Sponsored by Farfetch.com

I’ve never been one for designer clothing, but I think that has a lot to do with the fact I never know where to start. Catwalk looks are so freaky and it’s all just a bit intimidating. I couldn’t tell a Rick Owens from a Givenchy if my life depended on it.

I’ve been playing around a bit on Farfetch.com though and finding some pretty sweet stuff (and some pretty crazy stuff). There’s a bunch of fancy designer clothing from the big names, but there’s also a heap of stuff from emerging, experimental, and casual contemporary designers. My faves are the contemporary designs obvs.

Clothes used to be so exciting to me but a lack of money and places to be, plus three months spent in Asia in my grungiest duds have sent me back to skinny jeans and t shirt territory. With the odd bright blue tight and dress combo. Maybe I’m losing my edge now I’m almost 26?!

Here’s a few looks I conjured up to get me back in the mood.

Casual

I’ve been wearing a little more colour lately, and I love love love sky blue. That top though! If only I had that much to spend.

Birthday

I don’t normally dress like this, but I really really want to. Lace dress, pinky purple brogues, skull covered clutch, spike necklace, and the pièce de résistance a glorious Alexander McQueen ring.

Look at the ring!

Beachin it

We’ve got a bach booked for our new year holiday and I really cannot wait. The sun has got me so excited for beaches, and barbecues, and cider. And then I spotted this wolf swimsuit. Wuuuuuuuttt. I want to own it and parade it on the beaches of Raumati.

I would definitely wear this outfit on holiday with bright yellow sandals for day, and fancy fish sandals for night.

At the start of the decade I was 14, just starting to get a few curves despite mums constant assurance I had no ass to speak of.
It was easy to see that girls were supposed to use their bodies to provoke and that I’d need to start dressing more feminine. After my wigga stage in the late nineties I bought a pair of tight baby blue corduroy pants with my own money. I began to experiment with op shopping and pushing the boundaries, trying to find a personal style when the concept was still quite foreign. I tried to see how far I could push it without embarrassing myself. I didn’t like wearing revealing clothes, but I did like to grab attention.

It’s strange trying to coming up with my favourite and least favourite styles of the decade because it’s like coming up with the favourite and least favourite styles of my life. There was nothing before this. I’ve done all of my experimenting this decade, I’ve gone from wigga, to mish mash op shop girl, to young adult trying to fit in with all of the other young adults that actually look a bit skanky so I actually feel really uncomfortable, to trying to look like a respectable employed person, to dabbling in the goth, to deciding I didn’t give a shit and if I want to wear sneakers and a t shirt with a skirt suit then fuck you if you tell me I can’t.

So without further a do. These are the trends I’ve loved and loved to hate from 2000 – 2009.

The Great

Leggings In general I’m not very confident about my skin tone or texture so when leggings hit the shops around late 2007/early 2008 I was quick to take them up as a staple. Previously I’d worn woollen stockings as pantihose only last an hour around me before I put a hole in them. Unfortunately I’m sensitive to wool so wearing woollen stockings was never very comfortable.
Leggings are now available in many colours and sizes, and makers even cater for people taller than 5’3″ on occasion! Makes dresses bearable all year round and scandalously short skirts seem demure.

Body Mods This decade has seen body modification not just pushing the boundaries, but also becoming acceptable, and even mainstream. You’ll find tattooed, pierced, and stretched employees in most workplaces these days.
Having access to communities of people, via the internet, who appreciate body mods has flared my interest and made me an addict.

Blazers Easy to chuck on with whatever you’re wearing blazers always make you look a little more polished.

Wide Leg Pants As an owner of thighs that are one size larger than the rest of her proportions I rely on wide legged pants to balance me out. These pants look as though they fall straight from my hips and don’t place any extra emphasis on exactly how I curve.

