This Betsey Johnson Prom Dress The Symbolic Manifestation Of The Prom Scene In Grease

($498, Betsey Johnson, Modcloth.com)

I love this Betsey Johnson prom dress, and I love that Modcloth (whom I love unconditionally) refers to it as a sugary confection, because that's exactly what it is. It's SO "Those Magic Changes." Speaking of which, Sha-Na-Na's gold two-piece suits and zip-up boots are LIKE TO DIE.

Amazing Things From Old Teen Magazine

God only knows what fleeting train of thought led me down the rabbit hole from which I fished these retro teen magazine gems, but I'm definitely glad I fell down that hole

(Credit: Seventeen)

OBVIOUSLY the most notable thing about this 1984 issue of Seventeen, which featured Diane Lane on its cover, is the cat. WHY can't more magazines have a cat on their cover? If you have a magazine, it should be a LAW that you have to feature a cat on your cover at least once. That's great for sell-through, right? Also, like WHY is that a FULL-GROWN cat? His paws are like the size of half a Diane Lane. You can tell that behind that half-assed smile is terror. That cat is not fucking around. Also, note the "Nice guy Tom Cruise" photo inset in the left-hand corner. I wonder if he did that squirrely, high-strung "heh-HEH!" laugh back in '84.

(Credit: Seventeen)

Oh man. Winona! Back in 1990, when she dressed like an Amish boy but totally pulled it off. Wino forever. This makes me wanna go to Saks and check out their sweater selection.

(Credit: Seventeen)

Cameron Diaz, back in 1990. There's no way anyone could possibly have THAT much American pride without spontaneously combusting into a dangerous downpour of fireworks.

This is SO batshit and awesome. It's from Teen magazine 1971 (via the EXCELLENT Kitschy Kitschy Coo). Clearly the editors of Teen were huffing glue, but that doesn't stop me from wishbing I had a pair of ABSURDLY chunky Hawaiian Punch platforms. Also, could you really even imagine a teen or even women's magazine today suggesting you make an ass out of yourself just for the sake of it being fun?

Teen magazine, 1975. Again, everyone was probably high and had crazy eyes.

Mascara Minute: Maybelline Volum' Express The Falsies

($7.49, Maybelline, CVS)

Okay, EYE LOVE this mascara. Get it? "Eye" instead of "I"? You get it. Anyway, if you think you can't find a decent mascara at the drugstore, you are sorely mistaken. And the great thing about drugstore mascara is if you buy it and don't love it, you're out like a couple bucks instead of, say, $22. Also, I'm in no way paid to endorse them, but they are my favorite drugstore (especially since there's one about 14 steps from my apartment), but I really love CVS because they'll let you return any and all beauty products if you tried something and you were like "meh." But you will SO not be "meh" about Maybelline Volum' Express The Falsies. It's got a rounded spoon brush that's made of fibers, not rubber (though I definitely LOVE a rubber brush), which separate and truly truly outrageously elongate your lashes, while the keratin formula makes your lashes look way more full. Of course, like any mascara in the entire universe, you need to apply a few coats -- The Falsies dries quickly, so apply fast. I like to do one entire eye -- curl, apply one coat starting from the base to the tips, doing that wiggly technique thing, and then apply a second coat to really bring them out. If The Falsies fails you it's because you have failed The Falsies. Oh yeah, since I don't do waterproof mascaras, I can't tell you how the waterproof version works. Only the "Very Black." There's a reason Maybelline's The Falsies has the letters "T," "F" and "M" in its name: it also stands for Tamar's Favorite Mascara.

(Disclosure: I was sent this product by PR.)

DYNASTY BARBIES! I DY! Plus: IMPORTANT Barbie News!

PEOPLE! GET READY! There are DYNASTY BARBIES in this world! An Alexis Barbie and a Krystle Barbie to herald the 30th anniversary of Dynasty.

If you've been reading this blog for more than a minute plus, you may possibly know that '80s power dressing is my FAVORITE THING IN THE WORLD (besides cats). Metallic jacquards, all sequins all the time! It was a time when lamé wasn't lame, everyone overdressed and overaccessorized for EVERYTHING, makeup was generally WAY too dark, shoulder pads weren't met with the abhorrence one associates with a used condom. Ah, those were better, tackier, happier days.

