After a crazy, spontaneous, glorious trip to New York City during the this year’s Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, I can wholeheartedly inform you that L.A. has seen nothing that compares to the hustle and bustle harbored in the most beautiful tents pitched on the right coast.

Although my heart will always be here in the City of Angels, New York Fashion Week is one of the few things that I will admit takes the cake from our beloved city. One of the most impressive shows of the momentous week came from the edgy Miss Sixty team. From her beginnings in Italy all the way to NY, Miss Sixty boasted edgy, innovative patterns as well as a rousing approach to layering fabrics at this year’s fashion week.

For example, this tan jacket paired with vividly colored shorts bring elements to the table that are rarely seen successfully meshing with one another. Miss Sixty was also one of the few shows that played with color, seeing as much of the week’s events were dominated by classic black sophistication. Much to the dismay of some critics, Miss Sixty dares to walk the fine line in recycled fashion that only the brave can pull off without looking 90’s tacky. That’s right, you better keep an eye out for more work from this amazing label before you throw away your old high school Clueless-inspired threads!

I apologize, readers, for I have done you all a grave disservice. I must have been so traumatized last week by this issue that I blocked it out of my mind. But thanks to some brave work by my therapist, I now have the courage to address not this week’s episode of America’s Next Top Model, but the commercials. Specifically, Cycle 10 winner Whitney’s My Life as a Covergirl spots. I have two words for that: GAG ME. Not that these ads have ever been successful in my opinion, serving only to showcase the increasing stupidity and inability of Tyra’s final picks to read giant words of a big white flashcard. Jaslene, anyone? But Whitney, good lord. During her season’s commercial shoot, the panel berated her repeatedly that she was just too sexed up in her reads to be taken seriously. So I guess she took the other route, going the complete opposite direction until she managed to sound like someone’s grandmother whispering them to sleep. With an oxygen mask on. If this were an audio forum, I would do my impression of her and you would all shoot milk out of your noses with mirth. At least she doesn’t talk about how plus-sized she is anymore.

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Have you seen American Apparel’s new line, “Afrika” lately?

On first glance, it may appear that AA is trying to brand into patterns after being known for so long for  their basic cotton knitwear that comes in a plethora of colors and cuts, however, if your observation skills are in tune, it might be that AA is taking a page from the M.I.A. book of fashion. M.I.A, or Maya Arulpragasam, is known just as much for her innovative and cutting edge music as for her sense of style. While she’s singing “Paper Planes” or her first hit, “Galang,” you’ll more than likely find her clad in neon pink tights and an outrageously patterned spandex leotard, while wearing candy colored sneakers and flailing her blond streaked hair, a definite shout out to the 80s.

American Apparel, the largest clothing manufacturer in the world, an unlikely candidate to carry such loud and out there type clothing, has jumped in the M.IA. train.

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This fall, the always on-point geniuses at Christian Dior give the fashion world a fresh, flirty surprise with their ready-to-wear designs.

This dress, for example, takes traditional fall hues (like deep red and burnt orange) and dares to make them pop out of the monotonous crowd. The contrast of a fun geometric whirlwind against the radiant white is striking and playful while maintaining the unique Christian Dior sophistication that people just can’t take their eyes off of. In addition to manipulating a perfect color combination to absolute impeccability, this piece takes a familiar shape and brings it to another level by allowing for large ruffles in a bubble skirt that culminate to form a young perfection that captures the evolution of Christian Dior’s lasting vision.

*Photo via: Style

“I am so in awe of my garment.” ~ Blayne

Project Runway started off this week with Suede’s revelation that there are only four measly guys left.  Color me shocked.  They’ll all go home eventually but for now, they’re keeping some around for entertainment’s sake.  Otherwise, we’d all fall asleep this season.  Let’s face it, there’s no Christian or Chris March or hell, even Sweet Pea to keep us watching so we’ll settle for third-person mumblings from Suede and Blayne’s flippant claims about wanting to marry Mary-Kate Olsen. (Don’t they look alike? Blayne’s the third Olsen!) It’s not awesomely crazy like last season but, hey, we’ll take it.

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How did I get through a whole summer without Tyra?

At least I had Gossip Girl reruns to satiate my desire for dramatic, narcissistic bitches until the increasingly ridiculous Tyra brought her latest batch of would-be beauties to my TV set last night, for the inaugural episode of America’s Next Top Model’s 11th cycle (yes, I used the word inaugural to tie in to the barely believable political theme of the first photo shoot).

While this cycle’s girls are indeed some of the most gorgeous I’ve seen to date on ANTM, more importantly, they are by far the dumbest. Clark (the chick with a cool boy’s name who looks like Blake Lively/Kristin Cavalleri hybrid – yes I watched Laguna Beach too, does that surprise you?) couldn’t even figure out what bureaucracy meant in the “get out the vote shoot.” And while we’re on the topic of the photos, which showcased each new gal posing with a heavily-accessorized voting booth that was supposed to represent a political issue we must all go vote for or against come Nov. 4, I must ask: Is bureaucracy really an issue I can vote against? Because I’m all for that. And I didn’t realize cloning was a huge platform for those running for office this year. Wasn’t Dolly the sheep cloned over ten years ago? I’m sincerely glad this show came out after I’d left high school, when I could have actually been stupid enough to think they were really tackling some major world issues.

