Partner Post: Macy's Boot Selection Is My Gift To You

By my watch, which I make a point of painstakingly syncing up with the Farmer's Almanac (okay, that's not true, but it'd be funny if it were!), we've only got a few more months to stay in boots. And while the holidays are technically over, the joys of shoe shopping are a 365-day affair, particularly at Macy's, where their selection of women's shoes is the gift that keeps on giving. ICYMI, the Herald Square flagship Macy's is undergoing a $400 million (that's like five Taylor Swifts!) renovation, and their shoe selection is more Homeric than ever. But in case you can't make the Odyssey to Herald Square, check out some of my favorite picks -- from studded-up Frye boots to buckled-up, menswear-inspired L.A.M.B. boots (good enough for Gwen, good enough for you, I say!), to lace-up Dolce Vita boots -- from Macy's boot selection.

$389.99, L.A.M.B. Macys.com

Leave it to Gwen Stefani to flip the script on the classic Chelsea boot style, adding a perforated vamp and not one, not two but five belt buckles.

$59, Dirty Laundry, Macys.com

I was totally meaning to buy a pair of old-school almond-toed (is that a thing? It is now, I guess) low-heeled boots, but then I got distracted, probably thinking about cats. But the neon laces in these Dirty Laundry boots, and the $59 price tag, are the only thing separating me from "thinking about buying" to "definitely buying."

$192.50, Boutique 9, Macys.com

Dream kitschy boots right here. Kinda like how you try and pretend you don't heart Flo Rida but you secretly do, just admit that you're into these bejeweled suede platform boots and enjoy them out in the open.

Big, Chunky Necklaces, Big Bills

Yeah, that header was a stretch. Whatevz. Love these big-ass chunky necklaces. And by the way, I'm STILL on a quest to find that elusive, indescribable neon necklace! HALP PLEEZ!!1

($318, Issy Salomon, Charmandchain.com)

I love the hi/low combo here -- hot pink punked-out Lucite mixed with more upscale-y glass beads and rhinestones. By the way, I have an awesome Issy Salomon necklace that I bought at Edge NY in Soho (go check it out -- it's like the Young Designer's Market) from Issy himself, who's extremely nice. I'm such a Lucite whore.

($200, Nicole Romano, Vivre.com)

This one's got a sweet, sorta post-apocalyptic vibe to it.

($350, Givenchy, Macy's)

Stand-out piece frm Givenchy's Neon Collection, available at select Macy's. A total Deco dream
in crystal and hematite.

Okay, so WHAT would you wear with these statement necklaces? NOTHING! JK, whores. How about either a really simple black dress, OR a grey dress, since it's ALWAYS the new-new black. Like so?

($35, Lulu's)


($158, Karoo, Bluefly)

Sweet color-blocked cashmere!

... And, as promised, "Big Bills." See? Full circle, people. Full circle.

Flosstradamus - New Music - More Music Videos

Oh Look! THERE's My Waist... In 7 For All Mankind Charlize Jeans

($215, 7 For All Mankind, Macys.com)

So, it turns out I DO have a waist! I had COMPLETELY forgotten! Because, like an idiot, I've been wearing my jeans at like, Kevin Federline lower depths, all down around my hips and shit. Not like total B-girl or anything, but it HAS been awhile since I've gotten new jeans, and some of my older ones are, um, well loved and not exactly crispy?

Fortunately, I recently got a pair of 7 For All Mankind's new Charlize trouser jeans in the dark Soho wash, and they're sitting high and dry, accentuate my waist, and lifting my flat rear without cutting off circulation in any crucial places where circulation really needs to happen. The Charlize jeans are thick, slightly stretchy, ultra slimming, and suck you in and keep you there. They're professional but not in a boring way. And the craziest/ best part is that they're super comfortable. Of course, I had to get about 18,002 inches taken up, but there's still a nice flare there that doesn't venture into "C'mon Get Happy" Brady territory. Essentially, much like the woman they're named for, 7 For All Mankind's Charlize jeans are perfection.

Budget Fashionista's 2009 Fashion & Retail Predictions

The Budget Fashionista made nine predictions that could affect YOU, the smart, savvy shopper this year.

I'll add to her picks by saying I'm pretty sure Value City's already out of business (they closed the one in Virginia Beach, and my mom called me, practically in tears), big ups to the Cleveland location too, and even Wal-Mart cut their earnings forecast today, Macy's announced they're closing a handful of stores too, and Walgreens is cutting lots of heads too. And as sad as it is to see any store close, I have no clue how or why JC Penney is still in business.

