Coachella Trends

Calling All Hipsters! Report to Coachella!

The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival is an annual music and arts festival held in California located in the Inland Empire's Coachella Valley in the Colorado Desert. This music festival lasted from April 10th to the 12th this year. Coachella brings in some of the biggest celebrities in music, film and fashion. Coachella is known for its talented line up of musicians but has recently evolved into the latest fashion catwalk.

Walking into Forever 21 and other retail stores it is clear to see that the latest fashion tends are Hippie and Bohemian. From flower headbands to Indie patterned pants, all ages want to get their hands on floppy hats and fringe vests. Coachella encompassed all of these 2015 looks. I loved all of these girls' looks in the top picture. One thing that I noticed from analyzing street style at this event was that the girls are not afraid to step outside fashion boundaries. These girls are willing to pair different patters and colors together to create a statement. 

One of the most frequent styles that I saw while admiring photos from the festival was floral patterns and paring matching crop top and skirts together. The photo above is one of my most favorite looks that I have found from street stalking. I love how this outfit is sophisticated but has simplicity at the same time. I love how the black was pulled out of the dress and matches the black sunglasses, heels and purse. This look has a wonderful flow to the eye. I also love the cuts and lines in this top and skirt. The top has loose flowing shoulders and the skirt has sharp square cuts. The combination works perfectly. The crop top and matching skirt is one of the latest fashion trends and this outfit proves that this combination should stay around. 

Another trend that I found to be popular with the Coachella attendees was unique sunglasses. Floral prints, heart shaped, oval, the list goes on and on because there were all kinds of looks to fit any type of style. Sunglasses have become a huge accessory in recent years and retail companies are getting creative with their designs. In sunny California, Coachella was the perfect place for concert-goers to show off their latest pair. In the picture above, I love how this attendee was fearless in her choice of accessory. Her sunglasses brought her look together and turned her simple see-through dress into a fashion statement.  

- Lindsey

Chicago Fashion Foundation

A City Within A City

On Thursday April 2nd, Isabelle and I attended the 8th Annual Chicago Fashion Foundation Fashion Show at the Chicago Cultural Center. The non-profit organization raises scholarship money for fashion design students in the Chicago area, and top designers compete for the scholarships by showcasing their designs at the annual show. The winner of the 2015  design competition and a $5,000 scholarship was Stephany Muoz, and the business scholarship went to Tessa Bullen. All the designs presented by the students were amazing and the wins were well-deserved. Here are each of our looks for the show:

We both chose classic little black dresses and heels, but styled and accessorized our looks to fit our own styles. Isabelle wore a light tan trenchcoat over her backless black dress from American Apparel and added simple gold accessories like her earrings and chain bracelet. Her open-toed shoes tie the touches of tan and beige together to complete the look.

I chose a simple black dress and focused the attention on my elaborate bohemian statement necklace from Belmont Army. I added a stark white blazer for contrast and structure against the flowy cut of the dress. My outfit was completed with black strappy heels and a small vintage Kate Spade purse.

The event also had collections from top Chicago designers Mark Roscoe, Daniel George, Gabrielle Zwick, and Gidi. All of the collections were beautiful, but Gidi had the best wearable looks and Mark Roscoe had the best elegant gowns in my opinion. I was jealous of the models who got the luxury of wearing such gorgeous creations. Gabrielle Zwick also had a swimsuit line of unique strappy one and two-piece suits. The collection was a perfect way to welcome the warm weather!

Gidi:

 Gabrielle Zwick:

Other collections that were showcased were from alumni designers including Elena Bobysheva (www.elenabobysheva.com), LaTonya Williams of Elizabeth Smith Fashions (www.esfashions.com), and Robert Noia of Columbia College. Below is a glimpse of Robert Noia’s collection.

The panel of celebrity judges included handbag designer Diego Rocha, TV personality Rachelle McCray, VP of media relations at Macy’s Andrea Schwartz, fashion blogger Diala Joseph, philanthropist and entrepreneur Frances Renk, and fashion stylist and blogger Souk Supantavong. There was also a special appearance from Alexander Knox, the winner of the CFF Design Competition in 2014, who was also a contestant on Season 13 of Project Runway. Overall, it was a fun girl’s night out downtown filled with fashion. Everyone should check it out for next year’s event! Now I can’t wait for my future PR life of “parties and running around in heels.” For more information on the organization go to www.chicagofashionfoundation.org

-Allison

How To Wear a Romper

       The transition from winter to spring is the most exciting transition for me regarding fashion. It's finally time to trade your knee-length parkas for a loose jacket, and you can finally walk outside without having to wear snow boots just to avoid frostbite. Spring is a great time to experiment with new trends and try out different looks to find your niche. One of my favorite things to wear is a romper. Rompers work with any body type and can be dressed down or up, and come in a variety of different styles, patterns, and lengths. Forever 21 has a variety of affordable rompers; this one and this one are my favorites, and you can check out a few at TopShop if you're willing to splurge. Check out a few ways on how to wear this hot spring trend below:

Daytime: A long-sleeved romper with shorts is perfect for a day spent walking around in the sunshine, going to lunch with friends, or shopping. Pair this romper with wedges to elongate your legs without feeling like you're showing too much skin. If you're not comfortable with wearing such high wedges, switch the pair out for a pair of sandals. If you're looking to spruce up the look, a statement necklace definitely adds some style. 

