Designer Profile: Katie Gallagher

Hope you are enjoying your New Year's Eve!

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing New York designer Katie Gallagher in her studio for Dossier Journal and wanted to share some photos which were not used for the writeup.









Katie, a RISD-educated womenswear designer, who recently took a big risk with an all-black debut collection for New York Fashion Week, was a delightful subject and really sweet in person, despite her dark romantic aesthetic.

For F/W '10, she plans to continue designing dark layered separates, with flashes of cream, grey and green. Her voluminous leather jackets are elegant pieces which caught the eye of editors at Vogue Italia and buyers at boutiques such as IT in Hong Kong and EVA in New York.





All images above are mine except for the lookbook images, which are courtesy of the designer's website.

Related links:
Katie Gallagher via Dossier Journal
Katie Gallagher website

Press: Feeling Lucky!

I was recently featured on the Lucky Magazine website, which was a delightful holiday surprise!

Check out the article for some of my recommendations for independent boutiques, including Seven New York, Eva, Moxsie and Kabiri.

Thanks for the feature, Lucky! And thank you, readers for your support. Some of my blog-related resolutions for the new year include covering more talented independent designers and boutiques as well as more personal style posts. I am certainly feeling very lucky today.

Holidaze!

It's been a while since I did an outfit post on the blog, and one of my New Year's resolutions is to include them on a regular basis, especially since I love peeping outfits on my favorite fashion blogs. Why not share the love?

What I'm wearing: the softest jersey tee dress from Under.Ligne by Doo.Ri and sandals by Topshop. This is one of my first jersey pieces by Under.Ligne and it certainly won't be my last. I'm loving the soft, stretchy material and the subtle design elements of the simple tee dress.

As you know, this past weekend, I had a chance to see family in LA, including my parents, sister, her fiance and my in-laws, who happened to be in town for the week. We all ate a lot of great food, opened presents under the Christmas tree and hit Third Street promenade in Santa Monica for a matinee showing of Avatar in 3-D. The movie was entertaining, but we were all blown away by the chic Ray-Ban-esque 3-D glasses and took turns photographing each other wearing the frames.


The Mr. wearing his aviator sunglasses and my sister wearing 3-D glasses.


Striking a pose in 3-D...

Hard to believe that it's time to say farewell to 2009... Have you made plans for New Year's Eve yet?

Douglas Reker Spring 2010 Lookbook

I am loving this video lookbook for the S/S '10 collection of New York designer, Douglas Reker. Entitled "Crystal Math," the collection was inspired by geometry and mathematics, but you don't have to be book smart to appreciate the pieces, which are flattering and accessible. Reker is an experienced print designer and although this collection relies less on printed textiles than his previous collection, there are pieces which showcase his skill with textile design. The use of contrasting colored fabrics to create new shapes on the body is somewhat reminiscent of his debut collection, where a weaving technique created textures reminiscent of picnic baskets. Keep your eye on this designer, whose luxe yet affordable womenswear is carried at stores such as Barneys and Debut New York...









For more information, check out http://www.douglasreker.com.

Weekend Links: Christmas Edition!

source

Hope you and loved ones are enjoying a nice long, holiday weekend! I don't have many links to share today as I have been recovering from a cold and doing the last minute scramble to get my shopping done before my trip to Los Angeles. I swear I'm still alive and I'll be back to blogging form next week!! But here are a few fun finds:

• I was honored to be a guest judge in the British Style Bloggers' Christmas Competition. There are four stylish ladies who rocked their Christmas party outfit best. Voting is open to the public now-- so head over here to pick your favorite!
  
• A friend alerted me to a blog about one man's quest to deal with his wife's Hello Kitty obsession called Kitty Hell, which I finally checked out this week. Must read!
• I downloaded this popular Skee-Ball app for my iPhone and I have to say that the game is not only simple, but addictive. Well worth the $0.99!
• And if you have some spare time on your hands, I highly recommend that you check out my wonderful guest bloggers who contributed to the Gift Yourself series this month. It's always fun to see what other people would pick for themselves over the holidays...
  

P.S. Last weekend, I had a chance to shoot some photographs for an Etsy vintage and knitwear store with Lindsey of Saucy Glossie as our lovely model. Lindsey was such a pro as it was freezing outside and we ran around in circles removing her coat, then throwing it over her shoulders again to run inside and change. I had a lot of fun playing photographer, though I need to be a little more instructive to my models next time instead of just yelling "Work! Work it, girl!" Here are a few teaser photos from that day... More details to come when my friends finally launch the shop!!