Anyway, READ ON, please for the Budget Fashionista's take on retail in '09:

1. Michelle Obama will redefine fashion and the role of African American women (and moms) in fashion and in the media. She’s already inspired instant sell outs, cover stories, and probably helped saved J.Crew’s 4th quarter. Along with her husband, Mrs. Obama has inspired the recent collections of several TOP designers, including the use of more models of color. First Lady Michelle Obama will continue to have a major impact on fashion and what (and who is) considered fashionable.

2. Wal-mart will be the top store to watch as it will be the only store to successful address the challenges facing middle (and coastal) American families. This isn’t to say that other stores can’t do the same, Target could if they focused less on being “cool” and more on being “cool AND useful”, but right now Wal-Mart is the only major mass market store which does not have to make fundamental changes in order to accomplish this goal.

3. The Bon-Ton, Kmart, Sears, JC Penneys, and several sports apparel stores (Champs, Footlocker, etc) will all close or face bankruptcy. All of these stores, with the exception of K-Mart, depend on a mall environment to stay alive and the mall, as we know it, is dead. K-Mart has been dead for a while, so at this point we’re just waiting for the funeral.

4. Big Lots, Salvation Army, Value City, Costco, Sams Club will all be hot stores in 2009. Costco will be VERY hot in 2009 and shoppers will find creative ways to get the most out of their membership, including membership co-ops.

5. Moms will be king. The marketing focus of several top brands will shift from the youth market to hip moms as more businesses realize that moms are the ultimate influencers, affecting the style and consumer habits of their kids, husbands/partners, and friends.

6. Lipstick, at home hair coloring systems, and nail color will be the big beauty sellers in 2009. These are quick, easy, and relatively inexpensive ways for people to change their personal style.

7. The mall will die. Malls, as we know it, will be dead and most will turn into outlet mall like structures (ex: the Bergen Mall in Northern New Jersey)- featuring the outlets of top retail brands. Even Saks Fifth Avenue, who for years have maintained a rigid distinction between its high-end stores and its outlet stores by referring to the later as “Off Fifth- Saks Fifth Avenue Outlets”, changed the name of their outlets to the equally cumbersome Saks Fifth Avenue Off Fifth.

8. Gray, black, brown, red, and dark blue will continue to be the colors to watch as consumers look for easy to wear colors.

9. Easy to care for fabrics will reign supreme as shoppers look for items that are machine washable, thus saving a ton of money on dry cleaning.

10. More designers will skip their bridge lines and head directly for mass market/lower priced lines. Rumors have already started about budget lines by Zac Posen and Doo Ri. I think the following designers will also do budget lines in 2009- Ellen Tracy (maybe a replacement for Isaac Mizrahi at Target), Tory Burch (Kohls? or Macys), Burberry (H&M?), Paul Smith (TopShop for Men?), Vivienne Westwood (Topshop or H&M), Donna Karan (Macys?).

Is Heatherette Over? PLUS: Beauty Binge - Heatherette for MAC Sock Hop Lipglass

Oh bew. Has the mirrorball shattered at Heatherette? That'd suck but wouldn't be so surprising -- they pulled out of their last Fashion Week show. Apparently they're venturing down their own sparkly paths, which will surely be paved in glitter. But still, this split would be fairly unfierce. More at The Cut.

Also, uh, while you still can, you should check out Heatherette's "Sock Hop" Lipglass from their MAC line -- it's a spring-ready, salmon-pink coral gloss that doesn't reek of hot trannybotmess-ness:

($14, MAC, Macys)

It's totes sold out at MAC online, but SUUUUUP, Macy's -- you can still get it there, along with much of the rest of the collection. Better late than never. Check out more swatches and shots here.

OK, speaking of lates, it's bedtime. Happy Zs, FBs!

Oh, PS: Here's a slightly intoxicated me with the Heatherette dudes at a MAC event. Tee!

A Tale of Two, If Not Sometimes Three, Mascaras

While MKHo may not be a beauty blogger, I am a little bit of one myself. Therefore, please enjoy a completely overlong post about one of my all-time favorite beauty products, mascara! Wee!

The other day, I was celebrating the fact that it was like 7p.m. on a Tuesday or something equally as irrelevant, and I impulsively decided I REALLY DESERVED to buy myself something. (Un-)fortunately I work about 30 seconds from a Sephora.