Check out the new Dynasty Barbies. I think I may need to buy Alexis because I was always a bigger fan of her, and because the detailing on her dress is more majah.

They're $34.95 each at BarbieCollector.com.

Also, how CUUUUUTE is the new "She Said Yes" Barbie and Ken set commemorating Barbie and Ken's getting-back-togetherness? (Disclosure: I was sent the set --- and THANK YOU! I LOVE!)

($13.91, Amazon)

I like how they're dressed to go on a beach holiday and I'm into the fact that Barbie's wearing a throwback take on her original maillot. I do have to say though, that Ken's ombre trunks, his slimmed-down waist, and his very blond hair have me wondering if he's more a friend of Judy than of Barbie. Oh wells! To the happy couple!

Oprah Goes Grace Jones

(Via http://juliasegal.tumblr.com/)

Dude, LOOK at Oprah. She is exuding the joy of the theme song to the Wendy Williams show. I can't. Amazing.

Be Your Own Valentine. Turn Your Swag On.

Here is a photo of my Valentine. It's me. Yes, I'm married. But we don't really celebrate Valentine's Day beyond giving each other a card with an animal on it, because Valentine's Day is kinda meh. If you celebrate it and you derive pleasure from it, then God bless. I'm not saying I won't partake of some drugstore chocolate. Because I already have.

For Valentine's Day, I'm posting this photo I took of myself this past July in the dressing room at Bloomingdale's. I was having a really good day. You can't tell in the photo, but my hair looked really good. I'd just interviewed for a job (which I didn't get -- the interview went well, and I went on to have another interview, but it just wasn't meant to be... important life lesson there: things happen when they're supposed to, and jobs you don't get probably weren't the right jobs for you). But I'd busted my ass preparing, and I celebrated with a little excursion to Bloomingdale's, where, for some reason, this Cynthia Steffe dress jumped out at me. An asymmetrical ruched silk party dress the color of the blazing sun was the last thing on my must-buy list. Especially at $286. But I tried it on and the feeling of confidence and like "EFFYEAHCYNTHIASTEFFE" I got was immeasurable by money or exclamation points. I felt bona fide awesome wearing it (and after a few days of deliberation, I went to the downtown Bloomie's and bought it).

I snapped a photo to remind me of that feeling you get when you feel great in something. When you finally calm the voices in your head that say "you still need to lose 10 pounds," "ugh, your stomach's gonna stick out," "the top backs of your arms aren't toned enough," "you weigh more now than you did two years ago." And my favorite bizarre little personal demon: "When you turn your face to the side, that area between your nose and cheek sometimes looks weird in photos." WHATEVER. WHO. CARES. Every day that you get out of bed and walk around on your own two highly functional legs unassisted and live a life relatively unconfined by illness or suffering or an oxygen tank on wheels is a fucking gift that not everyone on this earth was granted. But it's really easy to lose sight of that big picture when you're staring in a mirror squinting at a mild case of bra-induced back fat that really no one but you will ever notice. (Something else I've learned: people are too busy going about their own lives and dealing with their own weird insecurities to notice yours.) Even the most confident women I know (and I consider myself one of them) probably say 10 disparaging things about themselves for every one good thing. And when they do admit one nice thing about themselves, it's almost always apologetic and hesitant. I'm trying to do something about that. I'll go first: I feel like I look as good in this dress as that model. If you think I'm nuts or deluded, then this probably isn't the blog for you.

My point is that everyone deserves a dress, a pair of shoes, a blouse, a jacket, jeans, whatever, that make you feel as good as you deserve to feel. And everyone deserves to be able to confidently say "I LOOK AWESOME" instead of being modest or conservative, without feeling like you're bragging. Turn your swag up to 10. Eleven, even.

I used to roll my eyes when people on TV or in magazines talked about self-love and loving your body. But the older I get, I realize we need to hear those things -- and remind ourselves of them -- even if they sound corny and "you-go-girl"-ish. We should be able to toast ourselves and celebrate feeling and looking good, inside and out.

