Architect Zaha Hadid designs for Melissa Shoes

Melissa shoes is launching their latest line of plastic shoes designed by renowned Iraqi born architect Zaha Hadid.   She is the first ever winner of the Pritzker Architecture prize (the equivalent of the nobel prize of architecture).  She has won many international design competitions including: Singapore's one-north masterplan (2002) and the competition for the casino in Basel Switzerland (2005).  In 2006 she was honored by the Guggenheim Museum in New York with an exhibit displaying her work.

Melissa shoes is a Brazilian company that designs in plastic "to communicate technology and renewal."  Led by Edson Matsuo, they have worked with renowned designers such as : Vivienne Westwood, Karim Rashid and Alexandre Herchcovitch.  They are very focused on producing their product with as little damage to the environment as possible.  All materials used to create their products are recycled in house.  I am not sure whether I would actually wear these shoes but they are definitely unique and unusual.  Would you wear these?

Weil Am Rhein, Germany

"Dancing Towers," Dubai

(Architectural images and information via wikipedia)

Shoe images via http://jcreport.com

See article here : Plastic Fantastic | JC Report

Scarves

It definitely feels like fall in Vancouver this week. It has been raining and cold! Scarves are still fairly popular in Vancouver and I am sure they will be in the fall as well.  If you are not into thrifting, one of the best places to find great scarves is H & M.  They are usually under $15.  Just in case I am not the only one who struggles with scarves I found this great youtube video that gives you a few different ideas.  The video features amy salinger, a personal shopper and stylist. Her resume includes work with instyle and life and style magazines.  She has also worked with Michelle Williams and Kate Moss to name a few. 

What did you think?  Did you find this useful?

Fall 2008 Ready to Wear-Skinny Belts Part Two

Yesterday I received my very first macbook!  I am still adjusting to the layout and settings, but I really like it so far :)  Here is the second part of my Fall 2008 Ready to Wear Skinny Belts post.  Not only are the belts great, but the individual looks are quite stunning as well.  Thanks for your comments on the first post.

Yves Saint Laurent-This skirt is magnificent!

Emporio Armani

Emporio Armani

DSquared

Christian Dior

Calvin Klein

Brian Reyes

Bottega Veneta

Bill Blass

Haute Heroes Coming Soon

Haute Heroes will be taking place at the Modern (7th and Alexander) on Thursday August 7th. About9productions and Maeve Doyle have collaborated to create this Fashion Show to raise funds for the looking glass foundation. This organization helps parents with children suffering from eating disorders.

The show will feature local and international designers including: Carlie Wong, Jason Matlo, Emily Miller, Dace Moore and Jolie Mack. Tickets are $15 and include one drink (must be 19+ to attend). There will be a silent auction as well. This is sure to sure to be an exciting Vancouver Fashion Event! For more information you can contact about9productions@gmail.com or the John Casablancas Institute. See images below for some of the designers featured in the show.

Emily Miller

Dace Moore-www.dace.ca

Carlie Wong-www.carliewong.com

Fall 2008 Ready to Wear-Skinny Belts Part One

A recurring trend throughout the Fall 2008 Ready to Wear Collections has been belts. While thicker belts have been popular up until now, it appears that skinnier belts with more fitted pieces are becoming increasingly popular. This look is fairly easy to pull off. You can pop into your local thrift store or a Value Village and pick up some different colored belts to accessorize your outfits. Now that I am finished my summer class I will have more time to do some thrifting! I am not sure whether this is a good thing or a bad thing :) There will be more thrift find posts coming soon! I accumulated too many photos to do this in one post, so I will be doing another belts post tomorrow.

Bill Blass-This is a great printed dress. It can be dressed up or down. The purple belt just gives it a bit more pop!

Betsy Johnson-Need I say anything more? This dress is very functional. I think a red belt would look cute as well, without the red tights.

BCBG Max Azria-This dress is stunning. I love the layering and the detailing on the straps.

BCBG Max Azria

Barbara Tfank-A vintage feel.

Badgley Mischka-I like the fitted top and baggy pants.

Andrew Gn

Allegra Hicks-Channeling Madonna?!

Abaete

Brian Reyes-Grab your cardigan and belt! Voila !

Sold : Hudson's Bay Co.

Yesterday I visited the Bay on my lunch break to discover that almost everything is on sale! There are sales on jewelry, clothing, shoes etc. I only had about 45 minutes so I didn't get a chance to look at everything, but if you have an hour or two, it might be with the trip. Everything is kind of thrown all over the place. There are racks and racks of clothes scattered throughout the store. Kind of reminds me of Value Village hunting!