Mixing Styles Many think pairing sneakers – street shoes that is, not runners – with business suits is tacky and lazy. Not me though. It’s my favourite look of the decade. I like to be comfortable and just polished enough so a t shirt, blazer, dress skirt or pants, and sneakers is the best.

Extras for experts – Androgyny, socks as an accessory to an outfit, chucks, nerd chic.

The Ghastly

Boho – This style rarely looks good outside of an ethereal looking editorial with horses.

Leggings as pants – Despite my big love for leggings as an accompaniment to a skirt or dress, a pyjama bottom, or a comfy alternative to trackpants, like trackpants I don’t think they should be worn out of the house as pants unless you’re doing sports. The material leggings are made from is usually thin and unforgiving. But most of all, it just looks like you forgot the last step when you got dressed in the morning.

Daisy dukes – At least if you’re wearing leggings I don’t have to see your ass. I’m sure you have a very nice ass, but I don’t really care for having it almost naked in front of me as I’m walking down the street.

Boob tubes – If you’re wearing one you end up spending half the night pulling it up to make sure you’re not exposing yourself. You can wear a bra with them. And worst of all they squish your boobs down at the top. What is the point? Just wear a singlet.

Crocs – I saved the worst for last because WTF?! I can almost understand your reasons for wearing them if you’re a nurse, or if you’re doing a spot of gardening. But really why are they so ugly? Crocs makers have proven they can make shoes that are comfortable without looking like the original hideous chunk of plastic so why do they even make the ugly ones?

Extras for experts – Ugg boots as shoes, fake tan that is too many shades darker than your natural colour, huge sunglasses on girls with tiny features, Paris Hilton.

What did you dig on this decade?

I raised this question yesterday on Twitter because I don’t have the answer. Whether that’s because I’m clueless when it comes to defining fashion or because it can’t be defined is unknown to me. No one else seemed to know either.

At 4.5 million people New Zealand doesn’t have a big enough market to give shoppers a lot of choice. Unless you know how to make or customise your clothes you’re mostly at the mercy of the chain stores. In New Zealand we’re also in the wrong hemisphere to get fashions first hand.

Six months after new season fashion heads into shops in America -already watered down versions of catwalk fashions, created in every conceivable colour and quality- we finally get the left overs. I’ve never worked in retail so I don’t know how the buying process works. But I imagine that after a few months of celebrities and high school kids picking what’s hot for the season that’s what we get stuck with. We don’t get the multitude of variations here. Consumers don’t get to decide what suits them, they don’t get to choose the shirt with one ruffle over the shirt with two. We usually get one choice. A choice that is sold in one, sometimes two colours, and then the buttons are changed and the same top is sold in the shop next door.

The point of this rant is this: This seasons clothing trends are determined by the people buying for shops. Most people can only afford chain store clothing, and therefore whatever is in the chain store is what they’ll wear.

What about trends that are so simple you don’t need to go anywhere near a mall to participate.

Apparently a simple ribbon tied around a wrist is going to be the next trend. It’s trickling along and could go either way. What most of you should know is that people have been doing this for years! It’s so simple, wrap yourself up like a gift to the world and you’ve got jewellery for less than 20cents. So why is it the next trend?

Does a picture of Dakota Fanning wearing a ribbon launch a thousand girls into their grandmothers haberdashery drawers? Does it take two celebrities? Does it take a fashion blogger or two sporting the look for women to see how pretty a ribbon is? I’d like to believe that people don’t follow just because something’s announced as the next big thing, but ugly It bags and 80s comebacks are trying to prove me wrong.

Maybe you’ve got the answer. What do you think starts a trend?

We finally got around to watching I Love You, Man last weekend. It’s very funny, very cute, has great actors, a great script, and an adorably awkward man almost every woman wants to marry (Paul Rudd as Peter Klaven). What surprised me about the movie was how much I loved the style of sloppy mismatched Sydney Fife (Jason Segel). What surprised me more was when we went shopping the next day and The Boy told me he really loved Sydney’s style and wanted to emulate it. :D

Next thing I know he’s buying a hooded grey knit sweatshirt and I’m planning his wardrobe. I love being with a guy who is enough into fashion that he cares about how he looks and thinks about his purchases, but still relaxed enough not to look like preppy douchebag (I like preppy style, just not preppy douchebag style).