So, consider this a little love letter to myself. And I hope you put on something awesome, turn your swag on, and write your own Valentine too. You deserve it.

Soulja Boy Tellem - Turn My Swag On

FashionBinge Goes FABB + Words To Live By By Joan Rivers (AKA: Zen And The Art Of Fashion Blogger)

The faces of FashionBinge! Catherine (Mary-Kate) and Tamar (Tamron)

This past Tuesday I had the pleasure of attending Lucky Magazine's first-ever Fashion and Beauty Blog Conference. It was basically summer camp without the Birkenstocks. With Joan Rivers (more on that tk). I was honestly a little hesitant when I first RSVPed "yes." Why? The landscape of fashion blogging has changed so much in the five years I've been doing Fashionbinge. I was (pointlessly, as it turns out) a little curious as to whether it'd be a bunch of chicks vying to out-dress each other and namedrop designers and stuff. That's actually not really been my experience with fashion and beauty bloggers -- the ones I know are generally great writers and intelligent, media-savvy girls whom I now consider friends first, beyond just blogging. But I started fashion blogging back in 2006, when the market was less crowded, and the "'Net" (who even still calls it that??) was literally smaller as was the metaphorical net you could cast and not reel in nearly as many fashion bloggers and blogs as you can today. 

Five years ago, when FashionBinge was born, there weren't really fashion bloggers as models, fashion bloggers in front rows at fashion week, fashion bloggers as household names. Fashion bloggers on billboards in Times Square. Fashion bloggers in the Times. And FashionBinge still carries that scrappy, hey-we're-just-a-fun-little-blog-on-Blogger aesthetic and mantra. That's important to me. We (Catherine and I; we started FashionBinge together, and these days I post regularly and handle the nuts and bolts, while Catherine still chimes in on occasion) are not trying to be anything we're not. I just like to post some fun boots or a necklace I either bought, would very much love to buy, or would never in a month of Sundays buy. I'm not expecting an email from Garance Dore begging to photograph me, or Marc Jacobs to name a bag after me. Supermodels don't show up to my birthday party. 

I can the number of fashion shows I've been to on two hands and the number of times I've been to "the tents" probably on one. I've never been flown to cover shows in Europe where I've landed, gone right into fittings, and then taken a private car somewhere where I boarded a boat to watch models wear couture on a gondola. I do sometimes receive access to cool things or receive cool things, and I'm always appreciative of those things. I'm proud of the things I've worked very hard for, and I'm appreciative of any opportunities that come my way. Because really, no one deserves any special privileges simply because they have a blog. (Or because they're a really good athlete or went to a fancy university or know someone famous.) It's important to work hard for things, be appreciative for anything extra you've been given, and while you should have high expectations for yourself, you shouldn't expect that things you haven't worked for will simply be handed to you. (Celebrity gifting suites being an exception.) Maybe that's the immigrant's daughter in me speaking, but I really believe in those things.

Anyway, I'm not a fashion encyclopedia nor an expert. I probably know more about blogging, writing, and social media better than I can reference, say, the difference between Chanel's and YSL's 1999 resort collections or wax poetic on the merits of Mulberry boots versus Burberry boots or tell you whether a Balenciaga bag is better than a Birkin (as I will probably never own either).

I just know what looks good on me (and when to admit that something doesn't), how to shop for it, how to get the look for less, and how to navigate mainstream stores and select things in a way that doesn't scream HI I GOT THIS AT THAT STORE IN THE MALL WHERE EVERYONE SHOPS. And I know how to mine the Internet for hidden gems. Especially when there's a sale involved. I'm a great style curator. I hope that if and when you visit FashionBinge, you experience a little "Ooh, look at this fun thing you dug up" sensation. That's one of the things I love most about blogs. 

So, when it comes to fashion, the essence of FashionBinge is that it's not how much you spend, it's what you spent it on and how you wore it. And did you feel great in it? Yes? Awesome. As Santino Rice sagely said on the second season of "Project Runway," "Lighten up! It's just fashion!"

