It's Time For... CAT FASHIONS!

In honor of my cat Sim's untimely demise, here are a bunch of cheery cat clothes and accessories. Yes, I'm a cat person. DEAL WITH IT. I used to try to air on the side of discretion when shopping for or styling myself with cat-related fashion, so as not to look overly young. But at this point, I'm like fuck it.

($78, Marc By Marc Jacobs, Zappos.com)


($35, Marc By Marc Jacobs, Zappos.com)

Love Marc By Marc Jacobs' Fantastical Tale cat rings in brass and black resin. See? Marc Jacobs gets it!

($76, Your Eyes Lie, Topshop)

British upstart Your Eyes Lie makes excellent, photorealistic digital prints -- like this giant cat print dress -- on the softest jersey dresses. They look fantastic with leggings, run large (yay!), and are super layerable.

($13, Asos.com)

Two baby kitties in a heart ring! Ee!

MAC's Fabulous Felines collection is obviously my favorite collection of all time. When I found out they were doing a cat collection, I almost fell out of my chair. Why I wasn't asked to be a consultant on the collection I will never know, but I'll let it slide. This time.

My favorite of the Fabulous Felines are the Leopard Luxe eyeshadow quad. LOOK at that gold! And that muted orange! So autumnal chic.

($36, MACcosmetics.com)


($14.50, MACcosmetics.com)

Love MAC's Cunning very berry lipstick. It's sold out online, so check your local MAC store.

($25, Paul & Joe Beaute, Beautyhabit.com)

It's CAT LIPSTICK! LIPSTICK IN THE SHAPE OF A CAT! I wrote about it for Naag.

($40, Joseph Aaron Segel, Prettysnake.etsy.com)

Designer and RISD professor Joseph Aaron Segel sources vintage sweater and prints cats and sews hilarious, huge stuffed animals eyes onto them! And check out his Pretty Snake acid cat screenprinted t-shirts!

($38, Joyrich, Karmaloop.com)

LOVE Joyrich because they always have comfie, casual, cheeky streetwear. Love Karmaloop because they ALWAYS have promo codes.

Hayden-Harnett: Surprise Sample Sale!

I left the last Hayden-Harnett sample sale empty-handed, but they made up for it with this sale. They announced it on Tuesday afternoon on Facebook, but sadly I wasn't able to get down to the Nolita store until last night after work. It was obvious from the largely empty racks and the disaster-zone dressing room that they'd had quite a crowd during the day. Amazingly enough, the sale featured actual samples from the fall 2010 line, meaning mostly small sizes. And yet...she shoots, she scores!


The salesgirl was sort of instrumental in convincing me to buy this cool bomber, the Cromwell jacket, in charcoal herringbone. It also comes in brown (below, far left):



Only $60, and guess what it retails for? $538! Jeebus. (Methinks H-H's price points are a wee bit high, but their sample-sale prices, in this case, were just right.) In any case, I win. Is it time for wool jackets yet?



I also got a cozy, cropped sweater vest (above right, worn open). Love that scoop neck! And the zipper! Needed no convincing. $60. No word on retail price, as it's not on the H-H site yet. After a long, annoying day, that's what you call retail therapy, folks.

Some other things from the fall collection that I'll be on the lookout for at the next sale:


Welles large hobo tote, $544, and I guess a Welles hobo/cross-body bag (as yet unavailable)—love that poppy color!



Pistol & Dagger scarf, $95, in many awesome fall colors.



Coats and jackets galore!

The sample sale is at the Nolita store in NYC, on Elizabeth between Houston and Prince, and runs through Sunday, from 12-8 each day. Everything is $20-$70. Long live Hayden-Harnett!

Anthropologie, I LOVE YOU

This needs very few words.



Moth "Knotty Pine" cardigan, only $39.95!! Down from $148. I'm in reverse sticker shock. And heaven, as I await its arrival on my doorstep. Or my cubicle desk, as the case may be.

I mean, did you SEE???



Love. Today, it's a cardigan.

My Fair Isle Sweater... Et Al...

I don't usually go gaga over Fair Isle sweaters -- there's something a bit too WASPy about 'em for me, but I do LOVE this one:

($325, Chimala, Stuart & Wright/ Refinery29.com)

I like the oatmeal color. Cute cut too, and not too overly "trying-extra-hard-to-look-like-I'm-from-Maine-ish." By the way, I've never been to Stuart & Wright and keep meaning to go but rarely find myself in Ft. Greene. Anyone been? Any good sale stuff ever?

