Grey's Desirability

As far as wardrobe staples go, I've covered both black and white. Now it's time to shine the fashion spotlight on the gorgeous shades of grey in between.

This moody neutral colour is far from dull this season as it's showing up in many shades on tons of trendy clothing styles.

Even though my love for grey may not be as extreme as this, I'm still craving a few grey items right now - specifically boots and bags - to add to my wardrobe.

Grey is powerful enough to stand on its own but I think it looks even better when it's paired with brighter colours like pink, purple or yellow.

Below are some chic grey clothing and accessories for your consideration.

Back Linen Dress
Price: US$34.00

Gray Drawstring Chain Tote
Price: US$36.99
(use code FFATTRACTION at checkout for 10% discount)

HAMAK Side Zip Jacket
Price: US$42.99

Breckelle Grace-26 Ankle Boot Gray
Price: US$19.99

Grey Lurex Tier Cami
Price: UK £20.00 (US$34.66)

Cropped Capelet
Price: US$38.00

Grey/White Tulle Pleat Skirt
Price: US$22.00

Pointelle Scarf
Price: US$10.80

ASOS Grey Stud Detail Skinny Jeans
Price: UK £28.00 (US$48.60)

Style in the Trenches

Along with the little black dress and the crisp white button-down shirt, the trench coat is one of the most stylish and timeless designs in fashion history. As is the case with many classic items of clothing, this stylish cover-up began as a functional piece more so than a fashion trend.

The trench coat was invented in 1901 by Thomas Burberry, the founder of the Burberry fashion house and also the creator of gabardine fabric. He submitted the design to the United Kingdom War Office as an alternative to the heavy greatcoats worn by British and French soldiers in World War I. The classic trench coat is a ten-buttoned, double breasted long coat in khaki, beige, tan or black. Two notable differences from the great coat style were the additions of epaulets and D-rings and this updated design was named "trench coat" by the soldiers in the trenches.

photos courtesy commons.wikimedia.org and gettyimages.com

The trench coat continued to be a popular choice of army wear throughout World War II and many veterans kept them when they returned to their lives as civilians. The trench coat eventually became a fashionable clothing item for both men and women and even after more than 100 years, the trench coat is still synonymous with the Burberry name. Below is one of the photos from Burberry's F/W 08 campaign featuring a classic trench coat.

photo courtesy thefashionspot.com

Screen legends such as Joan Crawford, Clark Gable, Audrey Hepburn, Marlene Dietrich and Humphrey Bogart wore trench coats in various films and this also helped to popularize the trench coat among the public as they often tried to emulate this elegant and mysterious look. Below are Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's and Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca.

photo courtesy http://www.myspace.com/froshy and thegoldenera.net

Numerous modifications to the colour, fabric and cut of the trench coat have been made in order to appeal to the different generations that have gone by over the years but there are many people who still opt for the classic trench simply because it never goes out of style.

Below are a few lovely trench coats that will keep you chic and warm this fall.

Short Trench Coat
Price: US$24.99



Escape Balloon Sleeved Trench Coat
Price: US$62.00

Knit Trench Coat
Price: US$29.99

Leopard Print Belted Trench
Price: US$47.95

Safari Trench Jacket
Price: US$29.80

Lucille Checkered Coat
Price: US$58.00

Trench Jacket (wasabi)
Price: US$54.00

Together® Trench Coat
Price: US$89.00

RAINA Double Breasted Flared Trench Coat
Price: US$36.99

Red Houndstooth Trench Coat
Price: US$36.99
(use code FFATTRACTION at checkout for 10% discount)

Red Dress Days

Valentino once said, “Women usually prefer to wear black at events because it makes them feel safe, however, if there’s one woman wearing red, she will inevitably be the eye-catcher of the evening. It’s as though the room is suddenly illuminated- simply perfect for a grand-entrance”.(Source)

The designer would know as he has been an expert at creating beautiful and iconic red dresses for over 25 years and even has his own trademark red known as rosso Valentino.

photo courtesy lightswitchclothing.com

The reason why some women may be intimidated by the idea of wearing red is because the color is so bold and conveys many meanings. Red is frequently associated with guilt, sin, love, anger, passion, lust and love which are all very strong emotions.

As attention grabbing as the color is, red doesn't only work on ultra sexy, glamorous dresses as it can be just as effective on sweet, girlie dresses.

Red dresses have also been a huge part of cinema with confident, sassy female characters donning the color in a variety of silhouettes.

Below are Audrey Hepburn as Jo Stockton in Funny Face (1957), Kelly Le Brock as Charlotte in The Woman in Red (1984) and Nicole Kidman as Satine in Moulin Rouge! (2001).

photos courtesy princessmonkey.com, adorocinema.com and allposters.com

These confident ladies on the street show their individual ways of wearing red dresses, each dress and how it is styled communicating something different and unique about its wearer.

photos courtesy styleslicker.wordpress.com, facehunter.blogspot.com and
savvylondon.blogspot.com

Inject some bold color into your wardrobe with any of the lovely red dresses below.