That's all a roundabout, reflective way of explaining why I was really happy that the FABB Conference was a celebration of fashion and beauty bloggers of all types, stripes and, well... hype. There were gorgeous glamazon-y newcomers with legs longer than my entire body and modeling deals. Girls with superstar style sense. Girls whose fashion blogs demonstrate their hilarious, irreverent take on fashion. Budget bloggers. Accidental cewebrities. Super shoppers. Discount doyennes. Hustlers and reticent bloggers. And the best thing was that there was a feeling of democracy, support, and a recognition of the fact that, at the heart of this diverse group of bloggers, there's one thing everyone has in common: basically, everyone who blogs does it because they love it. Fashion (and beauty) blogging is a crowded, busy, well-accessorized market, but there's room for all.

Anyway, I just wanted to really share that takeaway: everyone at FABB was extremely friendly, super supportive, and felt like the offline extension of what the whole online experience should be: a celebration of community, passion, and personality.

But more importantly... HERE'S WHAT I WORE! Har.

 

1.) Lazerade Manilow Top: This blouse is covered in a really cute star print, and it fits perfectly, (so curvy girls, take note.) It's from Urban Outfitters and has gone on sale since I purchased it a week ago. If I'm not feeling lazy, I'll go back to the store and have them credit me the difference. Ladies, NEVER be afraid to post-sale shop! It works! Saved myself $112 at Diane Von Furstenberg after I found the exact same dress I'd just purchased from their boutique on sale at Nordstrom. You work hard for your money, so never leave it on the table.

($29.99, UrbanOutfitters.com)

2.) Uniqlo jeans! Comfy and stretchy, but desperately in need of a belt.

3.) Chie Mihara Catame Bow Heels:

($361.33, Chie Mihara, Endless.com, courtesy of the designer)

I've had these Chie Mihara bow heels for years, and they're far chicer in person. They go with absolutely everything and fance-up an outfit in as much time as it takes to zip them up. 

4.) Pade Vavre horse necklace (duhr).

Okay. Here are four things I took away from the Lucky FABB Conference:

I Actually Didn't Buy These Shoes. For Once.

($99.99, Modcloth.com)

My darling coworker, MTV Twitter Jockey Gabi Gregg, who also runs Young, Fat and Fabulous, had on a great pair of studded boots. I was like, point blank: I'm buying those. Until I realized I own about seven pairs of black boots. At which point nly my spotty, waning sense of financial propriety kept me from buying these really fun studded boots from ModCloth. Ugh. I hate being a grownup sometimes.

By the way, LOTS more stuff to post from the Lucky FABB Conference, great stuff I bought, etc. Silly work keeps getting in the way though! I was on a social media panel, like a fancy person, and I did a bunch of radio press about the Grammys today. So if you live in Arizona or Alaska and heard someone blabbering about bloody Lady Gaga, that was me. And if you're interested in Britney Spears, well we're premiering her video on MTV.com on Thursday. DAMN YOU, BRITNEY! FOR KEEPING ME FROM FASHION BLOGGING!

Lucky FABB Conference, Fashion Week, Social Media Overdrive, Etc.

Crazy busy week, and it's barely Tuesday. This morning, I'm speaking on a panel (THINGS GROWN-UPS DO!) about music and social media (for my "real job"), and later on I'll attend the Lucky Magazine Fashion and Beauty Blogger Conference, where I'm serving on the cocktail party committee, which is a role I was born to play. Hopefully I'll see some of you there.

Also, if you ever wondered what my official, professional stance on Willow Smith is, well wonder no more. Also, I am an Eminem EXPERT!

Oh, and I participated in a documentary about fashion bloggers, in which I discussed how much money you can make doing this (not a ton! Don't quit your day job!) and revealed my living room.


In other words...

I'm effing busy!

