Holiday Season Overload- Meet the Elastic Waist Pant

By Katie Beattie
@katiembeattie

The holiday season is here. Christmas carols are playing in stores, the decorations are up, we’ve had a glimpse of snow and holiday goodies are becoming ever present in our kitchens. Personally, I can never say no to shortbread cookies, chocolate squares or white chocolate tree bark. Although my tummy loves these treats, my button-up pants do not.

But it seems this year I am in luck, because this year the holiday season overload will meet the elastic waist. “The tastemaker crowd has embraced soft, slouchy, cozy styles as irreverent and cool” says Susan Cernek, senior fashion editor of Glamour.com. Although many in the fashion world may cringe at the idea of an elastic waist, celebrity stylist Robert Verdi has the answer “You friend would day, ‘Oh my God, are you wearing an elastic waist?’ And you’d say, ‘It’s Stella McCartney,’ and then they’d say, ‘They’re fabulous’”.

Many designers, like Stella McCartney are offering elastic waist pants including Alexander Wang, Michael Kors and Rag & Bone, along with some comfort labels like Juicy Couture and Splendid. Verdi says that the best options have elastic just on the back of the waistband, that stretches from hip to hip, and isn’t visible from the front. He suggests wearing a more fitted top with any sort of loose or unstructured pants, such as a button down shirt or a lean tunic, but also states that it should remain untucked. Verdi also suggests sticking to textured fabrics such as velvet or corduroy that will help to keep attention away from the middle. But he strongly recommends no elastic-waist denim.

So for those of us fashionistas who like to indulge over the holiday season, we now have the perfect trend to help keep us comfortable, cozy and able to breathe.

Yay! P.Y.A.

By Gillian Waxer

All hail the sample sale! From Tuesday November 23^rd until Sunday November 28^th P.Y.A. importers has been making Christmas wishes come true early with their annual sample sale. With brands such as Ted Baker, Line, Earnest Sewn, Edun, Corpus, and DKNY Intimates, all the nice boys and girls will surely get everything on there list!

Located at 15 Apex Road in Toronto, (Lawrence and Dufferin) this sale is uptown, tucked out of the way of popular shopping spots so there is no need to fight off mall masses.

You can expect to receive up to 80% off of retail prices. What does 80% off look like? It looks like Ted Baker dresses anywhere from $35 to $75, Line cardigans for $25 to $45, Earnest Sewn jeans for only $30, and hundreds of dollars off amazing assorted outerwear!

So if you want your closet to look pretty, then take the trip up to the north end of the city where you will find fabulous frocks and wonderful wardrobe pieces! With the savings you’ll see this holiday season will definitely be very merry!!

Macy's Love's Lagerfeld

By: Katie Beattie
@katiembeattie

As we recuperate from the Lanvin for H&M collaboration its time to alert all lovers of Lagerfeld.

According to Vogue.com Karl Lagerfeld, the iconic creative director of Chanel will soon be creating a collection for the department store Macy’s. The collaboration will be revealed in over 250 Macy’s store and online in September 2011. Macy’s has previously collaborated with a number of designers such as Vivienne Westwood, Versace, Paul Smith and Kinder Aggugini.

Terry J. Lundgren, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Macy’s Inc told Women’s Wear Daily, “Karl Lagerfeld holds a unique place in the world of fashion, an icon who is the ultimate modernist. Through the decades, his style and vision have marked the history of design. It is a tremendous honour to bring his inimitable perspective to our fashion customer”.

The ready to wear collection will feature both menswear and womenswear and is rumoured to feature jeans to party dresses. The line will also offer Macy’s prices so Lagerfeld admirers will be able to purchase some of his designs at more affordable prices. Still nine months away and this partnership is already taking the fashion world by storm.

Looking for a way to increase your Bottom Line?

Ladies its time to pack up your Spanx! With the rise of bootylicious celebrities like Kim Kardashian, Beyonce, and Amber Rose- the booty is back and bigger than ever! In the past year 5000 women in North America underwent surgical but lift procedures, to increase the roundness of their derrieres.