This one’s for The Boy, and anyone else who wants to get the Sydney Fife wardrobe.

Board shorts should be refined to the water and ugg boots should be kept inside. So really I should be screaming NONONOOOO at the thought of this outfit. But Sydney makes walking a small dog along a board walk in both board shorts and uggs look like the best idea in the world.

Start your Sydney wardrobe with some kitschy board shorts, low cut uggs, and a cowboy check shirt.

Add a grey tweed jacket, a light coloured striped sweater, jeans, and slip on shoes.

Shop for a tux or relax with a beer in a shawl neck cable knit cardigan and t shirt.

Round it all off with a couple of scarfs and some more buttoned shirts, especially cowboy check shirts in yellow and blue tones. And there you have it, your very own Sydney Fife-d wardrobe.

Would you “let” your man dress like Sydney or dress like him yourself?

T shirts and Sneakers.

There’s no point denying it. No point trying to fit in with the other girls. There’s no reason for me to try to wear high heels, elaborate swishing blouses, or huge cowl neck sweaters.
I can admire stilettos, platforms, and pumps as pieces of art. I want to buy them because they’re pretty, but I just can’t wear something that makes me that uncomfortable.

All colours and styles of shirt adorn my change room but the black t shirts are the only ones that get worn.

It’s always a thrill to find a t shirt that is fun and funky, black, in my size and,  in my price range. My biggest problem is I have no idea what I’m looking for until I find it. I’m extremely picky about what I buy. But I don’t know what to search for to find my ideal pieces. I’m not a label whore so I can’t even narrow it down by name.

Finding pretty sneakers is harder. When the shoe gods make sneakers available in shoe stores in as many varied styles and colours as they do for heels I’ll be a very happy lady.

So, there you have it. I don’t give a shit about the latest catwalk design that makes you look like you got caught on a barbed wire fence. I want tees. Witty, dark, and cute tees. And I want them paired with sneakers.

[pictured: Osiris Libra Girl (which I have!) and ThinkGeek t shirt (which I want need!)]

Leggings are not a substitute for pants. Please stop taking your fashion advice from Lindsay Lohan and start thinking for yourself.

Before you leave the house look at yourself in the mirror and ask yourself these questions:

• Am I wearing leggings?
• Are my “pants” really tight, thin and stretchy?
• Do my “pants” accentuate my crotch?

If you answered no to all of those questions you have reached the end of the questionnaire.
Feel free to leave the house and be seen in public.

If you answered yes to any of those questions continue with these:

• Am I wearing a large/long top that covers my ass and crotch?
• Am I wearing a skirt/dress/shorts/pants?
• Am I leaving the house in order to go running or go to the gym only?

If you answered yes to any of these questions you have reached the end of the questionnaire.
Feel free to leave the house and be seen in public.

If you answered no to all of those questions please go back to bed and try dressing yourself again when you have had some rest.

I am quite aware that this post will come off as nothing less than bitchy. But keep reading.

While I applaud this girl’s daring in wearing this dress, I can’t congratulate her on pulling it off. The right underwear may have made all the difference, unfortunately she chose what appeared to be a low sitting g-string that squished her butt down to a roll and gave no shape while still making it look like she was wearing no underwear. The dress clung to her curves individually if you know what I mean!

Unless you’re slim, with curves in all the right places you can’t get away with clingy, shiny, dresses in leopard print. Not possible for me, and not possible for her either.

Killer pockets though.

I am in dire need of a makeover. It has come to the point where sleep is far more important than having enough time to get ready in the morning, and choosing clothing must be done in the minimum amount of time. This usually means I grab the cleanest top and pants I can find and if I haven’t worn them to work that week they become my outfit for the day.