To The Girl Who Bought This Vintage Norma Kamali Jumper Out From Under Me

You win, I lose. In the world of vintage fashion, it's shit or get off the pot. And THAT is exactly what my "tagline" intro thingy would be if I were on a reality show. Like when Jill Zarin goes "I run with a fabulous circle of people" on Real Housewives of New York. If I were on a reality show about vintage shopping I'd be like "in VINTAGE, it's shit or GET OFF THE POT." Okay, I wouldn't, because that's gross and lame, but my point is twofold: 1.) I sometimes think about what my tagline thingy would be if I were on a reality show (and then what physical thing would I do? Put my hand on my hip and squint? Toss my hair back and snarl? Roll my eyes in a really over-the-top way? Do that lick-your-finger-smoldering sound thing? Disappearing thumb trick?), 2.) When you find a one-of-a-kind vintage piece you really love -- like this Norma Kamali jumpsuit from Shopnastygal.com, GET IT. While I'm glad I know that I want to spend the spring in slouchy, blousy button-down one-pieces (vintage or otherwise), I missed out. Lesson learned.

 PS -- Can someone who knows how to sew make me this jumper in an adult size? I'm so half serious.

Shopping Fast BROKEN!

Need Supply's 30-percent-off-sale sale was too good to pass up. And so, it seems, were these:

80%20 "Heide" wedge booties, $35 with code "extra30." I hemmed, I hawed, and then I decided to stop pussying around and hit "buy."

Something's gotta sustain me while I'm on this crazy no-caffeine, no-booze monthlong crazy train. (Seriously!)

Bea Arthur Probably Wants Me To Buy This Leopard Print Blazer, Right?

($108, MinkPink, Shopnastygal.com)

I feel like the late, great Bea Arthur is communicating to me from beyond, telling me to purchase this leopard print cardigan. It's SO perfectly Dorothy Zborniak. (And a little Joy Behar.) By the way, I have a leopard print MinkPink tank from Dear Fieldbinder, and that brand is the business. Their fit is fantastic and the prices are no nonsense, just like Dorothy herself.

These Tweezers Are $100

($100, Tweezerman, Neimanmarcus.com)

In case you were wondering what $100 tweezers look like, well here's what Tweezerman's $100 pluckers look like. Somewhere, probably in Brentwood, Paris Hilton is reporting a beauty supply robbery.

Blue Boots Are The New Black Boots

The other morning on the train to work, I had a little epiphany. No, not that the train smelled like piss -- oh, believe me though, it certainly did. I realized that this spring, or whenever I can finally stop wearing my winter boots every day like I have for the past financial quarter or whatever, I'm going to be investing in a pair of blue boots and wear them where and when I'd usually wear black boots. It's all about getting the blue right, though. I'm thinking navy, but then I saw these Jeffrey Cambpell "Lita" boots. True blue.

($155, Jeffrey Campbell, Bonadrag.com)

I'd Be Buying These Flutter By Jill Golden Statement Necklaces If Most Of My Paycheck Weren't Going To Rent

Don't get it twisted. I EFFING LOVE clothes. They're my porn. The only thing I love more than shopping for clothes and thinking about shopping for clothes and fantasizing about thinking about shopping for clothes is pasta. But jewelry's a close second. Especially chunky statement necklaces. But I'm at the point where I have a lot of dated shit I just need to get rid of (anyone want it?), and then I need to take the less-is-more approach. Or, rather, the fewer-newer approach. Have fewer pieces, and make them newer.

My all-time favorite necklace is my Pade Vavre horse necklace. These three horses have traveled a lot of miles and seen a lot. (Sometimes I fear that people I pass in the lobby at work or see at events are like "there goes that horse necklace girl again." Or, "Tamar? Oh, you mean the girl with the horse necklace?" Actually, I don't really care, but I do really wear it a lot.) It's not quite time for their retirement, but it's time to add a few more pieces to the stable. A big, bold necklace that goes with everything and that I love so much that I don't care if I wear it five times a week. Such as...

($400, Flutter By Jill Golden, FlutterNYC.com)

I just discovered Flutter By Jill Golden, and I'm so taken by the entire collection. I love how she takes pretty golds and stones and turns them into pieces are edgy but elegant. (And her studded jewelry is so understated, instead of intense, which I love, well, intensely.) Seriously, I saw this necklace and I was like THIS IS IT...

Until I saw this one:

($420, Flutter By Jill Golden, FlutterNYC.com)

I BRAKE for leather weaving!

Basically both of these necklaces elicited a Huey Lewis "If This Is It" reaction. So in love.