Night for Day Shorts

It's so easy to get inspired during fashion week (month). Night for day seems to be a popular trend lately that I can't seem to get enough of. I love how the romantic and almost intimate feminine side of a woman can be enhanced by a simple lace trimmed piece and yet played down with a graphic tee or sweatshirt. Of course, with some femme pumps and a silk blouse the piece can take on a whole other look.

Inspired by this trend I was; so I made a wonderful pair of self-lined crepe shorts trimmed with lace-like French loop braid. It took a few days of pattern drafting to find the perfect cut for the self-lined fabric which I chose to do because of my fear of VPL (visible panty lines) and potential sheerness. A few yards of fabric, drafting paper, and days later, I finally have a pair of shorts I never want to take off. They're so easy, comfortable, and flattering. Dare I say I got five compliments on them in the first 2 hours of wear?

Luckily I have some extra fabric on hand so these shorts are available over in my shop!








kenzo sweatshirt • givenchy bracelet • a.l.c tank • diane von furstenberg pumps • queen of mayhem shorts

Random note, can you believe that I cut six inches off my hair about a month ago? It has grown like a weed! I'm contemplating something more drastic...

Roped In

Somehow, no matter how hard I try, I always seem to default to a basic tee and jeans. Last Friday I really tried... I got all dressed, stepped outside to 50 degree weather and ran back inside to swap out my dress for my go to tee. Seriously, ever since I swapped my pantsuit required job for my current one, I've totally swung in the opposite direction when it comes to dressing.

Long story short, I've been bad. My one saving grace are these super versatile statement necklaces. The idea was born out of the want for a piece that would go with a basic tee or black maxi and really just work with about anything. After that came my favorite theme: juxtaposition. In this case it was the hard nature of army rope in contrast to feminine rhinestones. The whole look is somewhat tribal with a modern flair.

I'm personally in love with these pieces and get major use out of the solitaire design which I recently wore to a party and could not stop getting compliments on!

Get these goodies here or in my shop in the top banner!

Shop the Look (1) Solitaire Rhinestone Statement Necklace (2) Rhinestone Rope Tribal Necklace (3) Copper Banded Rope Necklace
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Mothership Connection

You guys might not know this, but since I was a kid I have been obsessed with space and ancient Egypt. Strange I know, but yes, I went to space camp, and yes, sixth grade history class was amazing... I mean, who doesn't want to learn about how the Egyptians pulled out brains through a dead dudes nose during the embalming process? Now it seems like both of those topics are big, hot trends in the fashion world... especially since Balenciaga's scifi pullovers (below).

Nevertheless, I recently found my space inspiration from some place else: Parliament Funkadelic! The moment I saw the graphic for the Mothership Connection album I fell in love and a t-shirt needed to happen. This outfit speaks volumes for having a great graphic tee in your closet even if it's not terribly fitted. I paired the tee with a black blazer but ultimately decided it would be way cooler to see the graphic more!









Photos of me (first three) thanks to William Thoren at William Thoren Photograhy.
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Polka Dots

Orange is one of those slightly unlikely colors that I happen to like. Of course if I had to pick one color to wear forever, it probably wouldn't be orange, but hey, it seemed to work for this outfit. I like the quirkiness of the socks, sunglasses, and oversized pullover but I must admit that I threw this all together after four hours of sleep (randomly pulling things out of my closet). I wish my blacks were better organized. Getting dressed would be so much simpler!

Sweater • Justine Sweater by Heartloom

Jeans • Zip Low by Cheap Monday

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Oversized Yolk Tee

Oversized tops are definitely one of my favorite things of late. Actually, just a great tee. I love a shirt that I can put on with some pants or a skirt, find an accessory to match and just get out the door. This shirt is pretty much that. It's a super stretchy jersey shirt that I'd eventually love to make out of a silk blend jersey. Mmmm, luxurious, oversized slouch.

This top was relatively quick to sew except for the fact I cut a hole in the sleeve clipping threads just as I had finished the piece! Disaster, but I darned and patched the knit with a triangle. I love triangles. You'll also be proud that I resisted the urge to make this piece out of black or some shade of grey which is always my natural instinct!

Oh yes, I look exhausted in this photo AGAIN. Just go with it.

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LA Winter

Dressing for winter in LA has been a tricky thing for me. I find myself complaining about the cold more often than I ever thought I would moving to sunny California. There are mornings where I wake up and have to defrost my car and actually scrape my windshield. I even find myself skating down the steps in heels because of ice I had no idea could exist in SoCal. But eventually the temperature gets up to the mid 50s by the afternoon and I'm shedding cashmere like it's my job because the sun is just so.... sunny?

To complicate everything, my work wear and blogging wear (aka when I'm sewing and getting dirty in the shop) are completely different. Wearing four inch heels while standing forever is never appealing. So, what to wear?



