URBAN OUTBACK

The Ralph Lauren Spring 2011 show was the inspiration behind this look. Well, that and the Hermes Spring 2011 show...a little bit of a combo there, but mostly Ralph Lauren. This has to be one of our all time favorite looks.

TINY TEAL COLLAR

This is one of my favorite blouses right now and it highlights some lovely trends. The saturated teal color will be perfect for spring, and bring some needed color to my wardrobe, and the smart tiny collar is very on trend. The narrow, buttoned up collar seems to be holding strong well through Spring and into Fall 2011 - almost every blouse that came down the Givenchy Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear runway was buttoned up to the neck. At the Spring shows designers like 3.1 Phillip Lim , Proenza Schouler and Alexander Wang also buttoned their blouses up. What better, or easier, way could there be for a Modest Girl to be uber cool this Spring and Fall than to wear a tiny buttoned up collar? I think none. This blouse is vintage, but one can easily find blouses with tiny collars at Urban Outfitters and JCrew and choose to button or-not-to-button at their discretion.

MARC JACOBS SPRING 2011

 

 The 70's are back, my friends, and the Marc Jacobs Spring 2011 show was a strong testament to that fact. We saw beautiful, colorful, flowing midi and maxi length skirts, peasant blouses and wrap dresses come down the runway. Marc Jacobs a bit pricey for you? There are plenty of 70's inspired pieces available for spring in every price range - Nordstrom, Piperlime  and Topshop have some nice things.

FURRY VEST

Fur has been everywhere this past season and will continue to be strong into Fall 2011. Whether faux or real, there are so many ways to wear a bit of fur. Here we've shown two ways to wear a fur vest - a piece that transitions easily from winter into spring.

GRAY, LEAPORD, STRIPES & TWEED

In speaking of her Pre-Fall 2011 collection, Caroline Herrera described how difficult it is to wear bright clothing everyday. Her solution? Grays, black and white with a little leopard thrown in. A fabulous combination we think every girl could handle. We tried our own version of this combo and decided to throw a few nautical stripes into the mix for fun... Leopard scarf and stripe top are Forever 21, tweed blazer from the Gap, and Urban Outfitter jeans.

RED

This spring is the time for color and we think bright red looks amazing on nearly everyone. Funny enough, Alison here always thought red didn't suit her until she tried this dress on for the first time and then...hello bombshell! This dress is vintage but there are plenty of bright pieces around this spring so pick your favorite bright color and grab some attention.

SHORTS, TIGHTS & CAT-EYES

I think the tights and shorts combo here is totally laid back and cool. The texture of the tights pairs well with the sleek black trouser short and brown oxford shoe. What really makes you stop and look though is the big, thick, lux scarf wrapped around her neck. So lovely with her pretty complexion and perfectly applied cat-eye liner. I love a clean cat-eye liner any time of day. Of course, keep in mind there are different levels of cat-eye intensity, and I would say to save the dramatic, smokey-eye cat-eye for a night out. For daytime though, or anytime, a little chic make-up and the right combination of pieces can make afternoon wear much more interesting.

PROENZA SCHOULER SPRING 2011

I love little jackets with skirts for spring, and of late I am adoring a little slouch in my blouses and slacks. Proenza Shouler's Spring 2011 show displayed these qualities perfectly. Sometimes I like clothes or hair to look just a bit messy, just a little undone, to avoid that overly 'done', overly matched look. So I say, rumple your hair a little (and go easy on the hair products and overly aggressive straightening iron) and loosen that blouse just a tad and play it all off cool with confidence.

CHANEL LOOK

This look is inspired by Coco Chanel's legendary black dresses with white collars - especially her ruffled collars. We took a basic black H&M dress and layered a Milly blouse with a ruffled collar underneath and voila!, a classic Chanel inspired look. This sheer collar is also reminiscent of pretty sheer collars we saw at Valentino and Jason Wu for spring. The necklace is from a boutique we stumbled upon in Tokyo.

DENIM SPRING 2011

Denim has a very laid back, cool feel. You can dress it up or down but either way you never look like you tried too hard. We also think denim and camel shades look so pretty together so we paired this denim top with a camel scarf. H&M denim tunic, Banana Republic trench coat, leggings from Target, scarf from a street vendor in NYC, and Steve Madden boots.

INSPIRATION : AGYNESS DEYN

This look is inspired by the the model Agness Deyn's edgy/androgenous/rocker style. She somehow always manages to look chic in a non-traditional, punk, boyish kind of way that is still totally feminine - kind of sounds like an oxymoron but it works. Here, accessories and a baggier shape on top take slim cropped trousers in an edgy direction.

PONCHO

I still have a winter look I want to share before the season is over, for those of us still living with frigid temperatures (I was just in Vail, CO this past week and it was cold, cold, cold). This Poncho was given to my husband by his father, who is Peruvian and brought it back from Lima. Of course, I had to steal (technically borrow) it for myself. This poncho is made out of the softest alpaca and is one of the most warm and luxurious things I've ever worn - it's like wearing a large cashmere blanket - so cozy and comfortable. There was also a great poncho that came down the runway of the 3.1 Philip Lim Fall/Winter 2010 show. I also liked some ponchos/capes at the Vena Cava and Alexander Wang Fall 2010 shows as well. Since the poncho was the highlight of this cold weather look, I decided to keep the rest simple with black pant-weight leggings and flat, knee high boots.

FABULOUS

As I was waiting in line to see a documentary some weeks ago at the Sundance Film Festival, my husband turned to me and asked if, one day, I wanted to look like the woman standing by the tent doors. I turned to take a look and, sure enough, I saw one of the chicest women I'd seen during the whole festival. Of course I would love to look like her, any day! She was wearing a wonderful mix of textures and earthy colors that were supremely flattering. Her shoulder length bob with bangs, edgy glasses and red lips were totally cool but also classic and timeless. It's delightful to be reminded that we Modest Girls can look Fabulous At Any Age (to steal a phrase from Harper's Bazaar).

ALL BLACK

I love indulging in all black once in a while. My husband teases me sometimes and says I look like I'm going to a funeral, or am trying to be dramatic, but really sometimes it just feels so perfectly pulled together to wear all black. Here I've brought out said husband's fabulous Russian fur hat (that he actually brought back from Russia) and paired it with an H&M dress, Express leggings, and Forever 21 boots.