Purr like a kitten, look like a hotty

I talked about leopard print as one of my 2010 Fall Fab Five. This purrfect print also made it into my 2009 Fall Fab Five, so I ask you..

What have you done to incorporate some leopard into your wardrobe this season?

Picture 82

via Globe Magazine

I saw the Purrfection article in Sunday’s Globe Magazine and thought to myself: “Why is this new news?” I’ve been talking about animal prints – most specifically leopard – for a good 2 years now. The amazing thing about leopard is that it seems to weather the fashion-trend storm. Never really going out of style. Sure, the lines or the fabric or the details may change slightly but not enough to make last winter’s leopard beauty obsolete this winter. The Globe article made a great point about the benefit of leopard for all skin tones – that is something hard to find with a print. Leopard flatters just about every skin tone and I’ve seen all shades from the bold “looks-just-like-a-leopard” print, to more subtle or muted tones, which give you lots of choices to find one that looks great on you.

I’ve heard some of you say that leopard is “too much”. To that I say…try it before your judge. I have a leopard scarf and every time I wear it I feel stylish and like a wildcat (okay, maybe that is a bit of an exaggeration:). Leopard can go bold – like a coat or some hot stiletto boots, or be more of an accessory – like a great clutch or a drapey scarf.

In my closet, I have the following leopard goodies:

1. J. Crew cardigan – about 10 years old. Still wear it and it’s gorgeous.

2. Tory Burch flats – my first pair of TB flats. They are a staple in my wardrobe and, three years later, still look like a million bucks with everything.

3. Ella Moss halter top – Hot leopard print bandeau top with halter strap. Cute with jeans, pencil skirt, vinyl pants…

4. Pashmina – $25 purchase in Soho. Dresses up any fall/winter/spring coat.

5. Cuff – Needs a new clasp but the leopard print cuff I bought last year is still rockin this year.

I don’t know why, but there is something exhilarating about leopard. It’s luxurious and unique and can make anything ordinary look saucy and purrfect. So, I ask you, my style maven, how will you incorporate leopard into your wardrobe this season?

Pajama Jeans – the latest fashion faux pas

I recently heard about the Pajama Jean – “Looks like denim, feels like pjs,” and I think I actually threw up a  little bit in my mouth. I have to say, I am pretty outraged by this creation. Why? Well, there’s a bunch of reasons but let’s start with my practical reasons. First off, the pants have no zippers or buttons. Okay, last I heard, pants have zippers and buttons. Pants without zippers and buttons are usually called – leggings, sweatpants or…yes, pajamas. Even the jeggings I buy have some button/zipper styling. More than that, the idea of your pants being so comfortable you would wear them all day AND want to sleep in them? I just don’t get this. Yeah, I do get it on a pure comfort level. Believe me, I love my yoga pants as much as any other girl out there. But, there is a time and place for my yoga pants and they are not part of my “get dressed and go out” wardrobe and never will be (hint hint).

My biggest beef with this comfort-first invention is what it says about women and our ability to be stylish and comfortable. Ladies, do we really need to wear our pjs around town to be comfortable? I think not. I buy jeans and wear jeans a lot. And I have learned how to buy jeans that look great, fit great and feel great. I work full-time and my office is casual attire. I wear jeans to work almost every day. And, I sit at my desk most of the day in my jeans. I could not imagine wearing Pajama Jeans to my office. They are not jeans, my stylish friends. They are cotton pajama pants made to kinda look like jeans…but not really.

In my opinion, products like this are what’s wrong with fashion and style in America. Can you imagine a woman walking around Covent Garden London in a Picture 77pair of these? Or down the Rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau in Paris wearing jeans that look like pajamas? Never. It would never happen. I don’t know why here in the U.S., we have gotten lazy enough to think that it’s okay to wear sweats, yoga pants and now pjs to the mall, to the grocery store, to lunch with friends, on a date with your man – it’s just not okay. I grew up in house where my mother would never leave the house unless she looked “acceptable.” This meant: hair done, make up on, clothes to match the occasion. Her motto: “You never know who you’ll run into.” That was drilled into my head and it’s how I dress every day. Think about the impression you make – the first impression you make – when you run into someone at the mall or at the movies or anywhere outside your home. People are visual creatures like it or not and they check out what you’re wearing and how you look. It may sound superficial. It may sound ridiculous. But it’s true.

Please, my lovelies, leave the pajamas at home. There are so many other ways to be comfortable and look stylish. I promise.