Just recently, the Bay was bought out by Lord and Taylor. They plan to open 10-15 stores across Canada. According to the National Post, none of the current stores (Bay, Zellers, Home Outfitters, or Fields) will be closed. Richard Baker will be taking over as chief executive of the HBC, Lord and Taylor, the jewelry chain Fortunoff and Creative Design Studios.

Baker plans to put 500 million dollars into the Hudson's Bay Trading Company. It will soon be more similar to Holt Renfrew. It is not certain yet whether Baker will keep the 338 year old Bay or convert it into a Lord and Taylor. I think that people would be sad to see such an old name disappear. On the other hand, maybe this is the only way it will survive. Department stores have definitely been at risk for some time. All we can do is wait and see what happens.

Until then, there are huge sales on everything. Many items are marked down 50% or more! If you get a chance this week it is definitely worth stopping by.


Check out the original National Post articl : Lord & Taylor owner buys Hudson's Bay Co.

Project Runway Episode Two Part Two-What Were They Thinking?

These dresses were absolutely terrible! The eco friendly fabric selection at Mood is limited, but rather than complaining (which many designers did), they should have at least created garments that fit their models well. I think the judges made the right decision in voting Wesley off this week.

Leanne-Tim Gunn suggested she edit some of those loops and attachments.

Wesley-EEK! You're out ! The model does not look impressed.

Jerell-This is just too much going on! The trim on the skirt looks awful.

Project Runway Episode Two

This week's Project Runway was rather boring. The models shop for eco friendly fabrics for the designers to create cocktail dresses with. They are given $75 and 30 minutes to find their fabrics for the challenge. There were only a few stunning pieces, the rest were ill fitting and uninspiring. I kept wishing that Christian was back! The best thing about the show was guest judge Natalie Portman! Here are my top four picks: What did you think about this week's show?

Daniel-Another beautiful garment, he is sure to be a contender.

Terri-Simple but elegant.

Suede-The Winner! Instead of immunity, Suede's dress will be manufactured and sold on bluefly.com

Kenley-This is a great look. She was the only one who made this fabric look elegant. The dress actually fit the model properly!

JUZD Bamboo Collection Just Picked Up By Holts

Holt Renfew has just picked up the new JUZD Collection by unknown Toronto designer Jing Liu. JUZD (pronounced Joost) is the world's first designer bamboo label, which uses custom designed and milled fabric. Holt's picked up Liu's Collection on July 8th and requested delivery for the next week! Yet another label trying to take a step to reduce their effects on the environment. While I am not a huge t-shirt fan, I think these designs are creative and unique. It is sure to be a a big hit in Vancouver!

You can visit their site here.

W Magazine-Christy Turlington

Christy Turlington featured in this month's W Magazine. She is wearing the prada pumps! The shoot is quite stunning. I will be doing my review of Project Runway Episode Two tomorrow. Things are crazy as I am writing my last exam tomorrow! More posts coming soon :)

Image via w

Check out the article here

Fall 2008 Ready to Wear-A Few Coats

Here are a few of my top winter coats from the Fall 2008 Ready to Wear Collections. Unfortunately there is a lot of black, but these coats are all unique in their own way. I learned the hard way that it pays to invest in a really good winter coat. (I bought a cheaper coat and it pretty much fell apart, and looked terrible!) While pilling is inevitable with most coats, the more expensive coats are lined better and made with quality material. If it's in your budget, it's better to invest in two coats. A more playful everyday coat, and a coat for dressing up and going out in the evenings.

Emporio Armani-The cut is very elegant.

Dsquared-I love the big buttons.

Celine-A beautiful vibrant blue to wake everyone up !! This collection was gorgeous.

Celine

Carlos Miele-Something a little more playful for the evenings.

Calvin Klein-This would be an evening coat, I'm not sure how warm it would be for everyday wear!

Aquascutum

Images via style.com

Fall 2008 Ready to Wear- Colored Tights

Another trend that I have noticed for Fall 2008 is colored tights. They are a great way to spice up the blacks and greys we are drawn to when fall comes. Below are some highlights I selected. Hopefully this will inspire you to try something different. I know that I am going to try to buy some different and unique pieces that stand out this fall!

Jean-Paul Gaultier

Bottega Veneta

Just Cavalli-Now these tights are different!

John Galliano

Jean-Paul Gaultier-Little Red Riding Hood.

Just Cavalli-Yes flamingos! I don't know if I would wear these, but they are definitely different!

Celine- A beautiful collection

Bottega Veneta

Anna Sui

Alessandro Dell'Acqua

Images via style.com