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Someone recently told me that SWAG stands for Shit-We-All-Get. I guess the PG version would be “Stuff” instead of “Shit.” Oh well! Apparently, it can also stand for Shopping, Walking and Giving. At least for this event it does.

If you’re a fan of getting free “stuff” than you need to head over to Beverly Blvd between 6-9pm because tomorrow, September 4th, they are having the Beverly Hills Block Party in honor of the Saban Clinic.

Participants include Beverly Hills Juice, Boutique M, Bungalow Salon, DAVINCI Custom Furniture, Decor de Paris, IN SEOUL, JIAN BBQ, Joseph Walker Boutique, Kevan Hall Designs, Kim Salmela Atelier, LA Skin, Scent Bar, Mandarette Chinese Cafe, MASSE Boutique, Muscle Mechanics LA, The Natural Face Place, Pane e Vino, persimmon, Orientalism Furniture, Recess, Richard Bowman & Xavier Othon, Beverly Spine and Wellness Center, The Valley of the Dolls and MORE.

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“Blood for fashion! And, I’m bleeding it baby.” ~ Suede

Things were prickly on Project Runway this week, as the contestants took on perhaps their biggest challenge ever: Create an outfit from Saturn Vue Car parts. It became apparent that things were gonna be rough when the designers were taken to a parking garage, where there awaited a bunch of cars and, of course, Tim Gunn. The Saturn dude explained that the cars were Hybrids and that the contestants had four minutes to gather car parts for their outfits from inside the cars. It was pretty funny to watch these folks grasping for seat belts and floor mats instead of running around Mood with a budget. Tim Gunn tells our designers that the winner of this challenge will have immunity and that it is about innovation. He says they should just “do it and have fun.” Whoohoo!

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Hey Jet-setters! Instead of tying a bright ribbon around your boring black luggage to make it stand out on the baggage claim carousal, why not invest in a good-looking travel item? This trolley by Bree has an exquisite wool exterior with interior nylon lining and its overall design is reminiscent of vintage chic. Perfectly rectangular shape and clean lines make this an elegant and unique item for travelers that want to travel with functional and smart-looking luggage. It comes in gray with yellow lining and mocha with green lining; so don’t be fooled by it’s calm, sophisticated exterior, fun and bright colors line the inside to hold all of your fashion-forward and daring threads!

Available at: Revolve Clothing

This sale deserves its own post.

So, in less than 30 minutes I spent more than $200 Thursday at one store, LF. Because every item of clothing in LF’s inventory is frickin’ adorable. And currently discounted 60%.

While it is a very trendy and youthful store in some sense, you can definitely still find basics (tanks in glorious colors, jeans in equally cool colors, flip-flops, v-neck t-shirts, underwear) if you’re not interested in the peacock-feather earrings or the hot pink plastic jelly thongs studded with gems. But I don’t think anyone could go in this store and not find something - just the colors alone of the clothing are enough to put anyone in a good mood, if nothing else! And the chance to get a $40 brighter-than-neon lime tank for 15 and an almost $200 pair of faded, 80’s-ish jeans for $70, are other reasons to smile. And plus, some of the designers sold there like Emma and Sam are not commonly available.

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In case you missed Project Runway last night, you suck.  Just kidding.  No worries, I’ll fill ya in.  This week’s challenge was to design for a “high powered and glamorous woman.”  The contestants wondered who it might be. Stella wanted it to be Sharon Osbourne. “Queen of Rock,” she explains. “She’s a business woman.” But, alas, it’s not Ozzy’s better half, it’s Brooke Shields, or more accurately her character on Lipstick Jungle, that the designers will be creating an outfit for. Brooke reveals that she will be wearing the winning look on the new season of her show. The contestants are given 30 minutes to sketch a design. Then, they pitch their vision to Brooke and she chooses her 6 favorites for the runway show. She picks: Keith, Korto, Jarell, Kelli, Terri and Blayne. Each of these 6 get to pick a partner to work with on the challenge. Blayne chooses Leanne, Keith picks Kenley, Terri snatches up Suede, Korto gets Joe, Kelli selects Daniel and Jarell pretends he’s excited about Stella. The designers get a budget of $150. Yippee Skippee. Here we go.

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What up, Betsey Johnson?

We all know that it’s rough out there in the shopping world. Finding daring, affordable, and fun jewelry that’s made to last can be one of the hardest aspects of accessorizing like a pro. But never fear! Betsey Johnson has balanced raw style with a subtle touch of big city class for decades. Aaaand…Betsey Johnson’s eccentric chic has been bumped up a few notches with this dope snake piece! The versatile bracelet is white with gold, turquoise, and rhinestone accents to make it pop. You can rock it with your funky day wear, use it to spice up a simple outfit, and add unique character to an elegant evening gown.

***You can find it at: Betsey Johnson