, 2011
In Which Tyson's Corner Vaguely Resembles a Ski Lodge for One Night*
Eddie Bauer invited something like 50 bloggers from around D.C. to check out their holiday collection and style up a couple of guinea-pig models in some of the new pieces. Seeing as I hadn't stepped into an Eddie Bauer store since my prep-tastic high school years, I was pretty curious to see what they were up to. (Also appealing: A visit out to Tyson's Corner. Delicious, unhealthy mall food!)
The collection was perfectly cozy and casual: Lots of thick sweaters, earflappy hats and flannel pieces, very New England ski lodge chic. I maaaaay have gone home with the snuggly sweater leggings on my girl model, above right, which I plan on trying to get away with at work on chilly days. (Also, um, this awesome flask.) And, OK, I ordered my model's Sperry Avon boots on my iPad while I was still in the store and have been wearing them relentlessly. And I probably would've grabbed this quilted sweatshirt if someone (cough, cough) hadn't snagged the last small size. All in all, a very fun trip.
*Oh, yeah! That's me, above left, in my Valentino for Gap parka and a slightly goofy smile.
posted by ms. spinach at 12:36 AM 4 comments
Tuesday, November 01, 2011
Worst Online Shopping: Lessons to Learn (and our Winner!)
I loved (loved in a I-feel-so-very-bad-for-you-kind-of-way) everyone's Worst Online Shopping submissions to our AmEx-sponsored giveaway so much, it was hard to choose just 10 to spotlight. However! Knowledge is power, and shopping knowledge is money saved so you can spend it on something better. Let us learn from these terrible mistakes, kids.
1. My sister bid early on a tiffany item for me on ebay for xmas. A few days later she won ... of course she won, she hadn't realized she had moved the decimal point over. whoops. -SDWrenn
Says Ms. Spinach: Um. Whoops is right. All, just don't do that.
2. I bought several final sale sweaters at jcrew.com because the prices were so good. When they arrived, none of them fit! So much for the great deal. I gave all of them to my daughter. She was happy, but I learned my lesson. No more final sale purchases without trying them on first! -Ruth
Says Ms. Spinach: Many of you were felled by lure of the Final Sale. If it's not returnable, proceed with extreme caution when hitting "submit my order."
3. I once ordered eight pairs of shoes at the same time and they were all terrible. Luckily it was Zappos and they were cool even though I felt like a total jerk returning all of them. -Carrie
Says Ms. Spinach: When buying shoes online, a good return policy -- ideally, one with free shipping and returns -- is a MUST.
4. once, after a bad break up, i brought a beautiful, too-expensive marc jacobs dress on gilt group to help make myself feel beautiful again. turns out, i ordered it one size too small and then totally missed the return deadline - so not only did i have a dress that made me feel bigger rather than beautiful, i was stuck with it! totally my fault, and i ended up donating it - so i at least hope someone else enjoyed it... lesson learned: never online shop while broken hearted. -Allison
Says Ms. Spinach: This breaks my heart! Shopping under the influence of a bad breakup is never recommendable, although possibly better than sitting around stewing over the stupid boy.
5. Yeah, I once bought a dress online on "final sale," so non-returnable, which of course didn't fit. But the kicker was that I had very stupidly and mistakenly put two in my online shopping cart, so then I had two identical dresses that didn't fit and I couldn't return, because I am apparently a moron. -CaitieBird
Says Ms. Spinach: Eeep.
6. I am a fashion girl, not a sports girl. I wanted to buy my husband a gift, great tickets to see Carmello Anthony against the Wizards, really expensive tickets. Yeah I bought them for a game in Denver...not DC. Oops! -DWJ
Says Ms. Spinach: When buying something otherwise foreign to you, whether sports tickets or faux fur, best to consult an expert.
7. I couldn't decide between three different bags. I ordered one, but it was backordered. When it finally arrived, it looked ridiculously huge on my short self. Despite being wide, it wasn't very deep & didn't zip when my stuff was inside. While on an airplane, my wallet & cellphone fell out of it and I didn't realize this until I walked past those darn security doors. As you might imagine, it is very difficult to go back through those doors without a photo ID or boarding pass. The cursed bag has been sitting in my closet ever since. -Krista
Says Ms. Spinach: Sometimes, items with bad karma should just be put into instant retirement.
8. One holiday season I found this crazy red sequined dress on eBay. I figured with the right accessories I could make it work, but when it arrived I realized it was simply doomed for the Goodwill pile. Imagine my surprise when the next year one of my best friends shows up to my holiday party wearing THE EXACT SAME DRESS. She was so excited to have found it at the Goodwill, and she managed to pull it off. -Kiki
Says Ms. Spinach: This warms my Goodwill-shopping heart! And a good idea that if you have some "bad purchases", you may be better off organizing a swap instead of just outright donating it. At least you'll get something in return. Plus, one woman's trash…
9. I have six (yes, SIX) too-small final sale dresses hanging in my closet still with tags! If they weren't such gorgeous pieces I'd happily sell them but instead they are my motivation to trim down a bit AND to be sure it will fit BEFORE hitting the submit order button!! (I look at the size guides on EVERY website I shop now - we all know not all sizes are equal!) -Virginia
Says Ms. Spinach: Clothes that are in the When-I-Lose-5-Pounds Pile are the WORST. And yes, brand-specific size guides are our friend! (So are customer reviews.)
10. I bought a really cool marching band jacket from 1922 a