Night Out: You can never go wrong with all black! Switch out your cocktail dress for a jumpsuit and statement necklace. The outfit is not only comfortable, but fashion forward and compliments any body type. 

Festival: Dressing for festival season is my favorite because you can wear anything! However, it is important to wear something comfortable enough to last an entire day through any sort of weather. Wearing a romper is the easiest way to go during festivals because it's one piece and easy to accessorize. Pairing a romper with a floppy hat or sky high gladiator sandals makes the outfit fashionable AND comfortable. 

- Kristin

Winter Finals 2015 Playlist

         It's that time of the year again. It's week ten of classes and fate is setting in: you have four papers due in a week and three group projects. We all wish that St. Patrick's Day weekend was any other weekend, but of course it lands right before finals week. Fortunately, we decided to make your eight hour study sessions in the library a little more doable. Here's a playlist to help you focus on your studies, and good luck on your finals! Spring break is almost here!

Walt Grace's Submarine Test, January 1967 by John Mayer

I Want You by Saint Raymond

Skin by Boy

Work Song by Hozier

Sleeping Limbs by From Indian Lakes

Specks by Matt Pond PA

We Don't Eat by James Vincent McMorrow

The Moon Song by Karen O. and Ezra Koenig

Wherever You Are by Angus & Julia Stone

You & I by Crystal Fighters

Heartbeat by Mat Kearney

Ready by Kodaline

Someone You'd Admire by Fleet Foxes

Polaroid by Imagine Dragons

How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep by Bombay Bicycle Club

World News by Local Natives

Believe by Mumford & Sons

OctaHate by Ryn Weaver

Drop the Game by Flume and Chet Faker

One Million Lovers by The Growlers

Know Yourself by Drake

Anti-Summersong by The Decemberists

A Rush of Blood by Coasts

Eleven: 11 by Pell

Jolene by Ray LaMontagne

The Bug by Bear Hands

Cherry Wine by Hozier

Pusher by Alt-J

Shirtsleeves by Ed Sheeran

Gotta Get Away by The Black Keys

Childs Play by SZA and Chance the Rapper

Runner by From Indian Lakes

Rapt by Karen O.

Holograms by Leonard Friend

We Follow (Stereotypes Remix) by From Indian Lakes

21 Gun Salute by Half Moon Run

No Diggity by Chet Faker

Transpose by Bad Suns

Ray Lewis by Joywave and STS

Lost Queen by Pharrell

Talk on Indolence by The Avett Brothers

Seaside by The Kooks

All I Do by Majid Jordan

Check out the playlist on Spotify here.

- Kristin and Leah

Protect Your Lips

We all know the feeling of dry, chapped lips right? It is one of the worst feelings and we always regret not putting on enough lip balm or forgetting to carry a lip balm with us at all times. But sometimes it is not always our fault, it could be the ingredients in the balm that makes our lips even drier and requires application more often. There are many different types of lip balms, and it is a struggle to choose THE one that works for you. But here are some lists of ingredients to look for and ingredients to avoid in a lip balm.

Ingredients to look for:

● Paraben-free

● Moisturizers like Vaseline, beeswax (cera alba), ceramides (fats that help retain water)

● Up to 5 percent of humectants — which increase water content, help prevent cracked skin and reduce skin irritation — like urea or glycerin

● Dimethicone, which helps prevent drying and makes the product last longer

● Lanolin and cocoa butter soften, moisturize and protects lips

● Sunscreen

Ingredients to avoid:

● Fragrances and artificial colors can cause lip irritation

● Menthol, camphor and phenol cool and anesthetize the lips, but can also dry your lips and/or produce redness and swelling

● Alcohol is also a drying ingredient

● Salicylic acid exfoliates and relieves pain but don’t use if you’re allergic to aspirin

● Aloe butter moisturizes, heals and soothes, but can irritate lips

● Vitamin E is an antioxidant and anti-aging, but can irritate lips

Tinted lip products and lipsticks can cause irritation and dryness because of the certain ingredients that are included in the product. Here is a quick trick to make your lipstick stay longer so that you don't have to keep re-applying your tinted/lipstick products, instead you can just apply your regular hydrating and nutritious lip balm.

