Long, Haute Summer

Well, my friends, tomorrow is the big day- my sis and I are headed to Charlotte to see the one and only Paul McCartney live in concert. Can you say, "Ooooooooooooooo!"

Of course, Beince and I have been taking stock of our wardrobes and assessing the outfit situations, as we take seeing one of our life-long icons very seriously. As much as I love Kate Moss and her fellow rock 'n roller model friends, I've decided that Trish Wescoat Pound, founder of Haute Hippie, will actually serve as my ultimate rock-and-roll style icon.

Trish Wescoat Pound, founder of Haute Hippie, as seen in Entree Magazine

Pound founded the gorgeous Haute Hippie line in the Fall of 2008, designing for dressing ease combined with a glamourous edge. Her goal is to create the "Ultimate Closet," where all the pieces can be mixed and match- thanks to her standard color palette of blush pinks, ivories and greys- and do not subscribe to seasons or trends. Her line consists of Art-Deco style flapper dresses, sequin minis, and sparkly statement necklaces as well as basic blazers, boyfriend cardigans and soft tees. ALL of these are meant to be worned dressed up and dressed down, which is part of Pound's brilliance and Haute Hippie's versatility.

Necklace Tee, a standard in the Haute Hippie line year after year

Would be gorgeous with...

Bias Cut Sequin Skirt

As seen in the video Shopbop posted in March, Pound artfully layers boyfriend cardigans with fringed dresses or simple tees with sequin skirts for day or night, winter or summer. (Click here to check it out!) "Mixing Ingredients" allows girls to invest in a few key pieces and wear those special items in different ways from day to day. For example, you could wear the above outfit in the summer for a fun night out or pull on black tights and boots with a long cardigan for an evening out in the fall.

Simply put, I find Haute Hippie clothing and its approach to dressing fun, playful, interesting, and provocative. How liberating to only purchase a few glamourous pieces here and there but find a plethora of options when combined with the right basics!

Here are a few of my favorite special pieces:

Toss this vest over a crew-neck, solid t-shirt dress...

Crapin Vest

Belt a long, gray cardi over this gorgeous number for day and pair with black suede ankle booties for day...lose the cardi for night!

Jeweled Silk Slip Dress

So easy with a black tee, tights, and boots...

Pheasant Feather Skirt from Shopbop

Gorgeous on its own with sandals for summer. Sleek with a black blazer for fall.

Wrap Dress from Shopbop

Gorgeous with a grey tee and black skinny jeans this fall or over a slinky silk dress now!

Beaded Short Jacket from Net-A-Porter

See how Gossip Girl costumers styled it on Blake Lively!

On the set of Gossip Girl as seen on Closetcravings.com

Haute Hippie makes glamour approachable and accessible. So for tomorrow night, I'm going to remember to mix my ingredients, be inspired by vintage and, most importantly, be true to my personal style. After all, The Beatles are a band of the '60s.

Certainly Sir Paul will know a haute hippie when he sees one.

Blouse Renovations: Part Two

Eureka! The PERFECT transitional blouse! I am so excited to have found this top, the EmersonMade Silk Ribbons Blouse, thanks to a blog I have been following...

Styled for Work

Styled for Play

This top will be great now tucked into my white cotton wrap skirt and coral slingback heels- channeling that 1950s glamour that's apparently all the rage for fall- but will be equally as fun and even more functional tucked into high waisted jeans and booties for fall, as seen in the second picture above.

As for the blouse's designer, Emerson, the blogosphere has been blowing up about her and her husband's endeavors! Emerson started out hand stitching floral accessories to wear as pins and other accessories in NYC. After she and her husband married, they moved to the countryside and expanded the business, which now offers home accessories and apparel for pre-order.

Check out EmersonMade for more information or to pre-order this stylish top!!

Blouse Renovations

So I know it's been a while since I've posted and, for that, I deeply apologize! I certainly feel stuck in the sartorial summer doldrums and don't know if any of you feel the same way. Perhaps that's why today I'm wearing skinny black jeans and a black long-sleeved tee in the middle of July!

I've just been dreaming about fall...

While it's too early in North Carolina to go full-on autumn, you can easily sneak some fall peaks into your wardrobe now, which is more fun, unexpected, and creative than the predictable skirt/shorts plus top/tunic summertime combos. In order to work in my white jeans and summer skirts with fall pieces, I have been on the hunt for the perfect transitional blouse. I don't know exactly what I want but I do know what I don't want...

NO silk, satin, or any shiny fabric but no fabrics too heavy either

Nothing too bright or obnoxiously patterned

Nothing without at least a quarter-length sleeve or longer

Nothing outrageously expensive!

Chiffon or another matte fabric with movement and a moody, neutral print would be perfect. I've been looking around Wilmington and online and here are my favorites so far:

Patterson J. Kincaid Jillian Fitted Blouse from Shopbop

DVF Lissie Blouse from Shopbop

Equipment Hard Feelings Blouse from Shopbop

Elizabeth and James Aimee Printed Silk Blouse from Net-A-Porter

Etoile Isabel Marant Printed Crinkled Silk-Crepe Blouse from Net-A-Porter

Tibi Violin Top from Monkee's in Wilmington

Any of these tops would be great now with white jeans or a denim mini and sandals or wedges. Or tuck them into a pair of slouchy army green or black silk pants. Come fall, a tweed jacket or velvet blazer will be a perfect match to add warmth and style! And, of course, a sassy skirt with tights and black leather boots is an easy, dressy match for these sophisticated numbers too...