($88, Kersh, Nordstrom)

Nothing earth-shattering here, but cute nonetheless. I like the longer versions -- more femme than the standard waist-length ones.

($39, Victoria's Secret)

Oh my God. Oh my God. I can't believe I just posted something from Victoria's Secret. I'm fairly sure this computer will blow up as soon as I hit "publish," and/or a giant meteor will crush me to death as I sit here in my home... but this is actually fairly ok-cute.

($34, Old Navy)

Looks like that Fair Isle sweater Old Navy was pushing earlier this season is done, but this pullover is a nice, not-bad comfy staple.

($10, Old Navy)

Comfy pajama pants (or "apartment pants," as my boyfriend's sister humorously calls them) -- ten bucks! Cain't beat dat!

($24, JC Penney)

I couldn't tell you the last time I stepped foot inside of a JCP (closest one's in Jersey), so I'm not too familiar with their jonx, but my sweater search pulled up this cardigan -- it's not Fair Isle, but it's nice and wintery, and it's not bad.

($68, Urban Outfitters)

I couldn't tell you the last time I stepped foot within a one-mile radius of a campfire, but Urban Outfitters' All-Son Campfire sweater perfect! By the way, Urban has free shipping over $50 until Monday, so this totes applies! Git it, shortie!

($98, SandrikasFiberArts.etsy.com)

This scarf, hand made by Etsy seller SandrikasFiberArts, is so adorable and romantic. I'd so wear it camping if I knew how to do that.

Finally, enjoy this super-alluring photo of me in my eBay-scored horse head cowichan. Neigh indeed! And if you're thinking of knitting your own Fair Isle sweater, check out this how-to video. And if you're thinking of knitting your dude a sweater, consult this book first.

Is This Sonia Rykiel Sweater Really IB Diffusion In Disguise?

I know she like gave birth to the entire concept of knitwears -- seriously, like the idea of clicking two needles back and forth simply didn't exist before she came along -- but I can't deal with this totally '80s Sonia Rykiel throwback sweater:

($435, Sonia Rykiel, Net-a-porter.com)

Clearly IB Diffusion was ripping off Sonia Rykiel back in the day, but this looks like IB Diffusion to me! I'm so confused! It's like I'm walkin' on sunshine!

Anyway, check out this weeeeird YouTube tribute to vintage Sonia Rykiel pieces. What's with the creepy Halloween organ music???


Anyway... YAY OBAMA!

Vintage Video: IB Diffusion = Mastubatory Knitwear, Exotic Animals, Helicopters & More!

Wowsa! Who knew when I signed up for those Barbizon modeling classes at the mall that I'd find myself convulsing in the bustling city sidewalks, creaming in my knit ankle-length skirt as the result of a simple phone call, and masturbating myself to quivering orgasm on my couch while fantasizing about a couple of tacky sweaters!

Other things I never would've foreseen: owning the unseemly combination of a tiger, a snow leopard, and average house cat! Good thing I'm also leasing all this creepy, vaguely outsider modern art too! And the cats don't even TOUCH my exotic flora -- it's the darndest thing!

And now if you'll excuse me, my helicopter's waiting outside to whisk me away to my job,. which consists of convulsing on a platform inside of an art gallery while wearing a beret! I'm today's IB Diffusion Woman, and the world is my IB Diffusion oyster, and by oyster, I mean umbrella of deliriously bright, hideously outstretched, funk nasty oversized acrylic knits! Viva la Diffusion!

What Is The Cut-Off Age For Cat Sweaters? Plus: We The Free Looks Like A Knee-Jerk Ew

($128, Rendez-Vous By Paul & Joe Sister, Urban Outfitters)

And have I passed it? Am I too old for sweaters with kitties on them? Does that mean I need to get rid of my scotty dog sweater?

Am I also too old for this very '50s pink princess phone?

($50, Urban Outfitters)

Worth getting a landline reinstalled? Probably not. Fun to look at though.