(um-- can you believe this is vintage Contempo Casual???)





Have a wonderful weekend!!

Guest Post: Gift Yourself with Shrimp Salad Circus!

Twas the night before Christmas... and there's one more fabulous guest post from Lindsay over at Shrimp Salad Circus! The name of the game, if you will remember, is for a fashion blogger to choose three gifts across three different price ranges.

Name: Lindsay {Shrimp}

Describe yourself:
You are what you love .....

all my people | mish & rosco | español | travel | running | the perfect song | avocado | creating | vintage | earl grey | my plants | lazy weekend mornings | learning | vintage | crazy eyeshadow | photography | color | awkward moments | train cases | sunshine | cooking | owls | san diego | vino tinto | photo booths | limes | being dramatic | lyrics | boots | freckles | cheese | family game night | lowercase | sunny dispositions | neon nails | nighttime | holidays

..... and not what loves you back.

And your blog:
Shrimp is a site designed to inspire your every day - to encourage you to create, think outside the box, better your business, and just to appreciate the pretty, simple, and happy things in life.

Gifts for me...

Under $100:

Tate Oxford Bootie from Payless

$100-$499:

Wool Double-Breasted Cape from Pure Heart Designs

$500+:

Vintage Ruffle Romance Custom Dress from Adelle Apparel

Hope you are enjoying your holidays! :)

I'll be sending you warm, toasty thoughts from Los Angeles this weekend! xx

Wishlist Wednesday: I'm Gifting Myself!

After a series of guest posts on this blog, I decided to share three items on my holiday wishlist at the moment... Today, I finished 90% of my holiday shopping and feel less guilty about checking out some things for myself now!

Under $100:


Six Series Two No. 5 "Nicoll 17" by Richard Nicoll. The parfumeur, Rodrigo Flores-Roux describes the scent as a "simple, minimalist fragrance from a perfumer who enjoys maximalism... every single aspect of Florentine fennel as a garden plant and as a silvered delicacy in summer salad was taken into account." Notes include fennel, exotic black basil, white Irish petals, caraway seeds and southern magnolia.

Just over $100:


Double crown of thorns by Savannah Wyatt. Inspired by Jesus's crown of thorns and made entirely of elastic! I think it would look amazing as a headpiece.

Just over $500:


Coat by Patricia Ayres. Love the peek of skin at the shoulders and the color of this coat ("smoke gray").

Hope you and your family are enjoying a wonderful holiday season! One more guest post tomorrow while I'm en route to LA... Wishing you warm thoughts from New York!

So what's on YOUR wishlist today?

Guest Post: Gift Yourself with Miss Glitzy!

Today's guest post comes courtesy of Miss Glitzy from Miss Glitzy's Monologue, who dazzles us with some of her favorite finds from Singapore designers. I loved her picks, as I am not familiar with these brands....

Name: Miss Glitzy

Describe yourself and your blog: Miss Glitzy is a corporate slave from Singapore who enjoys good food, dressing up and trashy magazines. Miss Glitzy's Monologue is a lifestyle blog targeting women who enjoy quality and wholesome living. Join Miss Glitzy in her discovery for fun, food and fashion!

Gifts for me...

Under $100:


Alldressup Chelone ruffled petal necklace. Alldressedup is a Singaporean label, known for its unique, sophisticated and innovative designs. The Chelone is an interesting statement accessory that is made from nubuck by hand! Not only does it jazz up the outfit, it serves as a good conversation starter at parties!

$100-$499:


Tong Tong Cheongsame Dress. Tong Tong Friendship Store, also from Singapore, designs and sells quirky and modern adaptations of the Chinese traditional cheongsams. This cheongsam dress is bright and cheery. While it retains the traditional Mandarin collars, the dress is modified with a flare skirt that flatters most body shapes. Each dress costs between US$150-450.

$500+:


Kwanpen leather bag. Kwanpen is one of the pioneer Singaporean brands that manufacture high quality croc leather bags. Each leather bag costs 1000-6000USD.

Thanks for your gorgeous finds, Miss Glitzy! I just finished some shopping online today... and I'm hoping to hit some stores in person tomorrow... In personal news: my little sister just got engaged! I'm very excited to spend time with her and her fiance, as well as with family, back in LA... Tomorrow, I share with you some of my holiday gift wishes...

Guest Post: Gift Yourself with the-ocd!

Today's guest post comes courtesy of Denise of the-ocd, whose blog details her obsessive and meticulous attention to DIY-detail. Hope you enjoy her picks! The name of the game is for a fashion blogger to pick three gifts for themselves...

