Fall Fashion Trends: Hairdos

Bonsoir!!!

I thought I'd shake things up just a bit today and veer away from clothes for a moment. What's one area of fashion that, while its trends change just as often as the seasons do, isn't as noticeable? That's right- hair. The reason for this is pretty simple: if you try out a new clothing trend and it doesn't work, you just change clothes. But if you get a jacked-up hairdo, it's there to stay for much longer than it takes you to open your closet and find a new outfit. Plus, so many of us have a favorite haitstyle/ a look that works for us, and it's hard to think of taking that away. Nowadays, the ponytails are lower, bangs are stringier, and the layers are cut edgier than we've seen in a while.I guess we just have to face it people; the times are always changing and what was on top last winter isn't necessarily still there. So let's take a look at one of the more popular hairstyles to emerge for this season.

I'd like to take this time to discuss a hairstyle that we've seen donned by many women, famous and infamous. That hairstyle is this:

The Dreaded Topknot

That's right, ladies- the topknot. I have a feeling I'm the minority when I say this, but I abhor this season's topknot. That's not to say I dislike topknots in general: when done correctly, they can add either a sleek touch of elegance or a cute burst of casual freshness to your look. My problem, however, is when people sport looks like the one above. I mean, it's an appropriate hairstyle if you're just getting out of the gym, but doesn't really work otherwise.

Vanessa Hudgens with braided topknot

And that's where the problem lies: it seems people only do the messy topknot look at the least inappropriate times. DO NOT, under any circumstances, wear that hairstyle to a conference, or any occasion where the dress code doesn't specify t-shirts and basketball shorts. Even if you're doing a casual topknot, you can still put in a little effort to make it look a little more organized. Look at V.H. in this pic. Even though she's clearly going for a casual/cutesy look, she's still took the time out to braid it, tuck most of those wispy little strands in, and even gave herself some cute bangs to complete the look. Cute, simple, but doesn't scream "I got into a fight with my comb this morning and the comb won"







Question of the Day:
How do you feel about topknots? Do you love them, hate them, or not really care? Are there any other hair trends you've seen recently that caught your eye (in a good or bad way)? Let me know!


Bonne journée
Twisted

More Fall Denim Trends/Layout of the Future Posts

First, I'd like to start off by apologizing to all of you for being so far behind. This summer was horrible and hectic and I didn't post anywhere near as much as I should have, so I'd like to apologize for that as well.

Giorgio Armani at MFW 2012. Love the hair!

For those of you who are more aware of what's going on in the world of high-fashion, I'm sure you're wondering why I didn't cover NYFW that ended nearly two weeks ago or LFW/MFW which are both currently underway. And the reason for that is that all of these events are showcasing spring/summer fashion for 2013. While it's important to know the trend before seasons change, I still haven't had a chance to discuss the trends for this autumn/winter. And, since we're currently in those seasons, I'd like to take a chance and run through those before I jump on the spring/summer trends for next year. To prove that my apology is sincere, I'm giving you guys a little preview of MFW:

I'm going to try and get everything done as fast as possible so I can move on but I don't want to do FW's until January or so. I do intend to take my time with the fashion week coverages, however, I think doing a different event each week should be a good time frame to go over everything. And, of course, I'll be touching on other little fun/fashion-y things I come across in my daily life, or someone might suggest to me.

So...now that that's out of the way, I want to quickly touch on another fall trend that's been emerging for months now: denim. And, I don't mean just jeans. I mean all denim EVERYTHING. Denim shoes, shirts, jackets, and other clothing items are everywhere at the moment. And I'm not really sure how I feel about it.

Yikes! No wonder they broke up!

 I love the concept- it gives more depth to denim as a fabric since there are so many different textures and styles to play with. The only problem is, some people don't know when to stop. I mean, jeans, a cute top, and a denim jacket (different wash/texture fro jeans please) is a cute outfit; not too over the top, and showcases the trend without being too...couture. The problem is when someone dons denim from head to toe IN THE SAME WASH (use this pic of JT and Brit as reference). Can you say one-toning*? It brings the 80s back, but not in a cute-cause-it's-retro way, more like a which-musty-closet-did-you-pull-that-outfit-from kind of way.