Lux Modern Love Dress
Price: US$39.99
http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/catalog/productdetail.jsp?_dyncharset=ISO-8859-1&navAction=jump&id=14560973&search=true&isProduct=true&parentid=SEARCH+RESULTS&color=60

Chevron Contrast Dress
Price: UK £40.00 (US$78.08)
http://www.topshop.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?beginIndex=0&viewAllFlag=&catalogId=19551&storeId=12556&productId=704992&langId=-1&categoryId=&parent_category_rn=

Drop Waist Ruffle Sweater Dress
Price: US$29.00
http://www.forever21.com/twelve/product.asp?catalog%5Fname=FOREVER21&category%5Fname=12x12%5Fdresses&product%5Fid=2049722802&Page=1

Red Polka Dot Wrap Dress
Price: UK £28.00 (US$54.67)
http://www.debenhams.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_10001_10001_60252_622773_-1

Curvy Jersey Knot-Front Halter Dress
Price: US$75.00
http://www2.victoriassecret.com/commerce/application/prodDisplay/?namespace=productDisplay&origin=onlineProductDisplay.jsp&event=display&prnbr=8P-208238&cgname=OSKEYCLOZZZ&rfnbr=2201

Sweetheart Bustier Dress
Price: US$60.00
http://www.fredflare.com/customer/product.php?productid=3691&cat=103

Donna Morgan Cotton Eyelet Dress
Price: US$80.00
http://www.dillards.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=301&langId=-1&storeId=301&productId=501478112&Ntt=red+dress&Ntk=all&search.x=0&N=1000410&Nty=1&search.y=0&searchUrl=%2Fendeca%2FEndecaStartServlet%3FNtt%3Dred%2Bdress%26Ntk%3Dall%26search.x%3D0%26N%3D1000410%26Nty%3D1%26search.y%3D0&R=02610287

Coat Dress
Price: UK £35.00 (US$68.35)

http://www.oli.co.uk/Web/main/productdisplay.asp?An=673&Ntt=red+dress&A=33R808%5F12&N=0&Nty=1&Nao=16&Au=P%5FMasterItem&Nu=P%5FMasterItem&Ntx=mode%2Bmatchallpartial&Ns=P%5FColour%7C0%7C%7CP%5FSize%7C0&Ntk=PRIMARY

BB Dakota 'The Custom Dress'
Price: US$40.00
http://www.karmaloop.com/products.asp?ProductID=27464&VendorCode=BBD

By the way, I'd like to thank everyone again for offering congratulations for reaching 100 posts. You are all amazing and your kind words mean so much to me. Thank you :)

Fatal Attraction 2 - The Little Black Dress

We hear it all the time; every woman should have at least one little black dress (LBD) in her wardrobe. Another classic item popularized by the great Coco Chanel, the LBD has been around for decades. Early styles were simple and effortlessly chic, with full skirted and shift dresses being common choices.

photo courtesy vintagetextile.com

These days, while many women still opt for the classic LBD, modern versions have been updated to different silhouettes and include eye catching details to suit the times and the personal style of the wearer.

Actress Emmy Rossum attended the Metropolitan Opera on April 21 in a Fall 2007 YSL black ruffled minidress. While the shape of the dress is simple, the gorgeous details of the dress add more than enough interest.

photo courtesy justjared.buzznet.com

Below are some great LBDs that will stand out even in a sea of black.




#1: Stenay Sequin Dress - US$67.90
http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/2951358/0~2376788~6002242~6007533~6007554?mediumthumbnail=Y&origin=category&searchtype=&pbo=6007554&P=1

#2: Oasis Puff Sleeve Shine Dress - UK£30.00 (US$66.03)
http://www.asos.com/countryid/2/Oasis/Oasis-Puff-Sleeve-Shine-Dress/Prod/pgeproduct.aspx?iid=226302&cid=4166&clr=Black&Rf-200=4&sh=0

#3: Asymmetrical One Shoulder Dress - US$34.95
http://www.chicstar.com/storefront/listproducts.aspx?idProduct=4940

#4: Michelle Dress - US$54.50
http://store.delias.com/item.do?categoryID=1773&itemID=49417&sizeFilter=&colorFilter=&brandFilter=

#5: Ruffled Shift Dress - US$29.80
http://www.forever21.com/product.asp?catalog%5Fname=FOREVER21&category%5Fname=dresses&product%5Fid=2049062967&Page=all

#6: CAGEY Rosette Accented Minidress - US$26.99
http://stores.channeladvisor.com/cutesyshoes/items/item.aspx?itemid=5100057