Couture Ink

Its finally Paris Fashion Week and I am being swept away by the beautiful things that never cease to amaze me as they strut down the runway. This is the closest I have ever lived to a fashion week since Paris is only a couple hours drive away, how I wish I had tickets to any of those shows! Be looking for a Paris FW special coming soon darlings!

I loved this photo I found on We Heart It, and I love how fashion is embracing that tattoo feel in full force. Couture is something so permanently ingrained in this industry that it is only fitting to see it portrayed as a tattoo. Important, permanent, and prevalent.

What would be the word on your tattoo mes cheries?

Sunny Saturday & Giveaway Winner

I hope each of you live in an area where the weather is starting to improve darlings! I will tell you that here in France, I think we have had the first solid week of blue skies since maybe a month after I arrived. And believe me 6 months of cloud coverage, rain, and snow can really make this Southern girl yearn for her sun rays. Although it is still pretty cold, I am much happier, it is amazing how drastically my entire disposition changes when the sun is shining on blue skies!

And here's a little sunshine to head in the direction of one lucky Embellisher!

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Congrats... Jenna of NYDS!

I hope you enjoy your photo, I know it will bring you inspiration daily! You guys be sure to check out New York Design Shop for all your DIY needs, its a great great source!

Also keep checking in with Create...Love...Laugh Photography for lots of great prints to Embellish your home. Kimberly Creagan is a great artist!

How Milan kicks off the Decade

From its leaning towers to romantic gondola rides Italy is certainly a country filled with beauty that I hope to one day see first hand. Last week it was also decked out in even more extravagance which paraded down the sacred sleek runways of Milan. Enjoy Autumn the way the Italians do it mes cheries!

Texture.

This Luisa Beccaria sweater makes me want to immediately hop on a flight to a romantic chalet in the Alps and sit by the fire sipping hot cocoa and looking out at the range! Its the perfect example of luxe comfort.

Salvatore Ferragamo hit the nail on the head for this fall. I've been loving the leather short suits that started popping up on the runways since last year, but this one grabs the huge leather trend and adds varied textures for a very visually pleasing palette.

Fur.

Alberta Ferretti has brought into her line one of the daintiest things from the Victorian fashion, the muff like lining of fur on the wool coats. How elegant?

I am swooning over this ENTIRE outfit. Maurizio Percoraro has created a gorgeous rendition of the cozy fur vests I fell in love with last year and added the turbans that I can't wait to start wearing...once I find one that I love (that I can afford).

I really love fur, I love how it always makes you look and feel luxurious. Although, I don't mind fake fur it must look nice, nothing kills a look worse than RoadKill looking fur. This is the reason I prefer vintage fur, its giving that animal decades and decades of wear. The fur industry is a sad place, but what's done is done and I feel there is no reason to kill new animals when there are tons and tons of gorgeous fur coats just waiting to be worn again.

Detailing.

I watch award shows for one reason only, the gowns! And this, Alberta Ferretti reminds me of a gorgeous Best Dressed List dress. Not a single stitch overlooked, it can keep you mesmerized forever.

Ok, so as much as I love my Southern roots (and I even own my own adorable cowgirl hat) I must admit I am not the biggest fan of Stetsons. But setting that fact aside, Moschino has creating such a great piece here. From the color palette to the way the structured stripes deteriorate into a lost world of enveloping ruffles. The only conclusion is to don this ensemble and immediately strut down the street with the biggest smile on your face!

I can't vouch for how "cheap" this Moschino Cheap + Chic suit really is, but I can say "WOW!" Its the best marriage of Carrie Bradshaw's closet meets Miranda Hobbes' that I ever saw! I want to get a job in fashion and then wear this to the office haha!

Velvet.

I couldn't help but smirk just a little over the Scandinavian Trouser/Eskimo Ugg Boot Combo, but after I was finished I couldn't stop drooling over this D&G jacket vest set! Velvet has been done in many ways the past couple of weeks, but I think this is by far my favorite. So Jane Austen meets Modern Milan.