But have no fear the Booty Pop is here:

This is one of the many new products designed to increase the size of your butt in a reasonably natural manner. And according to retailers, they are flying off the shelves! Even celebrities such as Kelly Ripa are embracing the trend and using the Booty Pop to give themselves a little extra va-voom from the back: http://www.buybootypop.com/images/intouch.pdf

The Booty Pop is available at all major retailers and online at buybootypop.com

Fashion Bloggers for Coach Holiday Campaign 2010

By Amanda Jazvac

If someone were to ask you what your favourite thing is about the holidays, what would your answer be? Mine……the holiday spirit. The effect it has on people, and the happy disposition everyone seems to be in. And, well, the decorations of course!

This year for their Holiday collection, Coach has partnered with some of the top fashion bloggers to get their perspective on both decorations and the holiday spirit. The combination of the two has led to fun, glitzy and unbelievably fashion forward top picks of handbags as chosen by these fanciful fashionistas.

At the recent launch in Soho, NY, guests were treated to a sneak peek of the collection, as well as the opportunity to meet and great the bloggers. More and more, we see the rise of the blogger as more than just a face behind a website. With as much fashion knowledge and punch as these lovely people have, it is no wonder they are being sought after by mega brands such as Coach to spice up seasonal ad campaigns. My favourite of the bunch: Kelly Framel of the Glamourai. Check out her blog for amazing pictures of daily outfits, her extensive vintage collection, and cool do-it-yourself fashion projects.

Enjoy the video below, and keep an eye out for the new Coach Holiday 2010 collection to land in a store near you!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4IJaFAfDdmI

Movember to Remember

By Gillian Waxer

Can you handle the handlebar? Or perhaps you prefer the more delicate demistache. Well what ever you fancy, you should make this November into Movember!

Join the fight against Men’s prostate and testicular cancer by taking part in the Movember movement.

Assuming that all you lovely ladies out their can’t grow a mustache of your own, support the special men in your life who can by donating to those who are growing out their gristle for a good cause.

The Movember foundation started in 2004 in Australia and New Zealand and by 2007 spread to Canada, The United States, Ireland, The United Kingdom, and Spain. In Canada proceeds of the Movember fundraising go to The Prostate Cancer Research Foundation of Canada.

So for all those ladies that can’t grow a mo’ of their own what are their other options? And how can make a positive mo’tion? Through the purchase of Mo’ positive products such as Demistache mustache necklaces, Arbitrage cuff links and label pins, Tom’s Shoes, Fuzzy Ink, Palmer Cash, or Threadless Tee. Or better yet, perhaps you want to document your Movember fun with the Movember Flip video camera?

Whatever your movement or mo’tion, make this November a Movember to remember!!

Alexander McQueen: A Masterpiece

The MET Celebrates the Late Fashion Designer

By: Katie Beattie

After almost a year since his passing, the late and greatly missed British Fashion Designer Alexander McQueen is being honoured by the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The MET announced that its 2011 edition of its tony “Met Ball”, as Vogue’s annual Costume Institute Gala at the museum is known, has been inspired by the late designers work, who was an art collector himself, his final collection was inspired by Old Master paintings.

The gala event will be taking place on May 2^nd, 2011, and an exhibition of McQueen’s work will follow, running from May 4^th to July 31^st, entitled “Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty”. A range of pieces will be included in the exhibition, from McQueen’s 1992 graduate collection from Central St. Martins, to designs created for Givenchy in the 90s, and pieces designed for the designer’s late friend, fashion icon Isabella Blow. The exhibit, “Savage Beauty” will not be arranged chronologically but around specific themes such as “The Savage Mind”, “Romantic Gothic”, “Romantic Nationalism”, “Romantic Exoticism” and “Romantic Primitivism”. The creative consultants’ for the exhibition are Sam Gainsbury and Joseph Bennett who produced many of McQueen’s runway shows.

The exhibit is expected to attract a great number of people and will be an emotional event for McQueen’s family, friends and fans. Curator of the Costume Institute, Andrew Bolton told Women’s Wear Daily, “His catwalk presentations were outstanding and straddle art and fashion. We want to get across two elements- the spectacle of the runway presentations and the beauty of his craftsmanship”.