Step 1: Exfoliate

● Brand products. LUSH offers the best lips scrubs that keeps your lips very smooth and healthy. 

● DIY scrubs. You can make your own scrub just by mixing sugar with honey or 

olive oil. Mix it well and apply to your lips. Leave it on for 2-3minutes and just rinse it off.

● Finally the easiest way to exfoliate your lips is with toothbrush. Just apply 

Vaseline and leave it for a minute or so. Then take your toothbrush and brush it softly to remove the dead skins.

Exfoliating your lips removes all the dead skins and helps to make your lips look 

healthy. You should exfoliate your lips at least once a week or whenever you feel like 

your lips are chapped or rough. Remember to always apply unscented lip balm after 

exfoliating! 

Step 2: Pencil Lip-liner

● You should use a matching or similar color lip liner to your lipstick to make sure 

your lipstick doesn't smudge around your lip lines. It also helps to bring the true 

lipstick color.

Step 3: Apply lipstick

By knowing the helpful ingredients in your lip balms and with these easy three steps, you will have healthier and smoother lips to help you in the Chicago weather.

-Misheel

BRIT Awards Red Carpet

This year the BRIT Awards red carpet, AKA the British Grammy Awards, was not only star-studded but filled with fabulous fashion moments. Some of the guests included Taylor Swift, Kanye West, Karlie Kloss, and Cara Delevigne. Below are some of my favorite looks from the event:

-Josephine

Street Style Favs from NYFW and LFW

 It’s once again time for Fashion Week, or should I say, "Fashion Month." Last week was New York Fashion Week, and now shows are going on in London. Designers are debuting their Fall 2015 collections, but, in my opinion, Fashion Week street style is just as exciting as the looks on the runways.

This look comes from New York.  I love how fashion blogger Aimee Song styles black and white layers.  The pop of blue fur on her coat is amazing.

Another fashion blogger look from NY– I love the unexpected pairing of wide leg pants with a dress.

This NYFW look is from blogger, Chiara Ferragni.  I love how she makes a denim dress appropriate to wear in the snow by adding an edgy jacket and over-the-knee boots.

This fantastic coat was spotted at London Fashion Week.

Kendall Jenner sat front row at the Topshop fashion show in London.  I am obsessed with the pale blue and camel color combo.

Another look from London - I am in love with the cutout detail in this dress.  Pairing it with a black turtleneck and tights makes the look even more sophisticated.

-Allie

2015 Oscars Red Carpet

            Oscar Sunday is one of my favorite nights of the year. Not only is the Oscars a night to remember for its nominees regardless if they take home an actor or not, but it's also a chance for designers to show off some of their wonderful work on the for the world to see. I consider myself an avid red carpet enthusiast, and I share with excitement that the Oscar Red Carpet was 100% my favorite red carpet of the year so far. 

            Some red carpet trends I spotted consisted of bright reds and intricate beading. Elie Saab and Zuhair Murad, a couple of my absolute favorite designers, were well represented on the red carpet. Below are some of my favorite looks of the night and check out all the red carpet moments on E News here.

Giuilana Rancic, Dakota Johnson, Rosamund Pike

Anna Kendrick, Oprah, Jennifer Lopez (my best dressed pick)

Gwyneth Paltrow, Lupita Nyong'O, Jennifer Aniston

Emma Stone, Chrissy Teigen, America Ferrera

Jessica Chastain, Sienna Miller, Jamie Chung

Cate Blanchett, Margo Robbie, Kelly Rowland

- Kristin

2015 Grammys Red Carpet

      Well, we are quite deep into the 2015 award season, and I hate to say it, but the Grammy's weren't too exciting for me this year. Nothing was too shocking: I got bored with almost all of the performances, and Kanye West pulled out all the stops to get as much attention as he could (He basically ruined Beck's moment when he won album of the year, just saying). 

      There were a lot of looks I loved, but also a lot of looks that were just, blah. Black and white ensembles were the most common themes of the night (Miley Cyrus, Beyonce, and Nicki Minaj to name a few). Personally, I'd say that Taylor Swift wins my nomination for best dressed (I prayed at night that she would show up wearing Elie Saab, which she did!) Here are some of my favorite looks:

Jhene Aiko, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry

HAIM, Gwen Stefani, Iggy Azalea

Kimberly Perry, Jessie J, Miranda Lambert

-Kristin

Highlights from Spring/Summer Couture Week

The Spring/Summer 2015 Couture Week wrapped up last week in Paris. With tons of designers showing of their designs, it's inevitable that there's going to be some fashion surprises. I hope to see some of these looks on the red carpet soon! Check out www.style.com for the rest of the collections. Here are some of my favorite looks that hit the runway: 

Elie Saab

Giambattista Valli

Zuhair Murad

Valentino

Ulyana

Christian Dior

Jean Paul Gaultier

Schiaparelli

Versace

- Kristin