Giorgio Armani created a wonderful Grown Up Barbie look this season. I think this skirt would look great with a great many pieces I already own. I'd love the chance to play around pairing it with infinite looks!

Shoulders.

You can try to deny all you want but shoulder pads are back, and with a vengeance. My plan, is to make the best of it, and I think Bottega Veneta is a good place start with that optimistic thought process.

Etro has taken quite a unique turn on the ever so popular kimono inspiration..I love the final product.

And it must be said, if you will ever get me in shoulder pads, an asymmetric show stopping number like the one above or this Giorgio Armani will be the way to do it! It's a way to play up the proportions that this trend calls for while still remaining a dainty rather than a ravishing football player.

Peek A Boo.

A very fun weekend suit Gucci has made here. Serious yet seductive.

This type of neckline has been all over the runways this season, but Versus was the one that won my heart and I had to feature. Its half Little Princess, half Sexy Maven and I love the fine line it creates between the two.

I thought this flyaway Bluemarine look was quite fun. It reminds me of the dresses I played with as a little girl, when you were always a princess and your whole world was a Candy Land of castles and pretty things!

What are your favorites darlings?

Feelings Change with the Wind

Its funny how {what a person means to you} can totally change; sometimes even over night. Someone whom you have maybe always seen as "safe" can suddenly become someone you can't live without. Likewise someone who used to send chills down your spine suddenly loses their spark. What happens to that Za Za Zoo? Where does it go, and how so quickly? Or what turns it on, and where did it come from?

That's thing about life, it is constantly changing like the wind that carries it along. People come in and out of our lives, some are meant for just a moment, and some are meant to be an everlasting anchor, but all affect us in one way or another. I think to me, there are many people, that in another lifetime I could easily see myself falling in love with. That is the thing that is so intangible to try and explain; timing. Timing is that small uncontrollable factor that will always cause a relationship to either magically bloom or sadly dissipate before your eyes. Sometimes something you want so bad that you can feel it in your bones slips through your fingers and you are powerless to stop it. And in that moment, that is the worst gut wrenching feeling you can have. As a very independent woman, I have been in this place more times than I like to admit. Foolishly wearing my heart on my sleeve and falling, hoping that one day I will be caught. Every fall changes you a little bit, sometimes stronger and for the wiser, and sometimes for the worse adding another brick to your emotional wall.

But the eternal optimist...or maybe masochist... inside me, keeps trekking, keeps falling, because I have a whole hearted belief that one day I will find someone to catch me. Someone who can grab life by the horns and run wildly alongside me through it, soaking up every precious moment as we go. Someone who doesn't make me feel like I need to be less of my vibrant self in order to blend better. A man who makes me an even stronger person than I thought I could be. This is the belief that keeps me going after each disappointment, each time I have to step back yet again and say hello once more to Square One. Sometimes it sucks, but then a lot of times I can smile, because I know I am now just one person closer to finding my One Person.

*photo compliments of Sus on Tumblr*

Its London Baby

Well London Fashion Week certainly came and went in a whirlwind of colors and ruffles and now its time to review the left over glitter on the runway. *As always thank you Style.com for your great coverage of all the fashion shows for wonderful blog content.*

Arabian Nights.

Ok, So I pretty much hate Harem Pants, and Jodhpurs, I feel they do no justice to any woman whether they are a size 2 or a size 12 but as it is a huge trend flowing through right now, and I did not want to leave you in the outs due to my bias. That said, this Vivienne Westwood Red Label look I am actually not hating which is saying quite a lot. Although, I still could not wear it myself, I love how the Urban Artsy look has been blended with School Prep so well.

A micro trend that I am super excited about are turbans! This look from Twenty8Twelve is so dreamy it just places you right in a modern day version of Casablanca! It has been seen on the likes of Kate Moss and the runways of Prada for a couple years but after seeing the trailor for the next Sex And The City Movie (so excited about that btw), I feel it can finally really take off.

Drapey.