See my problem?

Thankfully for me (but maybe not so much for her) my friend Benhi has the same predicament. This weekend we are planning to rectify that by a day long shopping spree where we will push each others usual style boundaries and dare to be daring. I’ll need to get rid of the mounds of clothes I no longer wear that are all over my house as well.

In order to prepare I need some guidelines, otherwise all that money is going to go to waste.

What to do if you’re in the same situation

• Keep an inspiration folder at all times. I have a hardcopy one with pictures from magazines and mailers, and an electronic one with pictures from the net. if you’re using more than one computer it might be helpful to set up a private folder in Flickr to upload the photos. Don’t forget to record where you got the picture from in case you need to refer to it. I name the pictures with the link I got them from using ~ instead of / so the file name is valid :]
• Have an idea of the style you like and what suits you already.
• Go through the inspiration folder and really absorb what you’re seeing. Is there a recurring theme? Are the colours all the same, lots of waistcoats and pencil skirts? This is what you like and this is what you’re aiming for.
• Make a list of the staple items you need to achieve your look and do a mind dump of colours, accessories and descriptive words that fit within your new look, it’s a good idea to include a few pictures that encompass what you’re trying to achieve. – This is your shopping list.
• Go through your wardrobe and remove anything that you never wear, isn’t flattering, and doesn’t fit into your idea of your reinvented style. Then you can chuck out the gross stuff and give the goodies away.
• Take a trusted friend with you when you go shopping, one who has style you admire or who you’re happy to share your ideas with. They’re going to have to be brutally honest in helping you choose the items to create the new you.
• Don’t buy ANYTHING that doesn’t fit your self imposed guidelines. Try something on and then scan your list, does it fit the new style? No? Put it back. Same rules apply for anything that is too short, too long, too big, or you’ll fit in it when you lose a couple of kgs. Unless you’re an amazing sewer those clothes are never going to be modified and you’re wasting your money.

My latest inspiration has been Lookbook.nu. I’ve subscribed to the feed in my Google Reader so I can easily star anything I like and save it for reference.

At the moment it is showing a lot of ties and shirts, big ruffly petticoats, man style pants, black and white, chunky boots, blazers, thick rimmed glasses, collars and even a few top hats.

Is there a particular style you adhere to? Have you thought about reinventing yourself? Any suggestions or tips?

The shoes were a big hit on Saturday night which goes to prove my point – Screw Fashion!

It’s a point I usually keep quiet on the net while mixing with stylish, fashion week attending ladies…but now it’s out there.

It frustrates me that shops only are only ever stocked with the latest fashions, to the point where the only place I can buy a plain v neck t-shirt is an ‘old lady’ store. I would ♥love♥ to be able to whip up or modify to my hearts content whenever a new idea struck, unfortunately I was not blessed with any ability to draw or sew.

You wont impress me with the latest it bag or shoe because there’s no way I’m going to know who made it. I think harem pants are generally ugly and/or ridiculous. And I hate most of the shoes on the Sea of Shoes blog. That doesn’t mean that those things suck, it just means that I personally don’t like the style and I’m not going to pretend I do just because it’s popular or expensive.

If you want me to pay attention it has to LOOK good! And I only I can decide what looks good to me.

I was shopping at Portmans a couple of days ago with a friend looking for a cocktail dress and I was surprised with how much I love the new season skirts and dresses. It’s disappointing that they are all in store now because we won’t get sight of the sun for at least a few months. By then all the nice stuff would’ve gone.

There are lots of petticoats, puffy skirts, checks and florals, very rockabilly. Delicious!

I am so in love with this skirt. The picture does not do it justice at all, the material is quite shiny and the threads are very obvious in real life. I want to buy it but the last item I bought from Portmans was discounted by more than 50% a few weeks later. I might wait and see if I can get it cheaper. :]