I think my favorite so far is the Patterson J. Kincaid. It's interesting, lightweight, and classic. I could see wearing this top to all kinds of events and mixing it with many different pieces. Of course, the Isabel Marant is gorgeous as well. (She's been rockin out lately, so stayed tuned for more about her.)

But I'd love to know your thoughts and favorites. Which one would you love? Or have you seen some I need to know about?!

Visiting the Man on the Flaming Pie

Well, shake it up baby!!

My sister and I are checking off an item on our bucket list in just 16 days...We're meeting each other in Charlotte to see one of our favorite and most idolized musicians, PAUL MCCARTNEY! AH!

I'm so, so, soooo excited. While I'm supposed to be working, all I can think about is one request from my sister: choose an outfit worthy of Sir Paul.

Oh man, does that make me even more jazzed!!! I have been really wracking my brain about what is appropriate and honorable enough to present in front of rock royalty. I know The Beatles would ask that we don't wear red tonight. But it is a rock concert, so there are certain style rules that should apply and a style icon to be inspired by:

Kate Moss- queen of glam rock 'n roll style

#1- Wear something you can Twist N Shout (run after Paul) in! We're going to be dancing, singing, jumping up and down, diving into mosh pits...well, maybe not mosh-pit diving, but you never know! We'll still need some height though. (We're both under 5'5" after all.) Wedge heels? Maybe ankle booties? Platforms? Flats just won't cut it.

#2- Don't wear anything strapless. (For reasons, see second sentence, Rule #1)

#3- Bring on the glamour!! It's PAUL! He's seen it all, and, baby, he's been amazed. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't still make an effort. Sequins, shimmer, beads, cocktail jewels are necessary.

#4- But add a little grunge. We're going to a rock concert after all. Tight black jeans, leather, and fringe are permissable.

Here are some of the pieces I've been dreaming about. And the color palette? Ebony and ivory, of course!

American Eagle Festival Vest

J Brand Bombshell Scarlett Cigarette Jeans

Three Dots Striped Scoop Tee

Or substitute this ab glam top and blazer for the tee and vest for a more polished look:

Gryphon The Crochet Sequin Tee

Alexander Wang Relaxed Tuxedo Blazer

Loeffler Randall Fifi Ankle Bootie

As for me, I've been lusting after a pair of 3.1 Phillip Lim leather shorts on sale at Beanie & Cecil...I'd pair them with a white tank, grey suede ankle booties, chain necklaces and a metallic scarf.

I can't wait to see how our outfits and the concert turn out. Stay tuned for a review in about two weeks!

Golden Girl

Loeffler Randall Carlie Mignon Twisted Sandal

Mmmmmmm...me likey. Strappy. Metallic. Wedged. Versatile. What's not to like??

Before & After

This weekend, I stole away from some much-needed beach relaxation (and less relaxing but equally needed house cleaning) to do a little furniture updating. My sweet Mom and Dad generously donated an end table to me two years ago. But the natural colored wood needed a little updating after its style peaked in the late 70s. It was time to bring it into the 21st century with a little black, glossy spray paint.

Here is the before (table with lamp and picture frame)...

Not quite sassy enough for my modernized living room...

Outside, pre-spray painting

Here is the after...

New and improved- glossy and oh so sassy!

Looking lovely next to its Trina Turk cohort!

I was so pleased with the way the table turned out, I spray painted an old coat rack. The picture's not as exciting, but here's a shot in case you're curious.

Formerly old, brown coat rack now fabulous enough to hold Mom's embroidered mink!

Next up, reupholstering the blue chairs (not sure what fabric yet) and possibly adding this fun cowhide rug I saw in Hewitt over the weekend.

Brown and black cowhide rug with tiny white spots in Hewitt.

What do you think??

Parisian Chic, Italian Style

Liz Walker, director of p.r. for Tibi, wears Tibi's Garcon Stripe Draped Blazer and Leather Shorts.

On this busy, busy work day, I happened to steal a second away on Facebook only to find the absolute most perfect outfit for me, my job, and the next five months at least! Tibi posted this Pre-Fall look on their page as they showcased their trip to Milan. (No, I'm not jealous...) Liz Walker, Tibi's Director of Public Relations, sports the Garcon Stripe Draped Blazer and Leather Shorts from the Pre-Fall 2010 collection.

Photo of the duomo in Milan as posted on Tibi's Facebook profile

Until today, the verdict was still out on whether or not I liked leather shorts, especially in sweltering hot and humid North Carolina. Were they really practical? BUT I realized (as I'm wearing black skinny jeans on July 1) that I'm not ALWAYS outside. In fact, five days a week, I'm inside, blasted by freezing air conditioning. This stylish, beautifully tailored jacket is perfect for slipping on in the office and off once I start running around town. The shorts are long enough to be appropriate for my casual work place but still edgy enough to be intriguing. Outside of work, you could still mix these two pieces in with other staples to make one fashion forward outfit.

What do you think? The jacket is a must, right? Leather shorts for summer?

(And do I even need to mention how easily this entire ensemble will transition into fall??)