diamonds on the soles of her shoes

hmmmm, fun print flats to brighten up your spring outfits... yes pllllease!

cynthia vincent for target. available april 18

reveling in midnight clothes

sometimes i just gotta let you all know of the music that i'm really into. i'll get really into an album and then it pretty much becomes my soundtrack for a few days/week/month. right now all i want to listen to is bonnie "prince" billy's album 'lie down in the light.' they have a real groovy sound, very grateful dead-esque with an indie-country-folk spin. it's awesome. check it out.

title song by: bonnie"prince" billy

love you like a fat kid loves cake

hey! i've been noting all these great new blogs i've found (like, i write them down on all these little scraps of paper and then tape them in my notebook) and i finally added all (most?) of them to my blogroll. check them out. these are just four of like 12 i just added. they are all cool and funny and inspirational and beautiful in their own right. there are a lot of local 415/510 bloggers on there too, gotta represent wut wuutt.


also, i think i'm not into the original font i chose. so i am switching it, let's see how we like it in a little bit. and i gave up on the 3 column dealie...it was so not doing it for me. and i'm also thinking about changing my banner. any designers out there want to lend a hand?? another change: out with the old (boring) title posts. i'm trying to choose a song lyric or something that fits the post sentiment. all in all, i'm looking to spruce things up here at siggie stylez. any suggestions while i am at it??

take two

i have a lot of "go-to's" when it comes to outfits...you know, things that you can throw on without much thought. well, i decided i don't like that strategy so much, so this year i resolve to make each outfit unique and special in its own right. this is the start of my more inspired wardrobe creations, and i love it! i tried to mix things up as much as possible. what do you think?

wearing: boots, sigerson morrison for target; tights, hue; skirt, thrifted; blouse, zara; sweater, h&m; coat, jcrew (yummy new christmas present from the 'rents!); necklace, antique (it was my great grandmother's can you believe!!?)

why didn't i think of this?

i was so stoked about yesterday's gilt sales that i just had to tell my girlfriends at work, and the favor was most definietely returned! i told my friend sharon about the sale (where she scored a botkier satchel. sweet!) and she told me about dekkori, which is just about the coolest thing i've ever seen.

founded by shoe-lover stephanie kim, dekkori is a line of shoe accessories that glams and transforms an ordinary pair of pumps. the concept is to "maximize the styling options" for a given pair of shoes, turning in slingbacks into strappy sandals or even boots. dekkori is perfect for those on a shoe budget, or when under-the-bed, over-the-door, and every inch on the closet floor is filled with shoes. the possibilities are truly endless.

dekkori just lanched an online shop, and stockists can be found on the sleek and stylish website. it's not too late to put these bad boys on your holiday wish-list....trust me, i am!! i can just tell i will be day-dreaming about these until i have my hands on them!

my faves: (ps it is really hard to pick out only five)

the defiance ankle boot

the miracle over-the-knee boot

 the simone lace-up boot

 

the allison satin ankle wrap

the tiffany fringe t-strap


pics via dekkori.com

just like music

i just wanted to let share with you the three albums that pretty much get me through the day. that, and a few pandora stations-- early 90s alternative; indie girl music; and jams to be specific.

edward sharpe. seeing them this weekend!

girls. saw them a few weeks ago!

fleet foxes. saw them this fall @ bridge school benefit!

what's on your playlist right about now? do share! leave a comment with any albums that i just neeeeeeed to listen to!

local flavor, global appeal

Any dude who has visited a clothing store in the past year or so will tell you that Americana, as labeled by the capital F Fashion world, has become one of the most, if not the most, dominant trends in menswear of late. American, working-class style is on the racks of all the major clothing retailers and bros from California to Tokyo are rocking Redwings with their Levis, Wayfarers with their TopSiders, and outside of the office sporting a much less polished, more organic look. Beards are cool, plaid is cool, looking like you enjoy getting your hands dirty is cool. Having grown up in a blue collar family on the coast north of Boston, this kind of "look" never really had a name. Folks sport TopSiders because they are practical for days out on the boat, my dad wears Redwing boots because they hold up in the mud all day long, and my grandfather wore Woolrich because because their field coats (the buffalo plaid red and black of course) layer well in the winter and are just the right weight that you don't have to take them off when in and out of the dump truck, back-hoe, or local watering hole. These things are well made, functional, and as it turns out very stylish.

