The leather, the detail, the hippie chic. Isabella Fiore, you can make a bag. If you need a clutch or a carry all, there is no substitute for these impeccable designs. For more, check out isabellafiore.com.
We were first introduced to Helen Ficalora while working at Harper’s Bazaar and have loved her charms ever since. Ficalora found a delightful common ground between hippy, chic and feminine, and the charms are subtle and dainty. Our favorites are the alphabet charms, but we like the tulip charm (shown on the chain) as well. A portion of many of the designs are donated to charities - consider the Project Sunshine charm – which we obviously support. Helen Ficalora has a trendy feel, but with staying power. That’s what makes her charms one of our favorite things!
Alphabet charm $115, chain $70.
We have a choice to make: we have to suspend the monthly book list, or we have to start reading books with some more depth. Obviously we are not stopping with the chick lit (bikinis and beach read season!), but we can at least read something that suggests we went to college. However, we didn’t get there this month, so check out the trash we did read:
1. Queen of Babble in the Big City, Meg Cabot: We’ve only read some of Cabot’s work and we were sort-of ambivalent about it, but the Lizzy Nichols series is v. cute. It takes place in Manhattan, and Lizzy has a Becky Bloomwood obliviousness that is mostly charming. We decided to read the rest of the series!
2. Size 14 is Not Fat Either, Meg Cabot: Of the two Meg Cabot books we read, the Heather Wells series is our favorite. Heather is a 29 year old has been pop star who wants to be a criminal investigator and is an assistant dorm director at New York College. The mystery part is a little predictable, but Heather’s cynical, yet hopeful personality kept us giggling throughout. Plus, each chapter begins with the lyrics of her pop songs that are so bad they’re good.
3. Trading Up, Candace Bushnell: Candace Bushnell could be a Jane Austen of our time, because her characters are dark, complex, and driven to succeed in the societies in which they belong. Janey Wilcox, the protagonist, is no exception and is ruthless, ambitious, and completely unlikable. While part of us finds Bushnells novels offensive, we’ve read them all. Bottom line: it’s like a car wreck. You feel like you should look away, but you can’t stop yourself.
Try something with a little more shape. We love a tunic with some cinch.
So, depending on what you read, the tunic trend is either alive and well or O-V-E-R. At elaney, we are more in the “over it” camp and are ready to bring back the waistline! We like some of them, just not the really baggy ones. We understand the appeal for women, but we think they sometimes end up not looking v. flattering. What do you think, are you still into them?