Though I guess this is the problem with all fashion trends; there are always those people who overdo it and scare you away. I think, though, that denim is something that is more easily overdone than a lot of other trends we've seen in the past some odd years. It's just the basic rule of life: too much of anything is never a good thing.


*one-toning: slang term used for someone who is wearing only one color or colors similar enough to be seen as the same color.



Questions of the Day:
How do you feel about the all over denim trend? Have you ever seen it misused in a way that made you cringe? Would you prefer to talk about the spring/summer trends now, or during the New Year?

Besos!

Raw Food (Kind of) Diet Days 1 and 2!!!

Tag! Wie geht's?

I know, I know; you're probably wondering why I didn't post yesterday, right? Well, I'll tell you why: I was so hungry that looking at a computer screen gave me a headache and so I ended up going to bed at 9pm. For those of you who don't know, I didn't wake up till about 1 o'clock. Yeah, now it's scary, huh? My meals yesterday consisted of a large amount of sunflower seeds, thermos upon thermosfulls of green tea, and a large salad consisting of lettuce, spinach, several handfuls of craisins, and a boiled egg. It was fantastic! Though I don't know whether it's my own opinion or just induced by the insane hunger I was feeling yesterday evening. That's how my first day went.

Today wasn't much better to be honest- I woke up half an hour earlier than yesterday, but I've only been drinking tea all day (though it's only been about 5 hours since I woke). I am currently munching on a gigantic salad much like the one from yesterday, but with less craisins, more eggs, and chicken. And I gotta say, I am really loving this salad! I also packed some carrot sticks for later tonight when I really get into studying. I might stop by the market and pick up some fruit too. I'm sure I can get through today incident free, but still cheer me on. You never know when I might crack!

And for those of you who are worried I'm starving myself/not consuming enough calories, I assure you, I'm pretty worried myself. Yesterday was an exception to this rule, but I'm trying to use juice/drinks to supply whatever calories I may be missing. And I know that it's healthier to just eat large quantities of healthy food, but this diet isn't really about being healthy. This diet is really about two things: 1. shocking my system away from processed food (which is why I try to stick to natural juice and tea but sometimes sweeter drinks are unavoidable) and 2. Forcing my stomach to become smaller by reducing the amount I eat at one time and in general. Well, I guess there's a secret third reason for doing this diet and that's to kick my addiction to carby sweets/breads (I'm not including fruit in this), though this ties into the second reason pretty easily. I'm hoping that, but avoiding them in general, I won't want them as much + my stomach will shrink since those foods expand in the stomach and I eat them way too much.

Well, that's basically a rundown of everything I'm doing and how it's all been going so far. I've never been able to make it past the first 3 days of a diet, so I feel that tomorrow will determine whether this is something I ride through to the end, or if I'll just quit and try something else.

Question of the Day:
Do you fail with diets like me? Is there a magic number of days you can't seem to get past? Or do you have enough willpower to stick to a diet for long periods of time? What are your feelings on my diet/diets in general?

Raw Food Diet

So...this post isn't so much fashion centric as it is me-centric. I was taking a quiz online about eating habits, when I stumbled across a question asking my weight. Now I'd weighed myself about two weeks ago and was shocked to see the numbers 1, 7, and 6 (in that order) flashing on my scale. Today, however, I stepped back on the scale and almost fell off in shock when I saw 179 sliding across my display. I'm so depressed right now :(...

And so, I've decided it's time to make a change. A drastic one. Which leads me to the subject of this blog post: I am starting a raw food diet from here on. That's right! As of 33 minutes ago, I am only allowed to eat foods that are uncooked -basically fruits and vegetables until I've shed 25 pounds. I've also decided to include lean protein like chicken breast and fish, but absolutely no carbs or fats. Now I'm hoping I won't have to keep this up for more than 2 weeks, because I don't think I'll be able to handle it for much longer. Don't get me wrong, I love salads and fruit and everything but...it's not 3 meals worth of love. By the end of the first day, I'll probably look like this ^ lol. I'll also be drinking copious amounts of green tea (which I love) to help curb my hunger.