Name: Denise Kuan

Describe yourself and your blog: Couture was my hook into fashion (and the fashion industry)... all the meticulous details and fantastical creations never cease to take my breath away and constantly force me to wonder, "HOW did they make that?!" The path from transforming a 2D sketch/intangible idea into a 3D reality continues to fascinate me, as this is something I'm exploring with my own experiments on the-ocd.

Gifts for me...

Under $100:


Draped Rebecca jacket at Nasty Gal

$100-$499:


Size 2 dressform at Mood Fabrics (available in-store)

$500+:


BMW M6 Convertible

Thanks for the delicious picks, Denise! Just a few more days until Christmas... Have you completed your holiday shopping yet?

Head Case!

This past week, I had the pleasure of catching up with friends at the Fashion Pulse Daily holiday/anniversary party. I've been feeling hair accessories lately-- especially of the fluffy, fascinator variety, so I took the occasion to wear a new headpiece, a gift from a friend who is about to launch an Etsy store (more information on that to come)....


Chrissy and me


Another shot of Chrissy and me. Did you notice that we are Boyy Slash bag twins?? I'm wearing: a frilly headpiece designed by a friend, purple Wren cocktail dress, H&M jacket and a Slash in brick. Chrissy is wearing the Slash in classic black with the delicious python embossed side worn out.


Erin and Jordana

TGIF! What are your plans for the weekend? I'm helping my friend with a photoshoot, going to a karaoke birthday party and doing some mad last minute holiday shopping.

I'll be in LA for Christmas, and counting down the days until warm weather, spending time with family and friends, movie matinees (we don't really have them here in New York), Coffee Bean and Baja Fresh. I know I already tweeted the aforementioned list, but I have simple needs.

Hope you have a happy weekend!

Guest Post: Gift Yourself with Fashion Pulse Daily!

Check out these adorable holiday finds from today's Gift Yourself guest blogger, the lovely Julia from Fashion Pulse Daily, whose holiday/anniversary party I recently attended!

Name: Julia DiNardo/Fashion Pulse Daily

Describe yourself and your Blog: Fashion Pulse Daily is the go-to site for the latest fashion news, trend reports, runway reviews, shopping, beauty, and more.

Gifts for me...

Under $100:


Endangered Species Print Project- only as many prints as endangered species left in the world are made!

$100 to $499:


Magnes Sisters bag

$500+:



Cyrilla chair from Equita

Thanks for the gorgeous finds, Julia! Readers, hope you are enjoying this series as I sort out some new features for the blog and work on my career and personal life. Love you all and happy Thursday!!

Tis the Season for Holiday Shops!

If you are in New York or LA, check out some of these amazing holiday shopping opportunities starting tonight!





And be sure to catch Areaware's amazing Stop Shop at Port Authority through January 2nd, featuring a curated dream of a holiday shop and DJs, too. See pictures below; the space and the merch looks amazing!

Guest Post: Gift Yourself with Couture Carrie!

Today's beautiful guest blogger is Couture Carrie, who shares three gifts she would choose for herself for the holidays...

Name: Couture Carrie

Describe yourself and your blog: A gal who believes that fashion is not mere frivolity!

Gifts for me...

Under $100:


J. Crew crystal supernova ring

$100-$499:


Boutique 9 Rashelle slashed suede booties

$500+:


Victoria Beckham peplum mini dress

Thanks, Carrie! Hope your wishes come true this Wednesday :D

Guest Post: Gift Yourself with Our City Lights!

I asked my wonderful blogger friends to pick three gifts for themselves. Today, we have Diana from Our City Lights picking one inexpensive, moderate and dream item for herself... I loved these.

Name: Diana from Our City Lights

Describe yourself and your blog: Diana, an avid reader, unemployed librarian with a camera and too much on my hands. My blog is my outlet, a place to form friendships, and cherish the ones I’ve made through it.

Gifts for me...

Under $100:



The Cross My Heart Yo-Yo from Something’s Hiding In Here. It’s playful, unexpected and great for display in a kid’s room.

$100-$499:



Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro Lens. A step (more like a few flights) up from my Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 2 Lens

$500+:



A house. Coming from a first generation home of a mixed culture upbringing, I feel like I’m living the American dream- perfect husband, an education, health insurance, good family, a cat (or three) and being a home owner would just be the ultimate topping to an ideal life.

Thanks for your choices, Diana! Here's hoping that the new year bring you some of the items from your list :)