I was captivated by this Matthew Williamson number. The duplicated pattern pulls your eye through the whole piece and the drapes sweep you back up to the top creating a constant movement (thanks art classes) which will also be mimicked in the fact that is is a flowy silk dress that will make you feel breezy as well. Plus pair this with thick leggings and a subtle fitted long sleeve shirt underneath and you have a lovely transition into those colder months.

I think this feminine suit by Richard Nicoll would make for the perfect Hump Day outfit. Something structured enough to still remain serious at the office but soft and feminine gearing you up for the approaching weekend.

Going along with Harem type pants, I also don't like paper bag waists for the same unflattering reason, but Roksanda Ilincic has found a way to take this technique and leave me yearning for it in my closet. How brilliant is the paper bag top? So flowy and feminine and in juxtaposition to the structured pencil skirt it will keep just the right balance of sexy and refined.

Building Up.

Vivienne Westwood Red Label, as always, does a great job with showcasing color and this season was no exception. Look for building your wardrobe from the shoes up with lots of changing colors. Don't forget, as socks are big right now, that they are a fun way to add pizazz to any outfit. Also, this large wrap belt is springing up everywhere but it always makes me think of one of the signature pieces of the charming Southern Belle Carol Hannah.

Jonathan Saunders has still added some ombre dye in his line which is nice and subtle and rocked out with some graphic inspiration.

I was very interested in this piece by Marios Schwab. I like the colors and the fabric, but I think what I like most is the hint of a print on the bodice juxtaposed to the busy print of the skirt, and the nice pleating into a box neckline is quite nice.

I couldn't leave London without mentioning Mark Fast, for one very honorable reason. Fashion gets often quite a bad rap for creating one too many eating disorders and that is a shame, because in an industry based on creating such beautiful things there should be only an environment of uplifting love resting around it. Fashion has always been my happy place, and it should be that way for everyone. Mark Fast has always placed plus sized models down the cat walk just like the 0% body fat girls, an although I don't think his designs really suit their body type best (although any of the other outfits in this post would) I feel the statement he is making about beauty is so important and so true.

"Beauty is everywhere and in everyone. It is not limited to a size 2, it is not limited to one trend per season, it rests inside us and we all should daily share that beauty with the world. This is our responsibility for making the World a better place, find your unique beauty and let it shine."

~Jessica Kelly

*Also darlings don't forget to enter the latest giveaway

and take home your own piece of inspiration!*

Create Love Laugh Giveaway

I just love dresses and the fact that at any given moment you can twirl and feel like a little girl again; full of dreams and possibilities. So naturally, when I saw this photo I was captivated, it absolutely embodies the essence of being Sugar and Spice and Everything nice. Create...Love...Laugh is an ethereal photography shop where you can be swept away in the possibilities of life. I caught up with Kimberly Creagan to learn more about her art, enjoy another inspiring artist for you guys all the way from Arizona.

1. What is your creative process?

Most of my inspiration is found in nature. I love the way light filters through trees or runs over cactus needles. Nature offers amazing patterns and textures that we base most of our compositional principles on. So, we are tuned to think nature is beautiful, and it is! I try to capture feelings in my work: feelings of nostalgia, feelings of beauty, feelings of warmth and light, feelings of comfort. In addition to landscapes, flowers, and beautiful outdoor environments, I'm also partial to old things, like metal watering cans and classic cars.

2. How did you get started?

I've always loved taking pictures, but this May I received my first DSLR camera for my graduation gift (I just graduated school with my Master of Landscape Architecture). It was instant love between my camera and I. I'm self taught and have pushed myself hard to learn. I've been drawing and painting since I was a child, so I think that helps with the artistic side of photography. I have another shop on Etsy where I started selling some of my art, http://kimberlycreagan.etsy.com, so when I got a good enough collection of photography starting a shop was a no-brainer. I'm also working on building my portrait portfolio and gaining more experience in that area.

3. If you had a super power what would it be?

If I had a super power it would be one of the following: - To fly because I'm scared of flying in airplanes but have family that lives far away. - To be able shoot chocolate love bombs at people. There's too much hate in this world, and who doesn't love chocolate?