Due to the fact that, like a magpie, I am attracted to any and all forms of shiny packaging, I swooped down on Urban Decay's Big Fatty Mascara:

($19, Urban Decay)

The wand is basically the size of a fucking toilet bowl brush. Unfortunately, this mascara completely sucks. Nothing showed up at all. I even thought I'd perhaps gotten a faulty, dried-up one. I read a review somewhere that said this mascara is good for "the natural look," and I can only imagine that refers to the look of WEARING NO MASCARA AT ALL. I took advantage of Sephora's open-arms exchange policy -- you can return anything if you're not completely satisfied, which I wasn't. So I did!

In its stead, I got Diorshow:

($24, Dior, Macys)

Ah, the redoubted Diorshow. I was sooooo ready to believe the hype. And the first few tests, it was okay (maybe I just REALLY wanted to believe) -- it definitely lengthens -- but after a few repeated uses, BOOOO Dior! WTF? J'clump!!! Definitely a lot of thick coverage, but zero separation -- it did that thing where it made major clumps at the center of my lashes and then made them look stringy-string-McStrung-out at the tips. Boo for reals.

Oh, and before I forget:
+ Free shipping over $25 at Sephora with promo code B388C2, through April 30.
+ Also, did you know you can return any and all beauty products to CVS if you're not feelin' it? It's true!

Anyway, back to the mascara:
... So, just yesterday, my sister came to visit. Every time we see each other after having not seen each other for months, we first act a'fool about how much we wuv each other. Then, we go into giddy-overdrive mode over mascara. She reminded me how much she loves CoverGirl's Lash Blash (the one that looks like a small orange sex toy), and I was so glad she did:

($6.79, CoverGirl, CVS)

Huge, right? But even more importantly, hugely effective. It's perfect on its own (after a few coats of course -- please stop kidding yourself if you think any one mascara can do it all in just one coat. Do you give your walls JUST ONE coat of paint? No. Unless you're a crappy slacker.) or as a base -- I'd also completely forgotten my own trick -- find a great separating mascara, use it as a base to hit as many individual hairs as possible that the slightly clumpier mascaras can't deal with, and then layer with a bolder mascara over that. Yeah, it's a little extra time, but so is dealing with those crappy lash brushes which never really end up working.

But, you don't have to take my word for it -- some Lash Blash reviews:
+ Makeup Alley
+ Makeup Moxie
+ Makeup Minute
+ The Makeup Girl <---- impressive before and after photo!

I also remembered how much I like MAC's Zoom Lash mascara: ($11, MAC)

A VERY thick (think mud) mascara. For $11, t'aint (hee) bad, but I don't advise it on its own -- instead, use it as a top coat over a solid separating mascara like Maybelline's Define-A-Lash, which is the Bentley Continental GT of separating but the mid-to-late '80s LeBaron of volumizing:



PS: Non-sequitur, yes, and I know I'm like the 23rd person to tell you this today, but Muxtape is awesome.
MU

My Macy's Mini Binge

Okay. Sunday I went to Macy's SPECIFICALLY for undergarments, and while I accomplished that mission, I also walked out (well, I mean, I paid for them, but you know...) with a $118 DKNY Jeans trapeze jacket that I absolutely love. And a Macy's card, which I justified opening since I almost never shop there, so it's not much of a temptation -- ha ha, suckahs! Anyway, I couldn't find a decent photo of it anywhere, so I took a few snaps:

($118, DKNY Jeans, Macys)

(Note -- that bidness on the right side is just the price sticker, which I've yet to remove.) I'm not really sure what prompted me to buy this -- I almost never spend that much on an impulse buy, especially not one that isn't online, for some bizarre reason. And usually trapeze/ swing jackets are not for me, figure wise. And generally I couldn't give a crap about DKNY Jeans, so that definitely wasn't the impetus. All I know though is I tried it on and totally got the WEEEEEEEEEEEEE! feeling and did the dressing room dance, so I figured those were too excellent reasons. Even my boyfriend, who's a pretty overtaxed spectator of the post-shopping-what-do-you-think-about-this?-home-fashion-show perked up and said that it was great without any prompting or reminders of current trends whatsoever. So, yay! Anyway, what do YOU think?


Also, I really liked this:
($78, Kensie, Macys)
Ooh jeweled detailing totes makes me hungraw for the holidaze. And how cute and affordable is Kensie? Yay, Kensie!


Okay, now I must to go -- I'm off to one of the many other City(ies) Of Lights for a week, so leave lotsa comments so I feel like I was missed by Internet friends even though chances are I've never met you. Kay, toodles, poodles!