Obviously there are contrasts inherent in working class style meets high fashion but personally I'm on board with the Americana vibe. When practiced in moderation and keeping in mind that I live in San Francisco, not in Minnesota, not in a Polo add, it feels natural to me and always has. The look is classic and thus far has withstood the test of time. I was excited then, when a few weeks back I read (via ACL) that quality Americana had come to San Francisco, to my neighborhood. Union Made opened its doors a month or so ago in the Castro and last weekend Alexandra and I had a chance to check it out. As we walked through the front door we were immediately greeted by the smell of douglas fir, the glow of soft pine, and the enthusiastic hello of owner and co-mastermind Todd Barket. In tow, to Al's delight, was Todd's recently adopted greyhound watchdog buddy, named Buddy. Given it was closing on a Saturday we had the place to ourselves and got the chance to learn a bit about the store while browsing some of the merchandise. Todd was extremely gracious in giving us the grand tour, pointing out some of his favorites and discussing things to come. The selection at Union Made is consistently Americana without being too over the top (no waxed mustaches) or monotonous. The more pricey selections such as those from Alden or Rogues Gallery are balanced well by more affordable goods from Woolrich, Levi's and Alternative Apparel. "Democratic pricing" Todd calls it. As a compliment to this theory, the store also mixes it up with accessories, t-shirts, outerwear, shoes, scarves, ties, totes & even a few man-products. Don't expect to find 20 dollar Wranglers but there's defintely a little bit of everything, for everyone. Having paid his dues in retail at the Gap for many years Todd knows how to run a store and it clearly shows. The place is very cool, it has a nice local flavor and like much of the clothing on the racks bears the mark of hard work and a little elbow grease. When I expressed that I was digging the unfinished pine look of the display furniture Todd gushed that his bf had taken two weeks off of work and built everything from local wood. They had to rent a UHaul to get it all back to the city. Al and I spent almost an hour hanging out and were impressed with their attention to detail and with the diverse selection of man stuff. Keeping my annual income in mind, my two top picks would be the Alternative Apparel sweatshirts (around $50) and the no-name military grade aviators ($100). We walked out with some sweet goods (gotta support your local businesses) but would have been happy just to hang out and drink a beer, Pabst or High Life of course.

Union Made is in San Francisco at 493 Sanchez (basically on the corner of 18th) and a work-in-progress on the web at http://www.unionmadegoods.com/. Remember it's the Holiday season, show some love.

les beaux timbres

i just sent my dear friend kailey an email requesting she send me these aborbs french stamps....for decorating binders and notebooks and whatever else i find needs decorating. my computer maybe?

thank you all so much for the wonderful compliments about my photoshoot!

xx

style chain!

good morning! today i am hopping on board with the style chain gang and reppin the 'belted scarf look'. first of all, i love this game of taking what you see and making it your own and then seeing how it compares to the inspiration. second of all, i kindof love this belted scarf look.

so i had my bro snap a few shots this morning since i knew it would be dark by the time i got home (i hatechu, winter) and i would like to say a few things. a) how do people take pictures so early in the morning? i'm like a space cadet before noon. b) this "shoot" was decidedly less goofy that the last time bro took pics. c) um i forget was (c) was because it's still before noon. 

the style chain gang: julie from orchidgrey; christina from secondskin; krystal from thistimetomorrow; indiana from adoredaustin; and now me! from signaturestyles

wearing: scarf and belt, vintage; sweater dress, h&m; wool tights, ogilvy's in montreal; boots, jcrew.

oooh! ooooh! oooh!

this was a tough choice... alber elbaz or julia child? agyness deyn or genevieve jones? yves st. laurent or grace coddington?? and the winner is...

the bespectacled, bow-tied MR. ELBAZ!!!

click here to get the lanvin designer's mug on a tee or tote, and here to see the rest of the gang!

linebacker style

question:

sculpted tee by three dots 

answer: yes. undoubtedly, YES.

knubs and a weave

over the weekend i took all my tearsheets from the september mags (i had a LOT) and assembled them into one nice inspiration book. a little cheeseball, i know, but it cleans up a lot easier and it turns out it's quite helpful. when looking back through all the pages i had torn out, i figured out what i was most attracted to this season. and that, my friends, is texture. yes, more than any color or silhouette or designer in particular,  texture--anything that made me want to reach out and feel the fabric-- was ripped out and sprayglued. 