4. Any extra tidbits?

hmmm...Because I love old things so much I also started a vintage shop on Etsy called Grandmas Fridge, http://grandmasfridge.etsy.com. It's a lot of work having three shops, but fun! If you are thinking about starting an online shop, I say go for it!

Good news Embellishers!

Create Love Laugh has teamed up with The Embellished Life to offer you all a giveaway!

Kimberly is offering a 5x5 print of one the following photos:

Coral Glow collection

Stillness

Top of the World

This is a 4 day contest so comment while you can!

You each have up to 4 entries (4 comments total)

1. Visit Create Love Laugh and comment on your favorite pic

2. Tweet this giveaway (Tag @fashiondiva304) and comment the URL below

3. Be a follower of The Embellished Life

4. Be a fan of Embellished on Facebook HERE

Contest ends Friday March 5th at Midnight (NYC time)

Also don't forget to stop by all of Kimberly's stores:

Create...Love...Laugh Photography

Kimberly Creagan Art & Illustration

Grandma's Fridge Vintage Finds

Bonne Chance Mes Cheries!

Canniversary Reflections & Giveaway Winner

Well darlings it was one year ago this week that I was canned due to a corporate lay off at my marketing job. I had been working at the company for 4 years and had just recently graduated college and felt like I could finally begin my career, my life, everything. Suddenly, after just moving into my new place in the city for only 2 months, I was searching for employment. To make the situation even better, I found out that I could not receive unemployment because my company was a non-profit...awesome.

*photo compliments of We Heart It via Polarnna on Flickr*

Well, I went home that day picked up my latest Vogue Magazine and sent a resume and cover letter to EVERY company visible from cover to cover. The next day I went to the fabric store and bought the materials to begin making the designs I had in my head, and after that weekend Embellished was born. Little did I know that neither a job, or signs of my shop taking off, would show up for still a few months. Being unemployed is very hard, especially when you are used to being in control of things and very independent. It certainly humbled me and I learned just how unbelievably amazing my friends and family are. I mean, it can literally bring me tears when I think how blessed I am for the people in my life who supported me through such a hard time. Whether it was my parents helping out with a meal or filling my gas tank, or my friends treating me to a Girls' Night Out, I was just constantly amazed.

When nothing was opening up, and then this opportunity to go study French in FRANCE fell in my lap, I really felt in my heart like now was the only time I would ever have to seize such a great opportunity...and I was right. After college and before serious boyfriends and a serious career, this year was literally my only shot to live my dream. And you know what? It has been really hard, and from time to time I still can't believe I am over here, but I am SO glad I did it. I have grown so much as a person, and am even more confidant in who I am, and of course my French is becoming better each day and that is really exciting to see.

*photo compliments of We Heart It via Emma Cherry on Flickr*

This further solidifies my steadfast belief that life is so fleeting and you really have to fully enjoy every period you are in, while you are in it. Sure I wouldn't want to go back to high school, but I had a fantastic time when I was there, was involved in too many groups to count and made some really great friends, some of whom I am still able to keep in touch with now and then. College of course is amazing; finally spreading your wings and being taken seriously, Greek Life, and the joys of many late nights of cram sessions and parties and not having a class until 2pm! Of course it is irresponsible to lose yourself and any direction, but is as just as insulting to always dwell on the past or only focus on the uncontrollable future when you are missing the best moments right in front of you.

*photo compliments of Set the World on Fire Photography*

We are never promised tomorrow so grasp today and squeeze everything you can out of it, living in fear will only keep you in a shell, letting yourself go is not only easier to breathe but when you look back you will be overwhelmed at the amazing things you have been blessed with experiencing in your life.

How have you been blessed mes cheries?

And speakings of blessings lets announce the winner of the wonderful Emelia Jane Photography Giveaway...

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Congrats Pin of Sensorimotor I hope you enjoy Embellishing your home with your favorite stunning print!

Be sure to keep checking Emelia Jane Photography, there are beautiful things for everyone!