Layers! 1 cashmere sweater • 2 wool scarf • 3 leather jacket • 4 jeans • 5 wool socks • 6 booties

I also always carry my cashmere beanie with me, nalgene (random), and keep flat shoes in my car along with a change of super loose clothes. Honestly, I feel like you never know when or where you will arrive in LA. There is so much driving and the temperature can drop 30 degrees in a day. I'm so used to having the winter just be cold and knowing I will freeze all day, every day for three to four months. Appealing, I know, but at least I'm mentally prepared enough to not complain. Haha.

Egret Dress

Once again it's that time of year that we break out our spring and summer frocks. They're so easy to just throw on and easily become ultra chic with a pair of heels and a clutch. Here is my latest creation. I guess I'm trying to build my spring wardrobe.


My inspiration came from the simple chic cut of the many dresses on the SS 2011 runway.



Prints are also really huge this year and a great way to make a simple dress stand out.



I especially liked the back of this dress although this means I'll have to go bra-less (not an issue for someone with a small chest unless someone starts blasting the AC). Although I might invest in one of those cool low back criss-cross bras!



Some of you might know that I'm graduating in 2 weeks and will be moving on to the real world. Because of this you should be expecting more wardrobe building posts. :)

Let me know what you think! Interested in buying one? Email me at christinaooi at gmail.

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6 Feet Tall

Actually, it was more like 5'11 in those heels but whatever, I'll take it! You may be asking why I'm sporting such a goofy grin. It's because of the weather. It's actually not 40°F today, instead it's 70! This is a serious reason to be smiling because it hailed yesterday and snowed the three days prior.



Anyywayyyy... this is my new dress! I finished it last night after having it sit around for weeks because I was too lazy to go out and buy a zipper. I found a bodice pattern lying around and decided to use it for the top and well... after sewing it up I realized it was a very small petite size. Lucky for me I have no boobs so it actually fits perfectly... well I actually might have to extend the darts because I actually have no chest.



If you think I look stupid smiling in these photos you should have seen the ones I didn't post. Haha.

Now I'm going to go run around outside (read: go grocery shopping).

More Jersey, More Dresses

You all must think I have this terrible black jersey addiction. In fact, I might, but the closer reality is that I bought a ton of this black jersey because it's super soft in the hand and well, it drapes wonderfully. I made this dress last weekend and although I like it, in the end I would have preferred a stiffer jersey.






What do you guys think? I have some plans to make a pink dress and some fun lingerie next... I must feed the addiction!!

Dreams

This is such a strange and stressful time in my life. I've been having all sorts of weird dreams because of it and a lot of deja vu (although that's not all too new). Do you dream in colour? I do. In my dreams I usually meet the same "dream people" over and over again. My dreams often build upon one another and occasionally there are people from my real life in them who play larger roles. Haha, I must sound crazy. :)

Come Back Summer

Although the sound of crisp leaves under my feet are always a welcoming to a beautiful season, I wish it was still summer in a way. Another year will soon pass and I'll forget most of what happened-- the thrills and downs-- everything that made up, well, everything. I'm not sure if that makes sense, but I get this feeling at the end of the summer that's very nostalgic (almost sad). And when I think about the summer having past I feel that way too. I guess it's a good thing I have pictures to remember the little moments.

Photos taken by the most talented Lizzy Picardi. You should check out her website, she paints amazing shoes. Oh, my outfit is: tunic from Thailand, belt is vintage, shoes are Loft.

oops, $%@*!!

Ughhhhh... okay, just have to make it through the week. And if you were wondering, All Saint sweater (they actually call it a dress, wtf?), Banana Republic skirt, and Nine West shoes.

What do Birds and Dragon Ladies Have in Common?

I don't know how you feel about t-shirts, but they're pretty much a staple item as far as my wardrobe goes. Most mornings I roll out of bed and toss something on only to realize 3 hours later that my sweater isn't super uncomfortable today, it's just inside out. Pretty ad hoc. That's why I love (read: need) t-shirts-- they're pretty hard to mess up.

Some of you may know that I started a fashion internship at Little Black Dress boutique. I know, fashion in Pittsburgh?? This is proof it exists. These tees are from the boutique I'm interning at... so although the shirts aren't available online, if you really want one don't hesitate to shoot me an email.

More on my internship later because my stomach growling.

Sunday Morning

It's been a while. I'm freaking out about having to go into the real world so my posts have been nonexistent. Yep, that's right, I have to get a job...

Just in case you were wondering: All Saints sweater dress • Romeo & Juliet Couture leggings

Ethnic Suburbia

Primal Feelings

Happy 4th to all of you.

Army Chic

i didn't spell check, so if you actually read that, there are probably tons of typos....