Hermes, I Will Be Your Bitch

If you know me then you know that I love accessories.  I love a good arm party, ring party or Hermes party.  So when I got my first printed feature in InStyle's September Issue I knew I had to commemorate it with something special and nothing is more special to me than anything that comes in that orange box.  I had wanted Hermes' Collier de Chien leather bracelet for a long time.  Everything about it is alluring, the uniqueness, the exclusivity and oh the bling.  It's definitely an item that is in demand;  you can only buy them in the actual store and you can't special order them if they are not available.  Well at least my peasant-ass wasn't allowed to.

When I walked into the store, I think I mumbled some nonsense to the shiny French saleslady and then name dropped InStyle.  She had a copy of course and she looked me up of course (page 142, tiny corner blurb thank you very much) because I don't think that the Hermes rules allow some nobody to just walk in and buy something.  But to her, now I wasn't a nobody, I was a chick who had a tiny blurb on page 142 of InStyle.  And now, a girl who owns a Collier de Chien.  There were six Asian "Ringwraiths" surrounding me at the time who had to disperse because, you guessed it, there's only one in the entire store. I love it when that happens because somehow you feel like you're earned it.  I must say, it's now one of my top go-to pieces because it's makes all my outfits a little more edgy and cool.  Plus, I love the name.  "Collier de Chien" actually means "dog collar" in french and it's so appropriate because I will be Hermes' bitch any day.  

(Below are some photos of Me with Heather Cassady of Wish Social Events--one of the most talented event stylists around and one of my besties.   She had an editorial out recently in Grace Ormand featuring an amazing gay wedding that she styled.  So how do besties celebrate their dual editorials?  With photos and Hermes obvi.   Photos by Colson Griffith. )

Friends and Family

Thanks to October, also known as "Friends and Family month" by my closest friends and family, also known as Bloomingdales, Shopbop, and Saks Fifth Avenue, I was able to buy some of the coolest things for 25% off.  And that is 25% off of full-priced items people, also known as "the good stuff".  One of the "the good stuff" items I purchased was this Clover Canyon wings dress that I am so in love with.  Clover Canyon has some of the most amazing and creative prints that any uptown or downtown girl can rock. Add in some big heels and gold accessories and you're automatically one cool girl.  I also bought some Scanpans.  I didn't know about designer pans but apparently if you put 25% off in front of any full-priced item my 87 year old Asian self will buy them.  See you next year Friends and Family!

Foot Soldiers

Girls, can we finally have an honest conversation?  Can we just admit that we have the most disgusting feet in the world?  Despite having pedicures, pretty polishes, paraffin baths, pumices and foot lotions, our feet are still the most used-up calloused looking feet to ever walk the earth.  And it's not like we don't know why.  We know it's because of the torture devices that we strap onto our feet everyday.  Those amazing strappy sandals or brand new $800 red soled pumps are causing our heels to bleed, or toes to bleed, or smashing our feet or causing us to have that weird bump on the side of our pinky toe!  I mean what is that!?!?  But, that's not all they're doing.  Even though our shoes are so beautiful, they are just covering up a more disgusting problem: Dry, Crusty Feet.  I actually have a foot pumice that is made of fiberglass and diamonds (Diamancel) and is touted as the most powerful foot file in the world.  Yes, that's right, it literally takes the strongest metal in the world to file down whatever grows on my feet. I mean, it makes sense since our feet are exposed to the elements daily and smashed into all kinds of straps. Unlike my husband's feet which are in the safety of his soft white Fruit of The Loom athletic socks and Chucks all day.  I swear his feet are so milky and soft that if i were stab them, they would bleed aloe vera.  The cost for beauty and the irony of it all. 

I do battle with my dry, crusty feet everyday and it involves a daily routine of soaping, soaking and then awkwardly standing in the shower and pumicing my skin off.  It was getting tiresome, and honestly, I don't really know how much more skin I can take off.  So, I decided to try Babyfoot  (I discovered it here on People StyleWatch).  You just stick your feet in these plastic booties with some goo in them for an hour and then in 2-10 days layers of your dead skin start to fall off naturally.  I got the "natural" lavender scent and the process was as "natural" as having lavender smelling goo all over your feet in plastic booties can be.  It's pretty gross waking up in a pile of your own skin, but it's so amazing to see a whole new set of feet!  And what will I do with these brand new feet?  I'm not sure, probably stuff them into my new pair Tibi strappy sandals.  I mean, I have to show off my new feet! 

A Bob and Big Dreams

What business does a little Asian girl with a bob haircut have being on page 142 of InStyle's September issue?  None.  Absolutely none.  I'm no fashion designer, no celebrity stylist or magazine editor; and I'm definitely no model.  I'm just a girl who loves pretty clothes, much like a lot of other girls who love pretty clothes.  Looking through the glossy pages of Vogue, Elle or InStyle, there was absolutely no reason for me to be on any of those pages.  But there I am, smashed between a Levi's and an Oil of Olay ad...an absolute dream come true. It just goes to show that anyone who loves something, like the way I love pretty clothes, can accomplish their dreams and see their outfit in a fashion feature.  Sally Field said it best when she accepted her Academy Award saying, "you love me, you really love me!"  And if you don't love me, at least you love what I'm wearing.  So, I think that the universe is telling me something, and that something is to share my love of pretty clothes more. I hope that you guys will read along with me as I try to give more of my colored opinions about clothes and shoes and fashion faux pas here and hopefully beyond.  

My recent Style Nobody to Style Star status has also given me a major style superiority complex to match. This means that for as long as my issue is out on newsstands , if you feel like I'm judging your outfit or that I have all the fashion answers, it's probably because I am and I do.  Therefore, my first piece of advice as a fashion authority is this: always look sharp, take some risks and put yourself out there because you never know where your outfit will take you.