Okay, so as much as I'll admit to Urban Outfitters being a guilty pleasure/ (un)necessary evil, I don't think I can deal with their new offshoot brand, We the Free, which recently opened on Smith Street. I passed by last night and saw the new storefront, which I hadn't passed since its past life as a dry cleaner.

In the window, I peeped a few pairs of cool-looking studded Chucks, plus several folded pairs of vintage Levis -- suggesting vintage boutique? buy/ sell/ trade? store in progress? -- and some deconstructed-looking sweatshirts and LOTS of open space occupying what's gotta be 1000 square feet. At least. The decor was teetering between art-school-grads-open-a-makeshift-found-space-on-a-dime, and major-corporation-creates-a-blatant-attempt-to-create-a-store-that-emits-an-art-school-grads-open-a-makeshift-found-space-on-a-dime look. And upon closer inspection and further research, the former is case. I'm sorry, but this shit looks absolutely terrible.

An American Eagle-lookalik knit tank for $98????

Thank goodness I'll be able to find $58 knee socks in a pinch!

... And then there are"these"... !?!?!?
Someone's aborted knitting disaster? ... For the PERFECTLY reasonable price of $148!


And those studded Converse? $168. $223 if you get the horbs knee socks too!

Lates.

Sweater I Need RIGHT This Second! Animal Bandido At Fred Flare!

It should be much more than obvious why I NEED this rainbow bright reversible magic pyramid sweater. It's $95, but really $47.5 per side when you think about it! It's by Barcelona brand Animal Bandido, and it's available at Fred Flare, where you can also read a lil moar about the brand.

It's like a cotdamn Tom Tom Club video come to LYF!


Also, I went to check out the opening of Fred Flare store in Greenpoint, and it was like retail Disney -- the happiest place on earth! And speaking of Disney, I picked up this Disney treasure chest ring for $44 -- I'd wanted it for forever:

($44, Disney Couture, Fred Flare)

I love it so much I slept in it...


... And I got these denture ice cube trays!

($10, Fred Flare)

So necessary! So best!

Oh yeah, Fred Flare ALSO carries JONATHAN ADLER products! LOVE! Come holidaze, I'll be goin' crazy bonkers coconuts bananas shopping there. Especially shopping for MEEEEEEE!!!! WEEE!

Comfy Cardis!

My cardigan and knit obsession continues, especially in goes-with-anything greys and blacks. Here are several cardis, sweaters and other knits I so deeply desire:

($150, Clue, Satineboutique.com)

But will I look as pouty and impossibly small-waisted if I buy this?

($306, Alexander McQueen, Shopbop.com)

I normally can't stand wearing clothes with brands plasted across them, but this isn't too obvious. Plus, graffiti = funs!

($228, Marc By Marc Jacobs, Shopbop.com)
This is so effin' cute. Subtle too. Deeeelightful!

($235, L.A.M.B., Shopbop.com)

Due to the placement of the knit straps, I'd prolly advise not wearing this is you're over a small B-cup, lest your boobs push the belts so far to the sides that they get swallowed up by your pits. Regardless, I sorta love the lederhosen vibe this cute little sweater gives off.

($63, Priorities, Bluefly)

A striped, zippy hoodie cardi is such a necessity that they even named it PRIORITIES!

($194, Nom*D, Refinery29.com)

One for the dudes! I'm sorta unsure how I feel about longer stuff on dudes (save for a nice 3/4-length coat, but I guess this is sorta similar.

($245, C&C California, Shopbop.com)

Can you make it through the winter without a dark cashmere cardigan? (Or a reasonable facsimile -- a reasonable facsimile being at least $150 less and probably NOT cashmere?) No. No you cannot.

($258, Juicy Couture, Nordstrom)

Love the dainty little ruffling -- usually I HATE ruffles, but this is just non-intrusive enough. And I love the heather grey version too.

($29, Target)

I realized most of the stuff I posted was well above the FB affordable standard, so here's one from Ol' Faithful, Targz.

YES, PLEASE, WANT! Cheap Monday Night Sweater Dress

($99, Cheap Monday, Karmaloop.com)

Cheap Monday's eerie, Egyptian-inspired sweater dress is what I NEED to be wearing right now. Someone with $99 to donate to my cause, make this happen. (Note: my cause is THAT I NEED TO BE WEARING THIS CHEAP MONDAY DRESS. kthx.)