The hardest part of all this will definitely be overcoming my intense sugar cravings. But, I've already devised a plan to deal with that; anytime I feel like I need sugar to live, I'll go buy a bottle of peach mango fuse and chug it until I feel better. I hope it works!

This is going to be a difficult journey but I hope you guys can cheer me on! Or join me!!!!

Question of the Day:
Have you ever imposed an super strict diet on yourself? Did it work out well? Or was it just too impossible? Do you think I could do it?

COLORED JEANS

Two-a-days whoo!!!
Hey hey hey! This is my second post today! Amazing isn't it?
Well since my last post had nothing to do with the subject of the blog, I decided I'd give you a real post to make up for it.

This one features what is probably my favorite fashion trend since last autumn/winter and especially during the spring:

Colored Jeans!!!

First, let me start off by saying: I love love love colored jeans. Always have, and probably always will. They were super popular during spring/summer (those sometimes soft, sometimes electric colors were everywhere this year) and that trend has carried over into the autumn/winter fashion season as well, though in a bit of a different form.

During spring/summer, it was all about solid pretty colors. They were bright or soft and always fun, but typically only one color was the focal point. There were a couple exceptions to this rule as the different colored leg jeans/leggings also got a bit of attention in 2012 but, for the most part, people kept it simple with one great color. Now, for fall, we do have a bit of single colored jeans floating around- the colors are a bit darker; shades like plum, olive, burnt orange, and other earthy tones are the main focus of this season's funky colored leg covers.

BUT (and this is a big but) one thing that has been flying around is patterned jeans. Granted, this is something that's been shifting from one form to the other for years now but I feel like it has a pretty decent foothold in fall of this year. So take those dark colored jeans and add a bit of a pattern to them, whether it's a lace design, something floral, or gingham, just add a bit of depth to your jeans by providing even more to look at. And if you can rip them on top of all that, you've managed to incorporate three of the biggest trends in denim this fall!

That's all I really have to say on the topic of colored jeans for the fall/winter fashion season this year, but I will probably have to publish another two or three posts talking about the other denim trends this year since there are so many!

Question of the day:
How do you feel about colored jeans? Were you like me and jumped into the style headfirst? Or did you prefer to hang back and ride it out with good old trusty blue jeans? Any other denim trends you're caught up in this fall? Anything in particular you'd like me to talk about?

Off-Topic: Acting Class

Hey all! I'm baaaaaaaaaaacck!
Been a long time hasn't it?
And, to make matters worse, my first post in several months isn't even going to feature any fashion/makeup info but, rather, I'll be talking about an acting class I'm currently that's helped me to become more aware of the way I use my body and how others perceive that movement.
So, basically, this class has been emphasizing using breath to ease into motion and using motion to cause breath (the interplay between the two is extremely interesting) and how we can control both to express certain emotions.

 Honestly, I love this class. When I first started, I couldn't help thinking things like "what a load of artsy-fartsy bullcrap" among other things. But I couldn't help it; I'm an engineering major! Now, however, I am finally becoming more aware of how my body both responds to and influences my emotions and physical well-being. It's such a curious feeling when you finally start to notice something you'd always taken for granted. I'd never noticed before this class how restricted my movements become when I'm sick. And I'm not talking 'I'm about to die if I don't drug myself' sick but more of a light cough, minor sore throat sick. Now, I can see just how limited my breath is, and can feel the lethargy in my body both from that lack of air, and my sadness over being sick (I'm the sort of person who gets super depressed when I get sick). It's so much fun to explore and expand the limits of what I can do.

By the end of the semester, I'll be a whole new, more graceful and artistic me!

Question of the day:
Have you ever taken an acting class or any other artsy class that got you thinking in a new way? How did you feel about it?