with my inspiration as such, and the weather turning awful (i hate the fall, but that's another post all together), on tuesday i got crafty with my tights and paired them with my black woven boots. the colors match but the textures contrast in a really cool way.

tights: gap, paris (turned inside out). boots: handmade in italy, available here

perfect for the place des vosges

a few weeks ago one of my oldest friends, kailey, showed matt and i around the marais --an almost too cool neighborhood in paris. she brought us to an excellent breton crepe restaurant, then to the swedish cultural center for some courtyard coffee, then to 'merci' aka the coolest store in the entire world, and finally to chill in the places des vosges. it was sitting here amongst the french hipsters and beautiful families, that i realized i want to live here. one day i want to look and act as effortlessly cool as the parisians manage to do.

the first step to accomplishing this is, obvi, owning all shoes produced by MaraisUSA. owned and founded catherine chu and haley boyd (also the designers, natch), MaraisUSA is named after the iconic, eclectic neighborhood that straddles the third and fourth arrondisements.chu and boyd have used their parson's educated minds to create super cute shoes, adored on covetable on so many levels. i'm telling you, all i need to do is to wear any pair of these and stand outside the Musee Picasso and i'll fit right in!

below are some of my favorites, though i am not lying when i say it's hard to choose just one (or four). but at prices this good you don't have to. plus, if you purchase now you can save 25% off by entering POLKADOTS at check out. and that totes means you can add those boots to your order...all the cool kids are doing it.

army boots, $98

tuxedo boots, $145

oxford, $88

two-toned flats, $64

classic pump, $96

mc madness

if you click through the lovely ladies' blogs featured on the right, you'll notice that ModCloth makes quite a few cameos. i've recently discovered the reason: it's AMAZING. the site is jam packed with all sorts of goodies... dresses, shoes, sunglasses, rompers, you name it! let's take a look at what i consider to be some first-glance highlights:

one of the first images i saw when visiting the site. i'm pretty sure i DIED. (you'll come to learn that i have a thing for pugs AND big glasses so this is pretty much a slice of heaven right here):

next up, a wild horses maxi-dress. also available in chest-ire cat and wolf form. the description calls it "100% amazing" and i could not agree more:

i saw this skirt over at orchid grey and fell in love... my darling boyfriend may or may not have ordered one for me, i'm crossing my fingers:

last but not least, one of the many items i drool over whenever Jessica from WhatIWore has it on. if it weren't out of stock, i would've snatched up this goodie in a minute. this necklace makes everything look fantastic:

i could go on and on (and on and ON) but it's way more fun to check it out for yourself! everything is so well priced, and so cleverly named (i'm also a sucker for puns) that you could spend hours and paychecks at modcloth. and that wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing!

carousels and bows

In recent years I have noticed one major regression in my life. That is, I really don't like wearing pants or socks. I've rediscovered the little girl in me that wore smock dresses with tights and patent flats day in and day out, even whilst playing with the boys. Now, 20plus years later, I'll wear dresses and tights any day of the week, but it has to be some sort of an occasion to get me in pants. That, or they must be a really sick, perfectly-fitting, flattering, comfortable, and all around awesome pair of pants. Good luck with that, right? And socks? Fuhgettaboutit, I barely even bother with those anymore. They are, essentially, prisons for my feet.

That being said, I'm constantly on the lookout for tights to add to my ever-increasing collection. I have all sorts: colors, dens, footless/footed, striped, prints, Chanel (!!!my faves!!!), and lots and lots of opaque black--a San Francisco girl can never have enough black tights. The only tights missing from my collection, it seems, are RHINESTONE TIGHTS!!! Well, not for long!

A fall must-own:

i mean, really? AreYouKiddingMe?? these are fantastic! while we're at it, these have to be in my collection as well. that's right, have to.

Now, I just have to start saving up slash reminding boyfriend/mom/friends/all family members that either pair of these tights would be the best.gift.ever.

To buy (which you should, especially if you are buying for me) please go to PixieMart. And check out the rest of the sight, too. You'll find lots of super awesome things--like this (I'll take one in medium, please).

loving it

I've been squinting my eyes and pretending this is me all afternoon.

pic courtesy of style.com lookbook

go time

for my pre-class butterflies:

muccccch better! thanks, karl!